Hello friends and family!
I hope that you all had a wonderful week and enjoyed General Conference this week! :) I surely enjoyed every moment! It was a crazy week, but ended perfectly! I would love to tell you all the things that I learned and loved about Conference this week, but, I am going to do something a little different and tell you all about the things that I learned this week that I DIDN'T hear in Conference. They were lessons and things that I couldn't have learned in conference, rather, in real-life, personal experiences. Here it goes....
First, this Saturday, Hermana Mori and I finished watching the first session of Conference and had to go to the ATM to take out money to buy lunch since we didn't have a scheduled lunch that day with members. We walked to the local supermarket and took the money out and started walking back to the stake center (church building). On the way, I saw a man who looked a little out of the ordinary, which made me nervous, because I was thinking that maybe he would try to rob us (it has happened in the past, so I am always overly cautious!). He was a younger man of about 40 years, wearing raggedy clothing, unshaven, and well, his appearance made me nervous.
I began to walk faster as we passed him, trying to avoid what could have been a dangerous situation if he was going to rob us. As I walked by with my companion, he stuck his hand out and said nothing. We kept walking, and then, my companion taught me a lesson that I will never forget. She turned around, and started digging in her bag. I looked at her with a startled look on my face, because I thought she was going to try to give him money, which we can't do as missionaries. That was my mistake.
The man looked at her, waiting patiently to see what she would give him. She pulled out a small package of saltine crackers that she had found, and gave them to the man. He looked at her, his eyes full of hope and appreciation, and said "Gracias. Tuve hambre," which means, "Thank you. I was hungry." I wanted to cry as we walked away from him. My companion taught me a lesson that day. She did exactly as the Savior would have done. I personally did not have any food that I could have given him. But, she did what she could with the little that she had, even though he looked like he could have caused danger by his appearance. Moral of the story: Never judge a book by its cover, and love all men as the Savior would. I went home that day and repented for not helping him more. My eyes are opened, and I have been humbled :)
Next, we had M's baptism yesterday. It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon, and she looked beautiful in white <3 Things were great until we realized that the zone leaders had filled the baptism font with freezing cold water (that reminded me of my own baptism, LOL!) but, we were REALLY nervous because she is so old that she could get really sick from going under freezing cold water like that. The man who was going to baptize her entered first and said, "This water is freezing. This is not a good idea." But, Matilde got in the water, without hesitation. She was baptized, and when she came out, she said, "I feel so warm and felt like I was floating!" She told us that the water was never cold to her, and that it was an amazing experience. There is no doubt in my mind that angels were keeping her warm yesterday as she took one of the most important steps of her life and was baptized. What a miracle! :) We are beyond happy and feel so blessed :)
Well guys, I hope that you all have a great week, and remember, that all souls are of great worth in the sight of God. I love you all so much! Talk to you next week! :)
xoxoxoxo Hermana Avery
Preparing for Conference and a Baptism (September 29, 2014)
New Area and New Companion for Sister Avery (October 14, 2014)
