Elect of the Lord - Sister Maren Madsen

Written by Sister Maren Madsen, serving in the Arkansas Little Rock Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Spanish.  

So this week was a little rocky, but turned out very good in the end. Sunday night (I think it was), we were talking to the woman who was super born again Christian and very nice, but "knew that the Book of Mormon wasn't true" (I feel really bad for confused people). My trainer was struggling to the max! She said that she hadn't gotten bashed her last two transfers (I am her second baby and her first companion was her trainer.. She has only been out 2 months longer than me). She hasn't been anti-ed at all. But I guess I am the bad luck charm because it seems like every other person is more than happy to tell us we are wrong. In a weird way, I am grateful for it. I can see my testimony growing stronger because of it. But my poor companion was struggling big time, and that was hard. But after a little council from President, a priesthood blessing, and lots of prayers and personal study, we are back on track. It was hard for me to trust her in some parts of the lesson because she wasn't able to testify, but we are working through it. I have just been feeling like a slacker missionary lately because I just think that we could be working harder and stop visiting the the people who are clearly not ready to hear the gospel. :) I love to hear their excuses. They make me laugh pretty hard. But I think we have gotten better at it.

Well towards the end the week we went to a trailer park I hadn't been to before. But Hermana Ponce had told me a story of how (with her trainer) they were driving and just felt like they needed to tell somebody they were loved. But they weren't sure who. So they went to the trailer park and decided after a little bit to go to 53 because that was the number that Hermana Ponce had kept thinking about. They knocked on the door and a lady answered. They told her that they didn't know why, but that they felt like they needed to tell her that God loves her. I guess she started to cry and she told them that they would have to come visit her sometime.

Two months later we went to that same trailer and turns out she has a daughter, age 11, who is very elect. She has been begging her mom to be baptized and her mom has been telling her that she doesn't want her to do it just in any church, she wants it to be for the right one... well here we are :) It was such a good lesson and we were able to talk about the Restoration and the priesthood and go into a little of the plan of salvation and prophets. It was one of those lessons where if we had all the hours of the day, we could teach them everything. It was a very spiritual lesson. More than once, all of us cried. The best part though, was when we showed a video about struggles by some of the apostles and the prophet, and I felt the spirit so strong. After the video the mom had asked if we had ever met him in person. Neither of us had, but we told her that there is always a sweet feeling of peace when we have gone to General Conference. She then told us that the reason she was asking was because she felt something when he was speaking (President Thomas S. Monson)... it was a beautiful lesson and L** (the daughter) ended up coming to church yesterday. She is so cute!

The only thing that is really sad it that they are English speaking, so we have to give them up to English missionaries.... que triste:'( but they are elect!

Love Y'all! Que Tengan una buena semana.

Con Amor,

Hermana Madsen


Doubt Not, Fear Not (June 15, 2015)

Baptism in Mississippi  (June 29, 2015)