"We'll Bring the World His Truth"

Ukrainian Egg

In typical Crimean fashion (so we are told) the weather this week went from blizzardy and cold early in the week to 20 C today, with a few ups and downs in between. It rather makes me feel like I'm back in Utah. As much as I enjoyed those little snow days, I'm quite grateful for the spring (or summer . . .) that has so kindly descended upon us.

We saw a number of miracles this week of running into people that we haven't seen for a while. It's always a reassuring testimony to me that we are in the right place at the right time when something like that happens. I'll just mention a few of those experiences. First off, we ran into a Mexican/Indian friend of ours named Abhi. Twice. We'd met him a while ago and he had come to English church services once, but due to his lack of a telephone, we lost contact with him. Thus, it was quite joyous to run into him on two separate occasions this week and find out that he is about half-way through the Book of Mormon. Then there was Zhena (I just realized I don't know how to transliterate that one . . .), the girl we gave a Book of Mormon to a while ago who was happy to see us again. And then that man whose name I never remember but that has known missionaries for a long time and reads his Book of Mormon occasionally. And we had a nice lesson with a sweet old babushka on a park bench, whom Sister Bates and I occasionally saw. And then the best running-into-someone miracle probably deserves its own paragraph.

Last night, we had planned to have a lesson with a couple students from Namibia. Right outside their dormitory, however, we found out they could no longer meet. A little saddened (especially because we'd just been told that we as missionaries are not allowed into that dorm any longer), we started talking to people in the park. We struck up a conversation with a young man from Nigeria. As we began talking with him, it became evident that he knew missionaries, and he told us the names of those elders who had befriended him. I suddenly remembered district meetings where a boy by the name of Peter had been discussed, and I asked this boy what his name was. And what do you know, this was the Peter of whom I had heard so much.  He asked if we had some time (I love it when people steal our lines!) and we sat down in the park and talked about God. That is probably the only time on my mission I've been taught the entire Restoration on a lesson - he knows so much about the restored gospel! We had a wonderful conversation with him, and I was incredibly inspired by his testimony and love of the Savior. He expressed his desire to preach the gospel, and told us how frustrating it is that he doesn't know Russian well enough to share it with people - I was amazed by that! He shared with us some of his family and other difficulties that are preventing him from joining the church, and I really pray that someday those will be resolved so that he can become a member of the restored church of Jesus Christ. At the end of that conversation, we were able to meet Peter's brother Chris. Chris was very excited to receive his own copy of the Book of Mormon, and I have great hopes that someday those two young men will enter the waters of baptism. I'm grateful for the times when miracles happen through things going "wrong."

We had some wonderful experiences in Sevastopol this week, including meeting a wonderful woman on the ferry who was interested in the Book of Mormon. (Side note - that was my first ferry ride in Ukraine, and I quite loved it!) We were also able to contact that referral family from Valentina up in Dnepropetrovsk. The mother was home and let us in and we got to know her and talked with her about the Restoration. For the time, she is (sadly) not interested in learning more, but will hopefully be taking her two sons to our English practice out there. We also had a lesson with a recent convert out there named Nina, and I was amazed at how completely the lesson we'd planned applied to the needs we didn't know that she had. God truly does look after His children.

This week, I was giving the spiritual thought at the end of English practice. As I concluded my testimony of the Savior and His Atonement to the group of 20 or so Ukrainians, a couple men began asking some very difficult questions. As I stood there trying to answer these questions, the Spirit told me, "Teach the plan of salvation." So I obediently turned around and began drawing the plan of salvation on the chalk board and explaining God's plan for us. That turned out to be an incredibly powerful experience. Over the next 20 or so minutes, we discussed our purpose on earth and our potential to return to God and become like Him. I was grateful that there were three or four members there who were able to further back up what we taught, and I was especially happy that Anton and Kristina (that couple that I love dearly and whom we are trying to begin teaching) stayed for the entire explanation of the plan! God is merciful. I'm grateful for the knowledge that we have of His plan and our purpose on earth.

Yesterday we had a fireside. As part of that fireside, the six missionaries in Simferopol sang "We'll Bring the World His Truth." I don't quite know how to express how powerful that was, but as we joined our voices in proclaiming our joy and excitement to be bearers of Christ's word, I was filled with an intense sense of gratitude and happiness. This truly is the word and the work of the Lord. I know that this is His true church. I am grateful for this opportunity to be a missionary and take His gospel into the world.

-Sharisa