Conferences and Miracles

Last Monday we had a wonderful lesson with Tanya in which we discussed temples and family history. I don't think I've ever seen anyone so excited to go to the temple before - she pulled out her calendar right there to figure out what day she would be able to take a train up to Kyiv to perform baptisms at the temple. She is hoping to go in the beginning of August, and I pray that she will be able to make it. She's an inspiration to me. Yesterday after church, we introduced her to the family history missionaries who got her started with researching her family line. Family history and temple work just get me all excited - this truly is one big redemptive work of salvation!

Wednesday evening I took my first ever ride on an electric train. The air conditioning and the doors that opened if you touched them were quite the treat. Even better than that, though, was a wonderful woman named Laresa. Instead of the compartments we usually ride in on normal trains, this train had bus-like seating so we were able to mingle with other passengers. Laresa and I had a wonderful conversation about the Book of Mormon, and when we arrived in Dnepropetrovsk even introduced us to her son-in-law and grandson. She and I are both a bit sad we don't live in the same city, but I'm excited that the missionaries in Dnepropetrovsk get to work with her.

Thursday was mission leadership council, which was an incredible meeting! The Spirit was very strong as we discussed the importance of relying on the Lord in missionary work. I truly have a testimony that when our prayers become sincere, the power of the Lord enters our lives. And that is a power that we cannot be without as missionaries. I am so grateful to the Lord that He has given us the sublime gift of conversing with Him through prayer. 

In addition to the spiritual uplift of mission leadership council and the instruction we received that will help us bless the lives of our missionaries and investigators, it was nothing short of delightful to see some of my dear friends again. Sister Burgoyne, whom I have not seen since we were companions, is now a sister training leader, so it was wonderful to see her at the meeting! (Side note of interest - we now have three sister training leaders and three assistants to the president, whereas there have only ever been two before. So that is kind of exciting.) It was also wonderful to see Elder Kruk, who is currently zone leader, branch president, and a trainer. Basically, he's amazing. I absolutely love the missionaries in this mission!

We stayed Wednesday and Thursday night with Sister Halliday and Sister Krisopolus on Left Bank. It was a whirlwind of a trip down memory lane as I worked in the area I began my mission in more than a year ago. It was really neat to see some of the members from my first branch and feel of their love and testimony. It feels like just yesterday I was living and serving there, but at the same time I see how much I have grown since last I was there. I'm grateful I had that chance to work on Left Bank again for a little while.

Saturday evening (after having a wonderful zone conference that morning),Sister Esplin and I had the opportunity of accompanying President and Sister vanBruggen to the Solodovnik home for dinner. It was wonderful to spend that time with my branch and mission president - they are both such great men, and I'm grateful for their example and influence in my life. And their wives are just incredible. :)

This Sunday was Simferopol branch conference, which meant that President and Sister vanBruggen came down. There were 65 people in attendance in Sacrament meeting, which is the largest church meeting I have ever been to in Ukraine (well, with the exception of that city conference in Dnepr where 100 people came from the three different branches. So 65 from one branch is amazing!) and there was just such power in such a large gathering of saints. It made me happy to see so many people I loved all in one place. President vanBruggen gave us some wonderful instruction regarding missionary work and especially how the members can help in the missionary effort. I know that everyone was inspired, and I am confident that we're going to see a big increase in our success in the coming weeks as a result of that.

Irena came to church again yesterday! She is a sweet, older woman, who just showed up at church last week. We are still not entirely sure how she found us, but we are grateful she did. She didn't want to meet with us last week, but yesterday after church when we again asked if we could set up an appointment, she agreed, and we're going over there tonight. I'm pretty excited about that!

Also after church yesterday, I noticed that Marina, a long-time friend of the church who is the most active non-member I know, was filling out a tithing slip. I asked her what she was up to, and she replied that she'd decided she wanted to try paying tithing and that she had gotten permission from President Solodovnik so to do. Intrigued, I asked her if she was preparing to get baptized. She replied that yes, someday she was. Something told me that I couldn't let this opportunity pass by, so I asked her if it would be okay if we talked for a few minutes. She and I and Olya (Sister Esplin went on exchanges to fulfill another obligation we had) had one of the sweetest lessons I have ever been on. We talked about her testimony, her desires, and her concerns. To be honest, I have always somewhat dismissed Marina as one of those people who will get baptized when she is ready, but that we shouldn't push her. Yesterday, though, I feel like I got to know her on a completely new level as we shared spiritual experiences and testimony together. I realized that she is much more prepared for baptism than she thinks she is, and I am confident that her "someday" is going to come very soon. My love for that young woman grew exponentially during that lesson, and I am grateful I have the opportunity to support her as she prepares for baptism. She indicated that she was serious about baptism, and although we did not set a baptismal date with her, I am incredibly excited that she is actively working toward baptism. The Lord's work is full of miracles, and I'm so grateful that He has sent me here to take part in them.

-Sharisa