Thank you to this sweet sister in Texas to let me know how my son is doing...
The evening Elder Kershaw and Elder Baldez came over for dinner with my parents, I had told them about a neighbor friend I had been thinking about. Elder Baldez extended a challenge for me to invite her to listen to the missionaries. I kind of laughed it off and said half heartedly, "Ya, I guess I can try." (really supportive, right?) I said that hoping they would maybe just forget about the whole conversation. BUT, just like good missionaries, they did not forget.
I received a call a few days later from Elder Baldez... "Hey Sister Johnson! Have you had a chance to call that friend yet?" again I laughed and sadly confessed that no... I had not. I repented of my laziness and said that I would actually try to follow through this time.
That night I decided to send a quick text to my neighbor just to check on her and see how she was doing. She replied saying that perhaps we could get together on the weekend to carve pumpkins. At this point I was too chicken to invite her to listen to the missionaries, because, as I'm finding out, inviting someone to listen to the missionaries is a REALLY SCARY THING.
The following Sunday I ran into the Elders. And actually, I must admit, part of me wanted to turn and run the other direction because I knew exactly what they were going to ask me. Sure enough, "Hey Sister Johnson! Have you had a chance to talk to your friend yet?". I was happy to report that indeed I did... just not about the missionaries. I told them that we were going to get together to carve pumpkins on the weekend and of course Elder Baldez's response was, "Perfect. We LOVE to carve pumpkins!". Again, I laugh it off and say something like, "Sorry Elders. It looks like it might not work.". Well, just then an older sister from the ward comes running up to me, "Sister Johnson, Sister Johnson... sorry to ask you last minute, but can you PLEASE feed the missionaries this weekend?"... this time I laugh to myself and think OKAY Heavenly Father. I get it. I looked at the missionaries, smiled and said, "Well, it looks like you're carving pumpkins this week."
It took a few days for me to get up the courage to text my friend and tell her that I was going to have the missionaries over to carve pumpkins with us. Finally, I said a little prayer and sent a quick text that went something like this, "Hey Marlene, I was asked to feed our cute missionaries this weekend and figured since they were away from their families and miss out on those fun Halloween festivities that I would have them carve pumpkins with us. So we'll carve pumpkins, eat pizza, and then, whenever the missionaries come the share a 15 minute Christ centered message with us." I was surprised with her response saying that it sounded great, that it was so kind of us to take care of the missionaries, and that she also was going to bring along her mom.
Long story, short... we all carved pumpkins. It was interesting and fun watching the missionaries in action. After carving we all sat down and the Elders shared a message. They talked about the restoration and Joseph Smith and then your son told the story of the first vision... and let me tell you, he did such a sweet job. The spirit spoke to my heart. It was a very special experience for me and my family to be apart of such a wonderful thing.
Nothing so far has come of the discussion... and who know's if anything will. But seeds were definitely planted and maybe that's all The Lord has in store for them right now.
But really, the whole reason for me sending this looooong winded email is to tell you how much I adore your son. I think maybe sometimes he might doubt himself, especially being paired with Elder Baldez who has been out for over 20 months. Elder Baldez is definitely more forward and has a tendency to take control of conversations, but your son has the ability to walk into a room and touch people's hearts just by being in their presence... which is probably the reason we love him so... especially our little Eden.
I received a call a few days later from Elder Baldez... "Hey Sister Johnson! Have you had a chance to call that friend yet?" again I laughed and sadly confessed that no... I had not. I repented of my laziness and said that I would actually try to follow through this time.
That night I decided to send a quick text to my neighbor just to check on her and see how she was doing. She replied saying that perhaps we could get together on the weekend to carve pumpkins. At this point I was too chicken to invite her to listen to the missionaries, because, as I'm finding out, inviting someone to listen to the missionaries is a REALLY SCARY THING.
The following Sunday I ran into the Elders. And actually, I must admit, part of me wanted to turn and run the other direction because I knew exactly what they were going to ask me. Sure enough, "Hey Sister Johnson! Have you had a chance to talk to your friend yet?". I was happy to report that indeed I did... just not about the missionaries. I told them that we were going to get together to carve pumpkins on the weekend and of course Elder Baldez's response was, "Perfect. We LOVE to carve pumpkins!". Again, I laugh it off and say something like, "Sorry Elders. It looks like it might not work.". Well, just then an older sister from the ward comes running up to me, "Sister Johnson, Sister Johnson... sorry to ask you last minute, but can you PLEASE feed the missionaries this weekend?"... this time I laugh to myself and think OKAY Heavenly Father. I get it. I looked at the missionaries, smiled and said, "Well, it looks like you're carving pumpkins this week."
It took a few days for me to get up the courage to text my friend and tell her that I was going to have the missionaries over to carve pumpkins with us. Finally, I said a little prayer and sent a quick text that went something like this, "Hey Marlene, I was asked to feed our cute missionaries this weekend and figured since they were away from their families and miss out on those fun Halloween festivities that I would have them carve pumpkins with us. So we'll carve pumpkins, eat pizza, and then, whenever the missionaries come the share a 15 minute Christ centered message with us." I was surprised with her response saying that it sounded great, that it was so kind of us to take care of the missionaries, and that she also was going to bring along her mom.
Long story, short... we all carved pumpkins. It was interesting and fun watching the missionaries in action. After carving we all sat down and the Elders shared a message. They talked about the restoration and Joseph Smith and then your son told the story of the first vision... and let me tell you, he did such a sweet job. The spirit spoke to my heart. It was a very special experience for me and my family to be apart of such a wonderful thing.
Nothing so far has come of the discussion... and who know's if anything will. But seeds were definitely planted and maybe that's all The Lord has in store for them right now.
But really, the whole reason for me sending this looooong winded email is to tell you how much I adore your son. I think maybe sometimes he might doubt himself, especially being paired with Elder Baldez who has been out for over 20 months. Elder Baldez is definitely more forward and has a tendency to take control of conversations, but your son has the ability to walk into a room and touch people's hearts just by being in their presence... which is probably the reason we love him so... especially our little Eden.
Thank you for being such a great mom to a wonderful young man. You definitely did something right!
In the second to last picture, the lady on the far left is my friend Marlene. Next to her is her daughter Katherine. I also offered to let the Elders wear my frilly aprons, but they politely declined. ;)
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