The Weeks Keep Getting Shorter and Shorter

The weeks keep getting shorter and shorter and I'm not sure what event happened which week anymore...lol, but I'll do my best to recount everything!

So, this week we got a new investigator! Every dinner we have with the members, we do a little lesson with them about how to do missionary work in their own lives. We usually challenge them to give away a Book of Mormon or to invite one of their friends over to dinner or to a discussion sometime. This is a fairly recent thing so we haven't gotten a lot of feedback yet, until one of the couples in our ward told us if we could teach their friend!! So we made arrangements and began teaching him! (Just FYI doing missionary work through members is THE MOST effective way of doing it, so this is a big deal because he already has someone to fellowship him and help him when were not there!)

We taught him twice now, and at the beginning of our lesson with him last night he told us he was atheist, but by the end of our lesson I extended the invitation to be baptized, he replied "yea probably!" So we are SO excited and hope he continues to progress!

Our main focus this week has been preparing our other investigator for his baptism this Saturday! He is so willing and motivated to get there, but he has hit some stumbling blocks. There's a possibility the baptism wont happen this weekend, but that's okay! We want to make sure he is completely ready to make this covenant with the Lord with no regrets and never look back! He will get there.

Nothing super interesting happened this week, we just keep working! A funny moment was when Sister Platt and I were trying to contact some former investigators late one night before going home - we stopped at one house and knocked on the door. We heard a ton of dogs barking and after a little while the door opened. What I saw next seriously reminded me of something out of a horror movie. Okay its not that dramatic, but it was still creepy! The guy who opened the door was stumbling around with a cigarette (or something else) in his hand. He had long messy hair and just a button down sweater for a shirt. Everything was dark so I couldn't see his face. Sister Platt and I kept saying hello and trying to ask his name, but he wouldn't respond - he just stood there. Finally, with all his dogs barking chaotically around him he said in a scratchy panicky voice, "I cant talk right now my dogs are barking!"... then closed the door and that was that. Lol so that was fun!

Another just glorious experience I had this week was putting my hand in poop. This was not an intentional act... We had gone over to an old widow's house to check up on her and see how she was doing. She asked us if we could take her laundry downstairs and if I could pick up her pants off the floor along with it. Of course I said yes and picked them up and proceeded to go downstairs with Sister Platt. All of a sudden my fingers touched something wet on the pants...I thought to myself 'oh please be water...' and smelled my fingers. Yea, that wasn't water. I threw the pants downstairs and ran to the nearest sink. I prayed long and hard that night thanking God for soap and water and hand sanitizer.

Well, on that lovely note I think I'll end this post haha! Despite my thrilling stories I really LOVE doing service for others! It is the only way we can feel the true and pure love of Christ. And by doing this, we learn other's stories and connect and form relationships with people we otherwise wouldn't have. Reach out and serve someone EVERYDAY! Its not always comfortable or convenient, but this is when it is the most rewarding!!!

I hope you all had an awesome Valentines day - I sure did!!! Thank you for your love and prayers! Keep reading and praying everyday!

Love you all,
Sister Loyd