Hello Family!
I still just sit back, awestruck with everything that has
happened this past week. What a week let me tell ya :) First off, I have pretty
much a best friend as a companion. She is amazing. We work so well with each
other in lessons because we trust each other 100%. We laugh a lot. She is just
so funny. She has Kristen Mella's type of personality actually (if that helps
you at all haha). Contacting with her is so much fun because we don't hold
anything back. We are very lovingly bold and honest in the things we say :) and
we have found many wonderful people that we are now teaching because of it!
This week truly was a miracle, and Brampton is back on track
with brothers and sisters that are working towards baptism and working toward
the temple right now! Abigail is excited to go to the temple On March 7th, and
Mary from Mississauga will be going that same day too so I will get to be there
with her! Another woman named M..., and her boyfriend B... called us about a
week ago to reschedule an appointment we had with them. But we were so confused
because we didn't have an appointment with anyone named M... and B..... We
looked through some records and found them! They had been visiting with
missionaries for about a year in 2013 and stopped for some reasons, but they
are excited to start from the basics and work again towards baptism with
greater excitement! They came to Sacrament on Sunday before going out of town,
and it was easy to tell that they felt comfortable there. Old friends in the
ward were going up to them, giving them hugs - it is a missionary's dream to
see your friends fellow-shipped like that :) I love this ward.
Well you might be interested in the header of this email
when I talked about frostbitten toes... Well... I have frostbite on three of my
left toes :) Talk about a mission story right?! Three days ago, as we were
walking, my little toes felt like they were bruised or something and I guessed
that I stubbed them. That night I took my socks off and saw that they were
swollen! But it looked like they were just bug bites or something so I didn't
pay attention to them very much. The next day, Sunday, it was the coldest day
of the year, and of course that was the day that we had no appointments the
entire day haha. So we walked outside for a total of four hours straight in -42
C (that converts to -43.6 F) and no one was answering or letting us in. It was
so much fun. Sister Howle and I were laughing the entire time haha. Finally, we
decided the most effective thing was to organize our areas book to be more
effective with our formers. We went home, I took off my socks and they were
even more swollen and purple!! We called out mission nurse and now we have to
be indoors at all times in the time being. No more walking outside in -40
degree weather at the moment. It okay though. We will be out soon enough. Look
out Brampton :)
Alright, now for the best news of all. Our dear friend D...
:) I can't even try to tell you all the wonderful things that has been
happening to him lately, but I'll do my best. Two weeks ago Hermana Ridgeway
and I felt that we should tract this specific area, so we did so and found our
new friend D.... He told us about his life, about his wife being sick with
cancer, and he was just in the lowest of low in his life at that very moment
that we knocked on his door - planning to finish his life any day. The first
two times that we went to visit him, we just listened to him talk. He just let
out everything, all of his religious beliefs, the pains in his life, the
struggles and trials he has been going through - we taught him the Atonement
but we simply listened. At the end of the 2nd visit, we gave him a Book of
Mormon and promised him that it will bring him a lot of peace. D...'s wife died
the next day. He was distraught. In the greatest pain of his life he told us.
But he allowed us to come back two days later, we invited him to open the Book
of Mormon before we came. He did so and when we came, I could see a difference
in him. He was still in a lot of pain at that time of course, but his words
were much more positive. He had many questions about the Book of Mormon and we
taught him about all of it. He listened this time. He prayed at the end. The
spirit was undeniable. Then we continued to meet with him almost every day,
teaching small pieces at a time. Every day he had that much more light in his
eyes. He became so excited about everything. He was noticing so many little
miracles in his life - his relationship with his son increasing, his ability to
forgive other, he would wake up everyday with so much motivation to do
something, excitement to be living, different chances to serve other people,
etc.
D... has a lung disease that is killing
him and he is ready to die any time now, but he told us that his dying wish was
to be baptized. We told him about the spirit world and he said to us "I
don't want to wait until then to accept the gospel". We prayerfully
considered his baptismal date, and we told him we wanted to set a goal with
him. He gladly accepted. We told him that we knew he would be prepared to be
baptized on March 15. And then he started to weep. He gathered himself together
and told us "that is my mother's birthday. She died four years ago and
there is nothing I could do to honor her more than being baptized. There is no way
you could have known that."
Next experience, he came to church for
the first time and loved it. The last song that we sang was "God Be with
you till we meet again" and D... began to cry. He said that was the last
message he wrote on his wife's wall just before she passed away.
Yesterday, we went to visit him. He has
been reading the Book of Mormon everyday and can't stop reading it. He was so
excited to tell us, he couldn't wait until we sat down to tell us that "he
received his answer." He told us that he was reading after church on
Sunday and the feeling that he felt was undeniable. It kept coming stronger and
stronger. He knew it was all true. He received his answer at 3:14 in the
afternoon :) As a result of his confirmation, he made his decision that that
was his last day of smoking cigarettes. Going from 2 packs, he is now committed
to smoke no more. He said it with so much conviction :) And little did he know
that we were planning to teach him the Word of Wisdom! He gladly accepted to make
all those changes :)
I KNOW I came on my mission so that I could
meet D.....
I testify that this work is real. I have seen it more
powerfully this past week than any other week. I love you all and pray for you
everyday. God bless my wonderful family and friends! Have a great week!
Sister Bodine
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