Yeah...this week was exactly what my subject says...too good to be true. Miracle after miracle, SO many blessings!
To start off...Sam is getting baptized on Saturday! but guys!!!!!!! not just Sam, DEVINEE, her sister is too!!! A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that their mom wouldn't let Devinee since she is only 16 years old. We took that leap of faith and invited Sam to be baptized with the hope that their mom would see the positive influence the church will have in her life, and then maybe, let Devinee get baptized sooner than when she turns 18. Well, after church yesterday, Devinee ran up to Sister Jarvis and me with a huge smile on her face and said, "Sister Fletcher, you must be a psychic." I was confused and replied, "Why?!!" She said, "Remember yesterday during our lesson, you said you had a feeling I would be able to get baptized sooner than we all thought? My mom sat me down last night and said, "If Sam is getting baptized, you might as well get baptized on the same day." OH MY GOODNESS!!!!! So now both Sam and Devinee will be baptized on Saturday. I am so so so so so excited for these cute girls, I just love them SO much. I have never met such prepared people in my entire life. There will be a youth temple trip on August 12th that they will now be able to go to. Man, just thinking about all the blessings ahead of them in their life...I'm so happy and proud of them :)
We received a referral from the elders last week over in Niceville for an investigator named Ronnie Way. He went to church out there last Sunday with a friend and told the elders he actually lives in Crestview which is our area. We went over to his place on Saturday and taught him the restoration. He seemed super interested and intrigued about our message and totally recognized the need for a prophet and that the Book of Mormon could be true. He said he knows the Bible better than any baptist preacher and it makes sense that God would give us another testament of Jesus Christ to show His love for His children on every continent. He then showed us his ankle bracelet...and told us he had just gotten out of prison last August after being there for 10 years. He talked about how miserable it was and how it really made him turn to the scriptures and prayer. He seemed so sincere and genuine and expressed his desire to turn his life around. He came to church with us the next day and halfway through sacrament meeting, told us he needed to use the restroom. He came back in the chapel, tapped me on the shoulder, and asked me to come out to the lobby. Sister Jarvis and I followed him out as he apologized to us for leaving his gps tracker at home. If his parole officer found out he had done this, he would be in serious trouble so our ward mission leader took him back home. He was texting us all day telling us how much he loved church and how excited he was to keep learning more. He is already in the book of Jacob in the Book of Mormon. Crazy! It is just the coolest thing, meeting with people who have had such challenging lives, who want to change and repent and better their relationship with Heavenly Father. I just feel so blessed to be meeting these incredible people out here who are completely changing my life and my perspective.
My mom sent me a talk by Elder Holland where he shared an amazing experience of a missionary who actually found and eventually baptized his long lost brother whom he had never met before. It confirmed to me how each missionary is called to his/her mission through divine inspiration and for reasons we may not know or understand at the time. The more I have been out here, I have realized the reasons I have been called to the Florida Tallahassee Mission. I have truly come here to find my friends, the people I promised before this life that I would come here to find. Sam and Devinee are two of those people, and I know there are more eternal friends out here just waiting to hear of this gospel from me!
The missionary who found his brother in Elder Holland's talk said, "God has sent me here to invite you to come home." That's exactly how I feel out here. As missionaries, we are just inviting those who have, for whatever reason, taken a different path, or those who have not been exposed to the gospel in the first place, to come home. How great is this calling :)
I love you all! Have a wonderful week!!
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