Munich - Week 19

Elder Hadfield, S, Elder Carr

This is the shortened up version of S's road to baptism and to conversion in the gospel and the church of Jesus Christ. It has been a miracle filled road, which you will see, and it has been incredible to experience all these little miracles and observe the changes she has made firsthand.

The story actually begins long before we knocked on S's door. In fact, it begins far before where I will begin from, but for times sake, I'll tell it from my side. 

One of my first weeks in Munich, we had a Zone Conference where we talked about working better with members and the tactics we could use to improve our statistics and the overall enthusiasm of the members to help us achieve our goals and give the work a new dimension. So Elder Croft and I came home from that and said to each other, "Well, our ward is one of the more difficult ones to work with because everyone is either a brand new family which is extremely busy, or an old lady who we aren't allowed to visit alone with anyway." We discussed and analyzed the situation from a few different sides, and prayed about it together, and we came up with the answer that we needed to incorporate Preach My Gospel a little more with the members. So we made plans to do it. We called a family named the Habermann's, who was the high councilor for Passau when I was there. So I already knew him a little bit. We asked to come over and share something out of PMG. They said that was fine. We went over the next night, and they were so happy to see missionaries. It had been quite a few years since they had missionaries in their home. It was quite nice getting to know them, and looking back now, it was probably a little awkward from our side. But we talked about PMG and what it meant to us as missionaries, and invited them to read Ch. 1 together and to think about it. We left that night with such a good feeling it was hard to describe. We weren't really sure why at the time, but it's obvious looking back on it. We came back about 2 weeks later and followed up with them and talked about their trip to the Church History sites 20 years earlier and saw all their pictures and talked about what the gospel really meant to them. It was a very special appointment. We left after that without a return appointment, but felt yet again very good. 

The following Sunday, October 11, our bishop gave us names of supposed members that had moved in and we were to go by on them and invite them to church. The first person didn't actually live there and the second wasn't home. We found ourselves in a corner of our area we had never been in before, and we had about 15 minutes before we had to catch a bus to our next appointment. So we started dooring the apartment buildings. We got done with about 15 doors and we were ready to leave, but walking back, we both kind of stopped right in the middle of the courtyard and looked at the row of apartment buildings across from us. Numbers 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10. Elder Croft said, 'Which house do we need to do?' Without much hesitation, I said, "Number 8." I don't know why it was number 8, but that's just what flowed out of my mouth. We rang the first doorbell there and got a door slammed in our faces. At this point, I think we were both thinking the same thing. We were ready to walk out and go teach our appointment. But we both kept walking up the stairs to the next door. We rang and out popped S. We told her we had a video to show about Christ and His life, and she said, 'Oh, you have it easy with me, I'm already Christian.' We watched the video and she loved it. We talked really shortly about the restoration with her, and left her with tears in her eyes, and a Book of Mormon in her hands, with a return appointment for later that week. We weren't extremely sure if anything would come from it, but we both really hoped something would. 

The time came for our return appointment, and we could not get a hold of her. She wasn't answering her phones and we just thought she was ignoring us. Which would sadly be a common occurrence here. So we were stacked with appointments and deemed it a waste of time to drive all the way out to her if she wasn't going to be home. So we didn't go.

The following week I was on Austausch with Elder Jensen who now lives in the office. He and I had been contacting in the rain all day and had no success. We had an appointment with a new guy who lived a couple miles from S and when we went out there, the appointment fell out. We were both kind of ready to go home, and it was time to go home, but I felt that tug. The tug that says, 'No, there's another reason I sent you

here.' So I followed it to S's front door. She answered and told us that sadly her phone hadn't been working. She had waited for us the week before and we just hadn't come. I was so bummed. I felt so bad. She told us she had been reading but not fully understanding. So we set a return appointment and left for the night. We almost let her slip through the cracks, but caught her in time. Thank heavens.

So we came to this appointment with our GML, Jonathan Brons, and taught her about the Restoration which went great. She really understood it and that solid understanding of where the Book of Mormon comes from helped her to want to read more. She had some great insights to the first vision, because one time she had a motorcycle accident and had the whole life flash before eyes, bright white light, see that her life wasn't finished on earth, get thrown back experience. She said it was for sure possible that it could have happened. Great appointment, so we set up a new one and left. 

The second appointment, we had the feeling to call Br. Habermann, the guy whom we had met with. So we tried him but he couldn't make it, and was quite abrupt with us on the phone. We called a YSA/RM and had him come with us. It was a great lesson. We taught what we call our TRIPOD lesson, which is just the 3 things we do to receive answers and build our testimonies (Read, Pray, Go to Church). It was great yet again. So we set another appointment up to come later that week.

This time, we both felt again to call Br. Habermann. So we did, and he seemed a little hesitant, but told us he would come. (We learned later that he had canceled a family gathering to come with us that night). He came, and we had the most beautiful lesson that we could have had. To this day, S can't stop talking about the Plan of Salvation and it's because of this lesson. It was actually the first lesson we had after I had had a very crappy week and was stressed out and wondering why I was experiencing so much adversity. In this lesson, we were talking about the first half of the plan, up to our life on earth, and Br. Habermann asked if he could tell a story. He told the one about the missionary who had this dream of himself in the preexistence, where he had this friend who said, 'Find me', while he was on earth and then found him. S welled up with tears in her eyes, and said, 'It's been so long since someone cared for me, or was ever there for me.' Then I just felt it. Like a dagger. A total reminder of, 'This is why you're here, and is this is what the Savior would be doing if He was here.' That's when I was overwhelmed by emotions and we just sat there crying together. 

She slowly began to understand why she was experiencing what she was experiencing. She came to Stake Conference, which I'm sure wasn't easy, and loved Sister Kohler's testimony about sending a son out on a mission. She understood exactly what we were doing and why we happened to knock on her door. She wanted with all her heart to be baptized before Christmas. She gave up coffee even though it seemed hard to her. She went cold turkey with coffee. (: She kept coming to church, and her last hump was to talk to her children and family about changing churches and being baptized. She did a very good job of it, and it all worked out in the end. 

The confirmation was yesterday, and she asked me to perform it. I don't remember the last time I laid hands on someone's head and the words came so clearly. It will be an experience to remember my whole life. 

There is the story of S. She's been marvelous, and the Lord really does work 'in small and simple ways, that confound the wise.' It confounds me for sure every time. He is able to do His own work, I'm sure of that. He just gives me the blessing of helping, which I'm sure is frustrating for Him sometimes. I have not put life on pause for 2 years to serve the Lord. I am living the dream right now. I love being a part of this work, and would do it forever. (:

Thanks for all of your support. I love you all. Have a very Merry Christmas!! It's all true!

Elder Hadfield

Elder Sam Hadfield

Lommelstraße 7

81479 München

Deutschland

S Smith (mother of Sister Smith who went home with Elder Croft, touring the mission with their daughter and in Munich on Sunday sent this to me bright & early!): "my. He's amazing. After playing the hymns he gave a newly baptized sister the Holy Ghost. I didn't understand the blessing but the spirit was very very strong. He's a great missionary. He then played the piano for the primary kids to sing their Christmas song...And his companion is helping translate. Awesome elders!"

Christmas with the District 12/21/15