Baptism and Earwigs!

 Hello there backyard friends and country critters!

We had another fantastic week in home sweet home. The time is flying by! I can't believe we're almost done with July! We still can't talk to people in person, but we're allowed to start doing organized service again! 

The most disturbing thing happened to me last week while I was studying. I took a drink out of my water bottle and I felt something chunky come out of the straw into my mouth, so I spat it out, and it was an earwig! I still shudder at the thought. So gross. The good thing is that I haven't seen a single earwig in our apartment since! 

Sister Hill's grandpa passed away last week. She was really sad about it. I was praying and trying to think of ways I could help her feel better. The idea popped into my head to have our own little funeral service! I collected sticks and vines, and sister Hill and I made a little boat! We bought candles to put on our boat, and we let it go into the lake as we sang God be with you till we meet again. It was fun and Sister Hill said it meant a lot to her. She's such a tough cookie. I admire her for her spiritual strength and resilience. 

We had zone conference this week! We got to give another discussion about the importance of teaching the Why's of the gospel. It went really well, and we shared about Chris's conversion story. The WHY is our motivation to live the gospel of Jesus Christ. Once we read in 3Ne 11:33 about being baptized to inherit the kingdom of God, it clicked for Chris! 

Sister missionaries found Chris way back in January in a Kroger parking lot. He said he needed to make more room for Christ, so he agreed to meet with them, but he wasn't sure about the Book of Mormon, and was comfortable with the religion he grew up in. When I first met with Chris he wasn't sure if he wanted to continue meeting with us because of the responsibility that comes with being a member of our church. Over time the word of God softened his heart, he developed friendships in the ward, and he felt like we really cared about him. It took a couple of months, but when he was ready to jump in, he was all in! We met with him almost everyday for the last 2 weeks to teach him everything we needed to. He was baptized on Saturday! He is such a positive and genuine guy. He calls us his Charlie's Angel's Haha! 

We had a similar experience where the gospel clicked with Cole this week. I love seeing the Holy Ghost turn the wheels in his heads. At the height of a spiritual moment, Cole's eyes got wide and he exclaimed with joy, "I get it!" It clicked why living the Word of Wisdom helps us feel the Holy Ghost in greater abundance. Cole is going to be baptized in the YSA ward this Saturday. Since the sisters over the YSA ward are so packed with lessons all day we've been team teaching Cole so that he can get all the lessons before his baptism. His enthusiasm to learn the gospel is awesome! He takes notes on everything we teach and asks really good questions! I'm sad I won't be able to attend his baptism in person, but thank goodness we might be able to join over zoom. 

At zone conference President shared a scripture in D&C 45:26-32 with us about what is going on in the world right now! It's kind of long, but I wanted to share it because it literally blew my mind! 

     "And in that day shall be heard of wars and rumors of wars, and the whole earth shall be in commotion, and men’s hearts shall fail them, and they shall say that Christ delayeth his coming until the end of the earth.

      And the love of men shall wax cold, and iniquity shall abound.

       And when the times of the Gentiles is come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of my gospel;

     But they receive it not; for they perceive not the light, and they turn their hearts from me because of the precepts of men.

     And in that generation shall the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

     And there shall be men standing in that generation, that shall not pass until they shall see an overflowing scourge; for a desolating sickness shall cover the land.

     But my disciples shall stand in holy places, and shall not be moved;"

I know that nothing is too hard for the Lord. If it's His will he will find a way to do it! Sister Brown said, "God will show us he is great when we feel limited, just to show us he is not." There are no limits to what he can do. This has been even more evident during Covid 19. Our mission has been baptizing more than ever and we are continuing to find people to teach all from our little apartments. What a privilege we have been given to live in this last dispensation. Love you all, and have a good week!

Happy trails!

-Sister Butler

sis hill and I

our funeral service 

baby deer sneaking up on us 

Chris's baptism 

 

Chris's baptism