Pretty normal week this week

We did a lot of street finding and had some lessons.  One of our appointments with a guy ended up being a fake address. But I felt that we should stay in the area and knock a few doors around. So we did and there was a man that was like ya come on back.  Kinda crazy, one of the first ones that was so like ya sure.  

One lady misunderstood tithing- she thought it was a requirement to pay to be a member of the church.  We were just doing a door stop and explained that it was a commandment, but no one was required to pay to be a member of the church.  She agreed to let us come back and visit more about it.  So we stopped back by and she was like don’t come knock again or else I will call the police. We have no idea what is going on with her- so we will see what happens.   

We asked one guy why he hadn’t read the Book of Mormon and he was like I am busy.  So we asked what can we do to help you read and he was like- well there is one thing you can do, make the day 26 hours long!  Good sense of humor- love it!  

Able to share the Plan of Salvation with a person who was having a tough time dealing with some loved ones passing away.  We have a couple who are progressing in their testimonies and making steps towards baptism. 

We also had a workshop for the youth in the area.  They were having a youth camp and asked the missionaries to do a few workshops that morning. The sisters taught about repentance and we taught about hard work.  It was a pretty good day.  We talked about how with hard work we will be able to accomplish things, that if we work hard, things will be better for us.  Then shared a video about a man that talks about how in order to be successful, we need to fight through the hard times, the pain and sacrifice things.  Then we linked it into the gospel of Jesus Christ, and how it is a progression gospel. There is no such thing as standing still in the gospel. It’s an escalator, if you don’t walk forward, you will go down. That we need to work hard in order to progress in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Then we shared some personal experiences. 

For service this week, we were able to help paint a house.  Love service!

Quote for the week-  Orson Pratt, “The children of Zion love in proportion to the heavenly knowledge which they have received; for love keeps pace with knowledge, and as the one increases so does the other; and when knowledge is perfected, love will be perfected also.”  That in order to have more love, we should study the scriptures more.  I thought that was a pretty good quote.

Thanks for everything- Love, Elder Stevenson

Another week down

Another week is down. Sometimes it seems the week goes super slow, and other weeks they go even slower, but most weeks they go pretty quick.   We did a lot of finding again this week.   And some more cancelled lessons.   We did have a few lessons this week.  Also a Zone Meeting in a neighboring town which took most of one day.  This week for p-day President Jordan met us at a member’s home and provided a big bbq complete with American hamburgers from Costco.  It was pretty cool!

We usually do lessons in homes or at the church. But this one evening, we decided to do the lesson at a park.  We met the investigator there and had a good lesson.  While we were teaching him, the sun was setting and geese from everywhere started to come in from all directions to land in the lake for the night. It was a pretty cool thing to witness.

We were able to have another day of service at member’s home also. Loved that!  We cut down some more trees, and cleaned up the branches.  Nice to just have physical labor.  I felt much better after getting a chance to work hard, good stress reliever. 

We had planned to go to town centre one evening, but we didn’t even make it there.  We almost got to the entrance and my companion stopped a guy. He talked for a long time with him, so I just stopped everyone that was walking out of town centre.  It was a good evening. 

One appointment cancelled in an area of town that we don’t normally go into.  We were walking and three teenagers stopped us.  They had seen the documentary about what Mormons believe and had a lot of questions. We visited with them for about 30 minutes about everything from the law of chastity, word of wisdom, the purpose of life, a lot of things.  They are pretty interested in learning more- and it all started with a documentary trying to make fun of us. 

One of our investigators is trying to live the gospel to the fullest, even wanting to fast with us this week.   And saying prayers on a daily basis. It was hard to remember to pray awhile back, but now it’s just automatic, like not even a thought anymore.

Thanks so much for all the support and prayers- it really means a lot!

Love, Elder Stevenson

Long week of Missionary Work

Because of transfers last week and possibly needing to go to London for them, we didn’t have any lessons planned on Wednesday.   We both stayed, but didn’t have anything planned, so a long day of finding.  Most of the appointments we had planned for the week fell through as well, so a lot more time trying to find people to teach.  One of the guys we contacted gave us his address to come contact him and it ended up being a school…. So that was a real funny joke?!?!? 

We did enjoy dinner with one of the recent converts in the area.  It was pretty cool.  One of our investigators had to call and say not to come. He was locked in his house!  That’s right locked in his house. Houses here in England have a key to unlock from the outside like we do in America, but they also have a key to unlock from the inside, there is not a knob thing on the inside to lock or unlock.  Have to check back with him another time.

As we were walking home one night, we walked past this guy. About ten seconds later my companion said I think we should have talked to him.  I was like ya, we should have, let’s go back.  We went and stopped him.  He was a man that sits there every evening kinda just relaxing.   We found out he’s been through some hard times.  He said some previous missionaries had stopped and visited with him before.  He didn’t think anyone understood how he felt and no one knew what he was going through.  I talked to the guy about Christ suffering for us and how we can see our families again, about the afterlife and all that.  He asked how did I know it was real.  And questioned if I could really know. I said that yes I can actually.  I explained that I know there is life after death, and talked about my experiences with death and how that is why I know it to be true.  I just know it.  He was kinda astonished. But it was a good thing and he agreed to let us come to his home sometime.

For p-day this week we played football. There was a kid from Idaho in the group and so we were able to talk some country talk for a little.  We end up spending a lot of time with the other Elders also. We all stay at the flat during study times in the mornings. Although we cook separately, we usually eat lunch and dinner at the same time. We also have the same planning time and we often see them throughout the day, especially when doing service or at meetings. It’s been good.

  I have been eating a lot of chicken salads and lost about 10 pounds since I got to this new area.

 

Sunday the lesson was on Sacrifice- latin- Sacer-Facere which means sacred to make, so making things sacred to God. And it was about how true sacrifices are hard to give. It is something that is hard to give up. If it is easy, it’s not a true sacrifice.  But sacrificing is giving something up for something of greater worth. So for instance, giving up 10 percent of your income to receive as the scriptures say- Open up the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that they will not be room enough to receive it. Something of great worth.

Our mission had 56 baptisms last month, the highest it has been in decades. The goal was 50, so it’s really good.  Truly hastening the work of the Lord.  Next month will hopefully be higher. 

Thanks everyone for all that you do, and for all the prayers and emails/letters I get. Have a great week!

Love, Elder Stevenson

Service and Staying

This was a crazy fast week.  I have a concept- time is a man made thing.  So when you are working harder in the Lord’s work, somehow I don’t know how, but somehow he makes the time skip a few hours.  The beginning of this week went sooo fast.

We were able to do a lot of service this week. I love doing service.  We helped lay some hard wood floors.  It was super fun and a good experience.  It was actually pretty easy. We did some more gardening at the member’s house.  And helped another member with some yard clean up.  I got to run a gas powered lawn mower for the first time in a while.  Also sawed up a lot of tree limbs.  It was super fun. One of the people we helped had a dog and I got to play with the dog for awhile as well. I miss playing with dogs. Also I miss the good old fashion physical labor, I can honestly say I can’t wait to dig out a pivot again. Call me crazy, but I can’t wait for it!  I love doing service, it gives me a chance to do what I do best- physical labor. 

   

While teaching one of our investigators this week I used the example of scissors for faith and works.  We were discussing which was more important- faith or works.  So I asked which one is more important on the scissors, the top blade or the bottom blade.   They are both important, just like faith and works. 

Sunday a lot of people were gone from church.  We had planned to do the musical number- “Brightly Beams our Father’s Mercy.”  It went really good.  One of the sister missionaries taught the Sunday School Class.  One of the other elders had a talk that day.  My companion ended up playing the piano. And there had been a miscommunication and the final speaker didn’t know he was supposed to talk, so I volunteered to finish out the meeting. I spoke for fifteen minutes.  I used examples of Job, how he was being sent through trials beyond compare. And I shared experiences where I had felt that I had been through a lot.  How faith was able to help me through those trials and the power of faith in our lives.  Finally I talked about how prayer is how we are able to overcome those trials and push through them. We have to have faith in Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father and their timing.  Then I talked about the need of us to fulfill our things to the best of our ability and it would show that we have true faith and have been truly converted to the Lord. I closed with the work will not reach its full potential until members and missionaries are equally yoked. It was a good experience for me to be called up on the spot and be able to share things that connected and helped people. Before my mission I wouldn’t have been able to take two minutes of the time. But it was good to be there talking for 15 minutes, totally guided by the Spirit, nothing that I had planned at all. 

My Breakfast

                                                                   

My lunch
Just Kidding- some snacks from the local American sweets shop.

In my studies this week, I came across this quote:  “Excuses are easy to find, they spring up as readily and plentiful as weeds by the wayside.”  By James E Talmage

Five of six missionaries in the ward are staying through the next transfer.  One of the sisters was changed.  So I’ll be here with my same companion for another six weeks.  He is going to be a wonderful missionary. 

Thanks for all of the love and support.  Love, Elder Stevenson

[Note: Casey sent home a few video clips of them out on the streets and around the apartment. They are having a good time working together, playing together and learning together.]

Good Week- Passed my Driving Test!

We were teaching one of our investigators this week. The lesson was on the Plan of Salvation and the person we were with basically taught us about the kingdoms of glory and about our purpose on earth- it was great! 

We love to have dinner appointments with members of the ward.  It helps to develop a great trust and helps us to get referrals.  

We have learned to follow through with plans.  One day we had plans for an appointment about an hour away walk. We were not sure it would go through, but we went anyways because that was our plan.  We went and no one was home. But because we had planned to go that way, on the way back, we found a great guy.  Who if we wouldn’t have been doing our plan, we would have never found.  Just shows the importance of always following through with your plan.  Due to the fact the Lord will put prepared people in our path.  Another time we walked 30 minutes to an appointment that wasn’t there, but on the way back we found a lady who was happy to talk with us.

Last week at interviews we were talking about things we have been blessed with. And it led me to think about what have I been blessed with since being on my mission. I have lost friends, I have always been tired, and I have no time for myself.  But then it led me to think also- I have a lot more knowledge of the gospel. I have a better understanding of the scriptures.  And the one thing that stuck out to me the most- is more patience in the Lord’s timing.  I have done a lot of finding on my mission and I feel it’s because the Lord is trying to teach me a lesson about patience with his timing.  When my brother was killed, I had a lot of questions.  Why now? Why Him? Why…Why…Why.  I had no patience with His timing, I wasn’t looking at an eternal perspective. I only looked at the here and now and it was unfair.  But since my mission my attitude towards all of eternity and patience has changed.  I have spent countless days of spending all day talking to people and have been beat down all day.  But I keep working, I don’t know why.  Other than the fact I am a Stevenson. But no matter how the work is going I give it my all because I know one day it will all be worth it. It may not be today or tomorrow or in 2 years or in 20 years, but it will come.  On the Lord’s timing.  The day will come when I will know why, when I will be blessed so much because of the work I am putting in on my mission. I wasn’t sent to England to sit on my butt and wait for things to be given to me. But I was sent here to work my butt off even when quitting would be a much easier way.  But I love I have for the Lord shows in the work ethic I have.

I took my practical driver’s test and passed!  I had been really worried about it- it’s a tough test. 

 I am learning to enjoy playing Rugby with the other missionaries on p-days.

This week I was studying the calling of the 12 Apostles and it was super cool. Just how chosen they were and when they were chosen, they dropped all to follow him. One example was that they needed to leave their family and go. And it doesn’t necessarily mean that we chose our family or Jesus Christ. But it means that if it came down to choosing one, we would trust in God and choose Jesus Christ. For an example, someone who is a convert to the church that their parents said if they got baptized they would disown them. They get baptized anyways, they choose between Jesus and family and they trusted in God. Also in a talk, it said true success in this life comes only through consecrating ourselves to the Lord. That is the only way to have true success. To consecrate ourselves to the Lord.

Thanks everyone for all that you have done. I enjoy all the emails, love and support I have felt.

Love Elder Stevenson

Harvesting...

We did some street contacting this week, had some lessons with some of our investigators, and did some service.  About the same as most weeks.  One of our investigators has been a little confrontational in the past, this week he said he was just going to listen to what we had to say.  As we were teaching I felt impressed to share the First Vision with him again.  It was really weird to teach it so out of order, but the spirit was the strongest it has ever been while sharing a lesson with him. 

We also had interviews this week with the Mission President.  He is a great president. I have grown to love him a lot.  During interviews we talked about how the gospel is centered on agency.  Whenever we teach, the people have the choice of accepting it or not.  We try to teach with the spirit.  2 Nephi 33:1 “For when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men.”  When we teach by the spirit it only goes unto the heart, because they still have to accept it or not.  It’s their agency.  God cannot give us agency and then when we are about the make a wrong choice take that agency away.  It doesn’t work like that. We have the ability to make choices, we do not however have the ability to choose the consequences of our actions.

For service this week, we were in the middle of no where.  Well the guy lives in a town of about 47 houses, not like back home- where the middle of no where is when the nearest neighbor is a mile away.  Anyway this guy had a big front and back lawn and flowers beds that needed weeded.  I am becoming a professional gardener with all of this service.  I wasn’t made to be an office junky.  We also worked in a member's vegetable garden.  The other Elders went with us and we picked peas and dug some potatoes.  We will be eating a lot of potatoes, sharing some with the sister missionaries.  So good to get into the dirt again! Love doing service!  

Things are going alright in England. Thanks for all the support!  Love, Elder Stevenson

A Week of Miracles

This week I have been reading the talk about being a testifying and challenging missionary, which is something I feel did help all the miracles this week.

One of the families we were working with, but haven’t seen for two weeks, we were able to get with again.  The father had read the whole Book of Mormon, half the Doctrine and Covenants and half of the Pearl of Great Price.  After much testimony and reading he was like next time let’s have a lesson on the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Which is funny because every investigator that I have had that loves the Bible and is strong in their faith- they always want to know what gospel we follow and so they ask for us to teach them that lesson.  We suggested he read “What is the Blueprint of Christ’s Church” by Tad R Callister.

https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/article/ces-devotionals/2014/01/what-is-the-blueprint-of-christs-church?lang=eng

It clearly compares the latter day church of Christ vs. Biblical church of Christ.  He is going to be such a great member, so strong in the belief, when the day comes. 

Another day as we were just coming out of a building and a man came around the corner I stopped him.  He was here on vacation.  And said he loved Jesus Christ and was willing to sit down and visit.  He was like I think God put me in your path today. I wasn’t supposed to be in this town today, but I ended up here.  We talked about the restoration and we said a prayer with him.  After the prayer he said he felt good, like something was just lifting him and comforting him.  We explained that was the Holy Ghost telling him that it was true.  He liked the feeling.  We continued talking and suggested the need to follow those things we know are true and be baptized. He opened up his phone to show us a text from a friend about how Christ died for us so that we can live a new life.  Then he closed the text and there was a picture of Jesus Christ as his wallpaper.  I was like- that picture. He was like oh! sorry I will take it off.  I said no that’s a photo our church produces and using on the front of the Restoration pamphlets.  I showed him and he was shocked and astonished and just kept saying that I know God is reaching out to me today.  It was a pretty amazing experience.  The spirit was very strong that day sitting in a town centre.  He is going to meet the missionaries when he gets home.

Another miracle as we were walking to town centre as we had planned to do.  We have been working on stopping everyone between town centre and our flat, so we did.  We stopped one and talked about how God has plans for us in life.  This individual totally agreed saying I feel that the plan God has for me is working right now.  I used to be homeless and had no family or job and one night I prayed. I prayed for His help, I just ask God can you help me?  Within a little bit, I got a job, a few weeks later found a house, got off drugs and now am in a relationship and we are so happy together.  

We had Zone Meeting this week in a neighboring area and it was another really good one. We learned a lot of things.  Our Zone had 7 baptisms last month, the most the zone has baptized in a long time. It’s doing sooo good now. 

About a month ago I had stopped a man who promised to call.  We had given him a mormon.org card.  He threw the card away, but the spirit kept prompting him.  Well he finally called this week.  We were able to teach him also.

They have started grain harvest.  Kind of different because at home if it’s harvest you shut off the water and the grain starts to turn. Here there’s not water to shut off, they have to wait for it to naturally turn.   Kinda crazy, some is harvested already and others are not ready yet. 

Photos of the grain here- weird how everything is so green and the grain is so yellow!

Love you all! Elder Stevenson