You-ins Guys

September 15, 2014

Hey everyone!

Well I can't believe it's been another week! Let's jump right in with a story! 

Ever since I left the MTC, i've felt confident about teaching. I never had a problem talking to people, and I felt confident in teaching once I researched the subject at home. But when I got to the MTC I spent all day everyday researching the Restoration, Plan of Salvation, and Gospel of Jesus Christ. As well as many hours of personal and companion study, reading the Book of Mormon, and the Bible. Needless to say, I felt like I had done my homework, and was ready to teach people. There are a lot of "I's" in that last statement. Which became the problem with my teaching. I felt too confident out here. I felt like nobody could stump me with anything, and so far they haven't. And yet, they weren't accepting the messege "I" gave them. I realized yesterday at church that this mission has nothing to do with me. I am NOT the person that teaches people, I am not the person who converts them. I am here to give the Holy Ghost a voice to speak through. I am there to sit and listen to the spirit and do whatever it tells me to do, or say. So after Heavenly Father taught me that lesson, I decided to pray. I decided to pray for something a little odd. I prayed that I would get nervous, I prayed that I would get asked hard questions that I didn't know the answer to. I prayed for these things so that I would have to rely on the spirit. The lord was kind enough to answer that prayer. Be careful what you wish for. I had a lesson with a less active member and his non-member girlfriend. She's been taught by missionaries before, and it was very confrontational. To the point where she told them never to come back. Well unfortunately for her, we came back. That whole lesson I was nervous, my voice was shaky, I couldn't sit still, I couldn't stop thinking about what I should say, or what scripture to share. I couldn't listen to what she was saying. I was all over the place when I tried to teach. My companion had no idea what was going on with me. Nervousness, Check. At one point Elder Bryant asked her if she believed Joseph Smith was a prophet of god, after a very long rambling answer she ended up getting mad at us, saying that we didn't believe in unicorns!! Nope, not joking. She said unicorns... At this point I had finally started listening, and praying in my heart to feel the spirit. I felt the presence of the spirit so strongly as I remembered something that made me smile. She looked at me and said "you want to laugh at me and tell me i'm crazy for believing unicorns existed don't you?" ... I said "No I don't, I'm smiling because the word unicorn is in the bible, I know for a fact they existed..." Weeks ago I had been reading in the Bible Dictionary and I came across the word unicorn, go ahead, look for yourself, it's there. It says basically that it's a wild ox that actually had two horns, and that the name is just unfortunate, and that they're now extinct. But it didn't matter that it wasn't the one she was thinking of. She said "are you serious?" "Where does it say that?" so I opened up my Bible and showed her. After that we got along really well, she played us a song about unicorns, we laughed and talked and as the spirit guided us we walked out of that apartment having committed her to read the Book of Mormon, and an armful of her homemade woopie pies, with an invitation to come back and teach her again. 

There are a few things we can learn from this experience. 

1. The lord hears and answers prayers,

2. The spirit is the teacher, not us

3. Woopie pies are delicious,

4. Unicorns existed. 

I don't know if any of this will help you in your lives right now. But it's helped me in mine. I know Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. I know that if we rely on him, with all diligence on our part, he will bless us, guide us, help us, protect us, and whatever else we need. Put your trust in the lord, and he shall direct thy paths. I know that's true, and I know this church is true. I love all of you back home and I hope you're having the best day ever. Enjoy this time away from me, for the day soon cometh that I will return home, in all my glorious sarcasm, and their shall be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth among all those who didn't take advantage of the joy of my absence. 

Just kidding, Love you all! 

-Elder DeFreese

1. I see apartment complexes like this Everywhere...

2. My shirt is cutting off blood flow to my pythons! #gettin'gains, #hugebiceps, #foundthefisheyeeffectonmycamera, #fakepic, #notreallythatbuff, #stillbuffthough