A Busy Week

Mike

A Couple of days ago some of the temple missionaries and us took a trip Cambridge and toured the town. That is an interesting place I thought it was only one university, but it consists of more than thirty. Each with their own buildings and chapels. We also took a Punt tour, which is a boat with a young man on the back pushing with a pole. We got to see the sights from the Canal. It was awesome. Friday we went with some missionaries to Brighton on the shores of the English Chanel, we walked by the beach on our way to the Royal Theater where we watched the stage production of seven brides for seven brothers. They did a super job. As if we hadn't seen enough, your mom wanted to go to London yesterday, Saturday, so we caught the train into London, Then took a Double Decker, open topped tour buss all around London and saw everything, including Big Ben. We then hopped of and caught a bout tour of the Thames River where we saw more sights. The weather was good and we had a great time. We were glad to get home and rest. Today, Sunday 13th, we went to church in East Grinstead, where we heard Shay Kelley's missionary farewell talk....he lives here with Bridgestocks in their mini MTC. Then they had a luncheon for all of his friends to bid him farewell. It was a beautiful day. I sat outside with David Bridgestock just talking and getting sunburned , and watching the kids play. The missionaries from the temple grounds housing stopped and picked us up for a fireside in Crowley . Where Elder Herbertson and his wife talked. He is a member of the third quorum of seventy. Church leader had invited the mayor and a member of parliament and their wives to attend. Following the fireside, I was visiting with the Mission Pres. and his wife and introducing Lynda to the president's wife when the mayor and member of parliament came out of the chapel. The next thing I knew Lynda was visiting with the mayor's wife like they were best friends. That's just Lynda. We have tomorrow off also so who knows what we will do.

 

 

 

Tonight we just got back from a fireside with Elder Clifford T. Herbertson of the 3rd Quorum of the 70.  What a wonderful man, and an inspiration. His talk was on a "Perfect Brightness of Hope"  I loved his thoughts about how Hope is what keeps us going.  Hope is the peace and happiness we strive for, to live with Christ again.  Hope helps us to know we can be with our family again.  Hope also helps us overcome the challenges in life we have.  He encouraged us to leave a legacy of Hope for our families.  To remember the Atonement is there for us all no matter what our circumstances.  With Faith , Hope and Charity we can achieve anything. With Hope and Christ as our master, He can touch our lives and others around us.

After the Fireside I hadn't met our Mission Presidents Wife so we made our way over to her.  While we were visiting, the dignitaries from England that were there came by.  I was able to greet and shake hands with the Mayor of Crawley, who was all decked out in his official metal of authority and office and his wife the Mayorius. I also met a Lord and Lady of the county.  There was also a member of Parliament in attendance at the meeting.  One of the Elders visited with him and he gave him his e-mail to arrange a visit for the Senior Missionaries to go on a tour of Parliament in the House of Lords and Commons in Westminster Abbey. The Mayors wife apologized for not shaking my hand right away and then engaged me in a very interesting conversation about their "football" (soccer) leagues in England -That I should go watch the Women's league and perhaps root for Liverpool.  I told her about my granddaughters that played soccer and she was pleased that I had asked about their sport.  I can now say that I have hob nobbed with some royalty in England. What a fun night :)

Sent from my iPad

Imran

Mike

Today was a beautiful day in more ways than just the weather. A father hand his three sons and one little girl stopped in at the center. They said that they lived in East Grinstead originally from Bangladesh. They had been driving past the Temple for years and wanted to find out what it was all about. The kids were out of school today so they came by. The fourteen year-old son had been studying about the church and had loads of questions. He knew about Joseph Smith, Gold Plates, Brigham young, Book of Mormon etc. and wanted to understand. I spent an hour with them teaching and answering questions. I showed them the Restoration movie which answered many of their questions. They took three copies of the Book of Mormon and video. The 14 year-old boy Imran, was excited to get the Book of Mormon and pray about it. He wanted to understand the Holy Ghost in Maroni's promise. I explained that to him, and told him how he would feel when he felt it as he read and prayed. I walked the grounds with them and talked about the temple and many other things. They wanted the address of the East Grinstead ward and said they would visit. I hope to see them Sunday.

Slovakia – Investigators

April 8, 2014

Today a family walked into the London Temple Visitor Centre.  There was the Mom (Mya) her two children Elle (6) and Adam (4), her Mom Margaret, and Mother-In law , Veronica.   Mya informed me that she would need to translate for her Moms as they only spoke Slovakian. They also understood Polish.  There was another tour going on with the Sister Missionaries and some Elders so they asked if they could go into the room where the Prophets bare their testimonies.  They looked at all the pictures and Mya seemed to be telling them about the pictures so I left them alone for a few minutes.  I returned to see if they needed help or wanted to listen to one of the testimonies of the First Presidency or the Quorum of twelve.  Mya was concerned that they would talk faster than she could translate.  They wanted to know about Elder Bednar.  The area in Slovakia that they come from has many families with the surname of Bednar.   She looked him up on Wikipedia but couldn’t find any information about his family roots.  I asked them if they would like to see the Restoration video in Polish.  They did so we took them into the arrival center, as the theatre was already in use.  I showed them the video and they listened very attentatively .  When it concluded I bore my testimony of Joseph Smith and that they too could know which Church was true, just as he did.  I also bore testimony of the Book of Mormon and the Restored Gospel.  I asked if they had any questions, and Elle, the six year old, said I have a question.  Who were those two people that that was in the light talking to Joseph?  She had a light in her eyes like I have never seen. She had a spirit of purity and desire to know.  It told her it was Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  I then explained a little more about the Restoration.  She listened with such intent like she couldn’t get enough information.  I then asked if they had a copy of the Book of Mormon.  Elle said “I would like one”. So I told her I would get her one.  I also asked if the two older ladies would like a copy in Polish.  They were very excited and said yes.  I told them it was free and then they were really excited.  I had Elder Cummings go get them from the Mission Office while we visited the Christus.  I explained the Christus very simply and briefly then played the narration in Polish for them. After bearing my testimony again about the love the Savior has for me and for them I noticed that there was a recently returned missionary we knew standing in the Centre. He said he recognized some of the Polish as he had served in Romania and Moldova, and the language was similar He was able to talk to the two older sisters in some of their language.  I took the younger children over to color a Temple at the Temple Kiosk.  It was then while visiting with the mother and helping with the children that the mother shared that she and the ladies with her were Roman Catholic.  She had been reading about Joseph Smith on the internet and they were on vacation and came by to see what they could learn.  I thought she was a member and was bringing her family to share the gospel with them, but she and they were actually there to learn about the Church she had been reading about.  I then asked if she knew where she came from before she was born?, Why she is here on this earth, and where she will go after this life?  She said I really don’t know where I was before this life.  I grabbed a Plan of Salvation pamphlet and briefly explained it to her.  Then I asked if she would like to be with her family forever?  She asked how she could do that.  So we talked a little about the Temple.  She asked if family was important to us in this church.  I told her it was very important. I gave her a copy of the Proclamation on the Family and the Testimony of the Apostles.  She also asked about Genealogy so I shared a leaflet on that as well.  I probably overwhelmed her with stuff and was sorry that I hadn’t asked earlier what faith she was. .  I tried to get her to give me an e-mail address but she declined.  She took the guest card as did all of them in the family. She said she would use it after she investigated and read more. I asked the Elder, after they left , how the Mom’s felt.  He said that they loved the feeling they got there and loved what they had learned.  It was very peaceful there, they said.  I learned a great deal today about things I can improve on.  I hope and pray that Heavenly Father will fill in the gaps I created today and will guide them to the Missionaries when they return home to Slovakia.  I would like to know if Elder Bednar has roots in Slovakia, because that was what really sparked their interest today.  Boy do I have a great deal to learn to be an effective Missionary.  I loved the Spirit that was there when I bore testimony of what I know.  I love this Gospel, and serving at the London Temple Visitor Centre. 

Investigators galore!

We spent the morning getting my hair cut then off to East Grinstead to get a few groceries to help with dinner between conference this weekend.  I returned a couple of blouses and bought me a new outfit as well.  We made it to the Visitors Center at 3:00.  Got the word of what the night would bring and started our shift.  The first couple of hours were pretty quiet.  I took advantage of that to catch up on getting to know one of the kiosks.  Then the fun began. A mom and her young son came in. The Mom and Dad were trading off going to a session in the Temple. They were from Seattle Washington but stationed in Germany.  They will soon be stationed in Mountain Home in Idaho.  We took a cute picture of their son. He walked into the Center and say the Cristus and ran over and just kept saying "that's Jesus" .A grandmother and her granddaughter came in with a Baptism group, the granddaughter was a non-member so I was able to help her. Her name was Lauren and she is very young looking.  I thought maybe she was 11-12.  But she was 15.  She had been attending YW with her friends but had not been taking the lessons with the Missionaries yet.  I gave her a Book of Mormon and a guest card. She has a special look in her eyes and I know it won't be long until she accepts the Gospel. The sisters had dinner appointments and as soon as two of them returned there were two sets of Elders with three investigators.  We divided them into 3 groups as they requested. Sister Berati took one group, Sister Stewart took another, and Elder Cummings took another to watch a Movie.  I was there to greet and keep up with all the other guests. More of the big group came in that was there to do Baptism's. We had the place filled.  Three lessons being given.  Two of the investigators that came with the Elders have baptism dates and they were awesome. You could see a light in their eyes.  The other investigator wanted to argue, he listened and will eventually come around but is having a hard time with modern revelation. I hope we gave him some things to think about.  There were 5 other small children that were in the reception room that we also helped to keep entertained. Thank goodness for the Grandma and Granddaughter that took over because that is not part of what we are to do and we were too busy anyway.  The other two sisters  made it back to the Centre after a dinner appointment in time to have another investigator appointment.  We were so involved and busy that we didn't even take time for dinner.  But we didn't get hungry until we got home.  I guess we were filled with spiritual food and didn't need physical food for a while.  I

Mike

I have been proud of Lynda and her abilities as a missionary. She was out with the young sister missionaries yesterday and saw a lady across the way and just waved to her and the lady waved back; now she is coming to the Visitors Center and will be taught by the missionaries. She has had contact with the church before and is really interested.
Last night she helped teach the second young man from the left who has a few disagreements with church doctrine, but will come around. She learned how frustrating agency can be when teaching the gospel.
 The missionary work is really moving here. The number of baptisms just in the first quarter is already eclipsing the total for all of last year.

I just found out that Lyle Shamo, the former Shelley Seminary Teacher was the Mission President here a few years ago. He was loved by the people here. Small world: two Presidents from Little old Shelley, ID
Lyle went fishing with Blaine Case and I a couple of times on the Blackfoot River. He was a long-time friend and fishing buddy of Bp. Case.

 

The Bridgstock Estate House

 

 

David Bridgstock took me on a tour of the house. When they purchased the house, it was in bad shape. Much of the roof was caved in or leaking. The restoration they did was arduous. They did most of the work themselves. Just the paint stripping itself was unbelievable. It's beautiful now and  three or four families live in it, each with their own wing. Sometimes the young elder missionaries have a room here. The Bridgstocks have a mini MTC here, where young men from around the area come and live with them to prepare to go on a mission.  

A LONG BUT GOOD DAY

Mike

 







Yesterday was an eventful day at the Visitors Center. It wasn't supposed our morning to be on duty, but we had a training mtg. We planned on going to the temple after the meeting then starting our shift at three. Following the meeting, a man from Nigeria came in with his wife and some family members who were going to the Temple. He told me he wasn't a member and was just waiting. I asked "what's holding you back from being a member" He said, "I don't know," Things moved quickly then. I took him and showed him the Joseph Smith movie, then afterword's talked to him about eternal families, and him being the priesthood leader of his family. I showed him the display of rooms in the temple and ended with the sealing room picture and asked him to visualize himself and his family kneeling around that alter all dressed in white being sealed by priesthood authority as a family for eternity. He said that would be wonderful. I asked him to have the missionaries over to teach him and said ," as you learn more about the gospel and come to understand it better, will you be baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He  said " That's a definite possibility." I said,' When you come back to the temple with your family, I would like to be there with you. He said that would be wonderful. I got his name and address to follow up. He lives in London and is a retired mechanical engineer. We ended up doing both shifts at the center, but it was worth it.

Lynda

April 1, 2014 - Happy April Fools Day

 

We just thought we had most of the day to do what we wanted.  The Lord had other things in mind.  We had our training meeting at 10:00 a.m. Then we were planning to go to the Temple.  Sister Berati and Sister Stewart asked if I could go with them to teach a Hungarian lady English and a lesson, at 1:00.  We weren't on shift until 3:00 and thought we would get in the Temple session. A Nigerian gentleman came into the Centre and Mike started to visit with him.  He was a non-member and so Elder took him into the Joseph Movie.  He was waiting for his Wife that was in the Temple.  They had come down from London and he needed something to do while he waited.  That meant that I had some time on my hands as well. So I went with the Sisters.  The Hungarian Lady was not home when we got there so the Sisters knew another less active sister they have been working with that lived near by and decided to check up on her.  She is quite a heavy smoker and has a 13 year old daughter that they had been teaching.  So off we went to Dawn's house.  As we pulled up to the house there down the street was a lady in a pink blouse that kept looking at us.  So I waved and she waved back.  I got the feeling that we should go talk to her. So I asked the Sister's if we could go say hello to her.  They at first weren't sure because they had knocked on their door before and her husband was quite agnostic.  But we went over anyway.  Her name is Pauline McMurtry and is from Ireland.  She has lived in England now for a year.  Anyway Sis Stewart finally after some chit chat told her that this was their full time job as Missionaries for the Church to tell people about their church.  She said that she was Catholic and asked if we were talking about the Mormons.  She then told us that as a girl she would go to her friends homes for Family Home Evening every week.  She loved it and had even been approached about baptism at one time.  She went on and on about how much she loved the Mormons and her friends that took her with them to lots of things.  She also told us how disappointed she is in the Catholic Church with the Priests and the young boys and  how they swept all the bad things they were doing under the rug.  She said she was looking for another Church to go to. She had even thought about the Episcopal Church down the way.  But was not quite sure.  It didn't feel right.  I asked if her friends had given her a copy of the Book of Mormon. She said no. I then asked if she would like a copy and she said she would.  I was praying that the Sisters had one in their car. Which they did.  So she walked us to the car to get it and was excited to get something new to read.  We invited her to the Easter program on the 20th with Savannah Stevenson - Mary in the new church movie, and Glenda in Wicked, and she sounded like she might come.  Then I invited her to come to the Visitors Center.  She said that she would in a couple of weeks.  I wish the sisters had shown me how to get the contact number for her but I left it up to them this time.  We will see if she does come to the Centre.  I hope and pray that she will.  We then went to visit Dawn and found that her daughter Ashley - the non-member was home as she had missed her bus to school today.  Anyway we were able to sit on the lawn and teach her the Plan of Salvation lesson.  She is a very sweet girl and accepted the challenge to be baptized in May. the week after the 10th.  The sisters will return and teach her now the rest of the lessons.  That was very cool.  Sister Berati has such a calm but sweet way of teaching.  She has limited English but her spirit is giant and she has a way of teaching that you really feel the spirit very strongly and know her testimony is strong and pure.  Then the Hungarian lady, Adrianna called back and felt bad she had missed us.  So we went over there.  She was taking her English test today. I'm not sure what that is about I'll ask tomorrow.  She was a very nice lady and spoke very little English.  She used her computer at times and Sis. Stewart would type in a response and it would translate into Hungarian for her.  Most of the time we made her speak English, which is the best thing for her to do to practice.  She has a really cute little boy - William that is almost one.  He has problems with skin rashes and allergies.  She is frustrated with the doctors and health system here because she can't communicate very well.  We taught her the Plan of Salvation lesson as well. She accepted the challenge to read Alma 40: 11-end.  This teaches about the need for Baptism?  It was a great lesson again and the Sisters will go in the next few days and teach her again as well.  I really am seeing that if you open your mouth and share with your neighbors and friends it is not as hard as I was trying to make it.  Just be yourself and The Lord will do the rest to inspire you to know what to say.  Just put yourself in the position.  

P Day at East Grinstead

This is where much of the shopping is done; East Grinstead is only about 15 min away. It's where we attend Church. Today was our P day and it was not so busy. We spent the day getting more things we needed. Fish and Chips are really all they say they are here. Sunday, Lynda played the piano for the primary, then we taught a five year-old class. People here are so friendly, and they really go out of their way to make us feel at home in their country.