Anniversary Week

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Sister Boone and I sat down Sunday afternoon and made a long list of sisters we could telephone and see if we can get a few appointments for this week.  We were successful in setting nine appointments and then planned a few cold calls to fill in the gaps.  A couple of the appointments canceled on us, but it turned out to be a good week in spite of that.  We are just trying to remain positive that we do have a purpose for being here.

Today, the 23rd is my 43rd wedding anniversary.  For the last six years I have been going to the temple on our anniversary, but did not do so today.  Still, it was a most wonderful day.   It was one of those "after the trial of your faith" experiences.  We started out in the middle of the trial phase.  Our first appointment was at 2:00 so we picked a few sisters to go to before that.  At the first house, a woman answered the door.  Her tirade went something like this.  "Oh, are you looking for Achia?  She is not here.  She is my daughter-in-law.  My husband is a police officer.  He works nights and you just woke him up AGAIN! (We have not been there before.)  If she is interested she will contact you so stop coming by." 

We left feeling rejected and a little offended (at least I did) by this seemingly personal attack.  I wondered if I even wanted to knock on another door, but we did.  It would be much safer to just call the sisters and see if we can come see them.  But from our experience, most of them do not answer their phone or return the call when we leave a message.  Two more sisters were not home.  And then it was time for our first appointment.  We had visited Nancy before and enjoyed this visit.  Sister Boone gave a little spiritual thought before we said a prayer together and left.  She picked the perfect message for such a day.  It was about pure charity.  It was a gentle reminder that helped me accept the harsh words we had received earlier this morning with forgiveness.

Our next appointment was with a wonderful sister of German descent.  She was born in Bavaria, joined the church as a teenager, and met an American student about a year later at a combined ward New Year's Eve party.  They were married in the Provo temple.  She was an only child as her father died young, and she is the mother of four children.  She studied Comparative Literature and her husband studied Slavic Linguistics.  Their children are all well-educated.  It is so refreshing to converse with her.  She talked about the differences she has noticed between Americans and Germans but it was not in a derogatory way.  In her experience, Germans are not as open with others, especially strangers, but their families are very close.  She has a wonderful relationship with her children and is such a positive person.  She has great spiritual insights.  It was just delightful to spend an hour with her.  As usual, we ended our visit with a spiritual thought and prayer.  After the thought, she asked us another question:  "In your experience here, why do you think people leave the church or become inactive?"  We said that is the question we have asked ourselves on several occasions.  She told us that her interest rises from the fact that she works with the Seminary program for the youth on a Stake level and visits the various seminary classes to observe and guide the teachers (some of which are not trained as teachers, just called to those positions as their ward calling).  When our discussion suggested in many cases the youth (investigators) just do not gain a testimony that will sustain them through this experience we call life, she shared her interesting insight regarding the matter of helping the youth (and those whom the missionaries teach) to gain a testimony outside of the connection they may or may not have with the teacher (or missionary).  They must not just be converted to the teacher but rather to the Savior.  She believes that sometimes the teacher expresses a lesson in such a way that it becomes rather theatrical, a performance.  It can be very moving, and the student may be touched by the message but does not recognize that as the Spirit or the Holy Ghost.  Unless the teacher can step back in a sense and let the student feel the true influence of the Spirit and be taught by the Holy Ghost they may come away with a false testimony, one that is dependent on that teacher and not on the true source of light, Jesus Christ.

This is the same basic concept that is often discussed about missionary work.  The missionaries come with a special message about Jesus Christ and the listeners hear and feel a special feeling that they have not felt before.  This is the Light of Christ that is available to all men.  They associate this wonderful feeling with the missionaries.  They feel the Spirit and are baptized.  But if they do not develop a relationship with the Savior, their activity in the Church and their testimony dims when the missionaries are gone.

After we talked about this principle, this good sister offered a beautiful, heartfelt prayer that was just what our spirits needed this day.  I felt my heart swell within me as we visited.  Her prayer was an expression of the message that Heavenly Father wanted us to hear this day.  We stood to leave.  She said " and now you give hugs" as if to ask that is just what you do, right?  Sister Boone hugged her and said "Thank you.  I feel like I know you now."  Then I hugged her and said "I feel like I knew you before."