The Worth of Souls

Sunday, December 15, 2013

One of the scriptures I committed to memory this week is D&C 18:10, 15, 16.  "Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God.  And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father.  And now if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!"

Monday was our planning day to prepare for our visits of the rest of the week.  We were not able to work on Tuesday due to continued bad weather.  But we scheduled appointments for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday and chose to attend the Temple on Saturday so we could get in more visits this week.  It has been very nice that Sister Boone is familiar with the Lexington Park area and knows many of the sisters.  Having worked there for five months before I got here, she was able to fill our days with appointments with a few active sisters and several that she tried to visit often when she was here before.  There were single sisters, widows, a sister whose husband is not a member, and some with health issues that prevented them from being more active in attending their meetings.  Even though their situations are different, they have something in common with all mankind.  They have a need to love and be loved.  They all appreciate visits from us.  They all need to be reminded that they are beloved daughters of Heavenly parents.

Part way through our second day, we went to visit Rosie.  When we knocked on her door, she called out "who's there?"  Sister Boone told her it was the sister missionaries, and she opened the door for us.  She invited us in and apologized that her house wasn't cleaner.  Sister Boone had warned me that she was a hoarder, but I had forgotten.  She moved a few things to clear a path to the couch and tried to clear a spot for us to sit down on the couch where she had been huddled under a thin blanket before we arrived.  The room was lit with a single light bulb.  The house was cold as ice and so were her hands.  She was wearing several layers of shirts, a sweater, a thin coat and knee-length sweat pants.  She wore a knitted head band over her wispy white hair.  When we commented on how cold her hands felt to us, she explained that she refused to pay her fuel bill because she felt they cheated her when they delivered the last tank of fuel.  She said they only pretended to fill the tank and charged her for a full tank.  So she lives without fuel.  Her face and hands show signs of a hard life.  She is from Vietnam, but had married an American.  He has since left her.  Her children no longer come around.  She said material things do not matter to her.  If someone wants something she will give it to them.  At the same time she lives with the assumption that others are out to steal things from her or cheat her.  When we later expressed our concerns about her to the Relief Society president, she told us that Rosie is a very independent woman.  They try to take care of her, but they have to be careful that they do not make her feel like they are meddling in her affairs or she quits coming to church.

We sat and visited her for quite a while, though she did most of the talking.  Her strong accent made it very difficult to understand, and at times I thought she had slipped back into speaking her native tongue instead of English.  I was touched by the feeling I had in my heart the first time I saw her smile.  Her smile brought light and warmth into the room, and she looked young and beautiful.  I was reminded that she too is a beloved daughter of a loving Heavenly Father who knows and loves her.