12 June 2016

We had our first Zone conference with Elder Randall K. Bennett from the Quorum of 70's and is the Area President of the North American Northeast area.

Elder Bennett shared several examples of missionary experiences from the time he served as a young boy in France to his service as Mission President in Russia. He shared how there was a time when he hated his mission and wanted to go home. After spending over 8 hours with the Mission President, he went back to serve and was able to completed his mission successfully. Mission Presidents do love their missionaries and what them all the succeed.

Elder Randall K. Bennett of the Seventy

A few of the things that he taught that impressed us was about how we were all taught and trained in the pre-existence for the very mission we are serving right now. The Savior watched us in the pre-existence and knew exactly how we would serve, where are strengths and weaknesses were and what would work best for us while serving.

He shared his experience of being with President Nelsen when he was selecting where missionaries would be sent. He mentioned how President Nelson would go almost nose to nose with the missionary's picture then he would stand up and point to the electronic map and would say this is where this missionary should go.

One of these missionaries happened to have had a virus affecting his heart so when President Nelson chose to send him to Argentina, the staff member mentioned to him that according to his records, with this heart condition there were only three places in the world that could treat it, which he named. Elder Nelson stopped for a moment and then said that a fouth was located in Argentina (which he knew from his keeping up with such events due to his interest in heart surgeries.  The staff member then was asked to add this place to his list, bringing it to four places in the world where such specialized care facilities were located.

Elder Nelson stated that he was just responding to the promptings from the Savior on where he wanted his missionaries sent. He was just the spokesman. Mission callings are very personal and done by revelation. What a testimony he bore!

Elder Bennett went on to say that as we introduce ourselves to those people that we come in contact with, we are to say that "We are representatives of the Jesus Christ and we have a very important message he wants you to hear." If they decline, he said do not write them off. Ask them if it would be all right to contact them later to see if they have changed their mind. Also, if they knew of anyone interested in religious issues, and the get the contact information.  We are friends and care about them. Then follow up on that promise regularly to keep inviting them know how important it is to hear this message.

He bore witness (as Boyd K. Packer testifed) that Preach My Gospel was written beyond the veil and revealed to us. We are a part of the Great Last Dispensation and were chosen because of our strength and the choices we made in the pre-existence.

We have not been called to save everyone he stated. We have been called to gather the "elect" and those that are of the House of Israel. To do this, missionaries are to talk to everyone they meet. In our area, millions of lessons have been taught in even short encounters on the street, and our message may come to then in changed circumstances from the past many years.

The characteristics found in an "elect" person or one of the House of Israel are:

1. They will hear and listen.
2. They are soft and open.
3. They have a true desire to believe.

After the zone conference, we were visiting with the other missionary couple who serves in the FHC, Elder Tom and Sister Liz Hanson since only one person was there doing indexing.  We learned that Sister Hanson is the sister of Aaron's mission president from Roseville California Mission, President John Hoyberg.  What a small world we live in!

My sister, Colleen, texted the other day and stated that she had just been diagnosed with breast cancer. She has had it for about two years but has been given good odds for a full recovery. She will be in surgery on Tuesday and doing six weeks, 5 days a week, of radiation. Please keep her in your prayers along with Jenna who is having jaw surgery on Monday.

The patrons that have been coming in the last couple of days to the Manhattan Family History at Lincoln Square where we serve, have been fun to work with. They are open to learn and very excited to find family.  Diane worked with a couple of Jewish patrons and they opened up FamilySearch accounts and were looking for their family from Hungary.  She started to work with Benji Perez who was a 36 year-old single patron whose family roots were from Puerto Rico.  She handed him off to Elder Adams and for the next two or three hours while he was waiting for his friends to go into the baptistry of the temple, trying to get family information from what little he knew and finally finding his great-grandparents in the 1940 Puerto Rico Census was a real joy!

 Manhattan FHC - East side

 Manhattan FHC - West side

It was great to confirm to him what the missionaries had told him regarding the Spirit of Elijah and the protections of doing family history.  He was so excited!  He really didn't think we would find anything about his family and went away nothing short of amazed!  Since his grandmother lives in Brooklyn and has pituitary cancer, we challenged him to not wait but to get as many memories from her as he could and give him the "My Family" booklet in Spanish for her to record and preserve the memories.

Sister Pratt, a member who was a ballerina, has come into the Center to print family ordinance cards, Elder Adams saw her in the temple while serving as an ordinance worker on Thursday, and she (like many others) sure are set in their minds as to what they want to find and how they want to find it.  But while she was doing her thing, going to the next computer and looking at other family members were they key to finding her grandfather's name and his family.  She left with the remark that we really did know how to do this work.

This week we were able to prepare four baptisms with patrons (for their family members), Diane has had six baptism on her family with four pending.  In addition, the ordinances for some 20-30 other family members have been completed, since we are able to provide 10 cards each per week for the temple to help us complete ordinances for our family members.  How many missionaries can top that in the first month of their mission?

We commute from our apartment to the FHC at 125 Columbus and 65th Street Downtown each day.  The subways transport MANY people back and forth!  Here's just a sampling:

 #1 Subway on a light day