What a Week!

Hey all!

What a week this week has been!  One investigator accepted baptism on March 9th, another is prepared and ready for her baptism on the 16th and we are hoping our couple investigators will be ready to be baptized by the 23rd, we have a new investigator, and the Church History Sites were super busy this week for Presidents' Day (the kids on the east coast get the week off from school).

We worked with a less active family this week and as we talked about the Plan of Salvation, the Spirit took over and we talked about the important role of the Temple in the Plan of Salvation, and things for them just clicked.  You could see it in their faces.  They all came to Church and asked us to come back and teach more.

We also met with another less active family who came to Church too and asked us to come back and teach them again.  I am just amazed how powerful the Spirit is and I am so humbled to be a tool in the Lord's hands to help them come closer to Christ.

Like I said earlier, our one investigator agreed to be baptized on March 9th and is so excited.  We had taught him some of the Commandments and then I received a prompting to read 1 Nephi 8 with him.  I'm pretty sure Sister Hatch and our team up couple (who were mission presidents in Provo) thought I was a little loco.  What did the Tree of Life have to do with anything we were talking about?  Well, it had everything to do with it.  The Spirit was so strong as he just got the story and I told him that baptism in the Scriptures has been called the gate to enter the straight and narrow path, and then asked him if he would be baptized.  My heart was so full at that moment and then he said "yes."  We now have less than two weeks to finish the rest of the lessons up, schedule his baptism interview and prepare for his baptism day.  It was an incredible experience.

Our March 16th baptism investigator is still doing awesome!  We had dinner with her on Tuesday night.  She made us a yummy Puerto Rican dinner.  Sister Hatch and I went over a little early per her cry for help and helped her make dinner.  When the other missionaries came, everything was about done.  It was SO good!  We had patalitas, arroz con pollo, and black beans. We have two new missionaries in our district who had a great time.  One is from Farmington, Utah and the other is from Holland.  Her baptism was announced on Sunday and basically the whole ward is going.  Everyone is so excited for her.   The March 9th baptism will be announced next Sunday and the whole ward is already planning on going to his.  The ward is so amazing, welcoming, friendly, and so missionary focused.  It is just an incredible ward.

Last P-Day, I made platanos maduros!!!  It was so good!  And Sister Hatch almost ate them all!  haha  Aren't you proud of me Mommy?!  :D

Making platanos maduros with powdered sugar on top!

Our couple investigators surprised us this week.  It has been so hard to get a hold of them and teach them.  So on Sunday, after not seeing them at Church we planned on dropping them from our list.  But instead decided to go see them and right before we went over we prayed to Heavenly Father asking Him to tell us what they needed and what we needed to do with them.  When we went over, they were so excited to tell us they had read every day that week, even listened to the Scriptures in the car, were praying, and came to Church.  They sat in our blind-spot in the chapel and because we were busy with other people decided to leave.  Sister Hatch and I were in shock.  We didn't know what to say.  We were so humbled in that instant, and felt so bad that we just totally missed them at Church and assumed they weren't progressing.  The husband had even wore a full blown suit and tie to Church.  Ugh!  Sometimes it's difficult to keep track of everyone.  We told them that they were going to sit next to us next Sunday and that we are saving a seat for them.  We set up a time to meet with them today.

What a week and another great week to come!  The Church is so true and I'm so thankful to have been called to spread the joyful news of the Gospel.

I love and miss you all!
Love,
Sister Killen

NOTE:  Platanos Maduros are a Hispanic side dish (sweet fried plantains).