Baptism and Priesthood Blessings

First of all, we had a baptism on Saturday! It was a really sweet experience and I'm very glad to have had the opportunity to be there and to show my support for Roxana as she took this important step in her life. Roxana comes from a part member family. Her father is a member but her mother is not. At the beginning of the transfer, we were told that her mother had decided that if baptism is what Roxana really wanted then she would let it happen. The other sister in our district (Soras Fletcher and Hovey) began to teach her the lessons. The baptismal service was held an hour after our English class. We always give a little spiritual thought at the end of class, so a couple of elders talked about baptism and invited our students to the service. A few of the parents stayed with their children from our kid's class as they were curious how it was done. The kids were so adorable and sat with Sora DeRuvo and me. Their little chorus of amens was adorable. The three other sister missionaries and myself sang “How Great Thou Art” for the service. As we sang, I literally had chills. I could feel the spirit there, and I was so glad to look out into the congregation and see in their faces that they could feel it too. After we sang, Roxana was baptized. All the little kids squeezed their way up front. After it was over, they all spoke to each other in excited voices, saying, “I want to be baptized too!” The whole experience was just so sweet all around. Roxana shared her testimony and it was just so great to see how happy she was. Best day ever.

We were able to go see our investigator and her kids again this week. They are amazing. The assistants came with us so that they could give them blessings. This family really is so great. They've been praying together and reading from the Book of Mormon. The girls were very proud to tell us how far they'd gotten. We talked to them about the plan of salvation. We hadn't planned on giving them a baptismal invitation, but the lesson was going well, and it seemed right. We asked them if they would be baptized after they have received answers to their prayers that this church and our message is true. They all nodded their heads in agreement. We kept our cool as Sora DeRuvo expressed the importance of finding the answer for yourself. We were pretty much partying on the inside. We won't be able to visit with them again for a little bit with all this hospital stuff they have to do, but I really hope they follow through and that they recognize their answer. I have confidence in them! Afterward the elders gave the girls blessings of health. It was so cute because then their little brother really wanted one. Of course they gave him a blessing as well as their mother. What sweet words were expressed!

I am so grateful for the priesthood. It's something that Sora DeRuvo and I have been talking about lately. It's such a wonderful gift and yet another proof of God's love for us. The priesthood truly is the power and authority of God. It is a very real power, one that we can have in our lives. I am always touched when I see these worthy young men administering to people here, righteously using the priesthood which has been given to them. I am so grateful for the worthy men in my own life who have blessed me so much. The priesthood is such a great strength in our lives and will give us blessings, power, and strength to return to our father in heaven.

We had another exchange this week in a wee little town called Alexandria. Seriously, working with the sisters is great. They are such a strength to me. I don't think they even realize it. We actually had a really cool experience as we went out contacting. Well, first of all we just met some really nice people who were willing to talk with us for a moment. When we came to the last home of the street we were contacting on, a nice woman came to the gate. We were doing survey contacting (we conduct a survey with a series of religious based questions). The last question helps lead us into discussion about the Book of Mormon (if there were another book of scripture outside of the Bible would you be interested in reading it). At first this woman seemed very against the idea that there could be any other scripture or that it is even necessary. We began to tell her more about it, but she still didn't seem very interested, and I felt like I was starting to fumble over my words a little. Sora Bray came in with a nice save and we were able to finish our explanation and leave her with our testimonies. After we had testified, she said she would be willing to take a copy for curiosity sake. She made sure we understood she was only curious, which of course is fine. When she realize we weren't going to force anything on her, it was really cool to see her countenance change. She want from being on guard with little to no interest, to inviting us back over some time to have a glass of suc (juice or pop) and talk with her. She was really nice. It was a really cool experience.

In closing, if you get a chance this week, please take some time to read this talk by Richard G. Scott. And thanks to Dad for sending it to me! It is amazing, and I really needed to hear some of the things in there. I hope that it can be a strength to you as well: https://www.lds.org/ensign/1995/11/trust-in-the-lord?lang=eng

As always, thanks for your love and support. Also, Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

                                            Soccor!

Love,

Sora Adams