God gave us Talents for a Reason!

7.13.15

Hey there Everyone!

Hope you all are still doing well. I have had a crazy week still trying to adjust to the new area and what is our area and what is the Elder’s area but I think we are getting that all figured out. In the mean time we have met lots of new people; actually the crazy thing is I have met like 4 people with the name Courtney and we are teaching 2 of them. It must be a sign that I really was supposed to be here;) Anyways we have been able to teach lots of people here as well. There is a recently returned missionary here who LOVES to go out and teach with us and she comes out with us often and she is the best. She has already taught me a lot and given great insights of how to better teach. The people here in Christiansburg are so nice and the ward here is sooo excited about missionary work and really wants to work together as members making this a combined effort, a work that is all the Lords and it makes it so much more exciting and much more success comes from it. When we first got here we had no investigators who had accepted the invitation to be baptized but now we have 3 of them who are so excited to be baptized and are excited to come to church and learn more about the great and marvelous work.

Yesterday we had a lesson with an older guy who has been talking with missionaries for a long time but he has never talked with sisters before and it seems like just having different insight he has progressed so much more and hopefully in the next couple weeks he will be at church. Anyways thought I would tell a funny story about him. So we took a different member then we had the 2 times before and we sat down to get ready to start and the member was introducing herself and talking about how she had just moved from Utah and out of nowhere he asked if she was going to be bringing him some string beans soon. We all just looked at each other and she said no maybe I could bring you some cookies sometime. And we just laughed a little when his response was oh well I just wanted to make it easier on you. We had a great lesson once we said a prayer and invited the spirit but he is quite the interesting guy. 

Also yesterday we were prompted to just stop by this guy who was kind of on the way to the investigator we were going to try to go and see next. The guy we were prompted to go see never really has time and so we just stop by and try to get a return appointment so we thought we were not going to be there for a long time, it’s good that we didn't have a scheduled appointment with someone else because this was a great way to end the night we actually had a lesson with the guy, we were prompted to go and see. So we show up to his house and he was having a hard time and offered for us to come in but we didn't have another sister member with us so we could not go inside so he grabbed us some chairs for us to sit on outside, grabbed his Book of Mormon and we shared a scripture with him, Ether 12:27, which is one of my favorites, I would highly recommend it but he loved it. So quick insight about this guy he is a film producer and he LOVES music. So we were talking to him about how we had this idea of helping him learn a little bit of how to read music, so we could see him more often and share a message with him after the piano lessons. We mentioned that we knew how to sing because that is how we knew a little piano but we could try to help him learn the piano a little. Then he asked us to sing for him, without hesitation we ran to our car and grabbed our hymn books and sang “Come, Come Ye Saints” for him and I was able to harmonize and he was almost in tears by the end. He asked us if he could say a prayer to thank God for the love he was feeling. I teared up during his prayer a little because the spirit was so strong. Moments like that is what missionary work is all about and after that he said that he would be baptized as soon as he understood the doctrine a little more and we are so excited for him.

Having that experience I gained a testimony that God gives us talents for a reason and that I was called to a place that I could share my ability to sing with someone and it would make a difference in their life. Heavenly Father has a purpose for all of us and gives us things that will bless our lives so much. I also gained a testimony of how praising our Savior and our heavenly father through hymns can really invite the spirit into wherever we are. I love this gospel and everything that is associated with it!

Hope you all are doing well and that you are all using the talents that Heavenly Father has given to you. I know that you all have many and that He loves each and every one of you dearly! Hope you all have a great week and I will talk to you soon!

Love Sister Mauck