What a Week!

Hey Family of Mine,

Apparently was just a bad week all around the world. I heard about the shooting in Jamaica and things like that. I really hope Niels is coping alright with that. I would be so freaked out if my companion was harmed seriously in any way. When my companion goes missing, just in Church, I get terrified. I met an RM here in Mesa who was companions with the Elder that died in the Portland Mission not too long ago. He said it was a really tragic experience and the mission really hit a slump. It really is scary to think of the many variables that can occur on a mission. That is why studying the plan of salvation has become such a focus for me these last few weeks. It is really hard for a lot of people to understand why bad things happen, but with the Plan of Salvation there is just a lot more peace in life.

That makes me way sad about Sister Piepgrass. She was truly an amazing woman who was always very sweet and kind. That is just kind of how that family is. Bishop Piepgrass is the first Bishop I can remeber and I never got to know them super well, but I am sure that she is in a better place now, preaching the gospel to others. Alma 40:11-12 is really all it takes to console people who have had loved ones pass away. A woman in our ward's daughter got in a car accident in Utah about a month ago. Then, her husband was killed in a work accident a few weeks later in Utah. They had three kids ages 5-17 and so now they are all orphaned. Sister Orona took it really hard, but those verses really calmed her down. Does Sis. Piepgrass have heart troubles in her families past? It is just weird having all of these things happen while I am not there.

Last week was a hard week for me here. We had a lot of success, but we also had a lot of disappointment. We had to drop a good number of investigators with baptismal dates, and another investigator with a date moved into another ward. We lost a lot of good people and it really made me sad. I was praying, studying, and working harder than ever trying to make my week feel better, but nothing was really doing to trick. I went to bed exhausted and I woke up every morning feeling kind of down because of a lot of the losses we suffered last week.

One was Jocabed. She has read almost the entire Book of Mormon. She knows it is true. She had a baptismal date. She saw the blessings that came into her life from living the Gospel. She has health issues and by living the Word of Wisdom one major one completely went away. She was truly a Golden Investigator in the beginning. We had high hopes. She came to church consistently. But as of late she has not come to church. 5 weeks straight. She always promises us she will come. We get her a ride. We go to pick her up, then she tells us she can not go for some reason. It broke my heart to do it, but we had to drop her. She was just not progressing. It was so hard for me that in my interview with President Ellsworth I just broke into tears because of her and the struggles our other investigators are having.

I am so into the mission now that I am making really strong connections with our investigators and I am really starting to feel a deep love for these people. It breaks my heart when people do not take the neccesary steps to repentance. I cry when I study the Book of Mormon because I read of people who are just like my investigators who in the end opt not to partake of the Tree of Life. It is so hard to see these people change, and then have to drop them because they will not act on their answers. It is really, really hard. Really hard. I 100% understand now why they say that a mission is the best, and hardest experience of our youth. I love every single day so much, but every day is mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting. I put my heart and my soul on the line with these people in Mesa and I am rejected fairly often. It is tough. But, every week has at least, AT LEAST, one incredible miracle that makes it all worth it.

Last week, the miracle came when I was more or less in the depths of discouragment. I was just tired of last week and could not wait to go to Church just to feel the peace there. I kept on working because I know that is what I need to do, even when it is hard. We decided to knock some doors, just out of the rare chance that a prepared soul was somewhere on this street. We went to a rather ghetto part of our area and the miracle happened on the first door we knocked. 1806 N. Spring Apartment #202 was the door I had been looking for all week. The first time I knock, nothing happens. I wait. I knock again because I just feel like the person inside needed to open the door. No one answers. I knock a third time almost out of desparation. Slowly, the door is opened and a woman with a great big smile opens the door. I introduce myself and ask her name. Her name is Reyna. We talk about what we do as missionaries and why we knocked her door. We set an appointment, and as always I gave her our number in case they every need out help, or to cancel. Well, she said she was going to clear her Saturday afternoon for us. It gave me a new burst of energy that continued throughout the day. We did not have much more success, but that door knock was worth it.

Saturday. We go back and eat lunch after a rather dry morning. Two appointments cancel, but I was not frazzled and I kept on in excitement for our lesson with Reyna. We end lunch early to be sure we are on time. We go, and wait for the member who was going to come with us. He arrives and we knock. We go inside and begin to chat. Reyna is a woman with five kids. They are Beatriz, Reyna Jr., David, Alan, and Jordan. We sit and visit and she tells us how she does not think we are going to offer her anything different because she has gone to every church and they all say the same thing. She feels like she is judged when she goes to church and she feels like all members of all churches are hypocrites more or less. She spoke a majority of the time. I did not speak much, but in the end we just testified of how we know she will feel different in out church than in any other Church she has ever atteneded and she will find the peace she is looking for in life. She told us she was probably not going to come because she just hates churches. We left kind of sad and down. My miracle door was a dud.

Well. Sunday morning rolls around. We go out to remind people of Church. We go eat lunch. We go to Church a half hour early. We welcome people, hold the doors, etc. Without even noticing, Reyna and Beatriz come to the door. The say hi, I show them to a seat, and they sit and read the hymns. Sisters from the Relief Society swarmed them and surrounded them with love. OH MY GOSH! This was the miracle of the week. Reyna, who usually hates churches told us she loved it and will be coming with all of her kids next week. This made my entire week worth it! I love my mission because of the ways the Lord picks me up when I was down.

I am loving it. I do not care entirely that no one has really written me in like 8 weeks. I am too busy to write back most of them time. The mission is way hard. I am exhausted. But I love it. I love you all. It is crazy to hear about Maddy growing up and doing things it felt like I did yesterday. Will is writing with amazing grammar and you are all just incredible people. Thank you so much for letting me be here. Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your love. I love you all so much and I hope we all have a better week than last week! Love you!

With love,

Elder Pearson

(posted by Maddy)