Dear Family,
This week has gone by fast! Tick-tock goes the clock. This is both a bad and good thing. Bad because you never want time to end. Good because Ismet's potential baptism is on Saturday! I say potential because we have the interview tomorrow for him. He came to church on Sunday and gave me a map to get to his house (now we can teach his wife and 2 sons...that is, if I can follow the map!) I really notice a difference in the peoplewho have open hearts and those with closed hearts. Whenever I read in the scriptures about closed hearts or false traditions, I think of the people here. Some won't even "give place for a portion of my words". But with Ismet, he just accepts it and wants to be on God's path. I feel I've gotten good at determining open vs closed hearts on the street...recognizing in a n instant if the person is ready for the gospel or not. What is the key phrase, "We believe Christ was the son of God..." If they hesitate at that, we know that we found someone that probably is going to "bash" us. I'm grateful for opposition, it gives me opportunity to bear strong testimony and makes me grateful for everything in my life.
To start, yesterday we had to be in by5 o'clock because they were having elections. At about 8:30 the streets were filled in fireworks and loud noises. I was glad I could watch from my balcony! However, due to the early curfew it gave us a lot of time to study. But, seeing that it was Grandpa Bangerter's Birthday I knew exactly what I was going to study! (By the way, also happy birthday Matthew--and John Stockton Day--and happy anniversary Lauren and Todd!)
Grandpa Bangerter's Book is really amazing. I studied it by topic yesterday and got so much out of it! I learned that grandpa works so hard in his life. He has an amazing posterity that has also taken serious his example of hard work. I loved hearing about how he worked on the farm and talked about teaching his sons. I was even more touched and shocked as each thing I read and learned reminded me of Dad, my dad. Thanks dad for teaching us the things that you learned from your father, I know you tried a lot, and it has helped a great deal.
The most miraculous moment this week was when we fasted.
After a long day of contacting and a lesson concerning tithing with Ismet was on schedule for the next day, we decided to fast. I then proceeded to study fasting and the power it can have in our lives. Fasting shows the Lord that you are serious about the thing your praying for and that you'll do anything you can in order to have your prayer come to pass. It is not just giving up food, it is filling your soul with as much "goodness" and "godliness" as you can. Every time you have a pang, you remember to put off the natural man and remember God and his promise. I'd like to borrow a blessing from tithing that happened to us from fasting: The windows of heaven opened that there "was not room enough to receive it". Not only did our lesson happen, but our member showed up. Then the member, after the lesson asked, "Do you have another investigator to teach?" I pulled out the phone and called one...and they said they'd be there in 15 minutes! This, coming from an investigator that is usually an hour out of Prishtina! So we had a lesson with this investigator, Hazir. And then we had a lesson with the member. Really, it wasn't even in my radar to think that we'd have three lessons in a row! So that's what Brazil feels like! (just kidding!) We were so grateful that we immediately went into the church's kitchen, broke our fast, and thanked our Heavenly Father for the bounteous blessings that he had just given us.
Days are long, weeks are short. Each day I am grateful for the record that I'm keeping. Without it, I would have no way to separate my experiences that I've had here. Thank you for your prayers and for the updates. I hope you all have a great time back east! That will be SO fun. Congrats Kalan! And Claire, how about you? how do you...feel. I LOVED hearing that Eliza's prayers are being answered. You cannot argue with a prayer of a child, especially from Eliza! I pray for each one of you each night! Prayer can change the night to day!
With much love and until next week!
Love, Elder Bangerter
P.S. Me and Ismet
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