This past week was a good one, it should be fun to write about. Hopefully it's good to read as well. It all starts with the Zone Leader exchange on Wednesday.
I was replaced by Elder Lundell and I took his place with Elder Jackson in their area. It was a great exchange, we had 3 lessons (5 planned). The first one was with a guy named Pete. We read 3 Nephi 18 with him and talked about the Sacrament and the importance of it. He followed very well and even had good comments about building our foundation on a rock instead of sand (Verse 13 and 14, I think).
The second lesson was with a woman named Petricia (I think). She recently got a heart transplant and it's done a toll on her. We talked about the Restoration with her and she understood it very well. We invited her to read the Book of Mormon and seek answers herself. It was a cool experience. She had her sick granddaughter there and she kept wagging her finger at me 
I offered her a picture of Jesus and she didn't want to take it. Petricia said she's just being grumpy because she is sick.
I offered her a picture of Jesus and she didn't want to take it. Petricia said she's just being grumpy because she is sick. The third lesson was with some missionaries from a different church. That was interesting. Before I get into that meeting, let me make it clear that I respect them. They showed us a lot of respect and there was no contention at all, which was refreshing considering we were only talking about our differing beliefs. Alright, now let me get into why our missionary program is so much better. It was painfully obvious that everything they brought up was memorized and repeated A LOT. We as missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, do not teach with memorized lessons. While our content is organized and we memorize the structure of our lessons, we speak from the heart. I have never taught a lesson the same way I've taught it before. It is always different in some way. Another thing is the way the conversation went. 90% of it was them talking and us listening. Now this wouldn't be too strange had they been teaching us, but it was supposed to be a conversation about our beliefs. I didn't get frustrated, thankfully, so it ended up alright. But come on, conversations should be 50/50. The last thing I'll mention is the lack of understanding. We mentioned and easily supported many of our beliefs with the Bible. Things like the Priesthood, the need for modern prophets, etc. I believe we explained these very well, but they refused to understand and would change the subject.
Okay, I'll stop now. This probably wasn't very cool of me, but I bring it up for a reason. THE CHURCH IS TRUE! We, a couple 19 year old kids who went to a training center for a couple weeks, were able to withstand every question from these middle-aged men who have been studying the Bible for decades. I don't mean to brag, I simply want to point out that the Spirit of God is with us.
I could go on this for a while, but I'll refrain. All-in-all, it was a cool experience. Like I said, it was very respectful and I did learn a couple things (that strengthened my testimony in this church). At the end Elder Jackson told them I play the guitar a little and they had me play a song on their guitar 
The rest of the exchange was cool, I had a good time with Elder Jackson.
Zone conference was on Friday, it was super good. We talked about the need for a Savior and what would happen if there was no Christ. It's pretty scary to think about. I am VERY grateful we have a Savior. Lunch was great, although we had to sit at the table with a bunch of sisters. It was interesting. We talked about hair dryers and nail polish.... (just kidding). I also played the piano for Zone Conference. It doesn't sound like much, but it was stressful for me. I am not a super good piano player. I enjoyed it though.
Lastly, we had another lesson with Linda. What's cool is she invited her daughter and her friend. So we taught the Plan of Salvation to all three of them. It was really cool and they had a lot of good questions.
Last Tuesday, before this lesson, we stopped by to say hi and set up that appointment. Her husband, Mel, proceeded to bash us for 30 minutes. He told us that the Book of Mormon is baloney and that Joseph Smith was a liar. I refrained from laughing and shared my testimony with him. He tried to challenge my testimony, but that doesn't work. You cannot tell me what I do and don't know. So we shut him down (respectfully) and then left. Linda told us she was proud of us for standing up for what we believe. I'm glad she doesn't listen to Mel very much, he is very bitter about religion for some reason. That was interesting.
Long email... but it was a good week. I'm grateful for all the opportunities I had to share my testimony. I'll take this as one too.
Guys, the Book of Mormon is the word of God. No sensible person can prayerfully read that book and say it's a fraud. The Spirit of God has witnessed to me that it is true. Because of this I know that Joseph Smith is a Prophet and that he restored the same church that Jesus Christ established. Jesus is the Christ and he has redeemed our souls. Through His grace and his infinite Atonement we can someday return to live with our Father in Heaven.
I know this of myself, it has not been engraved in me in any other way than by the Spirit of God.
This witness is free for any honest seeker of truth and I know that one day every child of God will have a knowledge of this themselves, I pray sooner rather than later.
I pray for you all and I hope you all have a great week.
Oh yeah, we went to a pickle festival too and got a picture with a kid dressed up as a pickle.
