Sister Pugmire: Week 56--Mouth of Babes

Hey Loved Ones!

My eyes are full of sparkles...there are miracles everywhere...

THINGS I NEVER THOUGHT WOULD HAPPEN AS A MISSIONARY:

#38 Knocked on the mayor's door and it slam in our face when we came over to ask what community service the missionaries in CBus can do. Well guess whose not getting MY vote!

#39 Meet the best member missionary in the state: Whitney Shoaf referred two of her friends who both got baptized last month. Her secret? She posts pictures of Jesus and argues with atheists on the Internet. I'm not kidding. But seriously, follow her. She is an amazing artist.

#40 Meet the cutest little Mommy's secretary ever: Us: Hello, is this Cassandra?

Noah: Who are you?

Us: This is the missionaries!

Noah: Oh, I'll go get my mom. She's at grandma's house. I walked there all by myself before.

Us: No, don't leave the house! How old are you?!

Noah: Well...I've got a whole handful...and one on the other...

Us: ...So you're six?

Noah: Yeah! Did you know my birthday?

CHIP is amazing!!! Everyone thinks he's a member already. We concluded a lesson with him and asked him for a referral. Chip said, "I'll go through my contacts. Oh look, here's Julie...saw her just the other day. Told her I'm getting baptized. I think I'll invite her to our studies." "What will you say?" we asked him (hoping to pick up some pointers lol.) "I think I'll bear my testimony about how much this has helped me, and how much better my life is, and how the Atonement has really blessed my life and made me closer to God." Jaw on the floor. Then skimming through his Bible he said, "Ya know, someone was making fun of me just the other day for 'worshipping Joseph Smith.' Well here's the funny thing. In Mark 9:5 it says that the chief three Apostles were about to make an altar to worship Moses and Elias and they got no rebuke from the Savior, and here they are getting upset when they think we're worshipping Joseph Smith and we're not even. And it even talks about Joseph Smith in that same chapter...a few verses on, Joseph Smith is practically Elias." Wowowowowowow.

We had a cool experience yesterday. Weird series of events lead us to a street we would have otherwise probably looked over. a door that was clearly a Hindu door. There were garlands and candles burning and this lantern on the door and the bead things. Usually the Hindu people close the door pretty fast when we knock. But this family immediately invited us in. The husband, Sachin, asked us to sit down and asked us for the message. We were not expecting them to be Christian, but I have honestly Never met someone with stronger desires to be Christlike in my life. As we shared the message, Sister Giles and I both wondered if we were secretly teaching a member. It felt like I was roleplaying with the Mission President! He kept on saying, "You have to teach this doctrine more simply! I am an engineer, more simply! You have to know this A to Z. Go one step further." And whenever we presented any point of doctrine, he would say, "Do you believe this, or do you know this? You have to know this. What experience have you had to know this is true?" We just kept teaching more and more simply, and bearing out testimonies at every corner. He was soaking up everything we taught. Abruptly, he said, "I'm sorry Sisters, I have to go. The baby is crying." As it turned out, he and his wife had their first baby this Friday, and had literally brought it home a few hours ago. He still had on the hospital band. "Why did you let us in?" we asked. "I could tell you were sharing very good stuff," he said. I asked is we could come by next Thursday evening. He asked us to come back to answer one question: "How do I BE like Jesus?" and not come back until we had the answer. I told him, "I have the faith that God can give us an answer by next Thursday at 6." "Ok, just call first to make sure things are ok with the baby." As inconvenient I'm sure a time as it must have seemed, I feel like the reason his heart was so open was because of the miracle of seeing his son born.

We're going to bring a Brother in the ward and his Sunbeam named Isaac who has a very firm grasp on the doctrine, so Sachin can get the simplicity he's looking for.

"Therefore, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, yea, a marvelous work and a wonder, for the wisdom of their wise and learned shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent shall be hid." (2 Nephi 27:26) "Behold...these children; yea, even babes...open their mouths and utter marvelous things; and the things which they did utter were forbidden that there should not any man write them." (3 Nephi 26:16) All it takes is a childlike testimony to break down the understanding of the wise!

Love you but Jesus loves you best,

Sister Pugmire

Hope Indiana