05/30/16 - Siler City, North Carolina

What a week, what a week.. Probably the most productive week of the mission so far! It started off on an incredible moment as last Monday after emailing, some of us Elders went to Firehouse subs to get some lunch. As we were about to order, some man yelled out "I'm paying for all of these young men." It was a member from the Dunn ward! Tender mercy for sure. That man is getting blessed! Then later that night Elder Allred and I went to visit one of our investigators who was not home. Before getting in the car and leaving however, I got a spiritual prompting to turn around and visit one house in particular. We approached the house and found a man about to get in his car. We quickly caught his attention and starting sharing our message with him. He didn't seem to be too interested at first. But as I really tried to tune into the Spirit as to what this man needed, I thought of the Book of Mormon. I asked him if he had ever heard of it before. It turns out that this man, by the name of Jose, has been searching and praying for a Book of Mormon! He has been asking all of his neighbors, friends, even the Jehovah's Witnesses where he can get one! How special it was that the Lord trusted us enough to let us be instruments in His hands to find this searching son. Tuesday we were on bikes all day! We biked 20 miles and were not able to get a single lesson. But we stayed positive. Thursday we had a lesson with one of our investigators by the name of Net and it was our best lesson with her yet. She has been investigating the church for a few years and has a strong testimony, but does not feel ready to be baptized. We went over the baptismal interview questions with her and she nailed them all! We read with her James 2:17 and were very lovingly bold with her letting her know that if she has a faith in Jesus Christ, she must manifest it through her works. She asked for a baptismal date in June. The Spirit was very strong and she was brought to tears by the end as she asked us for a hug. I was more than happy to testify to her of the reality and extent of God's love for her. The following day we taught a few more investigators. One of which was Clara, the 72 year old woman that kissed us! As I closed the lesson by offering a prayer, she put her hands on my shoulder and rested her head on it too! She is so sweet haha. We taught Maribel next and she has been wrecked by a preacher! She told us that she "doesn't believe on the Book of Mormon" and she doesn't feel like she can pray to God to know if it is true. No!! We took a step back and testified to her of the purpose of prayer. She was brought to tears and committed to praying before our next visit. We then went to a Spanish family home evening at the church and we had an investigator come! Great night talking about temples. Saturday. Hands down the craziest day ever. We taught 7 lessons! That is one every hour and then one! We even found 2 new investigators one of which is named Crystal. She saw us walking down the street and stopped us to ask if we would pray for her! A very neat encounter. We were on bikes again for about 15 miles and then on foot for another 5. While we were tracting we had a man tell us that we "should be at the airport with ropes tied around our necks!" We kindly replied by asking who he knew that would be interested in and benefit from an uplifting message about Jesus Christ. Sadly, we did not obtain a referral from this man. We taught another investigator by the name of Casey and he told us to keep coming back, that he's been thinking about it and maybe one day we might "convince him of this whole baptism thing." While biking we had a member from Lexington drive by and tell us that they were grateful for everything we are doing and that we are great men no matter what anyone tells us! Another great tender mercy. And to finish off Saturday, we had a member present with Belzain, the man with all the great questions! We had a great gospel discussion with him, his wife, and a few of his friends, but it quickly became loud with a spirit of contention. Everyone seemed to be fighting to get a word in. The Spirit prompted me and I acted quickly by jumping in firmly and demanding silence. I lovingly, yet firmly reminded everyone why we were there. That the Spirit cannot dwell in contention and without the Spirit, we have nothing. They all seemed very shaken, and quickly agreed. The Spirit came back in it's fulness as we once again began to discuss the gospel of Jesus Christ. Belzain has been visited by many pastors that have told him to not read the Book of Mormon, that it is false. The Spirit once again came over me as I informed him that these men were not called of God. That if he was to find truth, he must look to the founder of it. And my favorite part of the lesson was when Belzain related to Brother Perez (our member) the story of how we came to find him. That he was lifting his sofa into a truck and we ran over to offer our help. He explained that we began to share a powerful message to him and that specifically as I bore my testimony, he was fixed upon me. He said that in that moment, he knew it was true. There was no denying it. It really hit me that the Spirit we carry with us as representatives of the Lord and Savior, testifies of truth to all people we meet. I love and cherish that moment in that lesson. Sunday we were blessed to have an investigator come to church as well as 3 progressing less active Hispanics! After church we went to teach Leticia, an investigator, and she apologized for not coming to church like she should have. She is very excited to come next week. And to top the week off, last night we had another member present in the Bishop's home! This week was a busy one for sure. And filled with so many spiritual experiences! Elder Allred and I were able to teach 20 lessons in total, breaking my personal record of 18! 3 of those were member presents, 3 new investigators, 10 other lessons with investigators, 2 member referrals, and 2 baptismal dates! A record breaking week. I hope everyone is staying in their scriptures and staying close to Christ! These are crazy times we live in.. I love you all soo much!

Physically more exhausted than ever before, but spiritually on fire,
Elder Shearer