January 13: New Song, New Stomache?

Hey, remember how the stomache flu is usually a one time thing?

Guess not.

Despite the fact that I was out all day on Wednesday and part of the day on Thursday, we had an amazing week! But I say that every week. I guess that is the territory that comes with being a missionary ;) I'll take it. 

Sister Wallin was able to compose a song, and now we are working on one together.

We had some stellar lessons with Karim and MaSood. I don't even know how to explain much of it, but if you have ever seen the district and the seemingly perfect lessons they teach, that's usually what happens with Karim and MaSood. They are just... dream investigators. We invited them to baptism for the end of the month, but they said they need to think about it. They both want it, but everything is really new. I mean, we've only had 3 lessons with them. And yet, they have come to church for the past 3 weeks. They're solid. We had an AWESOME joint teach with a member in our ward, Patrick, and they all hit it off really well. They are just so sincere in everything they do. MaSood even made us traditional Persian food. Never had that before. But it was really good :) Maybe someday when the government isn't trying to destroy everything, I would like to go to Iran. They are sweet people.

Hildegard and Clarissa are doing well, as well! Hildegard is set on going to the temple. She still thinks that baptism is "standing in her way" but we will jump that hurdle eventually. 

We had a lot of success this week with joint teaches. The members are becoming more and more involved in helping us with our appointments, and bearing testimony. It's so neat to hear and see them become excited about the people we are teaching. We get asked now, all the time about who we are teaching, how they are progressing, and it gives us a chance to invite the members to fellowship. I am excited for them, and for the ward. 

We had a really neat experience this week, finding. 

Okay, so nothing against the University, and finding there, but it seems like every time we go, we collect a bajillion numbers and then nothing comes of it. Needless to say, we have about 5 contact sheets front and back of contacts on the university. We have called most of them, but some of them we need to go by on and see if they still live there. Well, we were getting ready to leave the campus, but something told us we should spend the last few minutes of the day going by and finding the rest of them. We knocked on a door of one of the contacts and met a guy that was wearing a crucifix. He was not a contact of ours, but we started chatting and as soon as we told him we were missionaries, his hand shot to his cross and tucked it into his shirt. Touchy subject? However, he told us he would gladly take a Book of Mormon. So the next few days we tried to reach him, but every time he wasn't home. Saturday we were on our way to the University again and I made eye contact with someone on the strassenbahn, and thought that may be Max, but wasn't sure. We didn't go the same way, so I figured it wasn't. Naturally, he wasn't home, and as we were going back to the bahn stop, we passed the same man from the strassenbahn. Of course, we went back and he was expecting us. We gave him the Book of Mormon, and he asked if there was anything more he could do, anything more he could come to, like a church service. He is not sure what god means because he has not had any experience, but he wants some. 

Finding Max was another testimony to me that there ARE prepared people. Even in Germany ;)

Something I was thinking about this week has to do with the story about the 3 men that are in the interview, and the first two go on and tell everything they know about Christ and are let go afterwards. The third man goes in, and falls on his face in recognition of his Savior. 

It got me thinking why. The first two men knew about the Savior, knew what He did what He means to humanity, but they didn't KNOW him. It's cool in German because there are two types of "to know" one, wissen, is to know things, facts. The other, kennen, is to be familiar with usually referring to places and people. The first two men fall into the first category. It is important to know about Christ, about God, who they are and what they did, but it's even more important to be familiar with them. To RECOGNIZE them when they see them. 

One of my favorite scriptures tells us how to do this. 

Doctrine and Covenants 93:1  
1 Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who ^aforsaketh his ^bsins and cometh unto me, and ^ccalleth on my name, and ^dobeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall ^esee my ^ffaceand ^gknow that I am;

We will all come before the Lord one day. We will all see his face. But only those who have lived the gospel of Jesus Christ will see him and KNOW who he is. 

I am so thankful for the simplicity of the way. We know exactly what we need to do to recognize Christ and "kennen" him when we see him. 

I love you!

Sister Babbitt