The Latest from Stow, OH

Posted by Stephs' Dad 11/28/07

Hello family!

Transfers were today, but seeing as how I’m emailing you, it means I wasn’t transferred. I get to stay in Stow for at least another 6 weeks. I’m really excited about it and I can’t wait to see the work progress even more while I’m here during the holidays. Sister Corbridge is also staying and boy was I glad--I love working with her and learning from her example.

Thanksgiving was really great. We ate at the church and it was actually really fun. We weren’t able to play lightning with the family because we had another house to get to (the Stebel family had invited us over for dessert, converts of about 9 months). Afterwards we went to the big apartment complex where one set of elders lives to play ping pong and pool. It was the first time I’d put jeans on since I got to Ohio…I almost forgot what it was like! We then rushed to a lesson with an investigator that evening. All in all it was a great Thanksgiving!

The only difficult thing about Thanksgiving was that I felt like it really disrupted the work. We weren’t allowed to proselyte or contact that day, so I didn’t know what we were going to do in the evening (we did have one lesson which was nice). Also, most people we talked with didn’t want to meet for most of the week because they felt the stress of the holiday and wanted to get everything in order. Lame. But it was funny because with every cancellation or change in our schedule, the Lord blessed us with another opportunity. Isn’t He just great? I’m so amazed by the involvement of the Lord in our everyday lives, both here in the mission field and also in all our current paths. Even with Nicole being able to stay at the Springville Museum—it’s just so great how the Lord micromanages our lives and blesses us with things we really need rather than what we think we need.

So some of the blessings with this week—we were able to meet a Russian woman who doesn’t speak a lick of English (I understood “Russian” “bye” and “no”) and a few days later take a Russian Book of Mormon to her. She wanted to give us money for it and we told her no it was a gift. She then gave us each an apple in return. We’re searching the ward to see if anyone knows Russian but so far haven’t had luck. I hope that she’ll take the time to read from the Book of Mormon.

The next blessing. Richard finished the Book of Mormon! He talked with me on the phone for about 30 minutes the other day asking questions and discussing the feelings he’s had as he’s read. He’s truly experiencing the power of the Holy Ghost and I hope that soon he’ll be able to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost—it’s now just a matter of meeting Gail’s needs and addressing her concerns. We were able to prayerfully plan a lesson for Gail on Monday where we talked about her concerns—it was awesome because she had been praying too, wanting to know how to go about voicing the concerns that she has. I love the Lord. We were able to get things out in the open and I realized it’s not so much that she disagrees with things (though she does to a certain extent) as much as it is she hasn’t fully understood and feels rushed. I know that it will take time and that it will ultimately be here decision to join the church, but I also couldn’t stop picturing her in all white clothing that night. I continually pray that I will know how to best help her understand the importance of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and that the Lord will help her recognize the promptings of the Spirit that this is Christ’s church again on the earth.

This week, in addition to being off because of cancellations, has just been tiring. We’ve been working really hard trying to find and teach, teach and find. Sister Corbridge even fell asleep while saying companionship prayer yesterday morning—it made me laugh but it’s just a reflection on what we’re trying to do and how hard we’re working to help bring souls to Christ. And I love it, I really do.

I’m always amazed at how much the Lord wants to bless us. I really think that it’s also amazing just how those blessings come by obedience to the commandments and direction the Lord has given us. Whenever the Lord gives a commandment, he also gives a blessing. And as I’ve been thinking about D&C 130:20, I’ve been thinking about how it says, “there is a law…upon which all blessings are predicated” in relation to the Bible Dictionary definition of prayer where it says that prayer is to “secure for ourselves and for others the blessings that God is already willing to grant, but that are made conditional upon our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.” I don’t know if this makes sense or if this is an accurate interpretation/application, but I definitely think that there is a law of prayer and that by praying, we obtain blessings that are predicated upon our working for them through prayer and obedience. Those are two principles that I am striving to live more fully while here in the OCM and desire to receive those blessings that are predicated upon the laws of God.

Well folks, that’s probably it for me for this week. I hope that you’re gaining strength from reading PMG, studying your scriptures, and committing to live the gospel to a greater degree in your life. Thanks for all you do and I love love love you!

Love,

Sister Cannariato