First, because this is my first email since the MTC, I gotta start by wrapping that up. I just wanna say thanks to my teachers, my group (both Vietnamese districts) and my comp Elder Crotty. Fantastic people and I love them all. I’m really excited to see everyone again in Vietnam.
I have now been in Lebanon Tennessee for almost 2 weeks and I feel really blessed to be here. To start, I have an amazing trainer named Elder Wakefield. He has only been here 1 transfer and is already training. And due to my super long Vietnamese MTC, he has only been on his mission for 2 weeks longer than me. But let it be known, he is absolutely ready to train and is the best trainer I could’ve asked for and he has a lot to teach me. He knows a bunch about missionary work in Lebanon and missionary work in general. He is super motivated. Really glad I got a great trainer!
We had a baptism on Saturday for a lady named Kristine. She has been fully committed and on date since I got here and is wonderful. She seems so happy and has great friends in the ward. Her 2 best friends in the ward are Brother Fowler and Sister Alack. They found Kristine initially and have been in every lesson with her. Us missionaries have come over to teach, but it’s really those 2 friends that taught and helped convert Kristine. This ward is incredibly missionary minded and it helps us out a ton. It has made me more motivated to be more involved with local missionary work for the rest of my life even after the mission. Member missionary work can have a great powerful influence on Gathering Israel. It was a great baptismal service and I’m really happy for Kristine!
There are churches EVERYWHERE. And they are all different. Everyone loves Jesus. Everyone loves the Bible. Everyone loves to pray. Everyone loves to go to church. I love the people here. But being around them has strengthened my testimony of the importance of the Book of Mormon. Just the fact that it is true makes the decision of what church to follow so much easier. Being from SLC I didn’t see many other churches. But I can see why in other places of the world like this it is such a common question of what church should I join? Just like Joseph Smith asked. The answer is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the Book of Mormon is why. It really is a missionaries best tool for conversion. Our doctrine is what sets us apart from all these churches I have seen here in Lebanon alone and the Book of Mormon is what proves us right.
-Elder McConkie
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| Driving down the highway, there are a lot more trees here |
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| How about the Vols! EVERYONE here loves
the Vols and so do I. And, clearly,
so does this member of the bishopric |
