Bernell and Donna Stout Family: May 2014

      Well to start off I guess I will inform you on the latest hot topic at church. The talk of the town is me and my having to have surgery. I went to see an orthopedic specialist this last week he refused to work on me saying the surgery I need was very difficult and could only be down but a few people in the area that he knows of. So I had to call my mission president and I was approved to see a doctor in
Roseville. My relief society president heard this and sent out a mass email to the entire ward saying pray for sister Johnson. She is soon going in for surgery. Also pray that if God allows it she can stay in the area.
    So that took off like wild fire. Everyone was coming up expressing there concern and love. Some didn't understand the email well and thought I was having to go home and end my mission. Some
people are a little dramatic but it was sweet to hear all of there love and concern.
    However, this week was very eventful. First off it was zone conference. We got together with 3 zones and were taught by our leaders. It was a spiritual experience and I loved hearing the departing
testimonies. But knowing me something had to happen to create a scene. After our break we were herded back into the chapel. Following like a sheep I walked with the group. Than I realized I left my companion in the bathroom, she was doing makeup and I run in saying come on the meetings starting. We both came running out of the bathroom to find that not only where the door shuts but locked. We ran to the other side and they too where locked. I started to feel like we were living
the parable of the 10 Virgins. We were obviously the ones not prepared. But than my companion luckily had the phone so we texted the elders from our ward to come open the door for us. They did and we had to do the walk of shame all the way to the front row of the chapel.
    After the meeting my companion ran up and grabbed our keys from the pile of keys. She handed them to me and we were off. We drove the hour ride home and when I got out of the car I looked down at my keys and saw Toyota keys. I wondered who put extra keys on mine. Then I pulled them and realized they had been connected by a magnet. I instantly realized that I had just stolen a set of missionaries keys and left them stranded in redding. I began making phone calls trying to find someone to help. I got a hold of President Paulson who is a counselor and he said he would pick up the keys from us and return them. So we decided to meet up at McDonalds. When we showed up I
looked in the back of the car and there was my trainer shaking her head at me and laughing. I was like man this is really embarrassing. She made fun of me and then I was shocked to see that she went to eat at McDonald because she hates that place. But when she went to the door I saw her talking to some one while we headed off to work. I later got a call from her telling us that she ran into one of there old investigators who now moved to Corning. She was working at McDonalds and would like to meet with missionaries again. It was a miracle. Maybe we were supposed to steal someone's keys, totally take over my trainers plans so they had to eat in Corning so that they could find Evelyn. We are now trying to get in contact with her and we will keep you posted. But it definitely made me feel better about the situation.
         That next day though I woke up super sick. I couldn't sleep through the night because I was so congested and couldn't breath. I had a massive head ache and had to constantly blow my nose. But I
really felt like we had to work that day. That there were people we had to see. We said a companion prayer about who of all our investigators we should see. My companion was only going to let me
visit two people. So we decided to see Gabby and Marcos. Before going into Gabby's home I told my companion we need to set a date with Gabby to be baptized. She agreed so we said a prayer to know when. We narrowed it down between the 8th or 15th of June. So we went into her home and I couldn't breath with all the smoke in the air and I felt like I was going to pass out. But we continued teaching and extended the baptism invitation she said she wants to be a baptized but doesn't know if everyone needs to be baptized ect. She started asking all the questions.when I felt the impression to just leave her with reading assignments and commit her to pray about these things. She said knowing that she would do better studying these things out on her own. Later that day I received an email from her saying. " I don't know if I ever really answered your question this morning. But I know I need
to be baptized and I will. I know that god loves me and has been looking out for me. I will make it a goal to quiet smoking and will all that I can to prepare for that baptism date. Please pick a date
around the fifteenth and I will set that my goal." We wrote back telling her about our prayer and the dates we felt and she replied saying thank you and agreed to set that as a date.
        The second person we decided to visit was Marcos, he came to church last week and was really great about asking questions and is really wanting to learn. So I knew we needed to see him too and set a date. So we went to a members home and he met us there. We had a great lesson and he accepted the baptism invitation for the 8th of June. The spirit was really strong there even though I felt physically awful.
        Earlier that week we visited Laura who has been meeting with us for about 5 weeks. She has ancestors that were pioneers and is friends with a member. She reads the Book of Mormon every night and likes it. She just hasn't been to church yet. We knew we needed to invited her to be baptized with a date though because in the past we just did soft commitments with her. So we extended the invitation and she said YES as well. Setting the date for June 1st. She has to come to church every week between now and then. The only hold up was wanting to tell her kids (who are adults) what she was doing and get there permission/support. So Sunday rolled around and Laura walked into church obviously nervous but happy. She was warmly welcomed. Gabby and Marcos also attended. It was such a relief to see how dedicated each of these individuals are. They each have there trail they are trying to over come but have the faith to come. I love them and feel so blessed to be able to work with them. They make all the rejections and rough days worth it.
        At the end of church Gabby expressed how spiritual of an experience it was and how apart she feels with everything. She said she is determined to get baptized. Marcos also had a great experience
and is loved by the ward. Laura though at the end almost began crying, I looked over at her and asked how she felt. She opened up and said. My family is catholic. They died in that belief. If I get baptized
where does that put me after this life. Will I never get to be with them? She looked scared and said that is her only thing holding her back from baptism. Not wanting to go to much into it in front of the
ward I told her that this gospel is all about blessing the family and bringing them together and that we will talk about that at our next appointment. She smiled and said ok. So keep her in your prayers this
week that she can feel ok will proceeding and understand that this is the way to bring her family together forever. That she can receive the revelation she needs to keep on the path that she is on.
          Though I am still sick and can hardly breath I am over flowing with love and excitement for my area. I pray that I can stay and witness all of these individuals baptisms. June is going to
hopefully be a very special month for us. I pray that we can prepare these people and help them become truly converted to this Gospel.

  I love each of you and pray all is well.
       Love sister Johnson

Bernell and Donna Stout Family

Pages

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Letter from Sister Tiffany Johnson May 19, 2014

Thursday, May 1, 2014

Jetton Dayne Christensen