Well this week was interesting. Things seemed to have slowed down a little bit and we weren't able to get meetings like we were the last 2 weeks.
V is doing really well and will be baptized Sunday morning, so we are very excited about that.
I also had two really sad experiences this week. First we met with our other really solid investigator and set a baptismal date with him. It was a really good meeting and he seemed really excited and sincere. But after that he stopped answering our calls and texted us and said that he didn't want to meet with us any more. It was really sad. Elder Vargin and I just looked at the phone and were dumbfounded for a second. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but it is definitely evidence of the adversary working to try to stop the work of God from moving forward. I think it very easily could have been something social. Maybe he told his family and they convinced him not to, or for some other reason he just got scared. Anyway, there's not much we can do if he won't talk to us. But I think if we can just sit down with him and talk it out and find out what it is we can help him through it. Anyway, it's just really sad, because he definitely felt it in his heart that the church is true and the right path for him.
The other experience happened when I was on exchanges. We met a recent convert from their area. We were talking to him about receiving the priesthood. He didn't really want to, so we talked it out, and he told us that he doesn't have a testimony. He kinda thought to just go forward with baptism and that a testimony would come after but he said it hadn't after already about 6 months, I think. There was a really sad and somber tone to the meeting, but he hasn't given up, and he still has a desire so I'm confident that he will receive it. We talked to him about what he should do to get a testimony and really what all members should do to strengthen the testimonies that we already have, that is: 1- Read the Book of Mormon, 2- Pray, 3- Come to church, 4- Live all of the commandments in order to see the results of all of those in your life. He said he was doing the first three, but we would have to work on #4. So it was kind of a sad eye-opening experience, but I am very optimistic because once we can help him do all of those things, he will receive that testimony. It just reminded me how important that step #4 is.
I was on exchanges with Elders Walker and Newman this week, (the two other elders in Tomsk) and I was in their area both times, so that was really cool.
Elder Vargin and I really need to get some more investigators to make serious progress, so that's going to be a big task and of course along with that is just getting more investigators constantly. So, we'll keep moving along with that. We spent more time just out on the streets contacting this week because it has been a little warmer and we had fewer meetings.
I cut Elder Vargin's hair last week and he did mine this morning so we look really good. Well that's it. Love y'all.
Elder Topham
