January 20, 2010

Ciao a tutti!
Another great week in Cagliari full of lots of appointments! Dennis is doing so well! He’s getting baptized February 7! He is so excited, as are we! We talked to him about it last week and he said, "Ok sisters, I was thinking about it. And February is cold! So here’s what we’re gonna do. I’m going to buy some of those pouches you fill with hot water to keep you warm, and after I get baptized, I’ll put them in my shirt." We explained to him that we have a font in church and he doesn’t have to get baptized in the freezing cold ocean. At first he was relieved, but then he thought about it and said, "Well Jesus didn’t get baptized in a font!" We then explained that a living prophet has said that it’s perfectly acceptable to get baptized in a font, and he said, "If the prophet says it’s ok, then that’s good enough for me." He’s amazing! Before the appointment with him we told him that if there’s not another woman there, we can’t enter his house. So he went out and found a woman to bring to the appointment! He’s so great! He is so enthusiastic and happy all the time. He saw the elders the other day and told him that he’s getting baptized and he’s taking the baptism class with the sisters. (He calls the lessons his "baptism class")
In another appointment with Dennis, we showed him all the pictures from the new Gospel Art book. He soaks up everything we have to teach him and LOVES it all! He told us that he prays for us every night and that we’ll find caring husbands. He’s so fun. He really wants to go to general conference someday so he can see Church Headquarters. He already calls it "our" church and wants to see his prophet in person!
We had a great lesson with Luisa this week about how to feel and recognize the Spirit. She loved it! She is really hard to meet with because she’s so busy, but she is doing well and is progressing. We had a lesson also with Odion. She taught us the Plan of Salvation and did a great job! She really wants to serve a mission, and will be great!
We were finally able to see Ilaria and Alfredo several times this week! We love them so much! We talked about the Word of Wisdom and are going to help them stop smoking. They recognized how much more difficult their lives have been since they haven’t been to church in a few weeks, and mentioned over and over how much better their day is when they read the Book of Mormon and pray. Yesterday we saw Ilaria again with her brother Maurizio. We taught him about the Restoration and Ilaria taught almost all of it by herself! She understands it so well and has such a great testimony. We talked to all of them about baptism and they’re praying to pick a date!
Speaking of baptisms, Susan will be getting baptized the 31st of this month. She is doing much better and can’t wait. We had a lesson last week with her and her husband Massimo! Massimo is great. He’s so laid-back and just about when we think he’s not paying any attention, he makes a great comment or asks a great questions. We’re so excited to be working with the entire family!
Life is great! I can’t believe I only have 2 months left. At zone conference last week I got my going home packet. I saw it in the missionary mail and couldn’t believe it’s already here. I tried to give it back to President, but he just laughed and said, "Oh sister. You’re so cute." I think he thought I was joking.
For our district meeting this week I had the opportunity to give the training and I found so many wonderful things in my studies. My assigned topic was finding people. I love the talk from April 2008 by President Eyring called "Man Down." I highly recommend it to everyone. It talks about soldiers and how they will risk anything to save their fellow soldiers. As missionaries, and any member of the Church of Jesus Christ, we also need to be willing to risk anything to spiritually save our brothers and sisters. There are so many people in the world who don’t have the Gospel and are in darkness. It’s our job to find them and bring them the healing that comes with the Gospel.
Each person in the world has the potential to become like their Heavenly Father. Their souls are precious in His sight. And I have the wonderful privilege of helping people see that every day! I read a wonderful conference talk by Elder Ballard that talks about the value of each soul. He says:
"Brothers and sisters, I believe that if we could truly understand the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ, we would realize how precious is one son or daughter of God. I believe our Heavenly Father’s everlasting purpose for His children is generally achieved by the small and simple things we do for one another. At the heart of the English word atonement is the word one. If all mankind understood this, there would never be anyone with whom we would not be concerned, regardless of age, race, gender, religion, or social or economic standing. We would strive to emulate the Savior and would never be unkind, indifferent, disrespectful, or insensitive to others. If we truly understood the Atonement and the eternal value of each soul, we would seek out the wayward boy and girl and every other wayward child of God. We would help them to know of the love Christ has for them. We would do all that we can to help prepare them to receive the saving ordinances of the gospel."
Have a great week, everyone! Vi voglio bene!
Sister Hawkey