When God Steps In

MIRACLESSS!
I seriously love Chinese people so much! Their language is just about impossible, but I love them! This week was super good and we met so many amazing people.

First we got to teach a less actives wife named, Jian. Lorenzo (her husband) is Mexican and she is Asian, super interesting but cool! She is really amazing and super willing to learn the Gospel. She came to church by herself which was awesome!

Second we had an amazing opportunity to go with Hank & Tina to the Temple. It is awesome to see how far they have come and how much they have grown. What an amazing experience! I'm so grateful that I had the chance to teach them! 

Sunday was super fun, as usual. Just the normal stress and the wanting to pull all your hairs out! But we had 3 people come to church!

Evangel and her daughter Blair will be baptized this upcoming Sunday. We are really excited for them, they are so amazing! 

After church we were able to teach this couple named Winter and Norris (named himself after Chuck Norris, Haha) Norris had to leave so we taught Winter and her mom, Katherine! They are both amazing and she is super fun. Winter is quite the fireball and is a professional Fashion Designer!

But by far the most amazing thing that happened this week was yesterday. We had the opportunity to teach a lady by the name of Jenny. She recently lost her husband to cancer and she is really depressed and sad. Her friend referred her to us and went with us to teach her. Jenny didn't know we knew Chinese. She was so excited when she found out! We taught her the Plan of Salvation and told her she would see her husband again! She cried and cried and said, "You have given me this new hope! I have no family anymore and your church will be my new family!" She calls us her little angels. I'm so grateful for the amazing experience we had teaching her. She is super talented and has a beautiful home that she built with her own hands! 

Love you all- hope you have a sweet week! 

Sun Zhanglao! ​

Elder Nelson 孙长老

Good to know!😁

Special Day

So this week Ben informed us that his "competitive spirit" got the best of him. Nothing like a friendly game of kickball with the Elders to put you in the hospital! All is OK now, but it made for a fun few days of muscle relaxers and a lot of pain in his neck. I wonder where he gets that "spirit" from?😉

They had the opportunity to teach someone new named Bruce (after Bruce Lee). This now makes 3 Bruce's they are teaching. Needless to say, it can get confusing! Haha. 

Ben had his last interview with President Mullen this week. He leaves on June 30th and his new Mission President, Darrell Hammon is arriving that same day. This is such a bittersweet thing for Ben. He loves President and Sister Mullen and has appreciated all the things they have taught him. I pray for this new President and hope that he will have a smooth transition into the Riverside Mission.

Last Picture with President & Sister Mullen😢

One of the highlights of Ben's week was doing baptisms with Hank and Tina! They each needed to bring names and Ben talked about how fun it was to do Family History with them.

Ben mentioned in his email that they were able to meet with a couple named Norris and Winter. He went into more detail and told us that they have been trying to get in touch with these 2 for about 4 weeks and before that it had been years of missionaries trying to teach them. The miracle here was that Elder Crowther was able to connect with them while Ben and Elder Willes were at the Temple with Hank and Tina! Now they have appts. set up to continue to teach them and even though Norris had to leave halfway through, Winter's mom ended up sitting in on the lesson and was loving it! She was a welcome surprise and another unexpected investigator for them. 

The story of Jenny is heart breaking. I cannot listen to it without crying the whole way through. 

Jenny was referred to them from a lady named Sister Flynn. She called Salt Lake to find out who the missionaries were in the area. She told them about her friend Jenny and how she has lost her husband and is really sad and lonely. Sister Flynn felt like she would be prepared to listen to them because we teach of being eternal families and she can see her husband again. 

They asked her if she wanted it in English or Chinese. Sister Flynn said she knew a lot of English so that would work. Elder Crowther apologized and said they could refer her to the English Missionaries because they were the Chinese Missionaries. Sister Flynn FREAKS out and says, "Wait what? You guys know Chinese? How did you know she was from China?" They explained that they didn't know, but would be happy to teach her in Chinese. She was thrilled because Jenny was married to an American and had not been able to speak Chinese for about 20 years. 

They show up to her house and find out that her husband was a piano tuner. They go into the garage and they see all these piano pieces that she and her husband have been working on. He was very talented and had written like 37 piano pieces. They continue into the backyard and it is everything Chinese! Ben says it was one of the most beautiful things he has seen with a big bridge and a coy pond underneath, huge pillars, stone tunnels and big gazebo all that she made by hand! 

They start talking with Jenny who Ben describes as having the saddest countenance, it broke his heart. They ask her where she is from and she says, "Shanghai China." So Ben says in Chinese, "Oh so we can speak in Chinese if you want."  He says she just freaks out so happy and starts saying, "Oh you handsome boys, how do you know Chinese?" They explain that this is their mission and they start explaining their purpose. They go inside and start talking with her and Ben says, "She is so fragile right now and she is talking about her husband and you can tell she loves him so much and what a huge influence he has been on her in her life."  

As she is talking she tells them that the hospital killed him. They thought he had some heart condition and went into fix it but he ended up really having a lung infection and when they opened him up, the infection traveled to his heart and killed him. The hospital told her that it was 100% their fault and that she could take legal action if she wanted to, but she said one of John's (her husband) last comments was that he told the hospital he forgave them and he passed away, so she never took action. 

She told them of how Christ-like he was and that the Bible has played a really big role in her life. Ben said she went on to say, "I would give everything up, my house, everything! All I want is the clothes on my back and I would go sleep on the streets if I could have my husband back."  It was so sad and she started crying and told them she just misses him so much. They started teaching her the Plan of Salvation and the whole way through she kept saying, "I agree with all of this".

Ben had the last part and it was about the kingdoms and he tells her, "I know you're going to see your husband again and I know where he is right now and he is learning about the same things you are learning." 

She starts crying and crying and tells them that they have given her so much hope. She says, "My psychologist told me he thinks I am suicidal because I miss him so much and then you guys come in and you "Little Angels" have given me a new hope and I know I will see him again and I know this is true. You can say whatever you want to me and keep teaching me, but I already know this is true. I have no family here and I think your church is my new family." 

I can feel it, I know it's true and I know that what my husband is doing is right. I love God and he has been so good to me and I have been blessed with so many things. I am so happy that I am going to see my husband again!" 

Ben talked about how strong the spirit was in this moment. He said, "You could've probably grabbed the spirit out of the air and sat it down next to you! I have never had a more spiritual experience on my mission or in my life. This was one of the best lessons, there were no struggles, I knew all the words I was suppose to say, it was incredible." 

Jenny expressed to them that if her husband had been alive and they had contacted her she would've probably told them to come back another time and would not have really thought about it. But since he has died she knows this is her trial and she know Heavenly Father sent them there and she wants to come to church to learn all she can about it. 

So many miracles for these Elders this week! ♥♥♥ As Ben would say, "God is Good!"