Wake Forest - Week 5

Hey everyone!

This week I wanted to write about love.  It is the best thing we can have in our lives.

As missionaries we teach about how the Atonement is the central point of the gospel, which it is, but the Atonement, more than anything else, was an act of love.  It was a planned by our loving Father in Heaven and carried out by our loving older brother so that we could all live together as a family "in a state of never ending happiness" (Mosiah 2:41).

Over the last  week I have had a lot of opportunities to work on charity and love for those around me. Last week was one of the more frustrating weeks I have had,  but it was all for the best. The talk "Lord, is it I?" by President Uchtdorf, came to mind. As I turned inward and searched deeply and honestly I found things I need to work on. As I tried to be more like the Savior in all that I did nothing really changed.  Each day was just as frustrating as the day before. I was still exhausted, the situations were still frustrating, the work was still hard, people kept slamming doors in our face, but for whatever reason, I was different (totally the Spirit's fault).  Because I was more willing to set aside my pride we were able teach a powerful lesson to an investigator that now wants to be baptized on the 15th of next month. Love y'all!

Love,
Elder Harper

These top 2 pictures were sent by Brother Siemens, on the left.  He was visiting NC from Idaho, and knows Elder Stephens Father.

Elder Harper hit his 1 year mission mark on July 16, 2015.  A kind family in their ward, The Howells, took them out for Ice Cream to celebrate!!!

Elder Harper's Haircut!!!

Wake Forest - Week 4

Hey everyone!

Last week was a blur. We worked super hard and it went way to fast!

One of my favorite parts of the week was Wednesday,  when we went to do some service.  I got to chop a couple of trees down with an axe.  I really miss doing hard labor stuff like that, so that was kind of a tender mercy for me =D.

Now for the spiritual highlights. On Saturday we went to do some service for a less active member, who has some medical problems. He has been sick for the last 4 years and has been confined to his house for the most part. We shared a message with him before we started about the Atonement. He immediately started to tear up and told us that it meant everything to him. Then he opened to Matthew 11 and read versus 28 - 30:

"Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

Then he told us that his whole life he had read it and understood it that when we cast our burdens on Christ he takes them from us but he came to the realization that Christ is saying "take MY yoke upon YOU," and then we find rest for our souls." It was an extremely powerful lesson and reminder for me that our heart, might, mind, and strength need to be focused on him and as we take on his yoke we find that our own yoke is lighter and easier to carry.

Another Highlight was Sunday night. Our mission president held a fireside that we could bring our recent converts, less actives, and investigators to. We took our investigator Josh. He is 16 and a total stud! A family in the ward has been fellow shipping him for awhile now and he has been coming to church for a couple months.  Recently he has started to have a desire to meet with the missionaries. We haven't been able to meet with him because of some scheduling conflicts. But he was able to come to the fireside with us. It was kind of a testimony meeting so whoever wanted could stand up and say something. Half way through he stood up and said he knew the Book of Mormon is true and that he wanted to get baptized.  He is thinking about a date sometime in August.

The gospel is true and the confirming witness that comes from the spirit is undeniable. Love Y'all!

Love,
Elder Harper

This is one of the trees we cut down, it's not very big but I am proud of it!!!

Wake Forest - Week 3

Hey everyone!

Sorry I didn't get an email out last week, my companion got really sick and we couldn't really do anything... but this is a good summary of the last two weeks.

The Doctor told us Elder Stephens had Hand, Foot, Mouth Disease and was highly contagious.  He told us we shouldn’t go out to see people because it spreads really easily. We were told that we needed to stay inside away from people but that people could bring stuff to the door. In this ward we get fed pretty much every night which is amazing! So we had members bringing us dinner every night.  I asked a super awesome sister in the ward, Sister Howell if she could bring over some crafting supplies or some stuff I could play around with. She brought SO MUCH STUFF, I didn't know what to do with most of it, so I just built stuff out of cardboard.

I didn't get sick.  which was a miracle, but we were both starting to get really depressed because we had been stuck inside for so long.  We asked the Howells if we could go to their house and sit in their front yard for the day. After a day or two of that, I was getting way to sick of just sitting around, so I asked Sister Howell what I could help her with in her yard.  I had a lot of fun with that. I helped set up a chicken coup, climbed some trees and had a really good time.
Then Sunday happened. After being stuck in the apartment for a week we saw some awesome miracles. Elder Bednar came to speak to the youth (not the missionaries). He spoke at the Apex Stake Center.  Everyone who was going had to be there by 5:45 pm to be seated. We were pretty sad we couldn't go. Then at 4:45 we got a call from the Sister missionaries in our  ward asking if we were going. We asked if we were even allowed to go. They said we could go if we had an investigator going with us. Our investigator Shawn, had left at 4 with the youth in the ward. So we could go,  but we needed to leave immediately.   We called the Howells, and asked their son Ronnie, who just got back from his mission a month ago, if he would take us down. He said yes. So we jumped in the car and drove very, very fast,  and we got there right on time.

It was an awesome Q and A session. The entire time he just took questions and answered them. The "main theme" was listening to the spirit to learn and ask inspired questions. It was so amazing! Then afterward we met up with Shawn and he said he wanted to talk to us that night and he would give us a call. On the drive home we got a text from him saying "I have no doubts about the church, and I want to know what I need to do to be baptized." Ronnie, Elder Stephens, and I lost it! We instantly got super excited and were having our own little celebration on the way home.

It was a huge testimony builder for me. It was amazing to see that just by Shawn listening to an apostle speak for a couple hours all his concerns and questions were resolved.

Love Y'all!
Elder Harper

Wake Forest - Week 2

Dear Family and Friends,

We didn't get an official email from Elder Harper this week.  

We got a call from a Nurse in his mission Sunday night, July 5.  She wanted to let us know that Elder Harper and his companion had been quarantined in their apartment since the last Thursday.  Elder Harper's companion had contracted Hand, Foot, Mouth Disease and they wanted to make sure they did not spread it to anyone else.  They also wanted to keep an eye on Elder Harper and make sure he didn't get the virus also.  

Elder Harper was able to send us an email on Thursday after they had been confined to their apartment for a week.  Drake said he was doing good and his companion was feeling a lot better. 

Elder Harper said he painted a little while Elder Stephens was sick. He also built a model of the Tabernacle from the Old Testament and a model of Lehi's dream.  I guess he had to think of things to fill his time!!!

I don't think Elder Harper mentioned this in any of his emails, he was called to be a District Leader last month!!!