It's December the 2nd and Christmas is in
the air in Norwich. The Town Centre is looking very festive and people are
starting to break out the mince pies and Christmas pudding. The latter has probably been aging for 6 months,
but apparently that just adds to the flavour!
Elder Cuche and I had a good week.
On Tuesday we went to a district meeting in Gorleston, and then I went to
Lowestoft on an exchange. It’s a cold cold place. We were tracting around there
in the evening and we ran into a lady named Tina. She was very happy to see us
and exclaimed that she had been thinking a lot about what the truth is about
God and if having a belief is even worth it. Her friend is a Jehovah’s Witness
and had been sharing her beliefs but Tina felt that something was missing. She
didn't feel right about it. So she invited us in and she had about a million
and one questions which she wanted us to answer. We shared the First Vision,
Nature of God, and the Plan of Salvation. It was a really good lesson and I
could tell when we were speaking about the three kingdoms of glory she was
tearing up a bit because the plan of salvation is perfect ... and she agreed
with it. We set a date to go back the next day.
Yesterday the elders in Lowestoft
called me to tell me that they took a member with them, and Tina recognized the
spirit as they taught her and finally recognized that she had found what she
was looking for! She came to church on Sunday and plans on joining the church!
All in the matter of a week! She has found God’s plan for her, and she is A-OK
with all of the commandments like the Word of Wisdom. It was pretty wicked.
Wednesday I was on another exchange
in Norwich. We had a good day and saw lots of success. Norwich is a pretty
diverse place so it’s really fun to talk with people. I met people from Angola,
India, Poland, Ghana, and Russia that day. And for dinner a member served us
some stew and dumplings … which is what they ate during the war when food was
rationed, so you can imagine how that tasted. And they just kept piling it down
on my plate. Mmmmm. And for afters we had some apple crumble and custard.
We taught Emma on Wednesday. She is
the Chinese recent convert. She is doing great and hasn't missed a Sunday since
we met her. We taught about temples and eternal marriage, and it absolutely
blew her mind that we can be with our families forever. It was a fun lesson.
Saturday we played some football
with some members and then went home and ate some lunch.
This week was a week when the Plan
of Salvation has really stuck out to me. It was the knowledge that Tina was
looking for, and as we taught Emma about eternal families she thought it was
too good to be true. As I have studied it, it helps me know that this is the
Restored Gospel, that God’s plan has been restored through modern prophets!
Cheerio,
Elder
Purdy
from Jen:
I learned that Lowestoft is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It lies on the North Sea coast 110 miles northeast of London and 22 miles southeast of Norwich. Some of the earliest evidence of settlement in Britain has been found there and the town has a long history.
Gorleston-On-Sea, also known colloquially as Gorleston, lies at the mouth of the River Yare. It experienced the highest wind speed ever recorded in the UK during the Great Storm of 1987 -- 122 mph.
