The Blessing- Week 49

It was yet another excellent week serving in Lawton with Elder Dutson. Every single day I am so excited to wake up with my dear companion who is also as motivated, excited, and dedicated to serve diligently, work hard, be obedient, have fun, strive to follow the Spirit, to invite and help our fellow brothers and sisters and to teach with power and authority. I love this heavenly experience! 

We, like always, are able to see and witness so many miracles and tender mercies everyday such as these:

-15 year old young man named Alfred who is autistic but highly functional and comprehensive. We found him walking his dog in our apartment complex and we were able to talk to him. As we continued to TNT him (Talk N' Teach) he said he would love to be baptized and come to church. We got to meet his grandmother and she told us at first that his mother wasn't really religious and wouldn't be anytime soon so we probably wouldn't be able to teach Alfred and help him follow Christ's example. By the end of that conversation she said that she would talk to his mother, Star and give us a good word because she liked us so much. We met her and talked with her for several minutes days later and she said he could come to church with us and we could teach him and that she really liked us. We were teaching Alfred and asked him what he loved about Jesus Christ and he said "I love His power. I want to travel the galaxy and find worlds and kingdoms and save them just like Jesus saved us." Alfred is absolutely stunning. I love him so much! What a miracle and tender mercy. He wants to get baptized when he gets home from his aunt's house in Virginia in a month. 

-We met a man named Michael about a month ago and he told us then that he wanted to be baptized and be saved and learn more and everything and we set up a return appointment for the next day and he wasn't there. We kept going back a couple times the next week and called him several times then one day like 3 weeks later he finally answered our call. He asked who it was and we told him and he said "Wow, I am so glad you guys didn't forget about me! I still need to be baptized! I haven't been baptized yet! When can we get this thing done, I need to get baptized. I just had my 25th Birthday yesterday and it is a time of new beginnings and I just need to get baptized! Also, can my twin brother get baptized too?" haha wow if there is one way to get a pair of missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints excited, he did it! 

-The list goes on and on! Miracles and Tender Mercies big and small every single hour of every single day. I love this place, I love this people, I love this country, I love my friends, I love my family, and I love God.

Keep the faith!

Elder Ricks

 

Great object lesson with Skylin. We were teaching about CPR (Church, Pray, Read-Scriptures) and how that builds a testimony that can bear up anything. Also, Treshon loves giving us drawings and hats and airplanes and things:D

We Went To The Wild Life Refuge Today For The Fourth Of July With A Member Today And We Got To Go Hiking! On The "Mountains". It Was So Fun! 

I fell... But thankfully I am learning from all of the cats in Oklahoma and landed on my feet.

  "We" were reenacting the Titanic! Elder Dutson hasn't seen the movie though and didn't think I was being very clever... "Hmmm. Why are you grabbing my fat?"