Hey hey hey, everyone!!
Had another great week here in Ukraine!! Probably my favorite one so far, actually!!
This week we went and made brownies over at лиза and никита house. I shared with them 1 Nephi 19:17-19 (two of my favorite verses in the Book of Mormon), and talked to them about the Atonement of Jesus Christ, along with what it means to be Christ like, and what we can do to be more like him each day. Aside from that, I murdered myself at the bakery this week and murdered myself by getting like four different kinds of pastries/bread 😂 fat worth it though. We, also, went to this extremely nice mall this pday!! It was FAT and honestly either just as nice, or nicer than others in America lol. I was shook. THEY HAD EVEYTHING. Stuff I had never seen in the U.S.!! Lol. I stayed strong and didn't buy anything though. Shout out to me!! Lolol. Besides some McDonalds 😅😂.
This week we also had Zone Conference!! I really wasn't looking forward to Zone Conference just because I struggle to sit down and listen to people talk for hours straight, but instead I ended up not wanting to leave!! It was amazing!! President Wirthlin (our Mission President) is such an amazing speaker, so I always enjoy hearing from him. President Widthkin shared the message that, "We should never compare ourselves to others, because when we do, only two things come, PRIDE and/or DISCOURAGEMENT. Only compare yourself to yourself, and the Lord. Those are the only two people!! The Lord is always a hand up. Celebrate gifts and talents of other people instead of compare. And lastly, give people a reason to meet with you again."
We, also, had such a lucky opportunity to hear from Elder Boom, who spoke in this previous General Conference we had!! He was SOOO funny and just so amazing!! I was honored to have the opportunity to meet with him one-on-one after the conference and talk to him about questions and concerns I had. Elder Boom shared the message to, "Figure out why we are here.... to never compare... rejoice in success of others... the fact that we are always missionaries... and that you always have to walk the path of faith. It will always be the last door you knock when you're about to give up, that if you continue with faith, a miracle will come."
Now, I want to speak about the highlight of my week. This was another one of the moments where I could feel the Spirit so strongly on my mission so far, but in such a simple way. This week we had the opportunity to meet with Yamma. Yamma is from the Middle East, speaks perfect English, and always asks us to come over and play Call of Duty :)) (Sadly, we decline the cod offer lol). On Saturday, he called us asking to hang out, and we said we could meet at the church!! We sat down and explained how we were missionaries here so we couldn't play games like cod, and that we were on schedules. He understood so quickly, and then out of nowhere asked... "You have the Book of Mormon right? Can we talk about that?" YES, YES WE CAN. It was hype. He asked great questions and loved what we had to say.
At the end before leaving, we asked if we could pray, and asked if he could for us. He said, "Yes," and asked us how to do it. It was his first time! We got on our knees, showed him how to fold his arms, and how to open his prayer, and how we closed our eyes while we did (he kept asking when to close them haha). He started.... "Dear Heavenly Father, I'm sorry for not having talked to you in a long time, I love you, thank you for my Xbox and my 4k screen TV, and for my new friends, Elder Williams and Wilde," (and so on). The whole time the Spirit was so strong, and I couldn't help but to tear up mid-prayer. It was the most sincere, cutest, heartfelt, unique prayer I had ever heard!! Afterwards, he stood up and said, "The room feels so much brighter now!! I feel like there is some sort of weight off my shoulders, can I pray whenever??" AHHHH, IT WAS SO AWESOME! I WAS SO HAPPY." We asked if he would take a Book of Mormon home and read it so we could talk about it more the next time we met. He said, "Yes, of course, I'm going to read this!!" He said he had lots of time cuz he only liked to game and that he loves to read haha.
Now, I want to conclude by pulling from this story and sharing from what we can learn. I learned so much from Yamma and his prayer. Our prayers are literally conversations with God. I feel, at least in my own prayers, that I take this for granted. I don't give God full attention and gratitude when praying. What a blessing it is to have a way to communicate with our Father in Heaven!! We need to all have the sincerity and love-felt prayers that Yamma has. To pray with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength. Just as we should when we serve him. I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to learn from Yamma, as well as for the gift of prayer. I invite you all to ponder this message and follow/continue Yamma's example of sincere, love-felt prayer. It's such a blessing.
Love, Elder Wilde :))
Pics of the Week
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