Mission Miracle from Sora Brenda Benson

We worked really hard this week trying to find new investigators. We were doing a lot of contacting and block-knocking, but the weather wasn't the prettiest, so not many people were out on the street. It was definitely discouraging and not fun being in the blocks for three hours at a time, but I also know that we are not the only ones doing it! We were able to find one girl, sitting on a bench, who had just broken up with her boyfriend. We ended up talking to her and giving her a first lesson, and a Book of Mormon. She seemed really excited and interested in learning more, but at the same time, we weren’t able to get any contact information. She had just torn her phone card, and didn't give us her address. So we have to wait for her call, or to come to church. I really hope she does, because she was really prepared! But the real miracle is after a pretty miserable week, at church a younger girl showed up. We hadn't talked to her or anything. She is Evangelist, but she didn't like it because everyone was old! So someone suggested to her to come to our church. So she showed up! We talked to her, and introduced her to some of the youth, and she stayed for all three hours. I know she has a lot of questions, and we gave her a Book of Mormon, and I just hope that I can answer her questions, and help her to have a good experience, and help her progress.

Mission Miracle from Elder Kevin Collier

I (like most) don’t like to speak in front of groups, and never do well...but the Relief Society President was sick 45 minutes before church and the missionary that was supposed to speak for 15 minutes, spoke for 5 minutes...so I had about 40 minutes to speak on Sunday. With a few minutes to prepare before sacrament meeting, Heavenly Father blessed my thoughts and it came together. Then after the missionary stopped talking and I got up, the Lord helped me speak for exactly 40 minutes! It was amazing, and the best talk I have ever given! The Spirit was way strong...another testimony of how the Lord prepares/supports those who he calls!

Mission Miracle from Elder John Wilde

Miracle story- Chapter 2: So you remember our family of 8(the Suba family)? Well we went over there on Wednesday and there were two new faces. They referred us to a spouse of one of the children and a daughter of the uncle!! Super amazing! We had an amazing first lesson in its fullness and the Spirit was very, very, very strong. We testified that we were sent from God (it's always wonderful to feel that again) and that Joseph was a Prophet chosen and called of God. The grandma in the middle of the lesson spoke up and said that we were definitely from God because we came and gave them free books (didn't have to pay) and made them all feel "usurat" (bettered or burdens lightened.) The dad said that we don't need to say anything fancy in a prayer and we can just talk to God, and so we (with the help of the family in an uproar of encouragement) had him say the closing prayer-- be careful what you say that is good, may just end up doing that thing which is good and be blessed for it. Whenever the uncle or the dad (just ordinary prideful Romanian men) say something to contest us, the rest of the family would tell them to be quiet and that they were ruining the feeling in the room and that we were right :). And the amazing and most miraculous thing about it (and most faith inspiring moment on my mission) was while having our lesson with them; the sister of the wife (a Baptist) called. She currently lives in Florida (lived there for 18 years) and she asked to talk with us. So my companion talked to her while I continued to talk to the family, during which time they asked me how we found them "out of all the streets and houses etc..." and I chuckled and told them the truth. We were new to the area and were praying to know where to go to find those who were prepared to receive this message, and the Spirit told us we needed to come to their street and so we obeyed. And they were the first house and we began teaching them. Then my companion hung up the phone and told us humbly that the sister in Florida had been praying (even the very same day that we did) to have representatives who KNOW Christ to come and teach her sister's family about the true nature and relationship one can have with Christ. We came to the door the following day... This is not coincidence. This is God doing what He does best, Miracles. He makes the impossible possible, He answers every sincere prayer from His children in a manner which is always most beneficial to us, and strengthens and leads us back to Him while still respecting our agency... It's just amazing..... I have never been so humbled in my life and never so reliant on Him. I know that God hears and answers prayers; I know that He wants us to be happy and will do all in His power to make it happen in this life as well as the one to follow. He is just AMAZING!!!!

Mission Miracle from Elder Benjamin Miles

I had a little cool experience this week. I was sitting on the tramvaie and I was looking for someone to talk with so I could give them something, and I just didn't feel like I was getting any promptings. Then I had the feeling to just leave the Proclamation of the Family on my chair and as I was getting off the tramvaie I looked back and the lady who had taken my seat was reading the pamphlet. I so glad for the Holy Ghost and so thankful for his help! A little miracle!

Mission Miracle from Elder Brian Foote

My miracle story this week is how the Lord has blessed me and supported me. When you called me to be a trainer, it just didn't seem real. Maybe it is because you called me Elder Foote (and nobody calls me that), but I think a big part of it is that I felt super inadequate. I spent a rather long time on my knees that night pleading with my Heavenly Father to support me as I embark on my new adventure. The next day I was determined to just get to work and do my best. I never have been the best at speaking this language, but over night it seemed that I could just speak the language. I know that I am not perfect by any means, but I have definitely been blessed with the Gift of Tongues. We have had several lessons and talked with some 20-30 people in total these past few days, and I haven't had a big problem speaking with any of them.

Mission Miracle from Elder John Wilde

We had probably the biggest miracle moment of my mission yesterday. On Saturday we took the map of the city and prayed humbly before our Father and asked where His elect were waiting to hear the message of the gospel. We felt inclined to go to two different areas and so that evening we went tracting in VILLAs (houses) in extremely cold weather (to the point where you can’t move your mouth and so now I REALLY can't speak Romanian) and having little to no success, we walked away cold but still happy to be a part of this work. Then last night we went to the other area where we felt like we should go. We walked for I don’t know how long, trying to find some place where we could proselyte. We finally realized that there were doors that led to a number of different houses with a courtyard in the middle. We began to talk to people. We had a lesson scheduled for an hour later that we could have been more prepared for and it would have been an easy out, but we just said, no, we are going to go on and preach some more. So, we found ourselves on a dark street and saw some houses next to an open courtyard (how I described before) and decided to go in. Well, there were four houses, three of which seemed to be haunted with padlocks and broken windows and everything... and then there was one house that still had Christmas lights on inside the house. We decided to try it. A young guy game to the door and said to come in and then his dad came up and we began to speak. Being that it was freezing, we were unable to speak as we would have liked and so he got frustrated and ran to get his daughter who spoke English.. he also used the opportunity to ask the rest of the occupants of the house if they were interested in talking about God. A few half heartedly gathered together in the main room. So, we began talking about Christ and the Book of Mormon. Slowly, more people started coming in and before you knew it, we had an audience of 8 (six of which were STANDING in order to listen!)!! There countenances began being very indifferent and somewhat annoyed, but as we talked the Spirit just changed everything. They began to smile and to be intrigued. And then I felt impressed as I saw this family to say that I felt that they had been having difficulties, they loved each other but they were in search of something to bring them together and to unite them in love. The mom and dad just looked at each other and the mother nodded in accord. We testified that families could be together forever and that Heavenly Father loves us so much that He has shown us how and how we can be happy even in this life. They were so anxious to have us back and I am SOOO excited to return! It truly was a blessing of the Lord!

Mission Miracle from Elder Benjamin Miles

This week we also had a really good day at the Blocks. We have been trying to be really organized in our block -knocking by making sure we hit every door! Usually we just go to a block and talk to the people that are home and if some isn't home they miss out and will have to wait till the next missionaries come. I know not the best way of doing things so we now have been keeping records of every door and if someone isn't home we go back and we do that block again. So this week we headed back to a block that we had previously down to make sure we had gotten every body! We went back to all the apartments were nobody had been home! At one of the doors we ran into an Orthodox Priest and we started to have a discussion with him, ended up calling him to repentance, really got serious with him, and told him that he needed to repent! Then we went to the next door and this older woman opened the door, and at first, she said to give her a second because she was still getting changed. She then opened the door, let us in, and we started to teach the first lesson. She was super interested and at one point she interrupted us and said, “Okay, if I'm not going to go to my church anymore, where should I go?” (implying that she wanted the address.) We told her, and we finished up with the Book of Mormon Promise and with our testimonies. She just loved the discussion and said she would read the Book of Mormon! It was the best first lesson I have had in a long time and we can't wait to go back! Her name is Doina and she is a physics teacher in Bucharest! It was a testimony to me that we need to go and make sure we talk with every one and give every one a chance!

Also, this week I had one of the greatest experiences of the mission! I was on an exchange with Elder Loveland, a missionary who is going home today because he is done with his mission, and he had set up for us to go and visit this member who is in the hospital. We went and planned on singing to this member. When we got there we met with her, sang with her, and afterward visited with her. After that we walked out and there were other people who were eating and we asked them if we could sing for them. They said “yes” and it was just incredible to see their faces and to see them smile. It was also incredible to see how the spirit came into the room and the lives of the patients as we sang about the Savior of the World and in some rooms people got up and sang with us. After we finished, people tried to pay and we told them no, that we were volunteer missionaries and that we wanted to sing just for them. We also had wrapped copies of the Book of Mormon with invitations to church and after every “concert” we did a little spiritual thought about the Book of Mormon, it is the greatest gift that we have to give, and that is the gift of our Savior! People took them so fast that we ran out!! Now we have to go back and give more and sing more because the people wanted it! After we finished at that hospital, we went to another and we went around singing. At one point we went into this room and there were two very sick old ladies that could barely understand us when we asked them if we could sing to them! So we started to sing and the lady went from being in the depths of despair, to crying and at one point during the performance we sang a Romanian carol and the old ladies sang along with us. They just kept asking us to sing and the spirit was so strong. So we finished up and I walked over to talk to her and she was crying. She kissed my hands and said thank you, I said thank you, and we went on to the next room. As I was half way down the hall, I heard a Romanian carol being played on what sounded like a harmonica and so I went back and there was that old lady playing a little children's harmonica. I started to sing with her and when she finished she looked at me and told me that she knew that the song she had played wasn't much and that it was just a kids harmonica, but she had wanted so much to play us a song. I went up to her and said thank you and told her that I knew that Christ was her Savior, and that even in these hard time she doesn't need to feel alone; he is always near and he will always love her because she is a Child of God. She was crying and she said “Slava Domnului” which means glory be to God. I have never felt more like a representative of Christ in any other moment then I did then in that moment, and I have never felt the love of our Savior and the Spirit of the Lord more that I did in that moment. For the first time In my life I think I finally understood the true meaning of Christmas and the mission of the Savior, and that is to love others, to bring joy to those who mourn, and at that moment I better understood my duty as a member of the The Church. It is to help those who can't help themselves just as the Savior suffered for me when I couldn't suffer for myself. It was a Christmas miracle for me and a lesson that I will never forget!