Two Sundays ago I met an old friend of mine from highschool in sacrament meeting. Though this happens frequently to all of us, this was particularly special to me due to who this friend was. We had shared many days together in and out of class befriending one anther and discussing theology. Obviously, the lds faith was the primary topic. Though I was not the only influence in this friends decision to become a latter day saint of the Church of Jesus Christ, it was still a pleasure to add my testimony to the mix. An even greater joy to befriend someone who was living a life of great faith.

The reunion here in Moscow is now over 10 years waiting. I had lost contact with him many years ago, and had previously tried to renew that contact 8 years ago but to no avail.

You can imagine the surprise and great joy that I felt to see him with his wife and child faithfully attending sacrament meeting with no one there encouraging him to attend. He had served a faithful mission and returned to marry a wonderful faithful woman. A successful story with excellent retention! So, to all you members out there, thank you for helping him feel welcome in a foreign gospel, giving him a friend, a calling, and nurturing him with the good word. I feel so greatful that we don't have to do it all alone.

I add my testimony that missionary work is one that reaps tremendous rewards, I am dumbfounded as to why I shy away from it so often when the blessings are so prevelant and so sweet.

My missionary experiences thus far have been limited to little things, small triumphs for myself and I hope something that touches another person with positive feelings. Several days after the death of President Hinckley, my mom and I were talking on the phone and I mentioned that over the weekend, I had been able to watch the funeral of our beloved prophet. She and I had a brief conversation about the manner in which the new President of the Church is chosen and how it differs from that of the Catholic Church. The two of us do not often speak of church related matters, and I was excited to have been able to share some information with her of the things going on in that part of my life.

For me, each little missionary experience adds up and I pray that with each time, my confidence in sharing the gospel will increase and allow me bigger missionary opportunities. When that time comes, I'll be ready!

A couple of weeks ago I made a trip to Walmart. As I walked into the store, I passed two guys and I overheard one of them say "I saw two Mormons on my bus today." After hearing that I piped into their conversation saying, "That's a good thing!" They contintued to walk towards their car and I looked over my shoulder to see their reaction. Finally they turned and one of them said, "They're everywhere!!!." At least people know who we are. Now we need to let them know the truth regarding what we are all about.

I really have a hard time bringing up anything that has to do with the church or the gospel when I am with non members. For some reason, I’ve always feared that even bringing things up in casual conversation will seem like pushing my religion. However, I recognize that this is not true and I am working to improve on it. Recently, I hosted a candle party for someone I work with. As I was picking out what to order, I had a particular favorite, but hesitated to explain why it was my favorite to my coworker. After thinking about it for a few seconds, I finally did take the time to explain. The candle holder was set up so that two pieces of mirrored glass were on either side of a set of candles. The mirrors reflect the light on eternally, just like the mirrors in the sealing room of the temple. The candle holder’s name is “Infinite Reflections”, which is very fitting. I told my friend that I loved the holder because it reminded me of my wedding. I then briefly explained where I was married and how the mirrors in the temple work to my friend, and that it’s a symbol of how we can be together forever. My conversation wasn’t long, but her reaction was positive. She said, “Oh, how romantic”.
This just encourages me to be more open about sharing things so that people I am around can know more about what I believe and have more positive impressions about the gospel.

This past friday the 8th of Feb. we had some friends over who are not members of the church. It was a great experience for us because we didn't want to come right out and start talking about the church. When they arrived they noticed the picture of the temple on our wall and began asking questions. This made for a great evening. We were able to answer questions and become closer as friends. We look forward to having more experiences like this with the family.

While studying at the library, I was approached by two individuals
conducting a religious survey. I accepted their invitation to participate
and they started the survey with a challenge to list the ten commandments
with the prize being five bucks. They were amazed when I listed the ten
commandments in order and said I was the first participant to list all ten
commandments. The rest of the survey consisted of questions about sin and
what it means to be a "good" person. Some of the questions gave me an
opportunity to share my testimony on the atonement and other gospel
doctrines. When the survey was completed, the surveyors said it was good
to know that there are students on campus with similar beliefs as theirs.