July 2, 2012

This Saturday, there will also be the baptism of our other investigator on the lake here in Chelyabinsk. We are super excited to see these men get baptized to help build the priesthood here and the church. It just puts a big smile on my face to see such miracles happen after months of hard continous work. Our other investigator who is eighteen left to go work on the railroad this past week for two months and it was sad seeing him for the last time in a while. He has become our close friend here in Chelyabinsk and it was fun hanging out and playing basketball and talking about the UFC with him. Now, I am on the search for a new investigator to talk UFC with me. With two of our investigators getting baptized in this coming week, we have been trying to get more people on the escelator towards baptism here in Chelyabinsk. I don't know if I will be transferred or not. I hope not, because the people here have been the best especially since I can hold conversations with people.

This past week we have been trying to fill up our potential investigator sheets with names and contacting them to find new investigators. One man we have been calling called us up while we were looking at one of the many lakes that surround Chelyabinsk to hold the baptism. He told Elder B and I that he wanted to meet as soon as possible that day to talk more. We figured we could fit him into our schedule that day and immediately went to stop by him and teach him a lesson. We showed up to the door of the staircase and called him. he came down and met us outside and invited us up to his apartment. He spoke some english and held a little conversation with us in English at the beginning. We stepped into the apartment and he turns to us and asked if we wanted something to eat or if we wanted to drink with him. Not thinking too much about the last part of the offer we stepped in and sat on his couch in his bedroom. he sat at the computer desk across from us. At first when we met with him outside, he had a distinct smell on his breath which didn't remind me of beer or whisky. It was something totally different, but I had smelt it before especially with an older investigator in my old area in Perm. We sat down and then we started to talk about hobbies, family, and etc. Then he turns in his seat and pulls out a big bottle of vodka and a shot glass and turned to us and offered some. I thought, "Darn!!" Then he started to light a cigarette after we explained to him that we dont smoke or drink and obey the law of chasity completely. We immediately got up and explained that we got to go and that we can only teach him if he is sober. He was a bit sad that we had to leave and then turned to both of us and said , "It is a Russian tradition to wish good luck to their guests and to kiss them on the cheek three times." Elder B and I just looked at each other and I said to him that we dont do that kind of thing. We both stood up and then the man shook our hands and then my face. Well, I got those pecks on the cheek and so did my companion. We left that meeting whiping our faces with cleaning towelettes and decided that it is best to have meetings with that man at the church.

One of the many miracles that happened this week was when we stopped by a contact whom we received off the street from a seventeen year old kid for the third time, hoping to get another way to contact him. His stepdad has been drunk for the past few stop bys and has yelled at us that the bible is enough and they don't need to learn more about our church. The son on the other hand is super interested and wants to learn more. It can be sad to see people  in such situations. We left him our invitation and our number to call back. we started heading down the elevator and down the stairs and then there was a familiar face of a man whom I had seen in the area quite often. He stopped us and asked why we are here in white shirts and ties. We told him about our purpose here as missionaries and gave him the first vision on the street and talked about how he was baptized when he was young but lately is starting to question if their is a God. It was a perfect contact and I knew the Lord had prepared this man to talk to him about the church and our testimonies. He was super interested and we walked down to the bus stop talking about our favorite rock groups like Metallica and so forth. He plays the electric guitar and is in a band. he stated that he had seen us wlking around for sometime and has always wanted to stop us and ask who we were, but never did. He told us he saw us in the grocery store at the big mall across the street from us and then it dawned on me that he was the kid that weighed our fruit every week! haha Hey, I know that it is important to be representatives and followers of Christ at all times and in all places because you make an effect on people and the way they look at the church. This man had such respect for us and may be down to here more about the church.

We got our fan to work the other day finally after having trouble getting off one piece of the fan to place the blades. We went without a fan for a week about and decided we needed to take back the fan that we just bought at the store near us and get a different fan. I thought that $14 for the fan was cheap and maybe this was the problem. So we walked up the guy behing the customer service desk and explained that we cannot get the peice off. He calls in help and a man comes up to the desk and begins to twist the peice and unscrews it in two seconds. We tried getting that peice to come off everynight with knives and even a hammer and this guy just walks on over to us and laughs and asks "What's the problem." Blonde MOMENT! Elder B and I just collected the box of fan parts and got out of their as soon as possible, laughing every step on the way back home. My shoes are getting worn out  super fast and I am about to switch into the other pair I have. Especially, this past week we went to four lakes trying to find a place that will not be busy to hold a baptism somewhere that is not deep and easy access. Of course, we found one spot in the last place on ur list to look that wasn't crowded and was easily accessible by car. Doing the work of the Lord is a joy everyday and I am loving every moment on the mission. Best decision I have made by far. I love you all and you all have great week.


Love, Elder LeFevre