2nd Area....in Edmonton!
Date
January 29, 2019
Area
Edmonton, Alberta
Companion
Sister Herzog
2nd Area....in Edmonton!
OK, I admit it! I’ve been terrible about sending these group emails, but don’t worry...I never miss when it comes to writing my family! I am so thankful for them! I love to brag about my parents and my four little sisters!
This week there have been countless miracles! We spend a lot of time downtown Edmonton. The other day, we felt prompted to go do our tasks at a certain Tim Hortons and while there we overheard some people talking about missionaries. I went up to them and it turns out that all three of them are members of the church but have been inactive for years. We asked if we could have an impromptu lesson with them and it was one of the most heartwarming experiences. There was a humble spirit throughout the entire lesson as we discussed the redemptive power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. We invited them to harness that power within their own lives and we will be following up with each of them this next week!
Earlier that week, we were doing service at the Ronald McDonald House. My companion and I were so focused on working hard and playing with all the kids that I wasn't paying attention to the random news crew in the home. It was way more crowded than usual with all the people with cameras. It was for some promotional thing. We were there for a couple hours and there was this one guy that I kept bumping into. I felt like I had met somewhere before but I couldn't put my finger on it. I ignored him and kept playing with my homegirl Julie, she's a 5 year old cutie. After a while I needed more spray to sanitize the toys. So, I made my way through the crowd towards the kitchen. I ran into the guy again and decided to said hi and introduced myself to him and his friends just in case they were from one of my Young Single Adult Wards or something. He was chill and we had a nice chat, he liked my tag and thought it was cool that we were doing what we were doing. I kinda brushed him off though because I needed to finish cleaning the toys. I just went back to work. As I was leaving, one of the Ronald McDonald house directors asked me what Connor McDavid and I had been talking about. Lol, I didn't even realize it was him. So that's the story of how I completely disregarded the most famous man in Edmonton and NHL player of the year. Hopefully I planted a seed that will help him want to learn more about the church someday.
We had an awesome miracle happen as well! We had a lesson fall through late one night and we were bummed because we have a goal of teaching at least one lesson per day. We only had an hour and a half left before we had to go home for the night. We were riding the train downtown, so I pulled Sister Herzog aside in the cart and offered a prayer asking Heavenly Father to help us recognize who was the person that the He had prepared for us to teach that night. We hopped from train to train and cart to cart with no luck. There were lots of people but nothing panned out and we just weren't feeling it. With only a half hour left until we needed to head home, we tried getting on our train but we were too late and missed it! That just added to our disappointed moods and we reluctantly jumped on the next random cart available. As we walked down the aisle, rather down trodden, I noticed a young man with a black eye, scars and a red beanie. He looked like he needed to catch up on a few years worth of sleep. I suddenly knew that he was the one Heavenly Father needed us to talk to despite his roughed up look. We sat down across from him, introduced ourselves and got to know our new friend John.
Wow! John is special! He was so easy to talk to. We learned that he comes from a rough background and religion hasn't played a part in his life. Within just a few minutes of conversation, he asked us how he could develop a closer relationship with God. I was floored with his many deep and genuine questions as we rode the train south across the river. By the time we got to his stop, we had taught an entire first lesson and the spirit was so strong! We invited him to attend church the following day and he said he'd love to come. I believed him. I'm pretty sure john and I were friends in the premortal life or something. He's wonderful and his potential is so great!
On Sunday I was so happy when John walked in through the chapel doors! I sat with him for all of the church services and he ended up staying for about an hour longer after church had ended, just to continue discussing God's divine plan and love for us. There was a very sweet spirit as we talked about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and how it truly applies to our lives today. I have high hopes for John! Sunday night I received a text from him. He told us that he's been thinking about baptism and was wondering if we could talk about it during our next meeting. Miracles! Please keep John in your prayers!
I want to help everyone I meet understand that we have a Father in Heaven that loves us and wants us to return to him! That's what this life is all about.....bringing our brothers and sisters home.
I love you all! Please remember who you really are and choose the right!
Love, Sister Arwen Ballas
This week there have been countless miracles! We spend a lot of time downtown Edmonton. The other day, we felt prompted to go do our tasks at a certain Tim Hortons and while there we overheard some people talking about missionaries. I went up to them and it turns out that all three of them are members of the church but have been inactive for years. We asked if we could have an impromptu lesson with them and it was one of the most heartwarming experiences. There was a humble spirit throughout the entire lesson as we discussed the redemptive power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. We invited them to harness that power within their own lives and we will be following up with each of them this next week!
Earlier that week, we were doing service at the Ronald McDonald House. My companion and I were so focused on working hard and playing with all the kids that I wasn't paying attention to the random news crew in the home. It was way more crowded than usual with all the people with cameras. It was for some promotional thing. We were there for a couple hours and there was this one guy that I kept bumping into. I felt like I had met somewhere before but I couldn't put my finger on it. I ignored him and kept playing with my homegirl Julie, she's a 5 year old cutie. After a while I needed more spray to sanitize the toys. So, I made my way through the crowd towards the kitchen. I ran into the guy again and decided to said hi and introduced myself to him and his friends just in case they were from one of my Young Single Adult Wards or something. He was chill and we had a nice chat, he liked my tag and thought it was cool that we were doing what we were doing. I kinda brushed him off though because I needed to finish cleaning the toys. I just went back to work. As I was leaving, one of the Ronald McDonald house directors asked me what Connor McDavid and I had been talking about. Lol, I didn't even realize it was him. So that's the story of how I completely disregarded the most famous man in Edmonton and NHL player of the year. Hopefully I planted a seed that will help him want to learn more about the church someday.
We had an awesome miracle happen as well! We had a lesson fall through late one night and we were bummed because we have a goal of teaching at least one lesson per day. We only had an hour and a half left before we had to go home for the night. We were riding the train downtown, so I pulled Sister Herzog aside in the cart and offered a prayer asking Heavenly Father to help us recognize who was the person that the He had prepared for us to teach that night. We hopped from train to train and cart to cart with no luck. There were lots of people but nothing panned out and we just weren't feeling it. With only a half hour left until we needed to head home, we tried getting on our train but we were too late and missed it! That just added to our disappointed moods and we reluctantly jumped on the next random cart available. As we walked down the aisle, rather down trodden, I noticed a young man with a black eye, scars and a red beanie. He looked like he needed to catch up on a few years worth of sleep. I suddenly knew that he was the one Heavenly Father needed us to talk to despite his roughed up look. We sat down across from him, introduced ourselves and got to know our new friend John.
Wow! John is special! He was so easy to talk to. We learned that he comes from a rough background and religion hasn't played a part in his life. Within just a few minutes of conversation, he asked us how he could develop a closer relationship with God. I was floored with his many deep and genuine questions as we rode the train south across the river. By the time we got to his stop, we had taught an entire first lesson and the spirit was so strong! We invited him to attend church the following day and he said he'd love to come. I believed him. I'm pretty sure john and I were friends in the premortal life or something. He's wonderful and his potential is so great!
On Sunday I was so happy when John walked in through the chapel doors! I sat with him for all of the church services and he ended up staying for about an hour longer after church had ended, just to continue discussing God's divine plan and love for us. There was a very sweet spirit as we talked about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and how it truly applies to our lives today. I have high hopes for John! Sunday night I received a text from him. He told us that he's been thinking about baptism and was wondering if we could talk about it during our next meeting. Miracles! Please keep John in your prayers!
I want to help everyone I meet understand that we have a Father in Heaven that loves us and wants us to return to him! That's what this life is all about.....bringing our brothers and sisters home.
I love you all! Please remember who you really are and choose the right!
Love, Sister Arwen Ballas
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