Elder Downs and I we're knocking on Hazel street this week in Hartford because we felt strongly that that's where we needed to tract. We met a couple of nice people but no one was really interested in our message. That was that. Several days later we still felt that we really needed to tract on Hazel street, so we went to the area again and talked to some more people but still no luck. Why are we here on Hazel street? Oh well. The very next day, one of our members called us and said that she had just spoken with a woman at her work who needed help and gave us her phone number. We called this referral right away. She introduced herself as Mercedez and was more than happy to have us over that next day. I was kind of floored when she told us that she lived on Hazel street. I was even more impressed when I realized that we had knocked on her door and rang her doorbell that week tracting Hazel street, but she hadn't answered the door because she is an old lady who lives on the 3rd floor of a 3 family home and doesn't come down 3 flights of stairs to answer the door to strangers. We had an amazing appointment with her in which she shared with us some of the difficulties she has been going through recently with an injury at her job and other problems she'd been having. She told us how she used to be a very active Catholic and would take her family to church every week but that had all fallen apart with her divorce years ago. She expressed her yearning to be close to God again and said that she had been praying that He would send her some help that whole week. Well, that whole week we felt the impression to tract her street. Eventually we were able make contact with her through someone else! It was nothing short of miraculous. She loved our lessons, came to church, loved it, wants to be baptized, and has invited all her family and friends to come over to her home and listen to us as well. I'm so grateful that God loves us and is aware of our needs. He still works miracles in His work today.
Last night we had our second performance of the musical fireside I've been organizing in Bloomfield, Connecticut. We had a really good turnout among members and non-members. All the members from the Spanish branch who were there told me after that it was really weird for them to hear me speak in English. It was weird for me to be speaking in English over the pulpit because I haven't done so in so long. I'm very comfortable speaking Spanish in church now, probably more so now in Spanish than English. The spirit bears a very powerful witness through music. I feel like I can express my feelings so much better through music than I can through words. It was a powerful program. I included a picture of me with my Uncle Alan and Aunt Shirlene who were in attendance at the fireside again!
It's fun having family in the mission. It's even more fun knowing that if their next-door neighbor spoke Spanish that I would be the elder who gets to teach them. I urged them to do some missionary work and find some Spanish people out there so that we can have dinner and a lesson in their home.
Tomorrow we get to meet our new mission president, President Evans, in anticipation of July 1st when our mission will officially combine with the Boston, Mass mission. It's kind of weird to me that my mission president is going home in a little over a month. It's weird to me that I'm now the oldest elder in my mission and I still have 12 weeks left! I'm getting old.
I love life in Hartford! The work is moving forward and we'll see a lot of success here as we continue to work hard and trust in the Lord.
with much love from your favorite elder,
-Elder Shepherd
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