July 21 & 29

July 21
Dear Everybody,
It sounds like you have a great week ahead of you, camping, and getting the fence done, that is pretty good stuff.
Yesterday we had a miracle. So, I don't know if I told you about Bob, [names have been changed] he's Sally's dad and they're the ones from A. Anyway, our meetings with Sally have been going really well, although, she doesn't really have motivation to do anything other than watch t.v. So, that is a bit difficult. but, we had an appointment with Bob two weeks ago, and we had to cancel it because I was not feeling well. (meaning, not funtionable). We didn't see him at the house when we'd go so we didn't' reschedule one. It had been on our minds though.

Pancakes!

   Well, two days ago, Bob came downstairs during our lesson with Sally and he was extremely offended that we didn't reschedule. He took it as if we didn't want to meet with him. Of course we felt awful about it, and we had been praying for a way to help him all week. We absolutely didn't forget about him. Anyway, we saw him last night and I was praying so hard that he'd listen to us. He's been taught by previous missionaries years ago, and it is all very complicated. He believes in Joseph Smith and The Book of Mormon, but not in the 'denomination' side of things. We taught him last night about Lehi's vision of the Tree of Life and that seemed to be really inspired. He is VERY expressive in his speech and he waves his arms and makes his eyes really big and sometimes takes a lot more time than needed to say what he wants to. It is always difficult to know how he will react to what you say as well. Any word could trigger a long rant on his part. It can get frustrating, but yesterday went surprisingly well. We will definitely be spending a lot of time praying this week for ways to soften his heart and help him see the need for structure.

Yes, I chopped off my hair again!

  It is hot out. Even if it is pouring rain, it is hot. The humidity is killing me, not because of the heat though but because my face and hair constantly feel greasy. (Do not be alarmed...I shower every day.) Also, yes, I did get a haircut. I've realized that I'm not happy with it long or short and I'm so tired of it. That is my rant for the day.
Well,
I love you all,
Sister Lybbert


July 29
Dear Everybody,
I am so happy that Surveyor's and Spokane were a great success! I do love camping in the woods, but why not just pack your suitcases and move flats?! That's what we had to do this week. We had just transformed the flat we were living in so that it was really nice, organized, and clean, girly and beeauutiful!...and then the assistants rang us.This transfer we're getting two more elders..and our flat is the big one so we had a swap and we were given the shortest end of the shortest stick. haha..it's more funny than anything, except for last night I had the coldest shower of my life. I've learned how blessed we are for hot water. We found out this morning that the radiator in the bathroom has to be on all day for the water heater to work. I don't know why, but that's that. It has been blistering hot lately as well, so having the heat on is not very desirable. Although, the last couple of days have cooled down, thank goodness, but before that I didn't feel like I could even be outside. I feel bad for the missionaries serving in places where it is always hot and humid. Oh, and because of the sunshine I have a disgusting tan line. haha
     I'm also happy to hear that Marnie, Doug, Taylor and Erik were able to visit. I hope that they are all doing well! (That is my way of giving them a shout out. Hello!)
     We had some crazy lessons this week. We prayed so hard to know what we needed to teach Bob, and Sister Seely had the impression that we should teach him about Lehi's Dream. So we did, and surprisingly, he absolutely loved it. It is so hard to know what to teach him. I prayed and prayed that we would know how to handle the lesson. Then, the next time we went to see him, he told us this story:
~ When he was around 10 years old, living in A, he decided that the Roman Catholic Church was not giving him the fulfillment he felt he needed, so he prayed to be directed to another church.
~ he got on a random bus, and went to a random street. He passed by different churches and didn't feel a desire to go in them, and then he came across a school and he heard singing. He went in, and there was the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
~ He didn't join, but he prayed again throughout the years and had the same experience three different times. tow of those times he ended up at our church again. The other time, he ended up at the Apostolic church and he joined it.
~ Then he came to England with his family, and he ran into the missionaries. they taught him, but he already knew the lessons, and the missionaries gave up, not really understanding his situation.
~ Then, the one day that he decides to let Sally walk on her own to her youth club, was when Sister Wynder and I met her. She told her dad that she felt something, and although he wasn't happy with her talking to strangers, she pleaded with him to let us come and so he accepted.
~He prayed that he would have a sign when we taught, that we are called of God.
~The next day, during our lesson, we reached a point where I felt so frustrated because I could see his potential, and he just wasn't listening to the simple message we had, so I bore my testimony and it brought me to tears. He took that as his sign that we were real messengers of the truth. (I don't usually cry during lessons, by the way...) We then invited him to church the following day and he and Sally came.
~The next time we went to see him, he asked that we'd pray to know what to teach. We taught Lehi's Dream and little did we know, that is the exact message he was wanting us to talk about. He had a 2 dimensional diagram that he had created, and studied and worked on years ago, and it was his interpretation of the Tree of Life, and his interpretation was doctrinally correct. It actually taught me so much and Sister Seely and I left feeling the Spirit stronger than ever before.
So now we reach the conclusion of that story for now, that Bob believes both his church and our church are true. It is going to take a lot of prayer and work to help him understand that that isn't the case. It should be interesting and it is going to be exhausting, but I am excited.
I love and pray for you every day.,
Love,
Sister Lybbert

[Sister P took us to see Harewood House...bless her heart!]

Jane Countess of Harrington

Music Room at Harewood
House

State bedroom at Harewood
House

Harewood House