People of Faith

November 6, 2010

Our young temple ordinance worker, Shiela May Abracia, emailed me yesterday telling me that her fiancée, Grant Matthew Gillespie who is visiting here from Kansas, has been in the hospital since Tuesday with a high fever; she asked if we would go to the temple and put his name on the prayer roll, so Larry did. He and Elder Ganir went to the hospital to visit him and found him in much better spirits. How sad that one of his three weeks had to be spent in a hospital bed. Hopefully he will be well enough to travel home on his scheduled flight.

Larry and I have virtually lived in the baptistry the past two weeks during the students’ semester break. It is both heartwarming and heartbreaking to have the youth here and hear their stories. One 17 year old boy stood out for me: not only was he very nice looking, well-mannered and helpful , and an excellent singer, but he was especially attentive to everything that was said and he would come back into the chapel to sit when he was finished so he could sing with the others or listen to me talk while the last youth were waiting for their turn to be baptized or confirmed. Yesterday was their third and last day at the temple and when they were finished with the proxy work, they were to return to their rooms and clean and pack. After asking permission, this young man came back into the chapel and sat by himself. When I went in to talk to him, he said with tears in his eyes, “I don’t want to leave the temple. I love being here.” The Stake Young Women’s President told me later that he is the only member in his family and that he is persecuted by them, but that he comes faithfully to church. His family is extremely poor and he is working to support them. When Sister Mortimer was talking to him and a few of the youth, she asked him if he was planning on going on a mission and he was very hesitant about saying yes, whereas most of these kids say yes emphatically. This boy was probably thinking that there was no way in the world that he could go on a mission. I do not know his name, but I prayed for him and I know Heavenly Father will know who he is.

That same Stake YW President was converted when she was in her early 20s. She was being taught by the missionaries when she had a dream where she saw her deceased grandparents in the chapel, beckoning to her to come to them. That convinced her that she should be baptized. A little over a year later, she was called to serve a mission in Hong Kong much to her mother’s disapproval. Her mother never wrote to her on her mission. In January her mother will come to the temple with 2 of her sisters to be sealed as a family to their deceased father. Her mother finally joined the Church just over a year ago!

Another amazing story of conversion from this same ward concerns a tiny, bent over, dyed red haired Filipino 91 year old woman who was a devout Catholic and on the national Catholic Womens’ League Board for years. She had been a teacher for 41 years and was finally taught the Gospel and was baptized last year. She said, “Why don’t people listen to the missionaries. If they would listen they would join the Church; they would know it is true. It is wonderful. I am so grateful for it. I wish I had had it in my life sooner.” After an endowment session, she came and sat by the font for an hour so she could watch and feel the Spirit.WE have been so busy I haven’t had time to write. So I will send this much and try to write more later. We love you. We are heartbroken about Lynne. Please include Russell and Lynne’s family in your prayers. Love, Mom and Dad, Grandma