Hey everybody!
So last week I wasn't able to type out my weekly letter. This means that you get a better update this week! Many things have happened and I am excited to tell you all about them! The weather last week was great! We had a lot of days barely touch 80. It was greatly appreciated. But now we should soon be back to our normal temperatures pretty soon (~100 degrees). I guess I need to get back to drinking water.
Elder Chavez and I are having a lot of success in Lawton. We have been to a lot of teaching appointments (I'll try to summarize them as best I can), committed a few to baptism, and hopefully, we will be able to see those investigators enter into the waters of baptism soon.
Our investigators are progressing, some...more than others, but I would say that most are moving forward:
Turina was found by a set of sister missionaries in Arkansas who then sent her info over to us so that she could be taught. She is a young mother who has been trying to improve her life after some big trials and difficulties. We taught her the Restoration two weeks ago and then this last week we taught her the Plan of Salvation. She loved both of the discussions. She is keeping commitments like reading the BofM and praying, but she hasn't been able to come to church yet. We are going to have a church tour with her this week so that she will be more motivated to come on Sunday. She has a lot of potential.
Steven Haywood is a man who lives right across the street from where the sister missionaries in our ward live. He's a soft spoken Marine veteran who I believe fought in Vietnam and saw some things. We found him through tracting. We taught him the Restoration about two weeks ago, and he was receptive. He's a bit confused about priesthood authority (like most of Oklahoma) so we are going to have a discussion about the priesthood and what it's for and why that authority is so important. He was at a family reunion last week so we weren't able to meet with him, but we definitely will this week.
Hannah keeps on making appointments but then not showing up to her own house when we have set them. She has been avoiding us, which is a bit annoying. She's on the backburner for now while we focus on bigger and better things.
John Stenman hasn't been doing well at all. He discovered recently that he has severe degenerative arthritis in his spine and he has a dropped hip on his right side. We offered to give him a priesthood blessing and he accepted, but the appointment we had set up with him fell through. Between his church school and work and now his medical situation, he has been very busy. Today we got a text saying that he wont be able to meet with us for a long time, so he is also on the backburner for now. Please keep him in your prayers.
Tommy hasn't been able to meet with us either. He is struggling to get his marriage back on track, so we have toned down our approach a bit to allow him more time with his family. We're going to set up an appointment for this week just to see how he is and if he still is interested in what we believe. He has a lot of potential, but it may not be his time to receive the Gospel.
Pam has completely dropped off the face of the earth. I'm not sure where she went but she no longer answers her door or her phone. We have dropped her for now. We'll probably try her in a month or so.
Takisha's baptismal date for the 2nd of August has dropped because she hasn't come to church yet. She is very busy with her work schedule, but she has expressed a desire to feel clean and whole again. We may be doing a church tour with her as well.
Beau and Monica have made a ton of progress in these past two weeks. Beau has quit smoking (or vaping, or whatever you call it). He threw all of his smoke machines away and now is a clean man. Beau and Monica are planning on getting married in the next month or so, and once that happens Beau will be able to be baptized. Monica still needs to meet with the bishop for her rebaptism, which will be a longer process, but she is determined to get back on track, especially if Beau is getting baptized.
Susie is doing an excellent job at avoiding us. Kind of like Pam, she has dropped off the map. She has been dropped officially.
Mike is a potential investigator we have been trying to visit for the past two weeks. We were biking when we saw him struggling to get some mattresses stacked up next to a fence. We stopped and asked if he needed any help. He allowed us to help him get them up, and then he asked us what we do. Elder Chavez said that we were missionaries for our church, doing service and sharing a message about Jesus Christ. He thought that was pretty cool and invited us to meet with him when he was off work. He owns a Motel here and is very busy, but we hope to catch him after one of his shifts this week.
Jay and Patricia are making slow progress. Two weeks ago we had a lesson on the priesthood. He didn't quite like the part where we told him that you have to get baptized by proper priesthood authority. We talked about Jesus' journey from Galilee to Jordan, how far it was, and why Christ would walk so far to John the Baptist, the only man who had that Aaronic priesthood authority to properly baptize. Something clicked with that, so he was more accepting after we had explained the background on that verse (Matt. 3:13). This last week we stopped by with Bro. Berhmann, the member who introduced us to Jay. Bro. Berhmann recently went to Salt Lake for a business trip, and he bought Jay a massive copy of Gospel Principles. We're hoping that as he studies the manual, as well as the Book of Mormon, things will begin to connect in his head.
Kayliegh had a baptismal date but it was dropped from her not attending church. We don't exactly know what's going on, but she has been going through some obvious trials recently. We will see her this Saturday, hopefully we will be able to talk with her and help her with anything.
Colin and Brandy are new investigators found through a member, Bro. Burbank. Colin has been in active military service for about 8 years, 4 of which was spent in the Marine Corps in Africa. Colin is...well, right now he considers himself a Norse, or someone who believes in the Norse gods (yes, Thor and things like that). He used to be Roman Catholic, but he had a "falling out with God" and now he doesn't think that there is a one true God. We have interesting discussions with him and his fiancee, Brandy, who is a strong baptist. It's a really unique combination in their home, but they are receptive to our message.
Raymond Sumpter is another investigator that we have because of Bro. Burbank. He works with Burbank in the Army as a medic. He's intrigued with what we believe and we had taught him some scattered lessons. He has a lot of questions, which is a great thing. We hope to see him this Sunday at church.
B.J. is a potential that we found through tracting. He was in the Army but was discharged because of medical reasons (probably). He's a bit of a gangster, but he wants to make his life better.
Nick isn't making progress at the moment. He has told us that he wants to get baptized, but that he is extremely busy right now. We're trying to fit his schedule the best we can. He believes everything that we have taught him is true, but we do want to see his testimony grow. We're on a touch and go basis, but I think that we will see a baptism out of this.
Details, details...
It was a wonderful two weeks. Hopefully this update has sated your appetite to know what's been going on in Lawton, missionary work wise. I'm thankful for all of the support I have received! Thank you for the occasional email or letter. I'm not the best at replying but I am working on that.
I know that this gospel is true. It's been a really eventful 7 Months, and I have loved every moment of it. God loves and cares for each of his children, and he wants to see them come back to him. The Book of Mormon is a convincing witness of the Restoration of Christ's church here in these latter days. I encourage all to read, ponder, and pray about its teachings and to find out for themselves if it is true. I love all of you and I hope you are recognizing the many blessings that are given freely by Him who loves us.
Keep up the good work back home,
Elder Holbrook
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