(realtime)
Last week we started teaching a man named Emmanuel. It was a snowy Saturday (the second to last snow day of the year) and I wanted to visit a member of the Church who hadn't been going since I was last in Haverhill. I didn't know if that was still their address. So when we knocked on the door, we were not surprised that they no longer lived there. But, the family that lives there now let us in. They were watching "Exodus," which I guess is a remake of the Ten Commandments with Charlton Heston? Maybe? Anyways, they let us right in and we got to teach them about Christ's Church on the earth in the past and now today. They loved it! Emmanuel especially was excited to learn. This week we taught Emmanuel again. This time he seemed a very different person. It had been a very rough few days for him. His faith had been shaken. After sincere prayer, he felt his problems only got worse. He said that he "saw no point in following God if all He is going to do is ignore my prayers." After hearing him out for a little while, we invited him to kneel with us in prayer and to invite the kids to join us. He was somewhat reluctant. Didn't want to make his problems worse. We finally convinced him to kneel with us, and the kids to turn off their video game upstairs to remove all distractions. I got to offer a simple, heartfelt prayer for him and his family in their trials. It was very short. The Spirit came into the room and after the prayer everyone felt it. We all looked at each other. All of Emmanuel's concerns for the moment left. He was himself again.
I have had similar experiences with prayer, where I've felt like I'm not getting what I want. After prayer, what changes the most is me. I'm grateful the Lord doesn't just give me whatever I want.
Really good week here in Georgetown. Most of the snowpiles are significantly smaller. Our front lawn is almost completely bare!
Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and enjoyed General Conference!
With Love,
Elder Richins
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