Elder Michael Milius: 17 April 2017

People from Az and Around the World,

I told you Wetumpka was about to get wet!! Chance, the 18-year-old that we got from the Sisters was baptized last Saturday and was given the gift of the Holy Ghost in church on Easter Sunday! That was probably one of the biggest highlights of this week! We were able to see Chance a few times leading up to Saturday and he was just prepared. At his baptism he gave a very powerful testimony about coming to church years before and becoming close to a couple families in the Ward. He mentioned that he should’ve made the decision a long time ago but now, he was truly happy. It was everything you as a missionary want to hear from a Recent Convert. And to make it even better his family (Mom, mom’s boyfriend, and little sister) were all there to support him. They all paid very close attention as well to all the talks and things which was great for us to see so we will let you know about how teaching them goes! But, very proud of Chance and of the Ward for their help and hospitality towards this young man.

To add on in continuation of the miracle we saw with Shannon last week about getting Sundays off to come to church things just keep happening with her and Joe (her LA husband). This past week we went to visit them and as the conversation went on Elder Schrubb and I both felt the “kick of the Spirit” (that’s the best way to describe this impression) told us to bring up the Word of Wisdom. Shannon drinks lots of coffee and sweet tea and neither of us knew how to bring it up or what to say except that we needed to. So we began to bring up the fact that in order for Shannon to prepare for baptism she was going to have to give up her coffee and tea. “NO! I can’t. I’ve tried before and I can’t! I need it for my migraines!,” she went off and yelled. We continued to work through her concerns and told her our plan to help her off of them (Mio makes a great ‘Sweet Tea’ flavor and there is a coffee replacement called ‘Pero’ that we were going to try). We also brought up her experience with Sundays and using Doctrine and Covenants 89:18-21 promised her the blessing she would receive by changing, or repenting. A complete 180 happened and she was all for quitting. THEN we went over later that week and told her we had the Mio and were waiting for the Pero but that she was going to have to trade us all her stuff for it. She told us that drinking it made her sick and she wanted it all out of her house. Needless to say we have two grocery bags full of coffee and tea in our apartment waiting to donate to the Food Pantry. And to top it all off her and Joe made it to Sacrament meeting yesterday which was amazing! We’ve moved her baptism up to the 6th of May and she’s progressing head first for the font!

Another Investigator that we received from the Sisters pool is Jalessa. She is basically ready for baptism and we had a couple awesome lessons with her this past week. We put her on date for April 29th! Her biggest hold up is work on Sundays so we challenged her to ask for work off and promised her that she would be blessed. We’ve been making a lot of people promises and it’s been the coolest thing to see all these promises being fulfilled. I know that D&C 82:10 is true and that we as missionaries are authorized representatives of Him.

Tyrone!! He is the husband of a part-member family. All his kids and his wife were baptized a little over a year ago and now he’s ready. We tried to visit him a few times….several times this past week because he had a baptismal date for the 22nd (this Saturday) with no luck. We did catch his wife and told her that if he was serious he needed to be at church. So she apparently kicked him in the butt because he showed up to church on Sunday!! We talked to him and he told us that he’s been putting it [baptism] off for too long and he’s ready to do whatever it takes to be ready. We scheduled everything up for when we need to see him this week and so lots of prayers that he’s serious about it! If he is we will have another baptism this coming weekend!

We also have a New Investigator, Kendra. A couple weeks ago we went to make a few follow-ups in an apartment complex with no luck. So, I asked Elder Schrubb where we should knock next. He (being lead by the Spirit) walked up to a door where we meet and scheduled a time to come talk with Kendra. She in non denominational because of some doctrinal differences she had with a previous pastor. As we taught the restoration this past week it was so cool to see everything click. She also asked a few questions that helped us find common beliefs with her, the biggest one being our belief in a Heavenly Mother. The Spirit was so strong in that lesson we are hoping to work with her more this coming week and help her get on date for baptism!

This past week we were also able to go to Gardendale for our Zone Conference and Temple Trip. Our Zone Conference was focused on Repentance and having that lead right into the Temple was perfect. I had the thought of how Repentance applies to the “Good, Better, Best” mentality that we are all familiar with because of Elder Oaks. Especially to us as Missionaries, we aren’t needing to repent every day of these major things, and while everything we do is “goo” maybe there are things we can do that would be “better” or music that we could listen to that would be “best” but anyways I love the temple so that was another highlight!

We learned how to pour concrete, so add that to my repertoire. The Millbrook Sisters were there as well and so we made plans to start our own construction business.
Isabel (the little 6-year-old in our picture) is the most adorable thing on the planet. She is the daughter of some “investigators” that live in our apartment complex and as we were getting out of our car last night she ran up to us and and gave both Elder Schrubb and I huge hugs and she’s just the best! Meets no strangers! I would wait 12 years for her like it was crazy cute! And she’s here for a week so we’ll be hanging out with her more often.
We hung out with Jay again this week (the guy who talked to us about sex for an hour) and he invited us to dinner. We ate Rabbit stew and it was a very memorable time!
We killed a snake and then later found our it was a Water Moccasin.
There was a couple making out in the parking lot in front of our apartment...in broad daylight.

And all of it leading into a wonderful Easter Sunday to reflect and remember our Savior, Jesus Christ. We had several people at church and it was just a good day spent focused on the #PrinceOfPeace.

“And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!

“For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—

“That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.”

~D&C 76:22-24

I add my testimony to the divinity of a Living Christ. In Elders Quorum we talked about why we don’t use the cross as a symbol of Christianity. President Hinckley said, answering that question, that “We worship a Living Christ instead of a Dead Christ and therefore don’t use the cross as our symbol if Christianity...our symbol is us, the members, His Living Disciples.” I know that Christ Lives again so that we might live again. I know that He is directing His church and His work, and I’m grateful to be a part of it! I love y’all! Happy Easter and make it a great week!

Much Love,

Elder Milius

Godspeed,

ELDER MICHAEL S. MILIUS

ALABAMA BIRMINGHAM MISSION

"Behold I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of Him to declare His word among His people, that they might have everlasting life." ~3 Nephi 5:13