The power of the Holy Ghost

Hello my friends!:) Well, another week down in the books!! This week seemed to just fly by for me for some reason! I am having a hard time remembering what I told you guys already last week and what I haven't told you yet! Ha so if I repeat myself don't be mad at me! This week we had really good success meeting with people, so that was really cool!! Also, this week was transfer week so it was kind of a sad week as well because we had to say goodbye to a cool elder! His name is Elder Lauritzen and I have been serving in the same house as him for the last 7 months of my mission and he was just one of those guys where I am pretty sure that we were best friends before this life, so it was really hard having to say goodbye to him!! He is a good missionary and I know he will be doing some mad work in his new area! Hopefully I will be able to be in the same house as him again or maybe even be his companion! :) So yeah, that was a sad goodbye, but I will be able to see him again in like 3 weeks because President Holland comes in 3 weeks!!!! So crazy!! I'm so pumped to be able to meet a General Authority!!

So, another cool story that I have to tell you all this week… you all remember Ming Vee, right!? She was the less active member who gave me all of her scriptures and magazines and told me that she did not want to be a member anymore! Anyway, so we went to her house on Tuesday and we asked if we could come inside and teach her a lesson and I could tell that she had kind of had an off day and so I asked her if everything was ok. She kind of talked about how she is just really struggling right now and that she feels super confused and lost. Then she continued to tell us that sometimes she gets the feeling to come back to church or to pray to God, but then right after she gets that feeling she just feels super lazy and that it's not important to do all of those things. When she said all of that I asked her, “Out of those two feelings, which one do you feel like is coming from God and which one is coming from Satan?” I shared a scripture in 2 Nephi about how the devil will never tell man to pray but will tell them not to pray so that it will move them further away from their Heavenly Father! Then after that I just started going off on a very long motivational speech! It's really hard to try to think back and recollect what I said to her because I felt like the Spirit had completely taken over and I was opening up my mouth and words of encouragement were just pouring out! It was one of the most spiritual experiences that I have had out here on the mission and far and away the best lesson that I have ever had my entire mission! I felt the love that God has for Ming Vee and I poured my heart out to her and I also lectured her a little bit as well and told her that she just needs to start from the beginning again… start fresh and put her faith in God and God only!! Not in the members or the Branch President or the Elders or anyone of this world! I told her that if we put our faith in people, one day we eventually will fall because they will do something to make us sad or mad and then the faith that we had will be gone because we were not building on a firm foundation! I told her that God loves her so much and needs her back in His fold to be able to use her to go and do His work in bringing the gospel message to every person in Cambodia! As I looked at the clock when I got done talking I realized I had been talking to her for 45 minutes straight! It was so weird because it really only seemed like maybe 10 minutes! She was crying a lot and then she told me that she was trying to listen to what I said, but that sometimes she felt like there was something not letting her listen to the things that I was saying to her! I asked her if she would like us to give her a blessing, but she said she wanted to pray herself and use her own faith and ask whatever it was that was keeping her from being able to listen to us to leave from her! We got on our knees and prayed and she gave one of the most beautiful prayers I have ever heard! It was so sincere! She was just having a conversation with her Heavenly Father about her struggles and begging for His help and as she continued to pray, the Holy Ghost filled the whole room and I knew that any evil spirits that might have once been in that house were no longer there! There was just no room for anything but the Spirit!! She finished praying and I looked her in the eyes and I told her to remember the feeling that she was feeling right then, to hold on to that feeling and remember what it feels like so that she can know when a feeling comes into her mind and heart that does not feel like that feeling that it's not coming from God, but from Satan instead! The Spirit was at its absolute peak so I left it at that and we left her house! Biking home I felt that I truly had helped someone learn to understand the feeling of the Holy Ghost! It was such an amazing experience and my writing it down and telling it to all of you really can do it no justice at all, but I want to share this experience that is special to my heart so that you all can hear my testimony that the Spirit of God is real!! The Spirit will soften hearts and will comfort those who are lost! I am just some 21-year-old punk, but because I had the Holy Ghost with me I was able to reach out and touch the heart of a lost sheep!

I love my mission! I love being an instrument in the Lord’s hands!! The week went on very successfully and we were able to meet with lots of other members and investigators as well, which was super awesome! The other highlight of this week was when we went to church on Sunday, I was sitting on the stage because I was helping pass sacrament and then about 5 minutes to the hour, I saw Ming Vee walk into the chapel and sit down! I can't put it into words how happy I was! I immediately said a prayer to my Heavenly Father and thanked him for helping me know what to say to help her come back! She attended all three hours and was given a big hug by a lot of the members, which was super cool to see as well!! After Sacrament she came up to me (you should know that she has a very funny personality… she likes to joke around a lot) and she said, "Hey! Don't think you have won Elder!" Haha I just smiled and told her that I was so happy that she decided to come to church today and then I said, "Today we’re all winners Ming:)" She agreed and we had a good laugh! Guys, I don't know how many other ways I can say it and I only know how to say it in one other language, but I have to say it again! I LOVE MY MISSION!!! There is not a better place in the entire world to come and serve two years of your life to help people come to a knowledge that so many of us have received already!! I love being able to help these wonderful and humble people come to a realization that they are a part of something more special and more sacred and more rewarding then they have ever even dreamed of! I am so grateful that I have this opportunity to come and serve here in Cambodia! I love my mission and I love this gospel! I invite all of you to pour out your heart in thanks to your Heavenly Father for what you have been given! I promise that as you do this you will begin to come to a better realization of just how blessed each and every one of you are! I love you all and hope you have a great week!

All my love,
Elder Steadman:)
អែលឌេីរ ស្តេតមិន