Really great week this week! A lot has happened.... let's start with the best news: The Allgood baptism!
Cameron (11), Cody (10), and Breckin (8) Allgood were each baptized and confirmed yesterday after church. Their half-brother Austin (16) was in town and he performed the baptisms. The Spirit was so strong and really hit the family, especially Matt (the dad). He is all tattooed up and has had a lot of struggles getting back into activity recently, and he just cried and cried after the ordinance. It was so special. The bishop challenged them to prepare to be sealed on Matt's birthday in August! They still have a little work to do before then but I definitely believe they will make it :) The confirmations went great and the member who performed them said he felt really strongly that all three will serve missions. They are already preparing! Cameron turns 12 in a couple of months and is preparing for the priesthood. His 13-year-old brother, Blake, has been interviewed to receive the priesthood next Sunday. I am so proud of their whole family.
We also got to go to the temple with one of Sister White's converts. A year ago, he was baptized in Seneca Lake, where many of the early saints were baptized on the day the church was first organized. It was so cool to see how prepared he was to continue in his covenant-making this last weekend.
Cool story about how God's hand is in our daily lives:
The Shortsville sisters (who also live in our apartment) lost their phone like a month ago. They looked all over the town of Farmington, where they were that day, to no avail. Last week, we were trying to teach some people but NO one was home. We found ourselves on a street in the middle of Canandaigua trying to contact a recent convert and less-active. They weren't home either. But while we were there, we ran into two men. We try to talk with everyone, so we gave them our card. They asked if we'd lost a phone. We said we hadn't but we had friends that did, and showed them our phone. They said it looked identical, so we came by a little later to pick up their phone. The guys had sounded potentially interested when we first saw them, but they told us they weren't. I asked if they knew anyone interested, and they referred their next-door neighbor. We finally got ahold of him yesterday. He let us right in and said "I need you." He then started telling us about all these tragedies that had recently happened in his life and how he was looking for help to get through it. We didn't have another woman present, so we left him a Book of Mormon and told him we'd come back. Miracle? I think yes.
Anywho, I need to get going. I love you a whole lot, and I'm excited to hear about Sarah's call on Wednesday! Be good, and stay warm. The church is true!
With Love,
Sister Schank :)
