The "Right" Person!

Hey Y'all!

Elder and Sister Holt, one of the senior missionary couples serving in the Visitor Center experienced a really cool miracle this week that I am going to reference for the purposes of entertaining and inspiring you all :)

All the visitor center sisters were studying quietly one morning in the VC, when a couple who were walking their dog peered into the clear, glass window of the visitor center and warily paced back and forth a few times in front of the door. We could clearly see their mental dilemma trying to decide if they wanted to come in and if it was even socially acceptable to bring their dog inside .Eventually, they cracked open the door and asked if they could bring their dog in, to which we replied "yes", as long as they held him. NORMALLY, we would not allow dogs inside the visitor center, but there were currently no other visitors, and we felt prompted to invite them in. They came in, but were opposed to talking to the sisters who approached them, saying that "we already had a church and are not interested." They wandered around for a couple minutes, looking at the various displays. Meanwhile, Sister Holt  felt prompted that she needed to go talk to them. She went up and asked: "Is this a normal Oregon winter?" (It was super warm outside for February) The lady said: "Actually, it is not. Where are you from?" Sister Holt replied, "Canada. My husband and I are actually serving a mission here..." The conversation ensued, and they conversed lightheartedly. The visitors ended up revealing that they are a retired couple with a Christian background, had seen the temple from the highway, and wanted to see what it was all about. They left knowing that Mormons are Christian, that we DO believe in the Bible, and that the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ! We invited them back to see Meet the Mormons and learn more, and the husband accepted! He has a great interest in the relationship between the Bible and the Book of Mormon. On their way out, they said " The test when we came here was to see if you would let us bring our dog in, because he is our pride and joy!" We are all glad we passed!

It is just SO cool to me that this couple came in wary and stand-offish, but left laughing and smiling, with an intent to come back, see Meet the Mormons. and learn more. I know that Sister Holt followed a prompting from the spirit to talk to them and that the Lord arranged for her and her husband to be on shift at this time, since they do not normally come in on Thursday mornings. Out of all the senior couples, sister Holt was the one who needed to talk to these two visitors. Her personality just meshed perfectly with theirs!  It was an awesome experience! 

On a side note, this picture of Sister Riley is an excellent representation of what I feel like on a regular basis as a missionary! haha. 

I never imagined that we would make so many calls, text so many people, or juggle so many responsibilities, but I would not have it any different! Going on a mission is the best decision I have ever made! 

If any of you ever have any questions about what Mormons believe or what the Book of Mormon is, I would love to answer them! 

Till next week, 

Sister Bergman

Not your Regular Newspaper...

Hey Y'all! 
I have an incredible story to share this week! It definitely qualifies to be on my "top ten mission miracles" list!

 A couple months ago, one of the senior missionaries in the Visitor Center, Sister Holt, was scanning the local newspaper and came across a super intriguing article! This man wrote a little poem about how missionaries used to come see him but suddenly stopped coming. He said he wasn't the greatest guy but he hoped they would come back and talk to him. He included his name and city: Randy Glenning, Lake Oswego (name has been changed). Sister Holt searched in the phone book for this man and eventually found his contact information. She gave it to the sisters currently serving in Lake Oswego, but unfortunately, they were transferred out of the area before getting a chance to contact him.
 When I arrived in Lake Oswego, we saw this sticky note on the ground in our apartment which had the name Randy Glenning on it. However, I couldn't remember who that was, so I ignored it for over a month. One day, we finally determined to figure out what the sticky note was all about. We called the sister who was in that area previously, and she reminded me who Randy Glenning was. When I realized the connection between Randy Glenning and the newspaper man from a couple weeks back, we got super excited, called the elders in our ward, and told them all about this referral! They were super excited as well, and informed us that the newspaper article had actually been taped on the wall in their apartment  for a while now, but they didn't know what it was about and didn't have any way to contact him. They called him the next day (Thursday), but when they did, the phone went to the voicemail of an older woman... The next day, they stopped by the man's supposed house and knocked on the door, but no one answered.
      The following Wednesday, the elders had a feeling to go back and knock on the door again. They did and a young man, probably in his late 20's warily answered, mistaking the elders for secret agents! He relaxed, however, once they explained they were missionaries, and told them his name was Alex. His girlfriend lives in the house and has no interest in the LDS church, but he moved in last week and had tons of questions. They taught him a little about the Book of Mormon, gave him one, and challenged him to read it. He stayed up until 2am that night reading the book! Alex requested they come back at four the next day to teach him a lesson, and they did! He is excited about the gospel and continues to learn more from the missionaries! He even wants to go to the temple!  

       I think it is super cool the Lord's timing in all of this. If the elders had contacted this mystery man any earlier, they would have met his girlfriend, learned she was not interested, and moved on. However, due to transfers and mis-communications, which I believe were inspired, they knocked on the door once Alex, who WAS interested, had moved in! 

Heavenly Father truly cares about each of us individually. He can literally do anything He needs to in order to provide for His children and bring them closer to Him. If we stay close to Heavenly Father and listen for promptings from the spirit, WE can be involved in the Lord's work!

I invite you to have a conversation with Heavenly Father through prayer everyday this week. Get to know Him better, ask Him questions, and have faith that you will eventually get answers. I know you will. Heavenly Father loves each of us perfectly and wants to help us be happy!

I love you all and wish you peace and happiness this week! 
Sister Bergman