Called to Serve

January 13, 2010 - January 13, 2012

Friday, April 29, 2011

April 29, 2011

Hey Family!

So this past week has been rough.  I thought Easter would soften the hearts of the people to be more open to a message about Christ but I was so very wrong.  It seems like another tradition on Easter here involves large amounts of life destroying alcohol. And anybody can ask me and I will tell them that alcohol is exactly that, life destroying.  I've seen some stuff lately.

It turns out that i was right in my hunch that my companion would be transferred.  After a short 6 weeks I am with another companion!  This time he's a missionary I already knew very well.  Elder Hann!  I don't know if you guys remember but I talked about him a bunch in my first letters from when I got into the field.  He's from my group that came from the MTC.  He's from Arizona and he is a stud.  He has changed a lot since the last time a saw him a year ago.  He talks different and acts different and its like he's got fire in his eyes.  I'm pretty stoked.

I don't know if you guys remember about the deaf girl I talked about a few emails ago, but we taught her and her family again last night.  This time we had a young woman go with us that knew sign language so she could translate for us.  We had always felt the spirit very strongly when we taught this family but this only left us very confused because the family never made any progress but the lessons were always very edifying.  Last night we discovered exactly why.  We had to teach very slow and in the most simple language that we could.  Explaining every principle of the Restoration of the Gospel as clearly and basic as we could.  As we taught we felt and could almost see the spirit catching the words that came out of our mouths and thrusting them into the hearts of this family, especially Josiane who has a hearing problem.  I had never taught like that before and the spirit was extremely present.  I felt the greatest feeling of joy as I saw her understanding growing and how she accepted every truth we taught her so humbly and the joy that she showed in hearing and understanding the good news of the restoration.  She finally had the opportunity to express what she was feeling to us and to her family.  She told us about how she felt so different during all our lessons, that she felt the love of God during our lessons but she didn't know why.  She explained that the same feelings she had had during the other visits she was feeling again.  I took the opportunity to explain to the family that what she was feeling and what they were feeling was the Holy Ghost testifying that everything we taught was true and good.  My companion started to testify and he talked with a different tone in his voice.  It was like the voice of an apostle giving warning and declaring that Joseph Smith was called as a Prophet of God and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is exactly what it is, the only true and living church who's power, guidance and authority comes directly from the mouth of the Savior.  Nobody in that moment could deny it, I knew it was true and I know Josiane knew it.  She accepted to be baptised.

I am sooo happy that I have been baptised by someone having authority!  I am so happy that I have to right to the company of the Holy Ghost!  I am so grateful that I know what that means and that because of this knowledge I know exactly who I am, where I came from, why I'm here and where I'm going.  I am so grateful for the atonement and for knowing that despite all my errors may be as scarlet they may be white as wool because of the Savior.  And I'm even happier that I get to share this with others!  Especially my Family!  I love you guys! Every single one of you! 

Big Hugs
Elder Romm

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

April 13th, 2011

Hey Mom and Dad,

This past weekend we had Sanderson's baptism, it was really awesome, lots of people were cryin and all that good stuff.

My companion and I are starting to understand one another in our teaching and we are starting to teach a little bit better together now so that is good.  This is probably a sign that one of us will be transferred because that just seems to happen a lot.  We have been teaching a family with two girls who really want to be baptized and we found out this week that the parents don't have anything against them being baptized this next weekend.  That was definitely a tender mercy from the Lord because one of these girls was living with her grandma and her grandma is not a big fan of ours.  But this week she moved back to her mom's house and her mom loves us.  Score for Jesus!

Today we had a training that we gave to our Zone.  We assigned missionaries who don't have a lot of time on the mish to give the trainings and they rocked the house.  These missionaries that are arriving in the field now a days are at least three times cooler than i am!  Today we learned that true and complete joy is only achieved in and through Jesus Christ and his gospel.  And if you want to experience it you either have to share it or share it, then share it again.  Missionary work exists not only for us to help others receive salvation; its to help us receive salvation.  I gave a training about how we can recognize the spirit and how we can recognize his whisperings.  I definitely learned more than the other missionaries did but that's alright.  I shared a few experiences that we've had these past few weeks.  One was when we were teaching a lesson about the plan of salvation to a family where one of the daughters is deaf.  We taught with power and authority and testified of the blessing of the Resurrection and how that they could be an eternal family through the Restored Gospel.  After and during the lesson everyone was very quiet and a great peace filled the room.  Then the girl with the hearing problem looked at me with her eyes wide open and started to show me the goose bumps on her arms and pointed upwards towards the heavens and then pointed to her heart and let out a deep breath nodding her head and smiling.  She didn't understand a word we said, but the Spirit testified to her in her heart that what we were saying was true and good and she could feel the presence of the spirit.  I don't speak her language but the spirit does, i wish i knew sign language so i could ask her exactly what she was feeling and what she understood. 

I'm excited for Brad and Jess.  You guys are going to embark in the service of your God.  Where you will work side by side with angels and the holy ghost.  It is impossible to take part in this work without having spiritual experiences that also uplift us, leave life-long impressions and that strengthen our faith in Christ as our Savior.  Christ lives and he is very much involved and ever present in our lives and this is His church and gospel, and its here to help us if we let it.

I love you guys!  Spread the love!

Elder Romm
(I wanted to send pics but I think my adapter thing is broken)

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

April 6th, 2011

Mom and Dad,

Wasn't conference awesome?  It's seriously the best time for a missionary.  I could watch conference all the time! In fact, I'm watchin it right now! haha.   We have also had leadership trainings this whole week so I'm feeling so uplifted i just don't know what to do with myself!

I thought it was very funny how much Pres. Monson and the apostles kept burning the young men who aren't getting married.  The other American elders and I had some good laughs.  We would just like to comment that some of us are still on the Lord's errand and everyone needs to just hang on a sec!  Hah.

We have a baptism this weekend, he is a stud.  An example of somebody who lived in the world for a long time but managed to really hold it together and follow many important commandments until we got to him.  His wife is a less active but wanting to come back.  He is an occupational therapist and works with mentally challenged children.  He has got a ton of patience. 

We are really going to be looking for some miracles in these next coming weeks,  we've been taught a lot about faith in these trainings and about how we can really work miracles in this work.  We have some people with very hard hearts and very strong addictions that we need to help.  But i really believe its gonna work out. 

When we choose to believe we really open a lot of windows (of Heaven).  I walked out of the church after watching general conference and after feeling so strongly that spirit and the absolute peace that i was carrying with me i started to look at the people on the streets and the thought came into my mind, the world has no idea what they have just lost.  I can't deny that what i felt was power of the holy ghost testifying to me that it all is true.  And if i decided not to accept the Book of Mormon as truth or the Prophet as a man called of God the spirit would never ever be able to give me this confirmation and that peace of mind, sureness in my heart, would not have ever arrived to me.  Our testimony is the most precious thing we have, and its something we can share with everyone!

Be Happy, Love you guys, have a great week!
Elder Romm