No Unhallowed Hand
Hello Friends and Family! Elder Taylor and I have been extremely blessed
in the work and labor of the Lord's vineyard, and have been humbled to see two
outstanding individuals enter the waters of baptism this last weekend! Also,
Elder Ledwaba and I (nearly 8 weeks ago) were able to see an individual enter
the waters of baptism, as well, and I am just now realizing that I had forgotten
(in the midst of things) to share that story with each of you. I wanted to take
this time to explain each of their conversion stories briefly, and add my
witness to the living reality of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Truly, this
is not my work, but the work of our Almighty Heavenly Father for which I am so grateful!
**********
When I arrived in Auburn last transfer, Elder
Ledwaba and I had the opportunity to continue to teach a man by the name of
Heath. He had grown up and heard about the "Mormon Church" because
most of his wife's family are currently members. When I arrived in Auburn,
Heath had just gotten married and was receiving the lessons well. In one of the
first lessons, sitting down with him and his wife, Heath stated that he knew
the truthfulness of The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. As
Heath shared his testimony with Elder Ledwaba and I, the Spirit flowed into my
heart and bore witness of the truthfulness of this Gospel. Heath began to
explain how he knew that this was true, and as he did so the Spirit continued
to grow and fill the room, so every heart in their home was touched. He
explained how he had suffered a severe stroke a year or so ago, and lost most
of his eyesight. He had met the missionaries then, and agreed to listen to the
message of the Restored Gospel. Heath shared that as he read and studied the
words of the prophets from The Book of Mormon, that the words filled his soul with an "unspeakable amount of
peace". He said that one morning he went outside, and he could nearly see
perfectly. Stunned by this, he walked out onto his grass and recounted to us
the pure beauty of the greenery that he had longed so long to see since the
stroke. He explained to us that he looked down, and in the middle of the grass
stood a four-leaf clover (which he still has to this day). He felt the Spirit
that morning, and said he knew this was a little witness from Heavenly Father
of the message that we were sharing was true, and that God would begin to heal
him (Spiritually and Physically) as he read from The Book of Mormon. Heath
has been such an amazing convert this past 8 weeks or so since his baptism, and
attends every meeting faithfully, and has received his temple recommend and
Priesthood Ordination. It has been such a wonderful experience working with
such a qualified recent convert of the Lord's Restored Church: The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
**********
Right as I arrived in Auburn, with Elder
Ledwaba, my first appointment was with a man
**********
Nearly 38 years ago, Jo Ann had a frustrating
day at work. Being a nurse apparently isn't the easiest job in the world. As
she sat at her desk, she was overwhelmed not only with her job as a nurse, but
with the feelings of being a new mother of two girls, a rocky marriage at home,
and owning a small medical supply company she had started. She would often take
her Holy Bible during her lunch hours at the hospital and read it in a private
closet, so she could at least try to focus on God in her life. On one
particular day, a man by the name of Mr.
Fleshman wandered into the Hospital. As
he waited to see the doctor, he struck up a conversation with Jo Ann. She was
amazed by this man's kindness, and recounted how he had such a light about him.
As Mr. Fleshman continued to come to the
doctor's office for visits, Jo Ann would always look forward to speaking with
him. Finally, one day, Jo Ann asked (as southerners so often do) where he attended Church. Mr. Fleshman told
Jo Ann he was a "Mormon", and Jo Ann couldn't believe it! She had
grown up listening to Anti-Mormon Sermons at her local Church, and believing
that "Mormons" were polygamists and believed in a separate
"Bible". Suddenly, Jo Ann's conversations with Mr. Fleshman turned
from light conversations about life, to deep religious discussions. As the
years continued, Mr. Fleshman would never hesitate to help her out in a moment
of need, and even babysit her children quite often. Mr. Fleshman struggled with his health after
being exposed to Agent Orange early in the Vietnam War. Even through his health
struggles, Mr. Fleshman would always be there for Jo Ann no matter what. Eventually, Jo Ann moved away from that
hospital, and came to Auburn. Settling down in a nice home and neighborhood
with her family seemed perfect, and slowly Mr. Fleshman faded from her
life.
Nearly 8 months ago Jo Ann's life literally
fell apart. He children abandoned her, her husband tried every way to take the
house, and she hurt herself in a horrible accident (almost losing he life),
making it so she could no longer work as a nurse that she had for so long and loved.
It reached to a point in October of last year, that she had sat in her house
for nearly 32 days straight without contact with anyone from her family or old
friends. Just as she had done so often with the Bible many years before, she
searched for God. One day, as she was online reading the Scriptures, an
advertisement popped up advertising to order a Free Copy of The Book of
Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. She recounts that her mind
flooded back memories of Mr. Fleshman, and she felt "compelled" to
click the advertisement and order a copy. She wanted to learn for herself what
made Mr. Fleshman so "different". She wanted his light that she had seen for so
many years.
Within 24 hours after filling in her
information online, we showed up to deliver this sacred Book about Christ to
her. She began to weep and explained how we were the first people that had come
to see her in 32 days. She is the most sweet, kind, and loving Southern woman I
had ever met. We immediately could feel the love of the Savior for her, and we
scheduled to come back the next day. Meeting
her for the first time was one of the most sacred experiences of my mission.
The Spirit confirmed on the porch, "This is my daughter, and she must be
baptized."
Every lesson after that was intense, and
scriptural. She had read the Holy Bible countless times in her life, and even
received four Masters Degrees in everything from the medical field to
theology. She would take notes as we
explained the discussions with her, and we would show her every point of our
beliefs from The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ and
the Holy Bible. She was so kind to us, and she truly became (and will forever
be) my "Southern Mother". When
we said the prayer and started talking about Christ, the Bible would come
out and she would meticulously record every word we said.
She came to Church every Sunday after that,
and her experiences were beyond comparison. She would receive revelation for her life in
Church, and she absolutely fell in LOVE with the women of the Relief Society. She began to suggest ways to mister to others
better, and even offered in setting up a meeting schedule to meet with Sisters
that hadn't met with a sister from the Church in years. After just a few weeks
of coming, some members thought she had been a member her whole life. Yet, as
we would discuss with the Ward Council (who didn't believe us), she hadn't been
baptized yet. After only a few visits,
it became apparent that her interest was in the Temple of the Lord. She loved
looking at pictures, and cried often at the thought of being sealed to her
long-passed-away father and mother. She
regained hope in being sealed to her children, and would always be so overcome
as she learned about Exaltation and God's Plan for Her. She became converted as
she felt the Spirit throughout her day, and pondered on the Temple.
I had never set a Temple date with someone
before their baptismal date, but with Jo Ann we did. She said she got the "biggest crush"
on Joseph Smith, and always revered President Nelson. She would offer her
testimony of President Nelson in Relief Society, and bear witness to others
that there was still a living Prophet on the Earth. Truly, I have never
met anyone so prepared, ready, and foreordained to be a member of The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints than Jo Ann.
As the baptism approached, she would share so
many experiences with us about Mr. Fleshman, and begged us to find his family
to let them know she was getting baptized. Elder Taylor and I said many
prayers, and after much digging and finding, we found that Mr. Fleshman had
ONLY PASSED AWAY NINE DAYS AFTER JO ANN REACHED OUT TO THE CHURCH. We found out
that the actual day of Mr. Fleshman's funeral was the EXACT DAY we had our first
lesson with Jo Ann. As we brought Mr.
Fleshman's obituary to Jo Ann, her eyes filled with tears. She thought he had
been dead for years. She said, "I am ready to be baptized now. This is the
witness to my heart that the Lord needs me in this Church. Mr. Fleshman has
been reaching to me from the other side. Do Mormons believe that missionary
work still happens when people die?" It was one of the most powerful
lessons of my mission, if not the most powerful. As we explained the Spirit
World more in depth, and discussed how Mr. Fleshman would still be doing
missionary work to reach out to her, she requested to be baptized as soon as
possible. She stated that she felt she needed to do her mother's and father's
temple names as early as she could.
We decided, with her, to have her baptism this
last Saturday with Deuntae We were able to find Mr. Fleshman's son, and we told him
about Jo Ann's conversion experience. His son asked when she would be baptized,
and he said, "Elders, I will bring my whole family from South
Carolina." When we told Jo Ann the Fleshman family was coming (keep in
mind Mr. Fleshman's funeral had been just over a month before), she could
barely talk. She said, "I want Mr. Fleshman's son to baptize me."
This past Saturday, Jo Ann was baptized by
Albert Lee Fleshman's son, and after 38 years of seed planting, Jo Ann started
on her pathway to the Temple of the Lord. As Mr. Fleshman's son was standing in the
water with Jo Ann, emotions high, and the whole Fleshman family watching, I
couldn't help but hear the words of the Prophet Joseph Smith come to mind:
"...The Standard of Truth has been
erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions
may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the
truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has
penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and
sounded in every ear; till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the
Great Jehovah shall say the work is done."
I love and hold so dear to my heart Miss Jo
Ann Pruitt, and she will forever stand as a witness of God's Eternal Love for ALL of
His Children on this side, and the other side of the Eternal Veil.
**********
I leave my witness that Jesus is the Christ.
He is the Eternal God of both Heaven and Earth. He is the literal Jehovah of
the Old Testament, and the Savior of the New. I know that He will come again in great glory,
and every knee shall bend and every tongue confess that He is King of Kings and
Lord of Lords. I do know that the Temple is the sacred edifice dedicated to the
gathering of Israel, and our mortal portal to an immortal realm.
"God be thanked for the matchless gift of
His divine Son."
Until Next Week-
Elder Robb
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