Mitchel got baptized!

Buon Giorno!

This week has gone by so fast!

First of all, the best news - Mitchel got baptized!  However, due to a bunch of different things going on Saturday in the church and other activities, we had to do the baptism Sunday night, so Mitchel has not been confirmed yet (that will happen next Sunday).  The service was absolutely wonderful; the spirit in this one was more powerful than any of the other ones I've ever been in.  One cool thing about this ceremony was that it was held in both English and Italian (because there were a lot of Nigerians there to support Mitchel and also a bunch of Italians from the branch also there for support).  So, there were always two people at the pulpit - one speaking English and the other Italian.  After the baptism, Mitchel bore his testimony and reccounted a little bit about his story.  So, at the beginning of this year he was thinking a lot about life and the significance thereof.  He started thinking a lot more about the spiritual things.  He had grown up in a very religious familly and knew the bible very very well, but had never before been baptized.  Anyway, he decided that he wanted to do something that would be of significance in his life - something that he would never forget.  So, a few weeks ago he decided that he wanted to be baptized.  He talked to his friend, Frank (a Nigerian member in our branch), and this friend brought him to church and that's where we met him, and then the next day he had committed to be baptized less than two weeks later!  What a miracle! ...

The one other big thing that happened this week:  the way we do missionary work is completely different!  The mission president and the assistants trained all of the zone leaders (who trained us this past monday) a completely new way to do proselyting work.  This way focuses on helping the people that we meet feel the spirit from the very first moment that we encounter each other.  We begin teaching, asking inspired and soul searching questions, and testifying right away.  It's a whole lot more difficult and draining, but it's a whole lot more fulfilling!  I am able to stay focused about as close to 100% on the work as is possible, and I feel like a real missionary - I'm preaching the word and inviting people to repent (though these first encounters are just the beginning steps of repentance - allowing us to show them the ways that they need to change to live according to the will of God) all day long!  I'm still not very good at this new approach at all - it's a whole lot different than teaching in a real lesson - it's a whole lot more fast paced, and it requires that I really jump on the situations (a lot of the time by interrupting people and talking a whole lot more than what is comfortable and normal for me).  Oh well, I guess I can grow a bit! ...

I forgot to share a few of the interesting/funny stories that happened this past week:  We had just gotten inside of a palazzo and were heading towards the elevator (we usually try to avoid hiking up 6 stories - the average size of a palazzo...), and a couple walked out.  We introduced ourselves and invited them to hear more about our message.  They said no, and then asked where, or to whom, we were going.  I responded, "a piano sei" (to floor six - we usually go to the very top floor and then work our way down, and there are usually six floors in the palazzi).  She looked at me kind of funny, and then they left.  When we got in the elevator, we looked at the buttons, and the building only had 4 floors!  No wonder she looked at us weird...  She was probably thinking, "sure you're going to the sixth floor, kid..."  Now it's our running joke, when we get in an elevator, to say, "piano sei", whether or not there's a sixth floor!  Also, yesterday we were doing casa, and it was Anziano Hutchinson's turn to start off talking.  They opened the door, and Anz. Hutchinson extended his arm to shake the man's hand, and immediately the man grabbed anziano Hutchinson's arm, pushed it away, and slammed the door, saying "arrivaderci" (bye).  We got a kick out of that one.  Another time, we were ringing the citofono (on the outside of the palazzo, trying to have someone open up the door that would allow us to enter the palazzo so that we could start ringing the doors inside).  They asked the normal "Chi è?" (Who is it?).  I said that I was Anziano Barnes.  She kept on asking, so I responed, "I'm from the church.  I have a message.  Can you open the door for me?"  Finally, she aksed a question I'd never heard before.  She asked, who sent you?  First I said, "the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."  Then she asked again, no but WHO sent you.  So, I said, simply, "Dio" (God).  She was kind of like, "uhhh...." and then she hung up.  It was probably a good thing that she hung up, because I bursted into laughter.  I had always wanted to say something like that to someone, but there had never been a good opportunity.  Well, there's nothing like the truth! ...

Wait, there's one more cool miracle story that I need to share really quick:  Last night we had an appointment with the Nikolli family (a family that's investigating the church).  We got there and rang the citofono outside.  A man answered (we assumed that it was the dad) saying that he was the only one in the home.  We said we could still come in and talk with him.  He let us in.  We got to their door, and then the son opened the door.  He welcomed us in!  This was a bit of a different experience for us, usually he won't listen to us at all when we come over.  He's a 14 year old teenage boy who loves listening to his music, playing his guitar (he's one of those "punk" type kids - even with the long hair...).  Somehow, we started talking about the Book of Mormon. He said that he'd never read it because the only one that they have, his sister Giovanna, uses and keeps.  However, he said that he would like to read it.  I told him we had brought one just for him!  We talked briefly about the Book of Mormon and shared the Moroni promise with him.  We taught him how to pray, and then invited him to read that evening and then to pray to know the truth.  He was perfectly willing and excited to do so (which kind of surprised me - he was never interested in the past)!  Then, the rest of his family came in!  We were able to teach them for a couple minutes, and we invited all of them to read and pray.  They all agreed!  Then, we asked when we could come back (this was usually the tricky part - the mom usually says that they're too busy and tells us to call several days later), but she aked "could you come tomorrow?"  Whoa!  Maybe this family is a whole lot more prepared than we were thinking!  Then, we talked about how there will be a baptism in Florence this weeked, and we invited them to come!  And, the boy and his sister will both come - they want to and they said they don't have anything else going on, so, we'll all go together on the train to Florence to see a baptism!

That's about it for me this past week.  I'm excited for this next week, especially to get better at this new approach to doing missionary work and to teach some of these amazing people that we've found.       

Thanks to all of you!

Vi voglio bene!

-Anziano Barnes