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July 4: The Best of both...

I neglected to let you know that my p-day was today not yesterday because of a holiday yesterday. Sorry for the worry!

Happy 150th birthday to Canada!

I want my American friends to know that I do love 'Murica but I am proud to be a Canadian. Even if I become a dual citizen or end up living in the states most of my life, I will always identify myself as a Canadian. 

Tonight we get to join in on the July 4th celebration with our American friends. Let me explain. Sault Ste. Marie borders NE Michigan. I uploaded a picture of the "International Bridge" a couple of weeks ago and that is the bridge between Canada and the States. The bridge goes over a river that separates the two nations; the river is the location for July 1st (Canada day) and July 4th celebratory FIREWORKS. We get the best of both celebrations. We enjoyed the fireworks and Saturday and are going to watch the July 4th fireworks tonight from our 4th floor condo a couple of KM's away (we can't be out past curfew of 9pm). I hear that the American fireworks always out do the Canadian fireworks which is no surprise to me haha. It should be a good show!

We did a lot of door to door contacting this week. Despite the fact that I did door to door sales for about 6 months before my mission and had a lot of success, tracting is a whole different ball game. I've tried applying my door to door skills/techniques in different ways but it's easier said then done. I can see how in their eyes, we are "soliciting" our religion door to door. To them, we are "just another church" trying to get more people at church. That is the first of many objections we have to overcome at the door in the first couple of sentences. Then there is that fact that many people we talk to have been fed false information about our church. The most common false understanding is that we don't follow the Holy Scriptures but instead follow some book written by some guy named Joseph something. Then there is the fact that most of the people we talk to are over the age of 60 and have been a Catholic their whole lives. Some missionaries say these people are "set in their own ways". On top of that, the Jehovah's Witnesses have dispersed a plague of door to door religious solicitation that has harmed our first impression no doubt. 

Obviously, door to door contacting is a tough gig and it's not getting any easier as time goes on. Despite the difficulty, I will continue to do it. Despite the fact I haven't been invited in at the door yet or found a progressing investigator from tracting, I will keep doing it. If I go my entire mission and never find someone from tracting who gets baptized it matters not. The Lord has called me to go out and find those who will receive us. The next door I knock could lead to a generation of Latter-Day Saints, you never know. Tracting will never be my first option for finding, but it is one of the ways, so I will do it. The Lord has said our sacrifice is more sacred unto him than our increase (D+C 117).

My experience with tracting has strengthened my testimony that working with the members (finding and teaching) is by far the most effective way to do missionary work. May the Lord bless us in our missionary efforts as full-time and part-time missionaries (by part-time missionaries I'm referring to the members). The field is white already to harvest!

Have a wonderful summer week everybody!

Elder Johnson

Pictures: 
1. Our Canada Day Costume.
2. Just a nice view from a neighborhood we tracted yesterday.



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