Striking a Balance

Hello Everybody,

Things are goind well here. I had been hoping that we would have two baptisms this month. We've had a bit of pressure from our ward to try and get close to fulfilling their goals for the year and also from our Mission President to fulfill the goals for the mission, but unfortunately we can't force people to get baptized on our schedule. Our one date we set yesterday is for the 15th of January. We have set a lot of dates and all of them have fallen through. But unlike the rest I can't find a reason for this one to fall through. It's a little flawed the way in which we commit people to be baptized. We are encouraged to invite them to be baptized after we teach the first lesson unless prompted by the spirit not to. Usually I have been able to recognize a major issue blocking their way to baptism that must be resolved, the only problem is that we never tell them about this issue until it pops up in one of the following lessons. I'm thinking I'll start just trying to be as straight forward and up front as possible. Invite them to be baptized and then when they accept tell all the changes they must make in their life. Of course that is liable to scare them off. So it becomes a delicate balance. You pile commitments and life changing challenges on one side and try to not topple the scale. If you tell them too much at once then it's a turn off for them, the thought of all these life alterations compound and make them feel unable to surmount the obstacles. If you tell them too little though then they are never prepared in the frame that you have set up for them. So I haven't got the hang of it yet and it kind of seems like my companions haven't either. It's really more a game of chance that you will get someone who is so ready to change that nothing you tell them is any problem.

A recent convert in our ward when she was being taught assumed that part of joining the church meant going on a mission. She was so converted though that she was prepared to go on a mission until the missionaries informed her that is wasn't required. I can't wait to get an investigator like that. Someone who has truly sought out the truth for themselves and knows exactly what they must do and why they want to do it.

But I am thankful and proud of the investigators that I get to work with. Each of them are working hard to overcome the whatever is keeping them from being baptized.

Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the holidays.

Sincerely, Elder Miller