Missionary Slim asks: "How do you know she is a witch? She doesn't look like one." (Week 17 in Pennsylvania, Week 17 in Lebanon, PA)

"One more door!"

Well, I can't say no to that. I always heard the miracles that happened to other missionaries when they pounded on that last door. I was ready to go home, not because I was tired, but because we had already given away the copies of the Book of Mormon we had on hand, and the closest ones were a mile away on foot. I was running out of pass-along cards which I might need to give out as we were walking back. But, Elder Blake said those magic words, and we had to do it.

I did the honors - *knock knock knock* We waited for a few seconds. The door slowly opened and a sleepy 19 year old girl came out. We introduced ourselves, and she stopped us short. "Thanks for what you guys do, but I'm not interested. I'm pretty hardcore in my religion."

"Oh?" I said. There was no WAY a 19 year old would be THAT hardcore in any religion (oh, wait...). I had to know what religion this was. "Which religion is that hardcore?"

"Uh...." She paused, unsure of what my response would be. "Wiccan"

"Oh. Cool." She wasn't creepy at all - she actually worked night shift as an EMT, and studies all religions so she could empathize with her dying patients. She'd already read the Book of Mormon, and thought it was weird. Bottom-line, she really wasn't interested. But at least I can say I've met a wiccan.

We went by to see Merv again. He was the gentleman who was having the keg party last week. Well, he was sitting outside when we came by, enjoying the warm day. As we talked to him, he told us about all of his neighbors, and how friendly he was with all of them. Two of them came by as we were talking - an older Catholic lady named Suzy, and a younger woman who we met last week named Mindy. She was actually one of the two that was there originally last week and was asking the good questions. She even told us this week "I couldn't read that book you gave me because I was working a lot, but that's no excuse." Well, as we talked about the Restoration, she had that same look in her eyes - that same longing, searching for the truth. Hopefully she'll come by again when we have our next appointment. We know one thing for sure - Merv can help us share the Gospel with a lot of people.

John. What a stud. He's been trying to quit smoking over and over again. He's been looking for a job for the past few months. He's been going up and down with his faith. Well, this week we had an exchange with our new district leader, Elder Broadbent. We went to visit John, and found him in a really bad state. He smoked a ton that day, he was questioning the Book of Mormon, he was even questioning the exsistence of God. Apparently, he visited his Baptist therapist that day, and she gave him a huge list of reasons why the Book of Mormon was false.

I was so thankful that Elder Broadbent was there. He was able to take that VERY bad situation and turn it around in no time. By the end of that lesson, John prayed again to know if the Book of Mormon was true, gained another witness, and took a huge step in the right direction with keeping the other commandments. As of right now, he's been off cigarettes for 2 days, got a job immediately after that lesson, and is building his testimony tremendously quickly.

Saturday, we went to see Wilfredo with Brother Hector Morales. Wilfredo wasn't around. Madeline was, though. She said he was about 30 miles away in Lancaster. We were a little disappointed, but decided to keep walking and see if we could find anybody else to teach right there on the street. Actually, there is a park near Wilfredo's home which we decided to stroll around in. Within a few minutes, we started talking to another Puerto Rican and taught him about the Restoration right then and there. As soon as that lesson was over and the guy walked off, we see Madeline and Wilfredo walking towards us! We had to get to our next appointment which was just down the street, but we left Hector there to talk to him.

We get back to the park to see if they are still there, and sure enough they are. What's more, the first thing Hector says to me is "What days in July can you baptize Wilfredo?" He's working toward July 14th.

Lots of amazing things have been happening, and I've learned a lot of amazing things too. Something which really hit me yesterday: We are told to follow the Savior. "Come follow me," he says. That path will lead us along his path. It will lead us through trials and struggles, through miracles, through great joy and pain. It will lead us past Gethsemane, it will lead us to Calvary. But eventually, it will lead us to the garden tomb, where all our sadness, all our trials and travails will be made up.

I hope everything goes well for everyone. Thanks to all of you for your support and encouragement. Take care!

Love,
Elder Anderson, AKA Missionary Slim