Story number #1
On our first evening in Ireland, a group of us decided use our free time to see the town. When getting ready to go, Dani discovered that she was missing her purse. Of course she felt sick thinking of her credit card, passport, money etc. She tried to be a good sport. She said that she probably left it on the bus and it was OK. However, we knew she couldn’t enjoy herself if she worried about her purse all night. (And we would worry too)

The driver had recommended a couple of pubs to visit. We thought he might be in one of them. We took a cab into town. In the first pub, we didn’t find the driver but we found a phone book and called the restaurant where we had eaten earlier. No luck. In the second pub there was no sign of him. We began to think that he had recommended these pubs as decoys. Maybe he was in his own favorite pub where he could savor his private time away from us, “the kids”.

Somehow, we decided that if we found the bus, then maybe we’d find the driver too. At the time it seemed reasonable. It was a comforting thought. It would be a lot easier to find a huge tour bus parked somewhere in town than an Irish bus driver lodged on a stool in one of 200 local pubs. A bit impractical perhaps, but that became the mission.

So off we went down the city streets, taking a right here and a left there, looking down alleys and into quirky corners. There were pubs everywhere of course but no bus. At one point, one of us suggested going into a random pub that was close by. I don’t remember why, but we went in. As we’re standing there looking around, ~~ in walks our driver! In all of the pubs in Killarney, he walks into ours. What were the odds?? We jumped him like twitter-pated girls. I demanded, “How are we supposed to find you in case of an emergency?” He said, “You’re not.” Ha ha. Funny guy.

He did say the purse was on the bus and all was well. We were able to relax and enjoy the evening. Dani was able to sleep that night without worry. Heavenly Father was sooo kind!

Story #2
I had a few hours to wait at the Charles De Gaulle airport before I could check in my bag for coming home. I was reading Alma 26 in the Book of Mormon. Ammon is praising God for the great missionary miracles that have happened among previously villainous people.

An African man sat down beside me. I thought, “Should I or shouldn’t I say something about the gospel to him? Here I am reading this great missionary chapter. What good does it do if I don’t apply it to my life?” I decided to say something. As I was talking with him, a man sitting across from me leaned forward and asked, “Are you a Mormon?” I replied that I was. He said he was a Christian. I responded brightly, “So am I!” He re-defined himself as a “Christian Christian”. I said, “So I guess I’m a Mormon Christian?” Right. He informs me that I can’t be saved by the law only (my works). I need to have faith on Jesus Christ.

Now, for the life of me, I don’t understand how a stranger can tell me that I don’t have faith in Jesus Christ. I responded that everything I do is related to my faith in Christ. If I didn’t have faith, I wouldn’t do anything at all. Christ said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” For me, that takes some work. If I didn’t have faith in Christ, I would just eat, drink, be merry and hope to be saved in the last day only because God is good. Repenting of my mistakes and shortcomings takes work ~ at least for me. He insisted that I was without belief in Christ’s power to save and then he excused himself to catch a plane.

I sat there feeling sour and bummed. I had opened my mouth to share the gospel and I got shut down by someone who had a different perspective on religious beliefs. I’ve been a member of the Church of Jesus Christ for my entire adult life. I’ve been a full time missionary. Why am I so lousy at explaining what I know? I knew it wasn’t my fault that he wasn’t open to listen to anything I had to say or learn anything. His mind was set. I was condemned. I still felt badly. I reminded myself that Ammon hadn’t experienced instant success either. At least, unlike Ammon, I hadn’t been hung upside down in a prison for a few months first.

Feeling discouraged and disappointed, I went to check in my bag. The line was long. People snaked through the Disneyland-like ropes and spilled into the rest of the airport. As I moved up closer to the front of the line, I noticed a small, very frail, elderly lady at the ticket counter.

She had two huge suitcases on a luggage cart. Each must have outweighed her by twice her own weight. She was struggling to get them off the cart and onto the conveyor belt. The cart only rolled toward her when ever she tugged a bag. I watched her a bit and noticed that no one else was doing anything. The lady behind the counter just sat there staring into space waiting for the bags. The people at the other counters were occupied with their own affairs. The nearby security guard didn’t move. The people in line stood in their proper places behind the rope.

I ducked under the rope and went to help. I told the tiny old lady to stand away as I yanked both bags off the cart and got them onto the conveyor. She was grateful and relieved. The people watching, back in the line, had circled my bags in a protective manner. That was nice. I felt good.

It was a direct blessing from Heavenly Father. He gave me that opportunity to do a “good work” when I was feeling down. To let me know that good works are needed and necessary in this world. It made me feel better. It helped someone else. It was an example to others that they can step out from behind a line and help someone if it is needed. If someone doesn’t believe that I have faith in Christ that’s fine. I am still going to do works because it’s the right thing to do.

Last weekend was General Conference for the Church. I was just home and enjoying the down time. One of the last speakers on the Saturday session was Jeffery Holland. He gave a passionate speech about people in the world who don’t understand Christianity and how we live it. He said everything that I wished I could have explained to the man at the airport. That speech was inspired for me personally.

I don’t often say that about Conference Talks but this directly related to my recent experience that was still so fresh in my mind. I give Heavenly Father credit for this witness. He does love me and care about me. He appreciates the things that I try to do. No, I’m not perfect and no, I’m not going to “earn” my way back to my Father’s presence. However, I do need to do what He says needs to be done i.e. have faith on His son Jesus Christ, repent of my sins, be baptized by water, and receive the Holy Ghost from those who have the authority to hold the Holy Priesthood of God. The rest is “doing unto others”. That’s about it. Yes, its work, but I love it.