Adams Baptism

Well on Saturday I probably had the biggest highlight of my mission! It was incredible! Adam got baptized! Qiao Yu Xiang! 

Elder Mitchell and I found him on August 15th! I remember the day and location exactly! I can almost remember what Adam was wearing even! We were walking back to our car and I stopped him randomly! I had no intention of stopping him. We had somewhere to be and I usually never stop people when we are that close to the car....but the spirit prompted me to open my mouth and I did without thinking! We had asked him where a good place was to eat! He was more than happy to help! I then spoke some chinese and he was shocked! He was amazed! We asked to get his number and that was that! We texted him a couple times and he would respond! We finally got a lesson a couple weeks later and we started to teach him! He was completely atheist but happy to try and see if God was real. We explained about church and the sacrament! He came that first week! He had a very spiritual experience at church and felt the power of God! He then came to dinner at President Standley's house and shared his experience which Presidents daughter somehow recorded! Elder Mitchell and I continued to meet with him throughout the next 2-3 months and he progressed very well! We would just open up PMG in chinese and let him read and then he would look up and summarize what he had just read in his own words in english! He was so prepared and elect! He is from hengshui! The most infamous town in china because of the crazy high school! But this means that he is wicked smart. He will literally quote things I have said to him weeks before. He will remember if we have read a certain scripture before or not. He is literally the byproduct of the crazy chinese education system. And that brought challenges to his conversion later on. 

We had new members join his lessons and we invited him to be baptized 3 months after meeting him! He said he couldnt make that kind of promise. He said he only makes promises he knows he can keep and he doesn't make promises lightly. He also said he couldnt give up alcohol and couldnt get over some of the ideological differences but was still happy to keep meeting and learning. We did so but could never get past the roadblock of baptism. Meanwhile he continued to recognize Gods hand in his life and attributes Heavenly Father to helping him pass his test and save his scholarship at school. 

Then he went back to china for school holidays. Usually this is not good because the friends come back worse than before because they forget about everything we teach them.

But instead Adam came back better than when he left. He said he had prayed to Heavenly Father on the balcony of his little house in china and said that he felt so much peace and love from Heavenly Father. He said that is what he always remembers me telling him the first lesson and what stood out the most is that Heavenly Father loves us. He said he felt that love and strength. He said that he knew that Heavenly Father was real and that Jesus was the Christ! 

When he returned with a newfound testimony I was shocked. He then slowly started repenting and converting. He said he went to buy wine on his birthday to celebrate but in the store remembered that Heavenly Father doesn't want him to drink alcohol so he put it back and left the store without any wine. He then humbled himself and his mind was enlightened so he could accept some of the things that before he didnt want to accept. 

We had a lesson and asked him what he thought his next step was. He said baptism. But that there was a roadblock stopping him and it was something about what happened in his childhood in china. He wouldn't tell us. 

We had a lesson about how Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father would help him overcome this roadblock but that he needed to be baptized to officially start his journey with God and open the gate to all the blessings! 

A couple days later we get a random text telling us that he had made up his mind that he wanted to be baptized! The very next day we met with him and put him on date for in 2 weeks!

He was so prepared! After 8 months of nourishing his testimony and helping him progress he was ready to make that promise he said he probably would never do. He had gone from not believing in God to testifying to us how much he has felt Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's love for him!

2 weeks before his baptism he came to church and listened to general conference and listened to the talk on Repentance and that reaffirmed and confirmed to him how much Heavenly Father loved him and he didnt have to be perfect to be baptized! He was even more committed from then on to be baptized! That talk really touched his heart! He even sent the link of the talk in Chinese to his parents in china! He also sent pictures of all the easter displays to his parents in china! he is literally sharing the gospel with his parents in china! Truly crazy! 

The day of the baptism came quickly and he showed up in a suit, dress pants, and shoes! He looked so great! He said he wanted to be prepared for the most important day in his life so he had gotten all ready and had even gotten a new haircut to look good! He was literally soo excited! I have never seen anyone so excited for their baptism! He kept telling me how excited he was to start his journey with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and to finally open the gate and receive the Holy Ghost!

We had our new member Peter Bu baptize him! Him and Adam were two big chinese guys! They were wearing the 3xl and 5xl baptismal suits! Peter was a little anxious and nervous to baptize and I was a little nervous and anxious myself to have someone who had never baptized before baptize Adam. We practiced probably 10 times before to make sure they both knew what they needed to do and how to do it! 

It was a saturday night and so not as many members could make it but surprisingly many showed up, especially the new members and many friends! It was a spirit filled baptismal service! 

I was stressed until the baptism itself actually happened. And it was a miracle that it went so smoothly! Peter said everything right and got Adam under the water completely the first time! After Adam came up Peter said 谢谢 and Adam also said 谢谢 and then gave him a big hug! It was so wholesome! It was the most tender thing to watch. Everyone in the room couldn't help but smile and because we had so many friends sitting watching the baptism they started clapping because of how wonderful it was! I then was able to take a big big sigh of relief! The most stressful and prone to something going wrong thing was over!  

They changed and then Adam was able to receive the Holy Ghost. It was a wonderful blessing by Bishop! He talked about the sacrament and the power that comes from worshiping Christ through that ordinance! And I couldn't help but smile knowing that was the first spiritual experience Adam had was during the sacrament and now it was coming full circle in that blessing! Very special! Adam felt it and gave us a handshake and a bow after the blessing. So tender. It really meant so much to him! I felt the spirit so strongly!  

Then he was able to bear his testimony which probably was my favorite part of the whole thing! Remember that he is from hengshui so he had prepared what he was going to say. I thought he would read it but oh no he had the points he wanted to say memorized haha. It was very natural! I was so impressed! 

He talked about his conversion and gave myself, Elder Mitchell, and Elder Sun a shoutout for helping him and being guides on his path to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ his redeemer! He had read all of PMG, had been to church over 10 times, and had countless lessons so he knew all the church lingo! The ward mission leader was crying on the stand hearing the testimony and I couldnt help but have the biggest grin/smile on my face the whole time! It was incredible to see Adam share what he truly knows! He testified with so much joy and power! Everyone was so impressed! Everyone came up to him afterwards and thanked him and told him how incredible his testimony was! The Bishop was impressed! 

Afterwards, we were able to talk with all the friends that came! They were all impressed and two other of our friends now want to get baptized next month! 

Adam and Cloude were able to chat a lot after the baptism and they are best friends! Cloude had said the opening prayer! I had taught and baptized Cloude a year ago and now here he was helping Adam a year later be baptized!

Peter came up to me after the baptism. He has been a new member for a couple months now. He thanked me for giving him the opportunity to baptize Adam. He said "today you had someone join the church, and today you also got someone who will never leave the church". Peter explained that he felt something so special when he baptized Adam and he now will never leave the church! I now have a firm testimony of having the new members do the ordinances because they themselves will have spiritual experiences and become deeper in their faith! 

The new member Stanley, who had joined a lot of Adams lessons and was in the lesson where Adam had told us that he wouldnt get baptized because he couldn't make the promise and give up certain things, came up to me and said how did you persuade Adam to get baptized? He was genuinely shocked! He said 3 months ago he was no but now he got baptized! What changed! I told him that I didnt persuade him to be baptized. I had in fact done nothing. It was Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ that had changed his heart in china! Stanley was so impressed and happy! 

Lets just say that Adam being baptized was one of the happiest and joyous moments of my mission! Last month we had 2 friends baptized that we had only taught for just over a month! They had progressed rapidly! But Adam was someone who took more time! And now he is such a strong strong member! 

Adam himself has grown my faith that someone who has never heard or learned about God before can feel of Heavenly Fathers and Jesus Christ love! They can come to know that they truly live by doing the small and simple things! It isn't rocket science! It is truly a divinely appointed pattern that God has given us to come to know Him and if we are humble and diligently seek Him the promise is true that we shall find Him! 

Adam has changed! I have seen Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ change Him! He has truly converted to them! His testimony and faith are a lot stronger than some of the members and missionaries! His conversion is a testimony of the reality that God does live and loves His children yesterday, TODAY, and forever!