Missionary moments: A life changed
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One day early in September, I had a great experience while serving as a
missionary at the Joseph Smith Memorial Visitors Center in Vermont. On a
Wednesday afternoon, I saw a middle-aged man approach the visitors center.
He had long hair, a beard, a soiled white T-shirt, tattoos on both arms,
wrinkled pants and shoes in bad shape.
He came with a member of the Church and said, "I want to learn about Joseph Smith." I took him to the birth site of the Prophet. I noticed a tear in his eyes and his body trembling. I stopped and asked if there was anything wrong. He told me that he was going to be baptized on Sept. 20. He told me that he had met the missionaries some time before, after searching for the truth for many years.
As we finished the tour, he told me he would be back on Sunday with the missionaries.
The next few days were busy, and I completely forgot about him, until Sunday evening when I recognized the missionaries coming with a group of investigators. I saw this middle-aged man following the group. He was wearing a clean, long-sleeved white shirt, his hair was combed neatly and his beard was trimmed. His pants were pressed and his shoes were shined. With a big smile on his face, he put out his hand and greeted me by name.
He was a completely different person from the one I had met on Wednesday.
A couple weeks later, he came back to the visitors center with a group of members. Later, as we concluded a tour and a short video, I called him to bear his testimony. He had been baptized the week before and confirmed a member of the Church. His testimony brought tears to those in attendance, and he explained how he had searched for the truth and how he felt now that he had found what he was looking for.
Yes, the Church does change lives. It not only showed in him but in the lives of those who had a part in sharing Heavenly Father's plan of happiness with him. — Elder Kenneth J. Braegger, New Hampshire Manchester Mission
Illustration by Alex Nabaum.
