Week 1

August 17, 2010

I dont have a cute title for the first letter this week... Because what happened was so serrious and I dont want to joke too much about it. To be blunt, our house was haunted and we did battle with an evil spirit or something. There was something in there that did not want us there. Ok, I'll start from the begining. My companion, Elder Cromwell, told me this after, but he said he was getting weird feelings in our house. And I definitely agreed. The two bedrooms and the bathroom on the oposite side of us were very creepy looking, but I didnt think very much of it. We have this light that you have to plug in to turn it on, and unplug for off. Well my companion unplugged it before he went to sleep, and he woke up in the middle of the night and the light was on and plugged in. He asked me in the morning and I didnt do it. So he was a little creeped out by it, I again didnt think much of it. He was making his nightly district calls, because he's district leader, and telling some people about it. They told us some stories about how people thought weird things about our house, like when they drove arround the corner at night they saw a face in the window. Once the missionaires saw a person inside, and waited for help, but the person was gone, presumably out the back door. Well while he's getting people's stats and stuff, his back is to the creepy rooms at the other end, and he starts gettin weird feelings and chills up his back. He called me into the same room and turned the board arround. Imediately I started feeling weird too. And got some chills. Then he told me what people were telling him and that there was defintely something at the other end. It got stronger. We could literally feel it getting stronger and its presence growing in the side of the house we were on. We started feeling sad and stuff. Like... a dementor. He said it was the adversary trying to get us to go home, and it was almost working. Thoughts were poping into my head and I was scared. We called the Zone Leaders and they told us to dedicate the house. We looked up how in our white handbooks and went into the bedroom, which was the safest feeling place at the time. We dedicated the house with the Melchezidic Preisthood and in the name of Jesus Christ. When we were done we felt good for like 10 seconds, but my faith faltered for one second and then the feelings were back, but stronger, and in the bedroom. We both decided we needed to leave because we werent exactly sure how to cast it out. We called the mission president and asked if we could stay where the other two Elder's were on the other side of Saint Johns. He said it was ok, and so we booked it out, grabbing only our backpacks with our scriptures and stuff, some shorts to sleep in, and I grabbed a golf club that we had... for saftey. hahaha. We went outside and my companion told me not to look at those two windows at the haunted end. We peeled out of our gravel driveway, backwards, and drove fast down the street. Its like 11 o' clock, a half hour past our lights out time, and a Police Officer in an SUV see's the missionaries car going fast down the street. (Its a small town... really small) We stopped at a stop sign and to call Elder Gunter, and the cop pulled up next to us, smiling, thinking he caught the elders doing something bad. I told him what was going at our house and his face imediately changed. He said ok, asked if we needed directions or anything, and went to drive by the house. We met the other elders and they took us back to their house. We slelpt on the floor but I couldnt sleep. I kept thinking about how my faith faltered for one second, and that gave it power. I knew that by faith we could do anything and I kept thinking about how I made the blessing break. Because I was scared. I realized these thoughts was exactly what the evil spirit was trying to ut in my mind. So I asked Elder Gunter for a blessing. He gave one of the best blessings I've ever heard. And the only thing I really remember from it was the phrase, "Where there is faith, there is no fear." I imediately felt better, and fell asleep on the floor.

I know this church is true, and I know that I'm doing God's work out here. If not, why was this spirit after us? We are representatives Jesus Christ, and Satan wants us to go home. In my opinion, especially me, because I have a promise from God that while I'm on my mission, I will receive much joy as I see many enter the waters of Baptism. Also, how could this church not be true? Elder Gunter's words were not from him, they were directly guided by the spirit. From that moment on I've not had fear. Only faith.

We went back. The next night we told our Ward Mission Leader, Chad, who's been a great help to us in this whole area so far. I told him what happened and he asked some questions. He said we had to go back there. We were waiting until Saturday when the housing cordinators were coming up from Tempe, but he made us go there that night. We walked us and me and my comp started getting chills. We went inside, and Chad started trying to talk to it. He said he felt it too. It wasnt as intense at the night before for any of us. I dont know what was different. But I was not scared of it anymore. It was all over my companion. He could feel it really strong, stronger that me and Chad. Chad asked if we were okay with it, or if we wanted to cast it out. I asked him how to cast it out and he told me. My comp said he felt like it was still agressive towards him, and wanted it out. I stopped them really fast. I talked to the spirit for a little bit, explaining who we were and telling it to please find Christ, and the gospel. That made it really mad. We all raised our arm to the square and Chad started talking (Honestly, I wanted to cast it out hahaha) He said "By the power of the holy Melchezidic Priesthood..." and I felt it get mad. "And in the name of Jesus Christ..." It was furious, but all of a sudden it was gone. And we felt peace in our home.

Chad told us on sunday that he felt it follow him home, and was pretty pissed at him. So he cast it out again when he got to his house. So now there's a pissed lone evil spirit wandering arround Saint John, Arizona.

I hope everyone who hears this story, is not made afraid by it. But it helps your testimony grow. And never forget that "where there is faith, there is no fear." because I never will.