Week 8: Finally accepted the invitation to be baptised after 18 years!

Hey, all!
This week was amazing! sorry, i sent those emails earlier just with the pictures.
We had 3 more baptisms this Sunday and we are really happy that the JUthuka family is complete in the gospel now. 
We were also able to have sister Laxmi baptized. She had been coming for 3 years.
We went to a temple here today, the Korukonda temple. We had to climb more than 500 steps tp get to the top. It was a fun and and a very sweaty experience. 

this past week something happened that we hadn't expected at all. So this family, the Seerapu family has been attending church for a long time(18 years). All his 3 sons have served their missions and are married to beautiful girls who also have served successful full-time missions but brother Seerapu is not yet baptized. We talked to him once and he said that he has many issues with his work and other things and he is fine like this. Many missionaries have tried to convince him but nothing has worked. We visited their house this week and talked a little about faith and repentance and it was a good lesson but he still made it clear that he was not getting baptized. Someone had told us that his wife was interested and was ready to be baptized, we went to meet her the next day again and taught about baptism and holy ghost. We were still there when he came from work and I guess his wife said something about baptism and he just started saying so many things in Telugu and it was loud enough for me to understand that he was not up for it. But we still waited for him to sit with us and they all started talking in Telugu. 
I heard my companion sharing about how Christ was also baptized and stuff but had no idea what was going on. All I could do was pray for my heart to soften his heart and asked God to help brother Seerapu understand why so many people had been trying so hard. My companion and I also had kept a fast that day for their family.
After we left their house my companion quietly told me that HE SAID HE WILL BE BAPTIZED NEXT WEEK. I was speechless!!! 
we waited to show our excitement till we left their building and gave each other a BIIIGGG HUGG once we were out.
We were so happy and it is still unbelievable but yeah, there was another problem. They won't be here next weekend most probably so we are trying to work on the date for them. but at least he thinks he is ready now. Which is a big deal so we are really very happy!!! 
we don't know how long we'll be here in Rajahmundry but I wanna stay :P 

I am doing great! and am loving serving the lord each day!
sister Swarna and I teach English classes here too and its wonderful to see how people are open to learning here. 
Sister and Elder Newton invited us for lunch last Sunday so that one picture was with them :P

I think that is all this week. 
Take care! I love you all so much!! 
It is wonderful to receive all your emails and I love reading all of them. I am sorry if I can not reply sometimes but I do read them and appreciate all your efforts in writing those :))

love,
Sister Massey

ps- i understand a lot more Telugu now. Members get shocked when i understand what they said to my companion. 

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