Missionary Moment

                                        (Mason is the Elder on the right in this picture)

Kris, Mason's mom, writes, "Mason has had the most amazing life changing experiences in Madison, Wisconsin! He truly is so happy and loves what he is doing. He has mentioned more than once that he loves serving God and loves being there and making a difference.

One experience that stands out: He met a member (John 35, 280 pounds and had children) that had been in a coma for 6 months and was working on quitting smoking and drinking. John had told Mason how his boss bullied him in various ways every day at work.

He did things like flipping him with a wet towel and making him bleed.  Mason said, “I was so angry I just wanted to kill that boss. But instead I decided to turn it over to the Lords hands. I prayed that night with all my might, mind and heart that John would be loved and respected at work and that, his boss would no longer be a burden to such a sweet man with such a big heart.  The next time we met with John he said his boss was really nice to him and he was really surprised, his boss even shook his hand which he had never done before! Prayers are answered and heavenly father does care about all of his children.”  Mason also added, “One of my greatest regrets are the times in school I bullied those around me. (Mom, I can see you as you read this, thinking to all the times you called me a bully haha)  Its really hit so hard there’s no excuse to ever bully someone. At that time in my life when I reverted to bullying someone or even tearing them down, (doesn't matter who it was) I was truly so miserable in my own skin and with who I was I had to take it out on others to make myself feel better. Never again.”

This is just one example of a personal life lesson Mase has learned.  I cried a lot in the beginning because I missed him but now my tears every Monday are tears of joy for a young man that has sacrificed so much, learned so much in such a short time, tears of joy for him choosing this path to serve God and know deep in his heart that what he is doing is making a difference in other people’s lives – I am beyond words of gratitude, blessings and just pure love for my son, family and friends that surround us and all the blessings that we have experienced.

One member, Cindy, called one night after Mason had left (they have been teaching members lessons) and let us know what a kind young man he is and the awesome lessons he was teaching. She had so many nice things to say about him. She said her son was serving a mission in Idaho and a member had called her so she wanted to pass it on.. I am so grateful she called me (although at first my heart did skip a beat because I wasn’t sure why she was calling and thought it was bad news)."