& we find out what we're made of when we are called to help our friends in need. ♫

Today's favourite song is Count on Me by Bruno Mars... so sweet. :)

Semester Two started this Monday... it's been so hard to get back into the routine. I'm really enjoying my classes so far, though: Sociology, Psychology, Italian and Ancient History (Rome). Also, I had a really good experience on the bus home yesterday...

At Institute on Wednesday night (a scripture study/church class), we talked a bit about how when people sit next to us on the bus or the train, we usually look down, turn our music up or pull out a book and hope they won't try to talk to us. Then, we talked about how everyone around us is a child of God, and Heavenly Father wants every single one of us to come unto Him. And who is going to help find all His lost sheep? We all have the responsibility to reach out to others.

Anyways, with this in mind, I was sitting on the bus, listening to music on my phone when a man came and sat next to me. I looked up and smiled at him as I moved my bag over, then continued listening to my music. All of a sudden, I thought, 'I should read my scriptures instead.' So I put my phone away, pulled out a mini copy of the book of Mormon (which I had borrowed from my little sister a few days prior), opened to Mormon 8 where I was up to and began to read. I could feel his gaze on me a few times, and I wasn't sure if I was supposed to say something, but I decided to just wait. I stumbled across a verse of particular interest to me, and got out a little notebook I have to write down impressions, notes, etc. As I wrote down my thoughts, I angled my scriptures so he could see the front cover. I still wasn't sure what was supposed to happen but then he spoke. He asked me if I was a Mormon, and if we believed in Jesus Christ. With a prayer in my heart that I wouldn't mess everything up, I showed him the subtitle of the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. He was surprised but interested, because a lot of other churches say that we aren't Christian. To me, this a little ignorant, as the church is called The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and we believe completely in Jesus Christ and His Atonement.

Our conversation following was rather nice, reflecting on Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's relationship with us, and an explanation of the Book of Mormon and Bible's complementary nature. When I reached my stop, I left the man with the scriptures and a pass-along card with the missionaries' number on it, and invited him to read it then call them if he had any questions or wanted to know more. And that was that. I love it how Heavenly Father puts people in our path to uplift and share the gospel with, and I'm so glad I listened to the promptings, because sometimes it's easier to ignore them or drown them out.

Anyways, I was just really grateful for that experience, it made my whole week. Hopefully that man's, too. :)

I love the gospel, it blesses my life so much. I don't know where I would be without a knowledge of who I am, where I come from and where I'm going. And as that EFY song says, "How can I keep this gift to myself, when I can lift somebody else?"

♥ Sariah