by Sister Biasi and Sister Avei
Alex is a 18 year senior in high school from Signal Mountain, Tennessee. He grew up in a home that didn’t practice any religion. His mom and dad are both Atheist, he was raised Atheist. He always thought there was more but he didn’t know where to find it. He started dating his girlfriend Leah who is a member and grew up in the church.
Alex started going to activities and meeting more members in the ward. He started to build relationships with more and more people and was entering more members’ homes. Alex said there is a certain light about the members of the church and it is what drew him in. He said there was a distinct difference of the feeling in those members’ homes than there was in his own. He loved being in their houses because he could feel the Spirit there. He loved that the church was centered around family units.
.
He started going to early morning seminary, he attended all the youth activities, and he even started coming to Sacrament meeting. On Sunday February 25th, 2024, Sister Biasi and Sister Foster asked Alex if they could start teaching him. He said yes and they had their first lesson with him the next day. On Saturday March 2nd, Sister Biasi and Sister Avei had their second lesson with him and asked if he wanted to be baptized. He had no hesitation and said yes I’d love to.
That night he said he had one of the most spiritual experiences of his life. He just prayed for a straight hour expressing gratitude to his Heavenly Father. He felt impressed to reach out to all the people who helped him gain a testimony and thanked them.
Alex was baptized on Saturday March 23rd 2024. He was baptized by one of his friends in the ward. His friends sang and spoke at his baptism as well. There were 72 people at his baptism. When Alex entered the font he had tears streaming down his face. He requested to be held under the water for a moment longer. When he came out of the water he hugged his friend who baptized him and had his hand over his heart. Tears filled his eyes and he thanked everyone for being there for him. We got to be the two witnesses for his baptism. It was definitely the coolest experience for the both of us and for the ward in Signal Mountain.
.
Something so special about our experience with Alex is that we were able to share most of his big events with him. We had the opportunity to see him be baptized and confirmed, we got to see him receive the Aaronic Priesthood, we got to attend the temple with him, where Sister Biasi was baptized by him, and we got to see him bless the Sacrament.
Alex told us another amazing spiritual experience he has had was with his friend Maggie. She came to a lesson of his and was able to share his experiences after being baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She mentioned that she could see the change in him. She could see the light in each of us there and that is what drew her in. Alex said there was nothing quite like that experience being on the opposite end of things.
.
Since being baptized and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, Alex has said that the difference between having the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost and not having it is very heavy. He said that all of his prayers have been answered and it is something that he is eternally grateful for.
He loves being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and he wants everyone he knows to experience the blessings he has received from it. He is already a missionary and trying to help others receive those blessings as well.
Alex has mentioned to us his plans to serve a mission and eventually be married in the temple. We are so grateful for Alex and the example he is to us. He is a great addition to Jesus Christ’s church and he is going to bless the lives of so many individuals. We can’t wait to see him change so many people’s lives.
Sister Biasi & Sister Avei
Barlows in TKM 