January 30, 2012...Dear Family,
I'm happy to say that last week started really well. I'm sad to say that it wasn't sustained very well. We had a lot of good things happening early on in the week. We had some great lessons and even had a date for this Tuesday at one point. Elder Mecham and I were able to see a lot of little miracles and great things happened. I think one of the things that hurt us this week is we rode bikes for a few days. We had to bike to save miles due to the trade-offs we've been on. It definitely is different planning for a day on bikes compared to planning for a day with the car. I did really enjoy riding my bike.
The weather has been beautiful lately. It gets in the mid 70's and at night it get relatively cool. Having this kind of weather makes riding bike in a suit much better.
Paul is still doing really well. He continues to progress and has a lot of great questions. On Tuesday night we tried to set a specific baptismal date with him, but he wouldn't. However, he said his goal is to "make it happen." Basically, he plans on being baptized, but doesn't feel ready to set a date. He was able to make it to the adult session of stake conference this weekend. Which means Elder Mecham and I were able to go. It was the first time I have ever gone to the adult session. I really enjoyed it, and Paul said he had some questions to ask regarding stake conference. I'm excited to hear what they are.
Zay is having a hard time. We had a really great lesson with him on Tuesday and even set a baptismal date for this Tuesday. Later in the week we called to set up an appointment and he said he isn't ready to be baptized. We haven't been able to see him since. We've talked to the members that he is close with and they said he's pretty confused about what to do with himself. I pray that we will be able to see him again soon. I feel like we could have done a better job teaching to his needs.
Last night we went to a wedding at the church. A recent convert named Anastasiya married her boyfriend Mason. It was great! Mason is a convert of a few years from Georgia. This was the second wedding I've been to in St. Augustine. Maybe there will be more in the future.
Yesterday we had stake conference. It was a regional broadcast. It was good. Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke. He talked about howevery member needs to be a missionary and share the gospel with those around them. Elder Walter F. Gonzalez and Bishop Richard C. Edgley spoke as well. They were all really wonderful. My favorite was Bishop Edgley's talk though. He was really fired up! He talked about sin as part of his talk. He basically said that regardless of what the world thinks is okay and not okay, sin is sin.It doesn't matter if the world thinks something is appropriate. If God says it isn't, then it isn't. Case closed. There is no debating or justification. It was very powerful. There are some people we're working with that I wish could have been there. They needed to hear that talk.
We got transfer calls on Saturday night. Elder Mecham is being transferred and I am staying. I will still be a zone leader for the Jax South Zone. It's incredible how fast this transfer went...actually how fast the last nearly three months went. I'm afraid that the next three months may go even faster.
Transfer meetings this Wednesday will be strange. There are five missionaries going home and I have been really close with four of them. Two of them are former companions, Elder Failner and Elder Jacobs, and the other two I have served around for a long time. They're all really great missionaries too! One of them is Elder Todd. He's from West Jordan too. I think he lives by Uncle Mark and Aunt Angie. Pretty close to home...hint hint Emma ;)
My studies are continuing to go well. One thing I truly love about the gospel is how so many things are cyclical. It's just a matter of getting on that cycle and making sure we stay on. I have a testimony that it is the small and simple things which help us stay on track. As I establish a pattern and have more order, good things happen which lead to other good things.
No comments:
Post a Comment