Well it is another week but not another dollar.. we prefer souls. Missionary work is amazing. We are given so many little gifts to help people. Little promptings. Just part of the plan. Like today, Sister Millward and I were out getting frozen yogurt and enjoying a beautiful New Jersey day on a street that would remind you of a the most busy street in a small town. We were just sitting there talking and a man walked buy holding maybe four or five grocery bags in each arm and before I realized what I was saying, I said to him, " Hey do you need help carrying your groceries? We have time and would love to help!" He resembled someone a little like popeye but just look so tattered. Just so exhausted. He was shocked at first and said he was a little flattered and had a short conversation with us and left with a nice smile. Just a harmless offer but he rejected kindly. Anyways we went throughout the day and ended up doing a couple things out of our normal P-day order and ended up at the library. We sat down at the computers and Sister Millward leaned over to me and said, "Look who it is" Right next to us.. Popeye. We said hi to him and started talking. He almost immediately said that he wanted to give us his address. We said that we don't believe that it is chance that we ran into him twice and he was astonished at it. He knew. He wanted our message. He said he called the helpline a couple days ago and asked the lady to pray for him to help him and he said that this is not by chance. We got to talk to him for quite a while.. sometihng that I've started to do differently that I haven't done ever in my life is that when people start talking and confessing their lives and problems (Everybody thinks that because we are missionaries that we need to hear ALL of them..) that every time one is said, I can think of a part of the gospel or a lesson to teach that applies.. This missionary mind of mind! It's very fun tough sometimes. Kind of like a little game. Which answer would be best for that problem?
I think that something I have learned about this week is to be in the here and now. As humans we always put off our happiness for the future. For a more convenient time to be happy. A more convenient time to spend the energy that we don't have to worry about making things right. But that's so backwards. There is never going to be a time in our lives where every single little thing is perfect and right where and how you want it. So, being happy and making the most of here and now is what i've been focussing on. Especially when the first councilor of the branch presidency asks me when we got to church yesterday if I wouldn't mind giving a ten minute talk on D&C 133:3.. and then told me when sacrament meeting was starting that he was only kidding. He'll just have me speak next week.. ha ha here and now!
I love the things that people say to us. Like the old man that just came and gave me and my comp a piece of candy and said to keep smiling and doing good work because its hard to be away from home and then asked us what state it is that the J.A.'s are from. Oh sir, we are not Jahovas witnesses. We're mormons. Or the lady in the grocery store whose response to our introduction was, " That's like one step below Amish, Right?" Well close.. other than the president of our church uses an I-pad..
But the work is going good! I love being a missionary! We had a lot of meetings this week and one of the things that I really took from them was how to be bold and loving. BOLD AND LOVING! So this week we have been working on trying to find the medium between there. It's easy to be bold and easy to be loving but that medium.. that's where we aim for! One of our members had a brother come into town for a month and a half and.. we have him on date! For the 30th! His name is Gemayorlay.. (hem-eye-or-lie-) So we have been working really hard on him, Frank, and Steven. There are also two other families, Julio's kids, and Mariana's grandkids that we are really trying to work on becuase Julio and Mariana are less active but want their family baptized.. so we'll be working double time on them! We just want them to realize how important the gospel is. We aren't doing this for ourselves. We are here to make them realize that the only reazon that they are here on the earth is to return and live with their Faither in heaven and we know exactly how to get there. In the that beautiful blue book. Like our little road map!
Nina is now a proud holder of a temple recommend and she is planning on going to the temple with the whole branch on their temple day this saturday. We are really hoping that we can get her membership record and that name before then so we can go with them! Even if we can't.. we couldn't be more happy for her! She is incredible and has officially set the standard to how every convert should be. And it all started with the members. It was all them and now she is apart of their family.
Well I love you all and hope that you have a great week. Onward and upward!
Hermana Schwendiman!
No comments:
Post a Comment