Oh no. I forgot to write last week. We really have had some crazy weeks lately and time is zipping by. There really isn't a ton of new stuff to talk about.
I have been trying to help several people in the ward with family history stuff. I am discouraged a bit with it all and I am hoping that I don't share that with those I am helping and discourage them. Family Search is still a puzzle to me and I am learning - again - how to do things. It seems it changes weekly. I have a lady who has retired and was told in her patriarchal blessing years ago that she would do lots of genealogy work for her ancestors. She is now ready to start and excited to get working on it. Another lady is working on getting back to the temple. She has a few things to iron out and is hoping that she will get help from her ancestors if she gets the work ready for her to do it in the temple. I think that she is right. Another lady struggles in life and is waiting to go to the temple. I feel that it will help her to do baptisms for the dead and get involved in their work. She isn't as excited as the others and can't even remember her grandmother's name so that might just be a bust. I just know that family history work is a place where the veil is so thin and where help from the other side is often given. I am praying for knowledge in areas where I really don't have enough. Or at least a bit of good luck every now and then.
We have another couple leaving from the Mormon Battalion in a few weeks. It is just so sad to keep saying good bye to people we get so close to. We keep saying that we will stay friends forever but we all know the reality of that. We will see each other every now and but this experience of working so closely with them really is a very unique opportunity and blessing. We appreciate it for what it is and say good bye with heavy hearts. We also loose 6 very wonderful sister missionaries in three weeks. I guess what really hits home is that there is one other couple who came out on their mission the same time we did at the Battalion and everyone else has been here a shorter amount of time. We still feel so new.
We were able to usher at another play at the Old Globe Theatre with our tour guide friends Vera and Charles. We are inviting them to many things and they haven't yet accepted anything to church functions. They are wonderful people and we have been able to share many things about the church with them. We are finding that they are starting to ask the questions and we are able to teach them that way. The gospel would bless their lives and they would bless the church in so many ways. We have about 9 people on our list of those who we want to share with. Some are long shots and others seem more likely but we are always working to know who the Lord would have us teach. Sometimes those who we think are the least likely are the ones who are most prepared to hear what we have to hear.
I am enjoying the swimming pool more and more. The pool right next to our apartment has just started being heated. I used to have to walk to the building across the parking lot to swim and it was in the shade. Our pool is in the sun and is lovely! What fun it has been to exercise several times a week that way! We absolutely love this weather here. Roger still gets to the beach several times a week too. He has become an expert at looking up the different beaches in the area and finding out which one has the best waves. Oh the things we learn on our mission! He has sent a couple of texts off to people too! I am quite proud of him.
I have spent lots of time putting together an application for an award for the Mormon Battalion. The Conference of California Historical Societies gives an award each year and we are applying for it. It has been quite a project which again, I am not quite equal to with my computer skills. But I think it turned out good and represents what we do here. I am working on stuff for web sites and Facebook too.
Monday is the golf tournament that has consumed everyone's time and efforts for such a long time. We will work at the tournament from 7-2 and then get in the car to get to the Battalion by 3 until 9. Long day. It will actually be nice to have it all done and get back to normal for awhile. Flag day is coming up in May and that will be our next big push.
The Hastening the Work program of the church continues to be preached in every meeting here. Our ward council is totally concerning with investigators and inactive people. Of course our ward missionary council is all about missionary work and most every meeting is too. We had a wonderful Sacrament meeting this last Sunday with one of our missionaries speaking and a councilor in our Mission Presidency speaking. I wonder if the people here are getting tired of it all. I am hoping that they will catch the vision. We are working on keeping it simple and committing people to #1 Pray for missionary opportunities #2 Listen #3 Share and Invite. As we talk to people the biggest challenge seems to be #3. We use excuses as to why we shouldn't be bold and ask. Maybe it will offend him, maybe they will think that I am only being a friend to bring them to the gospel, maybe they will not like me anymore etc. We need to remember that God has asked us to do this and He will help us. If we pray for the opportunity and He gives it to us, He will help us. But we need to be brave. We need to base our success on our invitations not on the acceptance of our invitations. Have you prayed to have missionary opportunities, listened and invited?
No comments:
Post a Comment