Wow! 6 emails already... have I really been out 6 weeks already? Doesn't
seem like it, time is flying by so fast!!!
Well, last week I told you all we are down to 1 baptismal date. well....
after I sent that email we were down to none. Dhruba is great, he didn't
suddenly change and not want to meet with us, he got a new job and moved
to Stansted in London on tuesday. Me and Elder Martin were devastated!! Don't
get me wrong, we are so happy for him that he got a new job, but we didn't
expect him to have to move so soon. And although we will not be the ones to
baptize him, we have referred him onto the missionaries there, and he have done
our part in helping him to the waters of baptism so we cannot complain.
This week has been interesting though, because us and our ward mission
leader want to try and focus our efforts on working with the members, we do not
seem to be finding many people to teach through our own efforts. I don't know if
that is Heavenly Father trying to help us concentrate on working with the
members or what, but we feel like our days aren't really effective. But
hopefully we will get to know the members better and help them find their close
friends or family that are ready to hear the gospel.
On friday, me and Elder Martin had an interesting experience. We had just
got on the bus heading back to the flat for lunch, and one woman on the bus we
walked past as we were getting on the bus said "aw! I hate when these guys get
on the bus!" referring to me and Elder Martin. That really got to me, and I
don't know why. I just felt like we did nothing wrong and didn't deserve that,
and that all we were doing is trying to share a message to make people happy, by
letting them know we have a loving Heavenly Father and that he has a plan for
each and everyone of us, and I just had the feeling that, not only did the world
not know about this, but they didn't want to know and didn't care. So I felt me
being here on a mission was going to come to nothing. But then the next morning
in personal study, I was reading randomly in the Book of Mormon and came across
the story of Alma and Amulek when they were trying to teach the people of the
city of Ammonihah. I read what they had to go through, they had to watch the
righteous be burned, and they were imprisoned and stripped of their clothes and
mocked and beaten, and they endured all of that for days and days, and it just
told me how stupid I was being for getting so down over one silly comment one
person had made. So that really helped. And from that, I know that the Book of
Mormon has an answer to anything, any problems life throws at us, we can use the
Book of Mormon to help us through it.
Also on friday, we had an impression to go and visit someone. The lady we
wanted to visit, we actually found on the first street me and Elder Martin
knocked together in Downend. We were meant to actually see her on wednesday, but
have been so busy we didn't get a chance to, but we went to see her. She was in,
and she was happy for us to meet with her again, except friday was not a good
time. She asked us to come back not this wednesday, but next wednesday, this is
because it is half term (good enough reason I guess) and she has to look after
her 8 kids (yeah! that's what I thought!). We are really excited to teach her
though, as quite a few of her kids are possibly baptismal age, so fingers
crossed she will still be interested.
We also have 2 potential investigators we have spent all week trying to
catch them in and see them, but all the times we went to see them they either
weren't in or were just ignoring us. But we will keep trying. Actually,
yesterday we caught one of them in. First though, I will just say that the
heatwave has officially ended, as it was bucketing it down yesterday evening. It
of course didn't start raining until me and Elder Martin left our dinner
appointment, so we got soaked. We spent about 3 hours or so in the rain trying
to visit people in the nearby area. But all our walking in the rain and getting
soaked was made worth it but that one of those two that we caught in yesterday.
His name is Andre, and we knocked on his door last night, and he was in! He was
busy so couldn't talk to us then, but he was happy for us to come back and
teaching him more about the Book of Mormon (the elders before I got here and
given him one to read) so hopefully we can teach him more and he will be willing
to listen.
Oh yeah! forgot to mention, saturday was helping hands!! we did some
painting for a local youth centre which was pretty good, the owners were really
thankful. After that me and Elder Martin stayed for the ward BBQ, and us and the
ward mission leader were made judges of a cake competition which
the Relief Society had planned. Now as missionarires, our first thoughts were
"err... is this gonna effect our D.A's?" but we were happy to do it haha! and
then at the BBQ I had one of the little primary girls become very attatched to
me... literally. Now as a missionary, in our little white handbook, it says to
avoid like holding children etc for like legal reasons, so when a little girl
has clamped herself to your leg, as a missionary you have absolutely no idea
what to do! so that was err... interesting haha! But it was great to do service
and to get to know the ward members more. Hope your various helping hands
activities went well (I presume you all had one).
So yeah, that has been my week. Hope all is going well for all of you back
home. I hear my Becky is doing amazing on the Primary Presidency, I am so proud
of her ^.^
Oh yeah, to those of you who have birthdays, but especially Dan, Happy
Birthday for today!! and Becky, Happy Birthday for tomorrow!! hope you both have
a great day!! and any one else whos birthday it is, happy birthday!!
By the way, I doubt it is like this is Scotland, but Bristol is covered in
Union Flags for the Diamond Jubilee. And on sunday we sang God save the Queen.
It is weird seeing and singing that, I must be too used to you Scots! :P
Everywhere is getting covered in England flags too for Europe, I have seen who
is in England's group, France, Sweden and Ukraine, should be interesting... It
isn't the worst group though (group B; Netherlands, Germany, Portugal and
someone else, can't remember, and Ireland's group with Spain and Italy) I know I
shouldn't be thinking about football but I like to know whats going on, its a
good conversation starter. There are also a few rainbow flags in the centre of
town which I think is gay pride but thats another story... pretty weird but
never mind.
Anyway, hope you are all doing well.
Love to you all
Elder Mitchell
ps. I still haven't got my greenie package.... I think it is at least at
the Mission home, but I have no idea how they are gonna get it from there to
here... hope there was nothing important in it...
Any one else detect a change?
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