28 November 2008I'm writing a little bit later today because P-day was today (and not Wednesday) and all of this thanksgiving rubbish has left us doing that for most of the day- it seemed so much more simple at home when all we did was a turkey.
We're now writing at 5:00, when P-day is almost over. My companion seemed more excited about that than doing the work, which annoyed me to no end. Just so you know, I have told president about this and he has since conducted two interviews with my companion that have been in excess of two hours long. One last Tuesday, and one last Sunday (which lasted five hours, we got out at 6:30 that night).
Max's pictures regarding a *blank* are hilarious. I think the picture saying "I deserve a *blank*" might be blackmail, but love the fact that Jesus is smiling at him from "his Bubble". I also love the fact that he spelled "Deserve" as "Dsrv"- I guess we as Australians really do miss our vowels a lot.
Well, work's been going slowly this week. I've been trying harder to "pull my weight", and to get my companion to pull his. This means a little more bugging him to get up at least to do companionship study. I dunno, I'm sensing a severe lack of spiritual power this transfer. There is no matter of just a talented missionary in this work. The Lord does the work while to tools just keep sharp. When a tool is blunt, a worker is less likely to use it.- this is the situation I find myself in. I'm not going to say that it's all my companions fault either- a lot of it is me feeling like there's little chance working with him, and that creates a state of spiritual apathy- one of the curses of missionary work. He's a good guy, as a person I like him a lot, I just find him trying as a companion.
Well, sorry for the gloomy letter this week, I'm not hating my mission, I guess things just aren't going the way I want them to this week.
4 December 2008For the record, I DO remember us having a turkey on some time other than Christmas. I just figured that would be thanksgiving.
I don't think my companion ever liked me as much as other companions have. That might be because I don't agree with him sleeping in or being negative about finding. I find both of those to be a little irritating. I knew him back in Vilnius, and he we had very... separate views. I dunno, he's a great guy. I just don't know what us being together was meant to accomplish.
The talks by Elder Bednar were great, though. A lot of really good insight into prayer and the attitude we need to have while praying. I'm going to give them another read today, I think. They were good for me to read, made me think about how I'm praying now. I think sometimes, we expect that because the Lord answers prayers, and because he knows what we need even before we ask, we can be as vague as we like when we pray.
That's now the way that I have come to understand it. I have found that when praying it has not been enough to simply ask "Help us to find someone to teach." I have found, rather that it is important to ask for help in the processes of that. For example, ask Heavenly Father to speak to their hearts, for us to have His spirit to be with us, etc. I think it works the same way for all walks of life as well.
As for how I'm feeling, there is no need to worry there. I've found that, disappointment, irritation and even sorrow happen on a mission. If it didn't, then salvation would be a cheap and whimsical thing. It isn't that way, it will never be that way and it never was that way- not when Christ bled in Gethsemane. I made a commitment to follow Christ. That means taking the occasional step to Calvary, the infrequent second-or-two in Gethsemane. But all of this is destined to end in nothing but joy.
I am still loving my mission and I still feel like this is what I am meant to be doing. I know my Heavenly Father is pleased. Can I ask for more?
It's great to hear about Sarah Anderson. Particularly since she was giving Kelly a hard time about her being baptised. Congratulate her for me. It sounds like my homeward is starting to grow a lot more rapidly. How are the other two going? The ones that were afraid of water?
Also congratulate Peet. That kid is such an achiever! It's putting Alec and I to shame. Work here has been going slowly. We have a couple of meetings set up today from tracting on Sunday. A couple of people who had parties going, but they were happy to set up a meeting for today. I went on splits with my district leader last Saturday. That was really good. We contacted a lesson off the street, sat down in the Church and had an... interesting lesson.... I won't go too far into details.
Well, that's all form me. Say "Happy Birthday" to Granny for me.
11 December 2008Well, transfer calls came on Tuesday night. I am still in Riga serving with a new companion. His name is Elder Winegar. He's only just finished with his trainer- which seems to be a norm for me (I get all the people that the zone leaders train first, apparently). I like him a lot, I think we'll get some good work done.
Elder Markle is going to Kliepeda in Lithuania- A mostly-Lithuanian city that has a couple of Russian-speaking members. I think it'll do Elder Markle fine. He likes working with members- evidenced by what happened last transfer. I think, if anything, Serving with Elder Markle has encouraged me to enter activities like contacting and tracting with more confidence than I ever had, just because I've been feeling like I've had too. Elder Markle was never too optimistic about harvesting. Strange thing, though, is that after this transfer he's going home. President called him into a meeting essentially to tell him that. I'm not sure why it is. But I think it might just be that President no longer knows what to do with him. It's kinda sad, but I think it might actually be better for Elder Markle. He never really liked the way that the mission is run, and maybe never really liked proselyting that much.
As for calling, the best time would be just like last Christmas. My number is (371) 2201 5452. I can't wait to hear from you guys. The office told me they have a package for me. I'm excited to check it out. Will get the size for my pants. I think two pairs would be nice. Can't get it right now, though. We're a good 40-60 minutes from my flat as it is (I'm working on using Australian terminology again, I think the Americans are trying to make me into one of them).
The blog stuff is hilarious. I love to death the story about the grasshoppers. I somehow do not find it hard to believe that max would eat three. If correct, though, I believe that they are entirely against Mosaic law.
Well, throughout the last couple of days we've been Christmas carolling with great results. Last night, while doing so, I met this great guy named Edgars. He's a baptist who found faith after he had a rough stage in his life and even tried to kill himself, so is now a pretty humble guy. I know that might not make a lot of sense, but I've met plenty of people who have had such experiences and come out with a firm faith in Christ.
It was interesting to hear about Dad's mission. I never knew that he only baptised one person. Put's a lot in perspective for me. I guess one of the scariest things for me was the concept of coming home and trying to encourage missions for Peet, Max and someday my own children, and not being able to back that up with millions of wonderful success stories of having converted so many people. This really is the Lord's work. If I could put it all into adequate words the joys of it, the growth, the pure satisfaction of being a missionary, I would consider myself eloquent. But, for lack of a better word, I'm just going to have to say that all of these things are full. I love you all,
18 December 2008You asked if I know what transfer I'll be coming home on. I can't give an exact answer, but according to the calendar on my phone (some missionary put down all the transfer dates on it before I came here) it should be somewhere in the last week of May. But I haven't been called about a returning date just yet, so really, it's all up in the air. Elder Markle thought he was going home in March, which didn't end up happening.
Well, I could tell you about the lesson we had with the guy I found carolling this week, but really, it's all about Monday this week. We had been contacting all day with the intention of finding someone we could take into the church and teach. All we got for hours was cold and irritated.
Then, at 4:00 that day, we met Aleksei. We had a quick lesson with him in which we spoke with him about praying to know if God exists (He was not a believer). Then we had a lesson with a member- Hadezhda. We were speaking with her about missionary work and told her about our experience that day. Her grandson, 17 yr old Anton came in and she said to us "Tell him what you told that Aleksei kid". We then had a great restoration lesson with him. It was so great that one miracle became the basis for another one.
So yes, this week with Elder Winegar has been good thus far. I've had to ask him a couple of times how his name is spelt, but that's been the only major problem. We've been pushing each other and seeing good things happen. Turns out in our district is a college football player- Elder Matee. He's a giant of a man who was trained by Elder Berryhill. Elder Berryhill was also a HUGE missionary, so the two of them must have looked pretty daunting on the street together.
We have a VERY different schedule for Christmas this year. No staying-in-doors for this year. I think that is likely to make a few missionaries more than a little irritated. I think I can even name a few- but I won't. This year we're are still proselyting in essence. But we've been asked to find inventive ways to do it- ie. not so much contacting and DEFINITELY no tracting.
We've been doing a lot of carolling on the streets in the last couple of weeks. It's been going well, a lot of people have stood by to watch.
Gee, Max. You and your darwinist theories. Oh well, he'll figure out the truth soon enough. I wonder if he really knows what that phrase means.
Okay, here's a proof of how much Russian is messing with my English. I almost wrote "means" as "meens". In Russian, almost everything is spelt phonetically. Well, that's all from me this week. I love you all. Look forward to hearing from you in ten days time.
24 December 2008Last week was simply amazing. We found someone new almost every day. This one hasn't been going as well. But that happens. Mission experiences are either faith-building or faith-trying. But neither of them are ever really negative. We've been carolling a lot this week, on a stage in old town, no less. A lot of people have been watching which has led to so many opportunities to talk to people. Sadly, last time they were almost all tourists from Moscow and Holland- even a Scottish guy. Well, like I said, don't want to go into too much detail this time, I'll be stuck for words tomorrow, otherwise. But I love you all.
1 January 2009Wow, what a week. P-day today has had a different schedule. We began proselyting at 10:00, and officially, P-day has only just begun. But it was a great morning. We had been stood up on one meeting, the other called in sick. So we were left contacting. But while contacting, we found Yuri, an older man who had time to talk, so we took him into the church. We had a good meeting with him.
But right after, the guy who called in sick showed up. Turned out he was feeling a little better and wanted to come. Great lesson with him.
As for my accent, I think they are right to a degree. I talk differently with Americans than I do with Australians. So I think that's starting to rub off.
Christmas day was amazing. Speaking to you was a real treat. We then went carolling to less-active members, followed by more carolling in old town. Due to a lack of information on our part, however, after that we were left with nothing to do. But we did have one bag full of goodies that had been intended for members that we never got to. So we decided to go and give it to a guy that we had tracted into- Andre. He let us in, telling us "I kept on thinking about you guys and how I need to visit your church this week. I think maybe Christ sent you here." I didn't want to sound boastful, but told him that I thought we might be. Since then we've just had great experiences with him. He is SO humble, it's amazing.
Though, honestly, with all the great things that have been happening this week, I think Satan's been working just as hard to counter it. We've ran into so many people this week who have been just plain angry at us. Such is the work of one who is destined to lose.
Well, that's all this week. We need to buy groceries still, write to President, travel an hour home and be back in our apartment by 5 pm (It's just about 2:00 right now, yikes)
8 January 2009Well, Andre (the investigator we found a while back) is still going strong. He's come to church twice so far. Last week he told us he couldn't even come to sacrament meeting because of work, yet there he was- in a suit and tie, no less.
Jesse just sounds like she's having a ball in Athens (I was going to write "having a riot", but that might have been a little tactless). Sisters in this mission get pretty similar treatment from drunk men- marriage proposals, creepy men stroking their hair, I think Europeans are just like that. I think the reason that the missionaries just looked at her weird is that they don't let American missionaries into Greece. That's what I've heard, anyway.
This last week has been deathly cold- -11 degrees. I told Andre that at home, temperatures don't get below +10 degrees and he just laughed. It's been very uncomfortable, but in the last couple of days it's warmed up a bit, resulting in massive snowfall (did you know that it actually gets TOO COLD TO SNOW here? uncanny). As such, the streets and parks are just beautiful- covered in fresh-fallen snow.
You're right, the YSA convention news I find very cool. It sounds like a lot of fun.
New years was hectic. We were locked down in our apartment at 5:00 that evening and were woken up at 12:00 by the whole city exploding with fireworks. There was even some young punk in our stairwell letting off some.
I cannot omit zone conference this week. It was amazing. Halfway through, we leave the chapel and pile onto a bus, which takes us to jurmala beach- the very spot where Elder James E. Faust dedicated the land of Latvia for missionary service. We read his dedicatory prayer, which gave some interesting insights. Namely that the first missionaries to serve there would see temples and stakes in Latvia during their lifetime. It was an amazing experience.
Well, that's all from me now. I gotta write to Jesse, Peet and then President (I've been getting emails all over the place today).
