It's December! I can't believe that it's already December! The second half of this year went by so much faster than I thought it would. It's weird to say that almost 6 months ago I was leaving to the MTC. Crazy!
This last week was different with Thanksgiving. The favorite food item down here is called dressing. It's similar to stuffing, but it's in a casserole form, and has pieces of chicken in it. Some also add a little bit of red and green peppers. It's pretty good, but it's no substitute for good mashed potatoes and gravy, which they don't really have on Thanksgiving down here. They do have sweet potato casserole, though, and I love that! I know I didn't growing up, but I love it now! And sweet potato pie is SUPER good. Better than pumpkin pie in my opinion...at least when it's cooked by our neighbor. :) So on Thanksgiving we had lunch with [one of our favorite investigators] (yes, he did all of the cooking and did it well!), and then dinner with an active member family in our ward, the Harris'. There's actually many Harris' in our ward that are all related, but they all gathered at one home and we joined them there. Elder Parker and Elder Durrant also came to the Harris'. It was good food and good company, but I'll be honest, it was weird to not be doing as much missionary work.
We had a really good time in Mendenhall on Tuesday. We've been going to that part of our area (about 35-40 minutes south of our apartment) once every week for the past 6 weeks now. This time was even more special because we got to have both Brother and Sister Cothern [local members] take us around. Usually it's just Sister Cothern since Brother Cothern works and then will have to stay home to take care of the kids, but the kids were at their mom's (previous marriage), and Brother Cothern was off work! It turned out to be a huge blessing because he made some connections with people we visited that the rest of us couldn't have, since we're all from Utah (including Sister Cothern, who married Brother Cothern almost 3 years ago). He was also able to give a blessing to a less active member who needed it. It was great to see so many lives touched that day in that area - 8 families/individuals.
[One of our great investigators] ended up having to work yesterday (Sunday) so he wasn't able to come to church or meet with us, but we have rescheduled for Friday. We aren't giving up on him. He's such a good kid and has so much potential. I can't wait until we can teach him some more! [Another husband and wife we've been teaching] were out of town most of the week so we didn't get to visit with them either, but we will on Wednesday. There are many potentials that we have, but we are working on finding those who are ready to move forward in coming closer to Jesus Christ by receiving the restored gospel. I'll let you know as they start coming through!
Fun moment this last week! I was on exchanges with one of our sister training leaders, Sister Cox. And I got to go to her area - North Jackson! It was fun to work in a new area, and it was my first time working in an area outside of the Florence ward! So all of Saturday I was in Jackson with Sister Cox spreading the gospel. I learned a lot. And one of the best moments we had was that someone actually accepted our offer to do some service for them! There was a mom and her daughter outside putting Christmas lights on their bushes and we offered to help. They accepted and put us to work! It was so fun, and reminded me of my Mom and Dad going through lights to see what works and mostly what doesn't haha. But we got the lights on and it looked pretty good when we were done! We also shared a scripture with them - "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in Heaven." (Matthew 5:16) The mom said she really felt it when we read that scripture with her. I hope that we are all being a light. Sometime I feel like the one that's burnt out amongst the group, and that with all of the others that are shining, no one will notice that I'm not shining. However, most of the time when a light is burnt out, there is usually a good rest of the lights that won't work. It's not until you fix the broken one that the rest can shine. I think that's how it is with us as well. "Let the lower lights be burning. Send a gleam across the way. Some poor fainting, struggling sea man you may rescue, you may save." (Hymn: Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy) It's a ripple affect. We all feed off of each other's lights. As we shine, we help others to shine too. If we are not shining, who knows who may lose there way. On the other hand, as we shine our light, who knows who may find it. I know that "the Lord is my light." I'm so glad He didn't burn out, so that the rest of us can have that light, that hope, and that guide.
As Christmas time is upon us, I hope each of us are able to put that spirit in our hearts. I love this time - the joy, the peace, the light. Remember, as President Monson said, "to find the spirit of Christmas, you need only drop the last syllable, and you find the spirit of Christ." I would invite each of you to think more about our Savior and to shine your light a little brighter this week. I came to learn in a very real way this week that our thoughts are so powerful and influencial on our words and actions. I know that what we think makes a big difference in how our day goes. I'm still working at making my thoughts better, but I do know that our thoughts matter and do make a difference. "Watch yourselves, and your thoughts...." (Mosiah 4:30) "By small and simple things...." (Alma 37:6-7). That's become one of my mottos: by small and simple things. All things are possible if we will do the small and simple things.
I love you all! Hope ya'll have a wonderful week! May THE force be with you!
No comments:
Post a Comment