Hello Again!
So, it's transfer week, and guess what-I survived! Sister Margaritis and I are staying together in Lake Wilderness. We had to give up Glacier Park yesterday, the ward that we were given during the middle of the transfer. It's hard to think we will no longer be able to go visit people there, and they only live 5 minutes from us! But we can sneak a quick visit in with some of the members when we see them in the halls at church. In all honesty though I don't feel any real anxiety about it. I know the the Lord is blessing me with an excitement for the work we have been given in Lake Wilderness. I feel more motivated to be obedient, to set goals, and to forget myself. This first transfer has been really good. I have learned a lot about my weaknesses and my strengths. I have learned that I have so much to learn! (Not that I didn't already know that). I kind of feel like this first transfer was a little rough around the edges, and this next transfer is an opportunity to really polish up the way I work as a missionary. I am also learning that it is one thing to live with someone and get along with them at school or for fun, but it is another thing when you live with someone and as a companionship you are responsible for helping people reach eternal salvation. There is a lot of effort that goes into that and a lot of compromising as well!
Sister Margaritis is a fun-loving Sister missionary. She loves to tease and crack jokes. I am getting better about realizing when she is pulling my leg. I think she just likes to see my freak out reaction (like so many of you do!) so I try not to give her the gratification she is looking for. Maybe this is a personal training I need so when I come home none of you can get the better of me! She is a little bit like me in that she never really wanted to serve a mission. Her answer was much more direct than mine though. She is 21 and she is studying social work at school. Umm, I'm not sure what else to say. She is pretty great!
So, Nancy is so amazing. She has such a desire to draw closer to God. She has studied her Bible a lot and she is very receptive to the Book of Mormon. She reads it and really tries to understand it and find meaning in it. She is such a great example to me. In our last visit she expressed similar feelings that Joseph Smith had. She is wondering why there are so many churches and she wonders about the authority that the pastor has at her church. So many other things she feels add up to her preparation for receiving the Gospel. We also watched the Restoration video with her! She really seemed to like it! It really is a good one, very well made and really carries the Spirit with it. Her husband, who we haven't actually taught yet and who is not as excited about us coming over as she is, said he would watch it as well! Their kids are so cute too! Caleb is 14 and is such a little gentleman. Olivia is 12 and is very pretty but we don't see her often. And Annabelle is the cutest, happiest little girl. She always is smiling. I love it!
We finally got to see Tammy again yesterday. The first tiem we set up service with her she forgot and we hadn't talked to her since. yesterday we drove by her house and she was outside, so we got out and talked to her and we did service for her right then! We did some gardening for her in our skirts! Before we left we shared with her that she is a daughter of Heavenly Father, who loves her. I read part of a conference talk to her. We are going wo the Farmer's market with her this Saturday on our lunch break. She is a very social person and loves things like that! She gave us each a bundle of lavender from a Lavender festival she just went to as a thank you fro gardening for her. We are excited to get to know her better and hopefully start teaching her. She's funny. She asked us, "So do you guys just go around doing work for people, talking about God, and then trying to convert them?" We just said "Yep, pretty much!." We laughed.
Prayer and scripture reading are my greatest comfort. Every morning when I read the scriptures it is like talking with an old friend. My Spirit is rejuvenated and I feel a peace I can find nowhere else, most especially in the book of Mormon.
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