Hey guys. It's been such a busy week over here. But busy is good.
We did 2 scambis this week and so that was really a lot to handle. I'm going to be gone for three days next week, so we are becoming excellent planners trying to fit in everything we have to do.
I LOVE it though. We definitely go through stages, but our work is really picking up this week so that is great.
I can't remember if I wrote about it last week, but we sacrificed pday to meet with Simona after she had dropped us and the lesson went REALLY well! She said she wanted to keep meeting with us and now has a new baptismal date! She didn't come to church on Sunday though, so we were really upset about that. But she is reading and praying and she seems really happy.
Singing with President at Zone Conference
matching boots
I LOVE it though. We definitely go through stages, but our work is really picking up this week so that is great.
We were also a little down because we have been working with Shadi, just really trying to help her learn about Jesus Christ.. then one day she started asking Carol about baptism and she got really excited about it and asked us if she could get baptized..
After looking into the situation a little more closely we found out that she can't get baptized because it could be life threatening for her if she ever went back to Iran, which she was planning on doing.
So we had to break the news to her this week and she seemed pretty upset about it, but we told her she can keep coming to church and to activities and to stay with it because one day laws might change and her circumstance could change too.
SO we did a lot this week, but I don't have time to fill you in on everything, so I just want to talk about Latina.
President asked all the Capi in our zone to do a big blitz in Latina, to see if it was ready to be opened. We went the night before and stayed with the Sorelle in Ostia and the next morning we all drove up to Latina.
In the morning the assistants dropped us off in little cities around Latina to check out the work and do some finding. So they dropped me and Sorella Anstead off in this little town called Ardea and basically said
"Good luck. Find a way to Latina by one o'clock and we will meet you there."
and we are like "Yeah, sure, no problem." and I'm slightly freaking out inside but at the same time really excited.
So we just walked around talking to people on the street asking lots of questions like
"Hey, where are we?"
and "How do you take a bus to Latina from here?"
and they are like "You know it's 45 kilometers away, right? You have to take a bus to another city and then take a bus from that city to Latina."
"Hey, where are we?"
and "How do you take a bus to Latina from here?"
and they are like "You know it's 45 kilometers away, right? You have to take a bus to another city and then take a bus from that city to Latina."
But we also got to talk to a lot of people about the gospel and had a ton of little miracles. The assistants had to come back and pick us and the ZLs up (from the neighboring city) and we all headed back to Latina for the afternoon.
Finding Days
It was one of the coolest finding days on my mission. Sorella Anstead and I picked a less active to visit on the list and decided to just try and find our way there.. It took us the whole day to get there because every time we stopped and asked someone for directions we ended up teaching them the whole first lesson on the street. We gave away all of our finding materials and everyone seemed really interested.
Finding Days
It was one of the coolest finding days on my mission. Sorella Anstead and I picked a less active to visit on the list and decided to just try and find our way there.. It took us the whole day to get there because every time we stopped and asked someone for directions we ended up teaching them the whole first lesson on the street. We gave away all of our finding materials and everyone seemed really interested.
My favorite experience was with this Kenyan guy named Johnson. We were walking down the street and there was a huge group of people outside of the local church. We found out that it was a funeral for an 18-year-old boy. It was really sad because there were so many people and everyone was crying.
The Plan
As missionaries we just wanted to go over there and just started preaching about the Plan of Salvation, but at the same time we didn't want to be inconsiderate. Also it's against the rules to teach people outside of other religious buildings.
So we were just torn up about what to do, so we went over to a little bench to say a prayer and to find out who it was we needed to talk to. There was something that told us there was someone there we had to teach.
After the prayer we felt peace to keep going, and so I turned to the man nearest us to ask for directions. Then we started talking about the church and the restoration.
He told us that he usually worked all day long, but for some reason he had finished his work early and decided to go to the park where we were.
No Coincidence
We told him that it was no coincidence and that he was guided there to meet us. because it's true. he was. So we left him with a Book of Mormon and we gave his number to the elders.
The Plan
As missionaries we just wanted to go over there and just started preaching about the Plan of Salvation, but at the same time we didn't want to be inconsiderate. Also it's against the rules to teach people outside of other religious buildings.
So we were just torn up about what to do, so we went over to a little bench to say a prayer and to find out who it was we needed to talk to. There was something that told us there was someone there we had to teach.
After the prayer we felt peace to keep going, and so I turned to the man nearest us to ask for directions. Then we started talking about the church and the restoration.
He told us that he usually worked all day long, but for some reason he had finished his work early and decided to go to the park where we were.
No Coincidence
We told him that it was no coincidence and that he was guided there to meet us. because it's true. he was. So we left him with a Book of Mormon and we gave his number to the elders.
Also, we spent WAY too much time with the elders in the van that day. Sorella Anstead and I are a little concerned about our 9 HOUR drive to Catania with them this week. I will survive. I will survive. Sometimes I forget that missionaries are 18-20 year old boys.
Overall though, it was just such a refreshing experience. I felt like a greenie again being a city I didn't know and every person we talked to was a miracle. I don't know if President will open it up again, but it was a great personal experience.
All in all though, I'm glad to be back in Rome 2. I love it here. It's like home to me. I love the members here and I love church on Sunday. I love being a missionary. sorry no time! Love you!Overall though, it was just such a refreshing experience. I felt like a greenie again being a city I didn't know and every person we talked to was a miracle. I don't know if President will open it up again, but it was a great personal experience.
(Email Sent - March 17, 2014)
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