Week 29

2/13/17

Hello everyone!!!

This was a great week for Sister Hartvigsen and me so I'm excited for this email :) 

Tuesday: We served at the Senior Center again, even though it was the elders week, because we wanted to say goodbye to everyone in case we get transfered next week. It was so slow at first and then we got a ton of people who had never been there before. They beat their record of customers served. The record was 93 and we got 94 so everyone was pretty excited, and exhausted :) After that we went and visited Kate. She was born with a club foot and has been having sugery on it her whole life. After this last surgery the doctors told her that she won't be able to go back to work, probably ever. So she is confined to her home when her boyfriend is working because she can't even drive with it. She can get around the house pretty well, but she lives in the middle of nowhere so she can't like visit neighbors or anything like that. She is really nice and we wish we knew how to help her get back to church, but until then we will just keep loving her.

Wednesday: I spent all of Wednesday in bed because I was feeling pretty weak and a little naseaus. I felt good enough that night to go to our lesson with Kaleb, which was really fun  because Sis. Hartvigsen came up with this great idea of having us make up stories about Kaleb's favorite characters and a gospel principle that we were reviewing before his interview. 

Thursday: We got our weekly planning done in one day! That is always super exciting. We got soaked when we were walking around that day. We went to go see a new investigator and he saw us walking towards him and he rushed inside. We knocked on the door and he didn't answer so that was nice. The other house we went to, we have been trying to get in for awhile. The people are really nice, but it never seems to be a good time. When she answered the door, I had no idea what to say (we already knew all their names and the things that we normally use to start a conversation) so I just said, "Is it okay if we come in?" OH MY GOSH!!! I'm so awkward! Oh well, she didn't let us in, but she could tell how stupid I felt and we were soaking wet so she gave us a time that we could come back. That night we had a Relief Society activity, Chocolate Extravaganza! They had some demonstrations of how to make some of the desserts and then everyone brought a little something chocolate...that was a lot of chocolate. It was a fun activity.

Friday:We had Zone Training Meeting at one of the High Councilman's home, Bro. Blanchard. That was a great meeting! I gained so much revelation for myself and for our people! We hada  fantastic lunch afterwards and Sis. Blanchard sat with the sisters and told us some funny stories about when her and Bro. Blanchard got married. He ended up coming in and telling her that we are missionarries and she shouldn't be talking to us about getting married. I love them so much! We visited one of our older widows who was in the hospital. We brought her flowers and had a nice visit with her. Kaleb passed his baptismal interview!

Sturday: We got to help with the Stake Youth Mission Experience and that was so much fun! For two days they have these kids living life like a missionarry. They had a Zone Conference that we, unexpectedly, took part in teaching. Then they broke them up into groups and we taught them how to teach/prepare a lesson. After that they went through rotations of Companion studies, tracting, making lunch, playing pickleball (P-day), and learning how to pray in a foriegn language. We taught them how to comp study and then watched them "tract." The members who were the "investigator" did a really great job of making it a realistic tracting experience, some companionships got turned down. We left after the rotations, but they went and did service and then ate at a members home and slept in another members' home. They also had to give talks and attend multiple church services on Sunday. I think that is such a neat idea!

So that night we went to gas up our car and here in Oregon, in case you didn't know, you can't fill your own tank. So we are starting to get to know the gas attendants and we always leave them with a pass-along card. The guy who helped us that night, when I handed him the card, said, "I should probably call this number sometime,huh?" Well, when we were driving down the highway, the phone starts ringing and its not a number we have saved. I was like, "Oh my gosh! Its him!" We answered and he goes, "I told you I would call!" and then just starts laughing. It was hilarious! I told him he made our day and then he told us to have a good night and hung up before we could talk to him anymore haha.

Sunday: So we have been trying to meet with Javier and his dad for awhile because his dad is less active and he isn't a member. His dad's name is Terry and Terry's dad is in our ward also, but he is active. So anyway, we get a call from Teryy's dad after church saying that he has talked to Javier about taking the lessons and getting baptized and he said he wants to do it. So he called Terry and made sure it was okay. All we had to do was set up the appointment! That was so awesome! Adrian has been bringing his dad and some other family member or friend to church every week since his baptism! He is so awesome! He came to a lesson with us last night and it was so cool to see how much his testimony has grown. He had no problem sharing his testimony and helping us teach. In fact, he made it possible for me to invite them to get baptized, which was not something we were really planning on doing yet, but they said they would think about it.

This was just such an awesome week and I'm so grateful I had it. Sister Hartvigsen and I have become such great friends nad sadly, transfers are this weekend so we might get seperated! I hope not, but we will just trust that what ever happens is in the Lord's plan.

This quote is from a talk that Adrian sent us, he does that a lot.

As he continued, “[The speaker] went on to make a comparison. He said: ‘Let us take the eagle, for example. This bird works as hard and as efficiently as any other animal or bird in doing its daily work. It provides for itself and its young by the sweat of its brow, so to speak; but when its daily work is over and the eagle has time of its own to do just as it pleases, note how it spends its recreational moments. It flies in the highest realms of heaven, spreads its wings and bathes in the upper air, for it loves the pure, clean atmosphere and the lofty heights.

“‘On the other hand, let us consider the hog. This animal grunts and grubs and provides for its young just as well as the eagle; but when its working hours are over and it has some recreational moments, observe where it goes and what it does. The hog will seek out the muddiest hole in the pasture and will roll and soak itself in filth, for this is the thing it loves. People can be either eagles or hogs in their leisure time.’

(Gordon B. Hinckley, Don't Drop the Ball)

I love you all!!

Sister MacKay

I bowl like a dork, but whatever.