differently (by not having them at all) they have already told us who our companions will be and where Sister Cox is going. I will be receiving Sister Black which is actually quite interesting...when I was transferred out of Bath, Maine after being trained by Sister Crook, Sister Black is the one that replaced me to also be trained by Sister Crook. So we know each other already and we were both trained by the same person and we both started our missions out in the cute little town of Bath :) it's very cool and I'm very excited to get to know her better and to hear how that Topsham Ward is doing!! Aaaaand I will be able to DRIVE for the first time being out here!!!!! Yay!! I miss driving more than anyone will ever know but my time has finally come. Besides all of that, I am incredibly nervous to be senior companion. There are so many responsibilities and the rules are very strict and I don't want to let the ward, my companion, or the Lord down. He is trusting me to lead this area and I am anxious to see how it all goes. Hmmm.
But anyway, this week has been SO GOOD! We have been able to stay productive and busy and we had a lot of awesome lessons. There was even one day that we had SIX lessons! And two of them were member present lessons! That does not happen very often in this area..we were so blessed to have so much success in one day. AND nobody cancelled on us. Miracleeeee
On Saturday we went to contact someone which ended up being the wrong house (oops) but these people let us in anyway. There were three of them and they all looked as though they were in their 20's. Two were in a relationship and the other guy (Bill) was just the friend. So they immediately let us in and starting badgering us with questions about what we believed. The couple (Adam and kaylie) were very nice and respectful and willing to listen but Bill....oh bill....he was just a drunk angry mess. Every time we would try to answer one of his questions he would stop us and tell us in some way that we were wrong. He was so contentious and he thought we were absolutely crazy for believing what we believe. He was very rude about it and told us that we should rethink what we were doing and just join another church. HAHA okay bill, thanks for the advice...
Having that experience was bittersweet. It helped me realize how strong my faith actually is, yet it was painful to be hearing those things being said straight to my face. There was even a time where he was annoying me SO bad that I kind of raised my voice and bill said, "woah, someone is getting fired up!" I would have never defended my religion like that before my mission. My testimony was not where it is now and I love having that firm knowledge of this gospel. I love standing in front of people like Bill knowing that everything I'm preaching is truth and nothing he could have said would shake me. He ended up leaving the room with his beer in a fit of rage. Sorry Bill.
Of course on Saturday we had our weekly Bible Study at the nursing home which went very well. We shared a ton of different miracles that Jesus Christ performed in the bible such as feeding the 5,000, raising Lazarus from the dead, healing the woman with the 12 year blood disease, walking on water/calming the sea, etc. It always makes me so happy to see the excitement and astonishment on their faces to hear these stories and miracles! Being a missionary is so cool...I wish everybody would choose this incredible opportunity to sacrifice 18-24 months of their lives to serve.
I have met so many amazing people that I will be close with for the rest of my life. I have had companions that I ended up becoming best friends with that I would have never met if I hadn't ever made the decision to serve. I have helped people to recognize the light of Christ in their lives and I have seen their countenance and view on life change for the better. I have seen myself grow and change and progress in more ways than I could ever imagine. I have a relationship with my Heavenly Father that I'm sure never would have grown like this unless I came out here. It is extremely difficult and many challenges arise on a constant basis but there isn't any better way to grow. I'm sure I've said that a million times before but again,
I am so thankful for my trials and the chance I have to be molded into the missionary I was sent here to be. Something that has helped magnify that thought this week was this quote I found: "Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more. He therefore gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain” -Elder Richard G. Scott
He doesn't send us trials randomly or only to punish us. We are given challenges when "the Lord feels we are prepared to grow more." I absolutely LOVE that! The Lord loves you. Heavenly Father loves you. This church is true. The book is blue. Have a lovely week :)
Us with Michael and Sister McLaren
Our best friend Norissa!
A little change never hurts nobody :)
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