So... I'm gonna talk business first and then get to whatever else hits my mind. You guys deserve to know what I'm doing, and not just what I'm feeling.
For this coming weekend we have 4 baptisms set in stone, but 5 planned in total. First is the M****-V***** family, who will be married this Friday FINALLY (after a year as investigators because the husband didn't want to get married--they have 25 years together and three kids, but he has been afraid of commitments until recently). A****, the middle child, wants to wait until he knows more things, but he is already ready according to the baptismal interview questions, so we'll see if his family can't convince him this week. We also have R****, the sister of one of our recent converts, who is almost prepared knowledge-wise. She seems to be lacking a little in testimony, but we are going to decide after meeting with her tonight whether or not we will postpone her baptismal date.
We've got a less active whose records were lost and who thus needs to be baptized, named E****, set up for the 23rd. He knows EVERYTHING, and has even stopped smoking and drinking coffee, but he just hadn´t gone to church--until yesterday! We are pretty stoked about that.
For August we already have 4 families in our sights as baptisms:
First are A**** and N****. A**** we met a few weeks back, and she is SUPER prepared. Learns super fast, knows ward members--everything. She just isn't married to her husband. Yesterday we met him, and he is SUPER cool--totally open to hear our message, excited to see us again and to chit-chat some more, and on top of it all A****'s mom invited us over for lunch next Sunday. WOOT.
Next comes the O***-P***** family. The parents both work in the 911 service here as drivers--the dad works 24 hours straight in an ambulance one day of every 4, and the mom works 12 hours on a motorcycle every other day. We went contacting Tuesday and found the kids at home. We came back the next day and the parents invited us in, sat down the kids, and were super attentive and interested in what we had to say. Something we've noticed here is that every time we meet someone with lots of potential something bad happens--either tons of motorcycles keep passing by, or someone is cooking or cleaning and keeps getting up to leave, or a phone call comes in, or something. This time there was none of that, but Elder R***** and I both felt fear--fear that we were going to mess up, and fear that they weren't going to believe us. We conquered that fear, but it was weird to feel that for the first time since my first transfer, nearly
nine months later.
We barely met a B***** family--a jeweler and his wife who are already working towards getting married, who are open to hear us, and who loved the Family Proclamation we left them. Other than that, we don't know much. We can only meet with them on Sundays, so it'll be a while.
Also, one of the young single adults in the ward has parents who are not members: J**** and A**** C****. They are pretty cool, and have known most of the missionaries that have come through the area in the past 4 years. The wife seems to be a friend of the missionaries, but the husband said (off to the side) that the only reason he's not baptized and not going to church is because his wife doesn't want to get married. Another M****-V**** family? ;) We're going to see what we can do there.
Great to hear you guys had a good time camping. I miss camping. I also miss the cold. We have passed here from summer (October-April) into inferno (May-September). I don't think I've ever soaked a shirt before, even working out in the sun in 100° heat. The thing is that it's WORSE at night in the houses--they're all concrete, some with metal roofs, and the heat is intense. Like, sauna intense. It becomes your whole being. I feel bad for sitting on couches and stuff because I leave wet marks. I feel bad for the last people to meet with us during the day, because we probably reek of sweat.
Anyhoo, out of time. I hate it when the power goes out when you first get on the computer. XD Love you all,
Élder Rowe
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