April 23, 2018 -- Drop Kick Me Jesus/Jesus Was A Country Boy
Y'ALL!!!
So remember how the work in Pace has been a little bit slow these past few weeks? Well! Thank y'all for your prayers because this week has been so incredible! It was like all at once everything that we had been hoping would happen, DID!
The most exciting development has been with Brother Tom! For weeks Brother Tom has been telling us that he doesn't want to chose a date for baptism until he comes to church, but he hadn't come to church yet so he didn't want to make any commitments. This week, not only did he accept a baptismal date, he did it before he attended a service with us! He just said that it felt right, and he knew it was true and that he wanted to be a member of this church. He is planning on being baptized on May 26th. After that, he came to church and loved it! The members were all so kind to him and he loved the classes. He said he was "very impressed" and told one of the members of the bishopric to expect to see him back next Sunday, and many Sundays after that.
Can I just say how much I love missionary work? For weeks we have been working with a man who is in his 70s, who was very lonely and was mourning the loss of his wife after 6 years. We have watched him improve his relationship with the Savior, gain friendships with ward members, and receive a testimony that he WILL be with his wife again one day. The biggest change that we have seen in him is the light about him. He is so much happier than when we first met him! Now, he reminds me a lot of my Grandpa Scott. He tells us stories from his life and asks us if he can adopt us, and I am so just so grateful to be a part of his journey.
There is also a youth in the Pace ward, Sarah, who is the greatest missionary I may have ever met. She is 14 years old, and already, because of her missionary work, three of her friends have been baptized. This week we have been blessed enough to start working with another one of her friends, Hayley, who told us that she wants the happiness that Sarah has and would like to be baptized as well. Sarah also wants to come out tracting with us and is preparing herself to serve a full-time mission! If every member was as missionary-minded as Sarah, this world would be a much better place.
Now, onto the subject line of this email. This past Saturday all of the missionaries in our whole zone (22 missionaries!) volunteered at the "Pensacola Hot Wheels Food Truck Fundraiser". All the proceeds from the event were donated to Habitat for Humanity. A few weeks ago, the Elders serving in Brewton Alabama asked Sister Burnham and I if they could have 100 of our miles (for those who don't know, missionaries have a very specific amount of miles that we can use in our cars each month, so giving another set of missionaries miles means less distance you can travel in a car and more biking time). Sister Burnham and I contemplated this for a while, and decided that we would give them the miles on the condition that one of the Elders, Elder Curnutt, sang us a country song chosen by his companion, Elder Durfee. Over the course of the 8 hour service project, Elder Durfee played us the songs that he is deciding between. They are named as the subject line implies. They are actually both really good! Totally missionary appropriate, and once you listen to them they have really good messages. I do not know who they are by or I would ask you all to look them up. The performance will be on Tuesday, so we are excited to hear which one Elder Durfee picks. Totally worth a few days of biking!!
The Fundraiser was also a great experience. I handed out pass-along cards with the Fox Run Sisters for a while, and it was really fun to feel like a part of Fox Run again for a few moments. It was funny though, because while I was working with them we kept meeting people from Pace. I guess that was God reminding me again that I really am where I need to be right now. We also met a lady who was so touched by our message that she just cried and embraced me. Missionary Life is the best life in the world, because you get to help total strangers feel the love of God. We were put right in her path the exact moment she needed us.
I also got a crazy horrible sunburn and I will be wearing sunscreen every single day from now on. That is why there are no pictures from this week, I look like a deranged tomato monster and none of y'all need to see that. It would burn into your minds and you would have nightmares for weeks. Okay, it isn't really THAT bad, but it does hurt.
Thank y'all for all y'all's prayers! They mean the world to me and they sure made a difference in Pace this week! Talk to y'all next week, and in the meantime I think you should really read the Book of Mormon. It will change your life, if you let it. Much love!
So remember how the work in Pace has been a little bit slow these past few weeks? Well! Thank y'all for your prayers because this week has been so incredible! It was like all at once everything that we had been hoping would happen, DID!
The most exciting development has been with Brother Tom! For weeks Brother Tom has been telling us that he doesn't want to chose a date for baptism until he comes to church, but he hadn't come to church yet so he didn't want to make any commitments. This week, not only did he accept a baptismal date, he did it before he attended a service with us! He just said that it felt right, and he knew it was true and that he wanted to be a member of this church. He is planning on being baptized on May 26th. After that, he came to church and loved it! The members were all so kind to him and he loved the classes. He said he was "very impressed" and told one of the members of the bishopric to expect to see him back next Sunday, and many Sundays after that.
Can I just say how much I love missionary work? For weeks we have been working with a man who is in his 70s, who was very lonely and was mourning the loss of his wife after 6 years. We have watched him improve his relationship with the Savior, gain friendships with ward members, and receive a testimony that he WILL be with his wife again one day. The biggest change that we have seen in him is the light about him. He is so much happier than when we first met him! Now, he reminds me a lot of my Grandpa Scott. He tells us stories from his life and asks us if he can adopt us, and I am so just so grateful to be a part of his journey.
There is also a youth in the Pace ward, Sarah, who is the greatest missionary I may have ever met. She is 14 years old, and already, because of her missionary work, three of her friends have been baptized. This week we have been blessed enough to start working with another one of her friends, Hayley, who told us that she wants the happiness that Sarah has and would like to be baptized as well. Sarah also wants to come out tracting with us and is preparing herself to serve a full-time mission! If every member was as missionary-minded as Sarah, this world would be a much better place.
Now, onto the subject line of this email. This past Saturday all of the missionaries in our whole zone (22 missionaries!) volunteered at the "Pensacola Hot Wheels Food Truck Fundraiser". All the proceeds from the event were donated to Habitat for Humanity. A few weeks ago, the Elders serving in Brewton Alabama asked Sister Burnham and I if they could have 100 of our miles (for those who don't know, missionaries have a very specific amount of miles that we can use in our cars each month, so giving another set of missionaries miles means less distance you can travel in a car and more biking time). Sister Burnham and I contemplated this for a while, and decided that we would give them the miles on the condition that one of the Elders, Elder Curnutt, sang us a country song chosen by his companion, Elder Durfee. Over the course of the 8 hour service project, Elder Durfee played us the songs that he is deciding between. They are named as the subject line implies. They are actually both really good! Totally missionary appropriate, and once you listen to them they have really good messages. I do not know who they are by or I would ask you all to look them up. The performance will be on Tuesday, so we are excited to hear which one Elder Durfee picks. Totally worth a few days of biking!!
The Fundraiser was also a great experience. I handed out pass-along cards with the Fox Run Sisters for a while, and it was really fun to feel like a part of Fox Run again for a few moments. It was funny though, because while I was working with them we kept meeting people from Pace. I guess that was God reminding me again that I really am where I need to be right now. We also met a lady who was so touched by our message that she just cried and embraced me. Missionary Life is the best life in the world, because you get to help total strangers feel the love of God. We were put right in her path the exact moment she needed us.
I also got a crazy horrible sunburn and I will be wearing sunscreen every single day from now on. That is why there are no pictures from this week, I look like a deranged tomato monster and none of y'all need to see that. It would burn into your minds and you would have nightmares for weeks. Okay, it isn't really THAT bad, but it does hurt.
Thank y'all for all y'all's prayers! They mean the world to me and they sure made a difference in Pace this week! Talk to y'all next week, and in the meantime I think you should really read the Book of Mormon. It will change your life, if you let it. Much love!
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