10/30/2023

Week 5

Fire hydrants are weird

Monday

In the evening we met the Stake President. We just talked with him. His wife was having some bad pain so we gave a blessing for her. It was my first blessing out here so that was really special for me. After meeting the Stake President we had another exchange. It was once again with the mighty Elder Biggs.

Tuesday

Elder Biggs and I got really distracted during our comp study. We found the 2024 Youth Theme song and were going crazy about it. (It wasn’t officially announced until Friday). The song is called Disciple of Christ. We were able to figure out the verse in the scriptures which was awesome. It is 3 Nephi 5:13 “Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his word among his people, that they might have everlasting life.” I really love this verse as it is also a missionary verse. The youth of the church are ready to be missionaries among each other and I can’t wait to see the work of the Lord progress.

Wednesday

ZONE CONFERENCE! It was aboout 6-7 hours but I loved it. The main topic I noticed was Feeling the Spirit and helping our friends understand the Spirit. There was also an emphasis on building relationships with members. Zone Conference just has me hyped up. We also got a little rain which is always awesome to me.

Thursday

That rain made it humid and that of course makes it really hot. It down-poured heavily for a few minutes which I love to see. We had dinner with a family with some really fun kids. They love the missionaries. They all fight for our attention. Right before we left I played Peace in Christ for them on the piano. It was really awesome. That is most likely my favorite song to play.

Friday

Trunk or Treat #1

The Jones Creek ward had their Trunk or Treat this night and it was so fun. I got to be one of the judges for the chili cook-off. There was 11 different chilis that I had to taste. It was all so good. The winner apparently had Bacon in it which made it good enough to take the crown. There was also a costume contest among the Bishopric. Brother Barton won with a really good Willy Wonka costume. He also played the part really well. The last contest was who had the best decorated trunk. There was a lot of really good ones.

During the actual Trunk or Treat event I too went around getting candy. I have a built in candy bag with my look. I wasn’t able to disguise my look but I was able to disguise my voice. I became Mickey Mouse for the night. I got candy in my bag and then offered candy to kids at the end. It was a really fun experience.

Saturday

We were going to help someone move in the morning. We showed up 5 minutes late and they were already done getting stuff in the trucks. The destination was outside the area so we had to ask other missionaries to help on the other end. So we went to the church instead to vacuum the chapel. It was fun. We didn’t do too much until the evening.

Trunk or Treat #2

This one was for the Pecan Grove ward. They combined with the Grand Mission ward so there was a lot of people I didn’t know. There was one person who some members brought along with them. He isn’t a member but we connected really well. He loves Mario and video games in general. We might be able to stay connected with him and be able to teach him hopefully. He gave me and a bunch of the kids each a Pokemon Card. He is cool. For the actual Trunk or Treat event I again went around with my Mickey Mouse voice and got candy. Having already gotten candy the night before I told myself that all the candy I got, I would give out to the kids. I was left with no candy at the end of the night. I felt really good about it.

Sunday

My 4th Sunday here but it is a 5th Sunday. Our friend Jofre made it to church today which is probably the highlight of my mission so far. He is the first person I have invited to church who actually came to church. He brought his son too. After Sacrament meeting he said he felt peace here.

In the Pecan Grove ward they sometimes do something called linger on. It is just a potluck after church in the gym. That was fun and became my lunch. This evening actually got cold. I guess there is a cold wave coming in and the humidity doesn’t help. I need to break out my jacket for the first time when finding. It is just so weird as we were just having some really hot weather the day before.

Extra

This week really has been great. Some may still be wondering why I said fire hydrants are weird at the top. Well I will be showing why throughout this week and explain myself next week.

On the Doctrine of Christ Challenge we are now on page 136 of the Book of Mormon. This is at the start of the Book of Enos. Congrats to all who are keeping up with 8 pages a day.

Here are the pictures for thine enjoyment.