Wow!! We had a really good week this week! Before I forget! Thanks to the Beck boys for their Russian Dance picture! It made me smile! And CONGRATULATIONS to Shirlyn and Justin and the family!! I LOVED the pictures of Ella!! I'm SO excited for you!! And be prepared to take a little week long vacation when I get back Shirlyn!... I'm claiming watching your kids for a week!!! or more!! :)
Monday night we had a little bit of an adventure, but it showed that we are well taken care of. We had forgotten to turn our phone back on after FHE. We missed the phone call of the Zone Leaders. After we said our companionship prayer, I was walking back into our bedroom and saw our phone, that it was ringing. President Nechiporov had called several times, our Zone Leaders, and Vacilli, the mission driver, was on his way to our house! Wow! I felt SO bad that we had caused such an uproar! But, we are well taken care of!
We met with our street contact this week. I can't remember, but I think I mentioned her. Her name is Sara and she is from Namibia. I just feel like the African people are SO open! Their hearts are so open! As we taught the first lesson, after watching the Joseph Smith Restoration Video, we asked if she believed that God could call prophets in our day? She said yes, and then asked, "But how can we know for sure?" Wow! great intro. for the Book of Mormon! It was great!
On Wednesday we had Zone conference! Wow! I love zone conferences SO much! It is a wonderful opportunity to join together with other missionaries and remember our purpose, and learn what we can do to further our work and work more with the spirit! Our Zone Leaders talked about the Book of Mormon, and how important it is for our work. As they talked I was thinking and realized that it had been a while since I had just read the Book of Mormon from start to finish, I read out of it daily, but it had been a long time since I had just read it all the way through. I was thinking that I should do that, and then our Zone Leaders gave us an activity that we are going to do as a mission. If anyone wants to join with our mission, feel free! The challenge is on page 114 of Preach My Gospel. Get a cheap new copy of the Book of Mormon, and then mark the references of the Savior orange, words of the Lord blue, principles green, and Christlike attributes yellow.
Our Assistants to the President gave a wonderful talk about following the spirit! We need to work with the Spirit in EVERYTHING that we do, and keep our Savior as the center of our work! President also shared his conversion story with us! I don't h ave time to tell it all! But it is AMAZING! Sister Nechiporov was the head of the communist party in their university. they met and President said that he thinks the first spiritual experience he had, was that he knew he needed to marry sister nechiporova. He just somehow knew that she was the one and that he needed to marry her. President then had a Mormon business partner who moved his family to Russia. They didn't have missionaries in Russia, so his partner did missionary work, and he had President translate the lessons for him when he taught! So, president knew all the lessons by heart! He said that he could have been a missionary! :) He also told president he wanted him to read the Book of Mormon for him on tape so that he could hear Russian. he never again asked president about the tape, but president read the Book of Mormon! haha :) They were also apparently he first Russians to go through the Portland Temple!! Where they got married! So corrie! When you get married, you can remember that my mission president was married there too.... so I have some part in your wedding right?! :)
I loved what president said at the end of your conversation story. That there are people out there to find, like someone found him. He shared Alma 36:24 which says: "Yea and from that time even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost." After Zone Conference, as Sister Ivanova and I were getting ready to go out and contact, I was thinking about what Elder Dana and Kempton had said, making sure that we do EVERYTHING with the spirit and focus all our work on the Savior. I knew that there was someone out there for us to find and talk to, but we would only know where they were if we could follow the Holy Ghost. As we prayed, I saw a street in my mind. We walked down the road and turned onto the street that I had seen. After walking down the road and contacting several people, we met this really awesome man. He wanted to practice his English, but actually spoke English really well. As we talked he talked about his family, work, etc. We were able to share many of our beliefs and have a really deep conversation about the gospel. After we met him we also met a really cool young man who gave us his number after we talked about prayer and God's plan for us. I'm so grateful for the spirit in our work. If we follow the spirit, I think that we can find and talk to people EVERYDAY. They are there for us to find, but I hope that I can become better at following the spirit so that we can be led to them. When we follow the spirit, the work is so much fun and the happiness we felt was truly amazing.
Zone Conference!!
Wait... let me see... can you find the elders?!! haha! there are 3 sets!
My package!!! Ya!
Some service... ya... I really idn't do much to help.
I almost wanted to sleep next to this cat... it can be tiring!!!
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Alexander and his family, wife olga, and daughter Ulia with your picture!
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President today with P-day at the mission home! We love his apron! He's a great help in the kitchen.
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This is president's daughter Liza! She is one of my FAVORITE PEOPLE in the world!!
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yes, we decked the Elders out with flowers too when we played frisbee! Elder Haws from Boise and Elder Roodok from Ukraine.
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President played with us also! :) ya!
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Rostov! The city of beautiful roses!!
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