This week was great! Thank you for the opportunity to serve with a mini missionary this week. I learned a lot about the culture and I think my langauge skills improved as well. I hope she enjoyed her time here in Vanadzor. She seemed to have really good experiences here with our members and investigators. She told us that she will continue to work on her mission papers when she is back in Center.
We had a good week with many of our investigators. We met with a family (with the father who is having a hard time quitting smoking). We spent a lot of time talking about faith and hope with them. We brought a few members who were able to testify well, and our investigators really felt the spirit.
We also were referred to another family by that same investgiator who is having trouble smoking. We met with them this week. There is a young mother, and grandmother and three young children. The father died in a construction accident. We were able to teach them the Restoration and the tripod. When we started talking about the Book of Mormon, the grandmother said "Oh I have one. Two boys gave me one once!" I was so surprised...this is another family that has previously been in contact with missionaries! They read a little bit from the Book of Mormon before we even assigned them chapters and are keeping commitments well.
The other family we are teaching has been difficult to meet with this past week. The father went to Russia for work and the mother has been very busy with her young boys, but we are going to meet with them tonight. The father also called us from Russia this week and asked about meetinghouses he can go to in Russia. We are going to be teaching his family until May (when he returns) and thought about referring him to the missionaries in Moscow. What do you think? Also, are we allowed to keep in contact with him via telephone?
The grandmother in Alaverdi was supposed to have her baptismal interview this week, but there was a death in the family so she has been busy getting ready forthe funeral and we were unable to visit her. We are hopeful this week that she will be able to have her interview and will be ready for baptism.
We also picked up a 12 year old girl and her grandmother after church yesterday. The girl had a relative that is a member who brought her. She said she was interested and wanted to come, but didn't want to be the only one her age, so she brought her friend as well. Later, we tried contacting both, and was able to meet with the girl and her grandmother and began teaching them. We will also try and contact her friend this week too.
The Valentine's activity was a success I thought. We had many less active members, new members and investigators come to the activity. They were able to make friends with the members and enjoyed the message on love and the fun activities for all.
We also had a great District Meeting on unity this week and how we can be unified as a district this transfer and with our ward leaders. We decided we are going to focus on prayer, fasting, and communicating well with others. We are making this a "team" effort. (We're all on the Lord's team right?)
This week during studies, I studied a lot about hope. I read a great Ensign article on the subject and the author made some great comments that stuck out to me. He said "Hope is anything but wishful. It is expectation based on experience. Hope has the confidence of the one who clearly sees a bright future even when the next hours seem fog shrouded."
Thank you all that you do for me!
Love,
Sister Morreall
Dear Mom,
It sounds like everone had a good trip! Thanks for updating me on your health. You're strong, so I know that whatever side effects come from the medicine, you'll be able to handle it. I read an article this week on Hope and it referred me to Romans 5:3-5. I thought about it with your situation and all.
3 And not only so, but we glory in atribulations also: knowing thatbtribulation worketh cpatience;
5 And ahope maketh not ashamed; because the blove of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
I love the cause and effect, that tribulation brings patience, which helps us have experience, which experience gives us hope in Christ and his atonement. I compared faith and hope a lot this week and I decided that hope is a belief that Christ atoned for us and that if we use his atonement we'll be comforted and saved. But hope is whatmotivates us to use Christ's atonement. Wishing and hoping for something better, it's what drives us to rely on Christ and his sacrifice for us. Anyway, I thought that might bring you some peace. I have hope in Christ that your health with improve :)
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