Sept. 5, 2009

This was a pretty good week though unfortunately we haven't been able to do much in the way of work outside of the office, my comp Elder R. got Swine flu.. .just kidding, but he did have a pretty high fever and we had to lay low for couple days, and with transfers this weekend he got pretty busy as well. On my end of things transfers aren't so bad, I just pay the services to move people around here in Salvador, and give a short training to the new missionaries and their trainers.

I guess I'll get to the questions first...

The ward here in Rio Vermelho is pretty good sized, something like 150 in sacrament meeting, and as such is much different than any other ward I've been a part of here on the mission. It’s really quite different the way the missionary work is going here in the ward, the bishop is really in to supporting the missionaries and the recent converts which is pretty sweet, and he is working at getting the inactive young guys active, ordained and working towards going on a mission. The missionary leader in the ward is into supporting the missionaries as well and to top it off, I have never seen so many people trying to feed us lunch as I have here. The only problem is that here in the mission office we really don’t have time around lunch to walk out to the member's homes to eat, and even working in the area falls at times when we have a really busy day. (like what seems to happen around transfers) But I think that once he (Elder R.) and I get into the swing of how to do things we'll speed up the process and be able to get out to work in the area.

The weather here is pretty hot (I think, remember I'm in the office from 9 to 6 these days) and a bit humid to boot.

Yes I do get to meet the new missionaries and those going home as well. I also get to know a good number of those working here in Salvador as well. Another benefit of being in the office is that I'm in the district with the AP's and a good number of older missionaries and as such can learn from their experience, district meetings have been really pretty sweet here.

Am I in the groove of things?... getting there, chances are my trainer here will leave tomorrow night or early next week so I guess we'll see just how much I've picked up the beat here.

Sometimes we look for new places, but generally the missionaries in the field ask around the ward for someone who at least knows someone who is trying to rent out a house/apartment.

Thanks for the stake conference insight, I've been thinking a bit about the same subject here recently, and I was thinking about how in our lives (or at least in mine) we often have ups and downs in our spiritual progress, forward a little, stop moving or move back a little, forward a little more, hold still or move back a little. Times where we really strive to grow closer to the Lord, then we grow complacent/comfortable, or perhaps we let Satan deceive us for a bit, then we repent and move closer to the Lord again etc. In the ideal progression, we would always be moving forward, a constant state of faithful living or what you might call living entirely out of your comfort zone. I was listening to a talk a little while ago where the speaker (Cleon Skousen), talking about his mission and having describing how he thanked God for the wonderful opportunity to go on a mission, and to have, "all these scary experiences", and how you just never know what’s going to happen to you "but if you just keep working vigorously and pushing forward it happens." The changes we need and desire happen, if we focus just always striving to be obedient, make the necessary course corrections, and to always move forward, the Lord will lead us in His way. Perhaps you might even say that the more comfortable we are, the greater danger we are in (in terms of our eternal progression).

I know God lives, I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior.
and my testimony I leave with you all in the name of Jesus Christ, amém.