This week was alright. We didn't get to see Sarah. Elder Seelos and I are going really well. Happy Birthday Swiss, a little late. Sounds like Ryan did something right. :) The move sounds refreshing having someone actually prepared to have them move. The color coding was funny because I have gotten a four color pen and four whiteboard markers with matching colors and my companion is probably sick of me - I have been color coding everything this transfer. I was pretty happy to hear about that. I am almost as impressed as it sounds like Buzz was. I miss In-N-Out - it is funny that Shannon and I are such good friends.
This week:
This week has been interesting. We have been trying to see people but they were build ups all week. Sarah, the one I have written about in the past, canceled three appointments this week. It was disappointing. We should hopefully see them on Tuesday. I have been having some odd feeling this week. I am having fun but I keep thinking about how I feel like I am not living up to expectations - whether it be my own, Presidents, or what I think the Lord is expecting - but things just aren't going the way I want them to in my area. We are trying but I keep thinking about home and what I want to do and stuff. President had high expectations that I told you about. I have heard about Favona my whole mission and now that I am hear it is just not as good as I want it to be. The members are awesome, the people are good. I love the people we are able to visit but we can't find new people.
So I was feeling a little down most of the week until Sunday. It was 6:00am and we had a meeting with all the WML's in the stake, the bishops, and the full time missionaries. Our stake president is a very driven man and demands results. It was pretty much just him rebuking the bishops for not baptizing enough - of course he did it in a nice way but that was the jist. It was early and no one seemed very happy afterward. Our bishopric had Bishopric meeting and this was what they discussed the whole meeting. It was then time for Church and none of our investigators came, even the people that we see like every week at church. So I was feeling even more down but Bishop called for a short last minute Ward Council after church. Church ended at 2 and we were out of our meeting by 2:30 which is amazing in itself. He told everyone what we had talked about in the meeting. He talked about how Favona has been the highest baptizing ward in NZ for the past 2 years - except for this year. He knows the ward can do better. They put forth a plan for the Ward Council to have weekly missionary goals. The first goal is to have every member of the Ward Council and their counselors give the missionaries one referral each by the end of the week. We have already gotten a few and it was cool to see how Bishop has the faith that if we each are praying for the opportunities they will come and we are going to measure it. It was a good meeting and he let us speak. I told everyone some of what I was feeling as the missionary in the ward it was hard for me to say some of it but it was true. It was cool to feel the Spirit. Hopefully the ward responds well.
Transfers are this week. We heard a rumor that Elder Seelos is going to Henderson Zone so we will see what happens. I will be sad to have him leave if he does but it will probably be good to have someone new if it happens. I think we may have just gotten too comfortable.
Love,
Elder Summers