You all must know that I am dying. Because Quinn's play
looks so amazing. I know, I know, it's a sacrifice that I chose to make... and
I'm not angry or anything. But I must see more pictures. Because it looks
awesome.
So, this week was transfers! I kind of love transfer time on
a mission. I think that all the change is what makes the time fly past.
Also, you should all be so proud, because I actually took a
picture with my new companion before we got to the library Monday morning!
The first few days of this week were crazy busy. When
someone's getting transferred, especially after they've been somewhere for 4+
months, there are a lot of people to say good-bye to. So, Monday, we visited
James, the recent convert that Sister Esterholdt taught. I think that that was
pretty rough on her. I know it was hard for me to say good-bye to a lot of
people in Poplar Bluff!
We also cleaned a lot on Monday :) had to make a good
impression for the new companion!
Tuesday was insanely busy! We were running around half the
city. We had lunch with a member and we went to a place called The Blue Owl, in
historical Kimswick. It was so cute, you all would have loved it. Oprah
mentioned their famous apple pie. They put 18 apples in their apple pie. It
is basically a foot tall. You will have
to Google it, because it was amazing. And pretty darn delicious. I should have
taken a picture of it! Sorry!
We taught the first lesson to our new investigator, Ray. He
is a retired pastor, who married a less active member. Should be an interesting
go of it! His main concern is definitely the priesthood, because he doesn't
believe that the priesthood authority was lost from the Earth after Christ. We
talked a little about priesthood keys, but it could be his major stumbling block.
So, we're emphasizing the importance of prayer. If he prays about the Book of
Mormon, and receives a witness that it is true, I have no doubt that he will be
baptized. Satan's just going to be working extra hard to make sure that doesn't
happen.
Then dinner at a member's house, and she fed us a ton of
food. Oh my goodness. I felt like I was going to explode, especially after
eating a foot tall piece of pie at lunch. No wonder sister missionaries gain
weight on their mission. Thank goodness for the gym at our apartment complex!
Wednesday was transfers! Transfer meeting is always fun
because you get to see people :) and meet your new companion! My new companion
is Sister Nelson. She's from St George, and she has been out on her mission for
about 13 months. We had a lesson with one of our investigators, which went
pretty well.
Thursday was District Meeting. We had district lunch at
Panda Express, which is the first time I've had Panda in just about forever, it
was better than I remembered. I like chow mein.
We also had a lesson with a semi-active member, and it was a
pretty interesting lesson... I think it freaked out Sister Nelson :)
On Friday, Sister Nelson wasn't feeling well. But we did our
weekly planning (always an adventure) and visited some people. We also started
putting some decorations up on the wall, because the walls are pretty bare
here. I'll try to send a picture next week.
Saturday was busy. We saw some less active members and
tracted. One of the less actives we saw was a really nice girl, who's
graduating this year and plans on being the first member of her family to go to
college. Unfortunately, in order to pay for college, she's working a job that
makes her work Sundays :/
This week, in my personal study, one of the things that I
have been kind of studying is cheerfulness. I was reading in 2 Nephi 10:20:
"Seeing that our merciful God has given us so great knowledge concerning
these things, let us remember him, and lay aside our sins, and not hang down
our heads." And then, in verse 23: "Therefore, cheer up your
hearts"!
Wow, what a reminder. God has given us so much to be
grateful for! He has given us such great knowledge, most importantly about the
redeeming power of the Atonement. Through Christ, we CAN be cleansed of our
sins, and thereby return to live with our Father in Heaven. We can live with
our families forever. This life is not the end. I loved the talk in General
Conference by President Uchtdorf. He talked about how we can have that
cheerfulness, and how we can avoid hanging down our heads.
It comes back to gratitude. And the knowledge that we can be
most grateful for is this: "The more we learn about the gospel of Jesus
Christ, the more we realize that endings here in mortality are not endings at
all. They are merely interruptions—temporary pauses that one day will seem
small compared to the eternal joy awaiting the faithful."
Most sadness in this life comes from endings, but they are
not endings. They are just pauses. So we can lift up our heads and rejoice,
that there is more coming after this life.
I love you all! Hope you are having a wonderful week. Enjoy
studying Preach My Gospel, it's a good one :)
Love
Sister Barret
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