...AND I WILL MAKE AN INSTRUMENT OF THEE...

Are the weeks getting faster and faster?  This past week was especially weird feeling cause we did our P-day last Tuesday, so it seems even closer to the last time I was here writing to all of you.

This week elder Chatterton and I tried something.  We took Dad's advice.  We tried putting the law of sacrifice into practice.  This week we were being more exact with the

things we did.  The reason we tried this was because we were just having a stuck feeling, like the work here in Sibiu is at a stand still.  We wanted to try something new to see if it helped anything, and it did.  We were out contacting and it was about time to start heading home.  We were pretty close to being home when I looked at him and said, we need to talk to one more person before we can end this block of contacting.  So that is exactly what we did.  What we normally do is ask people some survey question, and then ask if they want to meet up later and talk.  Well with this man we talked to him and asked the survey questions.  At the end we asked for his number and to meet up and he said no.  Then the conversation switched a little and we were just talking about normal things, like cool places in Sibiu, and the differences between different countries.  The conversation ended up on how the level of faithfulness of people is so different in neighboring countries.  Well when we wrapped up the conversation he asked for our number and if we could meet up sometime!  He went from being super closed to the idea and at the end of our conversation, he was asking for it!  It was super cool!

Throughout this week we had some super fun activities.  We had our sports/game night on Friday.  This time we did it at the church.  We played some uno, ping-pong, and some hacky-sack.  We have a consistent flow of people who always come to it and then it is just a matter of time. :)  The following day we had our movie night!  We had a solid turn out.  We had 6 investigators and 2 members!  It made us super happy.  We watched Megamind!  It is still one of my favorite movies!  It was so cool to see everyone come and connect.  The people who came to our movie night are the ones who normally come to our sports nights and our English classes.  Something is bound to happen with them!

So something small is kinda changing in our mission.  

President Ivory wants us to switch up our study schedule a bit.  He wants us to save one of our studies for after lunch.  Basically he just wants us out of the house by 10 in the morning to try and find a new group of people.  It is actually going pretty well....That was kinda random.... oh well :)

Now onto some of the spiritual stuff.  I am about half way through Alma again, and Ill tell ya, it is just chalked full of good stuff!... obvi... it's the Book of Mormon. haha.  I found something that I want to share that I really liked this week.  Its in Alma 17: 11  "And the Lord said unto them also: Go forth among the Lamanites, thy brethren, and establish my word;

 

yet ye shall be patient in 

long-suffering and 

afflictions, that 

ye may show forth good 

examples unto them in me, 

and I will make an instrument of thee in my hands unto the salvation of many souls."  

Sometimes we have to be patient in our trials and challenges just so we can set a good example to others.  When we set that example, not only as missionaries but as members of the church, we set it in our Lord and Savior Christ.  We show them that we are able to be patient in long-suffering because of our faith and our hope that Christ has it under control.  So when they see our examples they can often see that there is something else involved. :)  Whenever I read about the Lamanites, my mind always relates them to the Romanians haha  It helps the scriptures be more relatable.  So ya there is that :)

"oh you know, just celebrating...
our one year in the country mark" 

I am happy to hear that everyone is doing good.  

Love you all so much!  Until next Monday!! :)

Love,

Elder James

"After hour party with the sisters again... not really they just had this bug that they were freaking out about.... we had to go get it out of there apartment...It was at the sisters apartment and they called us at like 10 pm to go over and get rid of it... so we captured it and brought it back to our place where we killed it haha.  That first picture is a selfy with the bug in the bucket"