Tuesday, November 18, 2014

A WEEK OF ANSWERS


It's time to tell ya about the week.
COMPANIONS (Thanks for the picture Bairs)
To start it off we had to do some apartment checks for our apartment to see if it was up to "missionary standard".  The senior couple that came are the Bairs. They are so great!  His first name is Lyle (same as Grandpa Coopers) so it makes it even better.  He always says stuff and then his wife hits him and says "LYLE!"  I dont know, I think it is super funny, and makes everything okay.  I just love senior couples so much!  They add such a great dynamic to a mission.  If nothing else, they help the missionaries SO much.  Anyone who is thinking about going on a senior mission... do it!  You are so needed out here.


We had another lesson with D this week.  There is no doubt that he felt the spirit in this lesson.  I dont know how open he is to change... but he is defiantly searching.  He brought up an awesome analogy.  About a person looking for a certain store.  He is walking down the street really looking to find this store.  He is asking people on the way down for directions or where exactly it is.  He keeps going where the other people tell him to go and he still can't find it.  A lot of people give up and stop looking after a couple disappointments.  He knows the store is close and somewhere around the area he is he just cannot locate exactly where it is.  I then testified to him that we were in the "store".  That we have the directions and we WILL help him find it to.  Elder Whitaker then bore his testimony and it was a super awesome lesson.  We will meet with him in two days so I am stoked. 

Now this brings us to the main event of the week.  Our conference down in Bucharest.  Elder Whitaker and I stayed with Elder Jarmen and Elder Chatterton.  It is always so good getting to talk to my boy.  He is doing super good.  His
companionship is the first and I think only companionship in the mission to have ipads!  The time is getting close haha.. but that is besides the point.  We then got up the next morning to go to the conference.  Elder Kearon is amazing!  He is now one of my heroes and biggest examples.  It is so hard to explain how down to earth yet so spiritual he is.  He makes you participate out of your own desire to want to help and contribute.  Basically I dont think I have ever received such a exact response to one of my prayers before.  Literally almost every word that was spoken when I got to the conference to the time I left was a response to something I have been talking about with my Heavenly Father about.  It showed me that I have a lot I need to improve on, but left me hopeful enough to be happy and want to try just a little bit harder.  I don't think I have ever had such a good conference before.  It was SUPER long don't get me wrong, but overall it was great.  I wish I had time to go up and talk him personally but sadly I didn't.  So it was worth all the travel and what not we had to do to get there.  I also got to see a lot of people I haven't seen for a really long time!  I got to see my "baby sister" aka Sora Bird from my Arad transfers.  We gotta talk for a bit and catch up.  She is super awesome and she actually is serving in Panduri, exactly where I was before Sibiu.  She makes me laugh.
For the travel part this is what we had to do.  Leave
The joy of travel 
Wednesday at three on the 6ish hour train, then get into Bucharest around 9.  Then the next morning wake up at 6:30 and go to the meeting.  After that take a 3 hour train to the city of Brasov to get half way home.  That next morning wake up at like 5 to catch our train and get into sibiu at like 8 or 9 on Friday morning.  It was exhausting haha.

To top off the week we had 23 people at church!  We are being so blessed over here in Sibiu.  All of everyone's prayers and fasts are helping so much.  Doesn't mean that there might be some more dips into lower numbers, but three weeks in a row with numbers in the 20's is awesome!  So we are all pretty happy as a district.  We gotta keep working hard.

To end the letter I want to share an awesome scripture that was brought to my attention in an amazing new light.  Alma 62:41 "But behold, because of the exceedingly great length of the war between the Nephites and the Lamanites many had become hardened, because of the exceedingly great length of the war; and many were softened because of their afflictions, insomuch that they did humble themselves before God, even in the depth of humility." Basically it's our choice.  We all
have our own "wars" there is no avoiding it, but we get to choose how we will let it affect us.  We can become hardened and shut our friends, family, and God out.  Maybe the "war" will make us choose where we will be obedient and where we wont.  There are many ways to be "hardened".  We make ourselves miserable and blame it on the "war".  For those who have fallen into this category, don't give up.  You can stay hardened for a little while longer, I personally realize it is easier and more comfortable that way, but don't stay that way much longer. I beg you to start the softening process and just try and let it soften you. it's not fun, and change is difficult, but it is promised we will be happier.  So if nothing else rely on that to get started cause I KNOW you are not happy now.  The Lamanites and the Nephites both went through the war and people from both sides were hardened and softened.  Doesn't matter if you are a member of the church or not.  You get to choose.  Be careful!

Thanks for being so great to me and always having my best interest in mind.  I couldn't do this with out you all, so again, simply thanks.  Love you all, have a great week!

Love
The Nightwing!

ps:  Next week will be interesting with P-day, we are moving it to Thanksgiving.  So sometime Thursday I think is the plan to write home.  Also I received the package from Grandma, Grandpa, and Jacquilin  I was just about to run out of Skippy haha thanks so much from both me and elder Whitaker haha.  Love you!

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