Ma,
I go on splits every week. This week I went to Coatepec with Elder Melchor.
It's a cool little town and the food there is real good.
"I
always thought the President and his counselors and an office couple would be
in the office most of the time." This sentence made me laugh because A.
The President is never in the office (His computer and office are at his home) B. He has no counselors (besides us and
the assistants if that counts) C. There is no office couple here.
Since
becoming a secretary I've learned that if you really put yourself to work then
you can get things done in much less time than you'd expect (I've learned it
because I try to spend as little time as possible in the office so I can be in
the field). One good thing about being secretary is that I get a LOT of chances
to work with the assistants which really has helped me improve my teaching.
One
thing I've enjoyed a lot as a District Leader is doing baptismal interviews.
You get to know a person pretty well in those moments and you can make a huge
difference in very little time (I've done 8 so far and they're always
different, but they're always cool). One thing I love about the
missionaries in my district is the desire to do the right thing. I'm confident
that they all have it. One of our struggles (in most areas) is a lack of faith.
We're going out to work and we're giving it our all, but at times we're doing
it without the real expectation of success. So that's what the next district
class will treat.
I feel like the ward is making a good effort with Sasha right
now. We haven't been able to meet with her much because the members are
constantly scheduling FHE's with her so we're just kind of leaving it in their
hands for now. Pati has some good friends in the church now, but we still need
someone who can give her a ride because the members that live closest to her
seem to be the least willing.
In our area we just need to convince people
really well of the importance of coming to church. We have TONS of people who
receive us for lessons, but nobody wants to come to church at 8:00 in the
morning. The area has both rich and poor parts.
Elder Breinholt is just an
entertainingly strange dude so we've had some good laughs. The best part of the
week is that a lot of people are receiving us now, but, like I said, it's hard
to get people to church. That being said, we still had 4 this Sunday that came
so we'll keep the faith up. (Sasha, Pati, Maria, and Mario).
In regards to your
question about what the ward could do better, I don't think there's many
problems. Although the YSA's are a little prideful. We had an activity that was
supposedly centered on a mission objective, but not one of the YSA's brought an
investigator or non-member friend after having clearly discussed that that was
the purpose. They then proceeded to tell us to leave the activity because we
weren't able to bring anyone to it. It made me think of a quote from David A.
Bednar: “(A) common element in many of our prayers is a request that the
missionaries will be led to individuals and families who are prepared to
receive the message of the Restoration, but ultimately it is my responsibility
and your responsibility to find people for the missionaries to teach.
Missionaries are full-time teachers; you and I are full-time finders. And you
and I as lifelong missionaries should not be praying for the full-time
missionaries to do our work!” But in all sincerity the ward has been good and
that activity was simply an exception so we didn't say anything.
To
fellowship/welcome just don't be afraid to do it. It's like making any sort of
friend -- it's not that hard if you can get past the nerves. There's also about
3,000 General Conference talks on the subject if you want to take a look. (Advice for an upcoming council)
No p-day activities, but I was grateful because we finally had time to take care of
other concerns like getting food for example.
Love,
Elder
Finlinson
The little girl wanted Connor to hold her rooster.
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