Out Tracting and Contacting Referrals
We are almost at the end of the month which means we get more miles on our car in October! Wow has it been stressful not being able to drive anywhere. The members tried helping out as best they could. Which was nice! But I totally didn't appreciate having a car until they limited our usage on it! We live at the edge of the boundary so we have to travel twice as far as everyone else to get anywhere. Yea, dumb!
Highlights from the week:
First. So I found my voice this week! And it was lovingly bold! (This is one of our goals as North Carolina Missionaries...I guess it just came natural to me.) We were teaching a man who is devoutly Christian but has mainly Catholic views. He came to his second lesson with a very obvious intention that he was there to teach “US”, and denounce anything we were saying that wasn't in accordance with what he believed. So there I am teaching about the 3 Kingdoms of Glory. And explained to him that those of us on earth will not go to Hell, because we had already chosen to follow God's plan and come to earth. So depending on how we act and if we follow the examples of Jesus Christ, that is where we will end up. He did not agree with me one BIT! And he let me know! He kind of went off about all this random stuff telling me I was wrong and contradicted himself several times. We were getting no where and I was annoyed at this point and was getting very tired of his ranting, so I kindly cut him off and told him there was no further point in arguing. I told him I was glad he had faith in God, found Jesus Christ, and wanted his family to live righteously. I followed up by saying we needed to leave because we were getting no where and there was no use for us to sit there and tell one another what we believed. Then we left. My companion was like, "Whoa, Sister Golden! You were bold! I loved it!" We both died. It was quite amusing. Haha.
Second. We went to go teach a cute girl, around 26, her third lesson when she calls us and says, "Uhm you guys, I hope this is okay, but I have a friend who wants to come to the lesson. She is interested. I'm sorry for not telling you sooner!" Sister Arave and I tell her that it was fine and the more the merrier. We hang up, hive five and laugh! Woot woot! Getting friends to come is awesome:) The next night was a YSA dinner at the Bishops house and they both came as well as 2 other of our investigators. In total we had 4 investigators show up to the YSA dinner. How wonderful is that?!
Third. Another great part of the week was going to watch the General Women's Broadcast! It was really great and all the speakers touched on points that we are currently teaching our investigators! It was neat to hear. I really loved all of the talks and have learned that if you go with a question in your heart, it will get answered in one way or another during that meeting! I encourage you to do that with conference coming up!
Sister Arave and I at the General Woman's Broadcast
Fourth. I love the senior missionary couples in this area. There are two of them and they are so sweet! I have gotten close with one of them and I just adore them. They have served a mission prior to this, so this is their second! They love it and said they have grown so much. What I love about the couple missionaries is that they are always willing to help us out. They sometimes drive us to lessons, and give us moral support and are there to boost our confidence. They remind me of my grandparents so I gravitate towards them:) The one couple got sister Arave and I a few groceries from Costco this week because they heard we had a scarce month coming up for missionary dinners! How sweet is that??
Funny of the Week: When my companion and I were doing our nightly planning this week, all of a sudden we were attacked by these little black bugs! We had NO idea where they came from, or what they were! One crawled across the desk and I jumped back into my chair with surprise! I snatched my planner up for fear of it getting contaminated by the little insect...only seconds later do my instincts kick in and I smack the thing with my planner. Then I am overcome with feelings of guilt. I just squished the poor little thing! It was hardly as big as my thumb nail and it was probably just coming inside to stay cool and out of the scary world that is beyond our front door! We scooped it up and threw it into the garbage. This happened 4 more times during study time, and then again in the bathroom where we found another one! The people here say this usually happens when you move into an apartment because you disturb all the little bugs that were previously there...I didn't know whether I should be worried, repulsed or just let it go. Ha!
Tree Bug (but still it's a bug)!
Second, there was a lady who saw my name tag and asked me what kind of parents name their child 'Golden'! I told her I was the oldest so they prized me above all else. I quickly told her I was kidding because I think she believed me.
"Golden"
People here often think both mine and my companions first name is "Sister" :) How cute is that!
Interesting things of the South:
Several times my companion and I have gone to teach at the local trailer parks. I am still working on my love for these quaint little living spaces. Anyway, the southerners in this area don't really like turning their lights on. So when we walk inside the house their window shades are drawn (privacy is huge here) and they don't worry about flicking the switch so we have some light to see by. They prefer dim lighting I guess! I just chuckle to myself and squint to try and read them a passage in the Book of Mormon.
Also, on every street corner there is a new church. Pentecostal- Baptist- Christian- Methodist- Lutheran- Church of God- and more. They all claim that, "JESUS IS OUR LAWD AND SAVIOR!" and tell us everyone believes in Christ. Well as soon as we tell them that we, the Mormons, believe in that Jesus Christ as well, they all say, "No no, that's another Jesus Christ ya'll believe in. That just cracks me up. Haha:) Obviously my Jesus isn't their Jesus!
Well, I love you and I hope you are doing well. Keep saying your prayers, keep fulfilling your callings. Keep reading in the Book of Mormon. I am so grateful for this gospel in my life. It has really been a glue that has held me together over the last 20 years and I know it can do the same for you.
Love always,
Sister Mallory Golden
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