So, I really honestly feel like a full blown missionary at this point. We have been doing really good work this week. But, the week began with a pretty bum day on Tuesday. We had, what we felt would be, a perfect day set up. We had appointments that would fill the majority of our time and great backup plans for those. Then as the day progressed it seemed that everything was working against us. Literally, on our way to each appointment, we had them cancel. EVERY SINGLE ONE, and then with that our backup plans quickly got used up. We ended up sitting in the car wondering what in the world we were supposed to do. Not one less active or recent convert member answered the door. So after just a miserable day we had to prepare for exchanges.
Exchanges are done so that the leadership of each district can go out with each missionary so they can see how they work and how they are doing. So this week it was our district leader Elder Porter going out with Elder Jennings in our area. So that meant the Elder Brown and I would be going to the Centennial area for the day with Elder Cooke. I really hate to talk poorly of people, but Elder Cooke is an interesting person. He was in the MTC with me and came out at the same time. He is very very very very by the book and compounds that with literal OCD. So between him still understandably not knowing the area very well and Elder Brown and myself not having any knowledge at all, the day was, well interesting. We ended up parking in this neighborhood and walking a mile to get to one house (Elder Cooke would not allow us to waste miles, even though they had miles to spare) then we had to walk a mile back the other way to get to this trailer park neighborhood. It was a nice place, but huge, and we were by the power of Cooke still walking haha. Oh did I mention it was the hottest day since I got out. A nice consistent 105 degrees if not hotter. But, we walked around for a long time and only came across active members. So in the space of our walking we didn't contact a single person we intended to. We got through the day and had a very nice dinner with a member down there and had a great lesson following. We finished exchanges and returned back to our wonderful Rancho Park area. Finally.
So Thursday saw some more disappointing results, but some miracles as well. We had a great lesson with our YSA investigator Ben. Ben is early 20's and has been investigating the church for about a year now. We had some lessons planned and he just simply asked us to read in the Book of Mormon with him. We did this for two lessons and he just loved it. We clarified some things with him and he has committed to baptism, but he wants to finish the whole Book of Mormon first. This is a valid thing for him to say, but we are going to explain to him in his next lesson that through baptism and the receiving of the Holy Ghost can really help in his reading so he can get the most possible out of it. Beyond that though, we need to get him to church. He has a job at a grocery store and frequently works on Sundays :(. Then we had a lesson cancel out of nowhere, so we found some time on our hands and decided to visit a less active member and his daughter. They are the Fraijo's and they are super nice people. He is a bit out there with some of his thoughts, but I feel so bad for him as he is going through a nasty divorce that is clearly having an ill effect on his 6th grade aged daughter. He says that she has trouble with some foods and with stomach issues and asked us to give her a blessing. I got to give it to her and while what I said escapes me, I know that the words of the Holy Ghost were coming through me to help this girl feel better. I think that the divorce is causing a huge amount of stress to come upon her, and with school starting that can be really hard to manage. I pray that she will be ok. Brother Fraijo came to church on Sunday!!!!!! It was wonderful to see him, and I know that through his faith an attendance he will bless his family, especially his daughter.
The rest of the week was pretty standard, but we had some great lessons with Cece. She is so amazing, but we just got to get her to stop smoking. Please pray for her to be strong. We talked with her about the Plan of Salvation, and really focused on Christ's Atonement. She took to that lesson so well and said to us that she is grateful for that because she knows that God knows she wants to stop smoking. She was going to come to church, but due to her bad hips and joints in her legs she was unable to get out of bed. But, the most amazing thing happened. Later in the day she called us and I picked up the phone. She asked if I had a minuet and then she told me that she had read a talk that a sister who had taught her before sent to her. It was by President Monson, and she said it totally lifted her up and made her feel so much better. Her favorite part was when it said "the closer an investigator is to baptism is when the adversary works the hardest on them". That's pretty cool, and she said that and I could hear the glow in her voice as in her head she is so close to being able to be baptized.
I love Sunday, it really is a day of rest and a day to feel of the spirit the strongest. The last two weeks I have focused on really taking the sacrament with a renewed scene of appreciation. It is a wonderful show of the love the Savior has for us to allow us to renew our baptismal covenants with him. Later in the meeting a sister spoke who just got back from her mission in South Korea. Her talk was wonderful, and it felt to me to have the spirit flowing from it. She talked a lot about the Atonement, and that really hit home as for this week was a tough one for my family. In the space of 6 days we celebrate some and mourn our little brother Cody. And this time of year would be so much worse for not our knowledge of the Atonement and Eternal families. We wish Cody could be here with us, but we KNOW that we will see him again and that provides the ultimate comfort during a tough time. I had been thinking a lot about that this last week, and her talk really hit home to me that knowledge of eternal families. It also hit home to me the reason I am out here on a Mission. I need to, through the spirit teach people of the Atonement and all of the other wonderful things this Gospel promises to us if we are worthy to receive them.
I love being out on a mission and I miss all of you like crazy!!!!!!
Love,
Elder Thelander
My sleeping arrangements while I was out on splits (I helped Elders in a different area than the one I am assigned to, so I stayed in their apartment for one night). In my own apartment, I have a real bed :).
