We are missionaries!

by Pat

Mother’s Day, June 11, we spoke in our ward sacrament meeting.  Monday we began our week at the MTC.  We were there from about 8 (except Monday was 10) until 4:30.  Our instruction and experience was fun, enlightening, motivating, and inspiring.  The young teachers were so prepared, engaging, capable, respectful, helpful, encouraging—I was in awe of their abilities and spirit.  Our role play in the teaching resource center was such an opportunity to discover our strengths and weakness, how we work as a companionship, how the Spirit testifies of truth even when we’re pretending—powerful!  We are so grateful for the privilege of being trained at the MTC.
 

The past two weeks have provided about 12 additional hours of our-mission-specific instruction.  Our mission president has assigned a senior couple to be his assistants over the senior missionaries.  Once we’re all called and in place, there will be about 330 of us serving in the 165 stakes in our mission—what a bunch of old loose cannons. :)  We have also had our first zone conference and first district meeting.  Last week we had a personal interview with the mission president but don’t expect to have one again.  He’s pretty busy with 260 young missionaries, so we will have quarterly interviews with his assistant.  We’ve turned in 2 weekly reports and written 2 letters to the assistant—so you know we really are missionaries.

We do, however, get our marching orders from our stake president, so we’ve met with his presidency, the stake high councilor over missionary work, the young elders who serve in our stake (and 2 others), and the stake clerk—now our best friend, who has supplied us with all kinds of lists and maps and charts and statistics so we can be familiar with the 11 wards and their leaders.  We’ve attended 7 sacrament meetings, spoken in 1, attended 2 missionary coordination meetings, and have our Sundays full of attending and speaking for the rest of the month.

And…we have actually met a few times with a non-member and twice with a young prospective elder.  We’ve made some visits as prompted and truly love it when the Spirit speaks.  

With all this Merlin has not felt well for 2 weeks and has been downright sick a couple days, today being one of them.  He has bronchitis and might have another 2 weeks before it’s gone.  We’re finding it’s really hard for the companionship when one of us is down, but we’re trusting that the promised renewal of his body will kick in here soon after he endures the trial.

Speaking of—we have not yet resolved our business issues completely but have done what we can and now trust the Lord and His timing.  Merlin is not completely free and that is disappointing and stressful, but how would he function without stress?!  Actually, I’m ready to see, and we’re confident things will work out one way or another soon.

We know it’s our time and place to serve, and we’ve been blessed that we’ll be able to do some amazing things.  Our stake president has incredible vision, and we’re trying to see what he sees.  We are really loving the work and are energized by it.  We invite you all to be member missionaries.  It’s always been our call, but now we’re all part of this exciting hastening.  We testify that as we prayerfully ask, we will be led to make this who we are and what we are about every day—our new way of life until the Savior comes.  And Elder Fish and I promise that there is power and protection and happiness in this work that we each need and will enjoy in our families and in our individual lives.