Mission Update -- 11/26/08

Here's this week's update:


Hola Family!
This week has been crazy! We've gotten a lot done, and had some fun. We've had ups and downs, but overall it's been very good. I have my planner, so I'll just go through the days, starting on Friday:
Friday started out well, but very cold. It was 17 degrees outside, and windy, but we still went for a run. After studying, we went to MCM. We have MCM at the ward mission leaders apartment, which is in downtown Chicago. We had a good meeting, then went to the huge Target next door. We bought some food, then went home. After we got home, Elder Gardner and I booked it to visit a less active. She wasn't home, so we went to drop off a media referral bible for Annetta. She was feeling ill, so we rescheduled. After this dissappointing afternoon, we went to the Leal's for dinner (we have dinner with them every Friday). Dinner was great, but it was after dinner that was awesome. We rode way over to visit Mary, who had ordered a Bible, and ended up teaching her and her grown son a full lesson. They were very excited about the Book of Mormon, and we scheduled another appointment. This was awesome, because we got our first new investigators! We didn't have any investigators, so this was a huge step.
Saturday was pretty good, but not very fruitful. We went out looking for people, but didn't find... anyone. Pretty lame, but it happens. We did however find an amazing face mask shop, and bought some. The mask I got covers my mouth, cheeks, nose and ears. It cost $2.00, and is definitely the best value investment I've ever made in my life! After we got home, we made a bunch of calls to set up appointments. Something funny also happened - I was looking through the area book and found a record from Elder Busby! By the way, would you mind asking Sister Busby what areas he was in? One obviously was the Stockyards, but I'd be interested in hearing about the others!
Sunday was extremely weird. Elder Gardners pedal ripped off right as we were pulling into the church parking lot. We were very fortunate it didn't break sooner, or we'd have an awful walk. We didn't have any investigators, but church was still great. The scheduling there is very strange... They have their block completely the opposite of ours. I don't know if I'll ever get used to sacrament last. The ward is very good though. It may seriously be the most diverse ward in the entire world. The members are of every ethnicity and background. Some are extremely rich businessmen that live in skyscraper penthouses, and many struggle to pay rent in desolate neighborhoods. Some are white, some are black, and one is half Korean, half Vietnameese, with a dual citizenship from Iran and the United States... AND, a couple couples are from Arizona! I met families from Mesa and Chandler, and they were awesome! I also met Elder Adair's uncle, who invited us over to dinner for Thanksgiving. This will be awesome, especially since we only get fed once a week.
So there was church, but that was the mildly crazy part. We had a lot of appointments for after church, so Elder Gardner switched Elder Greenway bikes. After eating a quick ramen lunch in the church kitchen, Elder Gardner and I took off at a windsprint pace to get to our first appointment. We were almost there when Elder Greenways bike broke! The pedal got ripped off, so we ended up having to walk a few miles home. Were going to the very corner of our area, and were far away from the other appointments we had, so we had to reschedule. We got home and made some calls, then tried to fix the bikes. One was "totaled," so it is very good that mine is in the mail from home! We also were able to arrange our temple trip with a member from Wheaton too, so that was very good news.
Monday was a crazy day. Elder Maliwake came over on exchanges for a very full day of appointments. We went out and taught Earl and his sister Diane. Diane is a preacher, and runs her own youth ministry in her apartment. Their beliefs are pretty much the exact same as ours, and they're very excited about the Book of Mormon. Their church has about 8 members, and just may be the means through which they all find the fullness of the Gospel! Diane had a crazy life, but shaped up and found the Lord. She went to a lot of churches, but finally felt that God wanted her to have her youth ministry because the other churches werent right. They want to learn more about the Book of Mormon, and are excited to read it. There's 2 more new investigators! After that, we walked way over to visit a man named William. He has been taught alot in the past, and is what we call an Eternigator. He'll be very easy to teach, but hard to baptize. Either way, there's another new investigator, which is extremely great news for this area. The day was good, and we went to bed tired.
Tuesday was also a very good day. Elder Gardner and I went out walking after studying and making calls. We first went to a media referral, and found out the address didn't exist... Bummer. After that, we went and visited a less active. We helped her out and taught her a lesson. She'll try to come to church, but she's pretty ill. We then went to visit Annetta, who was ill the other day. She just had a heart surgery, so is woozy sometimes, but she is a very good lady. We taught her the whole first lesson, and are going to come back with a large print Book of Mormon and Bible. There's another New Investigator! We've gotten 6 so far, which is almost beyond awesome! After visiting Annetta, we went over to visit a less active family that just moved into the ward. They were living at a homeless shelter, and hadn't gone to church in a long time, but they finally got financially stable and want to be active in the church again. They're very nice, and we had a good lesson with them and their kids (who just may be crazier than Tony and Pamela's!!!!!).
Anyways, now it's Wednesday, and we don't have much planned. Just do laundry, shop, and hang out. We have a Turkey Bowl tomorrow, and Thanksgiving dinner, so all's well.
We've been doing well, and are loving the work out here. The Gospel is true, and I'm grateful for it. 45 seconds left, gotta go!
Love Elder McMullin