November 25th was transfer day (I thought -- turns out it was the 23rd), but Elder M did not get transferred. Another 6 weeks in Aurora (Naperville 4th Ward). Here's his update:
Hello Family,
Happy Thanksgiving! It sounds like everything is going OK. Taylor, you get feeling better though. Sorry about your head, Dad! Hopefully you'll stop looking like Frankenstien soon. [Ed bumped his head into a wall in the dark and ended up with 12 stiches!]
Well, things are going great here. Transfers have come and gone. I'm staying here. Elder Ahlman and I went to pick up the new missionaries from the airport, which was fun. We got a new one in our district... Elder Gates is training Elder Dearinger. Elder Dearinger is a recent convert who grew up in Ukraine and Russia, then moved to Washington State. Both he and Elder Gates played professional soccer before their missions! We're pretty excited to have Elder Dearinger in our Zone and District. The Geneva Elders are the same still too. We had a couple of Sisters transfer in, and also a couple of Elders.
This last week was pretty good though. Here's what happened:
Wednesday was pretty fun. We played basketball and football in the Stake Center gym. We also got some pizza. It was an overall good Zone Activity. I also got a package from Mooker, which was pretty neat. After that, we went to visit Lorenszo, who tubed us. We did meet a woman at Maple Terrace that has got great potential though. We started talking to Chiquita (just like Chiquita Banana) in the hall, and ended up teaching her. After that, we went to the Popes for dinner and a lesson. We took the Naper 6 Elders with us because they won a Zone competition we held. We had Chicken Marsala. It had wine in it. President Duffield (from the stake presidency) and his wife took the Popes out for dinner a few nights before, and asked him if it would be ok. He told them, "If you eat it with a fork, it's not drinking... Is it?" Pretty funny. The alchohol cooks out too, so we were good. It was pretty funny, because our lesson was going to be on the Word of Wisdom too. Anyways, after dinner we played "Spiritual Jeopardy." Sister Pope made a really fun game for us to play. After that, we taught the lesson and went home. Brother Pope is doing incredibly well. He's excited about the Gospel. He had read to Helaman in the Book of Mormon, finished the Conference Report, read some of the Joseph Smith manual, and has started Preach My Gospel. He is awesome.
Thursday was pretty good. We spent a good chunk of the day at the mission office. We got cleared to drive the truck & trailor, and also the mega-van. It was ok. After that, we drove back home and went to teach. We did some stop bys in Maple Terrace. After that, we went to pick up Christian Stratford, who is one of the young men. We took him tracting in Aurora. We found a lot of Spanish speakers, and one new investigator for us. Our new investigator is Scott, who is a Kung Fu master and karate teacher. After that, we went over to read the Book of Mormon with Jeremy. Jeremy is doing great! He's now looking for opportunities to do service for the work. He's already been doing the library, home teaching, and working at the Bishop's Storehouse, but he wants more. After teaching Jeremy, we dropped Christian off at home, then went to the Beans. We had a good time there. We went in to teach, and ended up helping them do service. We tried to move this couch down some stairs and out a door, but it wouldn't fit. We then proceeded to "own" the couch. We had a hammer, a saw, a box cutter, Stephen Bean's fist, and our feet to kick it. We absolutely dominated this couch, and got it through the door. It was pretty wild. After that, we had a lesson. They're a really fun family, and are just like Elder Gardner (who is now home!). After that, we went over to the Jones family's home for dinner. They made us some great Texas food. It was delicious, and we both ate way too much. We had a great time there. They're having us over again next week, and we're going to help them make some plans for sharing the Gospel with their friends.
Friday was pretty good. We went to help Sister Glaviano move some stuff in the morning. After that, we went home and had our weekly planning. We went to Maple Terrace and also tracted, which was pretty good. We had some cancelations, so it was a fairly slow day. We did teach Krista and her mother though, which went really well. Krista is going to race us to the end. They had just gone to see New Moon the night before, and were pretty out of it, but they're getting excited to beat us in reading the Book of Mormon. We also had dinner at the Gamboas' home, which was great! Sister Gamboa made us some Posolé, which is very good. We also taught a friend of theirs that was over there. They do a great job at missionary work. A family we taught at their home a week or two ago (with Sister Gamboa being a translator), and subsequently referred to the Spanish Elders just accepted a baptismal date! 3 of them are scheduled for baptism next month. After dinner and a lesson there, we drove to Wheaton for our swine flu shots. We got them for free from the county health department.
Saturday was alright. Things have been pretty crazy because of preparations for picking up the greenies. We went and did a practice run of going to the airport. That took a while, but was important. We did some tracting and stop bys after that. We also taught Chiquita again. She is awesome! Both her, and her twin sister, Nikita, accepted baptismal dates and are preparing to be baptized on December 19th (both have been keeping commitments since then, and are doing very well. Chiquita absolutely loved church)!! We're super excited. We had dinner with Nancy and her family, which went well. We also got transfer calls that night. It was a pretty atypical day, but was a good one.
Sunday was good. We had the meetings before church, which went well. The Lord has been blessing the Ward with some incredible missionary fervor. It was great to see how well everyone fellowshipped Chiquita, and a few others that came for their first time. Mark Pope had a good time at church, and gave productive insights during class, as always. We're still in awe at how strong his testimony is. He's explained to us how he knows it now, and cannot ever unknow it. The Lord has really answered our prayers, his prayers, and those of everyone else praying for him. After church, we went home and did some preparation work, then went out to teach. We did some stop bys, and ended up teaching Sister Apodaca. We taught her about the dangers of pride, and becoming humble. After that, we went to the Beans to help them out with some service. We then went to dinner at the Clarks' home. They're an awesome family. We helped them make some plans for missionary work. After dinner, we went home and did some transfer planning.
Monday was insane. We left early in the morning to go to the mission home. We then went to transfer meeting. Elder Ahlman and I helped load up the luggage of the departing missionaries. It was good to say goodbye to Elder Gardner, and the others who were leaving. After that, we drove to O'Hare, then sat around for a while. When the greenies arrived, we packed their stuff into the trailor, then all went back to the mission home. We stayed there, and had some Giordanno's with them and their trainers. It was very fun. One greenie is going to Bourbonnais with Elder (Lobo) Stratton. He's pretty lucky. Another is going to Stockyards. That should be interesting. Anyways, after going to the mission home, we went to the mission office and ended up helping them move a lot of cars so they could be taken to a Colorado mission. After all of this, we didn't have much time left in the day. We went back, and had a cancelled appointment. Our only teaching opportunity was at dinner with the Capeners. That went well. They made some specific plans and commitments to share the Gospel with others. They're also having Jeremy and his family over for Thanksgiving. That should be awesome! It will be Jeremy's wife's first real contact with the Church. His daughters are going to start coming to Church next week, so this could very well turn into her investigating too. We're excited for that.
Tuesday was very good. We had a morning appointment with a media referral. I had given her a pass a long card a few days before, and she called the number to get a free DVD. It is rare for that to happen when you give them to random people, so this was exciting. She loved the Restoration, felt and recognized the Spirit, and committed to coming to Church starting in December. After that lesson, we went to the Hesed House. That went well. After the Hesed House, we went to read the Book of Mormon with Mike. We also taught a new investigator from the building named Vera. She's the nurse there, and we're excited to begin teaching her more. We also taught the Zacas, which went very well. They were asking deep questions about the Plan of Salvation, which was great. We then went to teach Roger, who is doing very well. The Lord has been working on him for a while. He made some significant changes in his life within a couple weeks of us first stopping by his home. He's accepted the Restoration, and has gained a testimony of the Book of Mormon. He's progressing, and we're excited for that. After teaching Roger, we went to read the Book of Mormon with Jeremy. After that, we went to visit the Gaffneys. We then went to the Popes for dinner and a lesson. Mark also showed us his guns, which was fun. He's got some nice shotguns you'd like, Dad & Grandpa.
Today has been good. We taught Amanda this morning. We've got some appointments for the rest of the day too. Tomorrow will be our P-Day. The mission is emailing today though, because libraries are closed tomorrow.
So, things are going well! We're getting excited for Brother Pope's baptism, and everything else! The Lord's blessed us a lot, and we're excited to see His work progress.
I hope you have a great Thanksgiving! I love you.
- Elder Bradley E McMullin
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Friday, November 20, 2009
Mission Update -- 11/18/09
This has been a busy week and I'm a little late posting Elder M's email from Wednesday. Here it is. Sounds like it was a bit of a disappointing week, but he's always so positive.
Hello Family,
It sounds like things are going well. That's especially exciting about the lady you're helping the missionaries teach, Mom! Keep it up. The Restored Gospel is the best thing anyone could ever accept!
Well, things are going well here. I'll just tell you now, this last week was pretty catastrophic for the work. We had a lot of fallout from our teaching pool. There are a few people that I probably won't mention again, or for a while. Things are still going really well for us, and I'm doing great, so don't worry at all. Seriously. We're doing all we can, and it's just up to others to make the choices they need to. Our efforts make our success. Anyways, if you don't hear someones name mentioned though, just pray for them that they can choose to come unto Christ.
So, having that in mind, here's what happened for the week.
Wednesday was good. We had a cancelled appointment in the evening, but got ready for our exchange with the Assistants. Elder Wilson came to be with me in Naper 4.
Thursday was the real exchange day. It went very well. We had some good tracting in the morning, and found Elder Foster. He's a preacher, and a good guy that we may start teaching. After that, we did some administrative review stuff and ate lunch. We then went to teach another sister, which was pretty wild. She was really crabby, and Elder Wilson didn't know what to think. After that, we went to teach Jose Perez. That went really well. We're transferring him over to the Spanish Elders, because he decided he'd prefer to go to church at the Aurora (Spanish) Ward. After that, we went to Maple Terrace to teach. We ended up finding a new investigator to teach there. Maple Terrace is the low income government subsidized housing, and has a lot of people for us to teach. It's awesome. After that, we went to visit Nancy. After that, we went to exchange back with our companions. Elder Ahlman and I had been with 4 companions within the last week. Prestbury, Spanish, Assistants, and eachother. Crazy. After that, we did some stop bys. We didn't have much happen with that, but had an appointment with the Popes before too long. The appointment went really well. Brother Pope is the man. He's getting really excited for his baptism. The Ward is really excited too, as is the Stake Presidency (and of course, us!). He is so productive at church even as an investigator. He's going to be one of the most capable members for any calling in the church. We hope he'll be a Ward Missionary. He actually brought up tithing with us before we were to teach it last week, and told us he has a testimony of it. He really is good to go now. He's read through Jacob in the Book of Mormon, quotes scriptures he's read, has read the entire Conference Report in the Ensign, much of the Joseph Smith sunday school manual, and is now starting Preach My Gospel.
Friday was a pretty good day too. We started off by visiting Jeremy Hwang in the morning. He's doing quite well. He serves at the bishops storehouse, and helps out at church a lot. It's pretty neat... One of his hometeachers is going to have him and his family over for Thanksgiving! That'll be great, because Jeremy's wife will finally have some contact with the Church! After teaching him, we went to teach Amanda and then went home to weekly plan. After that, we went to teach Krista and Jessica. We taught Krista, and she accepted a challenge to race us through the Book of Mormon. She will probably beat us, because we don't really have much time. I hope she does, because that will be really good for her. After that, we went to teach Nannie, who was the lady we found in Maple Terrace with Elder Wilson. She probably won't progress. After that, we picked up Christian Stratford, a young man from the ward, and went to teach the Zacas. They're doing really really well! It's been so exciting to see Kayla grow up, and see the change that has come on the whole family. Darwin is doing great, and is preparing to be baptized too! After that we went to teach David. After that, we went to dinner at the Stratfords. They are an awesome family. Within the past month, they've given out 7 copies of the Book of Mormon, gotten 60 pass a long cards to give out with Christmas teats, and have made specific plans for individuals they're helping to come unto Christ. We're excited to see what they're doing.
Saturday was a pretty good day. We had a great MCM in the morning. It lasted quite a while, but that was OK because we had a lot to cover, and it was really productive. After that, we had lunch, then went out. We had an appointment to help the Gamboas plan missionary work. We went there, and ended up teaching a Hispanic family in their home. Sister Gamboa was our interpreter, which worked out well. She's such a great missionary. They accepted the invitation to investigate the Church, and will be taught by the Spanish Elders. After that, we went to teach Brad and Sue, who are doing really well. They love the Restored Gospel. They'll take a while to progress, but are doing very well right now. After that, we went to the Housers home. They had us over for a sort of Primary party where they were making home made pizzas. We had some pizza there, which was really good. After that, I believe we found for a little bit. We soon went to the Adams home. They had a friend over, who we began to teach. She's really nice, and it went well, but she decided to not investigate the Church. One thing I've found out is that relationships are definitely not damaged when people share the Gospel. We have to have the attitude of "We are offering you a gift." Who would ever be offended if we offered them a gift? Certainly not a true friend, which is the case. The lady we taught at the Newcomes' home is doing well. She's still great friends with them, and is actually about to come to a Relief Society activity. Family, I'd like to challenge and commit you to invite at least one person to hear from the missionaries before the year's end. Pray for a name to do it, and I promise you that it will help you out, and especially help them out. Anyways, after visiting the Adams, we went to dinner at the Zinns. That went very well. They're a really nice family, and help us out. They're coming up with a list of families to share the Gospel with. Sister Zinn also is starting to help us teach Amanda.
Sunday was alright. We started it off with early morning PEC. That went well. After that, we went around to try to get people to church. We had a pretty good turnout. Brad and Sue came for their second time(their first was to Stake Conference) and absolutely loved it. The members love them too. We've got it just about arranged to have them over to the Matucks' home for dinner next week! Mark Pope is doing very well, of course. After church, we had a cancelled appointment, so we did our studies. After a while, we had dinner with the Harris family. They're really nice, and are quite missionary minded. They had made a list of people to share the Gospel with, which was our last commitment. This time, we helped them make specific plans for those on their list. They're also going to make us flyers to hand out for the Christmas Devotional too. After that, it was dark. We went home to do some organizing, and calling to set up appointments with less actives.
Monday was not the greatest day, but still a blessing. We had an awesome district meeting. After that, we tracted a few hours, and didn't have much happen. We had some cancelled appointments, but got a referral for the Spanish Elders. In the early evening, we went to help the Weislers, a move in, move some heavy things into their home. After that, we drove over to Naperville to have dinner with the Matthews. They fed us well, and gave us banana milk, which was pretty good. After we shared a message with them, we drove all the way over to Aurora, only to get tubed. We went to visit Nancy and Brandon and were there for a little bit before going home for the night.
Tuesday was a great day! In the morning, we went to the Stake Center for a Zone Fireside. Larry Gelwix, who is the "winningest coach in America," came to speak. He's the rugby coach that the movie Forever Strong is made about. He's been traveling doing firesides for the Church all over. He was in town to speak at a business convention, and was kind enough to also talk with us. He's a great speaker, and was quite inspiring. After that, we went over to the Hesed House. After the Hesed House, we went to get tubed by Amanda. We then went to teach Mike C. After we read from the Book of Mormon, we started teaching others in Maple Terrace. We taught Gail, who we've been talking to for a while. She's now going to investigate, which is pretty exciting. After her, we went to teach Roger. He was a referral from Mike. Roger seems somewhat out of place in Maple Terrace. He's really interested, and has been searching for truth for a while. He felt the Spirit, and should be one of our best investigators actually. After teaching him, we went to teach Lorenszo. We did a litle bit of preparation, then went to dinner at the Coopers' home. They're a great family, and we had some good steaks. After that, we went to the Matucks home. They are doing so well, and are now becoming great missionaries!
Today should be great. We have Zone Activity, then appointments with Lorenszo and the Popes in the evening.
I hope you all have a great week. I love you, and appreciate all you do!
Love,
Elder Bradley E McMullin
Hello Family,
It sounds like things are going well. That's especially exciting about the lady you're helping the missionaries teach, Mom! Keep it up. The Restored Gospel is the best thing anyone could ever accept!
Well, things are going well here. I'll just tell you now, this last week was pretty catastrophic for the work. We had a lot of fallout from our teaching pool. There are a few people that I probably won't mention again, or for a while. Things are still going really well for us, and I'm doing great, so don't worry at all. Seriously. We're doing all we can, and it's just up to others to make the choices they need to. Our efforts make our success. Anyways, if you don't hear someones name mentioned though, just pray for them that they can choose to come unto Christ.
So, having that in mind, here's what happened for the week.
Wednesday was good. We had a cancelled appointment in the evening, but got ready for our exchange with the Assistants. Elder Wilson came to be with me in Naper 4.
Thursday was the real exchange day. It went very well. We had some good tracting in the morning, and found Elder Foster. He's a preacher, and a good guy that we may start teaching. After that, we did some administrative review stuff and ate lunch. We then went to teach another sister, which was pretty wild. She was really crabby, and Elder Wilson didn't know what to think. After that, we went to teach Jose Perez. That went really well. We're transferring him over to the Spanish Elders, because he decided he'd prefer to go to church at the Aurora (Spanish) Ward. After that, we went to Maple Terrace to teach. We ended up finding a new investigator to teach there. Maple Terrace is the low income government subsidized housing, and has a lot of people for us to teach. It's awesome. After that, we went to visit Nancy. After that, we went to exchange back with our companions. Elder Ahlman and I had been with 4 companions within the last week. Prestbury, Spanish, Assistants, and eachother. Crazy. After that, we did some stop bys. We didn't have much happen with that, but had an appointment with the Popes before too long. The appointment went really well. Brother Pope is the man. He's getting really excited for his baptism. The Ward is really excited too, as is the Stake Presidency (and of course, us!). He is so productive at church even as an investigator. He's going to be one of the most capable members for any calling in the church. We hope he'll be a Ward Missionary. He actually brought up tithing with us before we were to teach it last week, and told us he has a testimony of it. He really is good to go now. He's read through Jacob in the Book of Mormon, quotes scriptures he's read, has read the entire Conference Report in the Ensign, much of the Joseph Smith sunday school manual, and is now starting Preach My Gospel.
Friday was a pretty good day too. We started off by visiting Jeremy Hwang in the morning. He's doing quite well. He serves at the bishops storehouse, and helps out at church a lot. It's pretty neat... One of his hometeachers is going to have him and his family over for Thanksgiving! That'll be great, because Jeremy's wife will finally have some contact with the Church! After teaching him, we went to teach Amanda and then went home to weekly plan. After that, we went to teach Krista and Jessica. We taught Krista, and she accepted a challenge to race us through the Book of Mormon. She will probably beat us, because we don't really have much time. I hope she does, because that will be really good for her. After that, we went to teach Nannie, who was the lady we found in Maple Terrace with Elder Wilson. She probably won't progress. After that, we picked up Christian Stratford, a young man from the ward, and went to teach the Zacas. They're doing really really well! It's been so exciting to see Kayla grow up, and see the change that has come on the whole family. Darwin is doing great, and is preparing to be baptized too! After that we went to teach David. After that, we went to dinner at the Stratfords. They are an awesome family. Within the past month, they've given out 7 copies of the Book of Mormon, gotten 60 pass a long cards to give out with Christmas teats, and have made specific plans for individuals they're helping to come unto Christ. We're excited to see what they're doing.
Saturday was a pretty good day. We had a great MCM in the morning. It lasted quite a while, but that was OK because we had a lot to cover, and it was really productive. After that, we had lunch, then went out. We had an appointment to help the Gamboas plan missionary work. We went there, and ended up teaching a Hispanic family in their home. Sister Gamboa was our interpreter, which worked out well. She's such a great missionary. They accepted the invitation to investigate the Church, and will be taught by the Spanish Elders. After that, we went to teach Brad and Sue, who are doing really well. They love the Restored Gospel. They'll take a while to progress, but are doing very well right now. After that, we went to the Housers home. They had us over for a sort of Primary party where they were making home made pizzas. We had some pizza there, which was really good. After that, I believe we found for a little bit. We soon went to the Adams home. They had a friend over, who we began to teach. She's really nice, and it went well, but she decided to not investigate the Church. One thing I've found out is that relationships are definitely not damaged when people share the Gospel. We have to have the attitude of "We are offering you a gift." Who would ever be offended if we offered them a gift? Certainly not a true friend, which is the case. The lady we taught at the Newcomes' home is doing well. She's still great friends with them, and is actually about to come to a Relief Society activity. Family, I'd like to challenge and commit you to invite at least one person to hear from the missionaries before the year's end. Pray for a name to do it, and I promise you that it will help you out, and especially help them out. Anyways, after visiting the Adams, we went to dinner at the Zinns. That went very well. They're a really nice family, and help us out. They're coming up with a list of families to share the Gospel with. Sister Zinn also is starting to help us teach Amanda.
Sunday was alright. We started it off with early morning PEC. That went well. After that, we went around to try to get people to church. We had a pretty good turnout. Brad and Sue came for their second time(their first was to Stake Conference) and absolutely loved it. The members love them too. We've got it just about arranged to have them over to the Matucks' home for dinner next week! Mark Pope is doing very well, of course. After church, we had a cancelled appointment, so we did our studies. After a while, we had dinner with the Harris family. They're really nice, and are quite missionary minded. They had made a list of people to share the Gospel with, which was our last commitment. This time, we helped them make specific plans for those on their list. They're also going to make us flyers to hand out for the Christmas Devotional too. After that, it was dark. We went home to do some organizing, and calling to set up appointments with less actives.
Monday was not the greatest day, but still a blessing. We had an awesome district meeting. After that, we tracted a few hours, and didn't have much happen. We had some cancelled appointments, but got a referral for the Spanish Elders. In the early evening, we went to help the Weislers, a move in, move some heavy things into their home. After that, we drove over to Naperville to have dinner with the Matthews. They fed us well, and gave us banana milk, which was pretty good. After we shared a message with them, we drove all the way over to Aurora, only to get tubed. We went to visit Nancy and Brandon and were there for a little bit before going home for the night.
Tuesday was a great day! In the morning, we went to the Stake Center for a Zone Fireside. Larry Gelwix, who is the "winningest coach in America," came to speak. He's the rugby coach that the movie Forever Strong is made about. He's been traveling doing firesides for the Church all over. He was in town to speak at a business convention, and was kind enough to also talk with us. He's a great speaker, and was quite inspiring. After that, we went over to the Hesed House. After the Hesed House, we went to get tubed by Amanda. We then went to teach Mike C. After we read from the Book of Mormon, we started teaching others in Maple Terrace. We taught Gail, who we've been talking to for a while. She's now going to investigate, which is pretty exciting. After her, we went to teach Roger. He was a referral from Mike. Roger seems somewhat out of place in Maple Terrace. He's really interested, and has been searching for truth for a while. He felt the Spirit, and should be one of our best investigators actually. After teaching him, we went to teach Lorenszo. We did a litle bit of preparation, then went to dinner at the Coopers' home. They're a great family, and we had some good steaks. After that, we went to the Matucks home. They are doing so well, and are now becoming great missionaries!
Today should be great. We have Zone Activity, then appointments with Lorenszo and the Popes in the evening.
I hope you all have a great week. I love you, and appreciate all you do!
Love,
Elder Bradley E McMullin
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Kayla's Baptism
Kayla, her family, and the missionaries at her baptism on Nov. 7, 2009. What a sweet little girl!
Mission Update -- 11/11/09
I love Wednesdays!! Here's Elder M's weekly email:
Hello Family,
I hope all is going well. I hope you are enjoying the beautiful warm weather out west. It has been nice here lately, but today it's getting cold. I thing winter is coming for good now.
Well, everything's going great. Here's what's happened this week:
So, last Wednesday was great. We did some Zone Conference preparations and got ready for the week. We also went to the Stake Center to play basketball and football. I got a hair cut too. After all that, we went to dinner with the Adams. They invited over a friend to meet with us. We had a great lesson, and Carrie understood the Restoration, and decided she loves missionaries. It's really nice to have a dinner with people before you teach them, because that makes it 0% awkward. Not that it's awkward to just have a lesson, but it's pretty nice to develop a relationship first. She committed to come to church, read from, and pray about the Book of Mormon. After that, we went to give a blessing to the mother of a woman we tracted into. She was in the hospital, about to die. The blessing was one of comfort, and helped her to leave in peace (she died a day and a half later). It's pretty incredible, because this experience was basically prophecy fulfilled. Dad emailed me earlier this day and said,
"ELDER BEM, someone there in your area/zone needs to hear from you this week. It could be an investigator, a member, or it could be a missionary that needs some support. I am confidant that you will be somebodies angel this week. When you are in service of your fellow man, you are in the service of your God."
After we gave Glory Griffin a blessing, and had a prayer with all of their family, Denise (the lady we tracted into), took us aside to thank us. She said, "You came at exactly the right time. I see my two angels right in front of me." She expressed a lot of gratitude, and told us she wants to start coming to our church. The whole family was very grateful, and very positive - especially as we reassured them of hope in Christ through the Plan of Salvation.
Thursday was a crazy day. We woke up really early. We got dressed and ready to go to check cars for the Chicago Zone Conference. We met Elder Gedeborg at the mission office at around 7:15. We drove up to Chicago, and had a good time up there. It was nice to see all of the missionaries there, and to hear Elder Denter, and his companion, Elder Price, teach their Zone Leader Training. We only saw a bit of it though, because we were checking a lot of cars. One companionship baked us some cookies, so we gave them the top prize (they also had a clean car). That was pretty funny. After that, we drove back from the mission office and went to teach the Akrongs. They are progressing very well. We also went to dinner at the Popes and had a lesson there. He cooked us some Greek Beef Stew, which was awesome. After that, we went to have another prayer and lesson with the Griffin family. They were once again quite appreciative.
Friday was another long day. We woke up early again so we could drive down to Joliet to set everything up. Zone Conference went really well. We had great participation, and all learned a lot. Our Zone is doing extremely well. I don't want to boast, but it's the best Zone in the mission by far. After Zone Conference, we came back and did some stop bys. We got tubed, but still had a good day. We then had dinner with the Weislers, who are a great family that just moved into the ward. After dinner there, we went over to the Zacas for Kayla's baptismal interview. She passed with flying colors. Oh yeah, something crazy happened too. Elder Gates and Elder Houston (Prestbury Elders), got in a car accident. Elder Gates lost his driving rights, and Elder Houston didn't have any... So they had to emergency transfer Elder Houston out! Elder Williams came back to Naperville, and is now in Prestbury. We were really disappointed to see Elder Houston leave, but are happy to have Elder Williams.
Saturday was good. We went early to the Stake Center to meet with our Ward Mission Leader and help set up for the baptism. The Zacas were somewhat late, but they made it and it went well! We had Sister Brown give a talk, and she asked Kayla if she was scared. Kayla said, "yep!" After the baptism, she told everyone, "I'm not scared anymore!" It was awesome. Darwin is doing great too. He's a 9 year old boy, and is somewhat (actually incredibly) wild. After the baptism, we went on exchanges. Elder Williams came with me, and Elder Ahlman went with Elder Gates... To La Porte. Elder Ahlman had a baptism to go back to there. They had to book it over there, because that is incredibly far away. It went well though. Elder Williams and I went to Sister Drebenstedt's birthday party, which was great. Kim was getting a little nervous for a while, but we talked to her and she's doing great. After that party (and dinner), we drove over to the Rosas for dinner. We had a great dinner there, and a good lesson. They're great member missionaries. We've been giving members a challenge... One that I'll give you too. Make a list of 5 people that you can share the Gospel with. Then invite the missionaries over, and come up with plans of how to best share the Gospel with them. Do it, and tell me about it. Anyways, after visiting the Rosas, we went over to visit Brother Adams. He's ill, but is doing OK. They're coming to Arizona, and say they'd like to meet you. They're thinking of moving to a home on Elliot and 47th... So they'll be close by.
Sunday was great too. We had all the early church meetings, then went to make sure the Zacas were coming early. We ended up shepherding the kids to the car, and then caravanned to church. I was able to confirm Kayla a member, and it went really well. She was pretty excited. After church, we went over to the Housers. They had some Greek food for us. It was really good. We also had a great lesson with Kim, and set up her baptism. We've got Brother Houser baptizing her, and Brother Neuder confirming her. Having members do the ordinances is ideal, so we're excited. She's excited too. She gave us her coffee, and is ready to go! After that, we came home to do our weekly plan. We also did some finding too. After finding, we went to dinner at the Hoyts. Brother Hoyt is from Snowflake, and had Grandpa McMullin as a teacher! That was pretty wild to find out. Dad, do you know the Hoyts from Snowflake? They're an awesome family, and we had a good time there. They're also great missionaries. They're making a list of 5 names, and we're coming to help them develop plans to contact them next Sunday. After that, we did some stop bys, I believe. It was a good day. Mark Pope is getting excited for his baptism too. I'm not sure if I told you before, but he's flying his friend from Arizona out to baptize him. They've also got some relatives coming, and it is going to be great. It will be on the 5th of December.
Monday was a pretty good day. We had a couple of cancellations in the morning. We went tracting, and had the slowest day of tracting ever. It was ok though. We then went out to lunch with a companionship in the Zone. I challenged a missionary to improve his planner, and offered him some hamburgers if he did. His planner was incredible, so we took him to Taco Bell instead of McDonald's. After that, we had an appointment with Amy. That went alright. She is progressing, but not quite as fast as we'd like. We're going to continue teaching her though. After that, we went to teach the Akrongs with Brother Cooper. That was a very short visit due to some illness in the home. After that, we stopped by David, but missed him. We then went to visit Nancy, and had a lesson there. They're doing alright. Sister Drebenstedt likes Brother Cooper a lot, so it was great having him in the home. After that, we dropped Brother cooper off, then went to dinner with the Newcombes. They invited a neighbor family over for dinner and Family Home Evening. The Newcombes are an exemplary family. They are so great, and we had a wonderful time over there. The family had a good time too, and appreciated the lesson. They don't want to progress, but it was a completely positive experience. Even though the Gospel was rejected, the friendships were not damaged at all. If anything, they were strengthened because love was shown. The time is now to share the Gospel.
Tuesday was OK. We had Amanda in the morning. She didn't come to church, so we had to lay the beat down. Actually, we just made sure she knows why it's important to keep commitments. We just went through the reading that she slacked on. She wants to progress. After that, we drove over to the mission office for District Meeting, and Presidents Interviews. That went really well. After that, we exchanged with the Spanish Elders. I stayed in Naper 4, and took Elder Melton. He's awesome. We went to visit a lot of people, and had a pretty crazy day. We rushed over to visit Mike, and ended up teaching one of his neighbors. Shiela is a prophetess, street minister, and has a history of knocking out men. We built off of the truth she has, and explained our purpose is to help people gain revelation... specifically to find out that God truly has Restored His Gospel. She got that, and is going to read from the Book of Mormon and pray about it. She's a good woman, and we hope to see her progress. After that, we went to visit Alba. She's doing alright, but is one to pray for now. After that, we went to teach Kim. She's doing great. She's off coffee, and is doing great. She's drinking Coke though, which has been good to take care of the headaches she has in the morning. After that, we went to visit the Gaffneys, but they tubed us, so we went onward. We went over to the Gamboas for dinner, and had some great Mexican food there. They are making a list of 5 friends, and we'll work with that list next time we see them. After that, we went to teach the Matucks. They're doing great. They got a car now, so they'll have transportation. We gave them some study assignments, and answered some questions. After that, we came home for the evening.
Today should be good. We're going to the Robbins' home for dinner tonight, then going on exchanges with the APs. Elder Wilson is coming here, which should be good.
Well, I hope you have a great week! I am loving my mission. Things are going well. Please pray for my investigators. I'm grateful the Lord has blessed Elder Ahlman and I with so much work. I pray he blesses you with missionary opportunities every day. Well, I love you!
Sincerely,
Elder Bradley E McMullin
Hello Family,
I hope all is going well. I hope you are enjoying the beautiful warm weather out west. It has been nice here lately, but today it's getting cold. I thing winter is coming for good now.
Well, everything's going great. Here's what's happened this week:
So, last Wednesday was great. We did some Zone Conference preparations and got ready for the week. We also went to the Stake Center to play basketball and football. I got a hair cut too. After all that, we went to dinner with the Adams. They invited over a friend to meet with us. We had a great lesson, and Carrie understood the Restoration, and decided she loves missionaries. It's really nice to have a dinner with people before you teach them, because that makes it 0% awkward. Not that it's awkward to just have a lesson, but it's pretty nice to develop a relationship first. She committed to come to church, read from, and pray about the Book of Mormon. After that, we went to give a blessing to the mother of a woman we tracted into. She was in the hospital, about to die. The blessing was one of comfort, and helped her to leave in peace (she died a day and a half later). It's pretty incredible, because this experience was basically prophecy fulfilled. Dad emailed me earlier this day and said,
"ELDER BEM, someone there in your area/zone needs to hear from you this week. It could be an investigator, a member, or it could be a missionary that needs some support. I am confidant that you will be somebodies angel this week. When you are in service of your fellow man, you are in the service of your God."
After we gave Glory Griffin a blessing, and had a prayer with all of their family, Denise (the lady we tracted into), took us aside to thank us. She said, "You came at exactly the right time. I see my two angels right in front of me." She expressed a lot of gratitude, and told us she wants to start coming to our church. The whole family was very grateful, and very positive - especially as we reassured them of hope in Christ through the Plan of Salvation.
Thursday was a crazy day. We woke up really early. We got dressed and ready to go to check cars for the Chicago Zone Conference. We met Elder Gedeborg at the mission office at around 7:15. We drove up to Chicago, and had a good time up there. It was nice to see all of the missionaries there, and to hear Elder Denter, and his companion, Elder Price, teach their Zone Leader Training. We only saw a bit of it though, because we were checking a lot of cars. One companionship baked us some cookies, so we gave them the top prize (they also had a clean car). That was pretty funny. After that, we drove back from the mission office and went to teach the Akrongs. They are progressing very well. We also went to dinner at the Popes and had a lesson there. He cooked us some Greek Beef Stew, which was awesome. After that, we went to have another prayer and lesson with the Griffin family. They were once again quite appreciative.
Friday was another long day. We woke up early again so we could drive down to Joliet to set everything up. Zone Conference went really well. We had great participation, and all learned a lot. Our Zone is doing extremely well. I don't want to boast, but it's the best Zone in the mission by far. After Zone Conference, we came back and did some stop bys. We got tubed, but still had a good day. We then had dinner with the Weislers, who are a great family that just moved into the ward. After dinner there, we went over to the Zacas for Kayla's baptismal interview. She passed with flying colors. Oh yeah, something crazy happened too. Elder Gates and Elder Houston (Prestbury Elders), got in a car accident. Elder Gates lost his driving rights, and Elder Houston didn't have any... So they had to emergency transfer Elder Houston out! Elder Williams came back to Naperville, and is now in Prestbury. We were really disappointed to see Elder Houston leave, but are happy to have Elder Williams.
Saturday was good. We went early to the Stake Center to meet with our Ward Mission Leader and help set up for the baptism. The Zacas were somewhat late, but they made it and it went well! We had Sister Brown give a talk, and she asked Kayla if she was scared. Kayla said, "yep!" After the baptism, she told everyone, "I'm not scared anymore!" It was awesome. Darwin is doing great too. He's a 9 year old boy, and is somewhat (actually incredibly) wild. After the baptism, we went on exchanges. Elder Williams came with me, and Elder Ahlman went with Elder Gates... To La Porte. Elder Ahlman had a baptism to go back to there. They had to book it over there, because that is incredibly far away. It went well though. Elder Williams and I went to Sister Drebenstedt's birthday party, which was great. Kim was getting a little nervous for a while, but we talked to her and she's doing great. After that party (and dinner), we drove over to the Rosas for dinner. We had a great dinner there, and a good lesson. They're great member missionaries. We've been giving members a challenge... One that I'll give you too. Make a list of 5 people that you can share the Gospel with. Then invite the missionaries over, and come up with plans of how to best share the Gospel with them. Do it, and tell me about it. Anyways, after visiting the Rosas, we went over to visit Brother Adams. He's ill, but is doing OK. They're coming to Arizona, and say they'd like to meet you. They're thinking of moving to a home on Elliot and 47th... So they'll be close by.
Sunday was great too. We had all the early church meetings, then went to make sure the Zacas were coming early. We ended up shepherding the kids to the car, and then caravanned to church. I was able to confirm Kayla a member, and it went really well. She was pretty excited. After church, we went over to the Housers. They had some Greek food for us. It was really good. We also had a great lesson with Kim, and set up her baptism. We've got Brother Houser baptizing her, and Brother Neuder confirming her. Having members do the ordinances is ideal, so we're excited. She's excited too. She gave us her coffee, and is ready to go! After that, we came home to do our weekly plan. We also did some finding too. After finding, we went to dinner at the Hoyts. Brother Hoyt is from Snowflake, and had Grandpa McMullin as a teacher! That was pretty wild to find out. Dad, do you know the Hoyts from Snowflake? They're an awesome family, and we had a good time there. They're also great missionaries. They're making a list of 5 names, and we're coming to help them develop plans to contact them next Sunday. After that, we did some stop bys, I believe. It was a good day. Mark Pope is getting excited for his baptism too. I'm not sure if I told you before, but he's flying his friend from Arizona out to baptize him. They've also got some relatives coming, and it is going to be great. It will be on the 5th of December.
Monday was a pretty good day. We had a couple of cancellations in the morning. We went tracting, and had the slowest day of tracting ever. It was ok though. We then went out to lunch with a companionship in the Zone. I challenged a missionary to improve his planner, and offered him some hamburgers if he did. His planner was incredible, so we took him to Taco Bell instead of McDonald's. After that, we had an appointment with Amy. That went alright. She is progressing, but not quite as fast as we'd like. We're going to continue teaching her though. After that, we went to teach the Akrongs with Brother Cooper. That was a very short visit due to some illness in the home. After that, we stopped by David, but missed him. We then went to visit Nancy, and had a lesson there. They're doing alright. Sister Drebenstedt likes Brother Cooper a lot, so it was great having him in the home. After that, we dropped Brother cooper off, then went to dinner with the Newcombes. They invited a neighbor family over for dinner and Family Home Evening. The Newcombes are an exemplary family. They are so great, and we had a wonderful time over there. The family had a good time too, and appreciated the lesson. They don't want to progress, but it was a completely positive experience. Even though the Gospel was rejected, the friendships were not damaged at all. If anything, they were strengthened because love was shown. The time is now to share the Gospel.
Tuesday was OK. We had Amanda in the morning. She didn't come to church, so we had to lay the beat down. Actually, we just made sure she knows why it's important to keep commitments. We just went through the reading that she slacked on. She wants to progress. After that, we drove over to the mission office for District Meeting, and Presidents Interviews. That went really well. After that, we exchanged with the Spanish Elders. I stayed in Naper 4, and took Elder Melton. He's awesome. We went to visit a lot of people, and had a pretty crazy day. We rushed over to visit Mike, and ended up teaching one of his neighbors. Shiela is a prophetess, street minister, and has a history of knocking out men. We built off of the truth she has, and explained our purpose is to help people gain revelation... specifically to find out that God truly has Restored His Gospel. She got that, and is going to read from the Book of Mormon and pray about it. She's a good woman, and we hope to see her progress. After that, we went to visit Alba. She's doing alright, but is one to pray for now. After that, we went to teach Kim. She's doing great. She's off coffee, and is doing great. She's drinking Coke though, which has been good to take care of the headaches she has in the morning. After that, we went to visit the Gaffneys, but they tubed us, so we went onward. We went over to the Gamboas for dinner, and had some great Mexican food there. They are making a list of 5 friends, and we'll work with that list next time we see them. After that, we went to teach the Matucks. They're doing great. They got a car now, so they'll have transportation. We gave them some study assignments, and answered some questions. After that, we came home for the evening.
Today should be good. We're going to the Robbins' home for dinner tonight, then going on exchanges with the APs. Elder Wilson is coming here, which should be good.
Well, I hope you have a great week! I am loving my mission. Things are going well. Please pray for my investigators. I'm grateful the Lord has blessed Elder Ahlman and I with so much work. I pray he blesses you with missionary opportunities every day. Well, I love you!
Sincerely,
Elder Bradley E McMullin
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Naperville Zone Transfer Board
Here are all the missionaries currently in the Naperville Zone, shown by the area they are serving in. If you look super close, you can tell their arrival and go home dates (where the picture is clear enough).The pictures kind of look like drawings don't they? I guess they are black and white copies of the originals.
Mission Update -- 11/4/09
Sounds like everything is going great! Here's the email:
HELLO MOM, DAD, CAITLIN, TAYLOR, GRANNY & GRANDPA,
THANKS FOR ALL OF YOUR PRAYERS & SUPPORT! I HAVE ENJOYED GETTING LETTERS AND HALLOWEEN PACKAGES FROM YOU! I loved the pine nuts especially. They were really good, and we even made some chicken and put pine nuts in the sauce. It was kind of a pain cracking them all to put in there... Because I couldn't eat any! We've been marinading chicken pretty much every day. Our best recipe has been marinading chicken in apple cider. Yum!
So where is Thanksgiving going to be this year? We're going to have it at Nancy's house, and also at the Pope's this year. Should be pretty good. How's everything else going? That's exciting you're getting your springs off, Tay! I can't believe you're almost done with High School, and are almost in Relief Society, Caitlin. Where do you think you're going to go for college? BYU?
Well, things have been going well here. We've been having some incredible experiences lately. We've had a super good week. Here's what's happened:
Last Wednesday was ok. Brother Pope got ill, so we had to cancell the appointment over there. We did teach Lorenzo though, which was good. We also taught his friend who was over. Lorenzo's friend has seen a UFO. I told him some of my relatives have seen "aliens" too... Or maybe they were just frog hunters near Caliente.
Thursday was great. After the morning schedule, we started it off by going to visit a lady we thought might be less active, but turned out to be a super active widow. She was really nice though, and we had a good time teaching her and her grandson. After that, we did some final planning for District Leader Council. After that, we went over to teach Kim at Nancy's. Nancy was asleep, but Sister D. was there. We taught Kim, and Sister D. sat in and made it difficult. It went well though. Kim's got a testimony, and is doing extremely well. After that, we went to visit the Akrongs. We taugth Manny and Sister Akrong. Manny had to go soon, but set up a next appointment for us. He likes our planners, and asked for us to bring him one. He's a sincere, deep thinking, 10 year old boy. Later, we went over for dinner at the Houghtons. That was great. Their family reminds me of ours. Their youngest is humorously grumpy, and reminds me of when Tay gets cranky. After that, we did some stop bys and had a pretty sweet experience. We went to stop by a former investigator, but found out they had moved. We ended up teaching the new resident though, who was quite receptive. Marisol became a good new investigator! After that, we went to teach the Zacas. It was actually a really good lesson. Darwin behaved, and decided he wants to be baptized too! He's preparing for November 28th. That's pretty exciting. After that, we went home for the night.
Friday was pretty good. We had a cancelled appointment in the morning, but that was ok because it allowed us to do a little more preparation for DL Council. At 11, we had District Leader Council at the Stake Center. It went well. Afterwards, it was raining so hard outside it looked like Niagra Falls. It was insane. We went home, and prepared for Stake MCM. We've got to make some statistical reports, and reports on the member work from each unit. I enjoy making the reports actually, so it's pretty neat. I also do analysis for fun, and find out things like how much different key indicators have changed, and what the causes are, or may be. Anyways, after that, we went to visit David Lopez. He's doing alright. We had a good lesson with him, and helped him make a Scripture reading plan, and also a healthy eating plan. Elder Ahlman pretty much did the second one actually. He's knowledgeable about fitness, and healthy eating. He's helped us make a companionship exercise and diet plan. It's starting to work, and I'm excited for that. After that, we had an appointment tube us, so we stopped by Krista and Jessica. They're doing well. After that, we had dinner with the Stratfords. They're an awesome family. We had some good dinner, and also got vampire teeth to wear. That was our last stop for the night.
Halloween was alright. We're not allowed to do finding in the afternoon, so it was fairly slow. We did have a lesson with Nancy and Brandon, which went well. They made a list of who they're doing missionary work with. They do a great job. We also taught Alba, who's doing well at quitting smoking. She's a pretty neat lady, and is really sincere. After that, we tried some stop bys, but didn't get much. We finalized plans for Stake MCM, and did some other preparation stuff before dinner. We had lamb at the Adams for dinner, which was great. Like always, we taught our quick lesson, then asked Brother Adams questions and learned from him. I also got to give some candy to a couple of kids that came to their door. After that, we went home, switched our clocks back, then went to bed.
Sunday was great! We started the morning off early in Stake MCM. That went really well. President Roach is great, as are his councilors. We've also got an exceptional Stake Presidency. President Duffield (the 2nd councilor in the Stake Presidency) has been having an email conversation with Mark Pope. The work is going well. October was slow, but November is looking like it may be one of the best months ever. We've already got twice the amount of baptismal sets for November as we did coming into August, which was the highest baptizing month in years, and quite possibly Naperville Stake history. Church was also great. We had a great turnout. Our investigator class is always packed now. It's almost ridiculous how stuffed we are into the class room. Brother Stavron taught a great lesson, which was awesome. Everyone just loves his classes. Alba especially loved it, which was good. After church, we gave out some copies of the Book of Mormon to some members to hand out. One young woman, Christina Rosa, does incredible missionary work. She's who took the girls to church for the class. One has been asking her, "When are you going to get me a Book of Mormon?" Hopefully she'll begin investigating the church. After church, we went over to the Petersons to break our fast. They're awesome. They have missionaries over to break their fast every month. They cook incredible meals too, so it's really nice. They also do great missionary work. They got a Book of Mormon to hand out, and will try to get us referrals. Later, we went to the Gamboas home. They had a friend over, so we taught him with them. He understood the Restoration, but didn't want to learn more or read the Book of Mormon. It went well though. That evening, we went over to visit the girl we found by stopping at a former investigator's former home. She let us in, and we taught her and her family. It went great. They felt and recognized the Spirit. The family speaks Spanish though, so we gave them over to the Spanish Elders to teach (the Spanish Elders have already started teaching them, and it sounds like they should do well). It was dark at that point, and we didn't have another appointment, so we headed home.
Monday was pretty good. No District Meeting this week because it's Zone Conference week. We started our Zone Conference planning in the morning, which went pretty well. After that, we went out to tract for a while, and found a new investigator. We also got a couple of referrals for the Spanish Elders. We give so many referrals to them it is ridiculous. They told us they don't tract anymore because we do it for them! We later taught Amy, who is doing well. She feels the Spirit and is growing. She can't come to church this week because she's having a birthday party at her house, but should come the next one. We also taught her kids, which was good. After that, we rushed over to the Akrongs. We taught Sister Akrong, Kelly, and Manny. It went great. They want to prepare for baptism. We'll help them with that. After that, we went to teach David again. He had slacked on reading, so we helped him catch up. After that, we rushed over to dinner with the Mitchells. They're a great family. We love going over there every month. We had Okie Potatoes, which is chili over fried potatoes. They also gave us the hugest ice cream sundaes of all time. Our diets were destroyed, but they tasted really good. After that, we tried to drive the speed limit all the way to the Zacas. They're getting excited for Kayla's baptism. We are too. After the lesson Darwin randomly ran away from home, so we chased him down in our car, and on foot. It was pretty crazy. He got home safe though. We did too.
Tuesday was a good day. We had the Hesed House at 10:30, which was pretty much the same as always. It went pretty well. After that, we went to visit Mike. He's a great member missionary, and is doing well. We gave him a Restoration pamphlet to hand out to a neighbor (who liked it a lot). After that, we went to visit Sister Apodaca. We taught her, and also raked some leaves for her. After that, we tried to stop by Jose Perez, but didn't catch him. We later went to visit Jeremy Hwang. He's doing well. He's now going to start the Book of Mormon from the very beginning. He says he wants to just read the first chapter of every book in the Book of Mormon, then read the second of each book, then go that way... So we'll see what he does. He's just about finished reading Gospel Principles, and has it all marked up with a highlighter. He's a smart guy, and is doing great. After that, we went to teach the Gaffneys. We gave Guy (the son) the prize from the scripture calendar we gave them. We gave him a frisbee. He started throwing it around inside, and knocked stuff over. It got a little crazy. It went well though, and we gave them new scriptures to read. After that, we went to teach Alba with Mike. She's doing great! Only 1 drag of a cigarette over the past several days. She went out and bought some pills to help her out too, so that was nice to see. After that, we went to teach Kim at the Housers. She made me eat some liver sausage, which was absolutely foul. She's going to just give it up totally, but may try roma. Brother Houser said just drink hot chocolate. She said she doesn't like it, so I had to remind her that she can definitely drink hot chocolate if she can stomach liver sausage. The lesson went well. She's doing great, and has a testimony. We went through the baptismal interview questions, and she's just about good to go. She's got a list of assignments for her baptism she's going to make before our next lesson. We're excited to see her continue to grow.
Today has been good as well. We did more Zone Conference planning this morning. It should be a great Zone Conference. I'm going to get a hair cut later today. After that, we're going to play basketball at the Stake Center. We've got dinner at the Adams with a family of potential investigators they invited over. Awesome!
Life's good here. I'm loving my mission, and am grateful I have the opportunity to share the Gospel with others. It is true, and blesses anyone and everyone that applies it into their life.
Well, I hope you all have a great day and a great week! I love you, and appreciate all you do for me. I'll send you some pictures soon. Let me know what's new.
Love,
Elder Bradley Edward McMullin
HELLO MOM, DAD, CAITLIN, TAYLOR, GRANNY & GRANDPA,
THANKS FOR ALL OF YOUR PRAYERS & SUPPORT! I HAVE ENJOYED GETTING LETTERS AND HALLOWEEN PACKAGES FROM YOU! I loved the pine nuts especially. They were really good, and we even made some chicken and put pine nuts in the sauce. It was kind of a pain cracking them all to put in there... Because I couldn't eat any! We've been marinading chicken pretty much every day. Our best recipe has been marinading chicken in apple cider. Yum!
So where is Thanksgiving going to be this year? We're going to have it at Nancy's house, and also at the Pope's this year. Should be pretty good. How's everything else going? That's exciting you're getting your springs off, Tay! I can't believe you're almost done with High School, and are almost in Relief Society, Caitlin. Where do you think you're going to go for college? BYU?
Well, things have been going well here. We've been having some incredible experiences lately. We've had a super good week. Here's what's happened:
Last Wednesday was ok. Brother Pope got ill, so we had to cancell the appointment over there. We did teach Lorenzo though, which was good. We also taught his friend who was over. Lorenzo's friend has seen a UFO. I told him some of my relatives have seen "aliens" too... Or maybe they were just frog hunters near Caliente.
Thursday was great. After the morning schedule, we started it off by going to visit a lady we thought might be less active, but turned out to be a super active widow. She was really nice though, and we had a good time teaching her and her grandson. After that, we did some final planning for District Leader Council. After that, we went over to teach Kim at Nancy's. Nancy was asleep, but Sister D. was there. We taught Kim, and Sister D. sat in and made it difficult. It went well though. Kim's got a testimony, and is doing extremely well. After that, we went to visit the Akrongs. We taugth Manny and Sister Akrong. Manny had to go soon, but set up a next appointment for us. He likes our planners, and asked for us to bring him one. He's a sincere, deep thinking, 10 year old boy. Later, we went over for dinner at the Houghtons. That was great. Their family reminds me of ours. Their youngest is humorously grumpy, and reminds me of when Tay gets cranky. After that, we did some stop bys and had a pretty sweet experience. We went to stop by a former investigator, but found out they had moved. We ended up teaching the new resident though, who was quite receptive. Marisol became a good new investigator! After that, we went to teach the Zacas. It was actually a really good lesson. Darwin behaved, and decided he wants to be baptized too! He's preparing for November 28th. That's pretty exciting. After that, we went home for the night.
Friday was pretty good. We had a cancelled appointment in the morning, but that was ok because it allowed us to do a little more preparation for DL Council. At 11, we had District Leader Council at the Stake Center. It went well. Afterwards, it was raining so hard outside it looked like Niagra Falls. It was insane. We went home, and prepared for Stake MCM. We've got to make some statistical reports, and reports on the member work from each unit. I enjoy making the reports actually, so it's pretty neat. I also do analysis for fun, and find out things like how much different key indicators have changed, and what the causes are, or may be. Anyways, after that, we went to visit David Lopez. He's doing alright. We had a good lesson with him, and helped him make a Scripture reading plan, and also a healthy eating plan. Elder Ahlman pretty much did the second one actually. He's knowledgeable about fitness, and healthy eating. He's helped us make a companionship exercise and diet plan. It's starting to work, and I'm excited for that. After that, we had an appointment tube us, so we stopped by Krista and Jessica. They're doing well. After that, we had dinner with the Stratfords. They're an awesome family. We had some good dinner, and also got vampire teeth to wear. That was our last stop for the night.
Halloween was alright. We're not allowed to do finding in the afternoon, so it was fairly slow. We did have a lesson with Nancy and Brandon, which went well. They made a list of who they're doing missionary work with. They do a great job. We also taught Alba, who's doing well at quitting smoking. She's a pretty neat lady, and is really sincere. After that, we tried some stop bys, but didn't get much. We finalized plans for Stake MCM, and did some other preparation stuff before dinner. We had lamb at the Adams for dinner, which was great. Like always, we taught our quick lesson, then asked Brother Adams questions and learned from him. I also got to give some candy to a couple of kids that came to their door. After that, we went home, switched our clocks back, then went to bed.
Sunday was great! We started the morning off early in Stake MCM. That went really well. President Roach is great, as are his councilors. We've also got an exceptional Stake Presidency. President Duffield (the 2nd councilor in the Stake Presidency) has been having an email conversation with Mark Pope. The work is going well. October was slow, but November is looking like it may be one of the best months ever. We've already got twice the amount of baptismal sets for November as we did coming into August, which was the highest baptizing month in years, and quite possibly Naperville Stake history. Church was also great. We had a great turnout. Our investigator class is always packed now. It's almost ridiculous how stuffed we are into the class room. Brother Stavron taught a great lesson, which was awesome. Everyone just loves his classes. Alba especially loved it, which was good. After church, we gave out some copies of the Book of Mormon to some members to hand out. One young woman, Christina Rosa, does incredible missionary work. She's who took the girls to church for the class. One has been asking her, "When are you going to get me a Book of Mormon?" Hopefully she'll begin investigating the church. After church, we went over to the Petersons to break our fast. They're awesome. They have missionaries over to break their fast every month. They cook incredible meals too, so it's really nice. They also do great missionary work. They got a Book of Mormon to hand out, and will try to get us referrals. Later, we went to the Gamboas home. They had a friend over, so we taught him with them. He understood the Restoration, but didn't want to learn more or read the Book of Mormon. It went well though. That evening, we went over to visit the girl we found by stopping at a former investigator's former home. She let us in, and we taught her and her family. It went great. They felt and recognized the Spirit. The family speaks Spanish though, so we gave them over to the Spanish Elders to teach (the Spanish Elders have already started teaching them, and it sounds like they should do well). It was dark at that point, and we didn't have another appointment, so we headed home.
Monday was pretty good. No District Meeting this week because it's Zone Conference week. We started our Zone Conference planning in the morning, which went pretty well. After that, we went out to tract for a while, and found a new investigator. We also got a couple of referrals for the Spanish Elders. We give so many referrals to them it is ridiculous. They told us they don't tract anymore because we do it for them! We later taught Amy, who is doing well. She feels the Spirit and is growing. She can't come to church this week because she's having a birthday party at her house, but should come the next one. We also taught her kids, which was good. After that, we rushed over to the Akrongs. We taught Sister Akrong, Kelly, and Manny. It went great. They want to prepare for baptism. We'll help them with that. After that, we went to teach David again. He had slacked on reading, so we helped him catch up. After that, we rushed over to dinner with the Mitchells. They're a great family. We love going over there every month. We had Okie Potatoes, which is chili over fried potatoes. They also gave us the hugest ice cream sundaes of all time. Our diets were destroyed, but they tasted really good. After that, we tried to drive the speed limit all the way to the Zacas. They're getting excited for Kayla's baptism. We are too. After the lesson Darwin randomly ran away from home, so we chased him down in our car, and on foot. It was pretty crazy. He got home safe though. We did too.
Tuesday was a good day. We had the Hesed House at 10:30, which was pretty much the same as always. It went pretty well. After that, we went to visit Mike. He's a great member missionary, and is doing well. We gave him a Restoration pamphlet to hand out to a neighbor (who liked it a lot). After that, we went to visit Sister Apodaca. We taught her, and also raked some leaves for her. After that, we tried to stop by Jose Perez, but didn't catch him. We later went to visit Jeremy Hwang. He's doing well. He's now going to start the Book of Mormon from the very beginning. He says he wants to just read the first chapter of every book in the Book of Mormon, then read the second of each book, then go that way... So we'll see what he does. He's just about finished reading Gospel Principles, and has it all marked up with a highlighter. He's a smart guy, and is doing great. After that, we went to teach the Gaffneys. We gave Guy (the son) the prize from the scripture calendar we gave them. We gave him a frisbee. He started throwing it around inside, and knocked stuff over. It got a little crazy. It went well though, and we gave them new scriptures to read. After that, we went to teach Alba with Mike. She's doing great! Only 1 drag of a cigarette over the past several days. She went out and bought some pills to help her out too, so that was nice to see. After that, we went to teach Kim at the Housers. She made me eat some liver sausage, which was absolutely foul. She's going to just give it up totally, but may try roma. Brother Houser said just drink hot chocolate. She said she doesn't like it, so I had to remind her that she can definitely drink hot chocolate if she can stomach liver sausage. The lesson went well. She's doing great, and has a testimony. We went through the baptismal interview questions, and she's just about good to go. She's got a list of assignments for her baptism she's going to make before our next lesson. We're excited to see her continue to grow.
Today has been good as well. We did more Zone Conference planning this morning. It should be a great Zone Conference. I'm going to get a hair cut later today. After that, we're going to play basketball at the Stake Center. We've got dinner at the Adams with a family of potential investigators they invited over. Awesome!
Life's good here. I'm loving my mission, and am grateful I have the opportunity to share the Gospel with others. It is true, and blesses anyone and everyone that applies it into their life.
Well, I hope you all have a great day and a great week! I love you, and appreciate all you do for me. I'll send you some pictures soon. Let me know what's new.
Love,
Elder Bradley Edward McMullin
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