Elder M.- Transfer 2, Week 4

Hi Mom,

 

Thanks for updating me with what's happened at home.  How is Grandpa recovering?  I take it he is probably still at the hospital if he can't move or talk, but will Grandma be able to take care of him at home from here on or will she need assistance with that?

 

I was also pretty sorry to hear that Sandy died as well.  She was a pretty good dog, though it looked like she was getting pretty old the last few times I visited home. I'm glad she went peacefully. Does Dad have any plans to get another one?  I can't imagine him wanting another rambunctious puppy like she was when we first picked her up from the pound...

 

Well, this week has been somewhat downer.  Our district leader here came down on his foot wrong while he was playing basketball last weekend. The earliest we could schedule an appointment with a doctor was today, so he has been icing it, etc for the past couple days and it looks absolutely horrible. We finally got him in to the clinic today and it turns out he ripped several tendons in his foot/ankle and will need surgery.  The mission president still has to work out whether that can be done here or whether he will need to go home for a few months.  The elder is really distressed about it and we're all hoping that it can be taken care of here.  We have another elder from our area finishing his mission next week, so Brunswick may be downsized to two companionship's instead of three.

On the bright side, I'm glad to hear Alecia is doing ok and that she won't need surgery for her situation.  When she gets the cast removed and switches to the boot, will she be able to get back in the pools?  =)

 

That rocket launcher is a money machine!  And it has definitely gotten more mileage than I ever anticipated it would.  Ha ha, I think that is pretty funny that a family would come all the way from Salt Lake on the 4th just to be there at the park to launch rockets!  Good times.  Maybe this concept should be expanded and you can have Jacob entrepreneur a rocket launcher production facility to sell those things all over the nation...

 

I look forward to receiving your letter and Dad's packet.  Was this something that he wrote up just for me, or did he want me to have a copy of his latest project?

 

In interesting news, I am now senior companion (whatever that means). President switched us mid-week, but it seems like the only thing that changed is that I am now the one to do the end of week report to the DL. Everyone keeps predicting that I'm going to be a Zone Leader soon, but I am avoiding that as much as possible.  I've lived with Zone Leaders the entire time so far and have seen what they do and have no desire to be a part of that.

 

We set a couple of baptism dates this week, so that was pretty cool.  We also found a guy who grew up with a few Mormon kids, but never really heard much about the church.  When we explained the Book of Mormon, he took a copy and told us he wanted to read the whole thing in a week and wants us to come back when he's done.  We're expecting some miracles there.  :) 

 

The focus this past week has been a lot on Charity and the story in John 21 keeps coming back to me. When Jesus first met Peter he called out to him, "Come, follow me"  and Peter immediately left his occupation (fishing) to follow him. After Jesus died, it looks like Peter as the apostle really had no idea of what he was to do next and just decided to return to his old life style and occupation of fishing (vs 3). When Jesus appeared to them on the shore, Peter recognizes him and dives in to get to shore quickly where Jesus asks him, "Lovest thou me?" "Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee."   Then came the command, "FEED MY SHEEP".  Three times, this same dialogue occurs....   When I read this, it comes across almost as a rebuke to Peter -  "Peter, I told you once before to follow me and you did for three years.  Why now are you going back to fishing?  Return to the apostleship where I called you to be and feed my sheep!"  It has really hit me hard that once a life is given to Christ and once you have committed to follow Him, there really is no going back to the old ways of life. Which has really made me think of all the attachments I have kept in the world and where my heart truly lies.  The question over and over again, "Do you love me?" keeps bouncing around in my head.  I dunno, it's an interesting thought - where do my loyalties truly lie?  Is this mission just something I am doing for a couple years or is "feeding His sheep" really going to be my lifelong pursuit?

 

"Do you love me?"

Does your life really reflect that love for Him?

Luke 14:26-27 (with JST); Matt 10:37-39; 2 Pet. 2:20-22;

 

I dunno, it's been bouncing around my thoughts a lot the past few days. Take it for what it's worth to you.

 

Well, time is once again running short.  I love you all!

 

Elder M. Howell