TUESDAY 14TH AUGUST 2012- WEEK 2

So, I've found out a lot about myself over the last week - firstly, that I suck at keeping a journal ha! So now I'll be using this blog as the main source of recording the next two years - a mission journal is, after all, future scripture for your children! Secondly, when I need to, I can work really hard! There is definitely an inspired reason why it's called 'missionary work'! We get up each morning at 6.30am, study for at least 2 hours (both personal and companionship), attend 6 hours of class, teach at least twice each day and then, after all that, don't go to bed til 10.30pm! Plus, add all the meetings I have to go to as District Leader and times I have to deal with issues that arise and you get one tired teenager! It doesn't help that I'm the youngest in the MTC either ha! This probably doesn't sound like a good advert for missions huh?! The reality is that missions ARE hard - it's not like, the moment you are a set apart that you can't feel tired or ill or disheartened! But what it does mean is that, when you feel those things, you can really ask Heavenly Father to help you out! And, all that work goes into just one celestial moment...

 

Let me share one with you! As part of our training, we teach a lot of actors who take on the role of investigators - even though we take it seriously and teach as if they're a real person, we always know that, even if we mess up, it won't ruin someone's eternal exaltation! So, Elder Stapley and I turn up to one of our teaches - she's a less active lady named Mary who hasn't been to church for a good few years! We dive straight into to getting to know her - she feels bad that she hasn't been as faithful as she should have and that this has caused her children to leave the church and take up some pretty nasty habits. So, we begin teaching her like normal. And then, we realize that Mary isn't an actress... she's a real person with real questions and problems! We were actually in a real teach! Well, we flipped ha! It was an amazing experience and some pretty cool stuff was shared and said and, by the end of that half hour, Mary had committed to go to church on Sunday! I really can't express how happy this made us; but the miracle was this - that, for that moment, we weren't focused on how tough this is or how tired we are - we were focused on how much we loved this lady who we had just met! And that was an amazing experience for me...

 

I really feel happy here; my district has become my family and each one is a major support to me! My companion is, simply put, excpetional - he makes each day a joy (no homo!). And, most importantly, when it comes to 10.31pm and I'm finally in bed, I feel my Saviour's love and peace come to me, testifying that I'm here for the right reason and that this is truly HIS work! That's a massive concept but I feel I'm starting to get it! True joy comes through working directly with Jesus Christ! So, for the netx two years, I expect to be pretty happy ha!

 

Love Elder Pelham