Thursday, we set up the day well, with
a good weekly planning session, some appointments, and coordination that night.
Then, everything went wrong. We had gotten a good chunk of weekly planning
done, when both companionships of Sisters flaked out and couldn't help Hna.
B. We ended up having to go help right when A. got home, and took
some English Elders with us to help get it done quick. We got there, got it
done, and had to scoot out of there really quick because of our tight
schedules. We then had to shift some other plans around to match dinner with a
member and a lesson with L. We scrambled to get to each appointment on time,
but still ended up late to almost every appointment. We had a very good lesson
with L. on the importance of church attendance, personal prayer, and reading
the scriptures to fortify our testimonies. He really liked the lesson, and
offered us some food that his sister had made for him. We had some chicharrones
with some costillas en salsa roja. It was pretty darned good. Elder G.
liked the chicharrones, but they were a little too spicy for him, and he turned
red. I've gotten pretty used to spicy foods. I like 'em.
Friday, we went to have lunch with
L., and were able to share the He is the Gift with his coworkers, and it
was a really good visit. We then got to go and contact some referrals, and
ended up contacting ALL of our referrals, none of which wanted us to come back.
So, we proceeded to visit J. and B., since we missed visiting them on
Tuesday. We shared the importance of temples in the gospel, and how a family
may be together for eternity if they abide by the gospel principles and are
sealed. They very much enjoyed the lesson. J. always has good questions about
everything. We then went and had dinner with the H's, and were able to
talk about having a "Temple Lights Night" where we take less-actives
and investigators to see the lights at the San Diego temple. Hna. H. made
some home-made tomato soup, (which was divine), with grilled cheese and turkey
sandwiches. We then went to visit the H's, and ended up helping them to move
some things, they gave us some food, (as always), and we shared a message with
them about the sacrifice that Heavenly Father made in sending not only Christ,
but all of us to the earth. We also solicited their help in getting our
Christmas packages to our families by sending it with them. They'll be up in
Utah for Christmas, so you'll need to coordinate with Sister H to get the
Christmas presents for everyone!
Saturday, we had a very awesome lesson
with F. on tithes and offerings. We taught about the personal sacrifices
that we make to receive the Lord's blessings. We also talked about him choosing
a baptismal date for himself, and he agreed to pick one by January 3. Its a
little ways off, but by then, we'll have taught him absolutely everything. We
then finished our weekly planning, and went to try and see some investigators,
contact some referrals, and got some little services, such as helping someone
on the side of the road. That night, we planned to go get some things done with
a member family, but they weren't able to meet with us, so we finished the
night off with caroling on Candy Cane Lane.
We then had a bit of a rough Sunday. We
had three investigators lined up to come to church. Only one showed up. I
fasted all Sunday that the Lord would help our other two investigators to
progress. We went through the classes, and this time, the lessons were much
better. We then went to sacrament meeting, where the Stake Presidency proceeded
to release Presidente O., and called the new branch president, Presidente
V. It came completely by surprise, and I about fell out of my seat. The
meeting progressed with testimonies from all who had been called and released.
After church, we went to see A., since she hadn't come to church. Her
brother-in-law let us in, and sat us down. A. walked in, thanked us for
coming by, but said that she didn't want us to come back anymore. She said that
she wasn't really interested at the moment, and it kind of crushed me. On
Friday, Elder G. had the prompting to go see her because he felt that she
was praying for us to come. So we went on our way to see her. On the way, we
got the feeling to stop and help this guy on the side of the road. After
helping him, we got back in the car, and I asked if he still had the feeling to
go see her. He said no, but I still kind of had a feeling to. I shrugged it
off. I realized when A. told us that she wasn't interested anymore, that
perhaps she really had been praying for us to come by, and I had ignored that
prompting. We told her to keep the Book of Mormon, she agreed, and left the
room. Her sister, who is Catholic, proceeded to try and bash us a bit, with the
"Oh that's just too bad. But I guess that's what happens!" And I
really just wanted to be out of there. So we finally escaped, and went to the
Stake Christmas Program. I wasn't really paying attention to the music, since I
was still shaken up from meeting with A. We then got a call from L.
that his dog was sick, and that he wanted to know where the nearest 24-hour vet
clinic was. We did some searching, and got him the address. That night was
pretty darn hard.
Yesterday, we got all of our studies
done, and went to a doctor's appointment for Elder G. He has ADHD, and so
he needs to meet with a specialist to refill his prescription. We went, they
talked, we left. We then went to try contacting more potential investigators.
Our contacting was cut short by our dinner appointment with some members
getting moved up by two hours, so we went and ate with them. We got to know
them, since it was the first time that I've ever eaten with them. They were
going to see the temple lights, so we let them go, and went on our merry way.
We went to try and see I., since he was getting home last night, but we
arrived to find out that he wasn't getting home until late that night. We
finished the night off with some caroling on Candy Cane Lane, and a haircut
from Hno. H.
Today, we've got some Christmas
shopping planned, and I'll be getting some things for the nieces and a few
other people.
We're really looking forward to a good
week. We're really hoping and praying to be able to find some new investigators
that have been prepared to receive us and our message. I hope that you all will
have a great week as well!
-Love, Elder Crook
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