7.26.25 Miracles with less active offended members
Retired/Missionary Life. Sunday.
Happy Sabbath!! Here!! Have a Jesus Picture!
And a picture of Hanna with Hermana Racker. They were celebrating the fact that they both wore blue to church today. I don't understand this. Guys just don't do this. (Unless you're an AP...) "Twinning is winning..." they chanted. Gotta be a confusing Sister Missionary thing, right?
Sacrament Meeting. Sunday School. Missionary Correlation Meeting. Went to teach a lesson, but the lessonee was not home and had been called in to work. So, we went home, took naps, read, watched a few church videos, and then ate leftover Chicken Moroccan Soup while watching the movie "Plain Truth". Great flick. (I found it on Youtube.)
Hope your Sabbath was swell!
So, a few weeks ago we were finishing up having dinner with a Steward Couple in CDA. It was about 6:30 and we didn't have another appointment until 8:00. I figured we had been busy enough during the week so now would be a good time to just run some errands we needed to do. Hanna felt otherwise, saying she was being prompted to go visit the Avila family. OK. Let's go. The Avila's (Dad, Mom and 3 teens) had gotten offended three years ago or so and had not been back. Mom was raised in the church. We dropped in. The mom let us in right away and we began to talk. She teared up and told us that they had had a death in the extended family just the day before. And that they were so sad that she and her teen daughter had just discussed how they need to go back to church. That the members are far from perfect, but the church is perfect and they need that. Just a short time later, we knocked on their door. She called us a Sign From God. They committed to come to church and have a lesson afterwards.
We reported this in Branch Council that next Sunday morning. We were met with scoffs. "The Avila's? Really?" Apparently the branch had reached out to them a lot over the years and were never received well, especially the Branch President. The President finally told them "if the Avila's do come to church, please welcome them a ton and show a lot of love."
They didn't come. We dropped by their house after church and the teen daughter told us her parents had left that morning and hadn't come back yet. OK then. Disappointment. But never ever give up.
We texted them, inviting them to church and another lesson on Sunday. They said they couldn't because they were going to near Seattle to go camping with her sister.
But, yesterday, right after Sacrament was over, one of the Branch Presidency came rushing down off the stand waving at me. "The Avila's are in the FOYER!!" he hollered. We hurried out and yes, there they were, all except the dad. The branch was all over them, hugs, welcoming them. I shook the mom's hand and she told me their car had broken down and so they decided they should just go to church instead of camping. "Another sign from God!" I told her.
From a missionary standpoint, we now have a ton of credibility with the branch, especially the branch leaders.
Lessons: Always follow the spirit. God knows. There are people just waiting for "US". The work is hastening!
Retired/Missionary Life. Monday. Dia de preparacion and recreacion.
Exciting! It was cool out so we could take the boys with us! We meticulously planned our week. Created yummy menus. Made up a detailed shopping list. Drove to Worley and had salads and rummy at Red Tail. Took a hike on the Trail of the CDAs. (Frivvy and Gus were extremely excited! They hadn't been here in a long time.) Filled up with cheap Idaho gas. Bought the groceries. Drove home. Unloaded. Unpacked. And Hanna found a cool new hat in the Meat Section of the store...
I watched a prerecorded football game in the evening. Iowa State at Utah. Great game. And we loved seeing the Utes get beat for the 7th straight time that season.
Yes, we did some missionary work today. We always do. We responded to several texts and Emails from other missionaries, Stewards, and folks that we are teaching. And I created a new spreadsheet that shows who we are teaching and their progress so we don't miss anyone when doing our planning. We're teaching lessons in nine different homes currently.
Retired/Missionary Life. Tuesday.
Worked on paying bills and doing up the books in the afternoon.
Evening we went out and taught 2 of 3 lessons scheduled. Great night!
Below is a picture of the boys after their walks. Frivvy is exhausted and wants more nap time. Frivvy is already bored with his nap and is chewing on the moose paddle.
Best news of the day (other than the commitments made in the lessons we taught) is that the Nephew Fantasy Football League is ready to go! Yes!!!!!!!
And, a huge lightning storm rolled in this afternoon. Lots of close hits. The boys were frightened and wouldn't leave our sides. And then Gussy ran into our bedroom and scampered under the bed.
We all survived....
Retired/Missionary Life. Wednesday.
- For most of his life, Frivvy would easily let someone trim his nails. We always hired a pro. But now he has settled down and lets Hanna trim them. But, that look on his face. He is very, very sad.
- A family of Elk took over the Stewart Highlands. (Cute!!)
- Here! Have a Hummingbird!
Typical missionary day. Morning was spent studying and preparing. Afternoon we went into town for a lesson and dinner along with Las Hermanas (always fun!) and another lesson after that. Got home in time to be able to watch an Episode of Heartland. (Are Jack and Lisa getting back together??)
HAPPY PIONEER DAY!
Today I humbly pay tribute to the missionaries that taught the gospel to my ancestors. Most were pioneers that lived over six generations ago. Some pulled handcarts as depicted in the picture. Distant ancestors were part of the faithful Martin Handcart Company and one of them is buried at South Pass, Wyoming where he could go no further due to the effects of helping at the chilly river crossing. May their faith, efforts, and "never ever give up" creed be remembered forever, along with their missionaries who taught and led them!
Our missionaries:
GEORGE JOHNSTON
ANDY KING
HENRY LAMMEREAUX
PARLEY P PRATT
JOHN P SORENSEN
JOHN TAYLOR
Retired/Missionary Life. Thursday.
We did our studies in the morning. Afternoon, we ran into town and worshipped in the temple. And then went to Longhorn for some ribs and such. (So delicious I failed to take a picture...I guess we'll have to go back!) And then we met with our Branch President to talk about the folks we are teaching and what their needs may be. Finally, we ended the night with our incredible Spanish Tutor learning how to conjugate verbs.
It's a fast missionary pace...but it feels good and is keeping us very much alive!
PS, from the picture, you can see that Annie the Cat is very much in charge once we leave...
Retired/Missionary Life. Friday.
After a couple of really hectic weeks, we made a "stay at home" plan for today. And it included driving the five miles to Rockford for "Old Folks Eat Breakfast Out" day at Harvest Moon. (If you didn't know, this is a requirement of all retired people. Every week. I kid you not! It's actually on the retirement exit interview questionnaire).
The rest of the day was spent doing my studies (I found a new app that teaches Spanish Conjugations...big help right now). And stuff around the house like paying the bills, starting on next week's menu, making a batch of hummingbird feed, and I spent a bit of time planning our trip to Mayo Clinic in late September.
In the evening, we deemed it date night and watched a movie. "Mary". Wasn't too bad.
We'll resume our running around like crazy people tomorrow...
Retired/Missionary Life. Saturday.
And then the Grandkids came. We had them do some chores for us. And we played in the dog pool on the deck. We made homemade Orange-flavored Ice Cream. And as requested, steak and mac n cheese were made and served. I taught the grandsons an important life skill...how to grill a steak. The steaks turned out great!
Grandkids are important part of retired life. Even as missionaries, we try to reserve a day a week for family visits.
Comments
Post a Comment