Monday, November 10, 2014

Novemer 10, 2014

Dear Friends and Family,

This week I got to give a "Thema" (like a lesson) at Zone Training about what Christlike Attributes are and how to develop them. Pshh if anyone ever felt unqualified to give that Thema it was me. It seemed to go well, however, and the other Elders and Sisters in the Zone seemed to be receptive to what was being taught. 

As we continue to work with our friend who so diligently reads the Book of Mormon and meets with us, it has occurred to us that we are out of things to teach her! She does not want to make a baptismal date until she has come to church more, which makes sense to me. I don't want her to make a covenant she won't keep! There are no doubts that she has made her choice already and simply wants to adjust to the environment before diving into it. She's such a cool friend and keeps really good daily contact with us. It's really funny to call just to confirm an appointment and then listen to her explain how excited she is about the changes she sees in herself, about what her friends and family think about, and so forth. Oh it is so great! 

We also went to a Pentacostal Bible Circle. I loved it! I just LOVE that there are people who have strong faith in Jesus Christ and the healing powers of the Atonement! The topic for the week's circle was "A Christian's calling from God." And guess what? All we did the whole time was talk about MISSIONARY WORK! There are so many beautiful truths that were brought up and it was inspiring to hear others preach about sharing our joy with our fellow brothers and sisters in the world. I liked it a lot. We also got to share our insights from the intentions of the bible. Honestly, there is not so much different outside of priesthood authority and the unique identities of members of the Godhead. Most of the other things that were explained aligned very well with our doctrine. I think we will go back!

One lovely woman explained to us that she wants the peace she sees in members of our church. Her life has been rocky and full of trials. She has so much charity for others and pays attention to caring for those around her. The problem is loving herself. We are told to love others as we love ourselves! At least she loves others. It is an interesting problem to run into, but one that we get to help with by telling her what it means to be a daughter of God. Ah, I love the people here!

Church was also all about missionary work. That's always a welcome theme!
Ward council also focused on missionary work. No complaints here!
We also taught the Golden Rule, which translates from German into "That which you expect of others, that do unto them." Yup. Do it!

The week felt productive, so I am happy. Today we will be going somewhere that's supposed to be really really pretty in the Eifel. Wahoo! I'm excited!

Love, 
Elder Jack


No comments:

Post a Comment