...the
name of our VC miracle this week. To be read below :)
Love you
all SO MUCH. So so much :)
P.S. I
also put the letter I sent to President on the 14th...I don't think I ever
attached it, but if you wanna put it on the blog post, you could...
Hello President,
I just got the letter regarding safety accountability. We've completed our safety minute 7/7 days this week.
I need to thank you again for your wonderful compliments yesterday. It was needed. This last week, we have needed to drop 3 out of our 6 investigators (including two that were to be baptized in the next 2 weeks), and we're transitioning another to the YSA ward later this week. In so many ways, I recognize this as a needed extra dose of time to find the truly elect of Mar Vista--as well as time needed that Heavenly Father "might show forth his power" as our members exercise their faith in their own finding efforts. I have so much hope and faith for Mar Vista! I want the members here to experience and witness the power of conversion that comes with participation in this great work, and I want to help Heavenly Father bring them miracles. SO. We're working hard without worrying (because worrying=lack of faith). Though I'll be honest in saying that there are sincere moments when I wonder if I've been doing it all wrong all along...which is why I appreciated your compliments. I know I need to ask for validation & correction from my Heavenly Father. For now, I'm just trying to live up to the kind words and compliments from you and our good bishop. But He's the only one that can fully guide and measure our efforts here. I know that. I promise I'll pray about it soon. Maybe tonight even.
Our ward is doing wonderfully well! We just had coordination last night, and it was amazing to hear about the personal missionary efforts and goals of the ward missionaries. They are living the ward mission plan beautifully, and they have improved incredibly. I am so proud and joyful to be a part of this. Each of the ward missionaries (there are 10) have a different set assignment--from doing active member visits and trainings to starting a blog to organizing the sharing of success stories in RS & EQ. We now have an agenda in coordination, which has made it 10 times more effective.
...On a personal level, I am trying to live our ward mission plan as well. I prayerfully created a giant list of all of my non-member friends back home and then narrowed it down to 5 that I will pray for by name and write to on P-Days (and coordinate efforts with other member friends back home). I realized I need a stronger personal testimony of member missionary work if I'm going to expect referrals from our members.
Other accountability:
We are almost right on track with 12-week! It's odd to think that we're approaching the end of Sis ******s' training, and yet very obvious as I think about how much both of us have grown. She is a solid, confident missionary. She gets discouraged when it comes to her Spanish, though we have made good effort in making language study and practice a priority...and I believe that she has improved quite a bit.
We have practiced a good handful of times this week, though I think we could definitely step it up. We are going to enhance our street contacting and "talking to everyone" skills this week. It feels so good to street contact. It's one of the ways I feel most fulfilled as a missionary, oddly enough.
In the VC, I'm trying to get more organized in the my teaching center and visitors' center goals and planning.
MIRACLE:
Well, first of all, all of Stake conference was a miracle. Hastening of the Work of Salvation. I literally can't express how wonderful it is to be a missionary right now! My heart gets all twitterpated when I think about how blessed I am to be here.
Second of all, our investigator, ****, met with Elder Higham and Pres Heath on Saturday morning before our lesson. It made a significant impact on ****, I believe. He was very impressed and touched. I know that **** will be baptized. He has to figure out how he'll live the law of chastity (He's been dating a woman for 27 years. They don't live together and I believe he wants to marry her...but he's worried about making all of the changes that marriage would require...and worried that she'll question his intentions in marrying her at this point), but I know that he'll be baptized. And I'm pretty sure he knows it too :)
Third of all, TONY THE TIGER JOO. Yes, that's a real person. He's a Korean personal trainer. And our Visitors' Center miracle. You have already heard the news about him from Elder Parsons & Hawthorne. It was their first meeting with him, but he was just so prepared! At the beginning, he told us he wasn't looking to be baptized. He just wanted to learn. And then he recognized the beauty and the Truth in so many of our beliefs, and he agreed to read and pray about the BOM. They set the date with him after we left the tour, but it felt so right. We can't wait to follow up with him!
President, there are always miracles. And I am glad you enjoy reading about them as much as I enjoy writing them. I know you know that not all of them end in baptism or even reactivation (and I'm sorry if I've ever misled you in that. I never intend to!)...but I fully recognize them as miracles and I find strength and confirmation from the spirit as I do so. Heavenly Father's hand is in all that we do. I know that and I love this work.
Thank you for all you do! You and Sister Weidman are in our prayers!
Love,
Sister Wells
I just got the letter regarding safety accountability. We've completed our safety minute 7/7 days this week.
I need to thank you again for your wonderful compliments yesterday. It was needed. This last week, we have needed to drop 3 out of our 6 investigators (including two that were to be baptized in the next 2 weeks), and we're transitioning another to the YSA ward later this week. In so many ways, I recognize this as a needed extra dose of time to find the truly elect of Mar Vista--as well as time needed that Heavenly Father "might show forth his power" as our members exercise their faith in their own finding efforts. I have so much hope and faith for Mar Vista! I want the members here to experience and witness the power of conversion that comes with participation in this great work, and I want to help Heavenly Father bring them miracles. SO. We're working hard without worrying (because worrying=lack of faith). Though I'll be honest in saying that there are sincere moments when I wonder if I've been doing it all wrong all along...which is why I appreciated your compliments. I know I need to ask for validation & correction from my Heavenly Father. For now, I'm just trying to live up to the kind words and compliments from you and our good bishop. But He's the only one that can fully guide and measure our efforts here. I know that. I promise I'll pray about it soon. Maybe tonight even.
Our ward is doing wonderfully well! We just had coordination last night, and it was amazing to hear about the personal missionary efforts and goals of the ward missionaries. They are living the ward mission plan beautifully, and they have improved incredibly. I am so proud and joyful to be a part of this. Each of the ward missionaries (there are 10) have a different set assignment--from doing active member visits and trainings to starting a blog to organizing the sharing of success stories in RS & EQ. We now have an agenda in coordination, which has made it 10 times more effective.
...On a personal level, I am trying to live our ward mission plan as well. I prayerfully created a giant list of all of my non-member friends back home and then narrowed it down to 5 that I will pray for by name and write to on P-Days (and coordinate efforts with other member friends back home). I realized I need a stronger personal testimony of member missionary work if I'm going to expect referrals from our members.
Other accountability:
We are almost right on track with 12-week! It's odd to think that we're approaching the end of Sis ******s' training, and yet very obvious as I think about how much both of us have grown. She is a solid, confident missionary. She gets discouraged when it comes to her Spanish, though we have made good effort in making language study and practice a priority...and I believe that she has improved quite a bit.
We have practiced a good handful of times this week, though I think we could definitely step it up. We are going to enhance our street contacting and "talking to everyone" skills this week. It feels so good to street contact. It's one of the ways I feel most fulfilled as a missionary, oddly enough.
In the VC, I'm trying to get more organized in the my teaching center and visitors' center goals and planning.
MIRACLE:
Well, first of all, all of Stake conference was a miracle. Hastening of the Work of Salvation. I literally can't express how wonderful it is to be a missionary right now! My heart gets all twitterpated when I think about how blessed I am to be here.
Second of all, our investigator, ****, met with Elder Higham and Pres Heath on Saturday morning before our lesson. It made a significant impact on ****, I believe. He was very impressed and touched. I know that **** will be baptized. He has to figure out how he'll live the law of chastity (He's been dating a woman for 27 years. They don't live together and I believe he wants to marry her...but he's worried about making all of the changes that marriage would require...and worried that she'll question his intentions in marrying her at this point), but I know that he'll be baptized. And I'm pretty sure he knows it too :)
Third of all, TONY THE TIGER JOO. Yes, that's a real person. He's a Korean personal trainer. And our Visitors' Center miracle. You have already heard the news about him from Elder Parsons & Hawthorne. It was their first meeting with him, but he was just so prepared! At the beginning, he told us he wasn't looking to be baptized. He just wanted to learn. And then he recognized the beauty and the Truth in so many of our beliefs, and he agreed to read and pray about the BOM. They set the date with him after we left the tour, but it felt so right. We can't wait to follow up with him!
President, there are always miracles. And I am glad you enjoy reading about them as much as I enjoy writing them. I know you know that not all of them end in baptism or even reactivation (and I'm sorry if I've ever misled you in that. I never intend to!)...but I fully recognize them as miracles and I find strength and confirmation from the spirit as I do so. Heavenly Father's hand is in all that we do. I know that and I love this work.
Thank you for all you do! You and Sister Weidman are in our prayers!
Love,
Sister Wells
We finally got our transfer vision typed up. I've copied and pasted it below.
Miracles First. Then Accountability. Then Questions.
Miracles:
Our tour with *** yesterday! He is amazing! But I don't need to give you the details...
*** came to church for the third time! With a pure white shirt and a suit and a tie. He said he hasn't bought a pure white shirt since he was 20 years old. We take it as a good sign. *** coming to church is always a miracle, by the way, because he never verbally commits to do it in our Saturday lessons with him. But when he comes, he is literally the most popular person there. He decided to go to Gospel Doctrine yesterday because he wanted to attend with the new friends he made. He is praying about marriage to his girlfriend so that he can be baptized. And he told us he's trying to be an example for her and that he wants to invite her to some activities so she can see how great all of this is. We have some solid fellowshipping ideas ready, and we're hoping to meet her soon!
...the most miraculous part of that was the timing. We're at a very pivotal point with ***, and apparently his attitude in Saturday's lesson was a little discouraging. So in the middle of my fast and testimony meeting notes (before *** had shown up), I had written "Heavenly Father, please give me enough faith for ***." Five minutes later, I look behind me and there he is! ...This is just as the man on the pulpit says "Nothing is impossible." ...so then, after my body regained feeling, I wrote, "Okay, Heavenly Father. I get it. Thanks :) "
In that same fast and testimony meeting were a handful of non-member friends that one of our ward missionaries brought with them.
The other miracle of the week took place in coordination with our ward mission leader, bishop, and assistant wml. I know I always say this, but our ward really is AMAZING. We now have 10 ward missionaries! So, in this meeting, we discussed how we would be utilizing and training them. It was productive and inspired. The ward mission leader and assistant ward mission leader will be taking over the Active Member Trainings--just as an experiment to see if we can get all of the ward missionaries in people's homes. We also have a few online initiatives and family history initiatives going on. And he is finally going to extend his focus to less-actives as well. It's going to be amazing! I prayed so hard for that meeting, and I feel so grateful to be serving here with these leaders who really GET IT.
Accountability:
12-week is going well! We aren't as behind as we had thought we were, and now that we have a new DVD player, we're able to better-utilize the PMG training DVDs.
Language could be better. Our companionship goal is now to have at least a few hours of Spanish-only time a day.
Our focus on the fundamentals is paying off. We feel much more secure about the two baptismal dates we have now as we renew our/their focus on those four fundamental things.
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