Missionary Monday - Olney Week 12
Surprise surprise I'm still here!
So last Monday we never got our transfer call so we are staying together for another 7 weeks (7 to balance out the last 5 week transfer) Anyways, the rest of Monday was pretty boring, Elder Navarro woke up sick so we were just hanging out inside all day.
Tuesday he was still kinda sick but he manned up and we did stuff. Spent the morning and afternoon finding. Tuesday night we had our lesson that we were looking forward to with the Bible study people. We practiced like a million times and took hermano Hernandez with us and it went super well. We drew out the restoration on a whiteboard to show the pattern of dispensations and apostasy and everything and were super specific about the great apostasy and restoration. We could tell they were feeling it. And Hermano Hernandez was money on the testimony. At the end one of the guys says "A story comes to my mind... There's a boy who does a presentation in front of 1,000 people. At the end everyone claps but one. The boy goes home and cries, his dad is like 'yo why you crying everyone loved it?' and the sons says 'everyone except my mentor clapped' Who will be applauding you for this presentation, God and Jesus Christ or Joseph Smith?" Duuuuuuuuude. In our heads we were thinking "The people applauding would be God, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, Moses, Noah, President Nelson, some of the reformers, etc..." We tried to focus on the need of a restoration and the the CALLING as a prophet that Joseph received FROM God but he still missed the message. And that comment tainted it for everyone else. They pretty much said thanks but no thanks. I think the spirit and their intellect was telling them it was true but they let their "I'm an evangelist" pride get in the way. Maybe that's prideful for me to say? But the restoration is a fact whether they like it or not. We were hoping to take the cake with that lesson but it seems that it will just be a step along the way for them, we hope for the best for them.
Wednesday not much. Had a cool lesson with Milagro again, as of Wednesday she had finished 1 Nephi 🎉
Thursday in the morning we used the seer stone 🔮 and met an 80 year old Cuban guy that was pretty cool but pretty crazy. He told us the same story 3 times and then offered us a "donation" 😂 We were enjoying getting to know him until his wife "Olgita" kicked us out. Rats. Later we did a bunch of tracting, the usual. At night I taught Elder Navarro how to shock box, that was fun. I guess we drag our feet on the carpet when we walk because we keep getting shocked every time we touch a light switch. So I started rubbing my feet back and forth on the carpet and Elder Navarro was looking at me like "What drugs are you on?" Then I shocked his arm and it was a pretty good shock 🤯, I've never seen him laugh so hard. He thought it was the funniest thing. So then he started doing it and we boxed 😂 😂 😂
Friday we had district council, Elder Basso is the new district leader (Chilean from the Berwyn heights days with the huge bug bite on his arm) I haven't seen him since that transfer so that was fun. Then that night we had a Visitors Center lesson with Milagro, we wanted to watch the restoration movie to beef up her testimony of Joseph Smiths calling as a prophet a little bit more but the VC sisters misunderstood and played the NEW lost 116 page video so that was a little confusing for her. On a side note, the new Jospeh Smith is totally the Jesus from the Bible videos. Is the church trying to tell us something? 😉 😂 That's messed up. Anyways, we got that sorted out and had to watch the 20 minute restoration instead but I guess it'll do. After we were tracting and got let in and the guy was pretty cool, until he says "I had a dream last night..." At the time I was like ooooooooh, are we about to interpret this dream like Jospeh of Egypt? Then he told us the rest. "I came outside and there were a ton of tornadoes everywhere destroying buildings and sucking up people, I was trying to save my family. Then I saw some pastors with bottles of sprite spraying the tornadoes and putting them out *throwing sprite noise*" We tried our best to bring the conversation back to something meaningful but a few minutes later he brought up the dream again 😂 😂 We set up a return appointment twice but he canceled on both so that stinks 🥇
Saturday we had the mission Christmas devotional, they did two sessions with half the mission in each, after the first one and before the second one they took a mission picture again with everyone. It was nice to see all my peeps again. Then there was lunch and back to the usual. We had a bunch of finding and taught Milagro again, she's almost finished with second Nephi 🎉 Saturday night Elder Navarro opened some packages that he had ordered to himself, then he taped the boxes closed and wrapped the boxes in wrapping paper so he can open them again on Christmas 😂 😂
Sunday was the super special 1 hour church, it was alright. Then we studied a little bit and went to lunch with the Rios. They made some weird looking food but it was pretty good. The relief society got us a TON of food for Christmas so that was pretty sweet. Had paneton (Giant cake muffin bread thing) for desert, last year I wasn't a huge fan but this year it has grown on me. Then we had a bunch of finding and then taught Milagro and played a bunch of hymns for her so she could choose which ones for her baptism.
Today we have a whole lot of nothing going on so that's fun. I hope you all had a great week and I look forward to hearing from you!
So last Monday we never got our transfer call so we are staying together for another 7 weeks (7 to balance out the last 5 week transfer) Anyways, the rest of Monday was pretty boring, Elder Navarro woke up sick so we were just hanging out inside all day.
Tuesday he was still kinda sick but he manned up and we did stuff. Spent the morning and afternoon finding. Tuesday night we had our lesson that we were looking forward to with the Bible study people. We practiced like a million times and took hermano Hernandez with us and it went super well. We drew out the restoration on a whiteboard to show the pattern of dispensations and apostasy and everything and were super specific about the great apostasy and restoration. We could tell they were feeling it. And Hermano Hernandez was money on the testimony. At the end one of the guys says "A story comes to my mind... There's a boy who does a presentation in front of 1,000 people. At the end everyone claps but one. The boy goes home and cries, his dad is like 'yo why you crying everyone loved it?' and the sons says 'everyone except my mentor clapped' Who will be applauding you for this presentation, God and Jesus Christ or Joseph Smith?" Duuuuuuuuude. In our heads we were thinking "The people applauding would be God, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, Moses, Noah, President Nelson, some of the reformers, etc..." We tried to focus on the need of a restoration and the the CALLING as a prophet that Joseph received FROM God but he still missed the message. And that comment tainted it for everyone else. They pretty much said thanks but no thanks. I think the spirit and their intellect was telling them it was true but they let their "I'm an evangelist" pride get in the way. Maybe that's prideful for me to say? But the restoration is a fact whether they like it or not. We were hoping to take the cake with that lesson but it seems that it will just be a step along the way for them, we hope for the best for them.
Wednesday not much. Had a cool lesson with Milagro again, as of Wednesday she had finished 1 Nephi 🎉
Thursday in the morning we used the seer stone 🔮 and met an 80 year old Cuban guy that was pretty cool but pretty crazy. He told us the same story 3 times and then offered us a "donation" 😂 We were enjoying getting to know him until his wife "Olgita" kicked us out. Rats. Later we did a bunch of tracting, the usual. At night I taught Elder Navarro how to shock box, that was fun. I guess we drag our feet on the carpet when we walk because we keep getting shocked every time we touch a light switch. So I started rubbing my feet back and forth on the carpet and Elder Navarro was looking at me like "What drugs are you on?" Then I shocked his arm and it was a pretty good shock 🤯, I've never seen him laugh so hard. He thought it was the funniest thing. So then he started doing it and we boxed 😂 😂 😂
Friday we had district council, Elder Basso is the new district leader (Chilean from the Berwyn heights days with the huge bug bite on his arm) I haven't seen him since that transfer so that was fun. Then that night we had a Visitors Center lesson with Milagro, we wanted to watch the restoration movie to beef up her testimony of Joseph Smiths calling as a prophet a little bit more but the VC sisters misunderstood and played the NEW lost 116 page video so that was a little confusing for her. On a side note, the new Jospeh Smith is totally the Jesus from the Bible videos. Is the church trying to tell us something? 😉 😂 That's messed up. Anyways, we got that sorted out and had to watch the 20 minute restoration instead but I guess it'll do. After we were tracting and got let in and the guy was pretty cool, until he says "I had a dream last night..." At the time I was like ooooooooh, are we about to interpret this dream like Jospeh of Egypt? Then he told us the rest. "I came outside and there were a ton of tornadoes everywhere destroying buildings and sucking up people, I was trying to save my family. Then I saw some pastors with bottles of sprite spraying the tornadoes and putting them out *throwing sprite noise*" We tried our best to bring the conversation back to something meaningful but a few minutes later he brought up the dream again 😂 😂 We set up a return appointment twice but he canceled on both so that stinks 🥇
Saturday we had the mission Christmas devotional, they did two sessions with half the mission in each, after the first one and before the second one they took a mission picture again with everyone. It was nice to see all my peeps again. Then there was lunch and back to the usual. We had a bunch of finding and taught Milagro again, she's almost finished with second Nephi 🎉 Saturday night Elder Navarro opened some packages that he had ordered to himself, then he taped the boxes closed and wrapped the boxes in wrapping paper so he can open them again on Christmas 😂 😂
Sunday was the super special 1 hour church, it was alright. Then we studied a little bit and went to lunch with the Rios. They made some weird looking food but it was pretty good. The relief society got us a TON of food for Christmas so that was pretty sweet. Had paneton (Giant cake muffin bread thing) for desert, last year I wasn't a huge fan but this year it has grown on me. Then we had a bunch of finding and then taught Milagro and played a bunch of hymns for her so she could choose which ones for her baptism.
Today we have a whole lot of nothing going on so that's fun. I hope you all had a great week and I look forward to hearing from you!
Elder Beck
Pictures:
VC with Milagro
Christmas with the Rios
Selfie from the mission picture
Close up of Elder Navarro, put your own caption
Our "tree"
Accidental Skype with Elder Navarro
