This week was pretty low
key, but really good because of the wonderful conference! I loved every second
of it and just like you, I was quite sad when the end came. Wasn't it cool to see
Dehaan in the priesthood session? Well I had plenty of points that I just
loved, especially those that you said to me. I was able to watch a lot of it in
English luckily and it was so great to hear the actual voices of the prophets
and apostles. We had a newer American missionary that was really really happy
to be able to listen in English. We spent about all day Saturday in the chapel,
first session here was at one, second at five, and priesthood at nine. We were
authorized to stay out until eleven to watch priesthood if we had a car ride
home with a member. It was a lot of good fun.
After Elder Holland
spoke on Saturday about depression, a little ten year old boy walked up to my
comp and asked if he could have a blessing. My comp asked "Why? are you
sad?" The little boy quickly responded yes, and with a smile. Ha-ha my
comp asked that I would give the blessing and I asked the boy why he was sad,
he said "I don’t know, I just woke up sad today." so me and five
other missionaries gave the smiling little boy a priesthood blessing of
comfort. Ha-ha Its an experience I won’t ever forget. It was really funny to me
but I am always excited for the opportunity to exercise the priesthood for
others.
We had also decided to
fast from Saturday to Sunday to thank the Lord for the miracles and blessings
that he had given us and to help that an investigating couple could get
everything right with their marriage papers to be baptized. Well, in between
sessions was a pig out and we just sat around watching, but it was still such a
great experience and we were full of the word of God so we didn't need food. Ha-ha
just kidding.
Last night we found out
about the transfers here in the zone, and luckily I will stay here with Elder
Vianna again. We had a lot of missionaries leave and now we will have four
sisters..... hope it all goes well. But I am so happy to stay here and for the
changes that have been made. We have two missionaries that have finished their
missions and fourteen that are arriving. I am so happy to see how the Lord is
truly hastening his work! Fifteen million members and eighty thousand
missionaries. I am so lucky to be part of the Lords army and so grateful for
the opportunities that he has blessed me with! I am so happy to be able to tell
others about all the blessings that our
Savior has prepared for them. This is the true gospel of Jesus Christ and this
His church and his work. This is the work of Salvation, and I am beyond happy
to be doing it!
Hey dad,
Thanks so much for the
email. I can’t express it in words about how grateful I am for you and your
love and our wonderful family! Well dad, this week was really good, fast, and
of course had some ups and some downs. The zone is doing better, the mission as
a whole is doing a lot better matter of fact. Our mission president is super inspired
and has really changed things around since I first arrived in the field.
Anyway, in short, I am
still learning a lot about loving the people and enjoying the moments, and the
gospel and everything. It is kind of funny, I felt more on top of things last
transfer but the more I learn the more I understand that I have a lot to learn.
Ha-ha I wish I could just study all day long to help these people and to feel
the spirit at all times.
The family we had been
working with has just been great, this week four people were baptized and the
other fence sitters decided to get married and be baptized, so now we are
setting up a big baptismal service for next transfer and I am just so excited
for it to come around. This Sunday was such a busy day, and our investigators
wanted us over for a big lunch that they made for us, but we had lunch with a
member that was super angry when we tried to explain the situation because she
also made a big feast for us. We just had some things popping up and people in
the way, problems with the font, and all this stuff, but in the end they were
baptized and it went great. We ended up eating at the member’s house, then
going to the investigators house and eating even more, and then a member gave
us some food to take home and by the end of the night I didn't even want to
smell food or I would have thrown up.
Last night while we were
at the investigators house eating, I went outside to cool off a bit and started
talking with a friend of the family there, and he started talking about his
life and some things that he had passed through and the help that the
investigator had given him. I was really impressed and it made me think a lot.
Yesterday was good dad, we baptized, but I wasn't happy during the service, or
during the day. To tell the truth I haven’t been the same happy me for a while I
have just been stressing. And so yesterday I made a resolution to take it
easier and come back to the being grateful for all of the small things so I can
be happy, the tough thing is just like you said, keeping the spirit with you so
you can recognize the great blessings that the Lord has given to us.
Can you believe it’s
almost a year?! I sure can’t! It’s gone by way too fast and I am so happy I
still have at least a year! Give dog some love and the fam.
I love you dad
Elder Paynter
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