Well, thank goodness I got some extra time this week to make up for the email I sent last week. Quick note, next week the mission will be singing the Star Spangled Banner at the Royals game, so watch for me on Monday. Hopefully, I get all my other P-Day things done before then.
Wow, let me tell you, boy does it feel good to have an old kindly Spanish man compliment my language skills. Elias is an elderly Spanish fellow who we helped out the other day by translating some important information from English to Spanish to him, and then we came back a few days later, met him at the pool, and got to know him a little better. He's lived around the missionaries for a long time, so it's great to be comfortable with him and be able to talk openly and joyfully together. Though my Spanish is getting better, I wouldn't say that I can necessarily do a whole lot with it until I can joke in Spanish, so I'll get back to everyone when I'm able to hit the hispanas with a chiste or two.
Early in the week, we had MLC, which is basically where the Zone Leaders from our 9 zones plus the Sister Training Leaders meet at the mission home with President and Sister Love and give and receive training. Although this was only my second MLC and my first transfer as a Zone Leader, Elder Fenton and I were selected to give one of these trainings. Luckily it went really well and we had a lot of fun doing it, at least I did. As for our individual area, things have started to pick up and our days have started to fill up. I've had a couple miracles happen as I run to stop people who are pulling away in their cars and then find out that they're people we've been looking for for weeks.
I had exchanges again this week with the Elders down in Ottawa, but I was lucky enough to get to being Elder Earl up to Olathe 1st this time. Elder Earl was actually in my first zone and one of the missionaries I've really looked up to this far in my mission, so it was great to be able to work with him for a day the week before he goes home. Even though it was the 4th, it was missionary work as usual, and to make it even better, President Love said that we could stay out until 9:15 to get extra contacting in with everyone who was out and about. We first exchanged down in Ottawa and stayed for their district council which ended up running late and therefore made us late for the other district council I was trying to get to. We also were out of gas. So we filled up and started booking it across Kansas as fast as good ole TIWI would let me go. We made it to the other council about 45 minutes late, but, you do what you can do.
Those are really some of the highlights for the week, and because I've been so poor at leaving very good thoughts, I'll share one that I sent to President Love as well. I recently came across a scripture in D&C 121 that I really like. Right before the wonderful paralleling of being unable to stop the Missouri river in its decreed course with the inevitable blessing and knowledge of heaven, it says "How long can rolling waters remain unpure?" This struck me, for just as simply as stagnant water becomes unclean and infested, we too will become impure when our progression stagnates. Yet, if we will put our faith in Christ, continually push ourselves forward in our progression, we will roll forth, becoming purified and sanctified to the point "that when He shall appear we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He as He is; that we may have this hope, that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen." I know that we should apply this to every aspect of our lives, spiritually or physically, for if we become content with where we're at, our progression ceases and the Adversary can have greater hold of us. So let us continually strive to hold tight to the Savior, for He is always there awaiting us.
Love,
Elder Shepherd
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