Weekly Update 28 January 2013

Hello!

This week has been a fairly strange one, I wasn't with my usual companion from Tuesday - Saturday because we have been on back to back exchanges with other missionaries. I've been left on my own to lead Runcorn, which was pretty interesting, but it was really good. When I'm left to lead an area by myself for such a long time it really tests my abilities. We did well though, we had planned for about 15-20 lessons with a member present which really does stretch the mission standards. I love Runcorn, it's like a Business, when things are planned well and are followed through with, success is found.

A success that we found was with the youth, we played Basketball with them during our Preparation day, we really made friends with them, we then we to a buffet together and then we took them out fellowshipping, it was a good day. It is very cold here, it is very snowy and icy, driving here is quite extreme. The car slides all over the place sometimes, but I'm a good driver, we have had our fair share of drifts and even times where the car moves no where because it is so slippy one of us has to get out and push a long with the other tapping on the pedals.

Something that has become so real to me at this point of my mission is opposition. I find that when good things really happen and we teach, teach and teach and we lead in all that we do, it seems that there are moments in that week, that I've felt like giving up, it is a sad thing to say, but when investigators cancel it sort of becomes normal, we had over 10 lessons cancel this week, it seems to be even harder when members cancel on you, but I'm sure they have their difficulties too. I've found that that when someone cancels, you turn to yourself and ask "who am I meant to find now?" and then you go and do.

Missionary work teaches you a lot of life lessons, when you can see yourself in your investigators eyes, when you realise they are struggling with perhaps even the same sins that you have struggled with it becomes more real... a lot of missionaries see it like a Business, but it is so much more than that. When you can focus on the one and keep a more eternal perspective that is when a missionary becomes qualified. It is a good time to be a missionary.

With Love,

Elder Sapaden