We are getting more adjusted to our mission--and the sun has shone both yesterday and today! That makes such a difference! This morning I came out of the bedroom and thought the living room looked almost pretty! I don't know why I am so affected by my surroundings!
I am trying to teach the Elders that the way they keep their apartment is a reflection of their souls. One Elder thought about that overnight and the next day told me that he could see that it was a good comparison. If, he explained, we repent of our sins and once get clean, then each time we partake of the Sacrament we become still cleaner and more filled with light. In the same way, our house gets cleaner and cleaner as we do just little things each day. If we let ourselves get dirty again (soul or house) it is easy to slip back into those old habits and just let everything go until something forces us to have a "housecleaning" again.
We have had some sweet experiences visiting members, inactive members and some darling non-members! We love one of these couples! They are a little older than us, he is probably almost 90, and I don't know how old she is. It is their second marriage. He is so deaf that he wears headphones of some sort to help him hear but still mostly relies on lip-reading. She is glad to visit with someone to whom she doesn't have to yell. We have visited with them twice and happened to mention that the son living in our home trains horses. He loves horses and made an immediate attachment in his heart to Michael. By the second time we visited he had already told the full-time missionaries, who live in one of their apartments, about the son who trains horses! He asked us about him first thing!
We want so to bring the Gospel to them!
She has a daughter that is a Mormon. The daughter and her husband are planning to serve a mission soon! But somewhere there is a block in our friend. I am praying for inspiration to know how to help her remove that block and how to interest them in the Gospel. The Mission President said, "Sometimes you can be much more effective and forthright than the Elders can be with their landlords," which gave me a green light!
I was looking out the window at the "fort" that brought such solace to me the first week we were here. I was a little dismayed to think how far "down" I must have been to be comforted by that! I think it must have been because children had built it and must still be close by!
We spoke in the Dungeness Ward Sacrament Meeting Sunday morning. Of the three wards here in Sequim, it feels best to us. It seems unified and has enough youth to make both Primary and YW/YM organizations solid. One of the wards has only about 10 children in Primary with both JR an SR combined, and only 1 active Priest to bless the sacrament. The spirit of the ward is good, but 12 families moved out when a tech company moved from here to Orem, Utah! We need to reactivate some parents and youth! People seem to come here to retire and to hide. And when they retire from employment, some of them also retire from the Church!
Three zones of the mission gave a fireside Sunday evening called, "Why I Believe." The missionaries presented musical numbers and some of them have very fine voices. Five new converts bore their testimonies--and we mean "new" converts! All had been baptized in the last two months, the first speaker only the day before! It was very moving and such a great opportunity for them! We also attended an inspiring Zone Conference on Tuesday. We are excited about the work!
Since Jan 15th, the day we started checking apartments, we have put 1,020 miles on our car! We have had some sweet visits with some of the Elders and Sisters. It is worth the time and miles--hope we can keep it up!
Two things have been impressed on my mind this week:
I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the way for each of us to be successful in this life and together in the world to come. I know that the Savior was willing to suffer for our mistakes, and that He blesses us with His enabling power, but He also must let us use all our strength to the utmost (and allow us time for many repetitions) so that we can get strong!
In I Nephi 17:7, the Lord says to Nephi, "Arise and get thee into the mountain," and then asked Nephi to build a ship! It makes me realize that for us to progress there will, and must always, be change and new challenges, and reminds me that the talents we have developed instead of being the "end," are only a platform or springboard to greater achievement!
When we had our interview with President Basden, of the Port Angeles Stake, he quoted the 9th Article of faith to us referencing our talents and our missionary service.
"We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God."
Meaning that, tho' we have used certain talents in contributing to the building up of the Church, there may be other talents that have not been developed as well so we are less comfortable using them, but they may still bring great blessing to us and to others!
Even tho' it has been unseasonable warm here, most of the rocks and trees are still wearing sweaters!
Love you dearly!
Elder and Sister Walker
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