(Cue the music from the Church's thanksgiving video from last year "In the spirit of thanksgiving", the one on the streets of new york)
Hi Everyone,
Welcome to this Special Edition of my random ramblings and writings to relatives and really close friends. It's the Thanskgiving edition, and while I don't know *quite* what's going on back home, I'd like to start off by talking about a lot of things I'm grateful for. Some of them are things I've always been grateful for, but some of them are things I've learned to be grateful for on my mission. This is in no particular order, and it reminds me of a game we played in Olomouc for our Family Home Evening night when we'd take a ball and toss it back and forth between each other. When you catch the ball, you say something you're grateful for. While I enumerate a condensed list below, think about some of the things you're grateful for and then ask the person next to you what they are grateful for.
I'm grateful for the pictures on my wall in the office, the ones of people that mean a lot to me in the Czech republic.
I'm grateful for the little Czech flag I got about two years ago from my best friends that's right next to those pictures.
I'm grateful that we have a dryer in the mission home. Fluffy towels and wrinkle-free shirts are something you can't get if you just have a clothesline or a drying rack.
I'm grateful for the letters that all the missionaries get every day - a mailbag full - and for how happy and loved it helps them feel.
I'm grateful for the picture of the Savior I have on my desk that reminds me of what's important.
I'm grateful for my Scriptures. I think I can count on one hand the personal possessions I have that I'd be devastated to lose, and they are on that list.
I'm grateful for my companion, Elder Thompson. I was thinking about it last night, and it's not every transfer you get someone like him.
I'm grateful for good zone leaders to look after.
I'm grateful for the Church and it's programs, for the general leadership and for how much they care about and look after the missionaries and the members.
I'm grateful for Joseph Smith and his diligence leading up to the First vision, plus that experience in and of itself
I'm grateful for the progress that our investigators are making and their desire to work towards baptism.
I'm grateful for the Holy Ghost and the role he plays in conversions, including my own.
I'm grateful for friends and family back home that think and pray about us every day and every night
I'm grateful for Temples and covenants
I'm grateful for the people we've found this week and the lessons we've taught
The list could keep on going and going, but that's enough for the moment.
This last week we had another conference (Remember the time when writing about a conference was unusual and only happened every now and then?), a two day leadership training in Brno. We reviewed the fundamentals of preach my gospel training that we've been working with since August and I got to spend the night on a luxurious set of single-seat chairs that I stuck together. It was actually rather comfortable, and I was grateful to have a place to sleep.
During the conference, the two new sister missionaries had to work together since their companions were at the conference. They've been learning Czech for about 9 weeks now, so it's a bit of a stretch asking them to go out and work on their own in a city they've never been in before (Brno), but we did. It felt like a great opportunity for them to get out and perform some miracles, even though they might not realize that with their calling as missionaries, they are fully qualified to perform miracles - they just have to activate that power within them through obedience, faith, prayer, and work.
Below is an excerpt from my letter to my mom this week talking about their experience.
So we had a good conference in Brno (again - always traveling), we had all the mission leadership together. I was really proud of the two new sister missionaries. Because their trainers were in the conference, I had to figure out where to put the two sisters where they'd be safe since they're brand new but still productive. So, we gave them a phone and had them go contacting in Brno. They were absolutely terrified, but we gave them the same pattern I talked about last week in my email (Faith -> Prayer -> Work) and sent them on their way. The first day, they came back thrilled at having found two numbers. Then they set a goal to double that and get four numbers. The next day they were really anxious (Which is good, I think - it indicates that you can break through and be successful) but they hit the streets and came back a few hours later with five phone numbers. It's something small, but think about the task: Speaking a foreign language that you've been learning for about 3 months, you've only been around natives for 3 weeks, most are devout atheists, and you're trying to set up meetings and get their phone numbers. At any rate, I was very proud and I'm not too concerned with these new missionaries that we have. They're great. If only everyone were as simple, innocent, and faith-filled as the new missionaries. It's something you see as a missionary very clearly is the pride cycle, all too often in oneself - as you learn and gain experience, then you forget how much help you actually need and you get proud. It takes some humbling experiences to bring you back around.
So, in conclusion, be grateful this week, enjoy the holiday and the food, and look for ways to perform miracles in your own lives. It works, and I know that the Lord is willing to bless us when we are doing what He would have us do.
Love,
Elder Brent Anderson
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