ZONE CONFERENCE
It's taking me a while to write up this blog. I originally thought I'd write every week. Some weeks get filled up really fast. I take notes on my schedule so I can review the miracles that occur around us everyday. Tender mercies seem to jump out everywhere here in the mission field. If it's not with us, we notice the effect that the tender mercy has on a "friend" looking to join the church, or one of our missionaries.
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| Servers for the luncheon |
Zone Conference is a huge project. It takes up 3 days out of the week. Tuesday, Wednesday, and part of Thursday the Elders and Sisters gather together. Our zone, Silver Springs was assigned on Wednesday. We were asked to help with the food. We came at 9 so we could help prep. Part of the zone was in listening to President Clarke and the AP's and SLS's. They celebrated Chinese New Year and had so much fun with decorating and authentic food. We served them and then cleaned up. We were able to join them after the lunch for wonderful instruction. On Thursday afternoon when the zone goes home the Senior missionaries have their conference from 4:30-7:30. We had instruction and then ate together with potluck that we all were assigned. It was fun to meet some of the new people since the last zone conference. We were one of those.
They had decorated the backdrops with Chinese New Year. The counselor's wife Sister Irvine is from Korea originally. She prepared orange chicken, two kinds of rice, a traditional stew from her recipe along with sushi. The decorations on the table had fortune cookies and they could eat with chop sticks if they wanted. Wow....they were treated royally.
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| Elder Hinton keeping the sauce warm |
As we're celebrating with our missionaries our granddaughter Brooklyn entered the Missionary Training Center. Her parents are Drew and Rachelle Baird. It's so fun to get to share our P-day with talking to her and sharing our experiences.
We have some great Family Home Evening Activities and Game nights together with our Branch Single Adults. We had a sugar cookie frosting activity after the lesson and while they were decorating karaoke was taking place. We have some great actors up there doing karaoke. Of course, Elder Hinton and I didn't recognize a lot of the songs. We also taught them Kill the Candy Bar activity. Volleyball and basketball are a favorite. We love to give them rides and bring food for treats.
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| Kill the Candy Bar Game We went through 5candy bars |
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| Elder Hinton not quite dressed to participate |
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| Saviour and Sisters who taught him |
We had two young men baptized on the 17th of February. I got to prepare the programs for them. They had to do them separately because of their work schedules. We did a light lunch after the first and then cookies after the second. Our branch was such a support. Most of them stayed and visited after until the 2nd one started. The first was Akanni Evans and the second was Saviour Msopa. The members gave the talks except Rick gave the baptism talk for Saviour. Akanni was a fairly tall man and muscular. Our Elder Eliason almost tipped over with him. It was his first baptism. He was so excited. We always have a member of our Stake Single Adult Presidency and our Washington DC North mission represented. Akanni said as he came out of the water, having to do it a second time, I did it. He was excited. Saviour and Akanni gave very moving testimonies of their journey to join the church. I have to get used to having these people confirmed in church because they are over the age of 8. It is a sacred time in our branch to witness the confirmations.
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| Jon in the front( 5 from the right) left about a month ago and is in Basic Training for the army. We miss him in our branch. He sent this picture to us. He'd only been a member since November and was able to pass the Sacrament and go to the Washington DC Temple to do baptisms before he left. |
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| Treats for my favorite district |
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| Eating together after District meeting |
We have gotten quite a schedule down for meetings, church, rides, and finding people. We actively have gone "finding" the inactive members. We had over 140 to search out and we divided among the Elder and Sister missionaries in our branch. We find many of them don't live there anymore but we
are inviting those we "find" to join us at our branch.
We help out every Friday morning the "Meals on Wheels". We love it. We have two routes in the same building and we distribute a hot and cold meal to the residents. We go to just under 20 people. We get to knock on the door and say, "Meals on Wheels", and usually they'll poke their head out so we can say have a good day after they say thank you. We'll come to know them better as the months go by.
I'm sure there is more to say. I miss my Primary class and so my district is okay with my crazy treats and sayings. They love to eat and be together. W really call it the "Sistrict". There is Elder Hinton and I, the Elders and 3 sets of Sisters. They invite us even though we are OLD. I'd be lying if I said it was easy... but the Lord is by our side when we are a little ill, discouraged or homesick. Elder Hinton has worked tirelessly to get the membership up to date so the clerk can get the memberships in order. Single Adults sometimes don't want to be found. But...we're on the hunt. We need Jesus and so do they.
Love all of you and will leave you with our deep and abiding testimony that this is the Lord's work and we have met some wonderful missionaries to rub shoulders with in this great work of bringing souls unto Christ.
#loveourmission
you are obviously blessing the lives of the Young Adults and the missionaries.
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