December 12, 2011
Tuesday we did some housework for Carolyn, who was laid up for the day. We see her every week but typically she’s up and about. She belongs to the Methodist church and isn’t interested in the message we have to share but professes to be open-minded. As we discussed the gospel of Jesus Christ she referenced the scripture that makes up the most part of the 13th Article of Faith. If she only knew :)
As we closed our discussion, Sis Kennedy discovered Carolyn’s cat, Oscar rolling around in my nice red coat! Learned my lesson….such a stinker.
I found it – the ideal family <3 We visited Stephanie and her family to share our Christmas message and challenged them to invite a friend or neighbor to hear it. Their little 6-year old “Rae Rae” volunteered every time to read from the scriptures and was a pretty good reader too! Their house was clean & organized, the kids were quiet and paid attention and you could definitely feel the Spirit in their home. If nothing else, I’ve learned what kind of home I want to have in the future.
If you remember Susan from last week, here’s an update on her. I talked with her very briefly on the phone, enough to discover that she can’t meet with us for reasons that were not clear. What I could understand was “…the Mormons have done some very bad things to young girls…I can’t—I can’t….”; needless to say, I think she’s confused. We left a copy of Mr. Kreuger’s Christmas on her doorstop later in the week – we hope it helps lift her spirits as she’s alone this Christmas season.
On Thursday we had Combined District Meeting – so it’s the Eugene Zone. Total we number about 40…and only 3 of us are Sisters! I had to recite D&C 4 as part of the “Opening Exercises” and it went well! Luckily the ZLs called a week ahead and asked me to do it, so I had plenty of time to practice. President Young dropped in on our meeting and answered questions at the end. Most were about haircuts, suit color, dinner etiquette (or the lack thereof) and finally we got into recognizing promptings of the Spirit. Our discussion reminded me of Elder Bednar’s talk about not worrying if something is a prompting or not; if it’s good – do it.
Eugene is a college town and given the season, it is now a ghost town! Literally EVERYONE has left for Christmas break. We knocked a whole complex and no one answered the door. Despite the lack of people, we did find a really great guy for the ZLs [we teach the girls, the ZLs teach the guys]. His name is Regis, he’s 20 yrs old and goes to the University. He’s really into his church but has a wonderful faith in Christ that allows his to be open and interested in learning more about Him!
This is my last week in Eugene! I’ve loved being in Oregon and will cherish the experiences I’ve had here. The culture of the city for sure is different…but that’s what makes it such an interesting place :)
It’s all true.
