We're almost there!

What a week it has been!  Busy, demanding, unbelievable!  But through the tender mercies of the Lord we have accomplished so many things and feel so grateful.  We knew it was going to be this way--Elder Dana, the vehicle coordinator in the mission office said to us, "This will be the hardest week of your mission.  After this it will get better."  We hope he's right, because now the week is over, but we still know we have so much to do this coming week.  Remember the 130+ letters that I wrote the first week we were on our own here?  I need to do it again this week!  (I can't wait. . . ) One night we came home from the office so tired we could hardly get out of the car.  When we came in, I said to Glen, "I think I'm going to die."  When he said the blessing on the food, he said, "I hope we don't die. . . "  We both burst out laughing and it took some time before he could finish the blessing on the food.

Tomorrow is transfers, (hurray!) and Pres. Black told us this has been the hardest transfer of his time as mission president, and he's been here over two years! Nine new areas are being opened up, starting tomorrow, so it has been a HUGE project.  We have again been working 12 hour days trying to get everything ready.  But we're excited to meet the 22 new missionaries that are coming from the MTC, in addition to the 28 we received six weeks ago--that's 50 new missionaries in 6 weeks!  So far for October transfers, we only have EIGHT coming--what a huge difference!  But you never know--things change DAILY in the mission.

Anyway, here are some of the past week's happenings:

Every 2nd Sunday we are invited to a couple's home for dinner, and she sets a gorgeous table with delicious food.  Too bad I'm not looking in this picture, or Elder Weekes and Elder Vieira, but they are sitting across from me.  And guess what?  Elder Weekes was called to be an assistant this week, and we are SO excited!  We were hoping he would be, because he is an awesome missionary.  At the end of dinner, Elder Weekes and Elder Vieira were asked to leave a spiritual thought (the wife of the couple is not a member) and they immediately went into the First Vision, the restoration, and the Book of Mormon.  The Spirit was very strong as they bore their testimonies and invited each of us to read the Book of Mormon.  I then bore my testimony of the Book of Mormon and so did Glen, and as we added our testimonies, the Spirit was even stronger.  It was the neatest experience ever, and our hearts rejoiced!  The next day, the Elders told us how much it meant to them to have us add our testimonies and how they appreciated everything we had said, and  Elder Vieira (who is from Portugal) said, with his accent, "You guys are the BEST!"  He said it over and over.

  

Since last week I told you some of what Glen does, I thought I would tell you some of what I do.  SOME is the key word.  I have to sort all the mail that comes into the office each day for all the missionaries, using mailmerge (I know. . . me using mailmerge. . . it's a miracle!).  See the packages in the background?  I also have to forward them to the missionaries' apartments.  The volume of mail is a LOT, but I still wish there were more.  When missionaries come in and see me doing the mail, they ALWAYS say, "Is there any for me?"  A lot of times there isn't, and they are so disappointed.  So if you know a missionary, WRITE TO THEM!  They really need the support.  

 I also prepare a mission guidebook for each new missionary, consisting of about 40 pages each and has some pages individualized for each missionary.  All the binders behind me are for the new missionaries.  It is a huge project to assemble all the binders and takes hours.

  I also prepare a departing folder for each departing missionary, consisting of 10-12 pages along with their flight information.  Some of these pages are also stored for the huge book kept at the office for all departed missionaried and another copy is saved for Pres. Black's book.  It's been a learning curve to keep it all straight!  

We are in the same big complex as DI, so every day I have gone there through their back doors and made a quick run through to see if any furniture was donated that day that can be purchased  for the missionary apartments.  They have been so nice and supportive there and were willing to store the furniture until we needed it.  Here is some of the furniture that I picked out.  One really awesome director of employees there who was helping me told me that he was baptized about 10 years ago and told me how it has completely changed his life.  He said over and over, "It has been the most important thing that has ever happened to me.  I can't thank the missionaries enough who taught me.  I have now baptized my mother and it has brought new joy into her life too."  He just glowed as he was telling me.

We're loading the furniture into the mission trailer to be delivered to a new apartment for the sister missionaries.  Can you believe these beautiful chairs that were donated to us?  These missionaries helped us a ton, even though they put their goofy poses on here.

I also have to talk to all kinds of people on the people on the phone every day, including parents of missionaries.  I told one father this week how much we love his son serving here.  There was a long pause and as he composed himself, he said quietly and with emotion, "We do too."  When I told that to another father he said, "I have too many tender feelings when I think about it."  So sweet.  

It's so great that now that we have been here for  nearly two months  I can recognize by face so many of the missionaries.  It's been fun this week to hear who the newly called zone leaders, district leaders, and trainers are.  Fifty new missionaries in six weeks also mean 50 new trainers!  Hurrah for Israel!  

Yesterday was our p-day, but again, we had to work all day.  At t 7:30 p.m. we were brain dead, so we left the office and went to  a couple's home to watch the BYU-Utah game with two couples  The game started here at 7:00 and we got there during the 2nd quarter, and the game lived up to it's usual hype--always crazy things happening in that game!  We really enjoyed our time there.  

Thank you so much for your prayers this week!  We felt them and we really needed them.  One of our friends said to us, "We pray for you every night."  Our family tells us that too, and we are so grateful to hear it!  I thought of the words of James 5:16--"Pray one for another, that ye may be healed.  The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."