Up High

What. A. Week.
  

And somehow and flies and crawls by....all at the same time. #missionlife

Monday morning, we call our dinner appointment--a member who always takes us out to eat for dinner--and come to find, he's planned the perfect missionary rendezvu...

A SPORTS BAR
   

okkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk.....and yes, I got the weirdest looks of my life there
   

......might as well have been nun at a Jay-Z concert.  

  

After leaving our dinner appointment, we rushed off to teach James just as a MEGA lightning storm hit complete with torrential rain. I was in h.e.a.v.e.n.;) I love love love lightning and thunder and rain storms....the whole enchilada. 

     

Even better, sitting inside teaching James with the spirit SO strong, all the while the storm is howling and thrashing outside.....felt amazing......it was a life lesson: the gospel really does create that safe haven amidst all the storms of life and gives us the shelter and protection so needed in today's world.
  

Ok, now off the soap box:)..... 
   

With the downpour came missionary miracles too: S.E.R.V.I.C.E;)    By the next morning we were over at member's homes helping with flood damage, clean-up, and take-out. I can now add hauling wet carpet and shop vac-ing to my list of mission-accquired skills.         #gifted

Between basement water parties, we got to help out in other unique ways as well......like making clouds for HS senior parties out of chicken wire, hot glue guns, batting, pillow fluff, and LED lights.  
     

Creative much??   Hit me up if you wanna learn how to make a cloud.....made me so excited to get to heaven one day...#missionarynerd

 And the (service) party don't stop till 5am tonight.......or....in the case of sister missionaries .....till 9pm at night.    For reals....you think I'm joking...
 

We showed up at an investigator's house on Saturday to do a number on her yard and that turned into a number of hours on us. Lezzzzz see.....6 to be exact. Holy guacamole. And we LOVED it.

Two of those hours were spent trying to pull, tug, lasso, yank, and swing on a huge tree branch that was broken and hanging from one of the oaks in their backyard. They were afraid it could eventually fall and hurt someone, so, of course....missionaries to the rescue. 

Took us an e.t.e.r.n.i.t.y. to finally get it down, after multiple failed attempts (the bugger was jammed between branches and trunks), until finally the neighbor came out, climbed on top of the nearby woodshed and then climbed a 40 foot ladder (on top of the woodshed).....with a chain saw......to lean out around the trunk for a one-handed buzz-cut to the branch.

Guys and their thinking.......

     

Welp....at least it worked....surprisingly;) and the elders then had a party using chain saws to hack it apart for fire wood. Turns out, the neighboor who came out after seeing our epic fails, is a non-member who's married to a less-active. He's apparently very anti-mormon and especially towards their service.....BUT, after spending that time serving along side us, he stayed for dinner, gave us his card and phone number, and t.o.t.a.l.l.y. warmed right up to us.     #score

It's amazing what service and the spirit can do to soften people's hearts!

Moments of the week:

We set off the fire alarm trying to make chips out of tortillas,

were asked to attend PEC....#girlstatus,

heard Jesus Christ be compared with Kevin Costner, and the Jdubs compared with the Start Trek Borg,

taught my first skype lesson in sign language!!!

helped organize soccer tournament ref schedules for member service,

had an a.m.a.z.i.n.g. convo with a fellow library computer-user who now wants a Book of Mormon and a visit so "we can sit down and chat,"

and woofed a bag of freeze-dried strawberries only to find there was only 130 calories in the whole bag....#traderjoesisnowmyfriend   #winnerstatus

   

the BEST moment of the week though......was JAMES' BAPTISM!!!!!!!!!!! Here it goes again:

 AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

       

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO    HAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPY!!!!!! Every time, it floors me, seeing how God fills His missionary with SO much love for these people we get to meet and teach!!! It's absolutely incredible!!!

I think we get more of a high out of their baptisms than they do:)

   

James had quite the fan club show up too....I've never seen so many people crammed into a baptismal room before! It was a.m.a.z.i.n.g.!!!!! The spirit was SO strong and I was GIDDY with happiness!!!! This gospel truly does bring happiness, joy, and peace beyond anything else!!!

That's the message we as missionaries get to share with people. That's the blessing we get to extend to them. And that's their potential if they accept! 

Missions are incredible. You come to understand the gospel in such a profound way, and not only that, but you get to see it actively at work in the hearts and lives of others. You get the priviledge of being that person to bring them a message that will change their lives forever!

Seeing James turn his life around and in doing so, come to find SO much lasting happiness and purpose....Ah! It's priceless!!! PRICELESS!!!! It's an experience I wouldn't trade for the world:)




Onward and upward!

Sister Anna Parker

AH!! baptisms!!!!

towel #6:)

graduated to weed wacker status

zone activity....love em<3