So I'm starting to worry a little. My fears are slowly coming true. And what they say about the south is true. THEY LOVE THEIR FRIED CHICKEN. From the time that I left the MTC up until now I've gained nearly 5 pounds. Maybe that doesn't seem like much to some people but put it in perspective. I've gained the same amount in the last 2 months that I have in the last 2 years. Now to be fair it should be expected I should gain a little seeing as I've gone from long hours of manual labor to a labour of love. And contained within that labour of love I am often fed by members who share their love by making sure that we never walk out of their house hungry. Or less than bloated in most occasions. What doesn't help is the fact that most of them are pretty good cooks and the reason why the food tastes so good is because its drenched in butter and sugars and all manor of wonderus things devoid of nutritious value. I thought I'd be safe dipping into a bowl of green beans the other night, when at the bottom of the bowl I discovered several strips of bacon. I guess theres just no getting away from it. At least its not showing yet.
We almost moved this past weekend too! The Zone leaders had scoped out a super nice apartment that we could all live in. It had a work out gym, a racketball court, tennis courts, an outdoor pool that we could never use, and it was in a super nice area. And Best of all it would be cheaper for us all to live together anyways! That is if the lease on the Zone leaders current apartment wasn't up till May... So after touring around the complex we found out that it was a no go. It was a little upsetting as livng with the zone leaders would probably have been a great thing and having a gym and courts would have made working out much easier and more appealing. Perhaps I'll stay in the area long enough for the lease to end!
Other than that our week has been less eventful with the exception of transfer day on Wednesday. We had a couple of Elders stay the night with us as we waited for everyone to get shifted around. Its always great to spend time with other Elders. Hear their stories about crazy tracting experiences and also a couple of fresh jokes. Aside from the Salem Elders and the Zone leaders we don't often see anyone else most weeks. Wednesday night an Elder Brady was assigned to us while he waited for his companion to arrive in the area. He was totally awesome! He'd been working the Lynchberg area. At Lynchberg there is a school that is equivalent to BYU for baptists, therefor the city is like a Baptist Provo. They said they get a lot of theologians and students who are studying to become priests and preachers. Some of them want to hear what Mormons believe to help get a better understanding of us. But most are just interested in bashing and contending with them. Hopefully I don't get sent there anytime soon as my scriptural knowledge is not as thorough as is should be yet. But I am working hard at it!
Anyways, that night we Visited Jason and Kim again. After sharing a short message we invited them to be Baptized on Feb. 5th! And Jason was all over it! Kim who will be nealry 8 months pregnant by that time was a little reluctant for that reason, but Jason was the one who encouraged her that we'd find a way to make it work. We're Super Stoked For them! The only problem is we haven't gotten them to church yet. Sickness and health caused all 4 of the investigators we hoped to see at church this week to miss out. So we're a little upset by that, but all we can do is keep working and hope for better results next week.
These past two weeks I've devoted most of my Study time just to reading the Book of Mormon. President gives each new missionary a hard cover and the challenge to go through and highlight all the times it talks about Christ. So far I'm in Mosiah 20, almost halfway through the book and there hasn't been a single page that is unmarked. Some pages and dotted up pretty good. Its such a powerful book, and its sad when the people here don't even give it a chance before they know what it is. But Our job is to find those who have humbled hearts and who's ears are open to our message. But I know that this work cannot be stopped. Truth is flooding the land and I'm grateful to be even the smallest part of that.
We almost moved this past weekend too! The Zone leaders had scoped out a super nice apartment that we could all live in. It had a work out gym, a racketball court, tennis courts, an outdoor pool that we could never use, and it was in a super nice area. And Best of all it would be cheaper for us all to live together anyways! That is if the lease on the Zone leaders current apartment wasn't up till May... So after touring around the complex we found out that it was a no go. It was a little upsetting as livng with the zone leaders would probably have been a great thing and having a gym and courts would have made working out much easier and more appealing. Perhaps I'll stay in the area long enough for the lease to end!
Other than that our week has been less eventful with the exception of transfer day on Wednesday. We had a couple of Elders stay the night with us as we waited for everyone to get shifted around. Its always great to spend time with other Elders. Hear their stories about crazy tracting experiences and also a couple of fresh jokes. Aside from the Salem Elders and the Zone leaders we don't often see anyone else most weeks. Wednesday night an Elder Brady was assigned to us while he waited for his companion to arrive in the area. He was totally awesome! He'd been working the Lynchberg area. At Lynchberg there is a school that is equivalent to BYU for baptists, therefor the city is like a Baptist Provo. They said they get a lot of theologians and students who are studying to become priests and preachers. Some of them want to hear what Mormons believe to help get a better understanding of us. But most are just interested in bashing and contending with them. Hopefully I don't get sent there anytime soon as my scriptural knowledge is not as thorough as is should be yet. But I am working hard at it!
Anyways, that night we Visited Jason and Kim again. After sharing a short message we invited them to be Baptized on Feb. 5th! And Jason was all over it! Kim who will be nealry 8 months pregnant by that time was a little reluctant for that reason, but Jason was the one who encouraged her that we'd find a way to make it work. We're Super Stoked For them! The only problem is we haven't gotten them to church yet. Sickness and health caused all 4 of the investigators we hoped to see at church this week to miss out. So we're a little upset by that, but all we can do is keep working and hope for better results next week.
I finally realized how warm it is here. The whole Fahrenheit system is outta wack! Even when I ask Americans about it they agree Celsius makes much more sense. Same goes for the Metric system. I was standing outside our place the other night when I looked up and noticed the clear night sky. I stood there for a minute or two just enjoying the dark majesty of it. Then I realized that its the middle of winter, and if I'd been at home I'd be frozen stiff. Its been in the low 40s, which is to say a little above freezing most the week. I miss the cold and when I tell people about the sensation of having cold air freeze your lungs and eyelashes together, they think me crazy. I'm probably not helping the Sterotype of Canada Being the Great White North and I try to explain to them that its really not that bad. But maybe it really is that cold to them. Hmm.
These past two weeks I've devoted most of my Study time just to reading the Book of Mormon. President gives each new missionary a hard cover and the challenge to go through and highlight all the times it talks about Christ. So far I'm in Mosiah 20, almost halfway through the book and there hasn't been a single page that is unmarked. Some pages and dotted up pretty good. Its such a powerful book, and its sad when the people here don't even give it a chance before they know what it is. But Our job is to find those who have humbled hearts and who's ears are open to our message. But I know that this work cannot be stopped. Truth is flooding the land and I'm grateful to be even the smallest part of that.
I hope everyone at home is doing well. I pray for you all and think and miss you all dearly. Perhaps sometimes more than I should. Such is the life of a missionary.
Elder Sunada
Elder Sunada
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