We knew ahead of time of a few meetings that would happen as we planned for this past week. Little did we know what changes would happen. They are for the better, we believe, but at the same time we haven’t really had the opportunity to really live the changes either.
Let’s review the week.
Tuesday, we set off on bike repairs. I got a new bike seat, which is significantly more comfortable than the last, plus it is a gel seat so rain won’t make it expand and cause the overlying leather to expand/contract. Afterwards, we went home for some lunch and did weekly planning.
Wednesday, we had a zone conference of Elder Ian Ardern of the First Quorum of the Seventy. (see biography https://www.lds.org/ church/leader/ian-s-ardern? lang=eng&role=05) He discussed how to truly be the best missionary, we need to live the message that we teach. As Elder L. Tom Perry once said, “I call on you to look the par t, to be the part, and to act the part of a servant of our Father in Heaven.” (see https://www.lds.org/ general-conference/2001/10/ the-returned-missionary?lang= eng) It was a great meeting and the spirit was super strong.
Thursday, we had a regular work day. We finished weekly planning and we also had a district lunch at a really awesome restaurant called Beeps in Van Nuys. It’s a little hole-in-the-wall burger joint. We biked 13 miles round trip to go there just cause we felt like it instead of getting a ride from the other Elders in the district.
Friday, we had a special meeting to view a broadcast, taped delayed because of our zone conference on Wednesday when it happened live. It was a training in the setting of the General Missionary Council of the Church in the Church Office Building. As members of that Council: Elder Dallin H. Oaks, chair and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve; Elder David A. Bednar and Elder Neil L. Andersen, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; Bishop W. Christopher Waddell, Second Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric; Sister Bonnie L. Oscarson, Young Women General President; Elder Brent H. Nielson, Executive Director of the Missionary Department and of the First Quorum of the Seventy; and Stephen B. Allen, Managing Director of the Missionary Department. (thanks CDOL!) The training was about how to be converted we have to live the ENTIRE gospel, not just part of it. Also, as missionaries how we need to teach the ENTIRE gospel, not just focus on part of it, i.e. faith or baptism. After the discussion based training, changes in our missionary schedule and key indicators for reporting to church headquarters were announced as part of the broadcast.
Saturday we had a service project cleaning up alleys in one of the city council districts here in the area. It was a great time, we helped a man remove a bunch of dirt behind his house that had probably been built up for years before he bought the home several months ago. He said he’d be more receptive to having missionaries visit him in the future.
On Sunday, we had a great time at church. We, technically, had gospel principles class, but it was just us four missionaries in the ward plus our assistant ward mission leader so we just had a super deep doctrine lesson on the fall of Adam and Eve.
Life here is great and I love being a missionary!
Elder Blodgett
California San Fernando Mission
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints