The moment you all have been waiting for has arrived!! I am being transferred!! After a grueling 7 1/2 months is blessed Valley City, working my tail end off, even killing one of my companions (for those of you unfamiliar with missionary lingo, that means he went home when I was done with him), I am going south. Very south. In fact, I have to pass through an entire state to get to it. I will be in the Gordon Pineridge Nebraska Indian reservation!! I leave on Thursday, no idea when I'll get there though. That'll be the fun part I guess. I can't remember my new comp's name, but he only has 6 weeks left on the mission, so I will be killing yet another companion! It'll be awesome! I'm super pumped!
In answer to your questoins, our Mission president did stay in the Bismark mission, but he leaves the beginning of June, which is when the new one arrives. Being Senior comp isn't too bad, it's pretty simple really. Just knowing the area is important. Other than that, we work together as a companionship for most decisions, so really not much changed, except I know the people better. J got sick this week, so we couldn't meet with him or K, and R's daughter was at the house so we didn't stop by while we were in Oakes..... Dang it....
Monday was quite the day! I destroyed my companion at all the games we played (including Risk, Othello, and Foosball), and then when 6 O'clock hit (which is when P-day officially ends) we hopped on our bikes and rode around town to try to contact some people. As we were riding, some guy yelled at us than waved us over, so we headed over, which he didn't really think we would do, and told us that his 2 friends here needed to hear what we had to say, than he laughed, hopped on his long board, and dissapeared down the street. We stood there, looked at the 2 guys, than started talking to them. It was an interresting conversation, but we got to teach them a little bit about the Restoration, invited them to meet with us more later, than left. As we were riding around town again, we saw a member drive by, who waved at us, than another one right behind them, who also waved, than one more who pulled up and asked us if we could help them move the Stopczynski's (stop-chin-ski) into their new home, so we rode up the biggest hill in town, got to the top, helped them load up the cars and vans and trucks, than headed back down that same hill! That was a blast! Than, after unloading, we were going back up for another load. My companion wanted to go back down the hill, but didn't want to ride back up, nor did he want to put our bikes in the back of someone's truck, but he wanted to hold on to the back of one of the trucks. I didn't say anything, mostly because I assumed (and we all know what happens when we assume) that the woman driving the truck wouldn't let us do that. But, I was wrong. She sayed "are you sure it's safe?" to which my companion said "yeah, I've done it tons of times", so she shrugged her shoulders and said okay. Then comes the fun part. We started going up the hill. Now, I was struggling to stay on my bike while holding on, so I would let go, catch up, grab on, and start the cycle again. I tried maybe 3 times, than decided I'll just peddle like crazy. As I let go for the last time, I saw my companion lose control. So, he hit the ground and slid, I stopped to see if he was okay, which he was, just a bit scratched up, and we finished riding up the hill. Now, remember, kids, that when riding a bike, always wear a helmet (yes mom, I was wearing my helmet). And, for those of you who are current or future missionaries who think that wearing a helmet is stupid, you are looked up to by kids, and if you're not wearing a helmet, you are telling them they don't have to either, and let me tell you that the parents of those kids won't like it very much. Plus, it's in the rules as a missionary. My comp didn't hit his head, so don't you worry, but his name tag got a good sanding from the street, as did his hand and his bike. But hey! He decided that wearing a helmet isn't as stupid as he thought!!!
Nothing else really happend throughout the week. we hardly met with anyone... Pretty rough week hehe.
Friday we had district meeting, and KS (a member who got back from her mission to Brazil a few weeks after I arrived in VC) had told us that she wants to come out teaching with us on Friday, so she just followed us everywhere for the rest of the day. We didn't get in with anyone until about 6, when we stopped by P's house, who is that sweet old lady that we helped clean out her basement and garage, and went in to say hi. While there, we talked with her quite a bit, than before we left, we asked if we could leave her with a spiritual thought, and she gave us one of those looks that only old ladies can and said "oh, of course." So, we shared in Alma 32, when Alma talks about faith, and then she asked what the Book of Mormon was. So, we told her, gave her a general synopsis, than asked her if she wanted a copy. she responded "Oh, yes I do! That sounds like a wonderful book!" So, we gave her one, talked to her some more, than asked her what it would mean to her to know that this book is true, to which she responded "I'm sure it is true, and I am looking forward to reading it!" Than we left. She is one of the sweetest ladies I know. I'm gonna miss her now that I'm leaving.
Saturday, we stopped by B's house and he was there and happy to see us! We talked to him a bit, and asked if he remembered what we taught him, to which he proceeded to talk to us about what he doesn't like about religion, even though he is Catholic. Long story short, he doesn't think that he needs to be baptized since he has already been baptized, and that he has to be baptized into the LDS church to enter the temple. Funny thing about his arguments, and everyone else's about those 2 subjects, is that it is all the same thing, and it doesn't make sense. First off, when they compare our modern temples to the ancient ones, they say that everyone was allowed into the temple, but that is incorrect. Only Jews were aloud into the temple. Jews were the people that had entered into a covenant with God through the ordinance of circumcision by the High Priest who held the authority to perform the ordinance (which it was later revealed that circumcision was to be done away with, and was replaced by baptism by the same authority), so they were aloud into the Temple, because the temple is a sacred place, and (coming back to modern temples) if everyone was aloud into the Temples today, they would become a tourist attraction, and would no longer be a place of peace and refuge from the world, because those entering would not understand the importance and reverence due in the House of the Lord. The only place that Jesus showed anything even resembling anger was when men were defiling the temple, making it a "house of merchendise" rather than "a house of prayer," and "a house of fasting". He chased them out with a chord whip, turning over tables! Just a thought, and one that is cut short due to lack of time. Sorry!
Well, that's about it for the week, or at least all I have time for. Love you all and hope all is well back home!! I'll be sending my new address next week.
Elder Carter V
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