Tender Mercies in Cleveland

Elder Quincy is better at the panos than me.  I love this picture!We happened to be at the office at the right time to see Elder Allen before he left us!

Elder Quincy wanted to stop at the Stake Center because its our last transfer and we've never seen one, so we got to see Elder Johnson!  He's one of the missionaries who first served with us when we arrive in Cleveland! He's left us also!

This belongs at the end from the lovely place we went to teach with the Sisters last night.  Crazy lesson with 2 friends of Br. Cline who have had some incredible spiritual experiences.  The crazy part was getting them to listen. They really wanted to outdo each other in their storytelling  I had Elder Quincy start the video of the restoration. The only way to get talkers to listen is to get them watching a video I've discovered and it worked for long enough to tell them the basic outline and to give them each a Book of Mormon and challenge them to read it.

Elder Barrett sent us this picture of him fishing in Florida!  He beat Elder Quincy for the week!!

We got our new missionaries on Monday AND something that never happens happened! Sister Housman is back!  We are so pleased!  She is so loved by all of the Cleveland ward, knows the area that was whitewashed, is super on the ball and will take good care of these people we love so much!  It makes it much easier to leave!  Everyone is so excited and surprised when they see her! 

Elder Quincy was just a little too comfortable watching the video at the lesson with the Allen family Monday night, so I had Ashley get a picture of him and Laney.  We taught them how to use the scriptures and the Guide to the Scriptures to answer their own gospel questions. They really got into it!  We've been doing more driving than usual this week, so I have quite a few pictures of the clouds I love so much here.  We picked up food orders from the Bishop's Storehouse twice this week.  

We took a birthday card to Br. Espinoza and I had to get pictures of his pig and his goat chilling in the yard.  We didn't see their donkey.  Hope its okay.

There are so many kinds of twinkies here.  Are they just a Texas thing?

We took the long way to the ARP class Thursday night.  Just for the 1 minute view of this beautiful lake. We weren't going to let Luke miss the class this week, so we showed up at his place at 4:00, I did the dishes, while Elder Quincy vacuumed and dusted, and Luke swept and picked up trash off the floor. He recently moved back into his house that his brother had left a mess, and has been too depressed to clean it up.  After cleaning we took him home, fed him dinner and then we headed to class, went to class and took him home.  We spent 5 hours with him.  Once we went to his place and found his state we've been trying to see him every day and to talk and text him during the day.  He gave his phone back to Ashley  Friday and we lost contact, but we were pleasantly surprised to see he'd gotten himself up and to his lesson with the Sister Saturday morning.  The bad thing was that the other Sisters were also at the church giving a church tour to an investigator with the ex-girlfriend assisting!  Oops!  Awkward moment! The good thing was that he was over it and it wasn't so awkward at church on Sunday! The best moment of the week is probably when Luke got up and bore his testimony of how important it is to read the scriptures and pray every day to be able to resist temptations.  He also stayed after church and sat in on Bridget's new member lesson and warned her that she needs to keep reading the Book of Mormon every day to keep feeling that great feeling she got at baptism!  Its so cool when new member fellowship and support each other! Sadly Paloma didn't make it to church, so she won't be able to be baptized before we leave!  She had a cool experience with trying to stop drinking coffee this week though.  She was a whole pot a day drinker  She asked her husband to hide her coffee pot from her  So she went 3 days without drinking coffee  The fourth day she need her coffee, so she went to find the pot.  She found it up in the attic. As she was climbing down the ladder she dropped and broke it  She took that as a sign and hasn't drunk any coffee!  She is a super person!  She listens, thinks, asks any questions she has, then ponders and decides if she feels like its right and good.  So far she's come up with all the right choices.

Okay, last tender mercy was being able to help Shannon print off the temple ordinance cards for her husband, who died a year ago last Sunday, and to find out she was off of work the next morning just in time before the temple closed to be able to make a reservation for 8:15 the next morning!  Elder Quincy was baptized for her husband, her uncle and her grandpa. She was baptized for her grandma.  Today after church she talked with the Bishop and got a full recommend signed.  She's hoping to get with the Stake President this week and for us to be able to escort her to the temple before we go!

We got a couple of new members to church today that haven't been there for a while!  We had 7 investigators there including Cassie, who is an old friend of Ashley Evans' from school.  The influence that Allen family has on bringing people into the church just keeps going! Christina Soper gave the closing prayer in Sacrament Meeting!  We started handing out thank-you/goodbye notes  Its going to be so hard to leave these good people!  We just love them so much!

So much to do and so little time left!

I honestly hadn't realized how little time we have left until I started trying to fit in all the temple trips, visits and family home evenings.  I am so glad we'll be back in December to tie up some more loose ends.  We spent a couple of hours cleaning the Graham's place.  They had no water, electricity, or air conditioning so it was a really hot time.  The temps have been in the mid 90's, but the heat index has them around 103 to 106.

It Angela's dad's house, where she kind of grew up.  The ward had donated a dryer so far, we're looking for an electric stove.

We came back on Friday when the power was on and Elder Quincy helped fix a water leak from the water heater and then he dedicated the home for them.  It was so hot in this living room that I was dripping wet by the end of the prayer. Good thing we love this family so much!

So the no cuss club from last week has been a great success!  Tammy said that she's been swearing less and less each day!  This week we were fewer in numbers and had a great lesson on Forgiveness. They have a family member they are all struggling with forgiving.  It was powerful!  

We are excited because we found out they are sending more missionaries to replace the Elders! 2 Sisters! So we'll have 4 Sisters in the ward!  

Everyone wants to have us to dinner or take us out for lunch before we go!  They are so sweet, but we'd rather just meet and talk.
It was Sister Gray's birthday Thursday and Elder Bingham's birthday Saturday, so we had a birthday lunch after District meeting Friday morning.  Fun stuff! Elder Anderson has wanted to go to the Cleveland museum, so we took them there after lunch.

these pictures are of snow in Cleveland!

We had a pioneer ward pot luck dinner Saturday night.  It was fun.  We had a couple of investigators come.  Br Bright showed the "Only a Stonecutter" video and talked about how each new convert is a pioneer in their family. He had us all turn on our Family Tree app and use Relative Locater. Everyone who's done family history was related.  Most about 10th cousins, but some 4th and 5th.  It was a fun way to get people excited about doing more research. Br. Tucker wanted his picture with us.

Luke has been struggling since his boys left!  We have hardly seen him.  He missed 2 Sundays in a row, so we were thrilled when he finally answered our text and we saw him today.  We had gone by his house and left a note on his door thinking his phone was turned off. We talked to him, read some of D&C 121 and watched the Prince of Peace/ Faith.  He read us his patriarchal blessing and said how much it helps him.   He could use some prayers!  

James Farmer was called to be  a ward missionary today and gave the closing prayer in Sacrament Meeting!  Elder Anderson is leaving us tomorrow and leaving Texas on Thursday.  We  hoped he stay with us til Thursday, but it was not to be.  We had a fun dinner for him today.  He requested biscuits and gravy.  I thought, "no way", but I said ok.  I found an easy breakfast casserole recipe and it turned out pretty good.  

We had a good scare when Br Roberts had to go to the emergency room this morning, but he's doing ok  He had a bladder infection and dehydration.  He'd been out in the super hot weather Saturday all day picking okra!

  There were 2 baptisms in the Spanish Branch today!  Br. Martinez, who was just ordained an Elder and whose family was sealed in the temple a couple of weeks ago baptized and confirmed his son, Christopher and Elder Bingham baptized the boyfriend, Ruben Gonzales, of a sister in the branch!  

Elder Anderson is a hard one to lose!  He is a master teacher.  He has the best analogies to explain difficult concepts and really loves the people he teaches.  He has a scholarship to the U to be on their debate team, so he's very good at ,well, debating.  I shared his insightful, hilarious talking scale a while back.  Transfers are seriously the worst part of the mission!

This poor flower reminds me of

Beauty and the Beast. I wonder if its just hanging in there and will suddenly drop its last petal when we leave Cleveland!
Poor Bridget's almost ex-husband has been making her life difficult because he doesn't want her to bring the girls to church.  She invited him to come to our new member lesson with her Wednesday night so he could see for himself that its good and not evil. He didn't show up!  Her poor little 6 year old has been in tears about it all.  She told Bridget Saturday that she didn't want to come to her church today, but Bridget brought her anyway, and of course she loved it, and said she had even more fun than last week.  We're all praying for the dad's heart to soften, and that he'll sign the divorce decree and stop making things so hard for them.  So feel free to join in!  I am reminded every day of the power of prayer!  We have been guided to people and have heard the phrase; "I really needed you to visit me today" many times.  I know it softens hearts and can change us as it brings the Spirit into our lifes.

4 more baptisms!

Its been an unusual week.  Elder Brinkerhoff left and no one replaced him, so we've been a threesome with Elder Anderson quite often or a fivesome with the 2 Spanish Elders.  We all went to the Allens on Monday night, so we had all the Allen family; Barbara, Jerry, Tammy, Sonya, Ashley, Jamison, Laney, and Kylie, with Luke and his 2 boys and then we 5 missionaries.  We had fun, we challenged them all to join the no cuss club (something some of them struggle with) and watched the video.  I gave them an envelope to put a dollar in every time they cussed.  Jaycie wasn't there, she was in Nauvoo with the Stake Youth Conference.  16 might be a new record for a group for a lesson.

Bridget shared her spiritual experiences with her family this week. She is so cool!  Her brother didn't make it to a lesson yet, but she'll keep inviting him.  

The family that got baptized Saturday were late!  A couple of them are pretty large, so James Farmer came to help Elder Anderson baptize them. Here they are looking sad because they're all ready and had no one to baptize.

They are really cool and so excited to be members.  Their house burnt down a few months ago with all their clothes, so they only have what's on them.  They went to another church who kicked them out because they weren't dressed appropriately. Its just like the Zoramites! (see Alma 32). They were humbled and prepared for the word to be preached to them.  Thomas and Tera and Brianna all have different last names, so its kind of confusing.  Their 10 year old niece comes with them and wants to be baptized, too.  Their youngest daughter is progressing a bit slower.

We have a 4 x and a 5 x suit.  They said they were too small.  The APs brought us a size 22 dress to use, definitely smaller than the suits, so dear Sister Teague ran to Walmart and got a couple of white t-shirts that they wore under the baptism suits, so they didn't have to zip them all the way.  

Quite a few missionaries gathered for the occasion.

In contrast cute little Moroni Cabreras was baptized with the Spanish branch on Sunday.

 His mom just moved here from California.  Her husband is very against the church, but finally gave permission for Moroni to be baptized.

I found this on Elder Quincy's tablet.  I don't think I have shared it.

  All of these Elders and Sisters are gone now!

 

The District

This is our current district with Elder Bingham cut off a bit, so I added the above picture

even though I don't like it as much.

We had so many trains stopping us this week  This one was a 10 minute wait.

Trying a pano  Still figuring it out.

Elder Quincy and I spoke in Sacrament meeting today on personal revelation. It was kind of like our farewell talks I guess, even though we have 3 more weeks!  July is going by way too fast!! Shannon is coming up on her 1 year anniversary of her husband's death.  Its been a rough one for her. Tonight is the 4th time to meet with her this week.
Sister Patterson found out she has lymphoma.  She and her husband have been getting ready to go be sealed in the temple. This may get them going faster.