Week 22: Lack Of Hand

Another week gone.  Trying to recollect the week, I fail to find anything extremely entertaining or life changing.

Here is my new address if any of you feel so inclined to send me a letter or a Rolex:

3161 Conservation Place Apt# 102 

Melbourne, FL

32934

A little about our Zone.  I'm in the Cocoa Zone which is just the Cocoa Stake in Florida.  I was talking to Elder Thomas who is one of the Zone Leaders and he said that our Zone has a hard time finding more than any other zone in the mission.  For some reason the area we are at has a low finding number every week.  I'm not sure if it's the people that are here or the what, but it has been very difficult to find people to teach here.  Elder Pottle and I have been going hard in the paint and nothing seems to come to fruition.

I'll tell a few funny stories.  We went over to a families house for dinner one night.  It was a rough day and nothing was going our way.  It was one of those days that you feel like you can't do anything right.  The kids in the house were shooting nerf guns and playing around.  When we walked in the door, I saw a single bullet come from around the corner.  I then proceeded to ask, "Who's shurtin' those nuff guns?"  Elder Pottle made fun of me and it really did explain most of that day.

We went to visit the Castro's, a member family in our ward who are super awesome.  Brother Castro usually gives us mangoes from the tree in his backyard so we stop by a couple times a week.  He recently hurt his hand and had surgery.  It's been really painful for him so we stopped by to give him a blessing.  His son recently received the Melchizedek Priesthood, so he joined in on the blessing.  Elder Pottle gave the blessing.  It was very spiritual, however their dog was jumping around making a lot of noise and it was hard to concentrate.  During the blessing, Elder Pottle blessed Brother Castro to recover from his "lack of hand".  It through me off and I could hear Brother Castro snicker a bit.  It was a great blessing and I don't mean to make fun of it, it was just a funny little thing that happened.  I brought it up to Elder Pottle later and he blamed it on the dog.

I had an exchange with Elder Thomas and he taught me a lot.  We had a lot of good conversations about how to be happy, how to be motivated, and how to not feel upset when things don't go your way.  He helped me a lot and showed me a lot about what a leader should be.

I have been praying hard this week for opportunities to find people.  I know that no effort is wasted in this work.  We have done a lot of ministering to members and I've gotten to know a lot of them.

John 7:37-38 "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." 

This scripture has given me a lot of hope and strength through hard times.  Have a great week y'all.

Elder Poulsen

Apopka Boiz

Elder Pottle

Week 22: Joshua 24:15

I've been reading "Jesus The Christ" recently.  It is such a deep and enriching book.  While reading this week, I read an amazing few paragraphs that spoke to me.

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.” With these words Jesus prefaced one of His most impressive discourses...

...As the Teacher showed, a shepherd has free access to the sheep. When they are folded within the enclosure of safety, he enters at the gate; he neither climbs over nor creeps in. He, the owner of the sheep loves them; they know his voice and follow him as he leads from fold to pasture, for he goes before the flock; while the stranger, though he be the herder, they know not; he must needs drive, for he cannot lead. Continuing the allegory, which the recorder speaks of as a parable, Jesus designated Himself as the door to the sheepfold, and made plain that only through Him could the undershepherds rightly enter. True, there were some who sought by avoiding the portal and climbing over the fence to reach the folded flock; but these were robbers, trying to get at the sheep as prey; their selfish and malignant purpose was to kill and carry off.  Changing the figure, Christ proclaimed: “I am the good shepherd.” He then further showed, and with eloquent exactness, the difference between a shepherd and a hireling herder. The one has personal interest in and love for his flock, and knows each sheep by name, the other knows them only as a flock, the value of which is gauged by number; to the hireling they are only as so many or so much. While the shepherd is ready to fight in defense of his own, and if necessary even imperil his life for his sheep, the hireling flees when the wolf approaches, leaving the way open for the ravening beast to scatter, rend, and kill."

I've tried to pray for the charity that Christ had for His sheep.  Elder Pottle and I have been focusing on trying to care for the individual.  To not look at the numbers but look at the soul.  We have been so much happier when doing this and it applies to every form of life.  Looking at people individually and loving them individually.

Elder Poulsen