Monday, September 18, 2017

Irma and Leslie

Well, Irma rolled through.... and it did absolutely nothing to us.  I was literally so mad, I have always wanted to be a part of helping hands, so I was super hyped with this storm coming, but my hopes and dreams were crushed when only a few branches and leaves fell to the ground.  Thank goodness for no devastation though.  We did get to spend the night at a members home, during the storm, and we even got permission to watch "G" rated Disney moves.  We spent the whole day watching movies and playing board games with the coolest family in the ward, it was so much fun!!

This week brought a couple of "lasts." I had my last interview with President Smith, which was pretty sad. Rather than a normal 10 minute interview, an exit interviews last 30 minutes and we basically just talked about what I have thought about my mission and how I feel that it went. We then talked about goals that I have for being back home and how I am going to stay active and have the Spirit with me at all times. At the end of the interview he simply said "Sprint to the finish and stay focused."  It gave me so much motivation!

I also gave my last talk in sacrament meeting as a full time missionary and I was asked to speak on my mission experience. I basically gave a homecoming talk. It was surreal, also really cool because as I prepared for it, I was able to see how much the Lord has blessed me in these past two years and I remember some incredible spiritual experiences that have helped me realize how true this church really is! I honestly don't feel like I should be coming home, being out here has just become life, so I want to make sure that I end this in the right way. These next 2 1/2 weeks are going to be so awesome, I can't wait to finish strong!! Bottom of the 9th, here I come!

Cool story for the week. Elder carlson and I have been finding soo much but have had no success, so we decided that we were going to say a prayer to find someone prepared to find the gospel just by walking around and hoping the person would talk to us first. So we got out the car and walked for a good 45 minutes; nothing! No one was even outside! I thought that it was a bust but on our way back to our car, this lady was raking her leaves, and said "hi." So we went and talked with her (Leslie) and introduced the Book of Mormon to her. She was soooo excited!! She told us that we were God sent, and an answer to her prayer! Turns out she wanted to learn more about Christ's miracles but didn't know how. She then said "What do I have to do to get one of those books?"  We just handed her one and said "It's yours." She treated it like it was the most prized possession that she owned. This experience made me realize how amazing The Book of Mormon really is and that I take for granted that I have it in my life. There are people that want to come closer to Christ but don't know how to find it. Also, "ask and ye shall receive" is sooo true! Gosh, I love this work!

I love y'all so much and hope y'all have a great week!!

Elder Schipaanboord

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