Monday:
Today wasn't super eventful because I was still feeling sick. We went shopping and emailed, and Sister Palmer cleaned the entire house! She loves cleaning. I was able to practice the violin for CJ's musical number and take it easy.
Tuesday:
ZONE CONFERENCE! It was so amazing. I learned so much about being bold, and I have a stronger desire to be more bold with door approaches. We learned about "sifting" the moment you meet someone by introducing yourself as a minister for Jesus Christ, called by a prophet. This will help you determine who the elect is that is willing to listen, or who isn't interested and would drop you anyways. It has worked effectively throughout the week. We also got flu shots... yay. That evening, we stopped by Erica's. She wouldn't let us in, but we found a new investigator. That is the fifth one from her house!
Wednesday:
Today was super busy. We had appointment after appointment scheduled. We were walking home from one this morning, and I waved at a lady. She signed to me that she was deaf, and when I signed back that I knew some sign language, her whole face lit up. We were able to give her a Book of Mormon and Restoration pamphlet. She started signing from it right then, and I knew she felt the Spirit. We asked her if she wanted to learn more, and she said yes! So, Sister Palmer and I are now the unofficial ASL missionaries in our mission! We are so excited, but also have been praying fervently for the gift of tongues (or would it be the gift of arms?). But anyways, we have been practicing signing and know the Lord will bless us and the deaf lady (we forgot to ask her name). We took Rhoda and Jonny to a lesson with Ben. They loved it! They are quite the member missionaries. Then we had a lesson with Dysane on prayer, and I promised her a lot of blessings, then invited her to pray. She did! What a miracle.
We had a lesson later on that fell through because the lady wasn't home, but then as we were driving away, Sister Palmer thought she recognized her car, so we totally started following her. Sure enough, it was her! Sister Palmer is a pro-stalker. She ended up being busy and didn't let us in, but it was really fun!
At the Wrights house that evening, a miracle worked out so that CJ could have his baptism this Saturday, and both of his parents would be able to attend. We had family home evening, and CJ's dad attended. We were able to leave him with a Book of Mormon.
Thursday:
We had a correlation meeting this morning at the Wrights about CJ's baptism. Rhoda made us all breakfast, and we were able to work things out for the baptism. Then we drove all day to a city in Florida for a meeting I had with the mission counselor. I've been having to work on not stressing so much, and it was really good. I was able to have a break through and really understand how much God loves me and that everything will be okay. I have been able to learn so much and know that Heavenly Father is preparing me to be able to help so many people in the future.
Friday:
We had a lesson with the deaf lady, Brenda, this morning! I remembered to ask her what her name was! When we showed up, she said she hadn't read. We talked with her for a bit and set up a time to come back when she had read. As we were walking away, we felt bad that we hadn't just asked if we could teach her right then. I'd also practiced praying in ASL so we could start with a prayer and teach her very simply. We decided to turn back and tell her we had forgotten to pray with her, and then teach her about God being our loving Heavenly Father. She was so happy to pray with us, and she taught us how to pray correctly (because my prayer obviously needed a lot of work). She said she wanted to help us learn more sign language so we could teach her better! We gave her a hug and left with the Spirit shining brightly in her eyes. Then we drove to Gulf Breeze for exchanges with our Sister Training Leaders. Sister Sjoblom and I drove back to Brewton. We got chewed out by a lady for "lying" to her, so that was a fun start to exchanges. But a miracle happened. We got new mattresses! My old one has been hurting my back a lot. We did a lot of tracting and a lot of sweating in the heat, and got preached to for 30 minutes by a man. It was cool to see the little tender mercies of the Lord throughout the day, even though a lot of our plans had fallen through--like setting return appointments with potentials to start teaching!
Saturday:
Today was CJ's baptism! We finished up our exchanges in the morning, and then left to prepare for CJ's baptism in Atmore, because our building doesn't have a baptismal font. We made up the programs, filled the font, and cleaned the room. I was able to practice the musical number on the violin. I played a medley of Nearer, My God, to Thee (CJ's favorite hymn because of the movie The Titanic) and When I am Baptized. When CJ showed up that evening, he was SO excited. He kept saying, "I'm getting bab-ee-tized!" because he can't say "baptized." His nonmember parents came. We left CJ's mom with a Book of Mormon. We saw how she had felt the Spirit and promised her she could find just as much happiness as CJ if she read the Book of Mormon.
Sunday:
CJ was confirmed a member of the church. It was fast and testimony meeting for us since church was cancelled last Sunday. CJ got up to bear his testimony, and it was the cutest thing ever! He thanked everyone for coming to his baptism. He said, while gesturing around the room with his arm, "Y'all are awesome. Sister Potter, Sister Wright, y'all are the best. Ever!" After church we had a linger-longer. Sister Fox made me cupcakes using rice flour, cashew mild, and pumpkin. They were super good! It was fun talking to members in the branch and eating food. Then we went home to weekly plan... because we haven't had time for it all week... again.
Monday:
This morning we left with Ellen and Rhoda to go to the beach. The sand was white and beautiful. I felt like I was in paradise. I got so many cute pictures and enjoyed myself so much. I had fun jumping in the water, running in the sand, making shapes in the sand... It was a very good way to de-stress. We talked and laughed all day. I loved the salty breeze and the cool weather. Rhoda said that now that CJ has been confirmed, he has been telling everyone at school that he is a missionary. He really is such a special boy with a big heart and strong testimony.
I absolutely love being a missionary. I know this is exactly where God needs me. I have been learning and growing so much, and I know I will not be the same when I come home from my mission, because I will be more like Christ. I am so grateful for my companion and how much she has helped me these past seven weeks. I know Heavenly Father loves y'all so much. He is a God of miracles. I've been witnessing them all week. I testify that this is His true church, and that we will find the most joy by being faithful and obedient.
Much love,
Sister Burnham
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| With Ellen |
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