Wow, i made it to the last week of my second transfer. wow. i definitely would not say the time flew by (i would actually 100% agree with the contrary) BUT i would be agreeable to the fact that time is passing. which is a good thing. I don't know if i have shared this thought in a previous email (i actually probably repeat myself a lot-sorry) but the fact that i am realizing that time does pass, that the day will come when this adventure comes closer and closer to an end and that i am not stuck in this surreal dream world of Ukraine for an indefinite amount of time makes me really feel like i do need to be accountable for every minute i am serving out here. I don't mean for that last statement to come off as if i have any negative feelings towards the country or place i am at, it is more my mental state of mind...anyway, point of the matter is that i am on the Lords time, every second really, and those seconds are actually passing. and i am growing i can be growing, spiritually and language-wise every moment if i let the lord help, and each one of those seconds need to be focused on how i can better do the lords work in this area.
this week i have been considering a lot on my role and job as a missionary. and i will say this first- all the things i realized i already knew, i was already taught my role and purpose as a missionary at the mtc, but somewhere in the transition into life here and being thrown into the reality of the world (and not the perfect world of mtc...) i kinda lost sight of what i was supposed to be doing. BUT here it is, i will keep this short because i'll tell you, each week, i mean to just type up a little spiritual thought and then i want to tell you about fun details about a mission-pday, shopping, lessons, but then i never get to that part of them email. so here is what my new creed as a missionary is...
Last week in my interview with president Steinagel he said, "isn't it so exciting?! your work is so important! you are inviting members to do missionary work-the most important work they could ever do!" this made me really reevaluate what is means to "work with members" before, 'working with members' meant getting members on lessons with investigators, but really our work is also to invite members to do their own missionary work. it make me reflect on all the times we had the missionaries over for dinner and they committed us to pray about someone to invite to church or to set a goal to find someone for the missionaries to teach. wow did we roll our eyes every time. okay sure, we'll do that. but not really. now as a missionary, i realize, those missionaries were fulfilling their purpose to not only to extend commitments to investigators and follow up, but extend commitments to members and follow up. and both, investigators and members alike had the opportunity to accept or reject the opportunity to act. the missionaries fulfilled their purpose if they extended the invitation and followed up (the first word of the missionary purpose is to "invite") and then it is to up to the investigator or member to accept or reject the opportunity to change their habit, or act, or whatever the missionary invited them to do. so in my mind, as a missionary here, i am developing the philosophy that i really really really need to extend commitments to people, members and investigators alike. if i don't do it, who will? I am giving them the opportunity to change something for the better using the gospel of Jesus Christ, and then following up with them. i am like a free of charge life coach! obviously, its not me, it is the work of the lord, the name i wear on my badge, which makes me really appreciate my work and want to be more focused (see my accountability thoughts above) another thing that inspired me this week, is something that one of our ward mission leaders said, that we are doing a disservice to our members if we are not inviting them to be on lessons with us. he said we call the same 3 people ot be on lessons, and we should call the whole ward list and hear "no" 50 times before we call those faithful members again. because we are offering to them the opportunity to do missionary work, and it is their choice, their free agency to accept or reject the offer. at least we can say we offered. he also said that if we bug them enough times that they will eventually say yes and come on a lesson with us :) the members here are so awesome and strong. they know more about the gospel than i do and ive had primary, seminary, young women's, and they have only had the gospel in their country for a short 20 years. they are amazing. they soak up the gospel.
okay, again, my spiritual/personal thoughts took longer than i expected, so i'll cut it short to get to some fun details. thank you all for your patience with me in trying to be an effective historian and journalist for what the heck i am experiencing out here on a mission. it is so unreal and at times indescribable.
So, PDays
no pday has been the same, and it always way too short. we do our normal study til noon, then we usually go to an Internet club (it takes about 30mins to get to an appropriate one..)then we get 75 min on the Internet and about 20 of that is writing my letter to the president, then we go grocery shopping and head back home and have lunch. this takes us to about 3 o'clock. and 75% of the time, we end our pday there because we have to take timeout of our pday for any activities during the week that weren't mission related-last week we took time out because we went to that Ukrainian concert, this week we are taking time out because we went to the temple (we have to take travel time out-it takes an hour and a half on public transit one way to get to the temple). but occasionally we have some time to go shopping-second hand shopping that is :) our area is the best area for it. we recently found this huge circus tent of second hand and we have found some awesome cheap missionary appropriate clothes there. i promise they are normal looking clothes...though im pretty sure i want to get some traditional Ukrainian outfits before i leave :) i have found pretty much everything i need here at the markets here-so i don't need anything sent from America quite yet. i am surviving :)
well time flies, and i always think i will be able to get out everything i want to but never do, one day i hope to be able to tell you all everything i want to
have a wonderful week and enjoy summer and ALWAYS pray to our heavenly father for help. i know I do and i know he is there and listening.
i love you all!
Sister kylie little
Sister kylie little
blondeenka-its how they kinda say 'cute blonde girl' and it has become my little nickname :) i guess you could say i got tired of drawing on my eyebrows to match my hair, so i decided to dye my hair to match my eyebrows instead
No comments:
Post a Comment