Our First Mission Tour

This has been a very eventful week.  Since last Saturday we have been to the airport 8 times, Sent off 21 missionaries, welcomed 25 new ones, trained them, sent Ethan and Preston back to Utah to start BYU and had our first mission tour with Elder and Sister Hugo Martinez of the Quorum of the Seventy.  Life moves at a fast pace in the mission field.  

After getting our 25 missionaries in, matching them with their new trainers and getting them to their areas on Monday, we tried to save Tuesday as much as we could for Ethan and Preston.  We were able to spend some time with them Kayaking at a lake near our home in the afternoon and we had a nice relaxing dinner out with them that evening.  I have to admit, I shed quite a few tears over them leaving.  We have had so much fun having them here with us this summer.  I know it was kind of a sacrifice for them to spend their entire summer out here with us, when their friends were all back in Utah.  There were days where they were pretty bored, but we couldn't have been more grateful to have them here.  They made our transition to mission life so much easier and so much more fun that is might have been.  There were many ping pong games played, Preston was the only one who knew how to heat up the pool and the hot tub,  we tried to have a rousing game of Liverpool just about every night.  They are about the only ones who can loosen Scott up and relieve his stress and you might imagine, there is a bit of stress that goes along with this calling.  They went out with our missionaries and the missionaries loved that, and they loved them.  They provided invaluable advice and ideas since they have been on a mission more recently than Scott.  They helped us understand all of the meetings, rules, etc. I think they were able to have some fun out here as well.  What a gift to us it was to have them here with us this summer, it is one I will treasure forever.  We miss them already, but they are coming back for General Conference so that makes me very happy. 

 

On Wednesday morning we had our new missionary training meeting.  Can I just say again how much I love our senior couples.  They provided lunch for all of the new missionaries and their trainers, along with all who helped train. They had already done brunch for the new ones on Monday and were providing lunch for MLC on Thursday, but on Wednesday they probably fed 65-70 people.  It was unusually large, but they pulled it off beautifully.  I am SO grateful for them.  

As soon as the training was over, Scott and I headed to the airport to pick up Elder and Sister Martinez.  They could not have been more delightful.  We were a little nervous about our first mission tour and we were so blessed to have the Martinezes be our first experience.  I'm sure everyone would have been great, but they were so gracious and kind and funny and made our experience so wonderful.  They kept telling us they were only here to help us and they would do whatever we wanted them to do, and to take or leave any advice they had for us, because it is our mission and they were here to serve us.  They are wonderful people.  

We picked them up and stopped by the office so they could meet our office couples and we had a nice visit with all of them.  Then we brought them to our home, had dinner and were able to just talk with them for a few hours.  On Thursday we started bright and early with our MLC meeting at our home, Elder Martinez interviewed 7 of our missionaries following the meeting, we had dinner and then we all went out teaching with the missionaries.  

Elder and Sister Martinez went with Hermana Clark and Hermana Smith.  It warmed our hearts to see Hermana Clark, who has been here since March, and Hermana Smith, who came in our first transfer, so barely 6 weeks, be confident enough to go teaching, in Spanish, with a member of the Quorum of the Seventy, whose first language is Spanish.  I was so proud of them, and Elder and Sister Martinez were so impressed with these sweet sisters.  

                       Hermana Smith and Hermana Clark with Sister and Elder Martinez

Scott and I went out with Elder Toki and Elder Nelson.  It was a wonderful experience and we experienced real life missionary work. We went to their first lesson, and the people weren't home.  They had had another lesson scheduled and those people cancelled because they were sick. Instead of being discouraged, with their mission president and his wife tagging along, they had an alternate plan. We headed to another home, of a less active, and we think they were home, but they didn't answer the door.  We kept saying, 'this is a good experience for us to really see what happens on a daily basis with our missionaries.'  We were walking down the sidewalk, talking to them and in the middle of a sentence they said "hang on, we need to go place a Book of Mormon."  There was a park across the street from the house and there was a white van in the parking lot.  I hadn't even noticed it, but as soon as they saw it, they bolted across the street and started sticking their head in the passenger side window, talking to the man inside.  We weren't close enough to hear what they were saying, but they were animated and after about 5 minutes they came back, having placed a Book of Mormon, gotten his contact information and picked up a potential investigator.  It was the best thing ever to witness.  It made me so happy to be around incredible missionaries like them.  We had to leave after that to go pick up the Martinezes, but as we drove away, they had walked into a garage and were talking to some people who were in there cleaning their garage.  It was a wonderful night.  

                                     Elder Nelson and Elder Toki car contacting!

On Friday we held two condensed zone conferences.  One at 9:00 with half of the mission, and the other one at 1:00 with the other half of the mission.  They were wonderful and there was such a great spirit at those meetings.  The missionaries loved being taught by Elder and Sister Martinez.  It was a pretty tight schedule.  We finished the first meeting at 12:15 and had to get to the next building by 1.  We are blessed to have such awesome members here and for zone conferences the Stakes provide lunch for us.  We have a wonderful couple, The Astles, who arrange with the Stakes and arrange the buildings, keep track of who is gluten free, etc.  They completely take the whole thing off my shoulders and we just show up and get fed.  I can't even express how grateful I am for everyone who helps us.  From our mission couples, to the local couples called to help, to all of the members who are always so gracious and helpful.  We feel extremely blessed.  Since our time was so tight, we asked if they could just do some sack lunches that we and the missionaries could just take with us.  The first Stake had the activity day girls in the stake decorate the lunch sacks for the missionaries.  It was adorable and was such a gesture of love for the missionaries and going the extra mile.  

At the second zone conference I saw something on the sacks as well, but I didn't get a chance to grab or look at one because we were running out the door to get the Martinezes to the airport in time for their flight.  I wish I had because I saw they had gone the extra mile as well, I just didn't get a chance to see what it was.  How grateful we are for the wonderful members in this area.  We love them. 

                 Elder and Sister Martinez

                           Our Assistants, Elder Murphy, Elder Pennington and Elder Watts

All of the above, and our office assistants, Elder Ludlow and Elder Duncan.  These five keep us and the mission going.  

 East Sacramento Zone

 Cordova Zone

 Sacramento Zone

 Elk Grove Zone

 North Sacramento Zone

 Carmichael Zone

 Folsom Zone

El Dorado Zone