This week I'll try not to bore you with the "large plates" version of what we did, instead ill write the "small plates" version. This week we got new missionaries, only 4 sisters mom the elders in the pictures were the APs. We got them all squared away and sent off with their trainers. I took several trips to city hall this week to try and figure out who all is registered with us because past secretaries seem to have forgotten to sign several out. I continued to organize the secretary documents and programmed a few more packets to auto fill in for lost residency cards and extensions. In the words of Nephi "wherefore the things which I have written sufficeth me" :)
As time on my mission goes by I continue to think God really wants me to learn patience. I've had several companions that have pushed me past my limits of patience, and while my companion still drives me crazy I see that it takes so much more to really upset me. In the last 5 months of office work I've had to learn to be patient with myself. Something I've never been good at. It started when I felt like I needed to do everything perfectly the first time, causing me to be frustrated with myself and stressing myself out enough to cause several anxiety attacks and breathing issues. As I learned to be patient with myself, along side learning more about who God is and what his plan for me is, I've felt less stressed and happier. Stressful days come but you just learn to take them on and not get stuck looking backwards.
My lesson on patience took a new turn this week. After struggling with knee pains for a couple weeks I decided to have President Bunnell check it out (being a Physician for the majority of his career). And he gave me the verdict that I picked up tendonitis from a combination of Saturday soccer and several recent moves. So he told me that I can keep playing on it and cause more damage or I'd just have to sit out playing sports for likely the rest of my mission. 😑 For those that know me, that is like taking everything away from me! What's the point of having P-day if you can't play basketball or soccer. haha So I've got myself a little knee brace online and now I'm ready to learn another lesson on patience. From talking to other guys from my MTC group it seems like we are all getting to a point where our bodies are starting to fall apart, haha. I got a bit frustrated the other night during my prayer and was going on about all the struggles and the funniest thing happened I started off crying and after about 10 mins i just started laughing about them. I really felt the comfort of knowing that everything was for a reason!
In romans 5 3-5 it says
"3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us."
Aren't trials just great? You guys in the US are about to celebrate thanksgiving, so I'd invite you to be grateful for your trials and weaknesses. The best comparison I can make is with a broken bone, something I'm pretty familiar with. When you break a bone our bodies have a way of healing so that the bone is actually stronger after the break than it ever was. This is odd because conventional thought would lead you to believe that that broken part will always be the weakest and more susceptible to being broken again. We are much like that broken bone. We often have times where we ourselves our broken, because of our choices, the choices of other, or just life in general. I know that we can be healed only though Christ's atonement and that when we heal be are also stronger than ever before. "What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger"
Elder Talyon Anderson Perry
Belgium/Netherlands Mission