Yep, that's right!!! We have finally made it to the final stretch of this mission! Do you believe it?? This mission has certainly gone by faster than I had thought it would and I am noticing that every week that we get closer to the end, that our time here is going by faster and faster! I certainly would rather have the time we have left go by faster than slower at this point. I SOOOOOO miss my family, my home, friends and America!
Ireland continues to surprise me! These beautiful purple flowers are growing through the cracks of this common rock wall that surrounds many flats here in Limerick.
Part of this week going by so fast happened because we were pretty busy. On Monday, we took the sister missionaries out grocery shopping again. This morning, we actually went to 2 grocery stores. Why?? Because one of them opened just days before and we were all interested in seeing what it looked like inside and what kind of sales were going on. Of course, because it was a brand new large store, we didn't know our way around, so that alone took longer than usual to get what we needed. It was fun to see a new store open here. They have lots of construction in a lot of areas, including road construction, but it seems that nothing here ever gets finished!
This is the Lidl's store on Dock Road. It is brand new, very clean and well organized. We will be coming back here again!
Lidl's not only sells groceries at a discounted price, but you can also purchase hardware, yard items, clothing, etc. It's kind of like Costco, but very downscaled. Once they sell out though, you might not see that same item again...ever.
Monday evening, we had FHE with the sister missionaries and Isabella and her brother. We watched the old i-max movie the church produced years ago called, "The Testaments of One Fold and One Shepherd". Everybody loved seeing it. Isabella committed to showing it this Sunday to her family. I hope she remembers!
\ An oldie, but a goodie!
On Tuesday, we had a busy day. We drove ourselves and the sister missionaries down to Cork again to participate in our weekly district training correlation meeting. We, again, had a great discussion about many of the Christ-like attributes found in Preach My Gospel and about our friends. I chose the attribute of knowledge and added that Adam and Eve needed to fall so they could have knowledge. Knowledge of what? Knowledge of Jesus Christ! It is only through that knowledge that man can be saved in the kingdom of God. After our meeting, we all shared a meal of pasta, with Elder Botos's amazing tomato sauce, salad and garlic bread. It was very, very good!
Our most current missionary district photo
After our meal, we decided to see a little more of the city Cork. Within a short drive, we found Glendalough Park or also known as the Lough of Cork. There is an ancient tale of how the lough was formed. The tale had to do with a famous chalice that was dropped in the water and has been never retrieved. I loved the lough because it had a great walking path around the water with lots of birds, ducks and swans. I added more photographs to my collection while there. I had so much fun!
I have never seen a swan swim the way this one did in front of me! It made it's wings puff up like a sail and then swam forward, in almost a breast stroke style action. Once I captured this picture, I ran next to it at almost full speed just to keep up with it. What an experience!!!
This is a coot. This is my first encounter with one and it was very different to my swan experience earlier
Is this just happiness? Ma and Pa and kids!
It is rare to see a black swan swimming with a white swan. I love the contrast of colors.
What a beautiful close-up photo of nature at its finest
This gentleman was feeding all these feathered creatures the whole time we were there. The birds would, at times, come up to him and nubble right out of his hands.
See what I mean! This extended kindness of food to that swan took a little coaxing, but both man and fowl found success and satisfaction in the end
On that same Tuesday, we continued our journey to the north east of Ireland to enjoy a homemade dinner from the Potts family, who are also in our branch. Caitriona was actually the first branch member I meet last July. She is married to Tim and has 3 boys ages 13, 11 and 9. Both Caitriona and Tim served missions when they were younger and are a very vital part of the Limerick branch. Here is a pic of all of us gathering to get ready to eat Mexican burritos! Yum, yum.
The Potts home with a large dining room. We were fed wonderful food and enjoyed a great evening together
Through the week, we had placed about 75% of our belongings that we brought to Ireland into luggages to ship them back home to Utah. What is process! While I was waiting for the pick-up driver to show up early Wednesday morning, I felt my heart become so full of joy in the actuality of really being that close to going back to the states. Even though there was much joy, there was also much sorrow for the many wonderful relationships that I have formed here. Though I had thought in the back of my mind about returning back to home and family, that morning helped me realize how real returning home has become. I really am just over one month away!!!
Looks pretty professional, huh? Maybe when I get back I'll start my own packing and shipping business! That was a joke!
Later that afternoon, we had another teaching lesson with Suzann. She is slowly progressing and for that, we are grateful. We finished teaching her about the plan of salvation, which she believes is true! So this coming week, the sister missionaries will begin to teach her about the restoration of the gospel. We also gathered later to do another English Connect class. On that night, we gained 3 new students! We are always excited for new friends to come and join the fun and for the opportunity to teach them about Jesus Christ. We ended that night participating in a senior couple FHE with the Stevenson family.
The Stevenson's taught about the Nauvoo temple and how it was destroyed by the mob as the saints left Nauvoo after the prophet's murder and then related it to another temple in danger story that they personally lived through. Brother Stevenson was working for the church in Manilla, Philippines in 1989, when the Manilla temple was almost taken over by Philippine rebels. He told us many facts we didn't know and of the feelings he experienced while there at that time. He stated that later, after the event, he realized that he felt similar feelings that the saints must of felt leaving Nauvoo and hearing of the destruction of the temple they left behind. It was a great FHE and I gained a greater appreciation for temples and the mercies of God.
On Thursday, we stayed near our phone to assist either the zone leaders or the sister missionaries with their needs. While we waited, I was able to study more deeply through the first four chapters of Jacob in the Book of Mormon. I love Jacob's concern and his council in his account of his prophetic leadership during a possible general conference in the new world. Many of the problems the saints were having then are the same problems our world is having now. I especially love Jacob chapter 4 and his writings of how we need to be reconciled to God through the atonement of Jesus Christ. It is only by doing this that we may be "presented as the first-fruits of Christ unto God, having faith". We ended our night by talking with our daughter, Megan. What a joy she is to us!
My Megan! I sure love her with all my heart!
On Friday, I was not going to let an opportunity get w\away from me. On Friday, I celebrated Cinco de Mayo! I LOVE Mexican food. I can still remember the first time I had chips of salsa! That experience turned into a Mexican food lover. There is even a little Mexican grocery store just down the hill from me in Provo that I go to frequently. I am so happy that I have found that store, because it has saved me thousands of dollars since I don't have to go to Mexico to get a great Mexican street taco or two or three!!! For lunch, I made Elder and I delicious tacos. I had to buy a kit to get the shells, as corn tortillas are VERY hard to find on this island. The tacos were so good, we actually had them again for dinner that night. Ha ha!!!
I will never get enough of Mexican food. The taco bean soup recipe that my daughter, Danielle, shared with me before we came here, has saved my soul every time I have made it. It has been the only homemade meal here that has tasted absolutely wonderful like from the states. It truly is comfort food for me!
On Friday, we also helped the sister missionaries to teach our friend, Colette, again. We asked her to read 3 Nephi chapter 17 before our Friday meeting and asked her what her feeling were as she read it. She stated that she liked it and that she knew it was true. We ended up showing her the newly released church video about this chapter. I still can't watch that short 12 minute video without crying like a baby. After we finished watching it, we all agreed that those words in that chapter alone, expresses the description of the Savior that we all desire Him to be. Here is a link if you haven't seen it yet. It is totally amazing! If you like this video, there is a several more videos recently released by the church, along with this one, that shows Jesus Christ coming to the Americas after His resurrection and teaching "His other sheep".
https://youtu.be/6L6XOpmuw5Q
Later that evening, all the local missionaries, branch leadership and us met in person at the church to discuss up coming branch activities and other items of business. The missionaries gave wonderful reports. Every week, each companionship are finding new friends to teach and I am happy to say that our district, as of this week, have 4 new friends on date to be baptized! Elder and I have never seen numbers like this since we have come here. How exciting!!! We ended our Friday night by attending an "all mission" zoom for a Come Follow Me lesson.
On Saturday, I prepared and showed my last monthly branch movie. The movie watched was called "Love, Kennedy". There was hardly a dry eye in the audience. We shared treats of popcorn, cookies and drink. It was a great spiritual way to end our busy week. After the movie, the elders, sisters and us, went to a branch member family home, the Rodiguez family, for dinner. We had a great meal together and Sister Rodriguez entertained us with lots of personal stories about her experiences as a member of the church. Her older children, Isabella and Matias, were 2 of our YSAs. We LOVE that family.
This is the movie we watched. I really like this one. I always have!
This Brazilian family, the Rodriguez's, are so fun and so very, very kind!
So another week written into the annals of time! I certainly am thankful that I have been able to record our weekly events of this mission and share them with you. As I look back on some of these pages, I find both hope and joy. I hope that you, too, have experienced the same. In closing this week's blog, I'd like to expand on the story of Lazarus as told in John chapter 11 and a lesson recently was taught in Come Follow Me.
For those of us that read and love the Bible, we are very familiar with this story of the brother of Mary and Martha, two of Jesus female disciples. Lazarus had been taken ill in the beginning of the story and his sisters send word to Jesus for Him to come to heal him. Jesus understanding all things much differently than we humans do, realizes that this event, according to God's plan, would add further glory to His Heavenly Father and help His disciples so that their belief would increase. To follow God's plan and submit to God's will, we see Jesus delaying His coming to help this family. By the time Jesus arrives, Lazarus is not only dead, but has been entombed for 4 days.
Further study can show one the traditions of the Jews concerning when a body is truly considered dead, which is 4 days, and helps us to understand why Jesus waited so long. In Jewish eyes, it was then, at the 4th day, that it would be totally impossible for Lazarus to be brought back to life. Period. It is also interesting that this event where Jesus will perform the miracle of miracles, happens just before He, himself, suffers death.
Martha appears in the story first and states to Jesus, "if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died". Jesus replies to her that her brother "shall rise again". Martha replies with her knowledge that she knows her bother will rise again in the resurrection. Jesus corrects her by stating, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die". Then Jesus asks her, "Believeth thou this"?
I love that when Mary goes out to meet Jesus minutes later, that she states the exact same phrase that Martha had just said to Jesus. Mary, though, falls at Jesus feet weeping. Her pain and sorrow is noticed by the Lord and, He, too, weeps. Isn't that beautiful! In reality, Jesus meets the separate and individual needs of these two faithful sisters only as a loving, compassionate Son of the Father would do.
Now back to the question, "believeth thou this"? Belief is the first fundamental principle of the gospel. I would want to ask you the same. Believeth thou this? These days, I feel like many people in this world hardly or choose not to believe in Him and then I see others who have a strong belief in Jesus Christ. I'm not judging. I'm just trying to invoke upon each of you to seriously look deeply inside and verify what your answer is to this question is. Do you believe in Jesus Christ?
I testify that I do!!!! I not only believe, but I know that He knows me personally and loves me. I have witnessed His healing powers and I have also witnessed miracles that only He could perform, even the little, simple miracles performed on my behalf. I know that only He could create such marvelous creations like this earth or even the greater creation of a human body; that amazing, incredible body given to each of us. Though many of you (yes, you!) have helped me over the years to see the many things that only Jesus could do, I testify that I, too, can now see and know them for myself.
This past week, a dear friend of mine that has been my friend for 50 years is near death. Simply, my heart is more than swollen. Words can not even begin to express my feelings at this time. But I can state with sure knowledge that I DO believe in Jesus Christ. I BELIEVE that He is the very Christ, the Savior of the World, the Son of God. I believe that all that is written will be fulfilled, not only for my faithful friend, but for myself and all of mankind. This is the time to make the choice! My choice is JESUS! May your answer be Jesus too!
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