Hey!!
I feel like I say this every week, but honestly- Whew!! This week was CRAZY!!! Absolutely crazy.
Monday we had the crazy tornado stuff. It was really weird sitting on the couch, watching the storm move across the state. We didn't have a weather radio, so we watched it on the TV, and they had it down to the hour when the storm would strike. We didn't get anything more than a bit of wind and a few bucket loads of rain, so it was great. Not everyone was so fortunate, so on Tuesday President Hanks asked us to stay inside. Let me tell you- THAT was one of the greatest tests of obedience that I have ever done. In Lincoln it was beautiful, it was calm, not a storm in the sky, and we were stuck inside. I've biked in near flood weather many a time, and this didn't even have a drop. But, we were obedient, and we stayed inside. During that time we had a great time making President Hank's birthday present. It was an ABC book of everything he teaches us, with cute drawings done by me. :) Loved making it! We even laminated it. He texted us, wrote an email AND called to tell us how wonderful the book was. I was glad he liked it so much.
Wednesday we had interviews with President. Nothing really fantastic happened- mostly everything is great and everything is awesome, but President, Sister Hanks and my district leader all found time to tell me that it isn't going to stay that way. So that was a bit of a downer. But hey! I'm enjoying this transfer quite a bit.
Thursday we planned outside on the Parker's porch. It was great to enjoy the beauty of our area. The sun felt SO good! We also biked to have dinner... Arrived very sweaty and out of breath... :P Not exactly my favorite way to appear at dinner. But other than that, I had a great time. These people are readers and it has been SO LONG since I've gotten to have a good conversation about books. Oh! I miss it so much. I honestly can't wait to go back to BYU and have some great intellectual conversations about books. She gave me a great series to look up when I get home.
Friday we got a call from President Hanks telling us that we were going to be moved to Oxford. :D :D :D :D :D Lincoln is amazing, but it is SUPER country, and EVERYTHING is super spread out. Missionary work is very difficult here. Now we'll be moving to a town/city, so there will actually be people to contact, and we'll be close to the people we are working with. We drove up to the apartment we'll be living in, and it is pretty close to several stores, a mall, and all sorts of wonderful things. Its like I'm getting transferred without having to say goodbye! Oh! I love it. I'll send you my new address as soon as I know it.
Saturday was incredible; I thought of Steven almost the entire time.. This week was race weekend... The great and terrible Race Weekend. Everyone kept telling us to move as far away from it as possible, telling us everyone was drunk, traffic was crazy, there would be tons of partying, and it would be awful. Well, we decided instead to join in the fun. :) We went down and held up signs that said, "Lets Talk About Jesus!" and "Peace, Joy and a Relationship with God Mormon.org." It was great! We got quite a few honks, no one actually stopped by, but hey! We got a lot of people to actually think about Jesus. After that, we went down to where they had a bunch of vendors. It was really kind of interesting to watch what happened. There were a few people... that were very much in the world... It was really sad to see. There were also some nice vendors and nice people that we talked to. It was interesting to see the respect we received from the vendors. As they showed us their stuff, they would steer us away, apologizing for the dirty stuff they were selling, and then show us the clean stuff. It was really interesting to see how, almost embarrassed they were. We stuck out like a sore thumb- we were clean, we were pure and we didn't have anything to do with the dirty stuff. The people could see it, and they reacted accordingly. It was interesting. There were also some not so great looking women that walked into the tents right after we left them, and instantly I knew they would not receive the same amount of respect. In fact, they've probably spent their entire lives wishing they could receive that level of respect, but because they've sold themselves for things of naught, they did not receive it, and until they clean up, they will never receive it. Being clean pays itself in so many ways. I am so grateful for the Gospel, and how it teaches us to live such clean lives.
Anyway- at the fair we handed out a copy of the Book of Mormon, gave a couple of lessons, and gave a bunch of people the opportunity to draw closer to Christ. Sister Stahle also got a ring carved that said "Steadfast in Christ ABM" It was super cool, and I almost got one, but I don't really like how rings look on my fingers, so I guess I'll just have to find something else that I can get carved. Maybe a necklace or a bracelet. It was beautiful.
Also Saturday- <<Nameless Investigator>> GOT BAPTIZED!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Whoot!!!! It was absolutely incredible! She was beaming the entire time. She looked so beautiful.The Spirit was so strong, and when she bore her testimony, I just about exploded. She is such a choice daughter of God. I love it. Oh! I honestly wish I could explain how wonderful and incredible it was- maybe spend as much time as I did talking about the race, but it was really one of those experiences where words just fail me. It was great. During the half time, we taught the Restoration, which was a fabulous idea. None of the people there were non-members, but it was a great interactive way to keep the kids quiet and the Spirit there. Loved it so much.
So, that was my week in a nutshell! It was crazy. I hope y'all had a slightly less crazy week. I love you so much, and think of you often!
Love always,
Sister Pratt
~Steadfast in Christ
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