Joy in the Service

Found a restaurant that offered 2 giant hot dogs and 2 juices for a great deal. Four of us couldn't pass it up.

Back in Rhythm
Since Elder Evelo is feeling better, we have gotten back into a rhythm of teaching.  It feels good. With every conversation I am reinvigorated to do missionary work. Just small feelings of joy. One of the things that reinforced this feeling even more was in an article in an old magazine.

Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane
by Heinrich Hofmann 1890

I Believe in Christ
I came across a decades-old Liahona magazine in English (what's that doing in our home?) which had the last testimony of Bruce R. McConkie in it. I read it, and let my imagination take me to each of the three Gardens, hoping that one day I could build my testimony to this level of knowledge, and how I need to base all my decision in life off of knowing Christ's sacrifice.

Upon this rock I cannot fail.

Fun Fact for my generation:
It was from this April 1985 testimony that they composed the hymn 134, I Believe in Christ.

Thursday, we did not enter a single house, but I was still on a spiritual high from McConkie's testimony.

Fun Facts:
-  Helped a less-active kid with translating his English homework. It was about Tupac.
-  Ate a Chilean churro. It's different from what we have in USA. Picture, deep fried corn based shell stuffed with manjar (caramelized sweetened condensed milk). So tasty.

- The other night, no one had keys to the place we were staying, so I was nominated to crawl through the 18" open window. I fit! and opened the door from the inside. Perks of being flako (skinny). This might not continue if I keep eating Chilean churros!

Travelling to Chillon
Half of our week was filled with teaching, the other half was spent travelling.  Think of riding a bus over the hill to Santa Cruz every day for a week straight. This was our travels to Chillon for a slew of stake conference meetings and mission conferences. So cool.

Scales Falling
At the stake Adult Meeting Saturday evening, two returned missionaries bore testimony and talked about the joy that opens in the hearts of missionaries, a joy that makes it feel like your eyes have been opened. Kind of an awakening.  The Apostle Paul likened it to scales falling from his eyes that enabled him to finally see, really see.

I felt this same thing in the CCM, the Mexico Missionary Training Center.

At conference with my buddies from the CCM

Farewell to the President
And then we had the farewell conference for President and Sister Arrington. Both gave inspiring talks. Two things that stuck with me from president's talk was:

1. Without service, there is no progress. We can sit and study as long as we like, but we'll never progress if we never extend ourselves to help others,
2. The key indicator for a returned missionary to stay strong is to stay active in a calling right after returning home.

See if you can see me in the back row

Kinda makes me think of my sister who just returned from her mission to France.

Welcome Home, Lauren!
In fact, it donned on me last Tuesday that the same time I entered my house after a day of work, is the same time when my sister, Lauren's, plane landed in San Jose.  Quite poetic, actually.  Welcome home, sister!

So proud of you.

Adios!
Elder Connor Nef