Family and friends,
As of
today, it is 79 days until I return home again. I could have sworn that
yesterday it was 83, and I especially could have sworn that the day
before it was over a hundred days left! Time is flying, and I'll be
flying soon enough. Meanwhile, I am enjoying my time here.
Life
here in Omaha has been interesting. I now work in a Spanish branch
called Rio Vista. I thought things were bad in Grand Island with four
companionships to a ward; but here we also have four companionships, all for the same miniscule branch. We make up about 30-40% of the
Sunday attendance, and about 70-80% of the priesthood of the branch.
This
branch is the result of a division of an old ward, which divided
into two branches; our branch has maybe fifty members in total, counting
people who attend and those who do not - thus, we as missionaries step
on each other's feet VERY much. Each companionship simply has a list of about seven members to whom we minister, and that's what we do, whenever
we can manage to get hold of them. We also teach investigators,
though, and we even found someone new to teach yesterday! Her name is
Sandra, and we plan to meet with her on Saturday in person and perhaps
teach the rest of her family, too! We are pretty excited for her.
Now,
I will take a moment to tell you about the streets here in Omaha: they
are devil spawn. I don't know who was the genius who designed the
traffic flow and the street system, but I think he was too genius for us
mortals to comprehend any bit of his work. Where I live is close to
downtown, and there are so many freeways that they are all in a
gargantuan, disgusting tangle. There are also so many one-way streets
that I get lost easily -- I wholeheartedly abhor one-way streets; and far
too few of the streets are in any kind of grid system. I miss the
Phoenix area: there, even though the downtown has one-way streets and I
hate it, it's at least a grid system throughout. But this is not fun. It
honestly, literally, physiologically gives me stress driving here,
especially when my companions get on my case for not knowing how to get
to a certain place - which is SO easy not to know because of the obscene
tangle. [And because he has only been there for 5 days by now.] I am certainly not one of them, prideful enough never to ask
for directions or use Google Maps. We actually got lost the very first
day on our way home from the mission offices, because the one companion
who knows the area gave me very bad directions, and STILL they don't
like looking up directions. I will never be one of those who is ashamed of
using directions -- particularly because I won't be the one getting lost.
One
day this past week, I ended up missing the correct freeway interchange
and going a moment longer. We continued onto a long bridge with water
below, and at that point Google said, "Welcome to Iowa". That was pretty
funny, I think, but it also illustrates well how compact and confusing
everything is: one missed turn on any given day, and I will end up back
in Iowa.
But to finish, I
want to inform you all that I have felt so strongly that I really am
putting on the armor of God, now. I can feel the protection of each
piece beginning to take effect, and it gives me real joy.
"Wherefore
take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand
in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having
your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of
righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of
peace; above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able
to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God"
(Ephesians 6:13-17).
I
love especially the imagery of the sword of the Spirit, which is used
both to attack and defend. When used correctly, the Spirit is a tool of
both justice and mercy, always perfectly in accordance with God's will -- rebuking when the Spirit indicates, and afterward showing an increase
of love. It is beautiful to me.
Love,
Elder Hill, Senior
Fotos:
una
pintura como si fuera de Minecraft; el sol atrás de las nubes al
atardecer; y los Élderes de Río Vista 1; y mi relación familiar con una Hermana Wilcock en este distrito [and also with his companion Elder Linford].
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