God Is In The Details
I did make a promise to be more constant in my writing and this was going to come out last week but then I got distracted. So here it is!
This week was eventful! I could most likely say that about every week but this week particularly.
Last last week:
- Referrals! #FacebookWorks
- NBA Young Boys Cousin
- “My name’s Mater… Like ‘Tuh-mater’ but without the ‘tuh’! What’s your name?"
My four main points of conversation will be as mentioned above. There may be a few things in between but that is the basic outline.
What is a referral? A referral is when someone has put in their information (name, phone number, address) to meet with missionaries for said thing. It might be from an ad on Facebook, this is the usual case, or they find the website themselves and put their information in.
On Facebook, the mission, puts up ads about coming to church, prayer, reading scripture, growing your relationship with God, etc... and people who may see these ads can fill out their information and we will contact them.
Now, as you can imagine, there could be some weird interactions due to many factors, but the majority of them are pretty good! And in this area, in Heatherwilde, we have been getting a lot of people reaching out to us.
It has been such a blessing. I was thinking about it this way the other day...
Here in Heatherwilde, Elder Allen and I, as I've stated before, are the social media leaders in the mission. So our priorities are mixed between our area and the work that we must get done, with this amazing assignment that we have.
We still go out and talk to people, we still have gospel discussions with people, and we still do "normal" missionary things. We just have responsibilities added on top of all of that so it eats into some of the time that we would have to be out and about talking to people.
Due to this, I feel as though God is helping us out. He has seen Elder Allen and I and the effort and diligence that we have put in throughout our time here in Texas and the time we have been together and has been guiding people to us.
I couldn't be more grateful! We have been really blessed with the work that we have been doing here. God is helping us as we help Him in this great and marvelous work.
With these referrals, we have been able to talk to a lot of cool people!
Such as NBA YoungBoys cousin. Now we are still trying to figure out if this is actually the case but it seems pretty real. If you don't know who NBA YoungBoy is, he is a music artist who raps. And lives in Utah!
Long story short, and with second second second hand information, NBA YoungBoy was meeting with missionaries (Apparently). So this referral, whom we will call Marlin, told us that he met the missionaries when NBA YB was meeting with them. Marlin then told us that he felt that he should reach out to us.
So there we were! Talking to NBA YBs cousin in Pflugerville, Texas. Who woulda thought? The unique and interesting things that happen to us as missionaries.
If you don't know who Mater is I would strongly encourage you to have a childhood and watch Disney Pixar 'Cars'. It will not disappoint.
Mater is a tow truck...
We got towed. I wish it was by Mater but no it was by a tow truck driver who probably has a family and he or she decided to wreak havoc on two missionaries who are just trying to do their best. With Sarcasm, He was definitely singling us out.
There's not much other to explain than that.
We were very blessed in the process. God is good and looking out for us.
So instead of sending two emails, I'm just going to talk about this last week as well as the week prior to last week as you already, hopefully, read above.
This last week:
5. Leaving the Mission...
6. Member Friends
In the Texas Austin Mission, we have boundaries that we are not to leave, as do all missions. We were a little shocked when we found out that we would be able to go beyond our boundaries to the San Antonio Temple.
As I mentioned last email, President Carter talked to the General Authority over our area and asked if the missionaries here in the TAM (Texas Austin Mission) could go to the temple every 3 months!
We had some pretty STRICT instructions with this opportunity that we have been given.
"You go to the temple, and back."
There was absolutely no stopping in San Antonio for any reason. We get gas before we go. We get food before or after the trip. We wait till back in the boundaries of our mission before you even consider stopping.
We were obedient and did as instructed. On our way back an Elder that we were driving with knew of a poke bowl place that was right inside the boundaries. It was the perfect place to go to after an amazing temple session.
Let's rewind a bit, shall we? I haven't talked about the most important part of the temple. The actual temple itself.
We arrived about 40 minutes early and as soon as we were on the temple grounds it was as if that was the only place on earth that was still. I could only think to myself the song that had been in my head since I was a kid;
I love to see the temple.
I’m going there someday
To feel the Holy Spirit,
To listen and to pray.
For the temple is a house of God,
A place of love and beauty.
I’ll prepare myself while I am young;
This is my sacred duty.
I love to see the temple.
I’ll go inside someday.
I’ll covenant with my Father;
I’ll promise to obey.
For the temple is a holy place
Where we are sealed together.
As a child of God, I’ve learned this truth:
A family is forever.
We took a few pictures with my camera and walked around before we went in for our session. It was a beautiful place to be.
The artwork on the inside was something unique. I haven't looked much into the artwork of temples but I will now be doing so. Every time.
I am excited to go back in 3 months.
Every Friday we have an opportunity to go to a food bank and hand out food. Recently there has been this group of teenagers that we have been serving with. It just happens that they know so many members! We have been talking to one of them and he is reading the Book of Mormon!
We are planning on going to Texas Roadhouse with him and the member friends. This Saturday we are going to have a church tour with him as well!
Having member friends is the best! We have been telling our members to keep tabs on our new friend and continue to help him understand what he is reading!
God is in the details and is blessing Elder Allen and me 100-fold. I would not be able to do this without Him. It has been a new challenge and blessing to learn to rely on God.
I am doing well. Getting hotter every day. Some days are a little cooler than others and we can roll the windows down on the car.
God is good.
That's about it. See ya.
- Elder Payne
