Monday highlights: new couple training in the office, day before
transfers was hectic/exciting, after dinner, made lasagna for Wednesday night
and funeral potatoes for Tuesday night, we received two more infringement
notifications, Lee did airport pick ups from Alice Springs and Darwin,
and met the new bike delivery at 6:00 pm, family home evening, bed.
Sister Carter called Monday evening to talk about my emails from the day and to inform us two missionaries had been hurt in Port Pirie which is 225 kilometers or 2.36 hour drive. The poor missionaries were taken to the hospital and released, but for their safety, are being reassigned out of the area temporarily. The missionaries had gone to a house last week and were told not to come back by someone at the door who was tipsy. Monday the missionaries had an appointment at a DIFFERENT house on the same street and three drunk men came out of the previous house saying, "We said not to come back to this STREET!" The men beat them and then smashed their bikes. We are very thankful they are physically fine!
Tuesday was transfer meeting which included testimonies from Elder and Sister Hannan, the new senior couple. They have been willing to do anything needed and pitch in without hesitation. They are going to be great in the office and it sounds like Sister Hannan will be taking over my job and Elder Hannan will do finance. The Jurgens senior couple is coming in November and she will do Sister Goodrichs job and he will do Lee's job. Goodrichs are going home 10 November and bought return travel this week to the USA by way of Guam to visit their son and family.
The leavers were Elders Bingham, Bennett, Hawkes, Westover, and Sisters Lealii'ee
(I can finally pronounce her name!) Green, Talisa, and Tonga. Elder Cook was called as the new assistant replacing Bingham. Listed below are things the leavers learned while on their mission.
Sis Tonga: Companions are important! Forgiveness is for your companion, repentance is for you!
She learned to trust God more!
Sis Talisa: She loved and learned from Sister Carter's training on the courage bag. She expressed the importance of loyalty to God, to Pres and Sis Carter, companion, parents, self.
Also: believe the 5 promises contained in the introduction of the Book Of Mormon.
Sis Lealii'ee: Be consecrated, give your all! Realize it is a sacred calling to bear the name of Jesus Christ as a missionary.
Sis Green: Identity is everything! Know who you are! Jesus and Joseph Smith understood who they really are. Use time effectively!
Elder Bennett: Be aligned with Heavenly Father. Do things HIS way. Understand the Atonement.
Elder Hawkes: Listen! Listen to Pres Carter, listen to the spirit, listen more! Work! There is no satisfactory substitute!
Elder Westover: Have no regrets! Work hard every day! He leaves his mission with no regrets.
Elder Bingham: He learned the value of work and diligence. Also advised to teach people, not lessons.
The leaver dinner and testimony meeting was lovely as always. Roast beef with funeral potatoes, salad, rolls, and jello, and dessert. Clean up was fast and easy. The heartfelt expressions of love, gratitude, and testimony were wonderful!
Sister Carter called Monday evening to talk about my emails from the day and to inform us two missionaries had been hurt in Port Pirie which is 225 kilometers or 2.36 hour drive. The poor missionaries were taken to the hospital and released, but for their safety, are being reassigned out of the area temporarily. The missionaries had gone to a house last week and were told not to come back by someone at the door who was tipsy. Monday the missionaries had an appointment at a DIFFERENT house on the same street and three drunk men came out of the previous house saying, "We said not to come back to this STREET!" The men beat them and then smashed their bikes. We are very thankful they are physically fine!
Tuesday was transfer meeting which included testimonies from Elder and Sister Hannan, the new senior couple. They have been willing to do anything needed and pitch in without hesitation. They are going to be great in the office and it sounds like Sister Hannan will be taking over my job and Elder Hannan will do finance. The Jurgens senior couple is coming in November and she will do Sister Goodrichs job and he will do Lee's job. Goodrichs are going home 10 November and bought return travel this week to the USA by way of Guam to visit their son and family.
The leavers were Elders Bingham, Bennett, Hawkes, Westover, and Sisters Lealii'ee
(I can finally pronounce her name!) Green, Talisa, and Tonga. Elder Cook was called as the new assistant replacing Bingham. Listed below are things the leavers learned while on their mission.
Sis Tonga: Companions are important! Forgiveness is for your companion, repentance is for you!
She learned to trust God more!
Sis Talisa: She loved and learned from Sister Carter's training on the courage bag. She expressed the importance of loyalty to God, to Pres and Sis Carter, companion, parents, self.
Also: believe the 5 promises contained in the introduction of the Book Of Mormon.
Sis Lealii'ee: Be consecrated, give your all! Realize it is a sacred calling to bear the name of Jesus Christ as a missionary.
Sis Green: Identity is everything! Know who you are! Jesus and Joseph Smith understood who they really are. Use time effectively!
Elder Bennett: Be aligned with Heavenly Father. Do things HIS way. Understand the Atonement.
Elder Hawkes: Listen! Listen to Pres Carter, listen to the spirit, listen more! Work! There is no satisfactory substitute!
Elder Westover: Have no regrets! Work hard every day! He leaves his mission with no regrets.
Elder Bingham: He learned the value of work and diligence. Also advised to teach people, not lessons.
The leaver dinner and testimony meeting was lovely as always. Roast beef with funeral potatoes, salad, rolls, and jello, and dessert. Clean up was fast and easy. The heartfelt expressions of love, gratitude, and testimony were wonderful!
Wednesday: Lee left the flat at 3:45 AM for his first of 4 trips to the airport for leavers, arrivers, and transfers. We did dinner at the church at 6 pm and then I went to the office to change travel to Alice Springs for the next morning while Lee distributed bikes and bedding to the arrivers. Everything went smoothly except one elder's luggage did not make the trip with him from America. It arrived late Thursday night but we collected it Friday morning since we were at the airport again and delivered it to the Elders on the way back to the office.
Thursday we arrived at the office at 7:30 am to transport a new sister to the airport going UP/North to her first area in Alice Springs. Later the same day we were supposed to pick up a sister missionary coming DOWN from Alice. As we were waiting for the new sister to meet us at the office, Lee thankfully realized that the Sister we were sending up and the Sister left in Alice were both NON licensed drivers so he immediately called the assistants who called President to discuss options. I canceled the flight going UP, but after President and the assistants had a chance to pray and meet together, we met the sister coming down as scheduled Thursday afternoon at the airport. Once they decided who to send up, I booked her flight for Friday morning. That's 7 airport trips this week for Lee! Elder White was a huge help by taking one airport run and two trips to the bus station.
Friday morning we didn't get back from the airport until after 10. Hannans went to the bank after she returned from the Medicare office with Sisters Kafoa and Payze and didn't return till 12:30 so we went to lunch after that. We spoke with kids while at home and Lee's excitement for the first BYU game Saturday was building! Goodrichs left for a lunch appointment and afternoon visits so it was Friday quiet as usual.
The entire week was just beautiful weather wise. If it was cool in the morning, we didn't mind because it was sunny with blue skies every afternoon!
Papa checking out one of the new bikes.
Saturday we talked to more kids and my dad, and Lee was at the dining table tuned in on the laptop by 8:15 am. He LOVED every moment of BYU beating U Conn 35-10 and said it has been a long eight months since the last Cougar football game! College football adoration runs in the family as all of the kids were tuned in as well! Fall is great!
Saturday afternoon was spent resting, and cooking. I've also been doing some reading for my upcoming talk and I asked all of the kids for input. We had the doors and windows open all day Saturday and it was beautiful!
Sunday Sacrament meeting speakers discussed 1. diligence, 2. the President Uchtdorf quote, "What we love, we seek, what we seek determines what we think and do, what we do determines what we become", and 3. Are You Sleeping through the Restoration? which was a talk by Pres Uchtdorf.
Christina, Danny, Sammy, Max, and Leo attended English class where we talked about "Asking for Help" and "Buying a Car." Taylor went to the young single adult Sunday School class. John Addis taught the Wednesday night English class since we had arrivers dinner.
Sunday night was a multi stake adult fireside on RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AND THE FAMILY with remarks by Nevel Rocco and Peter Meurs, an Area Seventy. Australia has just celebrated National Family Day and Marriage Day, and Rocco works with other denominations in defense of marriage and the family in the political system here.
Transfer week is over and went pretty well. We miss Elder Bingham, but Elder Cook has ably stepped up! We feel blessed and grateful to be serving a mission! Lee was inspired to realize the two Alice Springs sister missionaries couldn't drive as well as where to find a vehicle code that we didn't even know we needed or had! We are thankful for this personal guidance.
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