What a week!

With Sister Monahan, Mission President's wife

Elder Adurro, Quorum of the Seventy

What a week is all I can say! We were busy every waking second this week. We had meetings and studies in Lingayen on Tuesday, Mission Leadership Council on Wednesday, weekly planning on Thursday, exchanges on Friday, a baptism and stake conference on Saturday, and more stake conference and another baptism on Sunday. We were forced to use our time very carefully and prioritize our investigators preparing for baptism.

We also had one great baptism this week- little Bro Jhonice, 10 years old. His family was baptized last month and he joined them as members yesterday :) He beamed from ear to ear as he stepped into the water and was baptized by our 19 year old ward mission leader. He bore his testimony after the baptism and just said how happy and thankful he was that he was baptized. We are continuing to work with him and his family and to prepare them all to attend the temple trip with the ward at the end of the month to do baptisms for the dead. :)

We were able to go back to the construction site this week with a member of the stake presidency and were able to teach four of the brothers that we met last week! They were very receptive and we are excited to go back to them this week! :)

Despite all the craziness in the past few weeks, the Spirit has taught me again and again that being diligent is not about frantically running around. If missionaries, or anyone for that matter, are running so quickly between appointments and activities that they forget to focus on the Spirit and what things are really important, the work that we do is in vain. It is so important to take moments to pause, reflect, say a quick prayer, take a drink and look at the sunset with your companion, put your arm around a member sister and ask about their family, stop by the side of the road to play with string tops with the little kids, or to give your companion a hug after a great lesson. It's about doing the Lord's work in His way and with His Spirit, and I just don't think the Savior ran frantically from place to place worrying about statistics and the time on His watch. That's my thought for you this week- take time each day to ponder and invite the Spirit into your life. It's the only way we can make it through :)

I love you all!!

Sister Gustafson

Sister Training Leaders with Sister Monahan - December 2014

Sister Laulu and Lavides and I in a tryke. Don't worry, Sis Sarte was there too, riding on the outside on the back of the motorcycle :)