Week 14- Transfers and pictures

Hey Friends and Family!

Hope all is going well on the home front! The battles in this war can be pretty gruesome some days, but as the song says "Onward Christian Soldiers, marching as to war. With the cross of Jesus going on before."

On Monday, Elder Taylor and I had dinner with my roommate's brother and his wife, first pic, and then we drove around saying his goodbyes to members. Tuesday morning we woke up early to finish laundry and packing and P-day stuff we weren't able to do. Then we headed to Broomall, PA which is about a half hour drive from here with no traffic. Transfers are at 10 am and we got to the stake center/mission office at about 8:30. Surprisingly, there were at least 10 other missionaries already there. The hallways got crowded and filled with joy and laughter. It's such a blast being with tons of other missionaries...outside the MTC. They pulled us into the cultural hall to actually do the transfers. So we sang the mission song which is "We are as the Army of Helaman" with PPM lyrics. A tad bit cheesy, but with an army of missionaries, it is powerful. The Spirit was so strong even though nerves were a bit riled up for transfers.

So the AP's lined us up with the missionaries staying in their areas on one side and those leaving on the other. They told us this was the biggest transfer PPM has ever had, kinda exciting to be part of that. Then they had a slide show with the missionary pictures pulled up and paired with your new comp and the area you would be serving in. I am in the Wilmington 2nd ward, Wilmington zone, and unfortunately, they went alphabetically, soo..I had the sweet pleasure of being the last missionary out of nearly 100 of us. But 15 new areas were created, there are over 20 companionships that had to be threesomes this transfer because we just don't have enough areas or apartments yet for all the missionaries coming in. President said that 90 new missionaries have arrived in the space of 3 transfers and a net gain of 20 this next transfer. 270+ missionaries. That is exciting. I guess most missions will be pushing that soon if not already. I love it though!

So...my new companion is....Elder Timmerman, second pic. He's from....take a guess...Draper, UT. But he is the man. We get along well and have a similar sense of humor, so he actually laughs at my pathetic jokes. And we laugh at our embarrassing mishaps...which occur rather frequently. I love the kid though. He's motivated, hard working, and fun and ready to baptize this area. It was tough to see him get discouraged after the first few days because Wilmington is quite a bit different than Cambridge, MD. Elder Taylor got transferred to Atlantic City, NJ.

That brings me to the area. Boy oh boy, Wilmington. We have found ourselves praying for the area and the people to be humbled, and willing to listen to our message. Ps, the 3rd pic is a sign Drug Free Zone in one of the sketchier parts of town, near where Xavier lives. I saw it and laughed. Drug Free, my eye. There probably isn't a house down there without drugs. Speaking of Xavier, I have been a little frustrated with his situation. He told us Thursday that he loves it when we stop by and feels better when we do, then doesn't keep the next appt. We don't have the time or miles to keep "checking in" to see if he's home. He told us he "likes smoking" and is not in a good place right now. He's trying to figure out his life. I decided to be blunt so I said " I can promise you Xavier, there will NEVER be a convenient time or a good time to follow the Lord by being baptized. There will always be some excuse or some obstacle that you will have to overcome." I told him if he was serious, to make the decision and go for it. I guess he's not that serious. I think he may come around in the future when he matures a bit, as for now though all we can do is pray for him.

My miracle this week actually happened with a member. On Friday during our nightly planning session ( which you do after getting home between 9 and 10) I felt the need to see this outgoing, semi-active in the past active now, funny member named Solomon. He's black and tall with white hair and when he grows out his white stash, legit. So Saturday morning we get a text from another member and he asks us to stop by Solomon to see if he was going to go to the temple. I got another prompting to go to his house and not his mom's where he usually stays. We caught him in the knick of time. And I don't know why, but that was just a faith building experience for me.

Mosiah 4 hit me this week as I pondered on my relationship with my Heavenly Father more as a dad than some Zeus character who shoots lightening bolts at people. I would invite you to read about it and ponder your relationship with God.

Congrats Katie and Carl, wish I could be there, hope all goes well. Proud of you Wil and Jess for that baptism. And happy birthday to my wonderful sister Jessica! Love you all!

Elder Jacob Robins

 "Thrusting in our sickles" with actual sickles...Elders Taylor and Rich. 

Driving in the car on P-day. Red toyota Corolla. I'd be jealous.

Elder Taylor and I had dinner with my roommate's brother and his wife

Cicada bug (sick-ay-duh) each species lies dormant for 7-17 years then comes out for the summer, mates and dies. Loudest bugs you'll ever hear. They try to sing you to sleep at night, not too good at it.

"Drug Free zone" in Wilmington, My eye. 

Elder Timmerman & Elder Robins