Hoooooooola, ya'll!!!
Wow, a VERY busy week, it sounds like! I love hearing about how everything is going, all the new developments, and how the Lord leads and guides you always. It's very fun and cool to see from here! And I'm really excited to meet Brother Art Da Rosa one day! How is he? Have you all been to play tennis with him? Does he still speak Portugese? Send pictures (when you get the chance)! I always like to have face I can put with a name! Where is his son going to be serving? and Mom, CONGRATS on the exam! And CONGRATS on the one you were waiting for!! All that hard work and homework is paying off!
How was Cody when you went to the Open House? Is he all set to go?
Oh, and before I forget - With the mp3 player (and if it's not too much to ask) would you be able to hang on to it until after this weekend, and then put the talks from General Conference on it? If you've already sent it, though, no worries! We'll all be enjoying Conference in just a few days!
Overall, not too bad of a week, especially as Elder Ruske and I (we were on exchanges while Elder Burbank and Elder Christensen - Elder Ruske's companion - worked at the Gladys Knight devotional) were working to cover both areas. We didn't have the number of lessons that we would have liked, but the quality of the lessons that we did have the chance to teach was very good. We taught well in unity, and really connected in those 4 days that we were working together. I'm very glad for the opportunity that I had to work with him.
So, with the Gladys Knight devotional...I did get to go!! It was definitely an experience! The music wasn't something I'm very used to, but there were some songs in there that I loved. La Via Dolorosa was a good one, and was in both English and Spanish, so the investigator that we brought (Alma, but not a man) was able to understand a lot of that one. It talks about Christ's journey to Calvary, and did so in a way that really captured a lot of the feeling that I think gets lost from just talking about it. Then there was another one, called Tomorrow, or something like that, that talked about giving our lives to God...tomorrow...and just how that doesn't really work out. They sang about how tomorrow isn't promised to anyone, so we need to make the best of life today, and serve God today. Both were very interesting!
Here's the announcement that President Saylin sent out to us after the devotional:
"Wow!!! The SUV Choir Firesides were amazing. After watching one, I was so grateful to see many of you in attendance with your investigators. It was a powerful experience. If you did not get a chance to attend, I encourage you to find someone who did at zone meeting on Friday and find out as much about it as you can.
Our little team of missionaries collected a record-breaking 1,941 request cards! The majority of these requests were within the Texas Houston South Mission. You have already been receiving the gift bags and have been delivering them. This is an amazing time for our mission.
We ask that you please make every effort to deliver each and every gift bag within 48 hours of the fireside. If you have any bags remaining undelivered, please make it a priority to get them delivered today. These contacts are time sensitive. You will be received differently if they still remember the spirit they felt at the firesides and Sister Knight's words still ring in their hearts.
It is also important to report on your contacts and deliveries!!! Please be sure to promptly update the referral database by calling to the system. Additionally, please update your district and zone leaders. Many leaders, including the Brethren, are watching to see the value of these contacts and we want to make sure our reporting is accurate.
I am proud to be the president of such a wonderful band of missionaries. You are tremendous servants of the Lord. I am confident that the firesides and referral cards were so successful because of the great ground work done by all of you over the last few months. You are the reason we have such a high percentage of the fruits of this undertaking. Now we will reap the blessings!
Can you hear it? It is the sound of the abundance of rain."
Much love,
President Saylin
From even just the numbers, a really good fireside!
The Gladys Knight devotional went well! We had the opportunity to bring an investigator to the devotional, Alma, but I'm not sure she was the reason we were supposed to bring someone to the devotional. As we were frantically looking for someone to bring to the devotional (the person we had planned to bring decided later not to go), we called as many people as we could. We even walked around outside in our complex to try to find someone who could go with us (we already had the ride set up and ready). One of the times that we left the house, we found someone walking down the stairs. We talked to her, and asked her if she knew about Gladys Knight. She gave us a look like, "Do you know who you're talking to?" and later told us that in her earlier years, she traveled around and lip-synced songs from Sister Knight. She is probably one of the biggest Gladys Knight fans that I've ever met! Just before she went to the devotional, she told us, "And sometime in the next little while, I'd like to talk to you about your church. I'm in-between churches right now, and I'm looking for the one that speaks to me."
The biggest miracle we had didn't come from our own teaching pool, but I know the Lord put us there in that apartment, in that time, with her as our neighbor, so that she (her name is Darlene) would be able to find some of the answers that she is looking for, and I'm very excited to see her excitement in finding those answers!
With that many referrals, we're going to have our work cut out for us! If she ever comes to California, it's one of the best and easiest ways to do missionary work. Invite the whole neighborhood! It was always super packed when they had the performances. And at the end, Sister Knight shared her testimony with everyone. She shared how she knew it was true, threw in some humor, and invited everyone to 'Crack open the Book of Mormon' and find out for themselves! Definitely a great, miraculous devotional!
Well, it's time to get going! I hope your week is going great, and that it gets even better!!
I love ya'll!!!
Con mucho amor, a infinidad, y mas alla!!
Elder Devin Collins
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