I hope your weeks were wonderful! Mine was. And it was probably the single most insane week of my life as a missionary, as well! I haven't stopped once since last Tuesday. It's been a whirlwind of movement and adventure and the Spirit. Sister Moss and I have needed to rely upon the enabling power of the Atonement, because without Him we wouldn't have had the stamina to make it through these last few days (hence the subject line). We've truly had tender mercy upon tender mercy that has carried us through this week, and strength beyond our normal capacities.
Let me see if I can give you the highlights! Last Tuesday we had another Night of Light event in Billerica (goodness, was that really last week??). It is so different each time, because I've always had a different companion. This time it was Sister Bybee, Sister Cruz and I! It was really neat to hear their testimonies in that kind of a setting. Tears were shed, the spirit was strong, the videos were beautiful, and the event was combined with a baptism! This woman has been investigating for a long time. It was a special occaision.
Wednesday was transfers! We didn't stop! We had to get up early to help out with different missionaries luggage, finish packing, frantically clean the house, get to the Weston chapel to set up displays for transfer meeting. . . and THEN Sister Moss came and met us early! We had permission to go shopping before our long road trip. Oh my goodness. She's the best. Sister Moss is a burst of sunshine! She's happy and a beautiful, tall blonde. She's consecrated and outgoing and so excited for her last 6 weeks. I'm glad we're not stopping. It's perfect for her sprint to the finish.
So for the first full day together we went to Springfield for an Open House! All of the displays went up, all of the missionaries in the Zone came and hit the streets. There was a lot less foot-traffic there, but they worked hard, and we had success! There was a slow, steady stream of people who came out for the Open House. It was beautiful. One man named Pierre walked in and took a tour with Sister Moss and I. He came because a member in the ward sent out a Facebook invite! How cool???
That night we drove down to Canton and spent the night there. Hahah, we forgot our air mattress, so we ended up crashing on the armchairs. Not the most comfortable night. But it was perfect, because we were close for the next day--another Open House in Hartford. Remember how amazing it was last time? Well this time it was specifically for the Spanish group, and it was every bit as awesome! I love those people we contacted! It was a beautiful day, so many people stopped and watched the videos and took tours. We taught ministers and teenagers, families and single grandparents. I contacted one woman in sign language!Tour after tour was so powerful, and we were backed up by the whole Hartford Zone. I'm so happy.
We had to break everything down and head out so late. We got home at 1 AM, and then we had to wake up EARLY to get ready and scramble out the door for a trip to Billerica! We hardly had time to shower, and we were getting really tired. Also, Sister Cruz and Sister Couto helped us out and attended a different event we couldn't get to, so we had to pick up the displays. And when we were setting up for the Family History Convention in Billerica, we were going crazy because we couldn't find the Allen wrench. Amazing how one little tool can be detrimental to a whole display. But the Lord loves us and we found it! It was neat to set up some displays there. And the Bishop bought us lunch from the Boy Scout fundraiser. :)
Next stop was Worcester! We set up God's Plan and Temples for a Wedding Reception. My first Wedding Reception for the PVC! And you know what? It was so successful. Because the missionaries were determined to make it so! They had 52 non-members at that event, and they pulled out over 15 of them and gave them mini tours, complete with beautiful videos about God's Plan for us and how significant we believe marriage really is. They got return appointments and contact info and Book of Mormons passed out! It was in Spanish though, so I wasn't of much help.
We headed BACK to Worcester the next day, which was Sunday. As we were driving, the gas light flicked on. YIKES! We were so unprepared for the Sabbath! We prayed and held our breath and drove all the way there. Once there, we set up the whole shebang for their church. It was a different experience. We taught separate classes about the PVC as a missionary aid and gave lots of people tours through. It's very different when you're teaching members, though. I like to emphasize how inspired it all is, and how blessed we are to have it in the MBM. I was about ready to collapse at that point, though. We were there ALL day. When we finally got all the equipment taken down and loaded in the Spaceship again, it was about 7:00. And we had to drive all the way home. Our van said that we had just a little longer drive to get home than we could make on the gas we had. But we had no other option, so we prayed and crept home. . . we drove the last five minutes with 0 miles left to drive.Tender mercy that we made it back.
We crashed for an hour nap, then had to wake up again for a conference call with President Haight (at 9:00 pm) about our New Member Brochure! Sister Moss actually didn't wake up. :) I don't blame her. We got things figured out, then I made a few frantic phone calls to figure out splits for the next day. The Lord really really loves us. Somehow we got it worked out, so that Sister Moss could go to the recent convert temple trip yesterday with her old companion to see all these people she loves in the temple, while I went with her old companion's companion to Newport for a Memorial Day Barbecue! Make sense? I know it's confusing. But Sister Moss was so excited! So my companion for the day was Sister Black all yesterday! We set up two of our displays for the barbecue and had a lot of fun outside. Less-actives and part-member families came through to see the videos, and even a woman who lived across the street! It was wonderful!
So that's been my hectic week! I probably bored you with all the details--sorry! It was just so hard to condense it all! I love Sister Moss so so so so much! Can't wait for 5 more weeks with her!!!!
Love,
Sister Merkley
MBM PVC Missionary
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