Blessings in the Mission Field

Whew, whish, and wee!! Sounds like something from Dr. Seus, yet that's how we feel about the month of June! While the summer months seem less busy as far as number of classes are concerned and lunches to prepare, we have been very active in assisting the missionary effort. A week's trip to California and the purchase of a new computer monopolized much of June. So here we are just past the middle of July...almost one month before another new school year begins! Dr. Seus had the answer: "Oh, the places you go and the people you meet!"
We have a new mission president. What an enlightened leader! We spent the day with him in Zone Conference today, and we feel humbled to know how the Lord has once again provided and blessed us with a stalwart of faith and leadership.
These mighty young elders never cease to amaze us. Surely these are the last days because of the quality of men (already at 19!) that are serving in His vineyard. They have understanding, compassion, and love for truth like we have never witnessed before. We feel very blessed and motivated to be surrounded by this strength!
It has occurred to us just recently that unlike our home ward, the mission field has given us a new perspective and appreciation of the recently converted. Their sacrifice for accepting the truth is monumental in some cases! Not only do they have a new vocabulary to assimilate, a new code of health, a new wardrobe to acquire (in some cases), a new activity on Sundays (3 hours NOT at the lake), new friends and the loss of old friends, and (in some cases), the rejection of family. What courage, what faith...what an example to us!
Recently, we have been involved in teaching investigators from other countries, like Haiti, the Congo, China, and Peru. Besides learning something about sign language (our own invention, of course), we have gained a greater appreciation of our country...which is quite appropriate to do in July considering our nation's birthday and Pioneer Day! When we hear about their governments, living conditions, and lack of opportunities, we feel a rush of gratitude for our American way of life. Some may say that we haven't listened to the news lately, and they would be right. Yet, who would want to leave...permanently!
We love our country! We love our mission! We love the Lord! and We love YOU!
Sharon and Peter

New beginnings and new seasons

As we close one semester and begin a summer session of teaching, we realize more profoundly, that change is good for both refreshing the mind and evaluating performance towards improvement. We took a few days to enjoy our mission's landscapes into Missouri as we traveled to Joplin for a Senior Missionary Zone Conference. There were twenty of us...all laboring for the Lord in one capacity or another. For instance, besides two couples that work in the mission president's office there are couples that proselyte door to door, in a prison, on a military base (conducting meetings, too), and a couple that spend their day in county clerk's basements photographing records for genealogy work (they wear Levis and sweat shirts!). We heard stirring testimonies from a wonderful army of dedicated saints striving to make a difference, just like us! As we left and continued our travels, we tested President Seal's challenge of closing our eyes, opening the Book of Mormon to any unknown page, pointing to any verse, and then opening our eyes to read and expound on the verse before our eyes. Wow! It's true, every page, every verse has a nugget of golden inspiration. We now challenge you and our students to unlock the treasures spontaneously. Seminaries around the world get the blessing of studying the Book of Mormon next year, and it is thrilling for us to think that our older grandchildren will be receiving these great truths.
The beauties of this mission landscape are breathtaking, as we witness the season's change. LOTS of rain and water have forced us to sing "Spring is here, the grass begins to wake up, birds appear with a joyful song, trees that were old and gray are putting on new makeup, spring is here". The rolling green hills, small streams, and multiple wild flowers, are everywhere! We enjoy them as we drive, walk, and soon participate in a float trip (we are required to be there). We realize more than ever how dry Utah really is!
Many of our regular students have returned to their parents' homes to earn money for next fall semester's curriculum. While some students from BYU, Provo and Idaho, have returned for the summer to the University Ward, most are working during the day. Therefore, our daytime schedule has changed with less classroom teaching and more proselyting, studying and visiting ward members. The variety is more than enjoyable, and we have met many new people that challenge us and add to our testimonies. It is all about extending ourselves: emotionally, physically...lovingly! Which we do towards you, too!!
Love,
Peter and Sharon

Sunset in Arkansas!

Time Flies When You're Havin' Fun!

Are you all havin' fun? Guess we hear that question weekly.... And, of course, our answer is YES! We loved General Conference! Both Sat. and Sun. we watched all sessions at the Institute, except for Priesthood session (that was shown at the ward house). Our lessons incorporated many of the ideas, even quotes, the following week; and we look forward to digesting the printed text on line. We feel like kids in a candy shop to hear and then use this modern revelation (scripture) in our teaching.
It seems we just arrived and yet the calendar tells us that there are only 3 more teaching weeks before "Dead Day" (the last day of classes). Where has the time gone? Of course with all of the push to end the semester, there is always time for parties! And parties they have planned...big time! They begin on the 22nd with a cookout at the local park with Laurels and Priests invited so they can be fellowshiped for next years' enrollment. Then on the 25th, there will be a Frisbee golf tournament, the 29th is the Institutes building's birthday (10 year old) party, May 1st is an all night party (Dead Day), and May 3rd is the Institutes's graduation. Needless to say, we are rapidly writing our own cookbook! Is there any doubt that when you are busy and having fun...Time does fly!!!
We just finished teaching D&C 31 given to Thomas Marsh, first President of the Quorum of 12. You know the story of the of the milk strippings: Sister Marsh was not sharing them as agreed. Marsh took the accusation against her to the High Council who ruled against her. Not satisfied, he took it to the 1st Presidency upheld the ruling. Then he tried to get revenge by signing an affidavit against Joseph Smith and the Church which contributed to Bogg’s extermination letter, the driving out of 15,000 saints from the state of MO., and the loss of many, many lives - all for a quart or two of milk strippings.
Another tragedy was that for some inexplicable reason, Orson Hyde got caught up in the antagonism against the Prophet and signed Marsh’s document and, therefore, was excommunicated. The next year he returned, begged forgiveness, was reinstated in the Quorum, and afterward dedicated Palestine for the Jew’s return. The problem was he never got over the guilt of his apostasy for the rest of his life, shedding bitter tears often.
Pres. Lee quoted H.C. Kimball in his 1965 conference address: "To meet the difficulties that are coming, it will be necessary for you to have a knowledge of the truth of this work for yourselves. The difficulties will be of such a character that the man or woman who does not possess this personal knowledge or witness will fall."
Because of all the above, plus many other like and even worse tragedies, we pray daily that every one of us hold fast to the iron rod all the way to the end.
We continue learning these and other wonderful lessons as we prepare for our classes every day. How blessed we feel! This is a delicious experience!!!
Love,
Peter and Sharon

Another Wonderful Week of Appreciation

Because of Spring Break, we decided to learn more about Arkansas and visit its capital! So Monday, we drove about 3 hours southeast to Little Rock. The further you travel south, the more you witness spring and its beauties. Along the roadside, trees were blooming (white pompom-like blossoms and another tree covered with magenta flowers) Wow, it was spectacular!! Because of our late start (some things don't change, kids), we arrived at our hotel just in time for dinner! A van driver took us to "the best steaks in town...the place Bill Clinton ALWAYS goes to, when in town" named DOE'S (you know, the female deer, so the song goes). The sign over the door was correct, however, the dusty windows, peeling paint, and general messy looking appearance, we doubted the judgment of our driver. When we saw multiple well dressed clientele entering, we felt more confident and entered ourselves. We had a wonderful lesson to learn: outside appearances aren't always what they seem. A very LARGE (at least 2 inches plus, 2 1/2 pound) juicy T-bone was served with salad, Texas bread, and round baked potatoes floating in a bowl of butter was served to share! What a delight! We figured Bill's tastes of quality food was more refined than his code of conduct!
The next day, the capital building was a mere 7 block walk, so to ease our conscience from the glutenous cuisine of the night before, we decided to walk. ( After we finished the walk around the capital building, we rethought our earlier exercise ambitions) We joined a tour and learned a lot about Arkansas' history, the exports, economy, population, govt., prison system, etc., probably more than we had originally opted for! Our appetite, not our energy, took us to the River Market... another 14 blocks in the opposite direction! This is a strip of businesses along the Arkansas River. After lunch, we continued our walking...to Clinton's Presidential Library. Like most museums, it was a bit overwhelming...both in quantity of stuff and information to digest. However, Peter particularly enjoyed the swords and Sharon enjoyed the White House china, silverware, and exotic foreign gifts on display. The architecture of the building was VERY modern, austere, and COLD in appearance; even removing our bias, it was still hard to enjoy the oval office replication. Nevertheless, the film on Clinton's life was well done and the park-like grounds with eternity pools made it more enjoyable than originally thought. We finished our day with a Mediterranean Dinner (we keep looking for new experiences!) that was delicious.What a day!! The following day we drove back to Fayetteville to clean our apartment, study, and shop; just in time to leave for Oklahoma City on Fri. to attend the temple on Sat.! We just can't get enough of the beauties! The land is much flatter going west, but the blooming forsythia along the road and small quaint farming communities made us realize that the variety of our country is what makes it SO very interesting! This was the first time we had ever been in a small temple...And it is small. However, there are advantages, and we will probably miss those advantages when we return to Salt Lake. We saw several of our students and leaders there in the afternoon, and had a very pleasurable experience.
While our week wasn't particularly relaxing...it was rewarding! Today, found us back in the classroom hearing about other's adventures and planning for Wednesday's lunch, Wed.'s nighttime activity, our trip to Bentonville on Thursday night to another institute, and Open Mike Night on Fri..We love being here!! The only thing that would make it better is if you were here with us!
Love,
Sharon and Peter

Delicious Indulgence

When you think of the word "indulgence" you may think of something unacceptable. However, in this case, it is quite "acceptable". This indulgence comes in the form of the way we spend our time, namely in the scriptures. Because of our responsibilities, we find ourselves reading and, yes, even rereading scriptures by the hours! And we are loving the experience... they are "delicious to the taste". Just last week, we were in Muskogee, OK, observing another institute teacher, and she asked us to read a familiar parable: Luke 18:1-8, three times - first to understand, second time to put ourselves in place of the widow and the third time to put ourselves in place of the judge. Wow!!! It was great! Try it, and you'll see what we mean. We get these exhilarated experiences daily! There is so much to learn, and so little time!
Another indulgence is our time with each other. We love sharing ideas and perspectives about lessons, even cooking for Wednesday's lunch or refreshments for dances, grocery shopping, appreciating one another's strengths, laughing at our mistakes, and visiting students. This is one of the great blessings of our mission: being able to choose our own companion! We highly recommend it! Of course, the greatest companionship is what we strive for daily as we pray and seek the Spirit of the Lord. We don't always know what we are doing...so, we're sure, we are being a bit taxing, yet He assists us hourly. There will be more details on this subject later. For now, know that we love you...even use your good examples in stories when emphasize a meaningful point...more on that later, too!
Peter & Sharon