Week 40

This week was a full week of service. That’s probably the main difference between serving in a branch as to serving in a ward. But another difference is you focus a lot more on the members, so you are divided half and half. Sometimes it gets hard to do that as a missionary because you don’t have as many investigators to teach. But in a way you are preparing for the future because you need to have a strong foundation, that being the members once they are strong. Then they can be great fellowship for the investigators, and then you are more likely to have another strong member.

Update on Rob (recent convert)
He had to go back to Canberra to get some more tests to see if he needs to get a pace maker put in for his heart. That is most likely going to happen. Then he is taking vacation so we won’t be able to teach him at least for this week.

Update for Joven
We haven't been able to meet up with him. He has been sick or it has been his birthday and nobody in the Branch really knows his parents. But they know his grandma so one of the members is going to contact the grandma and talk to her about the situation, and hopefully we will be able to teach him. Joven still talks to President Wright at school and talks about how he wants to be baptized and how much he loves the Book of Mormon. He even talks to his friends at school about the Book of Mormon. I hope that he is able to accomplish his goals.

Monday after emailing we went and played a round of golf (I’m getting good), and then we did FHE with the Shoobridges. And then Tuesday we got trapped in Bega all day.

So what had happened was we got our car serviced, and they had forgotten to book us in for an appointment (I did make an appointment), but they said that they can fit us in. So we were going to do some street contacting, and when we came back at 1:00 they had just barely started on the car so they said come back at 4:30. So eventually that time came around, and they decided to put new brake pads on so that still wasn't done at that time. So we leave, and they call us about 5:30 and say that it is done. If we would have known, we would have gotten a ride to somewhere where we could do other things than street contact all day.

Wednesday we did service, and President and Sister Back came to inspect our flat and take us out to dinner. They gave us an idea to get involved in community service projects because here, for some reason, we get mistaken a lot for Jehovah Witnesses and for Seventh Day.

Thursday was weekly planning and service, helping people move. They had just sold their house.

Friday we had DTM [District Training Meeting] and then followed up on a potential and tracted a couple streets.

Saturday was service all day helping a guy move a kitchen; and that was a little difficult, but we got it done. Then we went to help another person move and clean out a bunch of junk. Then Sunday was church and visiting the old widows of the branch and taking them sacrament. And that was my week. I hope you all had a great week. I did.

Talk to you next week.
Love, Elder Newman

Me, and Emmitt, and Elder John

Me, Elder Plata, and Elder John