Our Hearts are Full — Our Sleep Scores are Terrible
Dear Family and Friends,
Before the mission ended, we took two days and drove all over the mission and held seven mini-zone conferences. We gathered each zone around the stake/district council table and covered important points we felt impressed to share with the missionaries before we conclude our service here. We took turns going back and forth covering about 10 items, and it was truly a sacred time with the elders and sisters. Our Assistants, Elder Gathercoal and Elder Woolsey, went with us as did one of our counselors in the Mission Presidency, President Gentile. Elder Gathercoal realized that every missionary would want a photo with us, and he took on the job as mission photographer for two days. Over 150 photos in two days. One and done - a very efficient assembly line, Michigan style. Only one missionary ended up with a photo where both of us had our eyes closed. 😑 😑 He’s from San Clemente, so we can recreate it when he’s a return missionary. Don’t worry, I didn’t post them all below. I mainly posted the missionaries who will depart a few weeks after us.
At the end of each mini zone conference, President Gentile, President Heap, and I all bore brief testimonies of our Savior Jesus Christ. We were with each zone one hour, and then afterward, President Heap met with the departing-in-July missionaries to give them each a blessing and a non-departing interview, as that final interview will soon be with President Peckham. It was such a sacred experience. And to see the entire mission (except for one elder who had food poisoning and his faithful, devoted companion) in two days was good medicine for the soul. Whenever we know we are doing what the Lord wants us to do, we feel such joy. As the missionaries say, we get “hyped.”
A moving truck came last week and haul our stuff away. We didn’t want our mission to end, but that part felt pretty good. We’ll have to face it all again in San Diego. I am a little dismayed at what can accumulate in three years and look forward to simplifying that part of our lives. Other than a few treasures and photos, I keep thinking about how stuff just doesn’t make us happy. We need some of it if we want to cook and connect and such, but it was a great reminder to not let things become too important or even worse, a part of our identity.
In our last week, two of our missionaries had a fire in their apartment. Totally the fault of one of them. Burned almost all their stuff and damaged three apartments in total. We are thankful no one was hurt. Another hermana broke her ankle while finding Spanish-speaking friends through soccer. We all thought it was sprained at first 🤦🏻♀️. She’s going to be okay and now has a nice boot and a wheelchair. Her companion is getting a workout. Other missionaries who normally do well were struggling (related to our departure and change being hard for them). It felt a little like general pandemonium for a bit. We told everyone to just calm down. We pray we can get out of Michigan without hitting a deer. Deer strikes are quite common (see the higher cost of Michigan auto insurance), and the missionaries have totaled more than one mission vehicle in our time.
Not surprisingly, we were working hard right up to the last minute. The night before President and Sister Peckham arrived, Elmer was completing a young man’s missionary application as part of his responsibilities as the priesthood leader of the Traverse City District. We were at this young man’s baptism two years ago. No one in his family is a member of the Church. He needed some extra help to get everything done right. Gaige has a wonderful friend in Brother Ellsworth of the Petoskey Branch, who is also a busy dentist, husband, and father. Brother Ellsworth and Gaige had been to the Detroit Temple on Friday for Gaige to receive his endowment. As they were driving back, we were all working on the application together including having them pull over to get a photo of Gaige for the application. I rejected the first one Gaige found on his phone because I knew the Missionary Department would. It all turned out great. And at 9:00PM on Friday night, we hit submit. There was a celebration over the phone lines! Gaige has been in the National Guard since he graduated from high school. A few months ago, Elmer was able to have a conversation with his commanding officer about why Gaige wanted to pause his commitment to serve a full-time mission. The commanding office was not familiar with what a mission is and hadn’t had anyone ask to serve previously. As usual, Elmer’s contagious enthusiasm was felt. His commanding officer is now supportive and excited for Gaige to serve and can’t wait to have him back even better than before.
We’ve had a historic first half of 2023 in the mission with our focus on an inspired convert baptism goal set by the members in our mission. We’ve worked to be consistently efficient with fewer companionships than a year ago, and we know the second half will be even better. It always is in the Michigan Lansing Mission. A Spanish zone was re-established and is doing a great work already with the great young mission leadership of Elders Bailey and Anderson and Hermanas Lau and Scott. And we were able to have some important conversations and put together some plans regarding the future of the Traverse City District thanks to a great effort by our other counselor, President Allen Smith, the District President, Buddy Stoddard, and the District Clerk Alan Heidt. Everywhere we see the desire of the members and the missionaries to help people and to be the hands of the Lord to establish the Church.
We watched part of the 2023 Mission Leadership Seminar when Preach My Gospel, Second Edition was announced. Almost all of the trainings were about part of PMG 2.0. We are so excited about it! We wish we were staying to see how helps hasten the gathering of Israel. The focus on the Atonement of Jesus Christ, the purpose of covenants, and even the language contained in it is fantastic. For example, the previous Chapter called “How Do I Use Time Wisely?” is now “Accomplish the Work through Goals and Plans.” Before there was a question, and now there is a direction. Our missionaries have heard me say “words mean things” so many times, perhaps only they know how much I love PMG 2.0 for improved and specific language alone. But as it always is with the Lord, there is so much more! Area Book has been replaced with the Preach My Gospel App, which the missionaries have already embraced. At the 2023 MLS, Elder Gary Stevenson interviewed missionaries from the two missions that piloted the new PMG App. One of those missions was Washington Spokane Mission, and there was Elder Moroni Anae! I don’t think we are biased, but we thought his responses to Elder Stevenson were the best! Area Book Planner Web that I used as the Referral Secretary, is now called Referral Manager, although it doesn’t appear to have any updates yet. It’s weird to think that I am not in charge and don’t need to worry about it. Can you tell I am still worried about it?
My sister, Celia, asked how we were feeling on the day we left the mission. The answer is great with terrible sleep scores. What a choice privilege it has been to serve Lord as mission leaders! What amazing things we have seen, learned, and felt! What excellent people we have met and come to love, especially our 571 missionaries, dear friends like Jill and Dennis Rinner, Tina and Buddy Stoddard, Michele and Larry Steed, Kap and Lesley Jones (Detroit Mission Presidents), all the senior missionaries and Church service missionaries, the Christiansen, Bartels, Deibel, Rawson, Henrie, Smith, and Buckwalter families, and too many more to mention! I tell the missionaries not to use more than one exclamation point in a paragraph, but if there was ever a time to exclaim, this is it.
The Peckhams arrived to the mission home on Saturday morning. We loved visiting with them and hope we didn’t overwhelm them with all the things we love about the Michigan Lansing Mission in the two to three hours we spent together. We then took them to the office to meet the Assistants, Elder Gathercoal and Elder Woolsey, and the office missionaries, Elder and Sister Steed (finance and mission secretary) and Elder and Sister Armstrong (vehicles and housing). When President Peckham served in the Michigan Lansing Mission (1984-86), the missionaries had to find their own housing, so he was pleased to learn that a senior missionary couple takes care of it. The Peckhams are warm and wonderful and will do a great work. They already love Michigan and are excited to be where people love to include others, share what brings them joy, and invite them to belong.
One funny story from the office that must be remembered: The mission offices are in the same building with the Institute. For almost a year, the Institute has had an empty office locked. Oddly enough that is where the thermostat is for the mission leader’s office in the building 🤷🏻♀️. Unbeknownst to any of us, there is a mail slot on the outside of the building that not even our regular postal worker knew about or ever used. That mail slot empties into that locked office. We think our previous senior office couple knew about it, but they forgot to tell anyone where it was before they left. Whenever our postal worker had a substitute or UPS or FEDEX delivered anything to the office on the weekends, it was going in that slot. Yes, the one that no one knew existed! One day in June, someone saw some mail sticking out of the front of the building, and the slot was discovered. Eureka - six months of mail! Found the cash that someone sent Elder Bennett. Found Elder Jeppson’s replacement MSF card (Missionary Support Funds or as we call it Missionary Sacred Funds) and so many other fun surprises. It was a little like Christmas with actual Christmas cards in the haul. We laughed at each new discovery. Our senior couples work so hard and have a lot of fun in the effectual struggle. A new senior couple is coming to work in the office in August. When they called Sister Steed with some questions, they said, “Well, we will be serving for 23 months. Hope that’s okay.” She answered, “As long as you are congenial and like to have fun, you are welcome.” 😁
One funny thing that happened to Elmer: He received the senior discount at Culver’s without asking for it. Now that’s customer service, even though it kind of hurt his feelings. He does qualify. Since then, I’ve been racking up every opportunity to get him a senior discount and laughing way too hard about it. No one asks for ID when you ask for the senior discount. I guess nobody is lying about their age in this manner.
We look forward to seeing many of you soon!
With love,
Amy & Elmer
Comments
Post a Comment