So honestly the first part of the week really stunk. Things started just like they did the week before. It was really hard to get lessons with people. Everyone is either out of town or sleeping for some reason. I guess I don't blame them though because I would probably do the same exact thing if I had the time.
BUT, we had zone conference on Saturday. We went down Friday night and spent the night with ALL of the Russian elders in one apartment. There were about 9 of us and boy was it a blast. We talked and talked and wrestled and talked some more. It was great to have a little reunion.
President Ivory and Sora Ivory spoke at zone conference and hit it right on the spot, for me at least. They talked about what it means to be a successful missionary. Sory Ivory spoke about our mission and life as a journey. She made references to the Odyssey and I loved it. (Plus, we ate some taco salad. Oh boy, needed that!)
We got back to Balti at around 7 and cleaned the church the rest of the day because President Ivory would be in our meeting on Sunday (it was only his second time in Balti ever and would probably be his last). We called as many people as we could Saturday night to invite them to the special sacrament meeting. Most people said no way jose.
We weren't expecting too many in the meeting. There was 49. It was a miracle! The previous weeks we have been averaging about 19 and our goal for the transfer was 24 people in sacrament meeting. We destroyed it. Blew it out of the water. Speaking of water, there wasn't enough for sacrament. We had to make that emergency run to the sink for more cups and water (what every priest fears) and bless another tray. I think President was losing his mind. He loved it.
I learned a great lesson from my experience yesterday. First off, the Lord answers. If you rely on him and trust in him, ANYTHING is possible. Even if you are struggling, the Lord will answer. The other thing I learned was that it is the small things that really matter. Sometimes we expect or hope for the big bang, the homerun, hole in one, kickoff return for a touchdown, overtime goal, or buzzer beater but in reality, the miracles actually happen before. It is the little things you do everyday, every play, that really matter. We are so focused on the big step that we forget all the little things we have done to get there. The Lord blessed this tiny branch with an enormous miracle. But I can't help but think of all the little things the Lord did over years to make that miracle happen yesterday. It makes me realize that our work really does matter. Simple things really do matter. There is never a waste of work. Every little thing that we do as missionaries is used for the furthering of the gathering of Israel and every little thing you do, matters.