I had a super good week this week!
Tuesday was an amazing day. We started strong by having two separate tracting windows in the same day, and it proved a day of miracles! After our first semi-successful window Tuesday morning, we went home for lunch and headed to our leasing office because we got a call from the AP's asking us to resend a form they needed... apparently for whatever reason it didn't work when we had sent it before. So we headed to the office to use a computer, but when we got there, the doors were locked. Weird. We went around to the other side and it was locked, too. But there was an asian lady standing there who asked us, "do you know how to get in?" We talked to her for a minute and told her we were missionaries. She immediately asked, "There is a church near here??" When she found out it was only 5 minutes away, she excitedly asked us to show her and wanted to see it... Of course we hopped in the car and had her follow us! We got to give her a tour around the church and even though her english was broken I think she understood most of it. Her name was Eli (said Ellie) and she was so happy to feel the Spirit in the church. She was from China and her son was just starting high school in our area, so she was trying to find an apartment close by. But currently she lives in Irvine, so we passed her information to the Chinese sisters and we can't wait to hear what happens!!
Later that day we tracted on Hunky Dory Ln in the canyon and it lived up to its name. It was a crazy steep slope and each house had a long driveway, so I think we only hit about 8 houses, but we met some cool people. One guy we met told us that missionaries where he lives in Irvine (he was just working here) stop by to see his wife frequently! He didn't have long to talk, but we shared a Plan of Salvation pamphlet with him and had a nice conversation. Another man we met told us we were probably the first missionaries ever to tract his street haha. And a lady who answered her door said, "did you walk up this hill???! Are you CRAZY?" haha sometimes people just don't understand what we do. My favorite was a man who asked if we walked up his driveway (lol everyone asked that - they were stunned) and then immediately said, "thank you." He was so sincere and so touched that we would walk all the way to talk to him. It was really inspiring.
Wednesday we went to young womens' activity to get to know the girls in our ward better - we are working with the yw president to have some missionary minded activities for them! We are so excited to know them better... they are all sweethearts and they often invite friends to church.
Friday we took a little adventure up to the Mauss's house in the mountains. They drove us because it is a pretty scary twisty little road and it would get dark while we were there, plus it's outside the mission so we had to get permission. It sure was an adventure, but so worth it! Mallory, their daughter, is best friends with Charlotte, a young woman investigating the church in our ward. With both Mallory and Charlotte there, it was a party! ;) We met all their horses (did I mention they live on a ranch in the mountains?) and dogs and cats and even kittens... It was a really nice evening and the drive back down was just as scary as going up haha. I was so glad we weren't driving ourselves.Sunday we stopped by Dennis, a potential who is sooooo nice. He and his wife Amita are both interested in learning about the Book of Mormon, and he promised us he would try reading a bit. He is so busy between work and renovations (they just moved in) that we haven't gotten to really teach a full lesson yet, but he keeps telling us to come back and keep trying to catch him at a good time! Meanwhile, we just keep sharing testimonies and little bits at the door. We really hope we'll be able to teach them both soon.
There's a song I've been listening to a lot lately and it's called, "It's Not About You." It talks about how life just isn't about us - it's about learning, about serving, and it's about the people we can lift. Life is a journey, but it's way more bright when we're thinking about other people and how we can help, encourage, lift, and inspire them. My favorite line is "Sure you've become much better because of what you've been through, but it's not about you." I think this is what the Savior meant when He said, "He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it."
https://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/matt/10.39?lang=eng#38 Matt 10:39 You can listen to or download the song at
http://pressforward.lds.org pressforward.lds.org for free! (and it's legal ;) My favorite discovery this week is this new website
http://vineyard.lds.org vineyard.lds.org that the church has made to help us find easy, simple ways to serve, whether we have 5 minutes or 5 hours! It's amazing.... check it out and remember that service will make the world (for you and everyone else) brighter and better. Next time you're feeling down, find someone to serve! The world needs your light :)
“Spiritual strength frequently comes through selfless service.” - President Thomas S. Monson
"Kneel down to Pray, Step up to Serve, Reach out to Rescue." - President Thomas S. Monson
I love y'all! 'Til next week,Sister Heather Bambas
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Sister Heather Bambas
California Irvine Mission
heather.bambas@myldsmail.net