Dinner with the R's was on Monday (not President R but his brother). It was quite good and a pleasant evening.
Tuesday we had a wonderful district meeting. I was very grateful that the Spirit was there in such abundance. I had prepared and thought quite a bit about what to say. It didn't go exactly according to plan but it was still good. I really tried to encourage and motivate the Elders in the district to a higher level of commitment and hope. There are great Elders in the district and we all had a rather discouraging week last week and I just wanted to let them know how much I love them, the Lord loved them, and how important this work is. The Zone Leaders were there and they had a few comments about planning. Elder R (one of the Zone Leaders) and I went on a trade-off afterwards and we had a pretty good day. I said goodbye to Elder F as he headed off to Tallahassee for the day and Elder R and I rode back to Madison with the B's. We had two stops on the way. The first one Elder B just pulled over and told Elder R to get out of the car. He looked at me in some confusion and I explained this was normal. We all got out of the car and walked to a large group of wildflowers (they're called phloxs). They're usually purple and they're actually quite nice looking. Elder B took a picture. We then stopped to get something to eat at a old gas station that had been turned into a food stop. I was a bit suspicious at first walking in but they made a solid chicken club. It was actually quite good. We arrived back in Madison and hopped on the bikes and we didn't really stop until that night. We rode long and hard and talked to many people. We both sweated a lot. It was a warm and sunny day and the gnats were out (I really don't like gnats) but we still had a good time.
Wednesday we traded back and had a great lesson with C. We had planned to talk about the Gospel of Jesus Christ but ended up talking about how to feel the Spirit. We mowed Sister B's lawn and ran out of gas for the mowers right as we finished. It was kind of relaxing to mow to be honest. It was sprinkling ever so slightly and it felt good. We had our missionary coordination meeting which turned out good.
Thursday we did weekly planning and it was also my 18 month mark. We didn't really do anything too crazy. It rained a lot. We did go to McDonald's where I very much worked the system with the use of coupons. I ate about $5 of food for $1. I know it's nothing fancy or cool and it's only $4 but it felt kinda cool. I think I am beginning to understand what Dad calls "The Hunt". We had an interesting dinner appointment with R and R. They came to President R's house and we had a delicious meal followed up by a lesson. There was an object lesson on faith and we talked about repentance. President R did most of the talking but he did a wonderful job. He really fellowshipped them and helped them know what he was there for. It was a very good lesson and it really culminated in committing them to quit smoking. We gave them blessings to help them have the strength to do it.
Friday we tore down vines around the tennis courts and got rained on. I celebrated the 18th month mark and got a pecan pie milkshake from the ice cream shop downtown. It was a bit spendy but it was great! Probably one of the best shakes I've had. It had a whole slice of delicious pecan pie and lots of really good ice cream in it. Mom and Dad talk about coming and touring the mission with me and we'll defiantly have to stop there when we come through. Maybe even multiple times.
Sunday was great! R and R came to church and I was able to help them follow along in the hymn book. Church was quite good all in all. We finally caught a family we've been trying to catch for a long time. There's a long story full of miracles but needless to say, it was a miracle we caught them (he got home as we pulled up). We mainly answered questions about who we were and what a mission entails as well as explaining we had a message that would bless their lives and we wanted to share it with them. They even made us some pretty good ham sandwiches. Elder F wasn't feeling well and still isn't 100% so we turned in for the night a few minutes early (sinus and fever that sort of thing).
Sorry- out of time. I don't have much time left on the mission either but I'm going to use it the best of my ability! I love and miss you all. This is the Lord's work.
Elder Matthew Carlson
