Called to Serve: How do you define missionary work?

Elder Sloan and Elder Saunders
(thought their moms might be checking in on our blog
and want to see their handsome sons, hard at work)

Coordinating meeting, most mornings at 10:45 am

Sometimes we don't get in as many visits as we think we should in a week, we get too busy doing other things. So we have to step back and remind ourselves that our missionary work involves lots of things besides personal visits... It's been one of those weeks.

A couple in our ward has started a Family Home Evening group for singles and empty-nesters. We are helping them get it going. We pick up a couple of ladies and bring them along. Last week we provided refreshments. This week are showing the movie "Meet the Mormons". We bought several copies of the DVD and are passing them around the ward, encouraging ward members to invite friends into their homes to view it with them.

Tuesday we drove our Elders an hour and a half to Woodstock, Virginia, for District Meeting. It took most of the day. In the evening we went to a volunteer appreciation meeting at the local nursing home. We volunteer there a couple nights a week, and Wayne sings there a couple times each month. It was a nice dinner with a cute program and awards. We got nice gifts too. I think they do appreciate us, I know they love Wayne's singing. This month, besides his two Friday night programs, he was asked to sing at their April birthday party. They had a beach theme and asked him to do Beach Boy songs. He had fun preparing and

performing songs like: Little Deuce Coupe, Surfin' USA, Sloop John B, Surfer Girl, FUN,FUN, FUN, Little Old Lady from Pasadena, etc. They loved it and asked him to come do the same songs again for a nurse appreciation event in May! The staff from the kitchen which was next to the room where he was singing came in and danced and clapped with the residents. Pretty wild - don't know how some of them slept right through the whole thing....

Wayne also spent a morning with ward members and our Elders on a service project, cutting down small trees and clearing stickery brush around a member's property. I spent an afternoon working on genealogy at the church with my friend Wanda. We did manage to make a few visits, found a man we hadn't met before from the ward directory, and had fun visits with friends, encouraged a few who are going through trials at this time. Typed the ward bulletin, prepared a lesson for Relief Society. Wayne did some "fellowshipping while fishing". Saturday we drove an hour to our friends in Wardensville, then went with them another hour and a half to the Shenandoah Speedway, located near New Market, Virginia. Larry (who is not a member) wanted Wayne to go to one of his races, Wayne wanted that too. Larry's wife, Deb (who is inactive), wanted me to go too, I was not so enthusiastic, but it turned out to be a fun experience. It was a beautiful afternoon and evening, a beautiful setting, the races were interesting and exciting (and very noisy). There was a variety of types of cars, I'd never seen the little "mini-cups" and Legends. We had a picnic, enjoyed the beautiful field of Goldenrod beside the track and in the evening listened to the "Peep frogs". Amazing. We didn't get home until about midnight though.

Today has been very nice. We had a great attendance at church, about 100. I think there were a dozen less-active members and six or seven nonmembers. The talks and lessons were good. It has been a spiritual and refreshing day. I spent a couple hours back at the church this afternoon working on genealogy for a member, had great success. It's been a good week, we've kept very busy.

Happy 6th Birthday to Kelsie tomorrow. Thanks, Karli, for the surprise package with the lovely graduation picture of Katelyn, the turtle from Mexico, and the freeze-dried corn. Dad loves the corn and has ordered more from the company!! To Friends and Family -- Stay in the Boat, Wear your Life Jackets, and Hold on Tight! (my Relief Society lesson today....)