***Editorial correction. Mary tells me I need to correct this post because when I wrote it we had been in Fort Lauderdale only 24 days. It was a month since we left Utah on our trip across the country to the mission.
31 Days ago we drove up to the mission office and introduced ourselves to the couples who were there. I have to say we are so comfortable it seems like we have always been here.
Today our meetings at the Weston ward started with Ward Council at 11:30 and ended 6 hours later as we left the chapel after a wonderful baptismal service for a lovely woman who found the Church through members who brought the feeling of peace and love into her life. It was just as PMG says – she did not know what she was looking for but when she felt it she knew she wanted to be a part of it. Mary was asked to play the piano – the ward mission leader brother Wood was very relieved when he found out she could play – and I gave the closing prayer. Mary is also playing for Relief Society so her talents are being well used.
Ward Council was well run and mainly was about people and their needs. They did spend time on the temple trip but part of that was making sure the new converts were encouraged to go. The other calendar event that took time was the Christmas party that is coming up on Friday but again some of that time was encouraging members to bring non-LDS friends. We were asked to work with one of the new converts and give the new member lessons in the coming week.
Our first testimony meeting was much different than our first one in South Africa but a number of the testimonies touched my spirit. 6 hours seems like a long time but I must say that except for a spot in the middle of SS when I really wanted to just nod off, it went quickly.
I think this next month will see us getting much more involved with the ward and missionary work. The ward had a goal of 8 baptism and they had 3. In each case the investigators pretty much asked for the missionaries so the members did not have much to do with preparing their friends to receive them. We are going to try to work on that in the months ahead but we need to do it with lots of love so no one thinks we are being critical of their efforts. I think if they see we are working hard they will want to help.