THIS WEEK WAS INCREDIBLE. Seriously. After last week, me and Sister Booms decided that we are going to love this area. We are going to love these people, and we are going to be happy through whatever comes our way. Why? Because this area is such an incredible opportunity to be serving in. All the OTM missionaries talk about the marshallese areas. And i am so grateful that i get the opportunity to serve in a "foreign" mission in my mission.
We saw tons of miracles this week. We decided if one of our appointments fell through (which most did) then we were going to knock on doors until we got into someones house and shared the gospel with them. We were truly blessed.
On Wednesday, we had the opportunity to have Sister Shumway come out on exchanges with us. I LOVE her. She went to different appointments with us and helped us gain the courage to OTM (open thy mouth) such as walk up to random people sitting in their car and just wait for them to get out so we could talk to them. She is INCREDIBLE. When we were leaving to take go back to our car, Sister Shumway left her purse at the lesson. We got stuck in this huge line of cars waiting to get into the school and she said, "There isn't a sign that says don't go around. So i am going to skip this huge line. And i am going to go very slow, so i don't do anything to Presidents car." It was crazy!!! We got her purse and on the way home she said, "It is hard to be an airhead." We laughed forever.
The next day, we decided to go through our former investigators and see if they were now prepared. We knocked on this really sketchy door looking for Lucinda. She opened the door and we asked if we could visit with her. We talked to her for a little while and she said, "I was really interested in the church, but then the missionaries moved and no one came. I have been looking for the missionaries for 2 years. And i have been waiting for a ride to church too." What the??? This adorable woman has been looking for us for 2 years. It was so cool. Needless to say. We have a return appointment with her this week. She is so prepared. She is so sweet!(:
We also got a referral for this lady named Julie-Ann. But they didn't know her address. We were just randomly tracting a building and knocking on every single door. The very last door, we found her. We were led to her. We told her the story and she thought it was really cool. She said, "God really wanted you to find me." I can't wait to visit with her again as well.
Last thing that was unreal this week. Our saturday. It was the greatest day i have had on my entire mission. Where to begin??? Okay. We set the goal to reach 13 lessons in one day. We needed something to keep us motivated. We were tracting for the first little bit of the morning and Sister Booms says, "Hey at least its a nice day." (as its BLIZZARDING outside) She is SO positive. I can't even handle it. (: hahahaha(: So it was super slippery because of the ice and snow. I am walking and all of a sudden i hear a SMASH. Sister Booms face planted in the snow. And me...being the good companion i am...laughed hysterically at her. Then this man named Adam runs out in his flip flops and says, 'What the heck??? Are you okay?"(stay in tuned for another story about Adam) It was definitely a great moment in mission history. We went and met a lady named Antonia. We got to her porch and this man was SO drunk. He was passed out in the snow leaning on a table with like 15 beers sitting on it. Sister Booms didn't even notice him until i told her. It was crazy. We walked and stood right next to him, knocked on the door and asked for Antonia and he didn't even budge. We met Antonia and she said, "I think i am ready to be baptized." WOW. (More about her as we meet more.)
We met our goal of 13 lessons. We knocked on so many doors and met so many new people.
So the other story of Adam: This man.....is INCREDIBLE. He has given me probably the most touching experience on my mission. I had just gotten $20 and put it in my coat pocket. After about 30 minutes, i realized that the money wasn't in my pocket and i was terribly stressed out. So we retraced our steps. I decided we would go back to Adams, maybe it fell out when i was laughing at Sister Booms? Well we knocked on his door and he opened it right as we knocked. I asked him if he had seen it and he said no. He said, "I was just walking to the gas station to get my family some drinks. I only have a $10, and a $1 and a $1 and a $1. But you can have it instead." I of course didn't take it. Adam was going to give me the money that he was walking out the door with to WALK to the gas station in the BLIZZARD in FlIP FLOPS to buy drinks for his family. That is such a perfect example of someone with Christ-like attributes. And that is how every single marshallese person is. They will give you EVERYTHING they have. They are incredibly selfless people. Nothing will ever make me forget how incredible that man was. How giving he was.
That is what i learned this week. To give my all to the Lord. To give all i can to those who need my help. To be as Christ would.
We are the Happiest Missionaries in the OTM.
Aelop men im emman.
Ej yokwe kom.
yokwe,
Sister Ritter
Pictures:
1) Our day with Sister Shumway
2) The "nice day" Sister Booms mentioned.
3) Sister Booms on the "Nice Day"
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