Week Eighteen

This week we had Zone Conferences with Elder William Walker, our visiting authority from the First Quorum of the Seventy of the LDS Church. On Monday he met with the Leesburg, Orlando, and DeLand Zones, and on Tuesday he met with the Cocoa, Hunters Creek, and Orlando South Zones. He gave us valuable and inspired counsel, and spent much of the afternoon times role-playing to illustrate how we can be more clear and effective in our teaching about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

Elder Walker Role-Playing, and Sis Berry showing the synergy of our differences
using chocolate and peanut butter

Early-morning car inspections before Zone Conference

Before Zone Conferences, we inspect cars for maintenance, etc. Elder Gordon is in charge, and it started before daylight this time (7am) because we're still on daylight savings time. We were using flashlights in the beginning, but it seemed to work out okay.

Sis Nielson helping the
Walgreens pharmacist give a flu shot

Sister Nielson worked to arrange for Flu shots for all the missionaries who wanted them. After checking many options, we were very blessed to have Walgreens step up and agree to donate all of the shots and provide people to administer them. They gave over 130 flu shots. It's a great public service on their part, given the large number of people that the missionaries contact and the risk of spreading flu if we had an infected missionary. 

Sunset from the car on the way home Wednesday

The skies are generally blue or mixed with interesting cloud formations. We took this sunset thru the windshield on the way home from the mission office.

Jan and me; Sisters Conger and Thomas; Fábio; Bro Beck;
Elders Gallo and Willard; and Pres and Sis Berry at the baptism

Saturday morning we attended the baptism of Fábio Dias in the Lake Reams ward. He's a Brazilian man who was contacted by Sisters Jamison and Thomas and taught by our Portuguese-speaking Elders (Gallo, Delgado, and Willard). I was privileged to help the Elders teach one of the lessons to him. The Baptismal service was mostly in Portuguese, including the prayers, song by Sisters Thomas and Conger, and one of the talks. I gave the opening prayer. Bro Anthony (a former Brazilian missionary) gave a talk on baptism, and Bro Galbasini (their awesome ward mission leader) gave a talk on the Holy Ghost. He was baptized by Bro Beck (former Brazilian missionary).

Sis Nielson, Hernandez, Hess, and Brooks

Friday morning we picked up medical records and bike for Sis Hess, who returned home Friday afternoon for some extended medical treatments that she could not get here. She's a great missionary, and we hope she can get better soon! She has been working in a 3-some, as she is shown here with her two companions.  

Elder Walker talked a little about the Book of Mormon Musical, which starts playing in Orlando this week. He referred to his TV interview with Barbara Walters, who went to the musical and said the musical was disgusting and filthy, and that she wished she had left. Today as we visited the Lake Reams ward, they said to refer people to the following website, where they can request a free copy of the real Book of Mormon or link to on-line written and audio versions of the Book of Mormon and learn for themselves what the Book of Mormon really is:  http://www.orlandobookofmormon.com/