Journal entries 10-20- through 11-1-2009

Journal entries
Jnl 10/20/09
Today's mission conference was so great. I felt the spirit so strong. I also feel very refreshed, renewed, and ready to work for the next six weeks. I've got plenty to work on too. I'm excited. I have such a great companion to be with.

Jnl 10/21/09
This morning I had a really good personal study. I read something out of Preach My Gospel that really made me think. It said that I should leave my area better than when I found it. I really want to try and do that. It's like when Dad would tell us to leave our campsites looking better and cleaner than when we found it. Sometimes we don't really know who we help or how much we help people with things we do in our lives, but I can always put my confidence in Christ. If I build my foundation on Christ, I cannot fail.

Jnl 10/22/09
Sako (used to be a preacher in Russia) seemed to be doing pretty well today. He understands what he needs to do, I think, and he really likes the Book of Mormon. I feel such a strong spirit with him, and I really want to help him find Christ's true gospel. He already knows so much.
The work was very enjoyable for me today. We had some nice conversations, and everything worked out well. It was very spiritual. I still want to know how I can make my area better than when I found it, though.

Jnl 10/23/09
Today was really nice as well. I feel like I grow and learn a little bit every day. We are starting to get a lot of investigators it seems like. I felt a very strong spirit at old Surik's house today. He seems so prepared to be taught. I hope we can help him come closer to Christ. I was able to understand so much more as I simply focused on him and didn't worry about what I was going to say. Reminds me of D & C 88:85. I know that the promise in there is real, and the spirit will guide me in the right direction if I have charity and am sincere in my teaching.

Jnl 10/26/09
Today was crazy, but I really feel like I learned a lot. Because of today and this week, I have decided I want to try and share my love, excitement, and joy that I get from learning and creating. It really fills my heart to learn new things, and experiment with creating things. I feel like that is actually an important part of this life. We need to learn problem solving skills, for example, in order to govern our families well. I love to learn so much.
I am really excited to work with Elder King. He feels the same way I do. I think we can do much good if we put our heads together.
There is also a lot of hidden treasures in the gospel, similar to this idea, that really make life understandable and worth while. I hope I can gain a strong desire for treasuring up the words of life continually and for studying the words that ancient prophets wrote about Christ and their own life experiences.
Even though we didn't do much missionary work today while sitting waiting for the plumber to come, I feel like I learned a lot.

Jnl 10/28/09
Today was alright. It was really good to help Hasmik today, through the priesthood. I hope all works out well with her and her baby [She was sent home from her mission. Apparently she was pregnant before she left.] I love Sako so much as well. I hope he is able to accept this gospel. I know he has been prepared. I hope i can be prepared myself to be able to help him.
Today Elder King asked me how I want to be remembered in the mission. Really, I don't care. Although, I really would like to be able to make a difference in these people's lives. I want to be strong enough to always be able to make the right choice, independently if needs be. I also really want people to know that I care about them. That is something that I need to work on being able to show and express. I don't want to be lazy either. When there is a lot to do, I need to prioritize and work hard when it's hardest to.
Two other traits that I would like to have is being funny and creative. I love making people laugh, and I know how important that can be in a relationship. God wants us all to be happy. As I have said before, something that fills my soul is learning and creating new things. I would really like to develop those talents, so that I can help be more resourceful and more fully enjoy life. There are so many things that can fill my soul.
I am so grateful for my life, and I want other people to be able to feel grateful for their lives as well.

Jnl 10/30/09
People have life so hard up here. It was so sad yesterday, to help Melsida cut down her trees for firewood. She has to practically starve to support her son in the army. I hope she does alright.
Sako is having such a hard time as well, his debt is stressing him out. He is so close to being ready to be baptized, I can see the Lord has prepared him and I hope he has the courage to take this big step.
Life is just not an easy thing, but it's not supposed to be. I know that's because the gift of eternal life is so precious to Heavenly Father, and He wants us to be prepared to receive that.
The devil is so good at turning something good into a stumbling block as well, and he can really get people confused. I hope I always stay worthy of the Holy Ghost and hang on the the iron rod of the Word of God. That's the only way I'll be able to be safe in this world, and be able to stand still amongst the storms of the last days.
I'm so grateful for a loving Savior and Heavenly Father who have led me to where I am now, despite all of my weaknesses.

Jnl 10/31/09
Happy Halloween! We had a nice pumpkin dinner tonight that the sisters made. No scary stories, though, that's too bad. I did dress up as a vampire, though. It was awesome, and it only took 5 minutes to dress up. I put on my hair cutting cape backwards, ruffled up my hair, made a couple fangs out of Q-tips, and drew a little blood drip from my mouth. Then I snuck out and trick-or-treated Elder King. It was quite fun.

Jnl 11/1/09
Today was a very nice Fast Sunday. Everyone bore really nice testimonies. I really have felt a strong love for these people. I'm so grateful for that. These people live and think quite different than we do, and it could be easy to not like them for their quirks and things, but I have been blessed to have a strong love for them. I know it comes from God. There is so much to love about them as well. Their lives are quite difficult here. It is such a worry and stress just to survive for many of them, yet they are still so willing to give. I just wish they could have something to live for, like some desires or dreams in life. I think some of them do, but most of those have to do with leaving Armenia. I have been so very blessed in my life.