April Already

I know it's not April, but it's close enough! I can't believe how time has just flown by!

Monday - We went to the W's for dinner. They are one of the coolest families, they are in Haiti right now while there dad does free medical examinations. Their strength in the gospel is also amazing. Both of them served missions and continue to do missionary work all the time. So the funny story here is that I didn't pull our car far enough forward so when Bro W came home he tried to go around it (and there was enough room for him to make it) but turned to wide and got his car stuck in the snow. We all piled outside and it was an easy fix.

Tuesday - DTM was great (as always). One the way home we went to try and see a less active...turns out they don't live there, but their very active parents (who come to lessons with us to S's once a week) live their now! We ended up having a late lunch with them. Then they called their other daughter (less active) who lived a couple blocks away to see if we could go see her. She said yes and off we went. We only have 20 minutes before our next appointment so the lesson was short and completely unplanned as we went it. However it turned out to be an amazsing short lesson. I was able to answer a concern she had from a scripture in the Book of Mormon. I hope we can go back soon!

Wednesday - CAKE WAR! The youth of our ward did a "cake war" they split into teams and each decorated a cake 8"-12" high. The Elders and we were judges. In the hall we debated how to choose. I liked #1, Sister O liked #2, and Elder O liked #3, so Elder B was the tie breaker choosing #2.

Thursday - I volunteered at Pine Manor (a nursing home) and a resident read his poetry to us. He is only 24 and is there - surrounded by old people - for health reasons. His poems were awe-some, his faith in Christ and ability to over come the constant trials that have come his way was inspiring. After we helped make Cherry Coke Floats (it being the aniversary of Cherry Coke) and past them out. Then we drove to Gillet (which is an hours drive from Clintonville) and saw an elderly couple. He has the most amazing testimony. He use to teach a lot - at church and seminary - but hasn't for a long while and is less active because he is sick a lot from chemo. The sweetest couple!

Friday - We walked around for about 3 hours! IT WAS AMAZING! The temp was between 30-40 and I was in heaven! There were a lot of other people out that we got to talk to. J was out shoveling so we stopped to talk to him. Turns out missionaries had come by a year or so ago. He was very friendly and took a Book of Mormon. I hope to go back in a little while to follow up. Dinner was at the P's (we also did laundry). The Elder's surprised us by making dinner for everyone. They brought their own ingredients and reciepe. The food was pretty good. Elder O (who is 6'3") tried on Sister O's jacket (she is 5'3") and it was hillarious!

Saturday - We played basketball and it was so much fun! A certain someone almost kept running me over though. I held my ground. Sister O (who was the only other girl there so I was playing against her) says I'm aggressive. I said "I'm not aggressive, I just like to win!" Later we got to watch the Women's Broadcast at the Easter's home (which they have gone crazy decorating for Easter) with all the other women (8+) in our ward. I loved every minute of the meeting! It was touching to see all the younger girls singing and participating!

Sunday - So we ran out of miles for the month, we only had enough to go 2 miles away from church and then home. We parked the 2 miles away and started walking to church. Bro P slowed down and asked where we were walking from, in unison we said, "From Clintonville". He couldn't give us a ride though with no other female present. Then the K family drove by and told us to hop in. I figured some member would give us a ride. After church we were walking by Evergreen (another nursing home), we weren't planning on stopping in, but I felt that we should and so we did. J was finally awake for once - she is always asleep when we try and see her - and we had a nice chat about being a disciple of Jesus Christ. Next was A. She is a cute old lady. She has a huge "Easter" tree in her room that she decorated with Styrofoam eggs that she had decorated with glitter and ribbon. She let us choose our favorite one to take home. She is adorable! We got to talk a little about prophets with her and the differences between the Catholic church and ours. 

Spiritual Thought - "What does it mean to you to be a disciple of Jesus Christ?" This question was asked at the Women's Broadcast and I've really pondered it. As a missionary it means everything to me. I am literally a representative of Jesus Christ. His name is with mine on my name tag. I have the joy and privilege to share His gospel with His lost sheep. But as a normal member of His church it still has a powerful meaning. A synonym for disciple is Follower, or servant. To be a disciple of Jesus Christ means you are His follower. You learn from His teachings and do as He asks - to love God, to love your fellow man, to repent and turn unto Him. I love how Mormon so boldly declares it, Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his word among his people, that they might have everlasting life." (3 Nephi 5:13) As members of Christ's church we have each been called to be His disciple - not only to follow Him, but to share it with others. So my question to you is this "What does it mean to you to be a disciple of Jesus Christ?" Ponder this question as Easter approaches.

With Buckets of Love,

Sister Kern