So this week, we had our zone meeting. A week earlier Elder Ruiz, the Sister Leaders and I were talking about some of the zone's needs, and how to address them. We revised the area books of all the missionaries, and this way we were able to have a bit more information in order to help them in their individual areas. Well, the Desarollo went super well, and was very spiritual. Elder Gee spoke about developing missionary skills, and talked about how Christ is the perfect example of an excellent, capable, and apt teacher, so we analyzed a lot of attributes of Christ. Then Elder Ruiz talked about how to study effectively, and it was precisely what we all needed to hear. After an excellent practice-capacitation on filling out teaching records in the area book by Elder Quintero, we had a break, and Elder Lemus and I set up these flag like things taped on bamboo sticks stuck in foam cups filled with rocks. We had set it up the night before, trying to see if it would work. They were set up in various points around the room, and it made no sense whatsoever to anyone else. I started by telling a story I remembered from Art History. In the Early Renaissance, the artist Donatelo, was commissioned to sculpt from marble a statue of St. Mark. He worked on this statue for months and months, slowly chipping away with a hammer and chisel, according to the plans he had made for his masterpiece. When he was finally done, he invited those that commissioned him to see the finished piece. When they saw it, they were sorely disappointed. They told him that the torso of St. Mark was completely out of proportion, that it was way too long. They were furious, and would not accept it. So, Donatelo, being very wise, simply told them to come back the next day and he would have it fixed. You see, he knew what the commissioners were forgetting. He knew that the statue would be placed upon a high pedestal next to a cathedral, and that passers by would see it from below. So when they came back the next day, he hadn't touched the marble. He only put it on a higher platform, forcing them to elevate their sight, and change their perspective. He had planned that, and acted accordingly from the very beginning of making the sculpture, purposefully making the torso a little bit longer. Thats the key- Perspective. God's ways are higher than ours, and so are His thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9. We talked about how we are the chisels in the hands of the sculptor, and we only need to be willing to change our point of view, and try to see things the way the Lord does. This way, we'll be able to receive the revelation necessary to help sculpt the Lord's work the way He wants it in our individual areas. We talked about how this relates to faith, and how raising our perspective can help us cultivate greater faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Then I asked them what they thought the weird flag-like things were that were still there from the beginning. Then I had them all go to the stage behind us, with the curtains still closed. On the stage, behind the curtains, we talked about 2 Kings 6:15-17. They are more those that are with us, than those against us. We just need to open our eyes and see God's army in chariots of fire swirling around us, ready to help us fight our battles. At that point, I opened the curtains, and had them each stand on a point I had marked X on the floor of the stage. From that point they saw those same flags, but from a different perspective. And when they looked at them from that point of view, they spelled the word Fe (Faith). It's all about perspective. After that, the Hermanas shared some excellent temas about goal setting, and keeping a positive attitude. I was able to really get a lot out of those two, they came super prepared. Afterward, we had several elders and sisters share their testimonies, a musical number from Hermana Hinrichsen on the violin, and we ended. It was a very spiritual meeting, and an animo booster for sure.
Anywho, all is well in Zion. Love you all!
Elder Brady
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| * Yes, the last several photos are from previous emails... the computers in his new area do not have the ability to upload photos. :( So for now I am adding some repeats! :) |