Hey Everyone!
We had a great week here in Cluj Napoca, though we had a lot of things to do and that kept us from doing our normal missionary work. Those things include passing out English fliers, participating in Cosmin and Lavinia's wedding, and having a baptism. I'll go into those later.
But before I forget I wanted to respond to some of Dad's email. First of all, it sounds like the trek was really incredible and everyone learned a lot. I wish I could have been there, especially for the "stick pull". I'm pretty sure I would have whooped J. That is really, REALLY cool about the DeHuts. I'm so glad to hear that they are doing well and that Brother DeHut is getting his patriarchal blessing. I've definitely gained an even greater desire on my mission to be a diligent home teacher. I can't wait to get that assignment and go to work loving and helping my families.
Yeah, I do need my debit card and as soon as possible. I just looked at the one I have now and it expires at the end of this month. So, if you could send the new one, that'd probably be helpful. :) Yes, Mom, I saw the pictures from the reunion and my "proxy." Was that the best you guys could do? Haha, no it was great and I'm glad that you guys remembered me. I'm really going to love going to family reunions when I get back, especially after being gone all this time. And yeah, I love the family updates. A lot of times I don't comment, because I don't have a ton of time at internet. But it's great to hear what everyone is up to.
Ok, so this week wasn't the best for Elder Bringhurst and I as far as our investigators go. We met with as many as we could, but the forementioned events as well as an exchange we had with Elders Eyre and Despain from Oradea, we were really busy. And then Sunday was the worst....not a single investigator(of mine and Elder Bringhurst's. The others each had an investigator there) came to church. That was kind of rough. It's the first time it's happened since I've been in Cluj. We did our part, unfortunately they, for some reason, decided not to come. When I called Doamna Mocean, though, she said that she was thinking about us and she knew that she should have gone and she regretted not going. Maybe everything will work out and a lot of people will come next week, the last one of the transfer. Needless to say, we don't have a baptismal date right now.
About Daniel,(he went out to the countryside on Sunday) he is about 30. Not really sure, though. He is doing pretty well with his commitments, except for coming to church, obviously. He is really sincere and feels the Spirit strongly. Yeah, he is married and that is one of his problems, I think, if I can say that. Because his wife isn't too religious and he is scared of her. We always meet when she's not home. We'll see what happens.
Nothing exciting for most of the week. I had a good exchange with the boboc, Elder Despain. He is a cool guy and he's working hard to be a great missionary. We've started handing out fliers, but Elder Bringhurst and I have had hardly no time. We've gotten out maybe 100 and we have 3300 total for our companionship. That's what we'll be doing all day tomorrow, until we catch the train to Arad for zone conference.
The wedding was so great! Cosmin and Lavinia were so happy and they make such a sweet couple. Yeah, they're both members. Last night, they left for Germany where they'll be for a week. They'll be back next Sunday, though, so if I'm transferred I'll get to see them. So the ceremonies started at Cosmin's house(for us, some people started at Lavinia's) at 8am. After everyone had gathered and gotten ready, we hopped in cars and went to Lavinia's where he picked her up. There was a lot of music, they got a lot of pictures taken there and there were desserts and soda as well. After a little bit, we all went to a big park where the actual ceremony took place. This was at 10am. It's ridiculous how short the actual wedding is. They signed up for that time, 10, then waited while 3 or 4 other couples got hitched. The officiator said a few things, asked them for their "I do" and then they signed the paper. The end. After that, there was a cool service at the church(12pm), with talks focusing on the eternal nature of their marriage. Us missionaries and Bianca, Simona and Ilie(from Buch) sang a song on that topic. It went really well and Cosmin was tearing up as well as a few people in the audience. After that was the restaurant, the festivities there from 2pm until 10pm. We stayed until 4 and then left to have a lesson and get out the very few fliers we've gotten rid of. The pictures show the festivities better than I can explain. I'll try to remember to send them all next week.
Raluca's baptism was great. It was right after the 3 hour block. Sora Condurachi and Mihai Iepure both gave great talks. Calin performed the baptism. It was all really smooth and the Spirit was strong. So later that night, Elder Bringhurst and I had volunteered to take down the the font and to clean up. But when I looked at the tool I needed to unscrew the bars, I saw that it was super corroded. After a lot of hard work we were able to get maybe two screws out. I was kind of overwhelmed. I had no idea how to do it and it didn't seem possible. But the thought came to me to pray and as I prayed the words came to me. I prayed for strength to be able to get it done. Right after that we started going to work and even though a lot of the screws were really hard, we were able to disassemble the entire thing, do all the clean up and put it away. I know that there is no possible way we could have done that without the Lord's help. It was a cool miracle.
Well, I think I'll go now. I hope you all have a great week. I love you!
