Be Patient With Yourself

Its been another good week. I love being a zone leader. I missed being able to call missionaries each night and minster to their needs, helping them with problems, and just checking up on them mentally, spiritually, and physically. I always learn so much, and I love being a tool in the lord's hands as I follow the spirit and build back up God's soldiers as they prepare to go back out to battle.

Zone Calls and Problem Solving

Crazy week! Elder Pastrana and I had to run a bunch of errands involving missionaries, furniture, apartments, and all kinds of things throughout the week, but I'm still pleasantly surprised by the amount of proselyting time that we get each week. It almost feels like we don't miss any at all!

Elder Pastrana and I are getting along great, we have a few talks here and there to figure things out, but we always end up loving each other more afterwards. The "arguments" this week came from me wanting to sleep more and take our meal times. The way he looked at it was he wanted to be a more consecrated missionary- so work more, work hard, and go the extra mile in everything. The way I looked at it was I wanted to be a consecrated missionary and so I needed to take the time the Lord has given me to rest to make sure I REST. If you're giving your ALL ALL ALL and not getting sleep or meals, you're not going to be able to GIVE your all to the Lord. We agreed to take meal times (shortened a little bit) and wake up early only a few times a week. It's a compromise that I'm willing to live with and we both feel like we get something out of it. That principal of rest time is where our arguments always stem from. Other than that- everything is great.

More Nightly Calls - No rest for the weary.

Our apartment is clean, I get to cook because we have a crock pot here in this apartment, and life is just GOOD! There's nothing else I'd rather be doing. The weather here has indeed been hot. This Thursday was bike day and I felt I was melting right off my seat at 103 degrees F. We diligently rode all day and returned to the apartment after having a successful evening hot and sweaty, but happy. Thank goodness for our truck that we have for the rest of the week. I'm not sure if I've told you but Elder Pastrana and I cover the entire city of Lubbock as well as numerous outlying towns because we're the "Spanish" missionaries.

Chicken bacon ranch pasta- thanks grandma for the recipes and tie-dyed apron!!

It's great having a companion that can speak fluently, but it's also so frustrating because he just talks, and talks, and talks- and the people don't want to listen to my talk in my broken struggling Spanish. But I'm trying so hard! I'm giving a talk next week in the branch on covenants so we'll see how things go. Pray for me! Haha

Not much to report. I'm working hard. I've gotten over the mail craze... I only check it every few days now. Maybe once or twice a week. It used to be the most important thing to me- mail, mail, mail. Hearing from home used to be a lifeline that kept me going- but I've kind of moved on from that. I'm living here, now, doing what I need to be doing. With that lost desire for letters, I've also found there's less time to WRITE letters. I'm busy with other responsibilities and things that I've got to do. I guess I've reached the next "step" in my missionary progression...? BUT- if y'all ever want to write me, you need some advice, or you think a letter to someone in the family or a friend would help- LET ME KNOW. Writing letters and receiving letters is still good and fun- the REASON behind it being fun now though has changed, if that makes any sense?

Oh Texas... you can't hide the pumpjacks, no matter how hard you try.

Mom, I'm sure you'd be proud to hear, but my journal is now full. Yes, my big black one we bought at Walmart before I left on the plane out to Mexico. Every page is filled with my experiences, thoughts, and progression. I looked back on it and read the first page, and the last page... I've changed so much. In the first few months there scarcely goes by a day where I don't mention [what I was missing at home].  It's actually kind of embarrassing to look back on it and see how much [that] occupied my thoughts: mail, friends...things like that. But as I've been out longer you see the change. I can send [my journal] home in my next package if you'd like to read it? But I'd want it back just so I could reflect on it out here when I've got the time. Let me know. I'm working on writing another journal, don't worry- my writing wont be stopping with the finishing of this one.

Never give up, Never surrender. The best missionaries carry no white flags.

I love you guys so much. Keep working hard. Remember that no one is perfect and you're going to stumble every now and again. Whether your old, parents, experienced, wise or anything else, you CAN'T be absolutely perfect- only one man was. So be patient with yourself. Just make sure that you're still climbing up the mountain and not down. That's the goal. 

Interesting thing I found in my studies today. About the sacrament- Barabbas, the man that was freed in place of Jesus. His name in the Bible dictionary actually means "son of God". So the "son of God" was let free that day, while his other son was doomed to death on a cross to appease a mob. Just think each week as you look at that sacrament table, with the white table cloth draped over the bread and the water, that Christ took the place of Barabbas so we could all be made free. He took upon him the sins of the world so that ALL of us, not just ONE "Son of God" could go free. 

Keep trying. Keep working. I love all of you. I'm still Austin, I'm still your little son. I love Lord of the Rings, I love superman, I love the outdoors, and I love sports. I'm just growing and changing each week in the fact that I'm learning to love my God more and more with each passing day. Stay strong.

Your son,

Elder Austin Sork