Doing Is Becoming

Hey y'all! Things down here in Lubbock continue to go well. Apparently a cold front is supposed to be coming through here in the next few days or so, which I'm personally looking forward to! We've still been waking up to go running in the mornings and by 6 am it's already 84 degrees! Talk about making running worse than it already is! But again, I know it's good for me and I hope one day that I come to love it. I enjoy it after, but never during! Weird how so many things are like that. 

This week Elder May and I traveled up to the Panhandle area of Texas to conduct interviews up north in Amarillo and the smaller towns further up along in Tornado Alley. We had a good time interacting with missionaries and sharing a small instruction with them and answering questions they had about the work and problems they faced in their areas or with their companions. We left Tuesday morning and got back Wednesday evening just in time to attend institute with some of our investigators and recent converts. It was a great lesson and afterwards, like always, we went and played ultimate Frisbee with members of our ward. Its a great way to meet new people and a fantastic "finding" technique as well. Although we have fun, we always remember that we're missionaries and we keep our purpose in mind. 

This week I've been kicked out of 3 apartment complexes for knocking doors! As much as we insist we're not "soliciting" anything they kick us out anyway. No one likes the missionaries knocking on their door unless their in need of serious help or change. For the most part we just make people feel uncomfortable as they answer the door excited to see a friend or something and instead they see us smiling and standing on their doorsteps. Some of the faces we get in the split second the door opens and they recognize us are hilarious. 

International students are all coming in for the School year beginning here in about two weeks. In the past few days we've talked with people from India, China, Bangladesh, Nepal, Kenya, and Jordan. They all are so kind and offer us a bottle of water and a place to sit for a moment. We share our brief message with them but they have all declined politely for us to come back and share more. Most of the Americans are the ones that slam the doors or run us off their porches. Those who profess to be Christian but don't treat us accordingly. I don't say this because I'm bitter- more of an invitation for self reflection I guess. Many of us say we believe in something- but if our faith doesn't change us in some way then we aren't living what we believe. Actions and faith should be completely independent from prejudices and ill feelings towards others. An all powering and all encompassing faith allows us to act and it dictates all that we do and say. If you say you believe... do you act like you do? Actions always speak louder than words. One of President Heap's favorite quotes is, "What you do rings so loudly in my ears that I cannot hear what you say."

Its been a tough couple of days. Again, filled with knocking and teaching a few scattered lessons. We've picked up a few new investigators and are getting in some service around the community at the South Plains Food Bank. The thing I love so much about our small Young Single Adult (YSA) ward here in Lubbock is a vast majority of the members are recently baptized converts of only a few years or less. About a third of the active participating members are new to the church and jumping in with both feet, ready to get involved. They're such a great example to me of what this gospel can mean to people that don't have it. It has the power to change attitudes, families, and lives and a mission has given me the opportunity to see all three things happen. 

When I was younger I remember just hating asparagus. It was green. It was gross. And I didn't want ANY of it on my plate for dinner. Now that I'm older I've come to actually really like it and I take a good heaping portion when I have the opportunities to eat it. Over the course of our lives I've heard that our taste buds change with age and with that age, I assume, comes experience as well. I've noticed a similar change in myself spiritually. I used to love doing things I knew were not good for me- physically, mentally, spiritually... whatever it may be... and "choosing the right" was some hard thing that seemed to be more of a burden than a blessing. As a result, I chose the "left" at times I should have chosen the right and enjoyed it. With time, and experience, just as my taste buds have changed, so has my spirit. The things that once kept me back from going on a mission- the things I loved doing and the people I loved seeing- are now the things that are going to make it the hardest to return home. Back home I wanted to live the gospel, but also have a summer home somewhere in Babylon. I'm still imperfect in that respect, but I've gotten better and experience has provided me with change. Doing has given me a testimony that talking and discussing could never bring. Over time my attitude towards the gospel has changed as I've lived it and as I continue to learn it. 

Now, I just hope that change in attitude can carry over to running as well! Keeping my fingers crossed.

A lot of my friends have left the Texas Lubbock Mission recently and I miss them a lot and the examples they set for me. I appreciate the hard work and love they put in here. I hope to stay in touch with them and keep up with them when I return home myself. 

I love you all! I miss you, but I love what I'm doing. When you're inside reading this in an air conditioned room you can imagine me out knocking doors in the dry Texas wind and heat. I'm out to fulfill my purpose and I know the clock is ticking. But I have a firm resolve to continue serving with no regrets. Stay strong. Stay gold.

Love your missionary, friend, brother, and son,

Elder Austin Daniel Sork