Well, the pulled shoulder muscle turned out to be more than that. An MRI revealed a jagged bone and possible tear in the tendon. Tender mercy! Surgery corrected the jagged bone and the tear was only a "fray" and will improve with time. A Priesthood Blessing and being a missionary, I feel, are the main reasons it turned out so well. Edward insisted I put these pictures on the blog because of his toe pictures. The toe is doing great. The nail is still attached but who knows?!?!
Stake Conference: the theme, a quote by Pres. Monson, "The Lighthouse of the Lord beckons to all as we sail the seas of life." Brother Martin, Stake High Councilor, quoted Lehi in 1 Nephi 16 about righteous Priesthood blessings in our homes. He also related from his mission to Japan, the Mission Motto, taken from a talk by Elder Bateman:
Obedience is the Price,
Faith is the Power,
Love is the Motive,
The Spirit is the Key,
Christ is the Reason.
Such powerful words to live by! Next Sister Cuyong, the Temple Matron, and Pres. Cuyong the Temple Pres. spoke. Her saying, "we need you at the temple!" and him, "The House of the Lord is a gate of Heaven." Pres. Revillo, Quezon City Mission President reminded us of the Saviors query to Peter: 'Lovest Thou Me?' "We can't go back to fishing! We need to feed His sheep!" And last, Jose Manarin, Marikina Stake President: There are seven Rxs for life: 1. charity 2. Temple visits 3. study the Book of Mormon and other scriptures 4. forgive and forget 5. sustain leaders 6. pay tithing 7. obey commandments. To the youth: remember the mother hen and her chicks! He related the story of a hen with five chicks. Each night as it approached dark, the mother would gather her chicks under her wing. As the days passed and the chicks grew, some wandered a little too far from safety. One night only four returned home. Later, three, then two then only one. The family watched as the chicks were eaten by a rat. Yet, the one who stayed close to home (its mother) remained safe. "We are under attack!" "Small acts lead to greater consequences. Pres. Hinckley" We need to protect and rescue our youth. We have 227 not serving missions in our stake. We need to help one another. Alma 48. Become a mother hen! Through the Atonement, we can repent and be forgiven.
Family Home Evening: we joined with the other Senior missionaries for dinner and assembling school kits. We were able to provide 200+ school kits to the needy children within the Quezon City Mission boundaries. It was fun to finally do something!
Mission Conference: Wow! This is what a mission feels like! Such a wonderful, powerful Spirit. Two hundred strong stood and sang, "Called to Serve" with the last verse sung in Tagalog. It brought tears to my eyes for sure! Pres. Revillo added more about John 21: We cannot be the same after our missions! We can no longer just "fish." We can change if we love the Savior. Pres. Christensen of the Seventy taught about the Holy Ghost by asking the missionaries to tell what they know about Him. "He is our companion if we are worthy. He testifies of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. He edifies the teacher and the student. He is the third member of the Godhead. His testimony is the most powerful! We learn truths through him. He warns and protects us from danger. We are sanctified and clean - D&C 84:33. He ratifies our ordinances. He is our constant companion."
The heat has finally gotten to Elder England. He went for a haircut and this is what he looked like when he got home:
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| Boo! |
What a character! He says it feels so much better and that now the hair in the shower drain all belongs to me. Maybe I will have to get mine cut just like him haha!
We have entered our 3rd season here: we have had hot and hotter and now we have wet and are looking forward to wetter. The temperatures cool quite considerably once it clouds up but the humidity makes it feel like 10+ degrees hotter. The sun rises at 5:26 a.m. and sets at 6:23 p.m. The kids have gone back to school after their summer vacation so the Temple is slowing down just a bit. We are on afternoons now and it is nice to get to sleep in until 6:00. Not much else happening.
