Inspections continue....

Saturday, January 4, 2014

This week was mostly filled with vehicle inspections as the soldiers were still gone on holiday break until Friday. We completed 13 vehicle inspections. We use a checklist and go over the vehicles and check condition, fluid levels, paperwork, etc. We also take the opportunity to make sure these young people know how to check fluids, tire pressure, and a few basic things about an automobile. It was fun to see another part of the mission, Willcox, AZ. I must say, there is not much there however, population is about 4,000.
 

Sister Heninger checks the license plate for proper stickers.

The missionary vehicles we inspected in Willcox

Sister Heninger checks the trunk for cleanliness and organization. 

Tomorrow, we are really looking forward to see the soldiers back at church after their holiday. We really miss them as they add real energy and joy to our lives.

Next week should be exciting. Tuesday, we are going to the Gila Valley Temple for an endowment session with our zone missionaries. Our session is at 8:00AM and it is a 2 hour drive, so we will be up and gone early. Wednesday in Benson, AZ we have Zone Training with President Killpack. This will be our first zone training session. I think we meet with 2 or 3 zones for this. Friday, we will be at the Chaplain’s coffee house reception with the soldiers. That is always a fun night as we mingle with the soldiers and the other volunteers. Saturday, it will be up and out of here early to drive to Tempe, AZ to meet with Elder Holland. I am sure that will be a richly rewarding event. I will report on the highlights next week.

We were grateful and excited to receive the results of  the Vancouver East Stake indexing effort. What a faithful group of folks with great leadership to index more than six million name in the past year. And what can we say about the outstanding effort by our ward to exceed one million names. That is an amazing accomplishment. We felt honored to have participated.

As always we miss our family, loved ones, and friends, however, we would not rather be anywhere else right now. We know that we and our family have been so blessed because of this missionary experience and the prayers of all. It is really difficult to explain the joy of being a full time servant of the Lord. There are so many unique and interesting experiences and insights that come our way. If you have the ability to serve, do not delay. Take the opportunity now. You never know what the future holds. I do not know if you will regret not serving, but I can promise you that you will never regret serving, regardless whether you can serve full time or part time. It does not matter.

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Our meetings today were really good with the soldiers. We had one new soldier who is from Boise, Idaho attend today. He only lives about a mile from where we lived in Boise. He graduated from the same High School my kids attended. I thought, perhaps we might have known him or his family........then I started to calculate. When we moved from Boise, he was three years old. Probably did not know him. It was really good to see the soldiers back and to meet with them. We had a spiritual testimony meeting and a wonderful meal provided by Sisters Heninger and Kovacs afterward.  

Enjoying some casual conversation with the soldiers