It's pouring rain, our door is open, and it smells like autumn. So cozy!
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| My Desk! |
On Tuesday we had non-stop meetings with the Ruckers, the Romanian media leaders, the APs and secretaries, and other Media Missionaries in Europe. I did lot's of business-skill related classes in high school, but I never thought they would turn into mission skills. Now we're making budgets, running ads, creating a six month social media plan, training missionaries, and learning the Adobe suite.
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| Flashback to my mom's mission in Japan! |
Then on Wednesday morning we got a call that since the elders in our district got sick, we are in quarantine until this upcoming Friday (a week and a half). We're doing our work from laptops and get up to jump or run around every so often :) We also have a gorgeous view from our balcony. We work hard and Sister Hutchinson made the best homemade tortillas. Being in quarantine again gives me so much respect for the European missions that were in tighter quarantine than Hungary has made me so grateful that the hardest shutdown from CoVid already happened and that things have eased since then.
We had an incredible meeting on Friday with 22 other media missionary companionships in Europe. We really wanted it to be a constructive discussion helpful for each mission no matter what phase they're in right now. We had prepared the week before with our co-companionships in Frankfurt and France and created an agenda, asked Judith Genster (over the churches media channels in Europe) to present, and planned break-out rooms for smaller groups to discuss. Everyone loved it and participated in the discussion and left with constructive ways to progress. It was a miracle! We were on cloud 9. At first as a media missionary, I felt like our efforts weren't very important because the other bigger missions piloting the programs would figure it out. But throughout the months and especially in organizing these bi-weekly meetings, I'm realizing how vital our role is in Hungary. Every culture is different. It will take a while to figure out so we may as well give it a try and try something new. And we're all figuring it out together. During the meeting as I looked at all the screens, I felt so much love for all these missionaries! We're all in this together! It won't be solved in a month or by the time I go home, but we'll make progress. Hurrah for Israel!
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| The famous Francis Farm homemade bread. A little taste of home |
I learned something powerful this week from a talk by Elder Bednar. He taught that we don't need to follow a check-list in order to receive personal revelation. Rather, we get to LIVE in revelation because we have made covenants. We should be more worried about when we lose the presence of the Holy Ghost than about how often we have distinct impressions. He said, "I'm a simple minded man. Just do the best you can." It's helping me just be willing to act. Why not try?
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| Sugar cookies for the secretaries |
I love the quote Elder Holland shared last conference: "We didn't come this far to only come this far." Nope! CoVid hit six months ago and we're still moving forward. In fact, we're speeding up. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be involved. It's literally not because of anything I am, what I know, or what I can do. It's just a greater testimony to me that this is the Lord's work.
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| Sunday evening testimony meeting with our zone sisters and the Knowltons. |
The best parts of the weeks are always when we talk to members. We called the Patai family last night to talk about General Conference coming next week with them. The best part of missionary work always and will forever be the individual interactions with the Hungarians. It's the highlight of every day. This is why we do everything we do. I think it is maybe a glimpse of how the Savior could do what He did. He literally overcame everything and endured the Atonement with love. As we focus on loving His children, we can do what He asks of us as well.
Happy Autumn!
Love, Emma Rae
Francis nővér
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