On the Move...Greenville, Here I Come!

Hello from the wonderful Greenville.  Yes, it is very green (and that's
what everyone says when I ask about the area).

So last Tuesday, while I was still in Elmira, we got some posters
printed off, and started hanging them up in Elmira.  Elder Duffin
showed them at ZLC meeting Friday, and I think all the zone leaders
took copies of them.  I do miss Elmira, it is a good area.  Wednesday
Elder Duffin and I traveled to Greene, where we met other
missionaries.  Elder Erdman (my replacement) went back with Elder
Duffin, and I went with Elder Robertson who was going home.  Talk
about a trunky car ride!

So Greeneville is my 7th area.  Elder King is my 14th companion.  The
longest area I have been in was Oneida for 22 weeks.  The shortest is
going to be Greenville, with Elmira and Saratoga Springs tying at 12
weeks.  Wednesday was also my 10th time going to Utica for transfers out
of my 16 transfers (a lot!).  I guess I was born to move around - a
lot.

Greenville is small (a phase I building).  It is smaller than Onieda's chapel. We have
about 20 active people.  I helped bless the sacrament, said the
closing prayer in sacrament meeting and priesthood, conducted music in
priesthood, was asked by the branch presidency to gave a member (that I
just met) a blessing, and I am sure I'm going to get a call this week
to give a talk.  Yep, it is surely a branch. :)

I'm trying to not let it out that I am gone in six weeks, but the past
elder let some people know, so I'm telling them to hush up.
They had zero investigators when I got here.  And looking at past
numbers, it has been a rough time finding and teaching not finding
more than one maybe every other week.  Luckily, the Lord has blessed
us with four new investigators since Wednesday, and we have been able
to sit down with the branch president and mission leader to start helping
with reactivation.

Yesterday we were out tracting, and we talked to a man who studied
religion for 12 years, preparing to become a minister, and concluded
that God was not there because he 'felt nothing'.  He was a little
contentious with raising his voice.  But, we felt the spirit to
testify and teach him (and I might have raised my voice too :).  As I
told him about the priesthood lost, then restored through Peter,
James, and John, he felt the spirit (he said 'something changed in
him').  We asked if we could come back, and he said we could.  It was
an amazing experience (and of course, it made us late for a dinner
appointment).

Dinner appointments are scarce (might help me lose the 10 pounds I
gained).  And we do a bit of tracting (I'm trying my best to avoid
it).  I forgot what it is like serving with a missionary who is more
shy, quiet, and reserved than I am.  Elder King has been out 4
transfers.  So I need to learn how to hush up, and him to speak up!
All-in-all, it has been a good week.  It is stressful trying to learn
everything, and keep focused, and try to help both the area,
companion, and district, but I am at least glad we are working hard.

I love you all-
Elder Shurtz

Meacham Family

Chocolate