Transfer week as an AP

Hello everybody! 

        Here is my weekly email, summed up with pictures. 

Elder Brown! I served around him in Gainesville and we had another tradeoff. He is great - really loving and ministers to the people we taught. We had a fun day - we went to his area, and I went with him while my companion went with his.

     We visited lots of people but the HIGHLIGHT was teaching a guy who was willing to let us inside at 8:45 at night. Who even does that? We taught about the Book of Mormon, Elder Brown testified and brought the Spirit, and they will teach him again soon! 

     THE ORLANDO TEMPLE! Truly The House of the Lord. What a beautiful place on the outside, but the Spirit inside is why I love it.
      We went on Thursday with the missionaries at their halfway mark and those going home. So fun to be with them, see the people I loved in a place I love just as much. I left with a renewed desire to serve Christ and sacrifice to follow Him!

   Post transfer call at President Lee’s, pressing the “That was Easy” button after finishing a transfer that I probably wouldn’t define as “easy” but I would call the best transfer of my mission so far. It just gets better and better - I want to stay here forever. 

    Today we went to Saint Augustine with all of the missionaries who fly home tomorrow morning. We went to the beach with them  and were the stars of the show wearing our white shirts, slacks, and ties, with the Sisters wearing their dresses.

   It was fun to be there with them - afterward, we went to a old fashioned street where there are lots of shops and unique crafty places. It is amazing to see these missionaries at the end of their missions - two years or 18 months of faithful diligent service has sure shaped them. 

After that group of missionaries flew home, we picked the incoming group up at the airport.

We took them to the church building for training and to meet their companions.

The board! All of the missionaries and where they are serving. 

Elder McMullin

Learning Lessons from President Lee

Hello Everybody!

       This week we traveled around the mission and gave a training to lots of missionaries. It was amazing to be able to be with them, love them, and try to serve them in every moment. I love being able to turn outward! Way more fun than focusing on ourselves, and it gets a lot more done.

         One thing that has impressed me this last week is how different everybody is. Our mission president, President Lee has said to me several times since I’ve been in Florida, “Now remember, not everybody is an Elder McMullin”. Then he goes on to explain how it’s important to look at where other people are coming from - Family, background, talents, desires, motivations, dreams and aspirations, etc. In our mission, the missionaries have SUCH a wide variety of personalities, desires, talents, and backgrounds. So does everybody on earth! It amazes me that we are all so different, but that God can work with each of us to do his will.

          Lots of amazing opportunities to learn from President Lee this week. After one meeting, he took us and four sister missionaries out to dinner at “Bubba-que’s” - a tiny little barbecue place in the thriving metropolis of Williston, Florida. He talked about his experience as a mission president and the growth that he’d felt since coming from Idaho. Another time we learned lots from him was just driving in between meetings - me driving, Elder Masino in the passenger seat, President Lee sitting right behind us. I asked about career advice and how to manage work and family. Whooooo!  President Lee is full of wisdom!  45 minutes later we got out of the car and I felt like I had the next 30 years of my financial life figured out. What a blessing to be able to learn from him. 

          I had a tradeoff with Elder Birch this week who I trained! I love him! He is so 100% himself and has grown since I served with him six months ago. I love watching how the missionaries who I’ve seen months, even years ago, change and just blossom.

          Love you all! Have a great week.

Elder McMullin

Us and the Waite’s, the senior couple in Gainesville. I love them! They are just so loving and your can feel their love just when they look at you. 

ELDER BIRCH!