Ties That Bind‏ (from the pres.)

Dear Parents and Families,

We just had an exciting weekend with several baptisms. President Gee is smiling a lot, which makes my life happy as well. We had a good month in August and September was even better. We know we are being blessed. The missionaries continue to work with their might, especially asking for guidance to find prepared people. The members are starting to catch the vision of working with the missionaries, and of course after all is said and done, we are just having some miracles. President Gee has told the missionaries over and over that we are a team. While not every companionship has baptized recently, we all share in the joy and the accomplishments of each other. We feel the power of your prayers in our behalf. We are learning that specific prayers bring specific blessings, so we suggest that you could pray for the following:
1. Pray that the immune systems of the missionaries will be strong and that they will be able to fight off illnesses, especially the flu. (We have several missionaries who are sick with some kind of flu bug. We still don't have official word from Salt Lake about shots for the flu.)
2. Pray that the members will show love and concern for investigators and step forward to fellowship them.
3. Pray that the missionaries will get better and better at perceiving directions from the Holy Ghost.

We are hearing often that when missionaries pray to know where to go that they find someone who will listen. For instance one set prayed individually about which street to go to. They got different answers so they decided to go to both of the streets. They found someone to listen to them in the area between the streets. This may seem like a "coincidence" but we are feeling that in the Lord's work there are no coincidences. It is really faith building. Perhpas that is what Elder Ballard meant when he said the Lord is micro-managing his church.

Now, about "Ties That Bind." One of the most endearing and charming things about the mission culture is how important the Elders think their ties are. That is the only way they can express their individuality. It makes me laugh to hear them talk about their ties. One missionary said, "My ties are my treasures." They trade ties. They observe each other and know who wears what color of tie. Perhaps your missionary would like a new tie or two for Christmas. You might ask him about that.

Speaking of Christmas, it is only three months away. I once asked missionaries what they like to get for gifts. Mostly they like anything that comes but some of the suggestions were: stamps, gift cards, ties, lots of letters from loved ones, and pictures of family. They are inundated with sweets from members during the holidays. You might try to think of healthy food gifts like natural snacks, etc. Sometimes their white shirts get looking a little dingy so a new shirt might help. When it gets cold neck scarfs, hats or ear muffs, and a good pair of gloves make life much more pleasant. You might find some kind of clothing that won't let the wind through to wear under their proselyting clothes. I hope this gives you some ideas to start thinking about.
President Gee and I try to give the missionaries some little thing for Christmas. We would like to give them the new Gospel Art book this year. We know some of them already have one, but they can give one away if they want to. You might want to avoid sending them another copy for Christmas.

Thank you again for your support, prayers, and interest. Stay healthy and happy. Love, Sister Gee