How did Halloween treat everyone? I loved seeing Lola Ks video of how well and amazing she performed on Friday night! So proud of you little monkey! :) So glad to hear that everything and everyone is doing great! Also, 3 weeks til Thanksgiving, which is crazy crazy!
So first things first . . . Who is my new companion!? He is Elder Williams and is from South Jordan, Utah. He learned spanish in the MTC and now is speaking English with me. He loves running and ran cross country in high school! You already know we have been running every morning! ;) Also, Aunt Libby emailed me and told me that she used to teach Elder Williams as one of his primary teachers in Taylorsville Utah!! Small small world we live in!
Thursday -- I got up at 5:30 and finished packing, ate breakfast, and me and Elder Moss left Wadsworth to drive 2 hrs down to Powell. It was a sad moment to leave him, but he is training Elder Miller and GUESS WHAT?!?! Elder Miller is from Salem, Utah and he graduated just this last year! But anyway, I found out I would be with Elder Williams and then we got both our belongings, and I got the keys to our brand NEW 2020 Chevy Equinox that we get to drive. It had 20 miles on the odometer when I drove it out of the Powell parking lot😎 We got down to Chilicothe after stopping for lunch at Subway, and walked into the apartment and Whack! let's just say that the 2 other elders before us, did not clean the apartment or clean or throw any food away, and so basically a tornado had touched down there! Me and Elder Williams then spent the next 30 min unpacking our suitcases, then spent the next 2 hours cleaning and disinfecting dishes and cleaning everything. Then, we had to go shopping that night because we also had no food at that point. By the time we got back, it was 7:30 and so we called the bishop and ward mission leader and that was our day.
Friday -- We had a mission-wide training meeting at 9 am where we talked about safety while being out right now and that we really just need to be staying cautious, especially with rioting more than likely starting up this week. After that mtg, we had a sync up meeting with Brother Cain (Ward mission leader) and then started on the member list in area book. We had a great phone lesson with Sister Burnheimer about John 3:16-17 and how God really truly does love us, and will always provide a way through Jesus Christ. We had a stake coordination mtg with all the missionaries in the Columbus south zone and the Stake President (President Madden). Then MIRACLE TIME!! We had 13 referrals to reach out to from the past elders, and we called all 13 that day. On 2 of those calls, they both wanted a bible drop off. So we dropped one off on Friday and the other off on Sunday. The one we dropped off to on Friday wants to meet with us this week on Friday. Pray for Brian (that's his name) this week! We also talked to a guy named Randall on the phone. Randall is a minister here in Chilicothe and wants to meet with us tomorrow night. Super cool!
Saturday -- Was a very great day! We went on a really long walk in the city part of Chilicothe. They have a lot of cool stores (Hobby lobby, TJ Max, Dicks Sporting Goods) so we went and did our own makeshift version of street contacting (smiling and waving at people) since we aren't allowed to do it right now. We drove to the south part of the ward, and had a really cool over the phone lesson with a guy named John (nonmember) and he said he hasn't met with missionaries for 15 years now. He wants us to come this Saturday to his house to talk with and teach him. Another huge miracle!
Funny story (that freaked Elder Williams out 😉). We were sitting in the car talking with John on Saturday night. I had just pulled the car to the side of a road on a street full of houses. Across the street there was a fenced yard with a dog in it. The dog started barking loudly, and finally after 5 or so min, the owner came out and started chewing us out while I was talking to John. The guy was telling us to roll the window down, I finished the call and rolled the window down and the guy told me. "You're spooking my dog. Get out of here now." So I smiled and told him what we were doing and we had just finished talking to who we needed to and would be on our way out now. As we left to head home, Elder Williams softly said, "Well that was nerve wracking" . . . Had to break him in early I guess 🤣.
Sunday was just an amazing and such a wonderful wonderful day! We had in person church at 10 am. We got told that Chillicothe ward meets every Sunday for in person sacrament mtg and so hoping that continues forward. We got to the church bldg and immediately set out on meeting as many people as we could. Elder Williams said the opening prayer and I said the closing prayer. Then, after church we both got asked to give talks in sacrament meeting this next week on Sunday, so we are stoked for that!! We had a sync up meeting with Bishop Brower. Then we did the bible drop off for Shawn Ramsey, and then went over to the church bldg for the YSA devotional with Elder and Sister Utchdorf which was so so good and wonderful. We also found out that a guy named Jamie Krueger is wanting to be baptized here in Chillicothe, but has some health concerns and so we are working with President Horgesheimer and Bishop Brower to see if we could do a live proxy baptism for Jamie instead. Stay tuned for updates on him.
This ward is so awesome from the people we have already met and been able to talk to. Honestly, the last 5 days I have been the most tired I have been in quite a long time. With doubling into Chillicothe and needing to meet and visit with everyone and learn the area, as well as to train a new missionary right out of online mtc, I'm pretty tired today. But I'm so grateful for this opportunity to learn and grow my ability to lead and serve. The ward here is very less active and everyone from what we have been told, is getting comfortable with doing church at home instead of wanting to be at church, so we are going to work with Bishop Brower and Brother Cain to get people back to church on Sundays. Pray for this ward, and pray for their desire to hear from us and to be receptive to wanting to come back. We had about 20 or 21 people at church yesterday.
Facts on Chillicothe and the area:
- Very country like/Also very city like. Basically, 50 percent is like trees and fields and hills, and the other 50 percent is over where Walmart, Golden Corral (Sadly Golden Corral is closed 😥), TJ Maxx, etc.
- We live in a townhouse kind of. It doesn't have a garage, but it's a 2 story apartment/mini house and super nice!
- With us being in southern Ohio now, it hasn't snowed here yet. It is windy, blue skies, and sunny days all day everyday right now thankfully.
- Ohio University is right down the street from our house. Ohio University is a small D3 campus college, kind of cool though to say I'm "kind of" serving on a campus even though no one is in school there right now.
I wanted to share with everyone my testimony of what I have learned in the last 5 days since we last talked: I know that this Gospel of Jesus Christ is real, and I know that Christ is at the center of everything we do in life. As I'm training Elder Williams, I have thought about my time 15 months ago when I became a missionary and how much I have grown since then. I feel myself working harder, smarter, and quicker everyday out here to do everything I need to and can. I know that this is the Lord's work here on the earth. Our Savior and older brother died so that we could experience growth and progression, and succeed gloriously and live with Him and our Heavenly Father for eternity. In the words of The Great Ohio Columbus Mission song: I will waste and wear my life, in the mission that I love; sound forth the trumpet that will ever stand.
May we all, have the desired diligence each day, to waste and wear our lives for our Savior and brother, and do so with a heart full of gratitude.
I love and miss you all so very much! You all are so amazing and I care deeply about all of you and all your guys successes that you have been experiencing! I know Heavenly Father is watching over and blessing each and every single one of us❤❤.
I love you forever and always!!
Elder Dylan McEwan
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