Elder Murdock In The Texas Houston East Mission: "You Do You"

Hello my super amazing, terrified-of-a-mouse family! I'm sorry, but I just think that's hilarious! Good luck with that, and try not to hurt him too much! This week has been great! It started off with a great p day, the whole zone went down to Kingwood for Zone p day, and we filled socks with flour and threw them at each other, and by the end of it, everyone was just caked in flour! It was awesome. On Tuesday we went over to a less actives house to teach her great grand kid the first lesson. He is turning eight and really really wants to get baptized! His dad is not a member, so I'm hoping he will be able to sit in on some lessons. Anyway, when we went over to the lady members house no one was home, but we did catch her driving in in her mini van full of grand kids and great grand kids so we stopped them and it turns out they were just stopping at the house to grab something before going down to the daughters house, who is not a baptized member. We followed them over to the house and who else should be there but the sister missionaries! The sisters were helping her daughter clean up her house as service, and they have also been teaching her the lessons, because she is finally starting to become more interested in the Church! So we taught the little boy there, and we set up his baptism date!

Not much happened Wednesday and Thursday, we just tried biking around, trying to find people to talk to most of the day. We did find a neat place to take some pictures though when we were done, so that was fun! We did have another lesson with our investigator on Thursday, and he is still going great! We are going to Baptize him on Saturday, I'm so excited!!! He has a missing leg so me and Elder Moe are going to step down and help him into and out of the water while a member who is good friend with him will baptize him. Its going to be a really cool experience, I hope it all goes well!

Friday night we had an exchange with the district leader and his greenie. His greenie came out at the same time as me. I went down to Cleveland. It was pretty crazy, having two greenies working on the area! We did some good though. On Saturday we did some service work at a Christian thrift shop, sorting clothes and such. We also biked around Cleveland, trying to make his appointments with investigators. Not many of them could really talk that day though, so we biked around knocking doors, trying to find people to teach. I've come to realize that I'm not going to be a missionary forever, so I'm finding joy in the journey, even when the schedule falls apart and we're left with nothing else to do but knock doors and bike around, I still love it! I think the best thing for missionaries to do is to just be themselves. There's a saying out here, "you do you" and I think that it's a great saying for missionaries, and for everyone! We are all unique, and we all have certain qualities about us that make us who we are. As missionaries, we have all be sent here for a purpose. I know that I, specifically me, am here, and if I'm not being me, being Mitchel Murdock, then I'm doing something wrong. We all need to be ourselves, but as missionaries we need to be our best selves. So, we need to rely on the Savior, and the things He has told us to do, to make us become the best we can be. So really, just as long as you are relying on the Savior, and working hard, you can get good work done.

As for me, I think I want to be like the missionary dad was! When Jason Hoopes talked to me and told me about the kinda missionary dad was, it made me laugh! I could so see dad out as a missionary, and just having fun! That just sounds like dad, and I loved hearing about it! I also knew, just because it's who dad is, that he got a ton of hard work done, and was an awesome missionary. I may not want to be quite as crazy a missionary as dad was, but I defiantly want to have fun like he did, and work my guts out like he did. This gospel is true, it just is, there's no other way anything could happen without it. I'm here to teach others about it, and to help them feel the joy and love that is our Savior, Jesus Christ. I'm going to do it, relying fully on Him, while using my unique personality and gifts that have been given to me. I love all of you so much! I loved hearing about dads mission stories, if he wants to tell me some more, I love to hear them while I'm out here!

Keep to the faith everyone, stay on the old ship Zion! It's going to a great place!

Love,

Elder Murdock

True to the Faith

P.S. I have a ton of pictures to send y'all, but I can't do it on this computer, so look out for them latter today when I'll be able to do it! I love seeing all of y'alls pics, and I'm super pumped about the football season! Go Red Devils!!!