Week 71: June 16-22, 2019


At the beginning of the week we welcomed new missionaries.  We met them for dinner at the mission home Monday evening then gave them basic instructions early Tuesday morning at the local church building (we repeat this every 6 weeks).  The real teachers are their companions and the Spirit.  It is exciting to see the new groups grow and become great missionaries.   

Arriving Missionaries:

We said good-by to our dear departing missionaries at dinner Tuesday evening. Sister Faulk made a green salad laden with local fruits for the occasion.  These missionaries have served faithfully and made a difference for others in the mission as well as for those with whom they’ve share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  We have grown to truly love them. They have mixed feeling about leaving the mission and returning home but recognize this is another step in life’s journey.   

Departing Missionaries:

Driving to our English class Wednesday night we heard a strange sound.  It was a tornado alert on Sister Faulk’s phone urging everyone to get inside.  We scanned the skies and it was light in the direction we were going.   As we turned a corner everything suddenly changed.  We saw a vertical wall of cloud moving quickly in the direction we wanted to go.  A few seconds later, we saw a diagonal funnel cloud.  We made a U-turn and went inside the closest public building, a grocery store.  The rain came down hard.  The clouds moved on and the rain lightened up.  Finally the rain stopped.  All this happened in about an hour.   Several learners showed up for English class so we taught!

Sudden tornado warning on the way home in Orlando:

We spent a day with our friends Susan and Craig at Disney’s Epcot.  They know the park well and showed us some of the most enjoyable areas.   We spent all day and lingered into the night to see the fireworks.  We were tired but happy at the end of the day.  We are grateful for good friends, their sense of magic, and Disney’s vision.

We were fortunate enough to spend a few hours on a Melbourne beach on Saturday.  It was overcast but it is always relaxing to be at the beach.  The water was warm and we had a simple picnic on the sand.  Sister Faulk found 2 shark teeth.  We are grateful there are no beach closures from Red Tide this season.  It is always inspiring to see and feel His creations.  We never cease to marvel at His hand.  We know He certainly cares about each of us and that our purpose is to lift each other as we strive to follow and return to Him.

Disney's Epcot
Aquarium:

Finding Nemo and Elder and Sister Faulk at Epcot:

Japanese Drum:

Fireworks!




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