The Rolla Holla! Monday, July 19, 2010

The time is a-tickin on. NO, of course I’m not trunky, or home-sick, etc…haha. Of course I can’t WAIT to see my family and friends and all of you. I just have one request: when I get there, I’m expecting some good solid hugs. Don’t rush it, family and friends. In fact, it’s better if you just let me determine the length of the first hug. You can let go as soon as I do…haha. Kind of joking but mostly serious.

Well, not a lot of time, but I LOVE THE MISSION. Today in District Meeting we had only a few minutes after accounting for our work and making plans to take the zone forward. We all closed our eyes and imagined ourselves back in our homes, on the couch, watching our favorite million dollar game show. We talked about all the ridiculous things that people will do win a million dollars (eat bugs, starve, fight with eachother, betray their best-friends, EVERYTHING). Then we asked them, if ALL you had to do to win a million dollars was to take 5 people to church, what would you do.

They came up with ALL kinds of crazy ideas: bringing people in off the streets. Asking EVERYBODY what is holding them back and what we can do so they can go. Promising them all kinds of blessings (the normal, spiritual ones, and even some material ones to help them bridge the gap from where they ARE to where we want them to be…like to take a picture with their family at the church and print it off and give it to them, since the Paraguayans LOVE to see pictures of themselves and their family). It was amazing to see the zone LIGHT on fire and think of EVERY idea under the sun, with which we covered the chalkboard, listing ALL of them. We had them write all of those ideas down.

Then, we had them draw a line under that list. We told them we would be taking 5 minutes to think about something else. I turned and erased everything on the board. We asked them, If you would do all that for a million dollars, if THAT was your reason, what would you do if you reason was this. We wrote up on the board: “Jesus Christ.” I sat down and we thought in silence. We asked if anybody had EVER in their mission thought of a list like that: of all the possible things to achieve a specific goal. Nobody raised their hands.

I think sometimes in life we lose sight of JUST how important it is what we are doing. I am FIRED up to do everything I can in these last two weeks to do it for HIM. I know that as I do, I will feel and hear those words at the end of my mission: Well done thou good and faithful servant. I hope you all think of your goals and ponder what would you do if you could win a million dollars, and then realize WHY you are really doing it. Have a great week!

Elder McCarty