Hello friends! Russia is doing great (except that it's STILL COLD) and I'm doing great:)
This week was a little bit of a sad one, I'm not going to lie. I talked about my and Sister Brockbank's decision to spend less time with people who are not progressing. I still stand by that decision, but it has been difficult. We had another meeting with Lydia this week, and we really just wanted to know if she even has a desire to know more about why we are here, if she has a desire to learn about the gospel. So, we started off and asked her if she believes that Joseph Smith is a prophet.... and she said yes, which we weren't really expecting. I asked her if she believes that Joseph Smith saw God and Jesus Christ, and if she believes the Book of Mormon to be the word of God. She said of course! However, she really isn't that interested in learning more, so we had to tell her that we wouldn't be able to come by as often. She was a little bit taken aback. The sisters have been coming to her for such a long time. She went on and on about how they just came and had tea with her and they never really encouraged her to pray. But we made it clear our purpose to her. Sister Brockbank especially made sure she knew that the gospel means everything to us, and it took a lot for us to come to Russia. We are still going to check up on her, but we can't spend hours at her house every week anymore. I still want her to know we love her, so much, but we do have a real purpose here. It was a really sad day. She knows that this church is God's true church, but she not ready to take any steps forward.
We also helped a handicapped lady this week for service. She is so sweet! She can't bend her legs or her fingers, so it was interesting. She needed to go run some errands. We got her into the wheelchair and took her to different places. It was actually a little eye-opening for two reasons. This lady hadn't been outside since last summer. She has a son, but he lives out of town, and it's been "too cold" for her to go outside. Also, we were at the clinic trying to get some medical records her doctor asked for, and the people working there were so rude to her! They told her she was wrong, and that the doctor would never ask for that kind of information. They told her if she wanted to get her eyes checked, she needed to go upstairs, but that they weren't going to help her (there was no ramp). Basically, it was really sad. I am so grateful for the body that I have and that it WORKS.
I'm a little short on time this week, but I love you all and I love the gospel! I hope you all have a wonderful week!!
Sister Jones
Pictures:
1. We cleaned windows at a member's house this week! She is unable to come to church because she has a severely mentally disabled daughter:(
2. Me and Sister Brockbank in front of the ocean
3. Me in Artem
