Monday...for pday we went to the mall with one of the members. It was fun but you know how much I love shopping. My companion and I decided it was a good thing we met here because if we would have met outside of our missions we never would have been friends because we are complete opposites. She loves shopping...and loves spending money. I on the other hand do not. That isnt the only way we are different. But I still love her!
Anyway...after pday we had an appointment to do family home evening with K and her kids. On the way there we said hi to a man and he stopped us and asked us if we had said hi to him last night...we were pretty sure it wasnt us but started talking to him anyway. We told him why we were here and what we were doing and asked him if he would like to meet with us to talk more. He said he would and gave us his phone number.
We then made it to K's for family home evening which went really well. It was L's birthday last week so we took him a present...I regifted the glowsticks that you sent me for my birthday. But its ok because he LOVED them! A taught the lesson and she did a great job and shared her testimony and then we did an activity with them about Faith. We blindfolded L and then had A direct him around the house in sort of an obstacle course and talked about how he had to trust her and have Faith that she wouldnt run him into a wall or off the balcony and thats how we need to trust Heavenly Father because even though sometimes we cant see everything, He can. It was a short and sweet Family Home Evening.
Tuesday nothing spectacular happened...We read with B, did District Meeting, and had English and then did contacting and such inbetween those.
Wednesday...we went back to our dear friend P's house to teach her English. We arent going back. Its too stressful and we feel like it isnt worth our time. We taught her how to say I, He, She, They etc. then we read from the Book of Mormon. We had her read a verse in English and then the same verse in Croatian. So it was good. We showed her our favorite verses and then she showed us her favorite verse...that she had never read before. Maybe someday the Book of Mormon in their house will be a planted seed but we just feel like for now we can use our time better somewhere else. After we had family history which went good again. And we met with N and V. The Prestons came with us because it had been awhile since they had been there and they have been trying to visit all of the members. We read 2 Nephi 32 and talked about prayer and scripture study and how they are commandments. I think sometimes we dont think of them as commandments but I think they are 2 of the most important commandments because if we arent reading our scriptures and praying daily we will be more likely to not keep some of the other commandments. After the Prestons came over to our apartment to do a cleaning check...apparently they are supposed to be done once a transfer but this is the first one I have had. Luckily we keep our apartment clean so it wasnt a problem.
Thursday we did weekly planning and then we headed to do an exchange. The Banja Luka sisters called us Wednesday during Family History and asked if we could do an exchange the next day. We had to change around some of our plans and so did the Prestons but it ended up working out well. So we met them halfway and then I headed to Banja Luka, Bosnia with Sister M. She cant drive yet so I got to drive so I have now officially driven in Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia. She is actually a mini missionary right now. This is her second transfer and she didnt go through the MTC so she doesnt know Croatian very well so it was kind of interesting. She is actually a convert to the church of about 7 years but has been less active most of those. She came to Croatia on vacation and went to church and had been here for about 2 months and President Rowe asked her to do a mini mission. Anyway...we got to Banja Luka just in time for English. So we taught English and then ate dinner and went to bed. In Banja Luka the sisters, the senior couple and the church are all the same building. Like it is a house. The Sisters live in the basement, the church is the middle floor and the senior couple lives on the top floor. It is kind of interesting and Im not sure if I would like it. Elder F from the MTC is serving in Banja Luka so I got to see him which was fun.
Friday...we woke up and did studies and then went tracting around Banja Luka for the morning. Sister M had just been transferred there 2 days ago so she didnt know her way around at all so it was kind of interesting but we managed not to get lost. We talked to some nice people...we had some people that you could tell were feeling it and I think they could tell it too but they just wouldnt admit it. But I think in the future they will be ready. We tracted for a few hours and then went and switched back. When we got back to Osijek, a member, M had actually asked us to watch the relief society broadcast with her. So we did that which ended up being really good...we watched the broadcast which was great and then we discussed it after!
Saturday morning we cleaned the church and then we had a lesson with a man named F. We had called him a few days before from our Area Book and he agreed to meet with us. We had a really good lesson with him. He had met missionaries before but had never had a lesson with them. So we gave him the first lesson. He kept asking us what he needed to do. We told him for now he needed to read from the Book of Mormon and with a sincere heart pray to find out if it was true. He then asked what he would get if he did. We told him that he would get a confirmation that it was true and that he would find more peace and happiness and direction in his life. He didnt seem convinced but we told him to try and if he did it with a sincere desire than he would. He said that he would and we have an appointment to meet with him this week to talk about it.
Saturday night we had a lesson with one of our English students D. She had told us that she would come to general conference on Saturday and if it wasnt boring she would come again on Sunday. We had set up to meet with her before general conference but she didnt come to the appointment. So we didnt think that she would come to conference either. But she did! And she loved it! She told me after that she really enjoyed it but it was a little confusing because she didnt completely know what was going on. I told her thats ok and that we can meet to discuss it. And then she said that she would come again on Sunday. And she did...to both sessions! We actually had another English Student come to the Saturday night one and she told us that she really enjoyed it...but she didnt come again. M came to the Sunday morning one. And then another English student came to the Sunday night one. But he told us the only reason he came was because his heater wasnt working and it was cold...but hey whatever gets them in the door! For Conference we watched the Saturday morning session live on Saturday night. We then watched the Saturday afternoon session Sunday Morning and then the Sunday Morning session live Sunday night. So we watched 3 sessions. We had a pretty good turnout. We watched it all in Croatian. I understood enough of it to understand what they were saying but we are rewatching them in English to get it all. And because there is just something about hearing the actual persons voice while they are talking rather than a translator. We havent watched all of it yet but I thought this was a really good conference. Its hard to pick my favorite talk. I felt like they talked about missionary work and hastening the work, especially member missionary work a lot. I really liked Elder Hollands talk. My favorite talk was probably Elder Uchtdorfs talk though. I think I liked it so much because we are working with people right now who either dont realize why they should join the church or else they are struggling to keep the faith that they once had. My favorite quote from him was "doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith". The doctrine of the church is perfect, the people are not. And I think that is what some people fail to recognize. I also like the talk by the black man...dont remember his name...that talked about learning from the past but looking to the future instead of looking back.
Sunday between sessions we did some contacting and made some phone calls...best part of it...so I had made several phone calls and Sister Frampton had been listening. So then I told her it was her turn. So she called someone and they answered...she had been listening to me for so long and was just copying what I said so she said...in Croatian...Hello this is Sister Clark. I started busting up. And then they didnt understand what she said. So she said it again. Apparently she cant copy every word I say. :)
This week was a good week. Even with the surprise exchange we managed to stay pretty busy. A few notes...first...hopefully this doesnt make you sad but I see Brisco dogs here everywhere! They look exactly like him...its just weird because at home it isnt very common.
This past week (like a week ago and we ended it this week) we decided as a district to do a week where when we prayed we only expressed gratitude and didnt ask for things. It was a really good experience. It made me think about what I was saying more and made my prayers more meaningful. And I realized that you can say almost the same things you just have to reword it. And I feel like it showed more Faith. Instead of asking for things I would say I know that this can happen if I do this. It definitely helped me to make my prayers more meaningful and rather than just asking for things it showed the faith that I have and the effort that I am willing to put forth in order to make things happen. This week we have zone conference which I am excited about! I hope that you all have a great week! Remember that I love you lots and pray for you every night!
Volim vas!
Sestra Clark
Shoutouts...
Emails...Zach, Grandpa, Mom, Dad, Carrie, Lex
When we did the exchange one of the senior couples who were coming from Zagreb actually met us so I got my package and letters! I got letters from Carrie and Dad and then the package which had letters in it. The package was great! Sister Preston said to tell you thanks because I have been sharing!
Doing splits in Banja Luka, Bosnia
Bosnia, very green and pretty!
Lunch at a Chinese restaurant
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