"20" - 1/9/17

Happy birthday, Anziano Ridd!

Hey fam! 

This week was insane. I don't think I have had a week like it in the mission so far. It mostly was full of doing zone things. 

So first off, Rome is awesome. It's unlike any other city I have ever been to. The big difference is that there is so much space, and like 4 metro systems and buses. It's crazy to get around and stuff. An interesting thing is that our church building is a renovated jail. Super sick. They painted the bars yellow to make it happier. 

The members are great here and I am so excited for this week so I can work with them. As for investigators, we have a few. One is S. He is from Nigeria and has been coming to church for like 2 years. The dude can't wait to be baptized and we are planning on that happening this transfer. He just needs to meet with the bishop, who is out of town, and the mission president. Then we have J. She is the wife of P, who is a member who comes from the Philippines. She likes the church a ton, and her daughter is on a mission right now.  Those are a few and I'll fill in more the next week. 

This week was full, as I mentioned. We had MLC (mission leadership council) and ZLC (zone leadership council). In the latter, Anziano Allen and I did two trainings on different things. One was presenting a zone vision. I think it went really well and I am excited for the transfer. 

We also did a scambio with the Rome 1 Anziani, because Anziano Pesci is recovering from a surgery. This helped them do some of their own work. I spent some time with Anziano Pesci, who is a beast. He is so awesome and I hope one day we serve as companions. Anziani Martinez and Allen did some of their work, and the scambio finished well. It was cool to see that part of the city, but because of the time spent there - and how long I have been here - I feel like I still don't know Rome at all, hahaha. 

On my birthday, I bought a little cake and ate it. I can't say this birthday was much different than any other day in the mission.

Sadly, one of our investigators moved to Sweden, but he will totally be baptized there. His name is G, and I bought an African suit from him before he left. It is so awesome. 

Also, next week I give a talk in church and I am pumped. I hope it will be great and that the members and I become super close. They all are so great, so I am pumped to help out. 

Anyways, this week was awesome. A cool thing I have been studying recently is leadership. Jesus Christ taught a few things that have really helped me. One is that the best leaders are the best followers. Simply enough, we become leaders as we follow our loving Heavenly Father and the example of his son, Jesus Christ. As we follow His example, we become an example. The second is sadly sometimes forgotten. Jesus taught that leaders are the servants of those whom they lead. They need not to rise up above all others and puff themselves up to earn respect; rather, they need to sink below and serve, ensuring all whom they lead are doing well and finding success. To me, it seems so simple when the Master teaches these concepts. I attribute it to the simplicity of the gospel. I love it so much and I know it is true. 

I love you all! Sorry this is long.

Anziano Ridd

We went ice skating for Pday!

Top left - in front of the Rome LDS Temple, which is under construction
Top right & bottom left - new friends & new suit!
Bottom right - Anziano Allen & Anziano Ridd