Temple trip and seeing Sav!

This has been such a great week!!

So on Tuesday my comp and I drive down to the capital, Santo Domingo, to get my license! It was a two day process so I got to stay in the MTC and guess who I saw!!! Sav!!! I had been wanting to see her so bad and knew that my license was the only way. So luckily all my paper work came in in time and I was able to go and see her too. Tuesday morning I got there and did the required medical stuff (which was basically that they took my blood pressure and made sure I was alive) then I waited for a while in the waiting room of the MTC and one of the teachers went up and got Savanna to come down. Right when she saw me she just started balling! Hahaha. I didn't know what to do other then like give her a high five haha. The couple missionary companionship from my mission were there and they took pictures of us. It was so good to see and hear from Sav. She seems so great and stoked for the field next week! I am way excited for her!

While I was in the waiting room, I met this lady who works for the church and her husband is like, the church lawyer or something. She is from France but speaks like 5 different languages fluently and has lived all over the world! She was telling me all these awesome experiences she has had in the church around the world and her conversion story and everything. She is an incredible woman and has done so many cool things around the world for the church! We had like nothing to do until the next day, so she invited us to her house to teach a lady who works for her as a cleaning lady. She was telling us that her cleaning lady was an investigator of gold and has so many questions and interest. So we went. This lady lives in a huge apartment complex like 20 floors up that overlooks the beach. Super nice and way cool. And quiet! Right off the bat, the investigator (I can't remember her name) was so interested and really was a golden investigator! We taught the plan of salvation. My companion and I taught so well together, the best we have ever taught. We were so in sync and in tune with the spirit. And the spirit was SO strong because it was so quiet and reverent up there! For once we had peace in a lesson instead of crying babies, or traffic noise, or blasting music down the street. It was honestly one of the greatest lessons I have ever taught. We were able to clearly teach and answer all the questions and we had such a great time doing it. Then after, they gave us these mini pies and a orange-pineapple juice drink. And while we ate we got onto the subject of the word of wisdom and basically taught a second lesson haha. I have no doubt that lady will continue to progress as the real elders of that area go and teach her. I'm bummed that we can't teach her more, but it was a great experience.

Later that day we got to go to the temple!!! Because we were staying in the MTC where they house people who are going to the temple, it was a rule that we had to go to the temple if we were to stay there. So President gave us permission because we didn't really have any choice, plus he wanted us to be able to have that experience. I had never been to this temple here so it was extra great. The couple missionary companionship from my mission were here to do a seminar for return missionaries. So we got to go in with them. It was a great experience. I really do love the temple so much and it made me feel so high on life. So spiritual and honestly just pumped me up so much.

The next day in the morning, a lawyer came and took us to the DMV for my license. It was such a long process when all they did was take my papers, take my blood, and take my picture. They didn't even have me step into a car to make sure I could drive or anything!! No wonder there are do many people her missing arms and legs... but the whole time we were there (8:30am-12:30pm) the lawyer lady was with us and she was not a member and had lots of interest and tons of questions! So we talked to her a bunch about the church and she is really smart so she understood everything really well and liked it. So we got her address and are going to have the missionaries in that area go and teach her! 

Finally I got my license and we made the long journey back home.

What a great two days that was! I was really stressed at first because we weren't going to get in lessons or have time in our area and be more behind with our work as office elders, but it turned out to be such a great trip filled with awesome missionary moments and opportunity to share the gospel and be pumped up by the temple and getting to see Sav! Super blessed.

And to top it off, we had general conference and got to hear/listen to the prophet and apostles!

I hope you all enjoy conference too!

Elder Greer

Santo Domingo temple

 

I SAW SAV!!!

Birthday Week!

Transfer week is always pretty crazy! And loooooong. But everything went well. On Monday President Castillo and his family invited my companion and I over for Family Home Evening and dinner for my birthday. It was pretty cool and I feel so blessed because not every missionary has those experiences. In fact, no other missionary really ever gets the opportunity to do that. It was fun. President was way exhausted because he and the assistants had just gotten out of like a 5 hour straight transfer meeting trying to figure out transfers and where everyone would be going. But he still kept a smile on and was fun and joking like always. He's an awesome example because even when he is way stressed and tired and it's late, he still makes time for family and manages to be positive and happy.

Then on Tuesday we picked up the new missionaries (Greenies) from the bus station. Immediately one of the sisters said, "Elder Greer! Sister Reilly told me I had to find you and that you are her cousin and best friend!" and all this stuff. It was pretty cool. All of them seemed to know Sav! Then we took them to the mission home and we gave talks and talked to them about our jobs and the mission and everything. We had to do it back and forth in English, then Spanish. Later on in the night, the AP's forgot to tell me that we had to plan the transfer routes for the next day! So we spent from 10pm-1am planning it all and finishing it all up!! Usually we have it done before, but the AP's and President got done with transfers way late this time so we were way behind schedule. Planning transfer day is so hard! I never realized how much goes into it! Basically in the morning of transfer day, everyone being transferred has to show up with all their suitcases and things at this place called Caribe Tours. Then everyone checks in and heads out to their new areas when their buses arrive or when we are ready to take them. We had three cars/trucks so I took one, Elder Walker took the other, and Elder Vargas had one too. We three had to plan where all of us needed to go, at what time, with who, and all of that. But it is super complicated because it is literally like a giant puzzle. If one of us is late on our schedule, all of us are late. If one of us mess up, the whole rout gets messed up. It is really hard to explain. But that's why it took so long. So we finally got home at 1:30am and then were back at it again in the morning at 6am! Then Thursday we had the "dead" missionaries at the mission home and they bore their testimonies and all that stuff. The next morning we had to get up at 4am to take all them to the airport. Also, my old companion, Elder Cummings, got reassigned to a mission in Texas so we needed to take him to the bus because he was flying out of Santo Domingo. But it was some random holiday so the bus station wasn't open. So my companion, Elder Castillo, and Elder Walker had to drive quickly down to Santo Domingo to take Elder Cummings to the airport. Luckily they made it in time! Then things finally calmed down. So today has been a nice, relaxing, needed P-Day haha.

My birthday was very busy with my missionary stuff, but it was fun too! They all sang me happy birthday and a few past investigators and members called me and wished me a happy birthday. I was bummed me and my trainer, Elder Rodriguez, who has the same birthday as me, couldn't do anything together. But we talked on the phone a little. Crazy I am no longer a teenager!! Thank you Mom and dad for my packages!! You guys are awesome! I love sharing my things and everyone loves all the candy and treats and weird shirts haha. Its always fun giving candy and treats to my companion because he has never had anything like it before because they aren't big on that stuff here. He is obsessed with it all and has a deep love for my mom now haha. Also thanks grandma Bonnie for the package! I loved everything! You are so G-Thug, I love it. Thanks Mimi and Papa for the letter and money as well! You are all much loved and appreciated :) Thanks to everyone else for the birthday wishes. ya'll are awesome!

Last shout outs to Alma for being such an incredible missionary always and being pumped to serve and help the missionaries and invite others to have the same happiness you experience through this gospel and church. And I heard that Charlotte Connel is getting baptized!? Heck yeah! Super stoked for ya!

Have a great week!

Elder Greer

 

 Pics of me and a bunch of dying missionaries who went to the MTC their last day and met Sav! One of them is my old companion elder haws.

The one of my comp on the floor is when he was playing with his flying airplane and I thought it was funny cause he looks like a little kid