Don't run out of fuel

Hi Jessie,

It was so fun to talk to you today!  I'm glad the video connection was pretty good.  It was especially fun to watch Nathaniel interact with you.  What a tremendous blessing we have to video chat every week.  He'll know you when you come home; how cool is that?

I hope you enjoy teaching your friend in Madrid.  If he offers to fly you over to Spain at the end of your mission, let him know your dad has to come too! 😂

We love you and pray for you in every way!

Love,

Dad

Wednesday, May 6, 2020
9:20 pm

Ever have one of "those days"?  Today was one of those days.  I started the day helping Mike.  He ran out of fuel (diesel) at 1:30 this morning by the University Ave offramp.  I brought him some more fuel, he tried unsuccessfully to get it to start, took him to his condo for tools, and tried again unsuccessfully to start it.  I left in time to get to work in time for a 10:00 am meeting.  He finally got it started around noon with the help of the Incident Response folks on the freeway.

I met with an IT security company to talk about services they provide.  I had marketing meeting with Ryan.  I had frustrating interactions with my phone provider and our core software provider.  Both of them provide good service most of the time, but interactions when we need something or have a question leave me feeling frustrated that they can't/won't do more for us.

It was also incredibly frustrating that we messed up a simple transaction for a member that we have messed up on before, and who writes books and does customer service training.  He has asked to provide this training for my staff.  How can I refuse when we keep proving to him that we are incompetent??

We enjoyed visiting with Jessie this afternoon.  She's excited to spend another transfer with her current companion, Sis. Jolley.  They seem to get along great, and I'm so happy for that.  They are teaching a man online who lives in Spain.  The way missionary work is progressing during this pandemic is truly bizarre.  But it's progressing, and this is the Lord's work, not mine.  If he wants to upend the way we thing this should be done, who am I to argue?

The kids were having a water fight when I got home.  Everyone was chilly but happy.  Pancakes for dinner and some homemade macaroons from grandma for dessert were a big hit.

Thankful: I am thankful that my "frustrating" days are so good.  There are so many people who don't have the light of the gospel to give meaning to their challenges.  Many don't know how they will feed their families.  Far too many are fleeing violence and persecution.  I feel guilty for feeling grumpy when my almost perfect life doesn't go exactly as I wish.

Ministering: This morning I ministered to Mike with the best attitude I could muster.  Even though I couldn't help him get it started when I was with him, I got him some of the resources he needed.  And I appreciate that he was considerate of my time so I could make it on time for my meetings.  That was remarkably understanding of him.

More later…

Refueling on the side of I-15.

One cleaned out flower bed.