Your Jordan Missionaries

We attended our first Sacrament meeting in Jordan. Yes, it is Friday, but it is the Muslim observed “Holy Day” so here in the Middle East our Sabbath is Friday. We walk to church because most of the members do not have cars so they either walk, take a taxi or bus. We are very fortunate to have a car but we felt it would be better if we put ourselves in their shoes. Our little branch reminds us of the beginnings of the Carrolton Branch only in Arabic and some culture opportunities. We were asked to bare our testimony in church and had a translator help us. It was so sweet to look down at those humble members and feel their excitement of having new missionaries again. We have felt so welcomed and have been treated like royalty. We have visited many of the members over the last few days. Such humble people! One of the members, a sweet little sister about 60 years old, named Sister Sameer (everyone is addressed by their first name) lives in the oldest building in Erbid. I felt like I went back in time. We walked down a rock path that you could almost picture Christ himself would have waked down. We entered a small court like area through a wooded oval door. A lemon tree growing up through rock and dirt whose branches spread over the small area. We came to another door that took us into a one room house where she has lived almost her life. Very humble circumstances…. “The widows Mite”. She had prepared for our visit all day. She gave us probably every thing she had. I felt so humble watching her serve us with such pleasure. What a wonderful experience to see that kind of love and service in action.

Every day we hear the “call” to pray. As we look out over the city there are many towers with huge speakers announcing prayer 5 times throughout the day. This Thursday started the holiday called Ramadan which the Muslims fast all day from sun up to sun down every year which lasts for almost a month. No one can eat! We are told not to be seen eating during the day. Everything closes down in the afternoon so people start preparing the big meal when the fast ends for that day. Around 6:00 p.m. you don’t see any one outside. The streets are empty and businesses are closed….. they are all inside eating. About 8:30 p.m. the city comes alive again. I’ve never seen anything like it it’s one big street party. Everyone, including the women and children are all out in the streets till early in the morning. Then the next day repeats the same as the day before.

We are getting settled in our apartment and it’s feeling more like home. We have to use our water very sparingly. There is a big tank on the roof and it gets filled once a week. We also have to turn on a hot water switch when we want hot water to start the boiler to get hot water in the pipes. We buy our drinking water in big 5 gal jugs because the water is not safe to drink or cook with. It’s been interesting to adapt to our new culture. The market places are taking a while to get use too. Things are not very clean here and we have to be very careful in what we eat and how we prepare it. Brings back a lot of memories from the days we spent in Pakistan.

Well, I just wanted to share a few of our experiences here in Jordan. It’s late and we have another very busy day tomorrow. We are meeting with some of the NGO’s (Non Profit Organizations) that we will be working with. We will also be teaching an English class starting tomorrow. We are learning a lot and praying a lot.

We sure love you . We feel your support and love every day. The Lord has blessed us so much. We are all constantly having the opportunities to grow and learn through our individual experiences. Gratefully, we are not on our own! So......onward we go! You are the best!

Love Elder and Sister Cotton