This morning around 0930, we departed for Macon with a planned stop off in Eatonton. We needed to pick up a few more books and DVDs as family gifts. We also wanted to tour a museum there, which we were unable to do the last time we passed through. We also drove around town looking at the beautiful homes along Madison street. After our tour of the museum, we ate lunch under a large oak tree. It was a very peaceful and quiet setting until someone near by started up a gas powered weed whacker!

We arrived at the Macon Stake Center with plenty of time to await our turn to meet with Elder Marcos A. Aidukaitis of the Quorum of the Seventy. He is taking 3 days to train all the Zones in how to plan our work from day to day and from week to week. First on the agenda to address us was Sister Cottle, then President Cottle. Afterwards, Sister Aidukaitis spoke for a few minutes, then Elder Aidukaitis. Sister Cottle made the statement, which caught my attention, "The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare". President Cottle's statement that made me think was, "Be wise enough to gain at the moment what is able to be gained". In other words don't miss out on learning now what you have the opportunity to learn. The Sister Aidukaitis taught us to be  patient with self and with others and that if we love others, we will be able to have patient with them. Elder Aidukaitis then taught us for over 4 hours. The first thing he did was to call the two Senior Couple missionaries up, The Fosters and us, and thanked us, in behalf of the Lord, for our willingness to serve. We thought that was very special.

His training to each of us, aimed mostly at the younger Elders and Sisters consisted of training on what we can do to continue to improve our planning, goal setting and achieving our goals. He also instructed us on what we can do to make our prayers more effective, personal, simple and meaningful. He talked about a trap the devil can catch us in; he can lure us into feeling good about ourselves by keeping busy, but not productive. He also instructed us on the principles of obedience, being true and exact in all we do.

It was a wonderful conference; he ended with a powerful testimony of God the Father, our Savior Jesus Christ and the truthfulness of His gospel.