Monday July 20 - Storms, Quincy, Nauvoo pageant and church history galore!

This week has been a crazy different one from normal missionary work. Started off last Monday night there was a huge windstorm that destroyed Quincy. Trees smashed houses and cars and roofs got blown off and tons of crazy stuff. On Thursday and Saturday we got to go up to Quincy, put on Mormon Helping Hands vests and walk around the city and help people cut up and get rid of all the trees that are everywhere and help clear out some flooded basements etc. It was fun and great to be able to see how many people were willing to serve. Also, as we were carrying logs the mayor of Quincy drove by and stopped and asked who we were and we explained to him that we were missionaries and with the Mormon Helping Hands people and he took a picture with us and put it on his Facebook. So we're basically famous now. 

Another cool thing that happened this week was the Nauvoo Pageant! On Friday we had Zone Conference in Nauvoo at the Stake Center right by the temple which was super cool. The best part about Zone conference was that President Jensen got the cast of the British Pageant to come and perform a scene for us and the actors of Wilford Woodroof, Heber C. Kimball, and a few others gave a speech/training that was given there in Nauvoo to the original Quorum of the Seventy as they went out to serve their missions. The spirit that was in that room was so strong literally words cannot explain it. I was one of the most spiritual experiences I've ever had not only on my mission but in my entire life. 
After ZC we had our P-day in Nauvoo so we walked around to the shops. Saw some of the historic Joseph Smith sites and temple. It was so cool! I chose a bad week to lose my camera charger and have a dead camera. But I had some of the other missionaries take some pictures of me so I'm waiting for those to be sent to me :) 

That night we got to go to the British Pageant, which was amazing! Again the spirit in Nauvoo as the actors talk about the people they represent is so strong I almost cried. Almost. At the end of the Pageant they had all the missionaries come up from the crowd and sing Called to Serve and a few other songs with the cast. 

This week has been so amazing and so many amazing experiences! I'm so glad I am able to serve my mission in an area with so much church history. The spirit of the saints here on the sacred ground in Nauvoo and this area makes me so grateful for all that they did for us. For how strong their faith was to be able to endure through their hardships out here and be able to build the city of Nauvoo right here by the river (FYI-the mosquitoes here make the mosquitoes back home look like fruit flies). 

The strength of those saints strengthens my testimony that this church IS true. And that I will do whatever it takes to share that with my brothers and sisters and press forward in the faith.

Love you all 

Elder Cox

I ran into "Nurse Penny" from PCMC  hemotology/oncology.  She was traveling here from Utah
with The Nauvoo Pageant bagpipe band.

The next day we ended up together on a service group to clean up after the BIG storm.

Here's one of the pictures I do have of a tree that crushed a house.

Clean up missionaries with Mormon Helping Hands