Hey Hey Everyone :)
***S H O U T O U T***
My best friend in the whole wide world has been called to serve in the New York, Rochester mission, in addition the the Hill Cumorah Visitors Center and I am IMMENSELY ecstatic for you, Katy!! :)) Those people totally need you. You will be an amazing missionary! :)
Okay, now that the exciting news has been covered,
I guess we can talk about how great my week was :)
I guess we can talk about how great my week was :)
On Monday when it was time to hit the streets, we went straight to T-'s because we haven't seen her for a while, and we heard she wasn't doing well. This was such a spiritually packed evening!! She listed a bunch of things she felt she was lacking in life, and she kept saying she didn't know why she felt the way she did. All I could think about was how the fullness of the restored gospel fixes every single thing she feels she is missing. So I told her. I was blunt, Frank, straight forward, didn't beat around the bush; (however you want to say it) and the spirit was so strong. It brought both of us to tears! The love that I have for T- is massive, and she has a magnificent tool that she can physically hold in her hands that will answer all of her problems... and she's not reading it. Agency kills me sometimes. But! Nonetheless, we did what we could. It was good :)
On Tuesday we went to district meeting and it was okay. Afterwards everyone in the apartment went home and slept, which was MUCH needed, and I think Heavenly Father knew that. We all woke up feeling so much better and definitely rejuvenated :) so much that we decided making no-bake cookies was a good idea! We made around 20, and at the end of the night there were 4 left; I'm pretty sure I had at least 8. Whoops :)
Later we had a lesson with a recent convert, then dinner with a member, then another lesson with a member which was more of a scripture study with him and it was so fun! I LOVE the Book of Mormon SO much! We read Ether 12 and it was great :)
We tried to find D- because we haven't seen him for a week and a half, and we ran into J-! A friend who was also looking for D-! Apparently D-'s phone has been stolen, and he has been trying to get a hold of us but doesn't know our number. We called his girlfriend to see if he was with her and that's what she told us, but she didn't know where he was. So we talked to J-! He's super funny, from Congo, and a new investigator. We made a return appointment for the following Friday :)
When we got home the sisters we live with were itching like crazy because of all the mosquito bites they have. I grabbed a pen (so we wouldn't count the same bite twice) and lightly numbered all of Sister Williams' bites on her legs; she had 38, and she got more throughout the week!! I have been so blessed. I have gotten maybe one the whole summer so far. K N O C K O N W O O D.
Guess who we saw on Wednesday?! A-! We haven't taught her for 3 weeks, so we hadn't talked with her about her cold feet before baptism up until this point. Our plan was to follow up and see how she is doing with the word of wisdom, and to see if she had tried fasting, and then just listen. We wanted to really know how she feels and what she thinks when it comes to baptism; what's holding her back, why doesn't she feel ready, etc. oh my goodness. This was the coolest lesson ever!
Apparently A- got sick and went to the doctor a week after the lesson on the word of wisdom, and he told her to stay away from caffeinated drinks; this includes the tea that would be the hardest for her to give up. So she gave away all of her tea that wasn't herbal, and she has zero desire to drink coffee, too! Then we learned that she was fasting last Sunday! We didn't even know! But she had a really good day, so that was sweet. Also, she told us she gave her Book of Mormon away to a friend, but she has another copy so she didn't need another one :) This girl. She rocks my world. God is totally preparing her!! In His time. In His way, and we need to be patient. Nothing is really holding her back from baptism, although she did mention that she wants to see one first. We've invited her to multiple before but she hasn't been able to make it to any of them, so hopefully we can get her to one soon! It was such a good lesson. We went over the baptismal interview questions with her, too and that went super well! I love that girl. I'll be so sad to leave the people here in a couple weeks :(
Do you remember a while ago, the man Sister Morris and I met in the elevator who asked us to teach him? But then straight up told us he wouldn't read the Book of Mormon with real intent, so we dropped him? Well, he texted Sister Jones and I the other day asking how we were and if we could meet with him. So we went out to lunch with Elevator V- on Thursday! It was good :) He just needed some spiritual uplifting; still set in his ways, but we were happy to help meet his needs :)
Right after that we walked over to a bench outside for a lesson with a recent convert. You guys. The weather on Thursday was GORGEOUS! It wasn't humid at all, probably around 75 degrees with a little breeze, and sunny :) Oh I loved it! Anyway, that lesson went well! Later we had a lesson with a member and went to check on some people. We ran into D- and Lizo, his friend who wants to come to church! We talked with them for a short minute before we had to go home because guess who was sick again? Nope, not me :) Sister Williams! She got a blessing and felt a lot better, but didn't want to push it, so Sister Jones stayed home while Sister Liu came out with me so she wasn't stuck inside all day!
Having roommates has been such a blessing the past couple transfers! AND it was a sweet tender mercy that Sister Liu and I got to be companions for an evening again :) We visited with a less active and read from the Book of Mormon with her; she's having a hard time, so we read what we felt would meet her needs. I love doing what I do :)
I feel like it's just my life now. I feel like life before my mission was a completely different lifetime ago! Every day is the same routine, but for some reason it hasn't gotten old yet! I used to cringe when we would knock 3 or 4 times on one door because I didn't want to bother anyone or be a pain, but now I don't even care because there isn't anything that they're doing on the other side of that door that is more important than hearing the message we have for them. Also I'm just used to knocking that many times now :) Going back to normal life will be so weird, but I'm just going to live in the moment and absorb the beauty of a mission experience :) I love it!!
Friday was my 10 month mark!
Can we just stop and think about that for a minute?? 10 whole months already.
Where on earth did time go?? I thought I hit 9 months last week??
Where on earth did time go?? I thought I hit 9 months last week??
I'm grateful for the change and growth I've experienced thus far, and I'm so exited for it to continue throughout the rest of my life! I was going to say mission, but it doesn't stop there :) I'll continue to change and grow for the rest of my life :)
We had a lesson with J- in the afternoon, but got kicked out when his dad got home. That's never happened to me before! Weird. Also super funny because when he walked us out, we started talking about how we are created in Gods image, and how he believes that he is a God. Ah. So close. He also said he used to be able to fly, and then we realized that the drink in his cup was beer...
Every appointment we had scheduled for the rest of the day fell through, but it was still a fun night :) We met some cool people and Sister Jones is really good at being happy all the time, so despite the disappointment and rejection that night, we were able to see past it and have a good time :) I sure do love that sister, and I am super sad our time together is coming to an end :(
Saturday was awesome! It started out on a good note because we got to wear jeans again :) We helped clean the church in the morning, and you bet we took pictures, so I'll attach some of those :) The evening was the coolest though!! We had a lesson with a member and it was exactly what she needed, then we had an appointment with D- but it fell through. While checking on some less actives and potentials, every single person we ran into spoke only Spanish. It's times like that where I wish I was an Hermana! Oh well, English is good too :)
Randomly we thought of a potential investigator who happened to live on the complete opposite side of the city from where we were, and he really doesn't have even a tiny desire to do anything when it comes to church, reading scripture, etc. so we didn't think we'd see him that night. Instead, we went to see a girl who took the lessons for a while and was golden, but stopped opening the door and answering the elder's phone calls. So random. As we were driving to her house, we realized that somehow we were now on the other side of the city, right where that potential lived! I have no doubt that God took over and directed us to where we needed to be. Because we weren't going to go see this guy! But we knew at that point that we needed to, so we went over!
We asked if he had read the Book of Mormon and he said he hadn't, then we started talking about his lack of drive to do anything religious, and THEN he started telling stories of when he and his friends would experiment with the scriptures when he was younger. Weird, creepy experiments, but we took that and said, "You know what you really should experiment on??"
"Scripture?", He said.
"Yep! So there's this guy, he's the last prophet that wrote in the Book of Mormon, and he invites everybody to test God. He tells everybody to experiment and ask God if this stuff isn't true!"
Earlier in the conversation we told him we send out daily scriptures to people we teach, and asked if he would read them if we sent some to him. He said he would try, but that he wouldn't make any promises. WELL!! By the end of the conversation his heart was softened, and he said, "I will read those scriptures you send me! I'm looking forward to it, and I will make time to see you Friday evening".
Um, WHAT?!?
Basically sister Jones and I danced in the car the whole way home. God is SO COOL!!!
I KNOW without a doubt that Heavenly Father hears our prayers and he most definitely answers them in his own time, and in his own way. His hand is in ALL things!
I bet if you sat down and thought about your week, you would be able to see His hand in every day. I love my Father in Heaven more than I love ice cream. That's a lot.
- I've learned this week that when we submit to His will, letting go of all pride and selfishness, that he takes the reins. He literally directs us to where we need to be, and oh how much easier that makes things! It's so much harder when we try to do things our way. If we just let Him do His thing, we will find so much more joy in our lives, and things become so much easier. I testify that is true, and though submitting our will to His is difficult, it is SO incredibly worth it.
And it just gets better! Church was magical. Seriously. A- came to church and in Gospel Principles the comments that were made were beyond perfect for her! They were on point as to what A- needed to hear. Members invited her to institute on Tuesday, she signed up to feed us on Friday, and then we invited her to a fireside on Sunday where new members share their stories and how the gospel has blessed their lives since they've been baptized. It will be SO good!!
We saw Je-, a less active, later in the evening and invited her to it, too. Next Sunday will be a good day :) Sunday, yesterday, was a good day :) I love this place! I love the people I meet, the sisters I work with, the area that I'm in, and serving in a singles ward! It is wonderful!! If I could serve in a singles ward for the rest of my mission I would be in heaven. Families are great, too :), but currently I'm pretty biased ;)
Welp! I had a super good week :)
Life is SWEET.
- There is so much to be grateful for, and I had a thought the other day; why do we, as Latter Day Saints, let Satan get us down? Why do I let myself feel sad/bummed/down... ever? We have the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ! Hello!? Do we forget what that entails?? I think we do sometimes. #guilty.... but! There is no reason to not be happy :) So have a good week :) Remember who you are, and who you represent.
Let your light so shine before this people,
that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven
{3 Nephi 12:16}
{3 Nephi 12:16}
Love you all :)
Sister Kailey
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