It Has Been A LOOOOONG Time Coming

It Has Been A LOOOOONG Time Coming

Holy Molly what a week! So much to tell!

Shout outtttssss

Thank you to Marisa for the letter! It was wonderful hearing from you and I'm glad the family is doing well! 

And mom I have not yet received the  package of letters from the family

Ok as for this weekkkkkk TONS of stuff happened! 

I guess I will start with Fiona :)

So this week we got to see Fiona a couple times. The first time we stopped by we got in to see her but only had enough time to chat with her/establish our role as missionaries. She shared with us some cool experiences in her life and informed us that the day we knocked on her door she decided to quite drinking... Wait WHAT?!?! Sister Rogers and I chuckle and explain to Fiona that we dont drink either. Fiona is super curious about our religion so she was asking us why so we explained the word of wisdom briefly. She told us that the only thing she would struggle with is coffee, but that she was willing to give it up.... that's right people. Fiona has committed to live the word of wisdom without actually being taught anything. She is SO cool! The next time we saw Fiona she was frantically running around to go pick her son up from school. She quickly told us to get in the car with her soooo we did. HAHAHA! Next thing we know we are teaching her the restoration in the car on the way to pick up one of her kids. The experience was SO bizarre that we had to take a picture.

Fiona and her two boys came with us to church this week as well :D Fiona really enjoyed it! 

Now for a Jordan update. So we get a call from Jordan Wednesday night- he wanted to let us know that he had been praying and reading the Book of Mormon and that he felt that he should get baptized on the 13th!!! He said that he really wanted both Sister Rogers and I to be there for his baptism so he didnt want to postpone it. We explained to him that we were getting transfer calls this week and that one of us might be leaving....  He decided that he would fast the next day so that we might stay. WOW. Jordan is way cool! So this week when we went to go teach Jordan we talked a little more about his baptism and addressed some of his concerns. He even told us that he was thinking about serving a mission in a few years.... BAH! If Jordan serves a mission I will literally die of happiness! When he told us Sister Rogers and I nearly feel off our chairs and then squealed with excitement like little girls. Ah I am just so excited to see what happens to Jorden in these next few years :D

Sam, Sis. Rogers, Jorden, and sis. HAll

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO............. we got transfer calls last night....... Looks like Sister Rogers is staying in Oakville with Sister Ormond as her new companion. Sister Ormond also happened to be my MTC companion and someone who I adore very much! I am glad she is coming to Oakville; I trust her with our investigators :) 

As for little old me I am heading to the other end of the mission to.............. KINGSTON! Cool eh!? I will be companions with Sister Lang (from CARDSTON! Who also came out with me!) We are opening a new area over there for YSA...... That's right. I will be serving in YSA. SOOOOOO WEIRD! It will be a completely different experience and will be a great learning opportunity for sure!  I will miss Oakville for sure and I'm sad I wont get to see Jordan baptized, but really the most important thing is that he is going to enter into that promise with God :) 

Now Kingston is a very special place in the mission. Back in the day, Brigham Young baptized like 50 people there in 1 WEEK! When president Monson was mission president in Toronto the Kingston area was doing TERRIBLE! So bad in fact that the missionaries called that area Stoney Kingston because the peoples hearts were made of stone. He decided to try an experiment so he closed down the area for a while until everyone forgot about Kingston. Then he started spreading rumors about how he was going to re-open an area in the mission where Brigham Young baptized 50 people. All the missionaries got super excited. Parents started writing letters to Pres. Monson asking if their boys could serve there etc... Anyways the area began to flourish with many many baptisms :) 

The life of a missionary: Get up, exercise, prepare for the day, study, find, teach, baptize. Each day you wonder:  What does the lord have prepared for us this day? Whoever shall we run into or teach on the street? Who does he want us to find? Where does he want us to go? Following the spirit, teaching by the spirit. Teaching with members. Learning. Growing. Progressing. Becoming Like Jesus Christ. This is missionary work. Adventure. Life. This is awesome.I feel an overall peace for the good things taking place here in Oakville. We see miracles each and every day and because so, I am humbled by the power of God and his magnificent influence in my life. I have the desire to do better. I have the desire to become something better. I pray the Lord will take me places never thought possible. All things are possible through Christ. What we need is a vision, set the goal, back it up with spiritual confirmation and the diligent hard work to get there. 

I'm excited for what the future holds! It looks like is going to be a pretty neat adventure over in Kingston YSA! They had best look out! 

Line of the week: So we get a call saturday night from our district leader asking us to come out to Burlington to help a family move. We show up there to find that our whole district has been recruited!

Elder Wunhanie: "Who would have thought that by the end of the night we would all be in the back of a U-Hall...."

Scripture of the Week: D&C 58: 27 (thats what it was supposed to be last week haha)
"Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness."

A Haiku for you: 

YSA

Young Single adults

What The What!?

Sister Hall

This is me fasting durring weekly planning.... it got pretty rough

So Full Of Love

So Full Of Love

Where to even begin!???

Shout Outsssssss

First of all............ HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST MOM EEEEVVVVEEEERRRRR!!!!!!!!! She is the salt of the earth and the peanut butter to my jelly! I should also apologize that you havent gotten my letter yet! I wanted to include something in it and we just havent had time to actually get it done so I wasn't able to send it out to you in time to get to you today (did that make any sense?) Anyways rest assured that it is on its way WITH the surprise :)

I am spiritually exhausted from this week and I wouldnt have it any other way :)

I've told you about the two girls we are teaching, Jane and Jenny from the Philippines- we taught them a few more times this week. It was such a treat being able to get to know them because they have begun to open up to us and we can see them beginning to trust us. We had a cool experience with Jane, who normally tries not to speak. It was near the end of the lesson and we were trying to wrap up so we can get out on time. I noticed that Jane was about to share something, but the member we brought interrupted (not on purpose) her. I stayed quiet and was interested to see if Jane would just let it go or if she would attempt to talk again. After our member had finished talking Jane piped up and asked if she could share a story. We all listened as she explained how they only went to church 2 x a year back home and how she liked being able to go to church every week with us. She explained that at church she felt good and at home. It was sweet to see her take the time to express that to us. A little tender mercy from God :)

So Rogers and I are out tracting around a referral that we had gotten from HQ (head quarters) and we knocked on the door of a nice woman. She was all done up with make-up and the works but she took the time to talk with us and asked us if she could have a copy of the Book of Mormon. SCORE! We give her a copy and told her that we will come back on friday to see how things are going. 

So we go back and knock on the door and this guy answers the door. He has on a leather jacket, has tattoos, has a really nice flow going on (reminds me of taylor kitch), a square jaw... he just looks like a guy that you wouldnt want to mess with. Anyways we ask if Fiona is home and he goes and gets her. She apologizes and tells us that he was supposed to be away on a bicker trip with his friends this weekend but he came home due to the weather. She said we should probably come back another time when he wasnt home. We said no problem and chatted with her a little more. THEN she invited us in to have some home made apple pie. 

->side note. Coolest thing about being a missionary is the people that you get to meet. I mean who would invite complete strangers into their home to give them pie?!

Anyways we start talking with Fiona about her week and then her husband, whose name happens to be Taylor, sits down on the couch and starts asking us questions. We end up talking with them for a good hour. You really should never judge a book by its cover. Taylor turned out to be a super open and God loving man. He told us about his grandpa who served in the war; he killed 4 men and with each of those men he took their ID and after the war, every year he would send flowers to their families. I talked with him about how God will always win and compared it to being in a dark cave and then lighting a single match. That little match can illuminate this cave. Light will always over come darkness. He really liked that analogy and even refereed back to it several times throughout the discussion.

Anyways we left them and Fiona gave us her number so we could figure out a time to come back. That night she sent us a text to thank us for coming over and told us that Taylor was also interested in sitting in on the discussions. SWEEEEEET!

Sam was confirmed a member of the church today and was given the gift of the Holy Ghost. I'd have to say that that was one of the highlights of my mission. In sunday school Jordan opened up about how the missionaries have helped him to have a change of heart. He said that at first he thought that we were just weird preacher girls trying to convert his mom, but as he got to know us (or in other words as he felt the spirit) his heart began to change and that he felt the love that we had for his mom. He realized that there was something different about us etc... That night Sam had us over for dinner and she made us perogies! Then we had our little discussion with Jordan. From when we first met Jordan to now, the change that has taken place is incredible. He has a different light about him. He smiles more and laughs more and just looks happier. We asked him if he has noticed a difference in his life since he started coming to church and reading and praying and he says he has. This is big for him because Jordan's natural instinct is to fight everything we say. Teaching him that night, he didn't argue with us once. At the end of the lesson we invited him to be baptized on October 13th. We could see that there was some inner conflict going on inside him so Sister Rogers asked what would be keeping him from being baptized. I cant remember what he said, but then we asked the question, "What if the Saviour was standing in front of you... what would He say?" and Jordan said "He'd say I was ready......" BAH! We left it to him to pray over and are excited to see him on friday!

I came out on a mission as a way to give thanks to God for all that He has given me, but now I'll be thanking God for giving me the opportunity to serve for the rest of my life!(I dont know if that made any sense but eh thats alright!)

Line of the week: Our zone leaders sent out a text asking everyone for ideas on how to get members to fellowship. This is the text we sent back:

Oakville sisters: "Have all the single males ordered Filipino brides!? That way you get a convert baptism AND help them receive an ordinance!"

Scripture of the week: D&C 58: 37

"And it is wisdom also that there should be lands purchased in Independence, for the place of the storehouse, and also for the house of printing." (Hmmm.....?? -J)

A Haiku For You

Never Fear

Love you to the moon

Mom Is Here

Sister Hall

We stopped by to say Hi to Sammy and left with gifts haha! Sammy bought me that pretty jacket, that wonderful purse (which I used all day while tracting hahahaha!) AND that awesome orange travel bag! 

How Great Shall Be Your Joy

How Great Shall Be Your Joy

I must admit, this week I have been spoiled.

First off, I have been taking the advice from my sister training leader and we are dropping some of our investigators. Its hard, but I know that it is necessary. I have a little analogy actually about this that I'd love to share with you all. So you know how if someone likes you, and you are absolutely oblivious to it even though everyone around you can see how much this person likes you, well its the same with investigators. As missionaries all you can see is this investigator dressed all in white but everyone else can see that they are just not ready. Lol that made me chuckle thinking about it.

I got spiritually round house kicked in the face this week at our zone conference! Oh my, President Scott is just so inspired and SO funny! He talked about comfort zones and how we all have the tendency of wanting to stay in our comfort zones, but when we do that we stop progressing.... and as we know, the gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of progression. President went on to say that at certain points in our mission we start to plateau; we begin to get comfortable with the lessons... "Oh you have a question about faith? Let me take you to Alma 32!" Or, "Today I want to talk with you about how you can find answers to your prayers. Let me bring you to a passage in Enos!" We get into those routines and we stop relying on the Lord for help. Thats when things start to get dangerous. The Spirit sure did his job that day, because I got the message loud and clear haha. I have started to get very comfortable with missionary work and I have noticed myself relying less and less on God and becoming more complacent. I've decided to shape up and as dad would say, "pull up my socks and get back to work"! I'm working on finding different scriptures to use and am working on coming up with little personal goals for myself like using a scripture to answer someones question on the street etc.... Since doing this I feel SO much better! I didn't even realize that I had been missing something in my life until I made the changes. 

This principle of course goes beyond mission life to ever day life. President Monson says we change every day. It is up to use to be sure that we change in a way that helps us to progress in our journey back home!

So this week my dear Samantha was scheduled to be baptized. Sister Rogers and I are sitting in sacrament (about 10 min into it) and we realize Sam isn't here.... Rogers and I exchange nervous glances and decided to go out and give her a call. We are pacing up and down the hall. The phone rings and she doesnt pick up. We call again and I hear a voice on the other end. Turns out Sam forgot her tithing so she made Jordan, her son, drive back home so she could get it. 

Words really do not do justice to how I felt watching Sam take that first step back to returning to live with her Father in Heaven, but a few hours after the service I reflected on the days events and this image of God and all his angels rejoicing for Sam entered my mind and I felt a joy that I have never experienced before. All the doors that get slammed in our face, all the people that tell me I'm brain washed, none of it matters :)

Line of the Week: 

Grace is Sam's 4 year old daughter

Grace 5 min before the baptism: "Where is the lake mom?"
Grace seconds before the ordinance is performed: "Look, it's a jacuzzi! Why is mom in the jacuzzi?"

Scripture of the week: Alma 26: 37

"Now my brethren, we see that God is mindful of every people, whatsoever land they may be in; yea, he numbereth his people, and his bowels of mercy are over all the earth. Now this is my joy, and my great thanksgiving; yea, and I will give thanks unto my God forever. Amen."

A Haiku For You: 

narrow gate

leading back to home

straight path

Sister Hall

Hoarding Investigators

Hoarding Investigators 

Man it feels like FOREVER since I have sent an email home!!!!!!!

So life on the mission has been peachy :) a little bit of a roller coaster, but that is life. Before we get into everything, a few shout outs are in order I think :) 

Cute Kittens!!

Shout Outssssssss

To my dearly beloved sister Jillian, I absolutely LOVE the photo Album AND the necklace soooooo no you cannot have it back hahaha. I think I've looked through that album at LEAST 6x's and it still hasnt gotten old. 

To the Summers, thank you for the running shoes! They fit great and are WAY cooler than my old running shoes!

As for this week I met some cool people one of them being a girl named Gillian who happened to be baptized by Jeff Spackman.... SAY WHAT!? SOOOOOO cool haha! She had us over for lunch and we got to talking about her conversion story and mentioned the elder who baptized her is from Calgary and lo and behold he comes from the great Spackman line! Anyways she says Hi to the Spackman family :)

I got to ride a bike! BUT safety first!!!! hhahah

I got to go on an exchange to the great city of Brambladesh (aka Brampton or Little India) hahahaha! I swear there are more East Indians here than there are in actual India! I am so thankful mother for making me go to FFCA. I can now relate to all the people in Brampton. For example, Sister Sunbloom and I were out walking around and came across a few East Indians who were sitting outside. We went over to go talk to them and they quickly give us their chairs, grab us some orange juice and fresh mangos.... Yes I can get used to this! Anyways so we start talking with them and we find out that they are Punjabi so I ask them if their last name is Sing (haha). They get all excited and say that is the mans last name or something, but they were very impressed that the white girl new a thing or two. By the end of our conversation they called me little Indian girl and were convinced that I was Indian. Apparently its my dark hair and my face...?

Something that I didnt anticipate doing on my mission (and I dont know why I didnt think Id face this problem being called to Toronto and all) was having to teach people who's second language is English.... it's like being called to a foreign mission, but never being taught your mission language which makes for some good awkward moments. I now know how to say missionaries, Jesus Christ and prophets in spanish, so I'm pretty much covered to teach the restoration to anyone Spanish and now I'm working on my Tagalog. We found a family to teach who are from the Philippines, well their mom is a member and has been here for a few years and her 4 kids arent members and they have just come from the Philippians 10 months ago. Anyways we are now teaching her 2 daughters Jane (19) and Jenny (14). Jenny has really great English, but Jane is not as comfortable... she kinda looks at us and smiles awkwardly when we ask her a question (doesn't everyone??? :) -J) haha its great! The fist time we went over to their house only Jane was there and Sister Rogers got all excited and started talking a mile a minuet and Jane had to ask her to speak slower.  

This Sunday Sam will be baptized!! We have been seeing her every day this week so far and we are spending our p-day with her after we email. She is so humble and full of the spirit and such a wonderful example to me of walking by faith. Meeting her was more of a gift to Sister Rogers and I than I think it was for her to be taught by us haha. 

I would like to send out a formal invitation to the Davidson's to come to Sam's baptism :) It will be on the 8th at 1:30pm at the chapel.

Line of The Week: In response to Sister Sunblooms commitment to me to drop some of our 19 investigators

Me: "Ya.... I think I have a problem maybe I'll email the president about it in my weekly email.... 'Dear president, I've got a slight problem.... I hoard investigators'"

Scripture of the week: D&C 6: 7

"Seek not for rights but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich."

A Haiku for You:

Atonement

GREATEST gift from God

hope eternal


Sister Hall

This is the ski hill in Brambladesh! I'm thinking next next winter vacation we should make a family trip out here and ride the slopes! 

Sister Rogers.....doing her personal study?