Miriam, one of my favourite ladies EVER!
FHE last week with Sister Watson (in the green) and two investigators, a mother and daughter.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
26 August 2014
Alright, the big news. My fate for the last six weeks of my mission. First of all, it was pretty much everyones assumption that I would be leaving and getting released as STL and definitely that was my prediction as well but....
I'm staying in Ipswich!!!!!!!!
I am so ecstatic! Man, I am so spoiled. I really was wishing I could stay but not assuming I would. But I get to! I'm feeling very blessed. I will be getting a sister named Sister Danielle Eastin from Arizona. Which is funny to me because my first companion was also from Arizona. Its like bookends. Sister Formica sadly is leaving me. She's going to Stevenage. But its only a short separation because we will be together in 6 weeks time! Our transfer together has been really fun and so full of miracles! I know the miracles will continue, it was just really fun to share them with her. It is her 22nd birthday today, we had a bit of a celebration in the morning listening to Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat and opening presents. Hopefully the party will last all day.
Other than that, our week has been pretty average. I really have no stories to tell really.
I'm really excited for this transfer. I'm planning on thrusting in the sickle hard core. Going out with a bang. I absolutely love this place and the people here. They, and God, deserve my best. I hope I can give it to them with my whole heart these last 6 weeks. And hopefully not think too much about how it is my last 6 weeks. It will be fun!
Monday, August 18, 2014
OH I FORGOT THE BEST STORY EVER!
So we got to the chapel early on Saturday to fill the font for the baptism. After like 30 minutes we checked it and the water was not warm at all, so we called the member that is in charge of that sort of thing. He was leaving for Portugal so had to instruct us over the phone on how to get the boiler running. He really said to us, "Sisters, what you are about to do it really dangerous and you need to listen really carefully, because if you do it wrong at all, the boiler will explode and you will die. I'm no joking. Are you still sure you want to do this?"
It was frightening. But we needed hot water dang it so we did it anyway and thankfully we did not blow ourselves to bits. It was really scary though. We really risked our lives for this baptism.
Thought you might find that a good story.
18 August 2014
What a week! We will start with the most exciting stuff, TWO BAPTISMS!!!!! YAY! Barry and Eliza got baptised! So Barry is the husband of a recent convert named Carolyn. She was baptised in February and he has always said he will do it when he's ready. Well last month he spent some time in the hospital and we went and visited him and he said he was ready, so its finally happened! They are both so excited for the time next year when they can be sealed in the temple. They are so stinkin cute. Barry is 71 years old and a massive fan of football (like proper football, not American football.)
Eliza is 82 and from Zimbabwe. She is the most faithful lady you will ever meet, so stinkin cute! She has been being taught for about 6 or 7 months, but with a 2 month hiatus to London in there. But she is just the sweetest little thing, I love her.
Other than the two baptisms, we had a bunch of other amazing miracles this week as well. Our investigator Danie, the one that wasn't interested and then we asked him for referrals and now he's on date, he came to church last week and invited a friend, Mario. Mario loved it and is now getting baptised the same day as Danie. We just had a lesson with them, they are outstanding young men! They are both just very accepting and they feel the Spirit very purely, it is amazing to watch them learn because it is completely driven by Spiritual promptings, because the info we are throwing at them is pretty new. They are great!
Wednesday I had Sister Aliberti with me here on an exchange. She served here before me. She is so sweet. And super smart! She goes home to Italy next week, so we will be sad to see her go.
Thursday was so interesting. We had pretty much everything that we had scheduled cancel, and as we were standing waiting for a bus where there was absolutely no where to take cover, the sky opened up and just rained and rained and rained. I was drenched. Pictures to follow. So we went to teach Eliza, and then went home to put on dry clothes because I was also freezing cold. While we were at home, my phone rang and it was a number I didnt have saved. The lady on the other end explained that she had known the sisters like 5 years ago and had always helped them and gave them rides and stuff, so we had just popped into her mind and she was calling to see if we needed any help. So sweet! We arranged to see her that night. We met her and her 14 year old daughter (most clever teenager I've ever met) and they came to the baptism on Saturday and church on Sunday and they accepted a baptismal invitation! Such an amazing miracle!
Not much else to report on this week, but it was a really good one. Sister Formica and I are having a blast. I am so lucky to have been able to serve with such amazing sisters in my mission and to make lasting friendships. I love my companion! And its her birthday next week so I have to think up something good for that.
This week I go on an exchange to Kings Lynn and one with the Thetford sisters. Should be pretty exciting! Love you all, have a great week!
Monday, August 11, 2014
11 August 2014
This week has been a busy one! We had our interviews with President Jordan on Tuesday in Cambridge. It was our last formal interviews until our departing interviews the day we go home. That was super weird, and hasnt really sunk in yet anyway. But it was really good, he trained us on letting the Holy Ghost be the teacher and Sister Jordan taught about being a consecrated missionary. I always leave meetings with them renewed in my desire to get out and do work. It was great. At the end of the meeting, a missionary that finished his mission after my first transfer showed up because he was visiting. It is so weird to see people you know from the mission that have since gone home as normal people when you are still a missionary.
Which leads to the next story. Sister Emily King from Australia, who was STL last year (but never my STL, sadly) has been in Ipswich for the week, and we have been with her every day for the last 4, and have things scheduled with her the next 2 days. It is so fun having her! She is still a rock star, even though she went home like 8 months ago. She has been teaching with us, and it is just really fun to be with her and talk about how adjusting to home was and stuff.
Remember the guy I said we had a lesson with last Monday? The one that initially wasn't interested? Well now he has a baptismal date and he came to church yesterday! So great. He is really doing well. And so are Barry and Eliza, the two investigators that are getting baptised this Saturday! Barry is 71 and Eliza is 82, so it is going to be a real treat figuring out logistics of getting them under the water. They are both amazing, pray for them!
Today we went to this beach town called Felixstowe with Barry's wife, Carolyn. It was fun, although it was pretty much us looking around! We played mini golf, and although I was probably the most skilled golfer there, I got last place. Of course.
President wrote something in his email to us this week that really hit home. He was talking about a returned missionary that found a new investigator for the sisters in an area, and he said, "She didn't just go through her mission, her mission went through her." I love that! I hope the same can be said of me. I love my mission, and I hope it has changed me for the better!
Monday, August 4, 2014
4 August 2014 (My 16 month mark, YIKES!)
Its been another miracle-filled week here in Ipswich! I sweat this is the best place ever, every single week is just jam-packed with awesomeness. We just got done with a lesson with this 20 year old guy. We found him Friday and as we were approaching him he just said, "I'm not religious" and moved to keep walking past us, but we asked him who he knew that would be interested in a message about Jesus Christ (great PMG principle, ask for referrals from everyone) and he just stopped in his tracks and him thinking about who he knew gave us an opportunity to talk to him about why he is "not religious." Had a great conversation with him, and our first lesson today he talked about how he has had at the back of his mind for a while that he wants to change his life and he thinks a belief in God will help him with that. He is SO prepared!
We also started teaching another man this week that is also SUPER prepared. When we met him, he talked about how he likes to keep busy (if you want to be busy, being LDS is your best bet). We met with him this week and he has been searching for truth for ages, has gone to many churches with all these questions that they can't answer and really loved the message of the Restoration. Yesterday we called to follow up on how he is liking the Book of Mormon, and he said that he feels very different than his previous times with other faiths, he feels like he is finally headed in the right direction. How brilliant is that?!
So, that's been the great miracles this week, we are finding super prepared people. YSA are my favourite to teach, I think.
On Tuesday we had MLC (my last one, so so sad) and it was excellent as usual. It is honestly my favourite meeting on the mission. It is so powerful to sit in a room full of really young people who are being expected to carry the Lord's work in this corner of the vineyard. And these are the future leaders of the Church! It is just so amazing to sit in a room amongst so many amazing missionaries and feel of the Spirit and the sacrifices they have made to serve the Lord. I love my brothers and sisters in the ELM!
Wednesday we had an exchange with the Cambridge sisters. I brought Sister McNamee, a brand new missionary, to Ipswich for the day. On the train ride to Ipswich, I was getting to know her and found out her conversion story. She is from Tennessee, but was found by missionaries while going to Ohio State. And then she got taught and got baptised. But here is the kicker. SHE GOT BAPTISED WHILE I WAS ON MY MISSION! Yes, I have been a missionary longer than she has been a member. WHAT?! That made me feel sooooooooo old. But also super inspired because she has such a strong desire to serve, and I didnt have that desire until I had been a member almost 20 years haha. Anyway, she is cool and we had a good time.
Yesterday in church, both Shanice and "Al" (remember, I changed his name for anonymity purposes) bore their testimonies and it. was. AWESOME! Aaksdfasdklfasdkfjasdf I just love them both so much. Oh and guess what? Al proposed to his girlfriend this week! Yay for eternal families! Sure hope I can scrape together the money to come back for their sealing next year.
Hope you all have a great week. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all things will be added unto you!
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