Sept 19, 2011

September 19, 2011

What a week!!! Man oh man it has been so great. We met with our cute little Arianne...the one who came to stake conference. We taught her about the plan of salvation and she got a big ole smile on her face and she said my whole life I’ve thought there has to be a God, there has to be a reason I am here...and now I know there is a God, I know there is a reason. Life is so much better with belief and faith! :) She set a date to be baptized on October 8th!!!!!! And she said wow, I am here in Canada for 2 weeks and a month later I will be baptized! I am so happy. This is fate. It was precious. We met with her again on Thursday to go over the restoration...and she basically taught us. She knew all about it. We talked about prophets and how there is a prophet on the earth today that we get to hear from in a couple weeks...she was so excited and she said that is so great because it is God’s words that he will be speaking to us. He will tell us what God wants us to know! We were like uh...yea...then we were talking about the Book of Mormon and she said...well correct me if I’m wrong...but Moroni is Mormon’s son...and he appeared to Joseph Smith to show him where the plates were and then he got the plates and by the power of God was able to translate them. Ha. Ooh ok. It was so great she was loving it. The member that was with us had a picture of the SLC temple and we asked him to explain what the picture was and she said oh I know what that is...it's the temple in Utah. :) So...to say the least...she is amazing. She came to church yesterday and is coming to FHE tonight. Life is good.

We were able to do some with the family ward this weekend. They had a big service day so we got to go be with them...we met a young couple who just moved in...and he was companions with Brian Scholffman!!! It was fun to have a little tie to home. The ward is so fun. It is very very young...well...newlywed and nearly dead...it's fantastic. Lots and lots of young couples who just got married or who are just having their little ones and then lots of grandmas and grandpas. It’s so fun. I love it.

It was a great week. We hit our goals this week and saw so many wonderful miracles. We have zone meeting this week with interviews that I am so excited about. It should be another big week. We have a lot of lessons set up and working hard with our investigators. It’s great :)

Hope you all had a great week. Love you.

Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it

Sept 12, 2011

Sept 12, 2011

Well my first full week in Saskatoon!! It was crazy busy. We taught like mad and found like crazy and had a lot of working hours. The ward here is AMAZING. They are sooo involved in all the investigators lives and are so willing to work with us and have us over and meet with us...and yes...feed us…danger town. But it's so fun. It’s a very small little ward...but they are strong. We had Stake Conference this week and had 4 investigators there :) amazing. Elder Smith from the 70 came to speak. It was really great. One of the speakers talked about how we always look down on the 'primary answers" but really...primary answers are just as important as primary colors...you know how I feel about the color so I liked that a lot...he said you take away red yellow and blue…and you can't have anything...it's just like the primary answers...you have to have them…they are EVERYTHING. I liked it a lot. And he also said something to the effect of don't doubt in the dark what you knew in the light. God doesn't work in darkness. Don’t let yourself doubt what you already know.

We are working with some really solid investigators. One had a baptism date last month and the night before things fell through...so we are working really really hard with her. The other has been learning for a little bit and we have talked a lot about baptism with. The other is a miracle of the week. The elders found her contacting. She is from china. She came to stake conference and I asked her about her religious background and she didn't have any so is aid well you're in the right place and she said this is fate. I know I am. Then after the conference she said I’m going to need to learn from you. I need "beginner courses" I said well that's why we are here. She is really really excited about it. I’m excited to see how it pans out.

The ward members have been so welcoming. I am excited to get to know them better.

We had a fun tracting experience this week...the 1st 2 houses were no. the next house…the door was open and the man jumped and said wow...spooky...this is really prophetic that you are here. I’ve been looking for people like you to send to my friend.  His friend has been through a really hard time lately. We’re excited about that one. then the next 2 doors were no. then the next...a man answered and just starred at us while we talked...then when we paused he opened the door and said. Alright, come in. We said well is there a woman here and he said well no...so he said come back Monday night. I’ll be waiting. Saskatoon is busting with people who are being prepared. It’s so fun to work and teach. I’m exhausted...but that means I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.

We had a peak in the weather this week. Hot hot hot. Up in the mid 30's but this week is supposed to be high teens all week. That will be a blessing. ahha.

Tonight for FHE we are playing flour dodge ball!! Should be fun.

Hope you all had a great week. Love you all. Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.

Sept 6, 2011

Sept 6, 2011

I’m in Saskattoooooooooon!!! Wowzy it's so different here. The drive was BEAUTIFUL! It was so green lots of pretty fields...sun flower fields and little towns that popped up on the way. It was about 10 hour car ride...I drove about 8 hours of it...you know I loved that. I even got to see the Regina temple on the way. It is small but beautiful. I hope I get a chance to go inside!! We made it to Saskatoon Thursday night...I unpacked and we went to work on Friday teaching like crazy all weekend!! Sunday was a nice breather...I was able to catch my breath a bit. We are covering 2 wards!! A family ward...the Wildwood Ward...which is sooo great very young but very fun and solid and the YSA branch which is very small but soooo good. The members are so fun and so strong. So we got to church pretty much all day. Then all the missionaries are singing in the stake choir for stake conference this weekend...so we had choir practice...which...I participated in. ha. We’ll see how that goes. I’m sure it'll be a great experience...but I don't know the songs at all. Ha. It was pretty humorous. :)

The area is sooo pretty. There are a lot of hills which is not like Winnipeg at all...and it is very very green and clean here. It’s a whole different feel than in Winnipeg. It’s nice. We are working with a lot of investigators here. We teach A LOT which is such a HUGE blessing. I love it. I have been able to meet a lot of the investigators they are working with already and they are really good. I’m excited to get to know them more and teach more and more and more. God sends blessings for sure.

The weather here is a lot cooler as well.

Last week...I wrote about Kelly from Winnipeg and how we were worried about her because she was pretty upset at church...wellllll before I left we met with her...and don't worry...she just felt the overwhelming power of the spirit and said she has never felt more loved in her life and she had never felt that way so she didn't know how to handle it..So she just got freaked out and didn't know what to do. :) Sad...but really good. She said it is going to take some getting used to feeling so much love and the spirit so strongly. She is soooo great. I’m going to miss teaching her for sure but she is in good hands and she will do great things. I’m excited for her.....so anyways...that was good to know. ;) We were pretty nervous about it.

Anyways…hope you all had a great week. Love you all so much, even from Saskatooooooooon.

Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it. xoxoxoxoxo

August 29, 2011

Well another week has come and gone!

It was a pretty long week again with a lot of walking time. We are getting some nice leg muscles for sure and working off any of the food we are eating...so I guess it's a good thing. :) buuuuttt…it was good. We talked with a girl named Grace...she told us we could come to her house one night at 830...so we went. We knocked on the door and a girl answered...we thought it was Grace...so we said oh, hey can we still come in to visit with you...she looked at us pretty weird...but then said yea...so we went in and started talking with her...then she said, hold on, I think my house mate will want to hear this...so..She went to get her house mate...her house mate was Grace. Ha! Iit turns out Grace was not interested...but Flora was :) so there is a reason everything happens for sure. We’ll see how it goes with cute little Flora.

We had a couple really great lessons with Kelly! We taught the Word or Wisdom this week and she was so excited about it. She said she knows it will help her so much and she has some really great goals in place to help her out! It was neat to see how excited she was about it. She said man, this just revs me up. I’m all excited about it. And she said she was getting more and more excited for her baptism!! She said she keeps thinking about it and keeps getting excited for the change and for things that are happening. :) Later in the week we met with her and watched Legacy...she loves the pioneers and the faith they have and the sacrifices they made. After...she invited us to her home and made us supper! It was so fun to be with her. We were able to get to know her more and just visit with her. She made us some really good noodles and salad and we had a FANTASTIC carrot cake with thick cream cheese frosting. You know that was good. She was so excited to have us in her home and to cook and for us to al just be together. Then...I had to tell her...that....I'M BEING TRANSFERED!! Wooed what?! I know. My first move. I feel like I’m starting another mission. I am going to Saskatoon!! I will be serving with Sister Crozier again. It should be really great. They have some really great things happening over there in Saskatoon so I’m excited to get to teach more. It’s weird to think that I’m actually going somewhere...I feel at home here...but I guess that means that a change is needed!...so since I am leaving I got to give a talk in the Wellington Ward. That’s a good ward. I’ll miss it a lot.

So yes...on Thursday I’ll be heading to Saskatoon is Saskatchewan... (I think I spelt that wrong) it's about 8 hours away. There are only about 3 people getting transferred this transfer...and all of us have the last name smith. aah. Kind of funny.

Annnyywaaayyyss.....so Kelly also came to church on Sunday. When she walked in she was really excited and happy...then when we were singing the opening hymn...she started to cry...and was pretty upset the rest of church. She wouldn't tell us what was going on or why she was upset...so it was pretty sticky...we were supposed to meet with her afterwards...but she went home. We are meeting with her on Tuesday so hopefully we'll be able to clear some things up.

At any rate...things are good. We have been working very very hard...walking and working for hours! But we're happy. I’m sad to leave Sister Hope. She’s been so great and we've worked so hard together and have seen a lot of miracles. But...a new adventure is at hand! :)

Hope you all had a great week. Love you so much. Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.

PS...Next week I may or may not be able to write until Tuesday...I’m not sure what the library is like over there in Saskatoon...but since it's a holiday...it may be till Tuesday...just fyi.:)

August 22, 2011

 It’s been another full week of walking...but man oh man have we been blessed!!

We met with Kelly 3 times this week. Every time we meet with her we just feel so uplifted. She’s moving in the right direction for sure. She keeps talking about how she's not going to put God on the shelf so when she gets baptized she needs to know she will be able to keep that promises because it's so big.  She wants to be able to sacrifice more and to feel like she is prepared…which is so good. She understands the significance of baptism. Each time we talk about she won't set a date. BUUUUTTTT...dun dun dun. On Friday we met with her. We were talking bout priesthood and the prophet, it lead into the authority to baptize...naturally. We asked her about how she was feeling and things she needs to do. She said she really wants to think about that question. She said she knows she'll get baptized but it's always just going to be in the distance, she just keeps putting it off, but one day she'll do it. So I asked her...how are you going to get to that point if you keep putting it in the future. Unless you make a goal...it will always just keep being pushed and you won't be able to make goals to get to your goal. We bore very deep testimony and the spirit was SOOOO strong. After we bore our testimonies, she just looked at us and said I’m listening. I hear you. It was silent for a minute and she said...well...are there any dates in October? How about October 8th? We looked at her and said what? She said October 8th. :) :) :) :) :) :):) ARE YOU KIDDING ME! She set her own date!  We talked a lot about things we can do to help her be prepared. Then she came to the mission fireside last night, it talked a lot about the pioneers and the sacrifice and faith, it really interested her and then we gave her the movie Legacy. We talked a bit about faith and doing something with our faith. It reminded me of what Elder Christensen...the new couple missionaries in the YSA Ward said, "knowing the church is true is great, but it's what you do with that knowledge that makes such a difference." It's so true. We have to act. We always have to act. We  act by going to church, by repenting, by serving, by getting baptized, but fulfilling our callings...it's all about acting. Ooooh man. It was so great.

Big things are happening here. The Lord is preparing these people for the temple.

Even though it was a long 2 weeks - a lot of finding...we have most definately been blessed. God knows the plan, and just when you think you can't walk another mile....BAM...He puts something in your path and miracles happen. It’s all a test of faith and what we're willing to do.

The church is true. For sure it is.

Love you all. Hope you had a great week.

Love you. Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.

August 15, 2011

Hello everyone! It’s been a pretty good week. We got to see Kelly a couple times this week. We brought a recent convert to one of our appointments, he was able to really talk with her and answer some questions that she has. It was great. Sister Hope and I just sat there and they just chatted back and forth for a while. I think it really helped her out. She didn't come to church this week but we're hoping for a big week with her this week. She is great and is so excited about the gospel. :)

We met with a couple girls this week...they are sisters and their mom met the elders and told them to send us over. The girls weren't that interested but the mom sure was. She just wants her girls to make good choices and to do better things and she was just begging them to sit down and talk with us. It reminded me so much of 1 Nephi ch. 8 when Lehi is talking about Lamen and Lemuel and talking with them with all the tender feelings of a parents heart. It was sad to see how heartbroken this mom was and how much she just wanted happiness for her girls.

In sacrament meeting Bro. Cutts read this story called runaway bunny...it's about this little bunny who wants to run away but the mom keeps saying she'll go find him...If he turns into a fish to swim away...the mom would turn into a fishermen to catch him...if the bunny turns into a bird to fly away…the mom would turn into a tree to be his home...then he related it to how Heavenly Father feels about us. No matter where we run or where we go to "get away" or go to try different things...He will always be there for us...He will go find us..."leave the 99 to find the 1." He loves us all so much and wants us ALL to come home to Him no matter where we have been.

Hope you had a great week. Hope things are going well. Miss you. Love you all. Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.

Love Sister Smith

August 8, 2011

Augut 8, 2011

Hello hello hello. This transfer is flying by! We are already in week three! It’s been a good week! We've been working a lot with Opal. She went to church yesterday with her three little ones and we had our work cut out for us. Ha! It was a party, but Sister Hope and I got to go to the family ward with her since it was her first week at church. She stayed for all 3 hours and did great.

We’ve been working a lot with Kelly too!! She’s been meeting with us about every other day and she's doing so great. On Saturday we got to go to a baptism. Cheyenne...Sarah’s daughter...got baptized on Saturday. It was so special to be there and to watch her be baptized. It just helps my testimony grow in finding. Sister Reid and I knocked on Sarah’s door and now she has been baptized and now her daughter. The gospel works in amazing ways... Kelly came to that and she loved it. We talked with her afterwards and she mentioned the date that we had suggested for her and how she keeps thinking about it and the things she needs to do. She’ll get there. She's working really hard at it and is allowing herself to embrace it. It is so great.

As Sister Hope and I were finding this week, we were walking down the street and there were 2 people riding a tandem bike and they were yelling at us and waving. So normally when that happens...it usually isn't pleasant so we just waved and kept walking...then they said sisterrrsss so we turned and they said we're LDS. So we went and talked to them. It was a couple who just graduated from BYU Idaho. For his internship they are biking across Canada writing up some kind of report!! It was so fun. He is from Boise...Keith Larsen. It was so fun to talk with them for a little bit.

I hope you are all doing great!!! Love you all.  Life is good. Allow youself to smile and be happy. It’s all worth it.

Love you all.

Be good. Remember who you are.

Live it. Love it.

Sister Smith