April 30, 2012

This week was another good one in wonderful Brandon Manitoba. It was
rainy...but blessed!! :) The Romero’s had their baptism interview
Saturday night...they are getting baptized this Saturday!!!! :) :) :)
just 6 short days!   After the interview they both just kept saying over
and over again...I am so happy. I am so happy. :) They are excited to
get details all set and to be baptized. It will be an amazing day and
the whole ward is just so excited about it :) so many miracles!!! The
Lord truly is blessing us so much here in Brandon. It has been an
absolute privilege to serve here and to work with this ward and to
find these amazing people!!!
Yesterday Sis. Kunzler and I got to give talks in sacrament meeting.
Each of us was assigned a hymn. I was able to talk on 270...I’ll go Where You Want Me To Go.                   It really made me think about what a profound
statement that is. That is a lot of trust...I’ll go where you want me
to go. I had a hard time going where mom or dad wanted me to go or
doing what my teachers wanted me to do...but we sing out saying...I’ll
go where you want me to go dear Lord. It may not be on a mountain
high....or in Brandon Manitoba...for you it may be across the street
to the neighbors or at a different lunch table to eat with someone who
is alone...or at work being a good example...or at school. It was
really neat to be able to really think about the words in that hymn
and what it really means to go where the Lord would have us go. As I
have strengthened my faith in my Savior...it has helped me to really
be able to say with all I have that I will go where He would have me
go...say what He would have me say and Be who HE would have me be. I
know that can come for anyone as they have faith in their Savior.
Here is a funny moment in my Spanish learning process...
last week Glenda and I were talking about soccer and she had asked if
I play soccer. well I was trying to explain that when I was younger I
played...I couldn't think about how to say that...so I went about it
like this..."mi hijos...." trying to say when I was a kid....hahahahha
but instead I said..Oh my kids play soccer!!!!!! She about died!!!! It
was so funny. So all the time now she asks how my kids are doing in
soccer. hahaha. The joys of trying to learn Spanish on my own. Ha.
I love you all. Have a wonderful week!!! I can't believe it is already
 May!! aye aye aye!
LOVE YOU!!!! Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.
 
 

April 23, 2012

April 23, 2012

This week we were in Winnipeg for most of the week! We had zone
conference interviews and exchanges. We left early Tuesday morning and
got back Thursday night. It was fun to be in Winnipeg. Fun to be with
the sisters. I loved being there. Zone conference was wonderful!!!   I
played the piano. Yes it's true. Let me just tell ya...Heavenly Father
answers prayers. Ha.  It was a great conference and a great exchange.
Good ole Winnipeg. When we got back, we went straight to the Romero’s.
We had missed them so much. They went to the ward clean up on
Wednesday night to help clean the building, of course they would. They
loved it and said it was great. We taught them on Saturday and they
are all prepared now for their interview this week and their baptism
next week!!!! :) :) :) We are ecstatic!!!!! They are doing so well and
are so excited for their baptism!! No words explain it. I wish there
were...but there just aren’t. Ben and Cherry are doing great. we
taught the word of wisdom and they accepted to live it. they have so
much faith. they both have had really neat experiences with prayer and
know that God is there and loves them. :) I love it.
It was a fast and crazy week!!! But a good one. Of course. Today is
Sis. Kunzlers birthday so it has been a fun p-day for her and it
starts her senior week! YAY FOR SENIOR WEEK! She's excited I’m sure.
I love you all. Have a great week. Be good. Remember who you are. Live
it. Love it.

April 16, 2012

April 16, 2012

The gospel changes lives. It is real and it is true. There is no doubt
about it.  We met with the Romero’s this week!!!!! We taught about the
word of wisdom and the law of chastity. The spirit was so strong and
they had such strong conviction that these are commandments from our
Father in Heaven and that they would live them.  After we taught those
two commandments we asked them what changes had come into their lives
since they started learning about the gospel.  They both testified
strongly about how their marriage has become stronger and how their
family has become closer together and the peace and the happiness that
they feel as they have learned. We testified about how that is part of
Heavenly Fathers plan and that is why He has allowed us a way to be
sealed together for eternity. We then invited them to be baptized.
There is no doubt that the spirit was working within us and within
the Romero’s.  Anyone could have felt that. The room was completely
still and peaceful as the spirit spoke to us and to them as they
accepted the initiation to be baptized on May 5th!!!!!!!!!!!!!! With
tears in their eyes they then testified so boldly about how true the
gospel is and how they know this is the path the Lord wants them on
and how grateful they are for the opportunity they have to learn and
to be a part of the truth. It was amazing. No words describe the
feelings in that room and the spirit that was felt as they both
testified of the truth and shared their testimony.  It was incredible.
 On Sunday each one was in a skirt/dress and shirt and tie!!!! Picture
perfect. Sunday night there was a Spanish fireside. The topic was
temples. It couldn't have been better!!!! They now have a goal to be
in the temple one year from May 5th and to prepare to go on the temple
trip to do baptisms after they are baptized!!!! They are remarkable
people. I feel so blessed to be able to be a part of their lives. It
was one of those weeks that you wish you could have just recorded to
capture every little thing that happened. The Romero’s are a very
special family. We are sooooo excited for them and they are soooo
excited and the ward is soooo excited. We’ve all been waiting for this
for weeks!!!
We get to go to Winnipeg tomorrow for zone conference. It will be fun
to be with all the missionaries and to go on exchanges with the
sisters. Another great week ahead of us. The gospel is true. It
changes lives. Heavenly Father loves each one of us and knows us very
personally. I know it with everything in me.
Love you all. Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.
 

April 9, 2012

What a week what a week!! Here are a few highlights!! :)
On Saturday we met with the Romero’s. They are AMAZING. Let me just tell you…our translator member was a little late so we in broken English and Spanish we asked them about how they liked conference…they LOVED it. They talked about how they knew that Thomas S Monson is a
prophet and how the spirit was so strong as they listened and learned. We then asked them how that made them feels about baptism!! We threw out a date. The dad thought and thought and said it over and over. The wife just looked at him with a huge smile on her face. He said he knows he needs too...he just feels like he needs a little bit more time. We talked about how we aren't just going to baptize them
tomorrow...but we are here to help him. He said this week he is going to read and pray every day and he will know by next Saturday. So ...the member wasn't there still so we just started to read a chapter
with them! The member/translator came and so we tied in our reading to keeping the Sabbath day holy and talked about the sacrament. As we were reading the sacrament prayers...the dad asked how do I know if I am prepared to be baptized?!!!!! It was so great. We read from Acts 8 about Phillip and talked about how faith in Christ is the most important thing and the rest is being willing to be obedient and do
our best. We learned for the rest of our lives. We read the baptism interview questions with them. The spirit was SO strong as they themselves testified of Joseph Smith and Thomas S. Monsoon and the
restoration of the gospel.  After the questions were asked...we talked about how that is all that shows them that they are ready to be baptized. They were both so excited. They then just asked a whole
bunch of questions about eternal families and what they can do to get to the temple and about baptism being individual!! IT WAS THE BEST THE BEST BEST BEST!!!! So wonderful. They are so ready for the gospel!! We are so excited. We are meeting with them this week to talk more about it. :)
Yesterday we had a lesson with a less active...as we were about to start she received a phone call from a friend who she had been inviting to church. She told her friend we were there and that she should come over and learn from us. Her friend was so excited and came!!! We were able to teach her. It was great to see this member testify of the gospel and how it has helped her and to see her recognize her own testimony as she shared it with her friend!! We tracted into a Pilipino family this week. The dad was so excited to see us and asked us to come back to teach his kids about the church. When we went...he rounded up his whole family...there were a lot of them...in and out...and said you listen to these girls they will help you be a true blue Mormon and you will be a better person because of it!!! It was a very interesting experience. We’ll see where it goes. It has been cooooold this week. The sky was blue for Easter...but it was just cold cold cold with really strong winds!! Leads to some exciting finding time. :)
Things are really great!! We are being so blessed and have seen so many miracles. I am so thankful to be here in Brandon. I am especially so very thankful for my Savior, for His atonement and knowing that
because He lives, I too will live. I was reading in 3 Nephi 11 the other day and as I read about how each individual was able to go and feel the prints in His hands and side, I thought about how He has
invited each of us to do the same thing...not physically yet...but to come unto Him, individually...to "feel" of the prints...as in to feel of the peace of His gospel and His atonement.  To come to KNOW for
ourselves that He is our Savior and that this is His gospel. The church is true. I hope you have a wonderful week. Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.
 

April 2, 2012

Was conference not amazing! Wowzy!! So many wonderful things said. It
was so inspiring and motivational. I thought a lot of progression and
the things to do to continue to progress and continually becoming a
true disciple of Christ.  I loved the talk on "what would Christ think
of me." helps put things in place and prioritize our lives.   On
Sunday morning there were about 13-15 Spanish speakers there...so in
the chapel we had the regular English conference on the big screen
then on the side we had a TV of conference in Spanish. Haha. It was
quite the experience.  The Romero’s all came!! The girls were in
dresses and their son in a shirt and tie!!!! It was the best sight
ever. They are wonderful. On Saturday the dad went to priesthood so we
went over and taught mom about prophets. It was very neat to allow the
spirit to guide us as we taught in Spanish. I found it interesting to
notice that as we were speaking about the gospel ....I could
understand what she was saying and was able to speak...but as soon as
we said the closing prayer....I was so lost. The spirit works in
mysterious ways!  When we taught Ben and cherry about prophets this
week cherry asked so many great questions about how they are called
and how we can know. :) Perfection. It is great to see the spirit
working through them and see how they have been prepared and the
things they need to know. We had district lunch this week!!! We went
to pizza hut buffet and had an eating contest...good ole Sister
Kunzler had 13!!!! Then that night the Romero’s fed us supper which was
a LOT ...a LOT of food very good food of course...but...Sister Kunzler
lost the color in her face until about bed time.  It was a classic
missionary moment :)
Hope you all had a wonderful week. Be good. Remember who you are. Live
it. Love it.

Spring Break

Spring Break!

Another wonderful week in Brandon Manitoba!  this week heather got
baptized!! It was an up and down week...Satan was reaaaaaaaalllly
working on her hard this week but she made it through and she was
baptized on Friday night. Her kids came and it made it a very special
moment for her. The spirit was strong!!! we talked to her on Saturday
night to see how she was doing and one of the first things she said to
us was..."well...I feel different :) :)" she was so happy. She said
she just felt this glow within her and she had such strength she could
tell a difference in her life. :) She shared her story in Sunday
School yesterday and I think it really helped some of the other
investigators who were there understand the why and how to do it. She
will be a great strength to the ward!! I am excited for her!!! It was
a grrrrrrrrrrrrrreat weekend!!!!!! :) Baptisms always have such a
special spirit and just help you have the motivation to push forward
and be stronger and find more amazing people!
Barbara is doing great!! She has been reading and praying morning and
night. She loves the book of Mormon! she called us last night asking a
question on what she was supposed to read and we told her and she said
oh well...I read all of 16 17 and 18. Is that ok?! Uhm yes! that is
juuuuuuust fine :) yay. She is great. Cherry and Ben (our Chinese
investigators) both came to church this week and loved it!! Ben
said...this is great...I will be back next week too!!! :)
The Romero’s are wonderful. We had an amazing appointment with them
this weekend. The spirit was incredible!! They are so close!!!!! In
English class we learned family words...such as dad, brother, sister,
aunt...etc...And then for the spiritual thought we sang families can
be together forever. It was WONDERFUL! Love them so much.
The weather...has not held out nice for us. Ha. We are back to some
cold stuff. Not cold cold...but 1 or 2 degrees. So it feels real cold
going from 20 to 2. Hopefully it warms up again soon.
An amazing week! Busy and powerful! Lots of miracles that helped
Heather get baptized. Lots of miracles that helped the Romero’s! Lots of
miracles that have helped Barbara! Have miracles ceased?! NAY! :)
We're all super excited for conference. Lots of good things coming I’m
sure of it :)
Hope you all had a great week! Be good. Remember who you are. Live it. Love it.
 
 

March 19, 2012

March19, 2012

I don't understand how the Lord just pours out His blessings upon His
children.  This week it seemed like a flood of blessings just came
pouring over us. I am so grateful for this week and all of the
miracles that we saw. It was an amazing week. To end the week we had
11 investigators at church yesterday. It was amazing. 2 families (one a
family a four and another family of 3) and the rest single people
who we met this week and had the opportunity to come to church and
feel the spirit! It was INCREDIBLE!!!! They all had an amazing
experience and can't wait to come back.
Heather: will most likely be baptized on Friday :) :) :) :) we had a
great lesson with her on Wednesday...during the lesson she said it will
probably be in later spring..After the lesson as we were talking about
general conference she all the sudden had this urge to be baptized
NOW!!! :) It will be a great weekend for that. Her and her kids were
at church yesterday and she is a fantastic member missionary already.
We had another investigator...cherry who came to church and heather
just took her under her wing and helped her out and gave her her info
to get in contact in case she needed anything. I love it.
Cherry is Chinese :) we met with her and her Betsy on Saturday
morning. He has seen the moving facing giants and he said it was from
that movie that he felt that he could pray to God and He would help
him through his trials. Amazing. They prayed after the lesson and said
they felt so peaceful and full of courage!!! It was a neat lesson.
Cherry was able to come to church yesterday. She was smiling from ear
to ear. It was a wonderful opportunity!!
The wonderful Romero’s came to church!!!!!! They are doing fantastic.
We taught them on Saturday night...they are getting so close. They
said that they have this urge to just read the Book of Mormon. They
said they feel like oh I have so much to do...but they just can't put
it down and they just want to read and read and read :) the Book of
Mormon has amazing power. I know that it is a true book and I know the
promises found in it are real!! I have seen them in my life and in the
life of those we are teaching. It is amazing.
Barbara is another who came to church. We met her tracting on
Thursday...she told us she had met with missionaries before but now she
is ready to make changes in her life and needs us to come back. We
went back on Friday...had a very special meeting with her and she set
a baptism date and came to church yesterday. She’s a neat lady. Such a
soft heart and wants to find true happiness.
Cheryl was at church as well and said afterwards that she felt so much
happier now that she had been to church. IS THE CHURCH TRUE OR IS THE
CHURCH TRUE?! There is so much power in taking of the sacrament and
being uplifted and edified from others as they bear testimony of the
gospel. It was amazing to see how each one of the Lords investigators
felt the spirit so strongly and so differently as they attended church
yesterday. Bishop announced over the pulpit that there were 18 new
faces in the congregation yesterday. 18!!!! Some were less actives
that hadn't been to church in years...others investigators. It was the
work of the Lord. I know that He is aware of each of us and prepares
others to receive HIs gospel. It was an absolute incredible week. The
only thing that explains it is the Lords blessing. He is watching HIs
children, He is helping the work progress and He promises us blessings
as we do our best and align our will with His.
The work is true. It changes lives. It amazes me daily.
I’ve been studying out of 1st Nephi this week and just keep finding
amazing little golden nuggets. What a powerful book. One of the
insights I had this week was in 1 Nephi 17 when the Lord commands
Nephi to go and build the boat. He tells Nephi he will construct the
ship after the manner of which He will show him.  It hit me that the
Lord has commanded us "to build a ship"...aka to keep a commandment or
to fulfill a calling or assignment...and He will "instruct us after the
manner which it shall be fulfilled." He will help us fulfill that
calling or that commandment...He will show us how to do it and how to
best accomplish the task ahead of us. Isn’t that neat?! No matter what
our calling is...or what commandment we are being asked to keep...He
knows how to help us do it!!!! :) And He WILL help us...not
might...like Laman and Lemuel...they "might" have been happy in
Jerusalem...they "might" have been happy with their riches...but the
Lord WILL keep His promise...He WILL give us the holy ghost as we are
baptized..He WILL be by our side when we allow Him too.  His promises
are sure!!!
I love you all. Hope you had a wonderful week. Be good. Remember who
you are. Live it .love it.