Week 69:Time is of the Essence...

Sister Belliston, Sister Perry, MacKenzie, and Elle

This week went by super fast!! I continue to be amazed it is the end of the year. Every morning during personal study I ask Sister Perry what day it is, even though I could probably look at my calendar, she tells me and I am so surprised. When I first came out I didn’t believe anyone when they said time is going to fly by, I just wondered how I was going to make it through the next 18 months. I remember at the beginning of the year wondering how on earth I was going to make it through February and looking through my calendar October seemed so far away. Well now it is the end of November and I don't know where time decided to go.  It is a darn good life being a missionary and I don't want to be anywhere else.

Well this week was really funny. We were on foot almost every day because we were not going to make miles and I WILL NOT go over miles again. It makes me sick to my stomach to even think about, plus it should be one less thing that I need to worry about. But anyways, we walked all over and we got to talk to some really cool people, we didn't find any new investigators from walking but we were able to hand out a lot of pamphlets and copies of the Book of Mormon.

We met this homeless lady named Ferra. Ferra was over in some bushes picking up trash, she was about 50 feet away from us. Air planes were flying above us and so it was hard to hear, so as loud as I could I yelled "Hi". She looked up and we couldn't hear each other. So she walked up from where she was to the sidewalk so that we could hear her.  Ferra is a good Christian, she has been to several different denominations and is still trying to find where she fits in. We got to share the Restoration with her and then near the end of it she mentioned that she was going to meet with "Book of Mormon boys". One of the sets of Elders were going to be meeting with her later that week and so we made sure to give her a Book of Mormon and the Church address. We told her the Elders were going to be able to help her as she decided if she wanted to strengthen her relationship with her Savior Jesus Christ. We hope they were able to meet with her and that all went well. Before we had started walking that day we were packing up our bags with pamphlets and things that we were going to need and I felt prompted to grab a Bible. I didn't know why and I almost didn't do it because I don't ever carry a Bible with me but the prompting came stronger the second time and so I put it in my bag. Well while we were talking to Ferra she told us how someone took her Bible and that she hadn't been able to read scripture for a while. So I pulled the Bible out of my bag and gave it to her and then right after that is when we gave her a Book of Mormon. I have wanted to have a better understanding of how the spirit speaks to me and when I realized that I had grabbed the Bible for her, I was very humbled. It was amazing to be able to feel Heavenly Fathers love for her and for me when we were walking away and I realized that we did everything we were supposed to! 

Mission Leaders Conference

We also got a new investigator, his name is Joe. Joe is someone that we knocked on his door and he let us in. He has been taught by missionaries before. He told us he has been reading the Book of Mormon and that he would like to try to make it to church and might one day be baptized. He just doesn't think that Joseph Smith was a prophet, hopefully when we clear up some of his questions this will help him. 

Elle is just like her mom, Christmas tree is
up Pre-Thanksgiving

Here’s a funny story.  A member in our ward found out that the YSA missionaries don't get fed a lot and so she sent us home with a bag of food to give them. They came to pick it up and we were just changing into our service clothes.  We were going to go over to a members after we gave them their food. They started to bang on our door so I was trying to pull my pants up really quickly and run to the door to answer it. Well while zipping up my pants and running to the door I got caught on our bedroom door and it through me into the wall. It hurt so badly and while this happened Sister Perry was opening the door and so the Elders heard it all. Needless to say it hurt and I don't know why.

Sister Belliston, Sister Perry, Elle, MacKenzie, and Member

 MacKenzie got baptized this last Saturday and confirmed a member on Sunday! It was such an amazing day! She was super excited and was inviting everyone she could. She has such a contagious smile and is always happy. Teaching her has been so much fun because this is something she really wanted. She retained everything we taught her which I thought was super impressive for a 10 year old. What I have loved the most is we were able to help MacKenzie work toward baptism and helping her mom become active in the Church. So many members have helped fellowship and serve them in so many ways and I think our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ have just been beaming for the love the members have shown them. I am so thankful for the chance I have had to watch this everyday as a missionary, to feel so much love for all of these people and to be able to serve them every day!

SisterBelliston, Sister Perry, MacKenzie,
Elle, and MacKenzie's mother

 Being a missionary during the holidays is so much fun. I am grateful for the chance we have to be able to think about the things we are thankful for and to show our appreciation by serving and doing so many other things. We are very lucky to be members of the Church! I love you all so much and hope you have an amazing week!