Jaunuary 30th - time jumped!

Another month has gone by, and it just keeps jumping faster and faster!  This last week I have learned a lot about priorities and expectations.  I've also learned about the mercy and justice of the Lord.

First of all, I had a neat privilege of going to a community event called World Religions.  All four of us Shreveport sister missionaries got to go be a part of this yearly event that Shreveport and Bossier have been doing for the past 15 years.  Different denominations in the community come and have a booth set up where you can see what they believe, talk with them and ask questions, and take any literature they have.  There were also treats at many of the tables. :)  It went from 1-5 on Sunday.  We were able to talk to a lot of people to get a better understanding of what they believe, and to share the gospel.  It really strengthened my testimony of what we know to be true.  It is so interesting to see how the beliefs of others can be traced back to the core doctrines of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Sister Benjamin and Sister Valdez were even interviewed on the news for it.  It was really neat, and I'm so grateful for that opportunity we had.  I'll send a picture. :)

We had to take our car into the shop on Tuesday morning for some exterior repairs, and will be without it until probably next Monday.  This has brought up some new challenges and brought about more stress than usual as we have tried to find members who can give us rides and coordinate with the other sisters so all of us can have rides when we need them.  Things kind of built up from some other stresses that were going on (just normal missionary challenges of scheduling and communicating) and Sister Benjamin and I kind of had a melt down Wednesday morning right before District Meeting.  I was asked to say the opening prayer and as I prayed from the deepness of my heart, I shed some tears.  I asked that this District Meeting would be motivating and uplifting, and that we would all come together and be a support for each other.  I was really hoping that the Elders wouldn't notice my tears, but I just kept praying from the heart.  I really wanted help from my Father.

The District Meeting was the start of a flow of comfort from our Heavenly Father.  It was what we needed. What followed was even more answers to our prayers.  We needed a ride to get out to a part of our area that is about 4-5 miles away from our apartment.  We couldn't find anyone who could; however, through all of those phone calls we got rides that we needed for the next two days, including an early morning ride to transfer point in Bossier at 5:15 this morning.  It was amazing.  It was seriously like the Lord had done some inception because a couple of members thought that they were going out with us at a time that we hadn't previously set up, but was exactly what we needed!  The Lord made it so that the things we didn't need to do that day just didn't work out.  They "fell out" of our schedule.  We ended up only going out of the apartment for a few hours with a member to visit two less actives.  The rest of the afternoon and evening we stayed inside and did paper work and phone calls.  It was exactly what we needed to re-energize, re-motivate, and get cought up on some teaching records that we were behind on.  It was a miracle day.

I am learning more of what the Lord meant when he said, "it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength," but it is "expedient that he should be diligent." (Mosiah 4:27)  It's a tricky balance to learn, but I do know that when we try to be dilligent, the Lord will make things work for our good.

I know that our Heavenly Father lives and loves us.  His son - our brother - Jesus Christ, is real and wants us to follow Him so that He can help us.  Accepting the help of our Savior to make changes in our lives and in ourselves is repentance.  It is good and happy. :)

I love you all so much!  I hope all is going well!  Press on and remember who you are - a child of God!  May THE force be with you!

Love,
Sister Jones :)

P.S. I talked with Sister Walker on the phone yesterday, and [someone I taught] in my last area got baptized last Saturday!! I don't know how much I talked about him, but he called us his angels. We found him tracting on Oct. 12th and kept going by to see him, even though he was very hesitant the first month and a half. A returning member in the Florence ward, Brother Newell got to baptize him. Brother Newell's wife and daughter were baptized last April, and he came back to church. I love them! They had [this investigator] over for some lessons after I left, and that's when [he] really picked up and just was on fire. Oh what a sweet thing to hear!! I was so happy! And I found out that another [man] we taught has accepted to be baptized and has a date for February 15th! Sister Valdez will get to finish teaching him with Sister Creager. I'm so happy for him and for Sister Valde, because she hasn't had a baptism yet and has been out 6 months. Oh how I love this work!!!

Transfer day change

So tomorrow was supposed to be transfer day, but we got a call about an hour ago from our zone leaders informing us that transfer day is being postponed to Thursday because of some storm on the coast that's going to make traveling unsafe.  We got permission to send a quick email home today so that you know we're ok and don't have to wait until Thursday to hear from us!

So I can tell you transfer news!  I am staying, and so is Sister Benjamin!  We will be together another transfer, and I'm grateful for it!  Sister Valdez is the only sister being transferred, and guess where she's going??  Florence, Mississippi!!!!!  I couldn't believe it!!  Ah, I'm so excited about it!  It's awesome!  And I even had the thought Friday morning before we got phone calls, "What if Sister Valdez went to Florence?..."  I'm so happy she's going there!  She will do great and will be replacing Sister Walker, who I found out is going to be openning Vicksberg, MS!  Anyways, good stuff going on!  As far as the Elders go, Elder Bell and Elder Headman will be transferring to Mississippi too.

Got to go, but I will email more on Thursday!  Hope all is well!

Wahoo!

Not a whole lot of time today, but life is going good here!  We are working with a few people who I really hope will stick with us and accept the full gospel of Jesus Christ.  [One of them] is a wonderful woman who is strong in the faith of the Lord and has great desire to learn, and the action to do it.  She has studied many different religions and continues to study the bible.  I wish I had studied growing up as much as she did when she was growing up!  But I'm learning so much out here and love teaching her and talking with her.  [We are also teaching] a great couple who love the Lord and talking about him.  We have visited them a couple of times and I hope that we can help them to see what the gospel can add to what they already have.  That's one of the trickiest things out here - helping people see that the gospel of Jesus Christ is to add to their knowledge and blessings that they already have and receive, not to take away or replace.

This last transfer has flown by the fastest for me yet!  I can't believe that next week is transfers!  That means that I will be writing on Tuesday again.  I didn't write yesterday because the libraries were closed here for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  I don't know if they will keep sister Benjamin here or not...she's been here 4 months so it's up in the air!  We did find out today though, that we will be moving into a new apartment in our area during the 2nd or 3rd week of February!  I'm excited to move into our area, but it's also a little sad to think about not being with the other sisters.  Overall I think it bring a lot of blessings, though.  I'll let you know specifics as I get them, but that's what we know for now.

I love you all very much!  Please remember who you are and that you are loved.  Keep your heart soft, and take time to sincerely ponder.  Time is a gift.

May THE force be with you all!

Happiness and Blessings :)

What a week this has been!  Our mission president in the last missionary leadership council meeting (with all of the zone leaders, ap's, and sister training leaders) decided to change slightly the way we count our lessons.  Before a lesson was counted if you taught a principle, extended an invitation, and said a prayer.  As of last Monday it is now counted if you teach a principle, extend and invitation, and say and opening AND closing prayer.  That has changed a lot for us!  It really raised the bar, and I have seen so many blessings come from it!

That change has lowered the number of lessons we teach by a good number, because many of our lessons would come from tracting as we would do a simple 3-5 minute lesson on the porch, but we would only end with prayer.  Making sure we say an opening prayer has made such a big difference in helping us know who is ready to receive the gospel, and having the spirit with us.  I'm so grateful for this inspired change that has helped us to teach with more power, and to make better use of our time as we are now only spending time teaching those who will really listen.

We also had a huge miracle yesterday!  During the first week of this transfer (it's now week 5), Sister Benjamin and I were tracting and talked to a guy.  We didn't even get to share much of a message with him before he asked us where the church was and said he would come.  We went the following Saturday night to give him cookies and remind him of church.  Well he didn't show up that week, or the next.  Yesterday as we were greeting members to church, Sister Benjamin all of a sudden says, "Is that [that man]??"  My eyes went crazy as I frantically grazed my eyes over the congregation to see where she was looking.  It was him!  [He] came to church!  And he stayed for all three hours!  I was so happy and excited that I wanted to jump up and down and do a happy dance.  The funny part about it all is that because of the slight boundary change they made between our area and the other sisters' area in the ward, [this man] is now in their area...hahaha.  That means that Sister Benjamin and I have now found 2 stellar people for two of the other sets of missionaries in our ward, because we also found out that [man] (who we found last week) has moved into the West Elders' area by two houses...Hahaha oh the irony. :)

We did get to teach [the man who moved into the Elders' area] two lessons at his new house.  He really is looking for truth.  He before those lessons he texted us and said that he's just getting back up on his feet, but he feels like something is missing. We testified to him that he will find that in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  After those lessons, and after explaining to him that we wouldn't be the ones to teach him anymore, he told us that it was crazy how much he had learned in the short time he's known us, and that he was very grateful for all we've taught him.  I love those moments. :)

The neat thing about it is that [these men] being in the areas of the other missionaries in our ward has actually been an answer to prayer and fasting.  Both Sister Benjamin and I have been praying and fasting to find someone to teach who would progress, and for our district to be strengthened (our district is the four sets of missionaries in our ward).  Well the Lord does have a sense of humor and does work in mysterious ways. :)  I know that handing these people over to the other missionaries will do a lot if they will keep up with them.  It's hard to give someone you found and care so much about to other missionaries.  You want to be the ones to be with them every step of the way and make sure they have the care and attention they need.  But the Lord knows what they need and what we need so much more than we do.  I know that trusting in Him will bring about the best results for everyone.  I'm excited to have found so many good people here.  I feel that it is a great blessing that we are finding them, amidst all of those who are not yet ready.  I know that as we follow the counsel of church leaders - whether it be the prophet, our bishop, or our Relief Society/Elders Quorum president, we will be blessed.  Obedience is necessary to have joy and to receive blessings.  You can't have blessings without obedience. (Doc. & Cov. 130:20-21)

I invite you all to take 10 minutes to ponder your life and choose one thing you are going to do or stop doing to help you be exactly obedient. I was taught in the MTC "Obedience brings blessings; Exact Obedience brings miracles."  I know that is true.  Please chose to receive blessings.  Choose to be happy.  Choose to be obedient.

I love you all so much!  May THE force be with you as you choose to change and follow our loveing Savior more.  He loves you!

Happy New Year! It's 2014!

Happy New Year!

I hope ya'll enjoyed your New Year celebrations and the rest of Christmas break.  Our ward luau went really well!  Us sisters and the young women did a hula dance (a woman in our ward is from Hawaii) and the elders and some of the men did the haka.  There were some other musical numbers as well and a lot of good food!  Including 30 chickens, a lot of rice and pasta, and a real, full-sized, cooked pig.  Yes, some members in the ward (from New Zealand and the Philippines) cooked a real pig.  It all tasted really good, and we got tons of members and some non-members out!  I met some new people, and Sister Benjamin found a part-member couple who was willing to have us over!  It was a success.

This last week we did a lot of walking, but thankfully the weather hasn't been too bad.  There have been some cold winds (like today), but overall it's been dry and the sun has shone.  The border of our area with the other sisters' area also changed this last week, so Sister Benjamin and I now have a smaller area, and we now live about 3 miles from the border of our area....sound familiar?  Haha I'm now in almost the exact same situation as I was in Florence - 4 sisters in an apartment, area is 3-4 miles away, and you share a car.  The biggest difference is that our area here in Shreveport is a LOT smaller than in Florence.  It's good though!  It means we are able to focus our work more because there is not as much to cover.

Fun moment of the week!  Actually two!  One, we ate at a fast-food chicken place called Church's.  Yup!  I tell ya, the South loves church. :)  Actually it's named after a guy with the last name Church, but I thought it was kind of ironic.  Two, Sister Benjamin cut my hair!  Don't worry, it was only a trim and some layers, but it was a monumental moment for me because I can't remmber anyone else cutting my hair besides my dear aunt Lynette. (Thank you Lynette for all of your years of service!)  Sister Benjamin did a good job!  It really doesn't look too different, but I decided to take the opportunity to have it trimmed and touched up while I had a companion who does hair.  Sister Sellers in the apartment actually does hair too!    It's kind of fun because we get to see them cut elders' hair on p-days, plus they get to cut out hair. :)

Yesterday [our investigator that was baptized last Sunday] was confirmed and given the gift of the Holy Ghost.  It was good. :)  I loved seeing people reach out to him in fellowship.  That's the best, when the members embrace the new people you bring to church - the people you have worked so hard to help come to church and then into the gospel.  We did a lot of tracting and trying to find this last week, because we don't have anyone who is currently progressing now that [the latest investigator was] baptized.  Those times can feel long, but we were blessed yesterday to find someone who I feel will be receptive!  . . . We were on a less-active hunt to find members who havnn't come to church in a long time.  At one house no one answered and it looked kind of abandoned/vacant (actually at almost all of them no one answered and the house looked abandoned haha).  We had noticed that a man was sitting in a chair outside next door, so we decided we would talk to him.  When we came around the less-actives house though, he wasn't there.  We decided to knock anyways and met [this man].  I felt bad because there was a piercing cold wind blowing and we couldn't go inside since there wasn't another woman in the house (no one else was there), so we stood on his door step talking with him.  The wind didn't seem to bother him though, as we talked.  He seemed genuinely interested in what we were saying and sincerely thought about the questions we asked him.  He was waiting for some people from another church who were coming to help him move that day (probably why he came outside and sat on his porch after we drove up).  By the end of the day he would be moved out.  We talked about faith and read from the Bible in James 2:17-19, and the Book of Mormon in Alma 32:21.  We asked if he would like a Book of Mormon and he accepted!  He said his brother-in-law was a Mormon and had talked about the book a little bit.  Nice!  We also said that we would love to talk with him more about some questions he said he'd been having, and he accepted that invitation and we set up a time for later this week.  It was a miracle for me.  I have been praying and fasting to find someone, and to find a family, and I feel that he will be one that is open and ready to accept the gospel.  I pray he will remain open. :)

This week I have also been blessed with answers to my prayers about my district.  I have been pondering about how we could strengthen our district to become even stronger in unity and in the power of our calling.  Answers have been flowing.  One of them came yesterday as I was reading in Alma 43.  A great vision of all of us fighting side by side in an epic battle came to mind as I read through this chapter.  Here is a summary of what I felt as I read:
Alma 43 describes the first battle with captain Moroni and Lehi vs. the Lamanites. It talks about Captain Moroni (President McDonough) dividing his army into the East, South, West, and North (us for companionships in Shreveport) so that he could fight the Lamanites (enemy) by strategem. It talks about the army of Moroni (missionaries) being protected by head-plates (hope of salvation = saving ordinances), breastplates (righteousness), and armshields (faith - look to Ephesians 6:11-17). It talks about what motivated the Nephites (missionaries) to battle, even when the Lamanites (enemy) fought with more strength and courage than ever before, even like dragons. In fact, the Lamanites (enemy) fought so hard that they did smite in two many of the Nephites (missionaries) head-plates, pierce many of their breastplates (righteousness), and smite off many of their arms (faith). Nevertheless, the Nephites (missionaries) were inspired by a better cause. And when the Nephites (missionaries) were about to flee because of the fierceness of the Lamanites (enemy), Moroni (President McDonough) inspired them with these thoughts: their lands (areas), their liberty, and their freedom from bondage (spiritual bondage, which Christ freed them from through His atonement and by their repentance). So as they thought about what Christ had done for them, the Nephites (missionaries) cried to the Lord their God with one voice for thier liberty and freedom from bondage (repentance through the atonement). In the moment they did that, they were able to stand with power - the power of the Lord - and the Lamanites (enemy) fled from them.

This image really hit me. All of the symbolism just started pouring out of the pages and into my heart and mind. Scriptures kept popping in my head as to tell how this related to me and our district. We are fighting in the last times, the last battles, before the Savior comes again. Satan is fighting with more strength and courage than ever before, to the point where many are falling from spiritual wounds and weakness. Nevertheless, we can prevail and stand with power if we will remember our Savior Jesus Christ and His saving and freeing atonement, and choose to repent so that we might have liberty and eternal life (2 Nephi 2:27). This will strengthen us.

I love this gospel.  I know that it is true and that we are in the last times when we NEED to live it to the fullest.  It is so important that we keep our faith strong, our righteousness increasing, and our covenants valid by doing our part.  I would strongly encourage all of you to read this chapter for yourself and search for how it applies to you right now.  I know that you will find answers as you study and pray over the next week.  You can do it, and I know the Lord will strengthen you for it.

I love you all so much!  Strengthen your faith, remember the Lord, and increase your righteousness, and THE force will be with you - always! (Moroni 4:3)

This is after the hair cut, and in our matching scarves and raincoats.  Sister Benjamin brought her raincoat with her, and I got my raincoat from my Mom for Christmas!  Funny that they are the exact same!  And our scarves are from Sister Benjamin's Mom.  Thank you Moms! :)