This week was so great! We had an amazing Stake Conference broadcast from Salt Lake. Elder Scott, Elder Bednar, Sister Esplin, and Elder Christensen spoke to us. So much of the focus was on missionary work, and mainly missionaries and members uniting together. The members were inspired and we had several come up to us after the meeting and ask when they could come with us! So cool. Elder Bednar spoke about consecration and sacrifice. The idea I liked most was when he said that true consecration is not having to die for Christ, but rather to live completely and fully for Him. He spoke of a casual contentment that is in many members of the Church. We need to make sure we are hastening the work in ourselves as the Lord hastens His work. Elder Scott bore the most powerful and moving testimony of the power and blessing that is prayer. This week I am really going to work on having more sincere and real conversations with my Heavenly Father. He spoke of a time on his mission when his companion would have them say their personal prayers after their companion prayer. He would always sneak to the other room after they went to bed (he made sure to say he was still within sight and sound of his companion. Obediencia es la mejor!) in order to have a real and true conversation with God. I often forget what a privilege it is to be able to share my thoughts, stresses, feelings, etc. with the Lord. And not only that, but He truly cares and listens! Sister Esmay came too! She's a less-active with a non-member husband we've been visiting. We invited her yesterday, not really expecting her to come and she came an hour early to save us spots! Her husband is 85 and has been around the church his whole life. We invited him to read the Book of Mormon again and he told us that he's been actually thinking about picking it up again. He has never prayed about it before and that is what he is going to do this time. It will make all the difference. I am so excited for him to learn that it is the word of God.
My other favorite part of Stake Conference was that Vanja Watkins led the singing! She wrote Press Forward, Saints and Families Can Be Together Forever! She is quite old and I was afraid we were going to lose her halfway through the second verse but she powered through it. My other favorite parts of Stake Conference was that I was able to see so many 9th wardians that I love! And Texas Roadhouse randomly dropped 5 dozen rolls! They pick a church every week to drop them off at and this week it was ours! They let the missionaries take them! TOO GOOD. (And this is why missionaries who come to the US get fat).
We've started teaching a woman named Stacey. She is a former investigator of the Elders that we tracted into. She has had a rough life and really wants to do what is right. She has a lot of questions and it's hard to keep the lesson focused but we're trying! She, too, is going to read the Book of Mormon. We left her with Enos, so that she can understand more fully the powerful experiences she can have with prayer. She is such a good example to the people around her. She is raising her son alone and he always has neighbourhood friends there. She has them run suicides when they start fighting or tattle. One of them came out and tattled so she made him run. Her little son looked up at her with the saddest little face and said, "I will run them for him!" It was the perfect segway to bring the lesson back and talk about the Atonement. They also love Sister Hilton and all the little boys randomly come up to her and give her little side hugs haha.
Miley, Ayden, and Dagon are struggling right now. Miley had an awesome interview with the bishop and we thought everything was going great. We got a text from them today though that they need a breather. Please keep them in your prayers that they will be able to recognize how important this is and that they won't be scared. I just love them so much. This is an opportunity for me to learn about trusting in the Lord!
Our washing machine exploded this morning. Pictures to follow. Nothing too serious and we got to do our laundry at our wml's house and see their cute baby! Woot!
I went on exchanges with the lovely Sister Donald. She is from Lousiana and has THE BEST ACCENT. All day long I had to stop myself from talking like her. Sis Donald also served in Steamboat (a couple of transfers after me) so it was fun to bond over our times there.
My second exchange was with Sister Jimenez. It was a miracle exchange indeed. We found 3 solid new investigators! I love Sister Jimenez and I am happy that we get to go home at the same time! If I have to go home at least I get to be with people I love.
Sister Alspaugh, a lovely member of the ward who recently was baptized, had us over for dinner this week. Apparently, I'm getting anxious in my old age because her phone went off during dinner and I jumped right out of my seat. It didn't help that the sound of her phone was a bomb dropping from the sky and then going off. YIKES.
We met an awesome new investigator yesterday named Judy! She's a potential we have had for a while and we finally saw her yesterday! We had not planned to see her but I really felt like we should go over. When we got there we found a less-active we've been teaching helping her landlord move a stove so we helped them real quick and then went to Judy's. She's a Catholic but she accepted the invite to read the BoM and to pray about it. And the neat thing was her daughter and her two kids were there. They have been meeting with missionaries in the other stake. She had lost the page for where Christ comes to the Americas and she really wanted to read it so she asked us! Woot!
I love Sister Hilton oh so much. She is so amazing. This week she got sick but she powered through it like a champ. She is so funny and hardworking. I'm sad we only get 5 days out of the week together instead of 7 (because of exchanges) but I'll take what I can get! We worked our tails off this week but didn't see as much success as we would have liked. I know we did the work that God needed us to. Yesterday while tracting we met a lady named Karen. She grew up in Craig and had lots of LDS cousins. She felt like they always looked down on her and had a very negative view of the church. As soon as she found out we were from the LDS church she basically told us that we should leave because the conversation would go nowhere. But instead I talked her off. Just kidding! I just bore my testimony and asked about her life and tried to really care about her. By the end of our conversation she committed to read the Book of Mormon! How crazy is that? She didn't want us to come back because she is so busy but she took our number and told us she would call us! The spirit really does change hearts!
This week I've really learned about how life is all about progression. We must never stop thinking and acting on what God needs us to do. Often the stresses of life can get to us and we may have to slow down, but that does not mean we are not doing a good job still. God is aware of our every concern, struggle, worry, and burden. As we turn to Him, He will lift those burdens. How incredibly blessed we are to know we have a Saviour who loves us and will always love us!
I love you all! Have a great week!
Sis Jimenez! We got to listen to sweet Hispanic music while I was in Fruita. OH YEAH AND FRUITA IS THE LAND OF DINOSAURS. I WAS IN HEAVEN.
Evidence that I am a member of the Turndawg family. I still often start crying when I laugh. I think that I was laughing here because Sister Hilton told me of a horrible activity she had to do in YWs where they had to find wedding dresses and a boy and then had a photoshoot at the temple. AT THE TEMPLE. With 16 year olds. Why are Mormons so weird? All I want is those pictures now.
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