TOM & JERRY

Kapau oku tmou ofa, kiate au, fai eku ngaahi fekau.

IF YOU LOVE ME, KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS! That’s some of the Tongan I learned this week from my Sisters!

HELLO BEAUTIFUL FAMILY!! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!

It has been an incredible week. I know … you’ve never heard me say that before!

So I have a little story for you and I will try and make it as realistic as possible:

Act 1:

Went in our restroom, shut the door. Mouse runs across my feet. Didn’t scream, just silently freaked.

Sitting in the kitchen, mouse runs across my feet.

Open my study drawer where I have Mrs. Cavanaugh's lollies from Christmas, treasuring them for that special moment.

Gnawed away by the mouse.

We find the mouse. I … being SOOOO BRAVE, have to kill it. I felt awful.

Act 2:

See another mouse in the bathroom when I got up in the middle of the night. ... how fun!

We go to the store, buy a mouse trap, go home and I set it up with some peanut butter.

Snap my fingers a couple of times.

Fall in the tub hysterically laughing.

Come home that night, PB gone. No mouse caught.

Sitting in the living room, studying, mouse runs across the floor. Everyone jumps on the table.

I set up the trap with some toast now.

Come back for the night, toast gone. No mouse.

Set the trap with honey.

Sit in our car for 20 minutes to plan. Walk in the flat, ONE MOUSE CAUGHT!!!!!!

Screaming, I pick it up and throw it in trash.

While setting the trap, another mouse runs across my hands AS I’M SETTING UP THE  TRAP!

Chase it into the garage.

Poof. Mouse disappears.

Act 3:

We find SEVERAL more mice in our house.

To be continued ……….

  

Have I ever mentioned how much I reallllllyyyyyyyyyyyy dislike mice!!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Man! I have become all kinds of brave on my mission… but seriously. 

 

OKAY ... HERE'S MY LETTA.

LUV YA HEAPSSSSS!

My core experience with God this week came from a scripture I studied in Doctrine and Covenants 98:7:

“Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest and are broken and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice- yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord shall command- they are accepted of me.”

This scripture really spoke to me. I have really been trying to understand forgiveness, and I have recently felt that I need to continue studying and understanding the Atonement and report to Heavenly Father what I have learned each day. For a while, I was writing down scriptures in a little red book and anytime the Spirit prompted me, I made a quick note. I stopped doing that for a couple of weeks and realized I need to resume because it has opened my eyes to what the Saviour wants me to learn; and how I rely on the Atonement in everything that I do. I have been blessed studying the New Testament lately -- I feel as if my Saviour is speaking directly to me.

This scripture helps me define what success is as a missionary, and how I can know if I am doing what He wants me to do and following His will. I know that our success is determined by our submissiveness and sacrifice.  

Sister H directly answered my prayer as we were talking after our STL conference. She shared with us Alma 8:15:

“Blessed art thou, Alma; therefore, lift up thy head and rejoice, for thou hast great cause to rejoice; for thou hast been faithful in keeping the commandments of God from the time which thou receivest thy first message from Him.”

I pray for opportunities to bear testimony of things that I might be personally struggling with so that MY faith can be rooted deeper. I was grateful to do that countless times this week regarding the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith and repentance. I realized that by praying to understand and know my Saviour better, Heavenly Father gave me an opportunity to understand the miracle of forgiveness. I know that because I was blessed with some previous trials, that I can now, without any reservation, testify that we can be completely forgiven and cleansed. We can rejoice because of our Saviour. I just wept as I realized this in our lesson. I STAND ALL AMAZED at how my understanding increases daily. I know that Heavenly Father doesn’t give us trials to smite us or punish us, but it’s the ONLY way that we can become spiritually stronger and return to live with Him. 

As I was studying the Bible, I came across the story in Matthew 4, where the Saviour is tempted by the devil. 

 1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. 2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered. 3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. 4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. 5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, 6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. 7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

What really struck me is the footnote given in verse 11 which reads:

 “And now Jesus knew that John was cast into prison and he sent angels, and, behold, they came and ministered unto him (John).”

Even after the Saviour had this intense encounter; even though He was probably completely fatigued and exhausted, He sent the angels to minister to John the Baptist. What an incredible example for me, and for us all.  As a representative of Jesus Christ, I need to exemplify Him in all that I do. That especially means helping others when they are struggling, despite how I am feeling.

I know this is how the Saviour would teach. I know that He sacrificed everything for us, and He gives me the strength to keep going and help others. I know that any accomplishment and success on my mission is because of and  through Jesus Chris. He gives me the strength to do all things. I know that the Saviour would listen with genuine love and patience, and I know that it is through Him that my heart has been softened. 

This week was a week of miracles!  We had a full chapel yesterday! We met a beautiful family from India who welcomed us and want to learn more about the Gospel. We have been working as hard as we can, and doing everything possible to strengthen this area. Sometimes it takes a little bit of time, but I am so grateful for the joy that Heavenly Father blesses us with as we serve His children. 

President Uchtdorf said,

“When our heart is in the right place, we do not complain that our assigned task is unworthy of our abilities. We gladly serve wherever we are asked. When we do this, the Lord can use us in ways beyond our understanding to accomplish His work.”

LOVE YOU TO THE MOON AND BACK!

HERE'S TO ANOTHER FANTASTIC WEEK!  

Over to you -

OUR STRENGTHS CAN BECOME OUR DOWNFALL

Horse Farm of Ward Mission Leader in Newcastle

Hello Beautiful Family!!!!

I love you. I love you. I love you.

This transfer, I have decided to focus on strengthening two Christ-like attributes in myself - humility and knowledge.  While reflecting on this past transfer and what is hindering missionary work, I've also decided to study pride. 

In Moses 4:2 we learn that before the world was created, there was a council of immense importance. At the most crucial moment in that council, Jesus stood and uttered the words “The glory be thine forever.” This statement differentiated Jesus from Lucifer. Wow. Simply put, it was Satan’s pride that made all the difference. 

So, I have only just started my study, but I’ll share what I’ve learned so far. Referencing a talk “Our Strengths Can Become Our Downfall”[http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=570] by Elder Oaks, we are all aware that “Lucifer and his followers know the habits, weaknesses and vulnerable spots of everyone and they take advantage of them to lead us to spiritual destruction.” However E. Oaks explains another one of Satan’s tools is to “attack us where we think we are strong. “He will attack us through the greatest talents and spiritual gifts we posses. If we are not wary, Satan can cause our spiritual downfall by corrupting us through our strengths as well as by exploiting our weaknesses.”

We know that there is a very fine balance between these things. It is why we are taught to be meek and submissive and “beware of pride.”

We all have pride. I recognized while studying, the “subtle ways” in which I have pride. E. Oaks gives examples of how, when used in excess and tarnished by pride, our strengths can lead us down dark paths instead of being used to build up the kingdom of God. E. Oaks says, “Humility is the great protector. Humility is the antidote against pride. Humility is the catalyst for all learning, especially spiritual things.”

Life and missions are hard enough without the stumbling block of pride. We must dedicate ourselves to be like the Saviour who was meek and submissive to the will of the Father. (John 5:41) I pray that by understanding what I can do to banish MY pride, I can help others.

My core experience with God this week was teaching at the mini MTC for the stake. It was such an amazing experience! I absolutely love teaching the youth. While participating in this great event, I realized my love for teaching. I was definitely not a perfect teacher, but I have always had a deep love for the youth and this is such a pivotal point in their lives. 

Laughing and teaching with them was so wonderful and as they walked away and congregated together to socialize, I couldn’t help but sob. I want with all my heart, for them to stay active -- to go on missions and endure to the end. They are amazing. It was such a blessing from my Heavenly Father to understand a bit more how He loves and cares for each of us. My heart felt how deeply He wants us all to return to live with Him again. 

I connected with one of the girls who was a very quiet and beautiful girl from NZ. We chatted throughout the day, and then I asked her name. When she told me, I just started bawling! She probably wondered what in the world was wrong with me! The day before SP and I went to visit a less active woman, but she wasn’t home. Her son, however, was home and we started talking and discovered he wasn’t a member. He told us that over the last couple of months he had realized how important it is to have religion and to have a purpose. We taught him the Plan of Salvation on his doorstep and left him with a Book of Mormon and an invitation to be baptized. 

That night, I couldn’t get him out of my mind because of how prepared he was to receive the Lord’s message. Well, guess who this girl was at the youth activity? His little sister!! I couldn’t believe it! I squeezed her and told her how wonderful her family was. I STAND ALL AMAZED!

Mango Anyone?

Our Mission President asked what advice we'd give to a missionary or future missionary who is struggling. After having an experience with a Sister who is struggling recently, I realized that everything she is feeling -- rejection, discouragement, and wanting things to be perfect, are all things that I went through at the beginning of my mission and I know that is why I'm here to help support her.

In all that we do, our message must be centered on Jesus Christ. I hope this makes sense, but for some missionaries, asking an investigator to repent and rely on the Atonement is relatively easy. But through my mission, I am learning that we PERSONALLY must be tried and moved to turn to the Lord, so when that moment comes, we can bear testimony and a PERSONAL witness of how the Saviour’s Atonement has healed US.

The Lord has blessed me with the ability to visualize the Saviour’s life as I read and whenever I am having a hard day or doors are slammed, or harsh words are said, I can remember what the Saviour did for me. Then, it’s not so hard because I think about how the Saviour suffered for me.  

I “see” Him on the doorstep, or sitting in the living room, and when we are mocked, He has already said that He will take the rejection from us so we don’t’ have to. 

Remember the Saviour. Think of what he has already done for you. I would invite you to read Luke 22 and 23 this week in your personal study.

To close, two scriptures:

John 7:7 reads “ the world cannot hate you; but me it hateth because I testify of it…”  We must all remember that as representatives of Him, whether you’re a missionary or not, we are all covenant people.

We must remember what the Saviour said, “My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.” (vs. 16)

I LOVE YOU TO THE MOON AND BACK! 

Until next week -

over to you.

Baseball-size spider near our flat

Not a Postcard! Near Port Macquarie

SO BEAUTIFUL!

Royal National Park, NSW

Killcare Heights, NSW

Toofah Singh, NSW

Cronulla, NSW

Tallons Beach, NSW

Yamba, NSW

Bondi Beach, NSW

Sydney Harbour, NSW

Nobbys Beach Looking Over Flynns, Port Macquarie, NSW

EYE SINGLE TO THE WORK

ELLO BEAUTIFUL FAMILY!!!

IT'S BEEN ANOTHER AWESOME WEEK! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?

  

OK – I’ve been getting lots of questions about the PIANO so I guess I need to address them. OOOOHHH … THE PIANO QUESTIONS!!!!

I will just say flat out, right now. I DON’T GET TO PLAY THE PIANO AND IT’S OK. We actually have almost completely cut out listening to any music because the Sisters need to practice their English.

I was pondering about it this week. Earlier in my mission, I'll admit I was a little frustrated and tried to find every chance I could to play a few songs or sneak in some practice time. But now, I am completely at peace. I think I was scared to give up music because it really is what brings me joy. For anyone who doesn’t know, MUSIC IS MY SOUL. And it really rips my heart a little sometimes to think about the symphony and not playing Chopin, but that day will come and I will be able to do it the rest of my life. I know that the greater my sacrifice, the greater the blessing. I know that. I can give up the piano for the Lord, especially after seeing all that the other missionaries sacrifice to be here. 

ENOUGH OF THAT! 

You ask about the youth in our ward – well, we don't have any. Maybe one young woman. We have about 40 people at church -- it's a ward in name but branch in size and I love it here. 

Teaching as Jesus taught came from a lesson we had with one of our investigators. We had planned to teach the Restoration and had role- played it many times in our studies. Sister K had memorized the first vision and so I asked her to share the experience when she felt the Spirit prompt her. We were having an amazing lesson and the Spirit was strong. Right after SK finished talking about Joseph Smith, our investigator had this puzzled look on her face. She asked, “Why do you believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet? How do you believe that the BOM is the word of God--how can you?” We answered with our humble, simple and inspired testimonies. She had a peaceful look on her face and I felt the Spirit prompt us to close with a prayer. She then asked us to come back so she could learn why we felt so strongly about what we believe. 

As missionaries, we are not here to prove or to argue, but to invite the Spirit so that the Holy Ghost can teach. 

My core experience(s)came from the heaps of miracles this week!  The first was Elder K's testimony. I was sitting in zone conference just in tears because of the sincerity of his testimony. I had flashbacks to sitting at home on Google Earth and looking up Carlingford and the temple and the Opera House, dreaming of the day that I would be here! I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to walk on the streets and the Temple grounds in Sydney. It is a miracle that I am here and the Spirit witnessed to me how lucky and blessed I am.

Another miracle, the family that we teach almost every week and have been since we got here in November, well their son said, “Mum, I want to serve a mission!!!” Incomprehensible joy!  We also taught 16 lessons in 2 hours this week. We found 4 new investigators and placed 4 Books of Mormon in one day! 

And I met Sarah Osmotherly from mormon.org! at stake conference. [Look her up – she’s darling! http://www.mormon.org/searchresults#?query=sarah%20osmotherly&filter=site Her “I am a Mormon” message was the first I watched after I got my Call.

When we were on exchanges, Sister L and I found the most prepared man at the last door that we knocked on. We were getting ready to close the exchange and felt like we should try one more house. Well, we knocked and T answered the door! He had just moved here from China and was looking for a church to attend. He was completely open and said he was so grateful that we found him that day. It’s a testament to me that when we work hard enough, the Lord places someone at the end of the street, behind the very last door.

Heavenly Father has really poured blessings down from heaven on the Toronto area this week. It definitely wasn’t the easiest week, but because we are being obedient, using our time effectively and working hard, we are seeing people’s lives change.  And that is the greatest miracle. I have no doubt whose work this truly is.

A scripture we were instructed on this week really touched me.

If you turn to Matthew 8, it reads:

  24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. 25 And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. 26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. 27 But the men marveled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him! “What matter of man is this?” He is who we serve- but also who guides us in all that we do.

In Doctrine and Covenants 100, it reads:

 4 Therefore, I, the Lord, have suffered you to come unto this place; for thus it was expedient in me for the salvation of souls. 5 Therefore, verily I say unto you, lift up your voices unto this people; speak the thoughts that I shall put into your hearts, and you shall not be confounded before men; 6 For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say. 7 But a commandment I give unto you, that ye shall declare whatsoever thing ye declare in my name, in solemnity of heart, in the spirit of meekness, in all things. 8 And I give unto you this promise, that inasmuch as ye do this the Holy Ghost shall be shed forth in bearing record unto all things whatsoever ye shall say.

Words can’t express how much I love being a missionary and serving here in the Australia Sydney North Mission. I am so grateful for my mission parents who have inspired this change in me. I look forward to every Monday when I can reflect on all that I’ve learned and experienced during the week and how the Lord has blessed me. I am grateful for opportunities to bear my testimony and strengthen it by sharing it with others each day. I know that my Saviour lives and we are His representatives, communicating His love and concern for His children. I love my companions, I love Toronto and my calling to be a traveling sister. I love this work.

I LOVE Y’ALL TO THE MOON AND BACK!

PLEASE, PLEASE READ YOUR SCRIPTURES AND MAKE TIME TO GO TO THE TEMPLE THIS WEEK, OR EVEN JUST WALK AROUND IT. 
DO YOU REALIZE HOW BLESSED YOU ARE TO HAVE THE BOUNTIFUL TEMPLE?!!??! AHHH!!!

I LOVE YOU SO. SO. SO.

XOOXOXOXO