Week 65, October 31, 2016

Happy Halloween!!!

This week we had two ward parties to attend because of Halloween; both were awesome and we had a great time meeting more of the members in each of our wards. We even got to meet a few non-members and less actives who like the activities! I loved being able to mingle and be a bit silly with the kids; I even went through a haunted house with my companion. It was terrifying! The cub scouts did a great job of scarring all of us. I especially loved the cupcake walk because I got to walk with cute little kids and earn a cupcake! I love pastries if you haven't noticed. ;)

We also had a couple of meetings this week; on Tuesday we had a meeting for new missionaries and their trainers. It was a great meeting where we received some more instruction and training on how to be good missionaries. The Spirit was really strong and it was cool to see other trainers and trainees. The best part for me was when President and Sis. Jaggi gave a training together. I loved the Spirit they brought but I also loved how they worked in unison. They are great examples of companions working in unity and of loving each other. They pointed out the future application for us, obviously being marriage; a few of us may have puked a bit in our mouths :) 

While we were at the office, I had previously ordered a new badge, one that was in English, and it was available for me to pick up. I went and got it but didn't put it on until we had another break. I went in the bathroom and waited until the others had left, then I took off my Spanish badge. Now, I had been mentally preparing for this, I knew it was coming, and yet I still started to cry. It broke my heart to take off the tag I have been wearing for over a year, signifying the end of my Spanish for now, and I couldn't stop from crying. I felt really bad that I was crying because I don't want other English missionaries to feel that I don't want to be here, but I was still really sad. Sister Jaggi noticed that I had red eyes (because everything can be seen in my face :) ) and asked what was wrong. I explained and she sympathized then testified that I'll use this experience, of trusting the Lord so, after the mission and throughout my whole life. I felt better until lunch time.

Now, normally I get really excited for food and we had Chick-fil-A sandwiches, which are amazing! so I felt like I was going to get better. Then, part way through the lunch, Sister Lemmons (one of the sisters in the office) came up to me for my trunky call. This call is major in a missionary's life because it means that the church is buying your plane ticket; that means you're close to going home. I started crying again; then the sisters who were around me also got their trunky call (they go home the same time as me) and they were crying as well. Why do I share this story? To just testify once again of how much God loves us. I'm glad this had been done in person rather than by phone because I was with others who gave me support. Also, I had the second half of the meeting to attend and so I could be distracted and move forward. Truly God is merciful to me. After that meeting we had a musical fireside practice and then we went back to our area.

On Thursday we had a mission tour, which I posted a piece of on Facebook, and it was amazing! I loved feeling the Spirit so strongly and to work with my fellow missionaries to learn and grow with Elder Christensen and Elder Nattress. It was an amazing experience that taught me multiple things; I can't share them all, but I hope to incorporate them into my life and you'll see the difference.

I don't know if anything else major happened this week; we keep trucking along, trying to find new people to teach, and working with members. I love the work we do and I'm really excited to see this area grow.

I love you all and I hope you have a great week! Remember who you are!

Love,

Sister Lindh

Week 64, October 24, 2016

How are you guys! :)

This week has been pretty good! We've been trying to visit members to support them and work with them so as to find investigators and the members are just amazing. They have, for the most part, been very involved with their community and so they point us to those who need us. They also are trying to invite non-members and less actives to dinners with us so that we can teach them while we are eating. This type of support is pretty different than what you find in the Spanish wards; I love my Hispanics, I feel like the difference is that they don't have as much experience bringing the gospel to others as the English wards. I hope that when/if I go back Spanish that I can help the members see their potential in helping their brothers and sisters join the church.

We have also been working hard to find less active families and we have met a few so far who are interested in hearing the lessons. For them, it can be hard because they, for the most part, know what they have left. That means their either not willing at all, or something has caused them to push away rather than a loss of testimony. Many of them I have inwardly cried for, but others are willing to change so we're teaching them. One of the them is a family that raised their kids LDS, went to church for them, but were never sealed in the temple. They have made the comment that they feel they need to come back to church, but they aren't sure if they want to start now. We are going to work hard to help them make friends so that they can feel comfortable in church on Sunday.

Another family we just found yesterday; they are part member and they have a huge interest in family history. We started talking to them about family history because the wife, the non-member, mentioned that she had gone through an open house for the Ogden temple. Both love their families and want to learn more about them so we'll be going back to help them with that and then start teaching the lessons!

We have also found 2 more investigators this week, one of whom we have taught the restoration. We haven't been able to find them again, but it has given us hope that we'll keep finding people. The other investigators we had met earlier this month and we haven't been able to see them either so we're a bit sad for that; they have a great spirit about them and a love for our Savior, so we really want to teach them. We hope to see them all this week and help them to progress in faith. As always, we continue searching for people to teach and we have come to know our area fairly well due to its size; there's actually more non-members than I would've thought! I love it and I love walking; the views are just amazing where we live and I love stopping and talking with everyone.

My funny for the week is that I became a zombie at one point! We were walking from one potential home to another when a group of people started to gather at our local haunted house (someone on the block that completely decorates his home to be as scary as possible; he even has a Facebook page for it! The Ogden Haunted Mansion!). Some were dressed up as trolls (bright, big hair, colorful clothing, etc.) and others were zombies. One of the trolls, a nice woman, asked if we would like to join because they needed a few more zombies. Of course, I said yes! It was community service and a chance to practice my acting skills :) 

They painted me up, told me that they were going to dance, and then we got set! I got to hind behind a tombstone to start crawling out slowly and then dance the Thriller by Michael Jackson; it was a blast! They were making a film for a company contest and they really wanted to win because they had a streak going. At the end of the whole filming process, because we did a few more shots at a local park, the man who was directing asked me to share a Book of Mormon with a fellow zombie; we thought it was hilarious and would also peek interest in the church. I was certainly a happy zombie by the end of the shot. And yes, I have pictures!

Anyway, life is going really well! I love my companion, we are having a great time working, and we are excited to see where this area goes! I love you all! Please be good, remember who you are, and have a great week!

Love,

Sister Lindh

Week 63, October 17, 2016

"It's beginning to look a lot like AUTUMN!" :)

I absolutely love this season! I love being able to start bundling up
against the cold but not needing to look like a snowwoman. I love
seeing all the different colors on the trees and on the grounds! I
love the feel of the breeze rushing by face and feeling a slight sting
in my cheeks. There is so much to be grateful for and I've only listed
the basics! I also love being a missionary, spending my every hour
focused on how to help others come unto Christ. I love meeting new
people and getting to hear their stories. I love seeing how the Lord
guides this work!
This week has been pretty awesome if you haven't been able to guess
yet. :) We are working hard to meet the members and share powerful and
spiritual messages so that they will trust us and help us. Many of the
members already love missionary work but haven had much of an
opportunity to do it, so we get to help them learn how! With one
leader we visited, we mentioned that we were going to go and teach one
of their neighbors and asked if she'd like to join us. She said sure!
then ran to grab her coat. As we were walking to the investigator's
home, this woman told us that she had never gone out with missionaries
before and was really excited to try. I was a bit shocked, because
there are plenty of missionaries to go out with, but she had never
been invited and hadn't volunteered. We were so glad to have her there
with us and the investigator was really open and friendly so it went
well!
Another family we visited we had shared the restoration, focusing on
Joseph Smith's First Vision; the Spirit had been very strong and we
left them with the invitation to pray to know who needed to hear that
message. We came back a few days later and they had 5 families for us!
Now, we are going to help them learn how to invite their friends to
listen to us in their home. We are really excited to meet these people
and to share with them the restored gospel.
We are still searching for people to teach, but we are also enjoying
our time together. I tend to feel stressed when I don't have many
investigators to teach because I feel that I am failing in someway and
need to change so as to find people. This is a true principle, but we
also need to realize that some things take time. Yes, I'd love to find
a family whose ready for baptism in 3 weeks tonight, and I know that
it's possible, but I'm not going to beat myself up if we don't. I have
learned to trust in the Lord's timing - not that it's easy for me -
and to receive confirmation of my worth from Him, not those around me.
I will know if I have had success as a missionary because I will be on
the same page as Him and He'll let me know.
I want to share one more story to illustrate the Lord's timing. We
were walking from dinner and decided to change our planes a bit and
visit we had been asked to go and see. When we got there she was super
busy so we set a time to come back. We start walking to our original
plans and we see a man taking out the trash from his home across the
street. We go over and start speaking with him and he asks if we are
looking for his wife; a bit surprised, we said no and asked why. He
told us that they are less active and then invited us in. We had a
great lesson with him and his wife where they said that they felt they
need to come back to church. We are going to see them again this week
and hopefully we'll be able to help them come back and eventually go
to the temple! We hadn't planned on seeing them, didn't even know they
lived there, but God did and He lead us to them.

I love you all! Please remember who you are and whose you are. God
loves you, I love you, and you are important. Have a great week and do
something extra :)

Love,
Sister Lindh

Fun story! So, the members were living with, the husband (Pa Nehring)
works as a flight attendant. On Saturday, he phoned home and said that
he had a surprise for us Sisters for Sunday evening. We weren't sure
what to expect so we were all super excited! Sunday evening comes
around finally and we all gather in the family room. There, Pa pulled
out this piece of paper and said that he had met a special guest. So,
to preface, he works Delta airlines, the Church's preferred airline.
On Saturday, he had been working when he felt a very obvious change in
the plane; he could feel an increase of the Spirit. He turned around
and he saw D. Todd Christofferson, one of the 12 apostles! The flight
got started as normal, Pa did his job, but part way through the flight
he brought Elder Christofferson a piece of paper with our (The
Sisters') names and how long we've been out on it. He then asked for a
not of encouragement for us, explaining that right now has been a bit
rough trying to find people. This is what Elder Christofferson wrote.
"Dear Sisters - I'm happy to greet you. On behalf of all the Brethren,
I thank you  for your willingness to serve and all your efforts
-whatever the outcomes. God bless you with joy as you work and serve.
With my love and prayers, Elder D. Todd Christofferson"
It was such an amazing gift! Pa took the time to think of us and ask
an apostle for encouragement! Also, the note is amazing! We, as
missionaries, have the apostles praying for us so as to help our
fellowmen come unto Christ. How cool is that!
I love you all and just wanted to share. I testify that we really do
have living prophets and apostles today. They speak with God and His
Son, Jesus Christ. I know that Christ lives; He is our mediator and
savior. I love Him and serve Him.

Hermana Lindh

 

Week 62, October 10, 2016

"It just, it just got to hard."

"It's the hard that makes it great!"

-A League of Their Own

As I announced last week, I have gone English. I am serving in the Pleasant Valley Stake and we are working with one building/2 wards. Both wards have a lot of potential and they're really excited to have missionaries all to theirselves. Before this transfer, there was one set of sisters that covered 2 stakes, working with each ward. Due to how many wards there are, the sisters worked primarily in the other stake where they were having more success. Now, we are getting more missionaries into our mission and more senior couples so we are able to focus more on wards and less on stakes, which is the goal. 

To be honest, it has been weird to be working in English -for example, I'll use Spanglish and I get some weird looks because they don't speak Spanish so I need to stop and re say things a lot- but it's only been a week, so eventually I'll remember my English =) I really enjoy working with these people and they are so willing to help us, I love their enthusiasm. We have already met with a few of the ward members and they have all been so warm to us. 

Even though I may feel a bit uncomfortable still, I know that I'm in the right place. Yes, I do miss my Spanish speakers a lot, but adding more friends is a good thing. Part of the gospel of Christ is that we can be sealed to our families with the overall goal being to have everyone sealed to each other. I know that the relationships I have are eternal and that I met everyone I have for a reason. I don't know why quite yet why I'm in English or why I'm in this area with this companion, but I do know that I love my companion and I love those I'm serving. 

I LOVE Sis. Soakai! She is amazing! She has this light about her that radiates and she loves everyone so quickly! (No, I'm not going to exclamation points the entire letter =) ) She has a really positive attitude that all the members can feel. Many people are surprised when she says that she's been out less than a week because she is so willing to talk and work with them. We haven't had too many lessons so far, most of which have been member lessons, but she's more than willing to take her turn and share the gospel. I have been doing my best at not speaking and we are actually pretty close to 50/50 because I know that she'll speak up.

We have met few non-members so far and we have a return appointment for tomorrow! I'm really excited to start teaching and working with her; her name is Renee (I think that's how you spell it) and she's very open to speak with anyone. She has a sincere desire to learn who she is, why she's here, and what God has planned for her. She has great faith in Christ and she's just super nice.

We are having a blast so far! Nothing huge has happened (besides transfers =) ) so far but I'm sure to have some awesome stories next week. I love you all and I'm so grateful for everything everyone has done to help me be out here and serving. Be good, remember who you are, and have a great week! 

Love,

Sister Lindh

Being silly

Sister Soakai trying on her winter clothing

Week 61, October 3, 2016

As always, something has happened every day this week and that's how I like it!
On Tuesday, I started out feeling pretty down; I'm not sure why, but
I've been spiritually and emotionally tired and something happened
that morning to cause me to cry and I had the thought to ask for a
blessing. We got ahold of our district leaders, Elders Justesen and
Madera, and they came right over to offer one. We spoke for a time,
because the Elders wanted to know why I was asking for one, and then
they gave me a blessing.
I'm going to testify again of how grateful I am to have the priesthood
on the earth again. With this power and authority, worthy males are
able to bless anyone who needs comfort, counsel, and health. Having
this special connection between heaven and earth, us and our Heavenly
Father, is such a blessing. I know that this authority is found on
earth once more, that it was restored through the prophet Joseph
Smith, and that it is found in Christ's church, The Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
After the blessing, I was feeling really good and I have been doing a
lot better since then. We continued working as normal and the day went
well. On Wednesday we had district meeting where we did P.O.O.Piing,
where we told each other our strengths and talents, which was awkward,
but really nice. Afterwards we had a zone lunch provided by an amazing
sister who loves the missionary work! :D
We then started splits with our STLs, so I was with Hna. Woodhouse in
Buenaventura and Hna. Miranda was in Ellison Park. I love working with
Hna. Woodhouse!! We had a great time together and we were able to meet
some new people and teach together. She really helped me work through
some other emotions I've been having recently and we ended on
Thursday. On Friday, Hna. Reynolds went to the temple and then to Salt
Lake to visit her old mission president, so we had Hna. Wi Repa win us
all day. We were able to do service and then we did splits after
dinner so as to work the two areas.
On Friday evening, right before dinner, we received a call from Sis.
Jaggi; she asked to speak with me specifically and I instantly had a
feeling that a big change was coming. She explained why she called and
it was because President had felt very strongly that I was to be a
trainer this coming transfer, but that would mean me going to the
English program. She said that I could have some time to think about
accepting this assignment or not and I said thank you for that and
then headed into dinner.
This was pretty hard for me because I love my Hispanics! I love
Spanish! I was hoping that because I only have 3 transfers left in my
mission that I could go the whole time in Spanish, but God has
different plans for me. I will most likely spend 2 transfers training
this new sister, in English, which means I could potentially end my
mission in English, which I don't want. It was a lot of emotion to go
through, but I immediately felt the thought "I'll help you with this."
I don't know why I'm being asked to serve in English, or train, but I
do know that God loves me and this sister so I will trust in Him.
I confirmed the next day, Saturday, that I'll accept this calling, but
I won't know officially where I'm going until later tonight. I'll post
on Facebook when I do know. I'm excited to see what He has in store
for me, and I trust that He'll help me and guide me; the song that
keeps getting stuck in my head (which is usually due to the Spirit)
was and is "I'll Go Where You Want Me to Go". After Saturday evening
session of Conference, it was confirmed to me again that this is the
right path right now, so while I'll miss my friends and family,
sacrifice is the fruits of faith and I know that He has my best
interests at heart.
We also had a great weekend because we were able to go to 2 sessions
of Conference! I love this time of year because it's when we can
listen to God's prophets, apostles, and leaders. I gained great
inspiration, we were able to have a good time with many people, and we
helped 4 investigators enjoy the same experience. It was amazing to go
to Salt Lake, listen to them in person, and be with people who are
trying to develop more faith in Christ.
Also, yesterday, Sunday, we gained Hna. Wi Repa as a companion because
hers went home; Hna. Reynolds served an amazing mission and has
changed lives. She is one of my dearest friends and I love her dearly;
she is going to affect so many people in her home. She glows with the
love and light of Christ and I'm going to miss her sorely.

Overall, a great and eventful week! :D I'll let y'all know how this
week goes, how my trainee is and where we are serving. I love you all!
Be good and remember who you are!

Love,
Hermana Lindh

Week 60, September 26, 2016

I'm on my iPad today so I'm replying to last week's email:
Progress is being made in our area! We have found new people that are
all spiritually prepared.
One of the people that we met this week is Erika Patiño; we found her
in Facebook and started messaging her. We had our first in person
lesson with her on Friday and it went really well. She said that she
felt really lost and confused as to what God wants her to do right now
and then we taught her about Joseph Smith; she said that she felt
something real strong, but she couldn't describe it well. We told her
that that is the Spirit and that she was being taught the truth by
Him. We explained how God wants to guide us and how He does that
through prophets and personal revelation. She then accepted the
invitation to be baptized and it will be on her birthday, the 14th!
The other person we met is Noe Diaz. He has been taught by
missionaries before and had accepted a baptismal date before he moved
countries. Recently, he was taught by Elders who we were here before
Elders Maza and Rojas. He loves prophets, believes that Joseph Smith
was a prophet, and that the Book of Mormon is true. He feels that this
is the true church so we invited him to be baptized for the 30th. He
didn't come to church yesterday, so he has lost of his date but we'll
invite him for the 15th this week. We know that he is ready, but we
will help him to take the proper steps to prepare for baptism.
And finally, the third person whom we met is actually a former
investigator who lost contact with the missionaries due to school. We
have set appointments with her now and Facebook, so she is going to
progress really fast. Her name is Jocelyne has accepted the baptismal
date of Oct. 15th, which is 3 days before her birthday. She really has
a desire to know if these things are true and is willing to put
studies aside for a bit to study this all out.
We are also teaching a family who are super amazing! They are the
parents and two sons; they are family members of members in our ward
and they really love the message we have to offer. I love being able
to teach families because that's the purpose of the gospel, to bless
families. When I teach them and see them react to the Spirit, I feel
soooo happy! :D nothing is better than watching a family grow together
in faith in Christ.
As something fun, this morning we had a mission 5K! I was not excited
for it, because of my undeniable lack of talent for running, but it
was so much fun to be with my mission and working with my zone. As I
was running, I ignored the pain in my legs by cheering on others; yes,
we were running against one another but we were running together. I
enjoyed being able to sprint past the finish line because it meant it
was over and then I went right back to cheer on others who were
tiring. Where the finish line was was hard to see so I helped people
finish with a strong burst in the right direction. I love cheering
others on!
I learned that I really need to prepare for these type of things and
that, even though it's not my natural talent, I enjoy improving. I
want to work on running after my mission so that I can keep
challenging myself and becoming better. Also, I might be a bit
competitive =) We all had a good time being wi each other afterwards
and playing sports. I'm so grateful to be in a mission where I can
gather with fellow servants, with my family, to spend some fun time
together.
Just a so you know, and I'm really proud of myself for this, I did the
whole 5K in 36 minutes and 43 seconds (36.43). Now I'm super tired,
but I'm really pleased with myself and how I'm progressing physically.

I love you all! Thank you for everything that you do and I hope that
you enjoy these letters. If not, I'm sorry, but let me know how to
make them better!
Be good and have a great week! Remember who you are!

Love,
Hermana Lindh

Week 59, September 19th, 2016

Fall is almost here! :D I love being to go outside and feeling the
breeze with sunlight, hearing leaves crackle under my feet, and
smelling woodsmoke at night. The official first day of fall is the
22nd and I couldn't be more excited! Each season brings its own pros
and cons, but fall is my favorite and I can't believe how lucky I am
to serve as a missionary for two fall seasons. There's something
special about this time of year and I think it's because people are
preparing for the end of the year and they're ready to change.
This past week we have seen an increase in member involvement! One of
our goals as missionaries is to leave the wards we work with better
than how we started. This doesn't always happen, but the way we act
and serve should reflect this desire. We have been striving to help
our ward grow and develop the spirit of missionary work and we are
starting to see the difference. We had 2 members tell us about their
friends/family and invited us to come and teach them. Nothing, well
almost nothing, makes me feel happier than seeing the members sharing
the gospel with their loved ones. It means to me that the members have
taken the gospel into their hearts and allowing it to change them.
One family that we will start to teach was from a recent convert of a
year who is preparing to enter the temple and she invited us to come
and teach her daughters and their families. Not all of them stayed
during the conversation/lesson, but those who did were deeply touched.
The former Branch President of Buenaventura, who is super good friends
with this family, was also there and he helped introduce us and he
bore super strong testimony. It was amazing and we are really excited
to start teaching some of them (not all are in our area so we'll work
with the corresponding missionaries).
The other referral we had received last week but they weren't able to
meet until last night. They are the family of members in our ward and
the members invited us over for a family home evening. We taught the
Restoration using a puzzle (the family has 2 parents and 2 sons, who
are 15 and 11) and everyone was interacting. The Spirit was very
strong as we each bore testimony and read scriptures. After the Fist
Vision and the testimony of one of the members, the mom was crying. We
invited them to be baptized and the sons and the mom said yes; the dad
said no but that if he received a strong answer from God, he would
talk to us again.
So, pretty good week all in all! =)
Oh, how could I end without a funny story? So, I think the funniest
thing that happened this week wasn't super funny to me but rather to
my companion. We attended a baptism this Saturday and at one point I
was trying to get back to my seat, but there was a lot of people. We
had just gotten done with a really spiritual moment and so I was
trying so hard to be quiet and reverent. So naturally, I nearly fell,
pulling a chair with me. I felt so bad, because I was trying to be
quiet and polite, and instead I caused a ruckus. Now, I laugh because
of how much it makes my companion laugh, so it's the funny story for
the week. Don't try to be stealthy and fast,not only causes you
problems (unless your a ninja =) ).

I love you all. Thank you again for all the support you give me.
Please remember who you are, be good, and have a great week!

Love,
Hermana Lindh

I was Scorpion

Kaylee Yu