Can I Wear Pants Now?

This week had many ups and downs!

Just before my companion and I came into the Library, we felt impressed to stop and talk to the man who had been putting on "Oversize Load" tape all around his van. We tried to explain our purpose to him and he told us that it was all bull [fecal matter]. He had six degrees which pertained to religious education and talked about how (I guess, in missionary terms,) [a lot of churches have reformed Christ's gospel, having their own opinions of worship]. We wanted to tell him how our church is about a Restoration of Christ's Gospel, and not a reformation. He asked us a lot of questions that only he knew, based on his knowledge and his study. We told him that we did not know because we didn't do our study when it came to plane crashes in 2001 and what the government did on 9/11. I thought to myself that this does not pertain to our personal Salvation (Salvation means delivered from physical and spiritual death) to know these facts. As missionaries, our purpose is to preach Christ's Gospel, which pertains to the principles which Jesus Christ established His church: Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End. If anything pertains to these 5 things, they will help us spiritually get closer to God. Christ's Gospel is very basic, but yet very powerful. I wish my companion and I could have shared this with him. 

I would like to ask every one of you: 

1. What does it mean to you to have Faith in Jesus Christ?

2. How do you show your faith in Him?

Faith in Jesus Christ leads us to act. This leads to repent.

3. What is your definition of repentance? 

Repentance is about these things: 

** We need to have the desire to change. Otherwise, we will not change.

-Recognize when you have sinned (to Sin means to willingly and knowingly to go against God's commandments) 

-Stop doing that is not in harmony with God's commandments (which requires self discipline) 

-Confess what you have done wrong to the person you offended, etc. This requires Humility, Patience, Kindness, and Charity. 

-Keep the Commandments - Repentance means - changing for the better. As we keep the commandments, we are acting on our faith. (James 2:17-18) 

-Most importantly, we acknowledge the Savior, and that  we cannot receive forgiveness without Him. He Suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane, He bled for us, he died on the Cross for us, and he was resurrected for us. Because of this, He knows how to succor his people (succor means to run toward). He knows how to help us in our trials. 

-Baptism is the gateway to Eternal Life, meaning, being able to live in the presence of God again. Baptism, when done with the proper Priesthood Authority, will have access to Christ's Atonement (includes the suffering for our sins, the shedding of His blood,and His death and Resurrection; for a full definition, look on page 18 of the Plan of Salvation Pamphlet). We can be forgiven of our sins, and be clean again. Without the authority, there cannot be that access, and even though that baptism is still a great act of wanting to follow God and a great act of faith, it is not complete. Only through the restored Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, can the Atonement be accessed. This is the only church on the earth with that Priesthood Authority. 

4.) Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV) talks about the fruits of the Holy Spirit. Anything that is good comes from God, and the Spirit testifies of this, either by good thoughts, feelings, impressions, etc. 

5.) Enduring to the End - means living Christ's gospel daily, not just on Sunday and to give the perception of a Christian. Christ's Gospel is in our heart, 24/7, and is a lifetime commitment. Jesus Christ did not take any breaks with being our Savior and redeemer, and neither should we. He always did the will of the father, and always glorified His Father. As Latter-day Saints, we believe in being genuine; not all of the members are perfect at it, but this is the vision that is set for all of the members, and all of God's children. 

I just shared a little bit of the Gospel lesson with you, by memory. These Gospel Principles - when acted on daily - will change your life. You will have more peace and comfort, and you will have more joy in your life.

...

Anyways --

On with the rest of the email - 

Sister Charlesworth got Foodborne Illness; she was very ill Friday Morning, and we had to go to Urgent care, and also the Emergency room. She was in the bathroom quite awhile and she couldn't hold much of anything down. They diagnosed her with being dehydrated, and her type 1 diabetes affected all of this and what she had to go through. I felt so bad; I made her home made fettuccine Alfredo (from what I could do to make it home-made), and she was able to eat that several days later.

. . .

A disappointment: The Santos family that we have been teaching - they are outside of our area! They are in the Cape Henry Area and we have to pass them off to another set of missionaries! When Sister Charlesworth wasn't feeling well, we sat down and located some of our referrals and investigators on the map. 

. . .

A highlight: 

Timberly, our investigator, went to witness a baptism! A member talked to her the entire time, and she was able to have an answer to Timberly's questions.

Another thing: This was the Bayside Sister's baptism. We weren't there, but we heard the Elder's left and the font overflowed. Our Bishop said he went to take care of it. 

. . .

A new thing learned: 

I read more in detail about the Gift of Grace by President Uchtdorf from last General Conference. I learned more about forgiveness, when I looked up these verses in Luke 7:41-47 about the interaction with Simon the Pharisee and Jesus Christ (Read all of Luke 7 for a more full account) : 

 41 There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.

 42 And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgavethem both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love himmost?

 43 Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whomhe forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.

 44 And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon,Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head.

 45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the timeI came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet.

 46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.

 47 Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.

I came to the conclusion that those who forgive much, love much, and those who forgive little, love little. I thought about the times where I wasn't as forgiving, I wasn't as loving, and when I was very forgiving, I was very loving. I also thought about other people and those who constantly hold grudges and how because of that grudge, they love little. 

Anyways - this is all I can write for now. 

92 Days until I come home.

-Sister A. Marshall 

 

   

Slow Week, But Ended In A Great Finish

This week has been pretty slow. 

Some of the highlights of this week include: 

-Every Day was a dinner appointment. I am so grateful for the freezer! A lot of food that I have has been put in the freezer to eat for later. 

Speaking of having many meals - I believe I pretty much ate two boxes of Dairy-free-gluten free cookies and brownies; I also made a batch of gf brownies, and mostly ate that by myself. I made some gf chocolate chip cookies and my companion and the Sister training leader pretty much ate most of them by the time I came back. There were about 4 left out of the batch I made. I feel so blessed to have a fast metabolism right now. 

- We watched the Sunrise last Monday 

- We had a great exchange with the Sister Training Leaders. I got to be companions with Sister Smart again! On the exchange, we saw a lot of miracles. I tried a new dish from the Military Relations Missionaries and it had Brown Rice, Coconut Milk, and black beans. It was pretty good! It Tasted good with Sweet Potato fries. 

- We taught the Santos family with an interpreter who spoke Tagalog and the lesson went well. We received 6 out of the 7 referrals from that family! There are a lot of people in that household, and my companion think there are more people in that house than we realize. 

-The Kempsville ward held the Meet the Mormons in the gym and then all of the missionaries (including Salem and Bayside) participated in the church tour. 

-We went to the Kempsville Sisters' baptism on Saturday; it was a mother and her 8-year-old daughter. I am so excited and happy for these people!

. . .

I have continued to grow in the new teaching method as we have role played in the mornings. 

A member shared with us how there is an article out there about missionaries adjusting to life again. If anyone knows about this article, and has access to it, please either mail or email it to me! 

. . .

It rained pretty hard in Virginia Beach! With less than a minute, my companion and I were soaking wet by the time we got to the car!

. . .

I have 99 days left until I return home!

. . . 

Anyways!

Until next time!

-Sister A. Marshall 

 

Desolate!

There have been many things going on this week, but yet, at the same time, a lot of things have slowed down.

Our IOs (invitations to others) has really slowed down, along with gaining new investigators. 

Here are some miracles that happened this week! 

Monday: We taught the Santos family! We had a scheduled appointment that day with the lady we met at the laundry mat on July 4th. We went there, and her mother told us that she had left the moment it came to our appointment. After this visit, my companion and I had a prompting to pray and ask for guidance in the car. As we did, it occurred to me to drive straight ahead to the dead end up ahead where the park was. We tracted in this area - about two households, and then Sister Charlesworth had a prompting to talk to the man who just walked into his backyard. We waited until he came out again to talk to him. We told us who we were, and he welcomed us into his home. He and his family are Filipino and speak Tagalog; they know a small portion of English. 

His 10-year-old grandson asked us who we were here to see. Sister Charlesworth said, "All of you!" and we eventually went back to the kitchen were they were about to have dinner. We taught by the pictures of the Restoration pamphlet; The younger father could speak a little English and he was able to follow along (along with the boy - he understood what had said to him). When it came to the first vision with Jesus Christ and God as separate beings, there was something about this where he was intrigued, and that the spirit touched him to let him know that what we had told him, was true. He has this enlightened look on his face. Him and his son were the most receptive. We don't have a return appointment yet. This family of 5 are almost investigators!

Tuesday: The dishwasher is fixed! The moment Sister Evans left, it broke and we have been doing dishes by hand. It took up most of my lunch and dinner hours to clean them and I ended up doing most of them. Oh goodness. What a blessing to have a dishwasher! 

Wednesday: We were mostly on time to our appointments, and we also were able to talk to Ali about one of her setbacks from joining. She told us that she didn't like our views on how we only see a marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God, and not marriages of the same gender. We told her that we would do some more research later on this, and we did! 

In Romans 1:24-32 it talks about how homosexuality is a sin (for those who act on those desires). 

verses 28-31 talk about the natural consequences of going against this commandment of God, such as developing a reprobate mind, lust, hate toward others, are without natural affection, and going against parents. 

Verse 32 talks about those who support homosexuality and have pleasure in what they do is also a sin. 

Leviticus also talks about homosexuality in Leviticus 18:22 and how it is an abomination unto the Lord. 

It doesn't really talk about this in the Book of Mormon. 

My companion and I both agree that the [guility] take the truth to be hard (1 Nephi 16:2).

I have a strong testimony that Marriage between a man and a woman is of God; homosexuality does not fulfill part of God's plan that he has for us - we are to procreate, within the bonds of marriage, and raise children in a positive, nurturing environment, in which the Gospel can be taught, and observed. 

. . . 

This week I had been studying Virtue and it seems like most of the people we have been seeing this week all had issues with Homosexuality. It seems the moment I write down a goal, it is set in stone and then a lot of trials come with developing that Christ-like Attribute. 

Proverbs 21:10 - A Virtuous woman's worth is far above the price of rubies :D 

. . .

Thursday: We taught Anette! We taught the Book of Mormon and she was very open to it. She is Catholic and she is very kind. We also have a return appointment. :D This was our first full attempt to teach the Book of Mormon in this new way that our Mission President has introduced to us. 

Friday: Our investigator, Toni, rescheduled. Before we walked over to the door, there was a handwritten note. We hoped that it was a note that said she needed to reschedule. When we got to the door, that impression was right! She did reschedule! My companion exclaimed, this is what happens when we have hope! When we think of positive things, good things will happen because of them (usually). 

In the 'Adjusting to Missionary Life' handbook (on page... 36? Or in the 30s), it talks about how worrying is a way of practicing failure. Indeed it is. When we think of all these negative things that may or may not happen to us, some of them may be personal prophecies. Our actions come from our thoughts and if we entertain those thoughts. We may think negatively of others because of what 'might' happen. When we think positively, we can react positively, since we already made the decision beforehand to do so. 

Saturday: We visited a new move in and they were very nice. We realized that they were a part member family. The Husband is not a member, and we invited him to read the book of Mormon. He hadn't read the book all the way through. Many missionaries, and even a stake president had told him different answers on where the gold plates went. My companion and I couldn't believe how some missionaries did not know the answer. We told him that they were taken up by an angel. He wanted to know where that answer came from. The next day, we texted his wife and it is found under the Testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith in the Book of Mormon, and it is under Joseph Smith History, 1:60 (you can find this on lds.org if you don't have the book).

. . . 

Something that wasn't a miracle was that on Sunday, I felt super sick for a long period of time. I had to lie down for a bit and that helped. 

 Oh! Also! I pretty much got to a sad point where I planked on the ground and cried because the Less Actives which we have been teaching haven't been coming to church. I usually don't get like that. But, I did; I want them to partake of the goodness of the gospel, and to access the power of the Atonement! Only in our church, do we have that access because we have the proper Priesthood Authority! 

. . .

Anyways! So much good has come out of this week! 

We pretty much have a dinner appointment everyday this week! This usually doesn't happen! 

...

Monday: We went and saw the sunrise at Virginia Beach. We had a lot of fun! We even got to take a group picture. 

 

This is all I can say for now. 

-Sister A. Marshall 

A Great Week! Fourth of July!

By the end of this week, we have found 4 investigators. Another thing that was great, was that our District Leader told my companion and I that we had the best numbers in the district! 

I have noticed a lot of blessings of being a Senior Companion! I am able to remember the names and faces of people a lot more easier than before, and even streets. I think the GPS really helps and that constant desire to be an example has really helped me fulfill my purpose as a missionary. 

We found Toni, one of our new investigators; she told us that we were sent to her from God to hear more of His message; she also told us that she felt the spirit strongly when we told her Joseph Smith's first vision.  

The next day, we found Briana. She said she may be subject to going to jail; we taught her the Restoration and we could tell she seemed more peaceful.

The next day, we found Timberly. She is a referral from a member; she has gone through a lot in her life. She came to church and she participated in class. I am so excited to be teaching her!

On Friday, we set a great Vision for our area! Our vision focuses on a portion of our Mission Culture, which states: 

"Because we love Christ: -We serve Him with joy, optimism, and gratitude".

We set our goals, and then our plans on how to do this and to have this show in the way we serve others. 

... 

We met with Milinda this week again! 

...

Also! I learned how to make Banana Pudding and Chocolate Pudding from Scratch (they're pretty much Vegan!). The main ingredient is the corn starch. I am never going back to a box again. 

I also found out, from my companion, that popcorn can be popped in a regular brown bag. 

1/3 cup un-popped popcorn

1 brown bag

After popping:

-olive oil

-lemon juice 

-pepper

-organic cane sugar

-garlic salt 

this tastes pretty good together (this taste is both of us contributing).

fat + salt + sugar = good. 

Also! The fourth of July! We couldn't find a spot to park so we just drove around, ate our home-made popcorn, and watched fireworks. We beat the crowds and we were able to come home before people started driving home from watching the show.

Another thing happened - after the driving around, I realized my thumb on my right hand had bruised from the inside. I told this to the Mission President's wife, and she told me that I needed to go to Urgent Care. The next day I went, and one of the guys told me I needed to get an X-ray. So... I did, even though I felt it was a muscle thing. In the end I was fine, and I spent $10.00 to be told that, but at least... I got to see bones...? 

... 

Meal Calendar - our meal calendar is completely full for this week! It is amazing! 

... 

My companion and I have been pushing ourselves more than we have pushed ourselves on the mission. It really pays off! It really does! We set our goals higher than usual, and we continue to seek for missionary opportunities! 

...

I think this is going to be the hardest transfer yet. There is so much to do; I can do anything when I rely on Jesus Christ, and God to help me get through any circumstance. 

-Sister A. Marshall