Where Has Time Gone?

Well, I'm not sure where the time has gone. Somehow it's almost time for me to come home.  In some ways I'm excited, but in others kind of heartbroken.  I absolutely love being a missionary and plan to continue to be one for the rest of my life. Rather than talk about all that I've learned this past year and a half I think that I'll just talk about my week.
  
Missionary work is wonderful. It's amazing to see others change and accept Christ and the truth in their lives.  This past week was way busy.  We were able to go to the temple as a district on Wednesday.  The temple is so amazing.  It is a place where I feel so much peace and learn so much about Heavenly Father's love.  I think that they are great symbols of that love. I've been thinking a lot about how everything that He does for us, including the commandments are because He loves us and wants us to be happy.  I find it interesting that prayer is a commandment but the whole object of prayer is to secure blessings for us that we need.

  
This week we haven't really had a chance to see much of our investigators.  They've been so busy and it seems like they've kind of dropped off the face of the planet. So Sister Thomas and I decided that we were going to set high goals for yesterday and expect miracles.  And you guessed it... miracles happened!  It seemed like it was one right after another.  

There is a recent convert who is super nice, but the elders drove her husband off last year and he hasn't been interested in learning much.  Well, each time we go by he seems a little more open to us.  His wife says that he likes us because we have personality.  She told us last week that this weekend was his birthday so we thought that we'd stop by and give him a card and dvd.  We were pretty sure that he'd be gone or if he was home that his wife wouldn't give him a chance to talk. When we got to their house the wife was asleep and he was home!  He invited us in because he wanted to talk.  It was great!  Even though a lesson wasn't taught, we are gaining back his trust little by little. To me, that is a miracle. 

We also contacted a few teenagers and they were all like "yeah!  I want to learn more!"  One was a referral. He said that his family used to go to church with his sister but she moved out and they stopped going.  Apparently, in the last little while, the dad has started talking more about church and how they need to go back.  The dad works shift work so we won’t be able to teach the family until Thursday but we're way excited about this!  From the way Jesus was talking, it seems like this family has really been prepared. He was a little quiet at first but then he opened up about football and I told him that I love college football and BYU.  Well, this just opened him right up!  We found out so much information about his family from just talking for a minute about what he's interested in. I think that people need to feel important before we even begin to teach them things. They can feel God's love for them as we find out about their lives.  One of his former teachers once told us that "he's a big loser."  How sad.  I think that sometimes we are too quick to judge.  We don't know what is going on in their lives and why they are the way they are. When I find myself starting to judge I always try to remember who they really are. Everyone on this earth is a child of God who once chose to follow Him.  They have testimonies of Him deep inside but they just need to be awakened. People rarely change without being invited to do so. 

We also talked with this girl who has felt lost and alone for a long time but has started going to a church.  She said that it must be true because people speak in tongues and that they're teaching her to do the same.  They also chant and it's interesting.  I've found that Satan twists and distorts things so easily.  He makes people believe in false things and it just pulls them away from the truth. In the scriptures it talks about people being blinded by the subtle craftiness of men.  That truly happens.  Something looks interesting and it pulls people in.  So many people talk about speaking in tongues and what not and I've wondered what it is like when they do it but I don't want to get anywhere near it.  We need to cling to the truth and not let go. I'm sure that satisfying curiosity is a lot of people's down fall.  Curiosity killed the cat right? 

Another thing that I've been thinking about is avoiding the appearance of sin. Often people are surrounded by sin but think that they're too strong and they wont ever fall into its traps.  Well, that's wrong.  After being surrounded by it people will fall.  We've talked about this to our investigators.  The key is Helaman 5:12.  We must be built on Christ.  If we are, we'll be safe.  If we're built on Christ we wont feel the need to satisfy curiosity or look for happiness anywhere else.  

Well, I love you all!  I can't believe that I'll be seeing you all this week.  Crazy!  Have a great week!  Be strong in immovable.  The Lord loves us and wants to bless us.  He is amazing.  I love the scripture that says the Lord is my light.  He truly is my light and my joy.  I love my Savior.  I'm so thankful that I've been able serve Him and invite others to come unto Him.  My life is forever changed and blessed.  I just love being a missionary.  There is nothing like it.  I feel like I have so much to say but I'll just end with this.  Always remember that the Gospel is definitely true and is such a great blessing in our lives.  When we follow it we will always be safe and blessed even if those around us are not. 

Follow Christ and He will direct your paths.  Well, adios! 

Hasta luego! 

Love,
Hermana Anderson

Hola coma esta

(This morning we helped renovate a home from the 1800's)

Hey everyone!  I know that I always say this but time is just flying bye.  I can't even believe that I'll be home next week.  It's so weird. 

This week was really great.  It's been a roller coaster to say the least.  I feel like missionary life is always a roller coaster.  Just when you think that you have everything figured out and everything is going perfectly something happens.  That is whats happening to us. 

On Thursday we had the baptismal interviews lined up for Candi and her 2 daughters and Rycca.  Unfortunately, Candi is the only one that had an interview.  Her daughters, Brianna and Alicia, still need to get permission from their dad.  He is kind of under the impression that the Candi is forcing this on them.  It's amazing to see what her 4 daughters learn at church though.  Every time we see them they sing us songs that they learned at church.  Their favorite is "If the Savior Stood Beside Me."  It's funny because they'll be singing it while they're acting up and Candi says something like, "would you really be doing that if He was beside you?"  and it gets them in line.  Candi's interview went really well.  She's so prepared and amazing. 

Shortly before the interviews Rycca's grandma called us and said that Rycca doesn't want to get baptized yet.  It's sad because she is ready but she feels pressure about it and what it involves from the whole ward.  It's pretty sad.  But the ward has realized that they need to make some changes in order to help her and others like her out.  So all of that happened on Thursday and on Friday night Candi texted us and said that she didn't know if she was ready to make a covenant yet because she's afraid of breaking it.  Great! 

We haven't been able to see her since then because she's been out of town but Joshua 1:6-9 keep running through my head.  I especially love verse 9 which says, "Have not I commanded thee?  Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest."  To survive the test of life we must be strong and of a good courage.  We can't let our fears get to us.  Fear is from the adversary!  Joseph Smith once said, "I make this my rule, if God commands do it."  Our Heavenly Father is loving and will not ask more of us than we are able to give.  Yes, sometimes it does take us be strong and of a good courage but we were sent here to do hard things.  We're not here to just sit idly by until our time comes.  We're here to follow God to show Him that we will follow Him even if it is hard or scary.  Life is a battle but if we want to make it we have to be strong.  That's just how it is.
So we're praying that we'll be able to see Candi today and help her through some of her feelings.  I keep thinking that I just don't have time for her to be doing this but it isn't about me.  I just know that I'm supposed to be teaching her and that I need to do all that I can to get her baptized before I leave.  So please pray that everything will work out.
  
Our 11 year old investigator Wesley is getting himself into trouble as well.  He's been getting in lots of fights lately.  I've put a lot of thought into what's going on with him and have realized some things.  His family has him reading an anger management book.  Now, that's a good idea but I don't think that it is the best thing for him.  As I've been studying and contemplating the scriptures I've come up with some things.  There are countless stories of people who changed their lives around.  They went from being evil to the best people in the world.  After hearing his address, King Benjamin's people "cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a might change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually."  What made this might change of heart happen?  They became truly converted.  They learned for themselves who their Savior was and that He was mighty and able to save them. 

So the conclusion that I had this week is that it is a good thing to study behavior but the best thing is to come unto Christ.  As we come unto Him we naturally become like Him.  His wants and desires become our wants and desires.  I know that as Wesley continues to come unto Christ he will have "no more disposition to do evil but to do good continually."  We are so blessed to have a Savior and to have the opportunity to become more like Him everyday.  
The Gospel is such a great blessing.  As we live it and let it really be who we are, it changes us.  It makes us better people.  It makes us more worthy to be called the sons and daughters of God.  

The Gospel is definitely true.  
Have a great week everyone!  I love you all lots!  

Love, Sister Anderson 

I'm SO Thankful that I came on a mission!

Hey there everyone!  I hope that you all had a great thanksgiving!  Sister Thomas and I had so much fun!  Tons of people wanted us to join them for Thanksgiving so we just went from house to house.  It was great!  By the end we definitely had had our share of turkey and pie.  I've been eating turkey everyday for over a week now.  I can't believe that I still like it. 


(we taught Candi's children the Plan of Salvation while building a gingerbread house)

This week I had a great lesson on faith.  We were teaching Candi about a commandment that she doesn't keep.  We had been waiting for the perfect time to teach it to her without anyone else around and the Lord answered our prayers and it all worked out.  Often when people struggle with certain commandments they don't want to hear that they are doing things wrong.  The scriptures are full of accounts of people who decided to not follow God because they liked their sin too much.  We often read a line that says something to the affect of, "the wicked take the truth to be hard."  It's true.  When we teach many people the commandments (big or small) they decidedly choose not to live them.  Well, Candi knows that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored.  She knows that the truth is back on the earth.  As we taught her this commandment that to her might be pretty hard her answer wasn't "why" but "how."  It was just like Nephi when he said, "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."  Candi is just like Nephi.  She knows that the Lord wouldn't ask her to do something if it was impossible.  She also knows that there is a reason for each of the commandments.  Isn't that amazing?  We asked her how she thought that she could follow it and she said to "just say no."  Exactly!  Just say no to sin!  The Lord is there to help us.  He's on our side and everything that He asks us to do we can.  There is a reason for everything, even little things like only having one piercing in each ear.  We need to decide to follow not only the big things but also the small things.  Personally, I think that it is pretty easy not to kill someone but something like going to church might be a little bit harder.  No matter what though, if we live the commandments and have them written on our hearts we cannot fail.  There is no way.  Lets have attitudes of how and not why.  I know that that attitude will forever bless us and when hard things come up we'll already know the answer.  

We have had a hard time catching up with Sandra lately.  She's so busy with work, family, and everything else that life throws at her.  Well, we finally were able to catch up with her last night.  I asked her if she had been reading and she responded that she decided to start the Bible from the beginning.  It's better then nothing.  She had pages of notes/questions that she wanted answered from Genesis.  Among the questions were how many people were in Noah's family, etc.  After going through a question and answer exercise for a bit I asked her what her intentions were.  What did she want from reading the Bible?  What was the end result that she wanted?  It was interesting because she didn't really have an answer.  I asked was it to find the true church, to come closer to Christ, etc and she didn't really know.  She said that she just wanted to know and understand it. 

As I've thought about that, I realized that so many people are desperate for the truth, for the thing that will make their lives better.  Sometimes they even have it right in front of them but they don't want to focus their efforts in the right area.  It's kind of like the good, better, best thing.  It's good to understand the Bible. It's better to have a testimony that it is the word of God and will change your life.  It is best to use it hand in hand with the Book of Mormon and to let its teachings take root in your heart.  Knowing the facts about the Bible can not and will not save you.  We are only saved in and through Jesus Christ.  We must live His Gospel and not be swayed by anything else, even if it seems like a good idea.  

We receive salvation only after we have done our part.  2 Nephi 9 says, "And he cometh into the world that he may save all men if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men, yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam."  There has been a big push for us to understand 2 Nephi 31 because it is the Doctrine of Christ.  I love this chapter because it lays everything out and ends with, "And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God..."  If we want the answers to lives greatest questions, they can be answered in this chapter.  If we follow this chapter we gain happiness, understanding, the information we need to live with our families forever, direction, and so much more.  Everything is there!
  
This week I was asked to speak in Sacrament Meeting.  I didn't really know what I was going to say but I prepared a few ideas on gratitude and knew that the Lord would fill my mouth for 15-20 minutes.  Well, the youth speaker spoke for over a half hour.  Sister Thomas and I were also asked to sing a musical number and there was one more speaker.  Basically I just stood up and spoke for 3 minutes about how we all have every reason to be grateful.  The Lord has given us everything.  We have way more than we lack.  I told them about one of my very first investigators, David.  David lived behind a car shop and had very few belongings.  Among those belongings was a couch and a large piece of cardboard to block himself from the sun and rain.  In the eyes of the world he had nothing but he thought that we was the luckiest man alive.  Happiness and gratitude do not come from monetary things.  It comes from understanding your relationship with God and that everything comes from Him.
  
Like every week, this week was an awesome week in the mission field.  I'm SO thankful that I came on a mission.  It has blessed my life so much and I'll never regret this decision.  Well, I hope that you all have a great week and enjoy the winter wonderland up there!  The church is definitely true!  

Love, Sister Anderson