Dear Beloved Everyone,
First off, CEDAR CITY IS SO WINDY!!!! I've never Marilyn Monroe'd so many times in my life. Our skirts are like parachutes. Remind me to never ever do my hair ever again!!! We run to our car and our hair is stuck up like a lions mane. It cracks us up though!
I have so much to tell you this week and it's all so exciting.
I want to start off by saying how much I love my BELOVED DAUGHTER!! Her name is Sister Wilson and she is from Prosper, Texas which is north of Dallas. She looks like she could be my daughter in real life. Well more than my last little Hispanic daughter haha. I really like her a lot, we get on really well and laugh a lot together!
Well Tuesday was a whirlwind, I was getting more and more nervous as the day went on. Finally I got a blessing on Tuesday night from Elder Cleverly, the new Visitors' Center Director and it was so inspired. It was exactly what I needed to hear and more. It truly has given me strength this week. President never gives me easy transfer calls, it's always white-washing or reopening along with training or what have you. Well this week was no different! Wednesday morning I sat in the VC for the last time until I go home. I soaked it in and just did my favourite thing. I sat in front of the Christus and listened to Deep River by the Mormon Tabernacle and read my scriptures. Afterwards Sister Biery and I watched John Tanner and then it was time to depart! I felt calm and ready! We drove away from the VC and my family there and I just felt excited! We went to the Mission Office for the trainers meeting, which is where President and the AP's talk to us for three hours about how to be a good trainer, then we go into a room where all the greenies are and President calls out your name and your greenie's name and there you have it - you got yourself a baby! After a few hugs with Sister Center and some pep talking, we got on the transfer van and drove away with St George in the rearview mirror. It's the first time I've been on the transfer van for my whole mission! I've sent so many companions away on it and finally it was my turn! I managed to pack my stuff into two cases, a duffel, and three boxes ;) travelling light! But no fear, I'll throw away EVERYTHING in five weeks time! I felt very calm and could really feel the power of everyone's prayers. I think it's times like this, where you know that this is completely out of your comfort zone and completely pushing you and stretching you to your limits when you know that you are simply living from the Saviour's strength. I can't tell you how many times that strength has kept me going this week.
Well Tuesday was a whirlwind, I was getting more and more nervous as the day went on. Finally I got a blessing on Tuesday night from Elder Cleverly, the new Visitors' Center Director and it was so inspired. It was exactly what I needed to hear and more. It truly has given me strength this week. President never gives me easy transfer calls, it's always white-washing or reopening along with training or what have you. Well this week was no different! Wednesday morning I sat in the VC for the last time until I go home. I soaked it in and just did my favourite thing. I sat in front of the Christus and listened to Deep River by the Mormon Tabernacle and read my scriptures. Afterwards Sister Biery and I watched John Tanner and then it was time to depart! I felt calm and ready! We drove away from the VC and my family there and I just felt excited! We went to the Mission Office for the trainers meeting, which is where President and the AP's talk to us for three hours about how to be a good trainer, then we go into a room where all the greenies are and President calls out your name and your greenie's name and there you have it - you got yourself a baby! After a few hugs with Sister Center and some pep talking, we got on the transfer van and drove away with St George in the rearview mirror. It's the first time I've been on the transfer van for my whole mission! I've sent so many companions away on it and finally it was my turn! I managed to pack my stuff into two cases, a duffel, and three boxes ;) travelling light! But no fear, I'll throw away EVERYTHING in five weeks time! I felt very calm and could really feel the power of everyone's prayers. I think it's times like this, where you know that this is completely out of your comfort zone and completely pushing you and stretching you to your limits when you know that you are simply living from the Saviour's strength. I can't tell you how many times that strength has kept me going this week.
We arrived in Cedar City, got off the van, and the Elders had to get all our luggage off for us because it's WAY heavy! We found our car, which coincidentally was parked right outside that little Subway we ate at when you came down to St George the week before I went into the MTC! It was a nice little tender mercy to see that place and not feel so unfamiliar and far away from home! The Elders drove us to our home so that we didn't get hopelessly lost. By then it was about 4:30 so they brought our bags into our house and left and we introduced ourselves to the members we live with. I had spent time calling Ward Mission Leaders and Bishops the night before so we'd have SOMETHING to do. We had a dinner appointment with a Bishop and he said he would meet us at our house so we could follow him to his, or else we would get VERY lost. So we had a few minutes while we waited so I took my greenie knocking on doors so that she knows we use every single minute available. We went to the house next door to ours, and knocked and waited. FInally this man came to the door, saw us, and said "I'm not interested" and shut the door. HAHAHA of course that was her first door contact EVER! I felt so horrible for her. I remember saying the same thing to Sister Garcia this time last year "He didn't reject us. He rejected the Saviour. We'll pray for him tonight!" haha poor thing. We went to the Bishop's for dinner and then to a Ward Mission Leader's house and then to another Ward Mission Leader's house! There's a LOT of part member families in this area, more than I've ever seen before. And none of them are investigators. So, we went to work!! One of the Ward Mission Leaders is called Brother Ashdown and his ancestors are from Kent so we're probably related? They're from Pratts Bottom in Kent.
On the Thursday we just spent the whole day with our Senior Couple Elder and Sister Nelson. It was really effective because they know the area as they've lived here forever and they took us to visit some investigators etc. We are so pleased to have them here. Then on Friday we tried to do weekly planning but didn't really know anyone so that was weird too.
Anyway..... I want to share some uplifting stories from the week.
On Wednesday night as I laid in bed, all week I'd been afraid that I would just want to cry and feel really homesick and nervous. But I laid there and just felt so calm and so peaceful and so not alone. It really is in those moments when you know that the atonement is carrying you. All I have to do is pray and feel this sweet peace and assurance that we are in the right place and that I can do this. I remember on Friday morning I woke up feeling so homesick for St George and so alone and so inadequate to build this area back up and train at the same time that I felt like I just wanted to lay in bed all day and cry. But of course I got out of bed and acted like nothing was wrong. I wanted nothing more than to call Sister Center and just cry to her but felt like I should just wait and everything would be okay. I prayed to Heavenly Father and asked Him to give me something that would uplift me, and during studies a miracle happened. SISTER CENTER JUST CALLED US!!! We spoke with her and it uplifted me so much!!!!!!!!!!!!! She told us that Jesus walks beside us and that we are awesome and can do this and even gave us a referral for someone who wants the Sister Missionaries and called the Mission President because that was the only number he had haha!!!!!! It was a huge miracle!!!! From that I know that Heavenly Father hears all the thoughts and intents of our hearts and will openly bless us when we willingly and cheerfully have an eye single to His glory and His will. I love Him SO MUCH and have never felt His pwoer and His strength this strong before. I just feel like everything will be okay. I remember last week leaving Dixie I didn't get to say goodbye to A and then while sitting in front of the Christus Wednesday morning, I looked outside and saw A walking past the VC! I ran out and said goodbye! This week has just been filled with tender mercies like that. I know the Lord is aware of us and what is hard for us, and he showers down little blessings when we cheerfully submit.
So - awkward funny story, we got a referral to visit this polygamist family. We think the Dad is still actively polygamist because he is gone for half the week every week haha. So we pulled up across the street and walked up their drive and while we walked a huge polygamist van filled with kids and wives came towards us, indicating to get onto the drive, saw us walking up their drive and rapidly turned the indicator off and kept driving straight hahahahah!!! Sister Wilson and I were like "...Was that them?!?!? Did they REALLY just see us and keep driving?!" So we knocked in case someone was home. As we were walking back up the drive towards our car they pulled up AGAIN and this time just put their heads down and ignored us. WE FELT SO AWKWARD!! Part of me wanted to stand there until they acknolwedged my existence! We laughed so much about it though! Cool story too, Del Parson the artist who painted everything ever is a Ward Missionary and lives a few houses away from us. The Ward Mission Leader of that Ward is out of town for a while so we hooked up with Del to get the work progressing. He took us out for lunch and then we went to a teaching appointment with him, which was actually the Stake President's mother who is not a member!! She is old but really cool. Anyway Del is HILARIOUS!!!!!! He is not what I was expecting at all! He has this curly almost shoulder length hair and is really eccentric and all over the place. He was sitting on a bouncy exercise ball during the lesson and just cracking jokes the whole time. We love him so much!!!!! It was one of those surreal moments when you stop and think "What just happened?" haaha we were in this old woman's cluttered house, with Del Parson the artist sitting on a bouncy ball, singing O My Father to an old woman haha. When does that ever happen?!
We found 3 new investigators this week, which is apparently more than the last Elders found in a few months. We are just contacting everyone and working hard and trying to use time wisely. We can see that the Lord has prepared specific people for us. One is a 17 year old girl whose mother just got baptized. We just clicked with her and will help her progress. The other is this less active family with an upbaptized little boy. We are more concerned with helping the family get back to Church than baptizing the little boy. But again we just clicked with the family and I just love them so much already. We have a lot of work ahead of us but are ready and willing to give it our all. I want to go out strong, working harder than ever before.
We were invited to the Stake High Council Meeting yesterday morning at 7:30 in which we discussed missionary plans for the Stake and have a great plan ahead. There was also a missionary returning home who reported to the High Council and I silently wept some tears down my cheeks as I thought that that is me in five weeks time. I cannot express how much I love my mission and how sacred this time is to me. The whole Stake knows that I am going home this transfer and they bring it up a lot and I cry every time I think about leaving this place.
We have a good long week of hard work ahead of us. Please keep us in your prayers.
I love you all so much and can feel the power of your prayers.
Sister Nicholls
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