Pictures for Oct. 2013

10/21/14

I hope Sarah is doing better! Poor thing! I will be keeping her and you guys in my prayers, well you all always are anyway, but I'll be saying extra ones. I hope the kids all had a great birthday at the Martins! So fun!!!! Please tell me you took pictures and that they are on their way to me!!! Have Grandma tell Grandma Reida happy birthday for me!!! She is incredible, still going!

 

Things here this week have been good! Another fast week!

 

The Rohrers are doing good. Today would have been Rick and Erma's 22nd anniversary so it's been a tough weekend. Erma's brother sent Rick a really awful "happy anniversary" card and was really mean and things didn't end very well. I feel so bad for them. I can't even imagine what they must be going through. But we had dinner with them Saturday night and it was so fun! I love just getting to hang out with them for a little bit. They always make me feel better about everything! I hope they really do go out and visit you guys, I'm not sure what's holding them up and why they won't just go...

 

Yesterday the Bishop had us do a missionary Sunday. It went really well! 3 of the speakers spoke on their conversion stories. Bro. Shadle, he's in the bishopric and is Hanna and Bethany's (my roommates) uncle! But he spoke about how he was in the air force and met this guy who was a member and long story short this guy had talked to 150 people about the church and all of them said no or weren't interested, then he talked to Bro. Shadle and he was the first to say yes. So it just goes to show that no matter how many times we have already tried to share the gospel we never know what's going to happen the next time. The last speaker, our new ward mission leader, spoke on the restoration. It went really well!!! I am really excited about our new ward mission leader. He is in his late 20's, so he has returned from a mission recently and so has our assistant ward mission leader! I am really excited to see how this goes! Then in 3rd hour we had a combined priesthood/RS lesson on missionary work and the 3 sets of us taught it! It went great! We taught them all how to use the great resources that the church has online like lds.org, mormon.org, and mormonchannel.org! They are so incredible! We told them all to make  a mormon.org profile and then to post videos and mormon messages on their facebook. and then we explained how you can refer a friend on mormon.org. We talked to a member in the ward today and they said that people have actually been posting stuff!!! I was really excited to hear that. So it went well.

 

Our investigators are doing okay. Rachael is on track for her baptism lesson wise, but hasn't stayed for all 3 hours for church yet or been to mutual. and she doesn't have solid fellowship in the ward yet. and her baptism is the 2nd, NEXT WEEKEND!!! So we're a little concerned. We've been praying really hard to know what to do. We don't want to move her date back because she has had it moved back so many times in the past 4 years and I don't want her to get discouraged. but I am nervous to baptize her and then have her not stay active afterward like her dad and brother. They both did that! BUT!!!! Her dad came to church with her yesterday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THAT WAS HUGE! I was so excited to see him there!

 

Linda is a mess. Her husband cheated on her, she is cheating on him, the man she is cheating on him with is cheating on her. Her husband put on job applications that he was in the military but he's not and so now there is an investigation going on and he is probable going to jail and IT IS LIKE A STINKING RED NECK SOAP OPERA OUT HERE! So she probably won't make her baptismal date for this weekend...

 

The Padilla's aren't doing too great. They are working at a chocolate factory to try and get money for a house so they can move out of the member's house they are living in. So that is their focus right now and we decided to hold off on teaching them till things calm down and they can focus. And hopefully they notice a difference in their lives without us there.

 

The weather here is getting cold! I feel so bad for my companion, she packed for Brazil and so she doesn't have warm clothes. She sent her mom a frantic letter to send warm clothes, hopefully she gets them soon! haha! She's funny. I love Sis. Trussel. She keeps me laughing, all the time. She has these blonde moments that are just spectacular. WE were at a member's house for dinner and they have 3 little kids that are so much fun! Sis. Trussel was helping one of them put carmel on his icecream cone and had a major malfunction with it and had to have the mom help her and it was just great! You kind of had to be there..

 

Yesterday I hit my 8 month mark! Crazy! It seems like last month I got here and yet at the same time feels like 2 years. But I love being here in the Massillon ward, they are making jokes that they're going to be moving my records in and give me a calling. haha! no thanks... But transfers are coming up in a bout a month (Nov. 13) and we are pretty certain I am going to be getting transferred. I'm excited and really sad at the same time. I am ready for change and a different setting, but I am really going to miss Massillon. I have gotten so close to the people here and it's going to be hard to leave right before the holidays. But "I'll go where you want me to go dear Lord".

 

These past few weeks I have been studying the Old Testemant. It has been interesting, boring, disturbing, all of the above. But I am starting to understand how the Lord feels about us when we make the same mistake over and over again and murmer when we have received blessing after blessing. I feel so bad for Him, I bet He can't wait to come and make us all perfect and be done dealing with the natural men. I have really enjoyed my personal studies lately though!

 

MOM! I was reading in Exodus 29:40 when they used "deal" to talk about a measurement and it made me think of you! Whenever you say to get a deal of sour cream or a deal of butter! Made me laugh.

 

Things here are good though. Staying busy and trying to smile no matter what. Not always easy, but I'm trying.

 

I love and miss you all so much!!!

 

hope you all have a good week!

-Rachel

10/14/13

It has been a super short week! Staying busy!

 

We have been working a lot this week with less actives and seeing an excommunicated member. It has been a lot of fun! I love these people! They often don't have specific reasons for being less actives, life is just hard. The people are still great. I just want to hang out with them all the time!

Our investigator Linda is going through some hard things. She has told her husband she wants a divorce. apparently he cheated on her about 3 years ago and she can't let go of it. However, she's having camp outs in her back yard in a tent with some man... So we're not quite sure what's going on there... We are praying that she can get things figured out and continue working towards baptism.

Rachael was doing really great and then didn't come to church yesterday. So that was a little disappointing. It was REALLY disappointing because it was the Primary Program!!!! My favorite Sunday of the whole year! One that she as a 17 year old might have actually enjoyed! We have a lesson with her tomorrow and are hoping that we can figure out what's going on and where she's at.

It's hard being upset with investigators when they don't keep commitments. Because I remember what it was like to be a 17 year old sitting in Sacrament meeting. and reading the scriptures and going to YW every wed and doing all the things that we are expected to do. It's hard and I didn't want to do it then either. So it's hard to try and tell her these are things she has to do to gain a testimony. It's true, without those things I wouldn't have gained a testimony and neither will she. I hope she can see why she needs to do these things and that once she gains a testimony of them she will begin to enjoy them!

 

Padillas are still going good. We had a good lesson with them last night about what we do as missionaries and why we extend commitments and expect them to do certain things. They are having a hard time finding time to read the scriptures and come to church because they are trying to get money to pay for a house, they are living with a member family right now. So they don't understand that if they put God first everything else will work out, that they will be blessed for that sacrifice. I think they got it. We committed them to read 2 Nephi 9, which talks about what Christ expects of us. I hope they understand how much the Savior loves them and wants them to come unto Him!

I am starting to realize that this is going to be my last transfer in Massillon. It's going to be really hard to leave. I will have been here for 9 months at the end of this transfer. and they will be transferring me right before Thanksgiving and Christmas! That is what is going to be hard! I'm not going to worry about it too much until it gets closer, there is still 5 weeks...

 

The Morrisons, one of my favorite families here, the ones who were the first members to feed me, they had a Golden Retreiver, Toby Lou, pass away a bout a month before TJ did. So they were really sweet when TJ died. This week we went over to their house to help out with some service. Margie told me they had a new addition to the family and pointed down beside her and there was their new Golden Retriever, Ruby Lou! I picked her up and just started balling! IT was so embarresing. She looks so much like TJ did when he was a puppy! It was so bittersweet. She's adorable and so cute! We had fun playing.

 

The other sisters did some service for a sister in the ward who was getting ready for a garage sale and I am attaching some photos of some little treasures they brought home from their visit. Mom, I know you will really enjoy them.

 

Other than all of that there isn't much going on here... just really trying to find some new investigators and stay busy!

 

I love and miss you all so much!!!!
Rachel

10/07/13

YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST!!!!! I BET THE MISSIONARIES THERE LOVE YOU!!!! I'm so proud of you guys, having lessons taught in your home and inviting neighbors to meet the missionaries! You guys are doing everything they talked about in Saturday's sessions of Conference! I know that as you continue you will see the great blessings that come from doing missionary work and you will fall in love with being part of that work. LOVE IT!

 

This week was so good! I feel like no matter what you are going through in life, conference always makes it better. There is always something talked about in conference that is specific for everyone's situation, whatever that situation is. Such a testimony to me that our Father in Heaven is aware of each of us individually. I love hearing from special witnesses of Christ and His restored gospel. It always gives me the extra nudge to push forward and continue.

 

It has been a good week of missionary work! The Padilla family has been looking like we were going to have to drop them. But my stubborn companion who doesn't like accepting reality didn't want to drop them so we decided to give them another week. And I am so grateful she is stubborn! We had a fantastic lesson with them last night. We had a member in the ward, Bro. Rice, who is fluent in spanish, RM, and assistant ward mission leader come with us. It was fantastic! The Padillas have never been that involved in our lessons before! I think it was really great for Lazero and Eric to have a male there to relate to them. Lazero is 25 and Eric is 30. They don't want to hear about chastity and the word of wisdom and stuff from a 21 and 19 year old. So it was great to have Bro. Rice there who is their age explain things to them and to be an example. It went really well! We aren't giving up on the Padillas!!!

 

Rachael is doing good! We're not sure if she was able to watch conference or not, but we really hope she did! We know there were things in it that she and her family needed to hear!

 

Linda is doing alright... There are some more serious problems going on than we thought and some of it she is causing. So we're not sure how things are going to pan out or what's going to happen, but we are praying things get figured out and she can apply the things we are teaching her.

 

This week has been really special for me. I have felt the Lord sustaining me. I have felt Him carrying me through this week. He has reassured me that this is where I am supposed to be and that I can do this. The Atonement of Jesus Christ is real. It's not just for forgiving sins, its for strengthening us. There was such a great talk about this this weekend! The Atonement brings personal strength and I have most definitely gained a testimony of that.

 

I miss you so much. Thank you for all of your encouragement and help through all of this. It really has made things better for me. I love you!

 

Rachel