I feel so bad - I keep leaving my camera card at home and I have a bunch of pictures I wanted to send but can't. Lo siento.
This week was a quickie so this email is going to be a shorty haha (--is it lame that I laugh at my own jokes?)
Anyway, Wednesday and Thursday I was in a two-day leadership training conference from 8 am to 4 pm. My companion went on splits while I was in the meetings. Both days were great but also spiritually draining (that means, the Spirit was so strong and forceful, I got tired!) We taught some lessons but also got dropped by an investigator and had many canceled appointments....it was a weird couple of days but very educational and uplifting. Friday was rainy and gloomy. I dressed like a gypsy and enjoyed being able to stay inside for weekly planning. We taught lessons all night.
Saturday we got the honor and privilege of hearing from Elder Haniey, Elder Hallstrom, and apostle/Elder Russell M. Nelson. When they walked into the room, it was like the Spirit just swooped in and covered us all. It was pretty cool. I took a bunch of notes but left those at home as well. Let's just say it was another spiritually draining day.
Sunday was great. I love Sundays. Monday was great too. And today we got to go to the San Diego temple and do an endowment session. The temple is gorgeous and I love that we have the opportunity to attend every 12 weeks. Currently we have no progressing investigators but we have a zillion potential investigators which is sick! I love having options :) The work continues to go forth, rain or shine, in sickness and in health. Amen.
Love ya all, Sister Christensen
Monday, April 23, 2012
Sunday, April 15, 2012
April 10, 2012
Have I ever mentioned that I love my mission? I don't know if I ever have on this blog, but just so you all know, I love my mission....a lot. Nothing spectacular happened this week, in fact, I was forced into a new companionship and had the weight of the world on my shoulders to train her in the area, but I still love my mission. We have terrible, hard, annoying, frustrating days or hours or minutes, but yet I adore my mission. Maybe things will change in the future and you might have to remind me of this down the road if times get really really tough, but for now I want you all to know I don't regret giving up my life for 18 months to come out here and do this work. It has definitely been the biggest adventure of my life and I still have a long haul to go, but I love. The end.
Now on that note, Tuesday was probably one of the hardest days of my mission thus far. I lost my rock star companion and my absolute favorite elder, all in one painful swoop. I was crying so hard in that transfer meeting I had to leave because I was about to sob. I am telling you people, the unknown (especially on a mission) is a very scary thing. I knew who my possibilities were for companions and it wasn't looking too hot. But then I got called to be with the one girl who I had no preconceived notions about and could actually start from square one. She is only four months out so I am def. senior comp. and leading the area, but she is mellow and open to whatever her mission holds for her. Saying bye to Elder Free was terrible (I hate goodbyes), but once we got into the car to drive home, it was all business...back to missionary work as usual. We grabbed dinner at the one and only restaurant in our area (El Ranchero) and went to appointments. Getting used to a new teaching style can be interesting and sometimes downright awkward, but we made it work.
Wednesday: was a good and busy day. Heavenly Father totally blessed us with lots to do. As a matter of fact, I probably seemed like a chicken running around with my head cut off.....it's hard being the only one who knows the area and what's going on, etc. We picked up a former investigator, which was a miracle and awesome, and later we had a fun Relief Society dinner. And we had appointments.
Thursday: We did service in the morning. I learned how to lay contact paper! And then we had a day of cancellations. I am telling you, when it rains, it pours. We had five cancellations. Yep. Gotta love unreliable people. In our fruitless driving around to find people, we found some huge boulders with a pretty view. If you know me, you know that being in a dress does not stop me from climbing them and getting a picture. On my way down, I fell and cut my foot open and got a gnarly black and purple bruise. My comp. was a super hero and got stuff to clean it and put Bandaids on it. It freakin' hurt! And the cut is on a place on my foot where it just keeps opening up and getting gross.....Anywho, despite cancellations, we kept up the work, had a nice dinner, etc.
Friday was weekly planning day. Boring. We really didn't have much to do until dinner and then we had appointments till nine.
Saturday was legit. We weeded in the morning, and then got permission to go on our Facebook and post our testimony of Jesus Christ for an Easter thing with the Church. Did you see mine? I was a little rushed so don't judge me. We had lessons from 3-5, dinner with Dani and Mike, and then we went to a missionary's homecoming party. It was weird!!! It made me think of Elder Free and how he is doing that same thing back in Utah. And it was weird to think that one day I'll go home....just....weird....At 8, we had an Easter egg hunt with Dani and Mike and their kids (Shad, Kaden and Kami). It was a flashlight hunt--I loved it!
Sunday was Easter!!! The Spanish sisters and us made a nice big breakfast and traded Easter baskets. We got so much junk food it was insane. My companion's parents also sent us both a box full of candy and my mama sent candy.....last week I thought I lost a pound or two, this week I gained 10 fold....so annoying. But such is life. At Church we had our four baptism confirmations and we had some really nice lessons. We had a nice Mexican Easter dinner and then visited some families in our family ward. It was a successful Easter.
Monday: We did more service....some weeks we get no service opportunities and others we get a ton! My favorite part of the day was at 6. We read the Book of Mormon with an inactive lady who has warmed up soooo much in the last 12 weeks. She asks hard questions sometimes and I get nervous that I won't be able to answer. So she asks a hard question and my mind is literally blank...I got nothing. And I was sitting there, and the Spirit literally speaks to me and tells me where to look and what to share with her. And then I had a thought and the Spirit directed me so clearly and powerfully. i. love. it. It is seriously one of the coolest feelings ever. I have had a bunch of other times like that and I don't think I have shared them with you all, so sorry--I'll try and do that more! Later that night we attended YSA FHE. There was a LA kid who tricked out his car and reminded me a TON of a kid I dated in high school. Obviously I asked for a ride in his car (with three other girls so it was missionary appropriate) and it went from 0-50 in like 10 seconds. ha. It was fun. I love serving with the YSA.
Today we got permission to play basketball with the Relief Society in the morning. It was the best workout I have gotten in a long time. Love it! Hope all is going well wherever you all are!
Love you lots
-Sister Christensen
Now on that note, Tuesday was probably one of the hardest days of my mission thus far. I lost my rock star companion and my absolute favorite elder, all in one painful swoop. I was crying so hard in that transfer meeting I had to leave because I was about to sob. I am telling you people, the unknown (especially on a mission) is a very scary thing. I knew who my possibilities were for companions and it wasn't looking too hot. But then I got called to be with the one girl who I had no preconceived notions about and could actually start from square one. She is only four months out so I am def. senior comp. and leading the area, but she is mellow and open to whatever her mission holds for her. Saying bye to Elder Free was terrible (I hate goodbyes), but once we got into the car to drive home, it was all business...back to missionary work as usual. We grabbed dinner at the one and only restaurant in our area (El Ranchero) and went to appointments. Getting used to a new teaching style can be interesting and sometimes downright awkward, but we made it work.
Wednesday: was a good and busy day. Heavenly Father totally blessed us with lots to do. As a matter of fact, I probably seemed like a chicken running around with my head cut off.....it's hard being the only one who knows the area and what's going on, etc. We picked up a former investigator, which was a miracle and awesome, and later we had a fun Relief Society dinner. And we had appointments.
Thursday: We did service in the morning. I learned how to lay contact paper! And then we had a day of cancellations. I am telling you, when it rains, it pours. We had five cancellations. Yep. Gotta love unreliable people. In our fruitless driving around to find people, we found some huge boulders with a pretty view. If you know me, you know that being in a dress does not stop me from climbing them and getting a picture. On my way down, I fell and cut my foot open and got a gnarly black and purple bruise. My comp. was a super hero and got stuff to clean it and put Bandaids on it. It freakin' hurt! And the cut is on a place on my foot where it just keeps opening up and getting gross.....Anywho, despite cancellations, we kept up the work, had a nice dinner, etc.
Friday was weekly planning day. Boring. We really didn't have much to do until dinner and then we had appointments till nine.
Saturday was legit. We weeded in the morning, and then got permission to go on our Facebook and post our testimony of Jesus Christ for an Easter thing with the Church. Did you see mine? I was a little rushed so don't judge me. We had lessons from 3-5, dinner with Dani and Mike, and then we went to a missionary's homecoming party. It was weird!!! It made me think of Elder Free and how he is doing that same thing back in Utah. And it was weird to think that one day I'll go home....just....weird....At 8, we had an Easter egg hunt with Dani and Mike and their kids (Shad, Kaden and Kami). It was a flashlight hunt--I loved it!
Sunday was Easter!!! The Spanish sisters and us made a nice big breakfast and traded Easter baskets. We got so much junk food it was insane. My companion's parents also sent us both a box full of candy and my mama sent candy.....last week I thought I lost a pound or two, this week I gained 10 fold....so annoying. But such is life. At Church we had our four baptism confirmations and we had some really nice lessons. We had a nice Mexican Easter dinner and then visited some families in our family ward. It was a successful Easter.
Monday: We did more service....some weeks we get no service opportunities and others we get a ton! My favorite part of the day was at 6. We read the Book of Mormon with an inactive lady who has warmed up soooo much in the last 12 weeks. She asks hard questions sometimes and I get nervous that I won't be able to answer. So she asks a hard question and my mind is literally blank...I got nothing. And I was sitting there, and the Spirit literally speaks to me and tells me where to look and what to share with her. And then I had a thought and the Spirit directed me so clearly and powerfully. i. love. it. It is seriously one of the coolest feelings ever. I have had a bunch of other times like that and I don't think I have shared them with you all, so sorry--I'll try and do that more! Later that night we attended YSA FHE. There was a LA kid who tricked out his car and reminded me a TON of a kid I dated in high school. Obviously I asked for a ride in his car (with three other girls so it was missionary appropriate) and it went from 0-50 in like 10 seconds. ha. It was fun. I love serving with the YSA.
Today we got permission to play basketball with the Relief Society in the morning. It was the best workout I have gotten in a long time. Love it! Hope all is going well wherever you all are!
Love you lots
-Sister Christensen
Friday, April 6, 2012
April 3, 2012 w/ SIX pictures!
Tuesday: At district activity I found out one of the other elders used to be a cheerleader. While the elders were playing basketball, I proceeded to do about 20-30 cheer jumps with him without stretching or warming up....it was a bad idea. I could hardly walk for the next two days. I got some sweet pictures and was able to relive my glory days, but it was for a price ha. I love my district and we hung out for too long, which consequently made us late for evening appointments, but all's well.
Wednesday was a party. Haha, there is no way that any of you will be able to understand the hilariousness of this situation, but I will try and explain. Sister Allred and I got invited to lunch at a member's home with two other sets of elders. Elder Free (my absolute favorite elder) is going home tomorrow. This member wanted to throw him a goodbye lunch and somehow Allred and I got wrapped into it. We got there and he asked all of us if we would pray for the meal....yeah....we each prayed over lunch....Elder Free just gave us a look like "just wait..." I was holding back laughter. We continued on to eat a very interesting, Thanksgiving-esque type meal but some of it, I was unsure what it was. I was nervous but I was sitting right next to them so I was forced to eat it all. At the end, the member burst into a totally fake cry while saying "bye" to Elder Free and then he broke into spontaneous prayer. I looked around the room and all the elders faces were to die for. We quickly bowed our heads and prayed with him. It was interesting to say the least. The rest of the day was so busy. We went to a million appointments and got it done.
Thursday we went to the Family History Center again to help a new convert learn about it. She loved it and got me inspired to do it more when I get home. Later that night we had dinner with a family that has 27 wild, exotic, rescue birds in their garage. It was freakin' awesome. The birds talk and sing and were so pretty! See photos.
Friday a visa waiter followed Allred and I around for the day. It was annoying. We did weekly planning and picked up an investigator which we were super stoked about. We taught some legit lessons and went to bed happy for Conference.
Saturday was General Conference. We spent from 9-5 and 7-9 at the church. Jeremy had his baptism interview and passed. Conference was legit as always....and then at 9:45 my world came crashing down. Allred is getting transfered. It was a total blindside. I bawled for a solid hour. And then throughout the rest of the weekend. I have been the happiest I have ever been while on my mission. I love Sister Allred. We work together flawlessly. We have had sooo many people tell us how smoothly we teach and we compliment each other so well. It seriously sucks so badly. And we hit our PRs this week. We got 23 lessons, 105 contacts, baptisms, new investigators---it was the best week of my mission.....If I had known the transfer was coming I would have been ok with it, but I had no idea.
Sunday was a blur. It's bad enough that I am losing Elder Free, but taking away Sister Allred was a total kick when I was already done. Seriously, I could hardly pay attention in conference. We went and said goodbyes to people for the remainder of the evening. It sucked.
Monday was awesome ONLY because of the baptism. The baptism was a total disaster, but so awesome. Four people got baptized, but one of the girls got held up at work, so Jeremy and Mateo got baptized at 8ish and then the entire group waited TWO hours for Alma and Fabi to get baptized around 1030.....we got permission from our mission president to stay out late to be there for them. Me and my new companion will be teaching Alma and Fabi, so we are stoked about that. It was a lesson about patience....it is never a bad thing to stay up late and wait around for two hours to let someone enter the waters of baptism. I was exhausted by the end, and then remembered I am losing Allred so I got depressed again. Went to bed at 11.
I love my mission. I love this work. I have never had so much fun and worked so hard at the same time. I know that whoever I get will teach me what I need to learn. It's going to be an interesting change, but I know I can do it. I hope all is well.
-Sister Christensen
Wednesday was a party. Haha, there is no way that any of you will be able to understand the hilariousness of this situation, but I will try and explain. Sister Allred and I got invited to lunch at a member's home with two other sets of elders. Elder Free (my absolute favorite elder) is going home tomorrow. This member wanted to throw him a goodbye lunch and somehow Allred and I got wrapped into it. We got there and he asked all of us if we would pray for the meal....yeah....we each prayed over lunch....Elder Free just gave us a look like "just wait..." I was holding back laughter. We continued on to eat a very interesting, Thanksgiving-esque type meal but some of it, I was unsure what it was. I was nervous but I was sitting right next to them so I was forced to eat it all. At the end, the member burst into a totally fake cry while saying "bye" to Elder Free and then he broke into spontaneous prayer. I looked around the room and all the elders faces were to die for. We quickly bowed our heads and prayed with him. It was interesting to say the least. The rest of the day was so busy. We went to a million appointments and got it done.
Thursday we went to the Family History Center again to help a new convert learn about it. She loved it and got me inspired to do it more when I get home. Later that night we had dinner with a family that has 27 wild, exotic, rescue birds in their garage. It was freakin' awesome. The birds talk and sing and were so pretty! See photos.
Friday a visa waiter followed Allred and I around for the day. It was annoying. We did weekly planning and picked up an investigator which we were super stoked about. We taught some legit lessons and went to bed happy for Conference.
Saturday was General Conference. We spent from 9-5 and 7-9 at the church. Jeremy had his baptism interview and passed. Conference was legit as always....and then at 9:45 my world came crashing down. Allred is getting transfered. It was a total blindside. I bawled for a solid hour. And then throughout the rest of the weekend. I have been the happiest I have ever been while on my mission. I love Sister Allred. We work together flawlessly. We have had sooo many people tell us how smoothly we teach and we compliment each other so well. It seriously sucks so badly. And we hit our PRs this week. We got 23 lessons, 105 contacts, baptisms, new investigators---it was the best week of my mission.....If I had known the transfer was coming I would have been ok with it, but I had no idea.
Sunday was a blur. It's bad enough that I am losing Elder Free, but taking away Sister Allred was a total kick when I was already done. Seriously, I could hardly pay attention in conference. We went and said goodbyes to people for the remainder of the evening. It sucked.
Monday was awesome ONLY because of the baptism. The baptism was a total disaster, but so awesome. Four people got baptized, but one of the girls got held up at work, so Jeremy and Mateo got baptized at 8ish and then the entire group waited TWO hours for Alma and Fabi to get baptized around 1030.....we got permission from our mission president to stay out late to be there for them. Me and my new companion will be teaching Alma and Fabi, so we are stoked about that. It was a lesson about patience....it is never a bad thing to stay up late and wait around for two hours to let someone enter the waters of baptism. I was exhausted by the end, and then remembered I am losing Allred so I got depressed again. Went to bed at 11.
I love my mission. I love this work. I have never had so much fun and worked so hard at the same time. I know that whoever I get will teach me what I need to learn. It's going to be an interesting change, but I know I can do it. I hope all is well.
-Sister Christensen
Doing cheer jumps
The Spanish sisters and I decided to feel normal and instead of putting on PJs we put on jeans!
The crazy cool birds.
My favorite, Elder Free.
We took a super cheesy family photo.
The baptism!
Monday, April 2, 2012
March 27, 2012 w/ pictures
I think this is going to be short...I don't feel like I have much to say.
Tuesday was Dani's baptism. It was awesome. I felt the Spirit so strongly and I know she is going to be a rockstar Mormon. I loved it. I was just so happy and it was such a success, I loved it!
Wednesday we had these amazing brownies called "skanky brownies" - it was chocolate chip cookie dough, oreos, brownies, and ice cream all together. They were delicious and probably added two more pounds (but who's counting anymore, ya know). As for missionary work, I was most def. feeling trunky, so even though it was still a good day, I don't have much to report. Try the brownies, you won't regret it.
Thursday was fun. We did service in the morning and picked up a possible investigator. We also had a meeting with the elders. We have come to realize that the sister missionaries are at a bit of a disadvantage because we never get one-on-one training from leadership. You can practice teach all day long but until you actually put that into real life it's not super applicable. We miss out on so much great training and it makes us feel like we are stuck in this plane of mediocrity because we have no one to pull us out. Allred and I had a mini-panic attack because we realized that we are almost the oldest sisters, and we do NOT feel qualified to train other girls. Anyway, the meeting brought some good points to light and we hope that we can find a way to get all the training and application we need so we can continue to be sick missionaries. (Speaking of sick, I was congested alll week! There is a bug going around our ward and I caught it. Sucks to be me!)
Friday was weekly planning. We started off our day getting fed by this lady who loves to chat. We were there for three, yes, three hours and barely said a word. We didn't want to be rude, but we didn't know how to stop her. It was not a good start to our long day of sitting and talking. We had some legit lessons at the end of the night so that was nice.
Saturday we kept busy, which I loved. Saturdays are usually our most open day so when it's not wide open we are stoked. We had a handful of appointments and then a Young Single Adult activity. Our investigator, Jeremy, came, and oh yeah, we set a baptismal date with him........April 2nd......yep, next Monday! What the crazy haha! We weren't expecting it to be that fast at all but we are happy, and he is super happy so we are happy.
Sunday: Sister Allred and I taught Young Men's and kept busy. It was crazy raining outside, but it was Sunday and we love Sundays because we visit with active families and enjoy our Sabbath, so success.
Monday went quick. We had district meeting (which was my favorite elder's last district meeting and I was sad because he is a stellar missionary) and then we had appointments all day. Because our investigator pool is low, we teach a lot of less actives. As much as I would love to teach investigators, we feel the same level of success when we see our less actives growing testimonies and coming to Church. It's not a baptism, but we still can see the fruit of our labor and we love it.
We are soooo excited for General Conference this weekend! I have been counting down since like February! It's like the Super Bowl for missionaries. I would invite all of you to write down any questions you have this week in preparation for Conference so that God can give you answers through our prophets and apostles. It's gonna be legitttt!! And next week I'll have another baptism to report on. Party hard people! Love ya lots!
-Sister Christensen
Tuesday was Dani's baptism. It was awesome. I felt the Spirit so strongly and I know she is going to be a rockstar Mormon. I loved it. I was just so happy and it was such a success, I loved it!
Wednesday we had these amazing brownies called "skanky brownies" - it was chocolate chip cookie dough, oreos, brownies, and ice cream all together. They were delicious and probably added two more pounds (but who's counting anymore, ya know). As for missionary work, I was most def. feeling trunky, so even though it was still a good day, I don't have much to report. Try the brownies, you won't regret it.
Thursday was fun. We did service in the morning and picked up a possible investigator. We also had a meeting with the elders. We have come to realize that the sister missionaries are at a bit of a disadvantage because we never get one-on-one training from leadership. You can practice teach all day long but until you actually put that into real life it's not super applicable. We miss out on so much great training and it makes us feel like we are stuck in this plane of mediocrity because we have no one to pull us out. Allred and I had a mini-panic attack because we realized that we are almost the oldest sisters, and we do NOT feel qualified to train other girls. Anyway, the meeting brought some good points to light and we hope that we can find a way to get all the training and application we need so we can continue to be sick missionaries. (Speaking of sick, I was congested alll week! There is a bug going around our ward and I caught it. Sucks to be me!)
Friday was weekly planning. We started off our day getting fed by this lady who loves to chat. We were there for three, yes, three hours and barely said a word. We didn't want to be rude, but we didn't know how to stop her. It was not a good start to our long day of sitting and talking. We had some legit lessons at the end of the night so that was nice.
Saturday we kept busy, which I loved. Saturdays are usually our most open day so when it's not wide open we are stoked. We had a handful of appointments and then a Young Single Adult activity. Our investigator, Jeremy, came, and oh yeah, we set a baptismal date with him........April 2nd......yep, next Monday! What the crazy haha! We weren't expecting it to be that fast at all but we are happy, and he is super happy so we are happy.
Sunday: Sister Allred and I taught Young Men's and kept busy. It was crazy raining outside, but it was Sunday and we love Sundays because we visit with active families and enjoy our Sabbath, so success.
Monday went quick. We had district meeting (which was my favorite elder's last district meeting and I was sad because he is a stellar missionary) and then we had appointments all day. Because our investigator pool is low, we teach a lot of less actives. As much as I would love to teach investigators, we feel the same level of success when we see our less actives growing testimonies and coming to Church. It's not a baptism, but we still can see the fruit of our labor and we love it.
We are soooo excited for General Conference this weekend! I have been counting down since like February! It's like the Super Bowl for missionaries. I would invite all of you to write down any questions you have this week in preparation for Conference so that God can give you answers through our prophets and apostles. It's gonna be legitttt!! And next week I'll have another baptism to report on. Party hard people! Love ya lots!
-Sister Christensen
Dani's baptism
My district
Monday, March 26, 2012
March 20, 2012 w/ pictures
Tuesday: We lived it up at Target and treated ourselves to new outfits for Dani's baptism (which is tonight - holla!). We had a nice dinner and a lesson with Dani, which is always great.
Wednesday was such a slug day - oh my heck. We both woke up and just knew it was going to be a long and slow day. We dropped two investigators, which totally bummed us out, but we knew it needed to happen. We picked up one investigator, but that didn't even pull us out of our funk. We just wanted to be normal for the day and curl up and read a book, etc. But we survived and all is well!
Thursday I forced myself to study the topic of gratitude because Wednesday was such a bust, but still full of blessings and miracles from the Lord. I loved reading conference talks about it and have a greater desire to say thank you's and express my love for people because you never know how much it could help them. So be grateful people, you will be blessed and happier! Later in the morning we had district meeting and worked in the family history center. I like learning about my family history, but as for actually doing it, not so much. Plus on both sides of my family a ton of work has been done, so I mostly messed around with the Elders (Sister Allred was really into it haha). We had a nice visit with an old Catholic lady who chatted with us for two hours...although really she just talked and we listened so I don't know what you would call that....? I am going to come up with a word for those type of situations. Stay tuned.
We had a fun dinner and appointments all night. We dropped two more investigators officially and that was a bit of a blow, but we are turning these people over into the Lord's hands. We know if they are meant to be taught and baptized, they will come back to us! Later that night, while teaching, I felt "off". It totally freaked me out because I felt like I wasn't teaching with the Spirit. I think God was testing me. Teaching without the Spirit sucks hardcore and is so evident. I said a good long prayer that night to do better and be more grateful for the blessing I have been given.
Friday was bomb. I got to see one of my best friends from high school, Laura Duggan. We taught her the first lesson and it was so fun! I felt the Spirit and a total conviction that the gospel is true as we taught her. It was sad to say goodbye, but I'll be home in nine months - no time at all! People were worried that I would get trunky or sad, but we are far too busy with missionary work to dwell on things. Once she left we got right to work with weekly planning and appointments. We had an amazinggg lesson that night and I was so on my game and the Spirit was like whispering in my ear what I needed to say. We got to the root of issues that a less active family has who we have been teaching since I got here. Seriously, it was amazing. I was so stoked. I LOVE teaching with the Spirit. It was a lesson well learned by me because I don't think I acknowledge enough what a vital part the Spirit plays in teaching people. I went to bed very happy.
Saturday was rainy rainy. The rain was so bad that at some points we couldn't even see as we drove. The miracle of the day was that, despite the rain and lack of appointments, we were both in great moods all day! We wore green for St. Patrick's Day, taught 3 lessons, and managed to stay relatively dry. We went out for sushi that night with a YSA girl, and overall it was a great day!
Sunday was great. We taught Gospel Principles in the family ward, which is always intimidating but went well. I love being with Sister Allred because we are so different that we make up for what we each lack. I really do love her. She is a great companion. We had an investigator at Church, taught some lessons, and ended the night visiting an inactive girl who was literally made for me. We are so similar it's crazy. She had some bad experiences with the Church and rebelled in pretty much every way that I rebelled back in the good old days. Ha. My mom is rolling her eyes. But seriously, I know I can reach her and I am stoked. I really liked her!
The biggest miracle of the week was that despite dropping FOUR investigators (basically our entire teaching pool), we had 21 lessons. It was amazing. The Lord really does bless us and love us. We seriously don't even know how it happened, but we know that because we are obedient and doing what we should, we are seeing His hand everywhere!!!
Monday we had district meeting. My favorite elder goes home in two weeks and I am super bummed about it. He reminds me of my cousin Blaine and just makes me laugh. I will most def. miss him. But other than being depressed about that, Monday was great! We had appointments all day, the rain cleared up, and we partied hard. I went to bed last night so happy. Missions are roller coasters and currently I am having a blast. Dani's baptism is tonight. It will be awesome. I told her I might cry. Haha she will be mad if I cry because she gets emotional when other people cry! It will be legit.
Thanks for all your love, support, and prayers!
Pce out.
-Sister Christensen
Laurdie!
St. Patrick's Day with Dani and Baby Cami!
Monday, March 19, 2012
March 13, 2012 w/ pictures
What a week. I feel like I write that every week, but every time it comes with a different connotation.
Tuesday: We had a sick district activity and it was really fun. I also had homemade fried chicken for the first time...don't tell them but it wasn't as good as KFC. Ha.
Wednesday: We kick started the day with breakfast with Breanna. She is a recent convert and it was her last new member lesson, so we had a little party. We made waffles and it reminded me of how much I love waffles. And then later a girl made us a vegetarian lunch...it was interesting, to say the least. At three, we had sister exchanges. I went into Temecula and Sister Allred stayed in our area. I am going to try and be nice when I say this....but I hated it. The sister I worked with was a.) new to the area b.) almost done with her mission so she was trunky and c.) she was disobedient. I hated it. I seriously worried that I am disobedient because sometimes I am not exactly obedient and on and on...but this girl.....nah dude. It bugged me hardcore. It bugs me even more when sisters are disobedient because we chose this. No one made us come out here and do this. I seriously just wanted to be like, "Go home dude. Your mission is over"...and this was the nice version. Needless to say, I was thrilled to go home the next day and get back into my area. The only saving grace of the exchange was that we had a fabulous dinner with some members. They were so loving and kind and I really enjoyed being in their home.
Thursday: We exchanged back and when we got home I realized I had packed the sisters keys into my duffel. And I had left my precious journal at their house. It took almost an hour of phone calls to get it taken care of. But we got back to work by four and it was all good.
Friday: We had weekly planning and had a delicious dinner that reminded me of home (and yes, I realize this post has a lot about food in it, but I love food and I ate a lot of good food so don't judge me, k?). We ended the night watching a video about the Atonement of Jesus Christ with some YSA LAs (Young Single Adult less actives). I was totally feeling the spirit and feeling emotional and loving it, and then we discussed it with our less actives and it was nada for them. I was shocked! I was like, "How can you NOT feel that?!?!" Oh man...whatever.
Saturday was a crazy day. I was dreading Saturday. Last week we picked up four investigators whose brother/son died a month ago. They started to cry in the lesson, and showed us pictures and everything, and I got super depressed. I almost said nothing in the lesson because I was just too sad. So we had another lesson for this Saturday and I didn't want to do it. I didn't realize how much it affected me because when we started planning their lesson I began crying and couldn't stop. I just kept thinking of the pain they must be experiencing and then thinking about my own family and how much I love them and wouldn't know what to do if anything happened to them. The Saythong's pain literally became my pain. I know that sounds crazy, but premature death kills me no matter who it is. I knew if I went into their home again I would just start crying, so we set up exchanges with the Spanish sisters that we live with. I know, cop out, but I couldn't handle it! On a happier note, we attended two baptisms and had appointments for the greater part of the day, which is unusual for Saturdays so it was really nice.
Sunday was our ward conference. As a missionary you pretty much have to be ready for anything. We got called out by the stake president to come up to the stage and share an experience. And despite what you may think, even missionaries feel nervous and anxious when we talk in front of the entire ward, but whatevs. Dani, our investigator, had her baptismal interview and it's a go! Next week, she's getting dunked! Holla! We are stoked. The rest of Sunday was bomb. We visited active families and continued to get to know our ward. Love it.
Monday was legit too. We did service for a lady. She made us lunch and got emotional as she explained to us that we were an answer to her prayers because she was having a hard weekend and really needed the help. On Friday, we had thought to approach her and seriously felt so blessed to be led to her to help her in her time of need. We dedicated some time to contacting and then had a couple appointments throughout the day. At 7, we had YSA family home evening and it was a blast. I was one of two girls who played soccer and we rocked it. I am not usually one who liked to play sports, especially with guys who are super competitive, but it was so fun! I love serving in the YSA ward!
This week we are hoping to find four new investigators. We need a turn over and really feel like we can find new people who are ready for the gospel in their lives. We have some sweet plans for the week. It's going to be awesome. Thanks for all your support and prayers -- I know we could not accomplish this work without all of the positive thoughts and energy and prayers sent our way!!
Pce and blessing
Pce and blessing
Love,
Sister Christensen
Little chickies and my sweet new nail polish color
Tuesday: We had a sick district activity and it was really fun. I also had homemade fried chicken for the first time...don't tell them but it wasn't as good as KFC. Ha.
Wednesday: We kick started the day with breakfast with Breanna. She is a recent convert and it was her last new member lesson, so we had a little party. We made waffles and it reminded me of how much I love waffles. And then later a girl made us a vegetarian lunch...it was interesting, to say the least. At three, we had sister exchanges. I went into Temecula and Sister Allred stayed in our area. I am going to try and be nice when I say this....but I hated it. The sister I worked with was a.) new to the area b.) almost done with her mission so she was trunky and c.) she was disobedient. I hated it. I seriously worried that I am disobedient because sometimes I am not exactly obedient and on and on...but this girl.....nah dude. It bugged me hardcore. It bugs me even more when sisters are disobedient because we chose this. No one made us come out here and do this. I seriously just wanted to be like, "Go home dude. Your mission is over"...and this was the nice version. Needless to say, I was thrilled to go home the next day and get back into my area. The only saving grace of the exchange was that we had a fabulous dinner with some members. They were so loving and kind and I really enjoyed being in their home.
Thursday: We exchanged back and when we got home I realized I had packed the sisters keys into my duffel. And I had left my precious journal at their house. It took almost an hour of phone calls to get it taken care of. But we got back to work by four and it was all good.
Friday: We had weekly planning and had a delicious dinner that reminded me of home (and yes, I realize this post has a lot about food in it, but I love food and I ate a lot of good food so don't judge me, k?). We ended the night watching a video about the Atonement of Jesus Christ with some YSA LAs (Young Single Adult less actives). I was totally feeling the spirit and feeling emotional and loving it, and then we discussed it with our less actives and it was nada for them. I was shocked! I was like, "How can you NOT feel that?!?!" Oh man...whatever.
Saturday was a crazy day. I was dreading Saturday. Last week we picked up four investigators whose brother/son died a month ago. They started to cry in the lesson, and showed us pictures and everything, and I got super depressed. I almost said nothing in the lesson because I was just too sad. So we had another lesson for this Saturday and I didn't want to do it. I didn't realize how much it affected me because when we started planning their lesson I began crying and couldn't stop. I just kept thinking of the pain they must be experiencing and then thinking about my own family and how much I love them and wouldn't know what to do if anything happened to them. The Saythong's pain literally became my pain. I know that sounds crazy, but premature death kills me no matter who it is. I knew if I went into their home again I would just start crying, so we set up exchanges with the Spanish sisters that we live with. I know, cop out, but I couldn't handle it! On a happier note, we attended two baptisms and had appointments for the greater part of the day, which is unusual for Saturdays so it was really nice.
Sunday was our ward conference. As a missionary you pretty much have to be ready for anything. We got called out by the stake president to come up to the stage and share an experience. And despite what you may think, even missionaries feel nervous and anxious when we talk in front of the entire ward, but whatevs. Dani, our investigator, had her baptismal interview and it's a go! Next week, she's getting dunked! Holla! We are stoked. The rest of Sunday was bomb. We visited active families and continued to get to know our ward. Love it.
Monday was legit too. We did service for a lady. She made us lunch and got emotional as she explained to us that we were an answer to her prayers because she was having a hard weekend and really needed the help. On Friday, we had thought to approach her and seriously felt so blessed to be led to her to help her in her time of need. We dedicated some time to contacting and then had a couple appointments throughout the day. At 7, we had YSA family home evening and it was a blast. I was one of two girls who played soccer and we rocked it. I am not usually one who liked to play sports, especially with guys who are super competitive, but it was so fun! I love serving in the YSA ward!
This week we are hoping to find four new investigators. We need a turn over and really feel like we can find new people who are ready for the gospel in their lives. We have some sweet plans for the week. It's going to be awesome. Thanks for all your support and prayers -- I know we could not accomplish this work without all of the positive thoughts and energy and prayers sent our way!!
Pce and blessing
Pce and blessing
Love,
Sister Christensen
Little chickies and my sweet new nail polish color
And a kid wrote me (a nephew of a family who loved me) who served his mission in Brazil and sent a picture, so the Spanish sisters thought it would be funny to post him on our door and call him my boyfriend. I hope President sees so I can tell him it was them! haha jk.
Monday, March 12, 2012
March 6, 2012
Tuesday: I got BORED on Pday. It was the first time I have gotten legit bored since I started my mission. I wrote letters to everyone I needed to, I took a nap, and I had FREE TIME. That doesn't happen on missions. When I told the Spanish sisters, they gasped haha. I turned to my last resort, which was organizing and cleaning the apartment. Later that night we had a great lesson with the Mieures. Dani is pretty set for the baptismal date of March 20th. My companion and I are super stoked. We are always nervous to get too excited, but we really think Dani is ready to make the commitment and she will be an awesome member of the Church. I love love love them and teaching them and hanging out with them. They are probably one of my favorite families in this area.
We also had correlation with our ward mission leader and he read us the email of another missionary. It was all about how baptisms will not happen if a ward is not ready to receive them. A missionary can work their butt off, but if a ward is slacking and is not missionary minded, nothing will happen. I love this ward down here because they really are missionary minded. They are always looking for opportunities to spread the gospel and invite nonmembers. We constantly get excited members telling us how they shared the gospel with others and I can totally see the difference. Note to my family: You better be helping the missionaries and looking for opportunities to share the gospel! It is a commandment. We are a missionary church and we need to be missionary minded. It can be so easy it's ridiculous that people have a hard time with it.
Wednesday: We had seven lessons. We should have had nine but two people canceled. It was super legit. And we also did service for a lady in our ward for a couple hours. I am getting really good at painting and laying mulch, just so you all know. I realized that the further I get into my mission, the more I feel the necessity to be bold and say it like it is. We don't want to waste our time with people who aren't ready to change. Two of our lessons on Wednesday were with people who do not keep their commitments. Normally I would hold on to them, but in these lessons we laid out our expectations, and if they haven't followed through, we will be dropping them tomorrow. My time here is too short and too valuable to waste on people who are so casual about salvation. Lo siento pero ne necesito :)
Thursday: I had a fabulous personal study. I read a talk by Elder Holland, "I Stand All Amazed", and basically he slapped me in the face. Let me explain: The talk was all about the atonement and its role in each of our lives. It intertwined forgiveness and repentance into one. Elder Holland posed the question, "Who in your life stands in need of your forgiveness?" and I immediately thought of a couple of names, but in my mind I was like, "ummm, they sooo do not deserve my forgiveness, they wronged me!!" and the next line of the talk said, "Don't you dare ask for justice and justify why you cannot forgive".....He continued on and got me really thinking about my life. For those of you who know me well, you probably know I have a problem with letting things go. I am most definitely a grudge holder. But Heavenly Father has forgiven me for SOOO much. I sometimes question his judgment for forgiving me (joke). But for real, it is because of Jesus Christ and the atonement that I don't carry that weight around with me, and yet here I stand, wanting to keep the chip on my shoulder for things I may not fully understand myself. So in humility, I know I need to forgive. I am not perfect, and I know it will not be easy, but I am really working on it. I don't want to hate people or wish bad things on them. I am a disciple of Christ and I know this is a big step towards change. I am sure I will reread this talk a million times to help me through it all, but it is possible. Amen.
During the day we had five lessons and we have another investigator who is praying about baptism. She is a young single adult and I really respect and admire her. I cannot wait for her to get baptized!
Friday: We had a ward party! The theme was Chinese New Year. It was really fun. We had at least 8 nonmembers there and we socialized with almost all of them. I love my ward!
Saturday: We picked up a family of four as investigators, but their story is really sad. Last month they lost their son to a car accident. They were crying and telling us about it, and it seriously made me depressed. I just wanted to cry with them and hug them. They have a Buddhist background, so we are literally starting from "a great spirit" because they don't know who God or Jesus Christ are. Also they are Laoation (sp?) so we have to have a translator there with us to communicate with the mom and dad. I love my family so much, my heart hurt for them! It was a harsh start to our day. But we had a great day in teaching and getting the work done.
Sunday: We taught some lessons and we were taught some lessons. We learned about coming unto Christ and being perfected in Him. Also our Relief Society President's husband told us about the new show "Walking Dead" and gave us a 20-minute synopsis about the show. It felt like we were watching t.v. haha. We were both like, "What happened next?!?!" Apparently this is a big show on television in the world?
Monday we had president interviews and district meeting. And we did service and taught some less active people and played dodge ball. Which I am terrible at. And wa-la, that was my week.
Hope all is well, cause life rocks here in sunny California.
Pce out and party hard,
Sister Christensen
We also had correlation with our ward mission leader and he read us the email of another missionary. It was all about how baptisms will not happen if a ward is not ready to receive them. A missionary can work their butt off, but if a ward is slacking and is not missionary minded, nothing will happen. I love this ward down here because they really are missionary minded. They are always looking for opportunities to spread the gospel and invite nonmembers. We constantly get excited members telling us how they shared the gospel with others and I can totally see the difference. Note to my family: You better be helping the missionaries and looking for opportunities to share the gospel! It is a commandment. We are a missionary church and we need to be missionary minded. It can be so easy it's ridiculous that people have a hard time with it.
Wednesday: We had seven lessons. We should have had nine but two people canceled. It was super legit. And we also did service for a lady in our ward for a couple hours. I am getting really good at painting and laying mulch, just so you all know. I realized that the further I get into my mission, the more I feel the necessity to be bold and say it like it is. We don't want to waste our time with people who aren't ready to change. Two of our lessons on Wednesday were with people who do not keep their commitments. Normally I would hold on to them, but in these lessons we laid out our expectations, and if they haven't followed through, we will be dropping them tomorrow. My time here is too short and too valuable to waste on people who are so casual about salvation. Lo siento pero ne necesito :)
Thursday: I had a fabulous personal study. I read a talk by Elder Holland, "I Stand All Amazed", and basically he slapped me in the face. Let me explain: The talk was all about the atonement and its role in each of our lives. It intertwined forgiveness and repentance into one. Elder Holland posed the question, "Who in your life stands in need of your forgiveness?" and I immediately thought of a couple of names, but in my mind I was like, "ummm, they sooo do not deserve my forgiveness, they wronged me!!" and the next line of the talk said, "Don't you dare ask for justice and justify why you cannot forgive".....He continued on and got me really thinking about my life. For those of you who know me well, you probably know I have a problem with letting things go. I am most definitely a grudge holder. But Heavenly Father has forgiven me for SOOO much. I sometimes question his judgment for forgiving me (joke). But for real, it is because of Jesus Christ and the atonement that I don't carry that weight around with me, and yet here I stand, wanting to keep the chip on my shoulder for things I may not fully understand myself. So in humility, I know I need to forgive. I am not perfect, and I know it will not be easy, but I am really working on it. I don't want to hate people or wish bad things on them. I am a disciple of Christ and I know this is a big step towards change. I am sure I will reread this talk a million times to help me through it all, but it is possible. Amen.
During the day we had five lessons and we have another investigator who is praying about baptism. She is a young single adult and I really respect and admire her. I cannot wait for her to get baptized!
Friday: We had a ward party! The theme was Chinese New Year. It was really fun. We had at least 8 nonmembers there and we socialized with almost all of them. I love my ward!
Saturday: We picked up a family of four as investigators, but their story is really sad. Last month they lost their son to a car accident. They were crying and telling us about it, and it seriously made me depressed. I just wanted to cry with them and hug them. They have a Buddhist background, so we are literally starting from "a great spirit" because they don't know who God or Jesus Christ are. Also they are Laoation (sp?) so we have to have a translator there with us to communicate with the mom and dad. I love my family so much, my heart hurt for them! It was a harsh start to our day. But we had a great day in teaching and getting the work done.
Sunday: We taught some lessons and we were taught some lessons. We learned about coming unto Christ and being perfected in Him. Also our Relief Society President's husband told us about the new show "Walking Dead" and gave us a 20-minute synopsis about the show. It felt like we were watching t.v. haha. We were both like, "What happened next?!?!" Apparently this is a big show on television in the world?
Monday we had president interviews and district meeting. And we did service and taught some less active people and played dodge ball. Which I am terrible at. And wa-la, that was my week.
Hope all is well, cause life rocks here in sunny California.
Pce out and party hard,
Sister Christensen
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