Dear Family and Friends,
We got a media referral by phone on Friday afternoon and decided to go visit him that evening when we had some extra time. When we arrived, he seemed pleased to see us and said that he couldn't talk then, but would like a Book of Mormon. So we left him with the book and our card. About a half an hour later, he sent us a text message and saying thanks and that he would see us at church on Sunday. We planned to save him a seat in the chapel. He told us that he spent Christmas with a member family and had become curious in the Church from that experience. Sadly, he got called in to work on Sunday morning and could not make it. However, we suggested doing a church tour with him later this week so he could see the building and also so we could share some more about our services and beliefs. He is very excited for Thursday at 2:00. Needless to say, so are we :)
Our investigator still hasn't gone to jail yet, but we had a good talk with him yesterday. He agrees that he needs to just go do his commitment and get it off his shoulders. And he told us that he really does want to be baptized. I have high hopes that he will. Sometimes he is just a little bit lazy. Aka, human. Since he has already received the missionary lessons a few times, we suggested that he write down questions that he has or things that he didn't completely understand from his learning before so that the message we share can be more fully applied to him and that the topics that he is really interested in . He also said that he reads better from the scriptures when it is something that he has a question about, so I am grateful to know now how to better help him come unto Christ and see how the Gospel can bless him.
I planned my personal study this week to finish the book of Mark on the 24th so my personal study on Christmas Day would be Luke chapters 1 and 2. As I read, two ideas really struck me. The first was that we have a VERY similar purpose as missionaries to John the Baptist. His purpose was to turn the hearts of the children to the Lord and prepare the way for the Savior to come. That in essence, is our purpose as missionaries. We too invited others to come unto Christ and prepare the way for the Savior's Second Coming. I also loved reading about Mary. As I learned I thought that it was no wonder other religions worship her. She was amazing. When visited by and angel and told her mission, she simply replied, "be it unto me according to thy word" (Luke 2:38) and throughout the next chapters, she continued to praise the Lord and submit to the will of the Lord. The Savior clearly had a heighten awareness of the all things Spiritual, but he also had a wonderful example of following God from his mother. It was all planned out perfectly.
Thanks for the Christmas wishes! Love you all!
S. Turley
Monday, December 30, 2013
Monday, December 23, 2013
MERRRRRRYYYY CHRISTMAASSSSSSS!!!! From S. Turley in the WEM
Dear Friends and Family,
Sorry this is late, but we just got finished with our Mission Christmas Devotional. It was wonderful and have lots of music. And guess who played the organ? Me! It was terrifying because I think it has been about two years since I have actually played. But it was great to play loud and get in the Christmas Spirit. And I got to see Elder Bloomfield! Yesterday was also our ward's Christmas program and I was enlisted to accompany the choir and play a piano duet. The duet was "O Holy Night," and it brought back fond memories of playing that piece on the violin with Cami on the cello and Grandma Hunt on the piano :)
We are improving slowly, but surely in Mount Vernon. We found two new investigators this week, both of which were former investigators. One of them in named Melissa and she has PTSD, which makes it hard for her to meet new people. During an exchange, Sister Holt met with her and she had told them they were not interested. I think they may have just talked with her through the door, because she informed us that she never invites anyone in--it just stresses her out too much. I didn't know that Sister Holt had talked with her before and when it was my turn to be on exchange in Mount Vernon, we decided to visit her when one of our appointments cancelled. Miraculously, her husband was home (he had a root canal that morning--of all things to keep him home when we knocked...) and answered the door. He invited us in and we were able to chat with Melissa for about a half an hour and share a scripture with her and she invited us to come back. She even gave us a hug afterwards, which is huge for most people with PTSD. Christmas Miracles! I hope that we can introduce her to some more wonderful people in the ward that will help her overcome her challenges, because she has loved everything that she has learned in the past.
We dropped a bunch of investigators that were not progressing this week! Which is more exciting than it probably should be...But we are grateful to have more time to devote to those that are earnest seekers of truth and honestly desiring to change their lives to follow the Savior. Our "Dump 'em or Dunk 'em" list is growing smaller!!!!
I made a goal earlier this week to finish the book of Mark in the New Testament before Christmas. I have really enjoyed this opportunity to more intently reflect on the life of Christ during this Christmas season. I have studied the last few chapters containing an account of the Savior's Atonement during the last few days and I feel like I am continuing to understand more and more how the the Atonement works and what a precious gift it is to us. I was particularly moving to read the account in Mark chapter 14 of the Savior's condemnation by the high priest. After He is given the death sentence, the people began to mock him and spit on him and even "...the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands" (v. 65). It was amazing to me to realize that the Savior truly did descend below ALL. Even the servants struck the Savior. And I am grateful that He was willing to do that for us fallible humans so that we can enjoy all the blessings that He will receive and our Father has to give to us.
I hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas and thanks for all you do!
Love,
Sister Turley
Pictures--We got snow this week! I was on exchange in Arlington with Sister Wayman when the storm hit and our extended exchange (we had a "car fast" on Thursday in the mission so we were going to exchange back on Friday morning) turned into a really extended exchange because the roads were too scary to drive on until the mid-afternoon. The first picture is outside the apartment in Arlington and the second is on our way home at Lake McMurray in Mount Vernon.
Merry Christmas!
Sorry this is late, but we just got finished with our Mission Christmas Devotional. It was wonderful and have lots of music. And guess who played the organ? Me! It was terrifying because I think it has been about two years since I have actually played. But it was great to play loud and get in the Christmas Spirit. And I got to see Elder Bloomfield! Yesterday was also our ward's Christmas program and I was enlisted to accompany the choir and play a piano duet. The duet was "O Holy Night," and it brought back fond memories of playing that piece on the violin with Cami on the cello and Grandma Hunt on the piano :)
We are improving slowly, but surely in Mount Vernon. We found two new investigators this week, both of which were former investigators. One of them in named Melissa and she has PTSD, which makes it hard for her to meet new people. During an exchange, Sister Holt met with her and she had told them they were not interested. I think they may have just talked with her through the door, because she informed us that she never invites anyone in--it just stresses her out too much. I didn't know that Sister Holt had talked with her before and when it was my turn to be on exchange in Mount Vernon, we decided to visit her when one of our appointments cancelled. Miraculously, her husband was home (he had a root canal that morning--of all things to keep him home when we knocked...) and answered the door. He invited us in and we were able to chat with Melissa for about a half an hour and share a scripture with her and she invited us to come back. She even gave us a hug afterwards, which is huge for most people with PTSD. Christmas Miracles! I hope that we can introduce her to some more wonderful people in the ward that will help her overcome her challenges, because she has loved everything that she has learned in the past.
We dropped a bunch of investigators that were not progressing this week! Which is more exciting than it probably should be...But we are grateful to have more time to devote to those that are earnest seekers of truth and honestly desiring to change their lives to follow the Savior. Our "Dump 'em or Dunk 'em" list is growing smaller!!!!
I made a goal earlier this week to finish the book of Mark in the New Testament before Christmas. I have really enjoyed this opportunity to more intently reflect on the life of Christ during this Christmas season. I have studied the last few chapters containing an account of the Savior's Atonement during the last few days and I feel like I am continuing to understand more and more how the the Atonement works and what a precious gift it is to us. I was particularly moving to read the account in Mark chapter 14 of the Savior's condemnation by the high priest. After He is given the death sentence, the people began to mock him and spit on him and even "...the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands" (v. 65). It was amazing to me to realize that the Savior truly did descend below ALL. Even the servants struck the Savior. And I am grateful that He was willing to do that for us fallible humans so that we can enjoy all the blessings that He will receive and our Father has to give to us.
I hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas and thanks for all you do!
Love,
Sister Turley
Pictures--We got snow this week! I was on exchange in Arlington with Sister Wayman when the storm hit and our extended exchange (we had a "car fast" on Thursday in the mission so we were going to exchange back on Friday morning) turned into a really extended exchange because the roads were too scary to drive on until the mid-afternoon. The first picture is outside the apartment in Arlington and the second is on our way home at Lake McMurray in Mount Vernon.
Merry Christmas!
Monday, December 16, 2013
S. Turley in the WEM
Dear Family and Friends,
I don't feel like I have much to report this week. Our numbers were kind of sad, we didn't find any new investigators, we got dropped and dropped a few, and our other investigators are still attempting to hurdle the struggles that are in front of them. Here's to a better week and finding lots of new people who are searching for something more and determined to make changes in their lives!
This week, our bishop asked me to start a series of short talks given by the missionaries monthly in Sacrament Meeting to encourage the members to do missionary work. He assigned me to speak about the doctrinal reasons why we share the Gospel and then to offer just a few suggestions on how to put that into practice. I enjoyed studying again the "why" and being reminded of why I am out here. I hate to admit it, but I have been feeling pretty "trunky" this week and almost don't want to call home for Christmas because of it. But the why--I realized that it is part of our baptismal covenant to share the Gospel. And it is a commandment. Pretty straight forward. We just need to do it. I have also enjoyed reviewing "The Power of Everyday Missionaries," and remembering the promises that the Lord gives us. My two favorite promises are (1) That God will forgive our sins as we share the Gospel. I always worry that even though I have repented, I will not be forgiven. This thought is wholly untrue, but I am still always grateful for the reminder that we can be forgiven and sharing the Gospel can help. (2) We will find joy in the Gospel. I have found this already to be true. I love the Gospel now. I always knew it was true before, but it was never REALLY a part of who I was. Now it is, and I am grateful for that tender mercy. I know that God is real, that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that the Book of Mormon and the Church are true.
Thanks for all you do!
Love,
Sister Turley
I don't feel like I have much to report this week. Our numbers were kind of sad, we didn't find any new investigators, we got dropped and dropped a few, and our other investigators are still attempting to hurdle the struggles that are in front of them. Here's to a better week and finding lots of new people who are searching for something more and determined to make changes in their lives!
This week, our bishop asked me to start a series of short talks given by the missionaries monthly in Sacrament Meeting to encourage the members to do missionary work. He assigned me to speak about the doctrinal reasons why we share the Gospel and then to offer just a few suggestions on how to put that into practice. I enjoyed studying again the "why" and being reminded of why I am out here. I hate to admit it, but I have been feeling pretty "trunky" this week and almost don't want to call home for Christmas because of it. But the why--I realized that it is part of our baptismal covenant to share the Gospel. And it is a commandment. Pretty straight forward. We just need to do it. I have also enjoyed reviewing "The Power of Everyday Missionaries," and remembering the promises that the Lord gives us. My two favorite promises are (1) That God will forgive our sins as we share the Gospel. I always worry that even though I have repented, I will not be forgiven. This thought is wholly untrue, but I am still always grateful for the reminder that we can be forgiven and sharing the Gospel can help. (2) We will find joy in the Gospel. I have found this already to be true. I love the Gospel now. I always knew it was true before, but it was never REALLY a part of who I was. Now it is, and I am grateful for that tender mercy. I know that God is real, that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that the Book of Mormon and the Church are true.
Thanks for all you do!
Love,
Sister Turley
Bennett, Verna and I at Cottage Meeting!!!!!
Adios to Hermana Jaramillo :( She goes back to Tucson this week. Love You, Hermana!
Monday, December 9, 2013
S. Turley--Christmas Miracles in the WEM
Dear Friends and Family,
We found three new investigators this week! It was a true "Christmas Miracle." I attribute it to our faith in letting one of our "Professional Investigators" go. We lose one and get three in return. I would love for that payout to continue, but I don't think Heavenly Father works that way. I am grateful for our findings this week, regardless. One of our new investigators was found by our Zone Leaders tracting. She is baptist and has LOTS of great questions. I am afraid to answer some of them because I know that she will not like the answer, but it is the truth and she needs to know it. I plan to testify and let the Spirit teach her and do the convincing. The other two investigators are a couple that we "former" investigators, but they have not really been taught anything. They are very interested in the message that we have to share with them and asked us to pray for them that their hearts will be open and they will recognize the truth :)
I continue to learn over and over again that actions are everything. I studied this week in 3 Nephi again, and in the very first verse of chapter 15, it reads, "whoso remembereth these sayings of mine and doeth them, him will I raise up at the last day." The key word is "doeth." I am trying to "do" everytning I can to magnify my callings. And I know that it is only when I have "done" something in the past that the Gospel has actually meant something to me.
Yesterday I went to my first Cottage Meeting, and guess who spoke?? Bennett and Verna!!!!!!!!!!! Another Christmas Miracle! It was so exciting! I loved being able to see them again and also hear their conversion from their viewpoint! They have such amazing testimonies and the growth was beautiful! I loved hearing them bear testimony of the things they had struggled to grasp or had questions about. I love them and I love the Gospel. :)
Love you all, too!
S. Turley
We found three new investigators this week! It was a true "Christmas Miracle." I attribute it to our faith in letting one of our "Professional Investigators" go. We lose one and get three in return. I would love for that payout to continue, but I don't think Heavenly Father works that way. I am grateful for our findings this week, regardless. One of our new investigators was found by our Zone Leaders tracting. She is baptist and has LOTS of great questions. I am afraid to answer some of them because I know that she will not like the answer, but it is the truth and she needs to know it. I plan to testify and let the Spirit teach her and do the convincing. The other two investigators are a couple that we "former" investigators, but they have not really been taught anything. They are very interested in the message that we have to share with them and asked us to pray for them that their hearts will be open and they will recognize the truth :)
I continue to learn over and over again that actions are everything. I studied this week in 3 Nephi again, and in the very first verse of chapter 15, it reads, "whoso remembereth these sayings of mine and doeth them, him will I raise up at the last day." The key word is "doeth." I am trying to "do" everytning I can to magnify my callings. And I know that it is only when I have "done" something in the past that the Gospel has actually meant something to me.
Yesterday I went to my first Cottage Meeting, and guess who spoke?? Bennett and Verna!!!!!!!!!!! Another Christmas Miracle! It was so exciting! I loved being able to see them again and also hear their conversion from their viewpoint! They have such amazing testimonies and the growth was beautiful! I loved hearing them bear testimony of the things they had struggled to grasp or had questions about. I love them and I love the Gospel. :)
Love you all, too!
S. Turley
Monday, December 2, 2013
S. Turley, WEM--The start of the Christmas season.
Dear Family and Friends,
We had a goal last week of getting more member present lessons, and we succeeded! We had four member present lessons (standards!) We are slowly but surely getting our other key indicators up. I want to reach standards at least once before I leave this area and before my time as a Sister Training Leader is over. I have yet to reach standards on my mission and it is going to take all that we have to meet that goal. But it is going to happen once and for all!
We have two investigators that are ALMOST progressing. Dominick and John. Unfortunately, both of them have significant set backs that they will have to overcome in order to fully accept the Atonement and the Gospel to prepare for baptism. Dominick has to go to jail (he was caught a number of times driving without a license--hopefully he will go today, and it is only 15 days, thankfully). John is a double amputee, is waiting on a quadruple bypass heart surgery and has no way to get himself to Church (gratefully, one of our ward missionaries is excited to take him). We are praying hard that each of them will have the courage and the faith to ask God for help and face their challenges with steadfastness.
Sister Holt and I still working on finding more investigators and seeking direction from our Heavenly Father as to ways that will be more effective. Unfortunately we were not able to find any new investigators last week, but we have some promise in picking up some former investigators this coming week.
This week I studied the coming of the Savior to the Americas following His death and resurrection. As I read, it did not seem to be any coincidence that (1) the people flocked to the temple in their time of crisis, and (2) that the Savior appeared at the temple--His Father's house. He came to the location on the earth that was dedicated and sanctified as His own habitation. I also love to read over and over again, the account of the multitudes' interactions with the Savior. Some of my favorite verses in the Book of Mormon are in 3 Nephi 11. Especially verse 15. It reads, "And it came to pass that the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did do, going forth one by one until they had all gone forth." It is very poignant to me that they "went forth one by one." Each person had an individual moment with the Savior. And that is how the Atonement is. It was not created to atone for a large group of people as a herd, but for each person as and by themselves. We all have the opportunity to have a personal and meaningful relationship with our Redeemer.
We had a great Thanksgiving. President Bonham made it our Pday so we would not offend our neighbors by knocking on their doors during their feast, and it was our first Pday since transfers, so I was very grateful to have food in my cupboard. We had our Thanksgiving meal with the Collingwood family. They are empty nesters and they invited a ward member, Mark, who lives alone, and one of our investigators, Richard, to dinner in addition to us. Unfortunately, Richard was a no-show. But I loved getting to know our members better. I especially loved Mark. He is a quiet, unassuming man who tries to stay out of the way. But when he was asked his top three things he was grateful for, he bore pure and powerful testimony and the Spirit was clearly evident. That was my favorite part of Thanksgiving. We also found a six-foot Christmas tree in one of our closets and enjoyed decorating it that evening (our President also made it an early-in to avoid those that had too much to drink with the football games).
Love you all lots!
S. Turley
We had a goal last week of getting more member present lessons, and we succeeded! We had four member present lessons (standards!) We are slowly but surely getting our other key indicators up. I want to reach standards at least once before I leave this area and before my time as a Sister Training Leader is over. I have yet to reach standards on my mission and it is going to take all that we have to meet that goal. But it is going to happen once and for all!
We have two investigators that are ALMOST progressing. Dominick and John. Unfortunately, both of them have significant set backs that they will have to overcome in order to fully accept the Atonement and the Gospel to prepare for baptism. Dominick has to go to jail (he was caught a number of times driving without a license--hopefully he will go today, and it is only 15 days, thankfully). John is a double amputee, is waiting on a quadruple bypass heart surgery and has no way to get himself to Church (gratefully, one of our ward missionaries is excited to take him). We are praying hard that each of them will have the courage and the faith to ask God for help and face their challenges with steadfastness.
Sister Holt and I still working on finding more investigators and seeking direction from our Heavenly Father as to ways that will be more effective. Unfortunately we were not able to find any new investigators last week, but we have some promise in picking up some former investigators this coming week.
This week I studied the coming of the Savior to the Americas following His death and resurrection. As I read, it did not seem to be any coincidence that (1) the people flocked to the temple in their time of crisis, and (2) that the Savior appeared at the temple--His Father's house. He came to the location on the earth that was dedicated and sanctified as His own habitation. I also love to read over and over again, the account of the multitudes' interactions with the Savior. Some of my favorite verses in the Book of Mormon are in 3 Nephi 11. Especially verse 15. It reads, "And it came to pass that the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did do, going forth one by one until they had all gone forth." It is very poignant to me that they "went forth one by one." Each person had an individual moment with the Savior. And that is how the Atonement is. It was not created to atone for a large group of people as a herd, but for each person as and by themselves. We all have the opportunity to have a personal and meaningful relationship with our Redeemer.
We had a great Thanksgiving. President Bonham made it our Pday so we would not offend our neighbors by knocking on their doors during their feast, and it was our first Pday since transfers, so I was very grateful to have food in my cupboard. We had our Thanksgiving meal with the Collingwood family. They are empty nesters and they invited a ward member, Mark, who lives alone, and one of our investigators, Richard, to dinner in addition to us. Unfortunately, Richard was a no-show. But I loved getting to know our members better. I especially loved Mark. He is a quiet, unassuming man who tries to stay out of the way. But when he was asked his top three things he was grateful for, he bore pure and powerful testimony and the Spirit was clearly evident. That was my favorite part of Thanksgiving. We also found a six-foot Christmas tree in one of our closets and enjoyed decorating it that evening (our President also made it an early-in to avoid those that had too much to drink with the football games).
Love you all lots!
S. Turley
The last of the Harbour Pointe whitewash crew
Mt Baker on the way to the library!
Monday, November 25, 2013
S. Turley in the WEM--Transfers, Elder Bednar and Gratitude
Dear Family and Friends,
Tuesday was the fateful transfers, and I am now in my third area: Mt. Vernon! It kind of reminds me of St. Johns, AZ. Bigger, but a lot the same. Including the weather. Sunny and cold! I knew they were going to send me up north for the winter as punishment for being naughty! And my new companion is....Sister Holt! One of MTC companions! I am so excited to be working with her again! Good things are coming our way.
This Saturday, Elder Bednar came to town! We were privileged to have a 3 hour conference with him and Elders Schwitzer and Christensen of the Seventy. It was very interesting because they did not prepare any specific address for us to hear, but rather gave us a pre-assignment and asked us questions about it and allowed us to ask them questions. One of my previous Zone Leaders, Elder Rencher, made the following comment during the meeting: "I came with a question, I didn’t ask it, we didn’t talk about it, and yet now I have an answer.” I, too learned a great deal and had questions answered that I did not have to ask. It was funny because I was thinking the exact same thing as Elder Rencher was saying it. I was greatly uplifted in the meeting and as I did the reading that was assigned. I think that the greatest thing I learned was that nothing happens until you do something. This seems like a blatantly obvious statement, but it finally clicked! I felt that there was a common theme of "Action" throughout the three addresses. Testimony, Conversion, Faith, Prayers, Learning all require us to act before we can receive. I thought about this as we sat in the meeting, and tried to reflect on why this information was important to me and why this is what I gathered from the information presented (This was a question that Elder Bednar asked us). I came to the following conclusion ("revelation" as we were taught by Elder Bednar--He taught us that revelations is a conclusion, not an explanation...some food for thought): All I really want is to be like Christ. And I have spent my whole life that I can remember trying to figure out to do this. And what I have to do is act! I have spent enough time planning and praying that I will be able to do it or to know how, and it is time to "Pull a Nike and Just Do It" (my companions laugh at me for saying that...but it's true). Obviously, I will need to make some plans, but putting them in action is where the change will come in and the learning will start.
I am grateful to be here serving in the Mount Vernon. We do have our work cut out for us, but if we didn't, where would be the growth. We have some goals that we will be focusing on intently during this transfer. (1) Reevaluating and reestablishing our teaching pool. We have SEVERAL investigators that have been taught for well over a year. And there have not been very many new investigators brought in. Sister Holt and I feel that we will be delivering a lot of "do or die" invitations (probably not the best word choice--we will still allow them to exercise their agency, and hopefully they will learn for themselves why the Gospel is important to them in the process). And we will be developing a passion for finding (this has been my sister's mantra recently--she is serving in the North Carolina Raleigh Mission currently)! (2) Establishing a relationship of trust and respect with the members of the ward. Sister Holt mentioned to me on our journey back from the Mission Office that the members LOVE the missionaries, but they are far too comfortable with them. This is true. We will need to work hard to have them realize that we are truly representatives of the Savior and that we are here to fulfill our purpose. I am excited to be working with Sister Holt again for this reason (she was one of my MTC companions). She is determined to work hard and pick up the pace of the work in our ward, she knows her purpose, and she is willing to serve. I don't think I could be any more grateful for the companion I have. Thank you! It was inspired :)
My Thanksgiving Thoughts:
I am grateful that the Lord has trusted me to be a missionary. At first, I did not want to be a missionary, but I am reminded every day about how much I would have missed out on if I had not gone. I am grateful that the Lord urged me to fulfill this calling. His Plan is much greater than mine. I am thankful for my family. I am so blessed to have been born with such great parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. I love you all so much! I am grateful for the Gospel. It brings a lot of peace and direction to my life. And it makes sense. We are not left wondering how everything works. We have been revealed everything that is necessary for our salvation. I am grateful for the Savior and his Atonement and that He loves me and cares about each of us!
Love you all!
Sister Turley
PS--Will send pics next week. We are out of time!
Tuesday was the fateful transfers, and I am now in my third area: Mt. Vernon! It kind of reminds me of St. Johns, AZ. Bigger, but a lot the same. Including the weather. Sunny and cold! I knew they were going to send me up north for the winter as punishment for being naughty! And my new companion is....Sister Holt! One of MTC companions! I am so excited to be working with her again! Good things are coming our way.
This Saturday, Elder Bednar came to town! We were privileged to have a 3 hour conference with him and Elders Schwitzer and Christensen of the Seventy. It was very interesting because they did not prepare any specific address for us to hear, but rather gave us a pre-assignment and asked us questions about it and allowed us to ask them questions. One of my previous Zone Leaders, Elder Rencher, made the following comment during the meeting: "I came with a question, I didn’t ask it, we didn’t talk about it, and yet now I have an answer.” I, too learned a great deal and had questions answered that I did not have to ask. It was funny because I was thinking the exact same thing as Elder Rencher was saying it. I was greatly uplifted in the meeting and as I did the reading that was assigned. I think that the greatest thing I learned was that nothing happens until you do something. This seems like a blatantly obvious statement, but it finally clicked! I felt that there was a common theme of "Action" throughout the three addresses. Testimony, Conversion, Faith, Prayers, Learning all require us to act before we can receive. I thought about this as we sat in the meeting, and tried to reflect on why this information was important to me and why this is what I gathered from the information presented (This was a question that Elder Bednar asked us). I came to the following conclusion ("revelation" as we were taught by Elder Bednar--He taught us that revelations is a conclusion, not an explanation...some food for thought): All I really want is to be like Christ. And I have spent my whole life that I can remember trying to figure out to do this. And what I have to do is act! I have spent enough time planning and praying that I will be able to do it or to know how, and it is time to "Pull a Nike and Just Do It" (my companions laugh at me for saying that...but it's true). Obviously, I will need to make some plans, but putting them in action is where the change will come in and the learning will start.
I am grateful to be here serving in the Mount Vernon. We do have our work cut out for us, but if we didn't, where would be the growth. We have some goals that we will be focusing on intently during this transfer. (1) Reevaluating and reestablishing our teaching pool. We have SEVERAL investigators that have been taught for well over a year. And there have not been very many new investigators brought in. Sister Holt and I feel that we will be delivering a lot of "do or die" invitations (probably not the best word choice--we will still allow them to exercise their agency, and hopefully they will learn for themselves why the Gospel is important to them in the process). And we will be developing a passion for finding (this has been my sister's mantra recently--she is serving in the North Carolina Raleigh Mission currently)! (2) Establishing a relationship of trust and respect with the members of the ward. Sister Holt mentioned to me on our journey back from the Mission Office that the members LOVE the missionaries, but they are far too comfortable with them. This is true. We will need to work hard to have them realize that we are truly representatives of the Savior and that we are here to fulfill our purpose. I am excited to be working with Sister Holt again for this reason (she was one of my MTC companions). She is determined to work hard and pick up the pace of the work in our ward, she knows her purpose, and she is willing to serve. I don't think I could be any more grateful for the companion I have. Thank you! It was inspired :)
My Thanksgiving Thoughts:
I am grateful that the Lord has trusted me to be a missionary. At first, I did not want to be a missionary, but I am reminded every day about how much I would have missed out on if I had not gone. I am grateful that the Lord urged me to fulfill this calling. His Plan is much greater than mine. I am thankful for my family. I am so blessed to have been born with such great parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. I love you all so much! I am grateful for the Gospel. It brings a lot of peace and direction to my life. And it makes sense. We are not left wondering how everything works. We have been revealed everything that is necessary for our salvation. I am grateful for the Savior and his Atonement and that He loves me and cares about each of us!
Love you all!
Sister Turley
PS--Will send pics next week. We are out of time!
Monday, November 18, 2013
The WEM This Week--S. Turley
Dear President Bonham,
This week was a success! We taught eleven lessons! It was a serious miracle! We found three new investigators, and two of them are part of a FAMILY (in the WEM we capitalize family because they are so important).
The FAMILY that we found are a part member family. The dad was baptized when he was 12ish but has been less active since then. The mom grew up in the Church of the Nazarene. They have four kids, two who are old enough to be baptized. We found them because they referred themselves on mormon.org. Apparently their kids have been asking about being baptized, and the mom is open to learning more about the Church. The father's family is all active and they live in Kirkland, so they have a strong background in the Gospel. We have high hopes for them!
The other new investigator we found tracting with our District Leader and she is looking for a church and was excited to have us there! We are SOOOOO grateful!
This week in my studies, I had somewhat of an epiphany. I started third Nephi this week and as I was reading, I just sat there and thought, "I am so. sick. about reading about the Nephites and the Lamanites having the truth and then becoming wicked, having the truth and becoming wicked, over and over again." I truly almost could not handle it. And then I just thought about it. That Heavenly Father must feel that way about us all the time. Thankfully, He loves us. And He always reaches out to us in love again. I hope that one day I will be able to just keep on doing what is right and not make Him sad by turning away over and over. But thankfully the Atonement makes up for that and works over and over again. Heavenly Father shows that He loves us through his patience and the gift of His son if we return to the good part of the cycle.
We are currently sitting in the library waiting for transfer calls...We will see what the future holds.
Love,
Sister Turley
Pictures:
-Deception Pass from the other side
-The District: E. Wells, E. Schiess, E. Haupu, E. Lindsay, S. Lawson, S. Tuttle, S. Smith, S. Turley
-The District "in pros." (proselyting attire)
This week was a success! We taught eleven lessons! It was a serious miracle! We found three new investigators, and two of them are part of a FAMILY (in the WEM we capitalize family because they are so important).
The FAMILY that we found are a part member family. The dad was baptized when he was 12ish but has been less active since then. The mom grew up in the Church of the Nazarene. They have four kids, two who are old enough to be baptized. We found them because they referred themselves on mormon.org. Apparently their kids have been asking about being baptized, and the mom is open to learning more about the Church. The father's family is all active and they live in Kirkland, so they have a strong background in the Gospel. We have high hopes for them!
The other new investigator we found tracting with our District Leader and she is looking for a church and was excited to have us there! We are SOOOOO grateful!
This week in my studies, I had somewhat of an epiphany. I started third Nephi this week and as I was reading, I just sat there and thought, "I am so. sick. about reading about the Nephites and the Lamanites having the truth and then becoming wicked, having the truth and becoming wicked, over and over again." I truly almost could not handle it. And then I just thought about it. That Heavenly Father must feel that way about us all the time. Thankfully, He loves us. And He always reaches out to us in love again. I hope that one day I will be able to just keep on doing what is right and not make Him sad by turning away over and over. But thankfully the Atonement makes up for that and works over and over again. Heavenly Father shows that He loves us through his patience and the gift of His son if we return to the good part of the cycle.
We are currently sitting in the library waiting for transfer calls...We will see what the future holds.
Love,
Sister Turley
Pictures:
-Deception Pass from the other side
-The District: E. Wells, E. Schiess, E. Haupu, E. Lindsay, S. Lawson, S. Tuttle, S. Smith, S. Turley
-The District "in pros." (proselyting attire)
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
S. Turley--Sorry so short this week
Dear Fam and Friends,
This week was really crazy, but probably my favorite of the transfer/several transfers. We had three exchanges (two were scheduled and one was impromtu) and I am finally starting to feel like being an STL is doable. What a tender mercy! Once I have started to lose myself in the calling, everything else seems better. We were able to meet with all of our investigators last week, but I was out of the area each time, so I don't really have much to report.
This week in my studies, I finished Matthew and started Mark. I loved being able to study more about the Atonement and have more things start to click that I had not realized before. I think my favorite thing I learned was Matthew 28:18-20. It is the Savior's charge to His disciples following his Atonement: "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." I finally realized the whole reason why we go about and teach the people. It is because of the Savior and His Atonement. It is because He has been given "all power...in heaven and in earth." It is because He has overcome all. That is why we teach! That is why we give 18 months-2 years of our lives to share what He taught. Because Jesus is our Savior. What a profound blessing.
Yesterday, for our District Preparation Day, we went to ...drumroll...Deception Pass. The pass was great as always, but it was literally killing me to be in my old area and so close to so many people that I care so much about and not be able to see them! Especially Bennett and Verna since I missed out on their baptism by one week. It was torture in every form of the word. I just love those people so much.
Our President informed us this week that the Washington Everett Mission no longer gets to go to the temple, unless someone you "had significant influence in their baptism" is going through the temple for their own endowments. That means my next potential temple visit is October 18, 2014! I literally am about to cry. I love the temple, and I NEED the temple. I am so grateful that I have always lived close to the temple and had the opportunity to attend. I require the relief that I get when I attend and hope that I can make it through another year without it! And I thought July to December was a long wait! My heart hurts for those people who only get to attend once or twice in their lives!
Love ya!
Sister Turley
This week was really crazy, but probably my favorite of the transfer/several transfers. We had three exchanges (two were scheduled and one was impromtu) and I am finally starting to feel like being an STL is doable. What a tender mercy! Once I have started to lose myself in the calling, everything else seems better. We were able to meet with all of our investigators last week, but I was out of the area each time, so I don't really have much to report.
This week in my studies, I finished Matthew and started Mark. I loved being able to study more about the Atonement and have more things start to click that I had not realized before. I think my favorite thing I learned was Matthew 28:18-20. It is the Savior's charge to His disciples following his Atonement: "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." I finally realized the whole reason why we go about and teach the people. It is because of the Savior and His Atonement. It is because He has been given "all power...in heaven and in earth." It is because He has overcome all. That is why we teach! That is why we give 18 months-2 years of our lives to share what He taught. Because Jesus is our Savior. What a profound blessing.
Yesterday, for our District Preparation Day, we went to ...drumroll...Deception Pass. The pass was great as always, but it was literally killing me to be in my old area and so close to so many people that I care so much about and not be able to see them! Especially Bennett and Verna since I missed out on their baptism by one week. It was torture in every form of the word. I just love those people so much.
Our President informed us this week that the Washington Everett Mission no longer gets to go to the temple, unless someone you "had significant influence in their baptism" is going through the temple for their own endowments. That means my next potential temple visit is October 18, 2014! I literally am about to cry. I love the temple, and I NEED the temple. I am so grateful that I have always lived close to the temple and had the opportunity to attend. I require the relief that I get when I attend and hope that I can make it through another year without it! And I thought July to December was a long wait! My heart hurts for those people who only get to attend once or twice in their lives!
Love ya!
Sister Turley
Monday, November 4, 2013
S. Turley in the WEM
Dear Family and Friends,
We started our tutoring with Keeyan this week and it is such a great opportunity to serve! Our first round was a little bit rough, just because he is a nine year old boy, but round two was great. He took a shine to us and was more excited to read to us and do his homework. It has also presented a great opportunity to meet with Nahal afterwards and be able to read the Book of Mormon with her. We found out as we read that the reason that she has not read is because she just doesn't understand the language. She said she has read most of the Book of Mormon in Farsi, but the translation is not complete and so it makes comprehension difficult. There are only translations of the most important chapters, not even a continuation of really a full story. It was great to be able to read with her and allow her to ask questions about the things that she does not understand and about vocabulary. As she had questions, she would write the meaning of the different words in Farsi in the margins. She asked us if it was a sin to write in the scriptures (it is in the Islamic faith) and was glad that we said, "no." :) We explained that it was okay to write in the scriptures to help her remember things that were important to her and make the word of God more personal. The Spirit taught me that as we talked with her. I love when that happens.
We were also able to stop in with Lavina on Thursday of this week. She had confirmed to us previously that she would be at our ward's Halloween Party, but didn't show up so we decided to stop by. It turns out that she had been passing kidney stones and her baby was not feeling well. So we offered help if she needed any and shared a quick message with her. Last night, we were able to attend a dinner party that Lavina had invited to. She calls it "Thanksgiving with Friends," and had about 25 friends show up that lived in the greater Seattle area. It was incredibly intimidating because her friends are all the best at what they do and very intelligent and very educated. There was everyone from top Boeing engineers, to wealth and inheritance advisers, to artists, to top-of-the-line chefs. We had several really great contacts during the even though. We were privileged answer a lot of questions and share why the Gospel is important. It was also the first party that I have attended where alcohol was being served. Who knew that being on a mission would put me in such interesting positions??
This week we had our exchanges with the Spanish Sisters in our Zone(s). And I got to go to the Spanish area for the day! I was so proud of and grateful for Sister Wahlstrom braving the way for us on our exchange. I have forgotten nearly all the Spanish I learned in high school and she has only been out for two transfers. But we were successful and the Hermanas have a new investigator! I know that the Lord blesses us when we put our best foot forward even when it is really hard.
This week in my studies I got a little bit further into Helaman, and I really enjoy it. I had my testimony reaffirmed as I studied that God is not a God of second chances, but third and fourth and a million chances. I don't know why, but Helaman chapter 9 is one of my favorite stories in the Book of Mormon and always has been. This is the story of when Nephi prophesies that the chief judge has been murdered by his brother (sometimes I wonder if the wicked or deceived people in the Book of Mormon ever feel foolish that their stories are recorded for all the world to read) and the people find that it is true. The part of the story that I never really picked up before is that there were five men that ran to see if the things that Nephi has said were true. As they ran to the judgment seat, they talked amongst themselves and determined that if the thing that Nephi had prophesied were correct that they would believe all the other things that he had testified to them of. And when they found the chief judge dead, they believed and fell to the earth. They were later falsely cast into prison, (and this may or may not be a correct interpretation of what the verse is actually trying to say), but when I read it, I felt that they had the opportunity to bear testimony there to the other individuals that were in the prison. These individuals were likely guilty of true crimes, but God allowed them the chance to hear the testimony of those five and be converted while they paid for their trespasses. Helaman 9:39 says: "And there were some of the Nephites who believed on the words of Nephi; and there were some also, who believed because of the testimony of the five, for they had been converted while they were in prison." God will give us every chance that we do and do not deserve to receive the Gospel. And I am so thankful for that.
And of course, I have to share about Halloween. We decided to dress up as the Elders in our ward for our ward's Halloween Party. We borrowed some ties from them and one of their name tags (We wore the Elders' tags on our shirts and our own name tags on our sweaters. Overkill?). Elder Schiess has this hilarious whale tie that he got at Goodwill and I was secretly excited when he brought it for us to wear, haha. But, we were a huge hit! We won the "Most Spiritual" Costume award and one of the ward members told us that it was the best missionary costume that he had ever seen. We (the four missionaries) were also volunteered to judge the chili cook-off. We have been warned for weeks not to eat anything that a Brother Davis in our ward made because he always makes it SUPER hot. And yes, he put ghost peppers in it (they are supposed to be the hottest peppers in the world). And we all tried it just to say we did. I thought my lips were going to fall off. But, it makes for a great story :)
Thanks again for everything and love you lots!
Sister Turley
Pictures--#1. Harbour Pointe Missionaries Halloween
#2. Yo y Hermana Wahlstrom
We started our tutoring with Keeyan this week and it is such a great opportunity to serve! Our first round was a little bit rough, just because he is a nine year old boy, but round two was great. He took a shine to us and was more excited to read to us and do his homework. It has also presented a great opportunity to meet with Nahal afterwards and be able to read the Book of Mormon with her. We found out as we read that the reason that she has not read is because she just doesn't understand the language. She said she has read most of the Book of Mormon in Farsi, but the translation is not complete and so it makes comprehension difficult. There are only translations of the most important chapters, not even a continuation of really a full story. It was great to be able to read with her and allow her to ask questions about the things that she does not understand and about vocabulary. As she had questions, she would write the meaning of the different words in Farsi in the margins. She asked us if it was a sin to write in the scriptures (it is in the Islamic faith) and was glad that we said, "no." :) We explained that it was okay to write in the scriptures to help her remember things that were important to her and make the word of God more personal. The Spirit taught me that as we talked with her. I love when that happens.
We were also able to stop in with Lavina on Thursday of this week. She had confirmed to us previously that she would be at our ward's Halloween Party, but didn't show up so we decided to stop by. It turns out that she had been passing kidney stones and her baby was not feeling well. So we offered help if she needed any and shared a quick message with her. Last night, we were able to attend a dinner party that Lavina had invited to. She calls it "Thanksgiving with Friends," and had about 25 friends show up that lived in the greater Seattle area. It was incredibly intimidating because her friends are all the best at what they do and very intelligent and very educated. There was everyone from top Boeing engineers, to wealth and inheritance advisers, to artists, to top-of-the-line chefs. We had several really great contacts during the even though. We were privileged answer a lot of questions and share why the Gospel is important. It was also the first party that I have attended where alcohol was being served. Who knew that being on a mission would put me in such interesting positions??
This week we had our exchanges with the Spanish Sisters in our Zone(s). And I got to go to the Spanish area for the day! I was so proud of and grateful for Sister Wahlstrom braving the way for us on our exchange. I have forgotten nearly all the Spanish I learned in high school and she has only been out for two transfers. But we were successful and the Hermanas have a new investigator! I know that the Lord blesses us when we put our best foot forward even when it is really hard.
This week in my studies I got a little bit further into Helaman, and I really enjoy it. I had my testimony reaffirmed as I studied that God is not a God of second chances, but third and fourth and a million chances. I don't know why, but Helaman chapter 9 is one of my favorite stories in the Book of Mormon and always has been. This is the story of when Nephi prophesies that the chief judge has been murdered by his brother (sometimes I wonder if the wicked or deceived people in the Book of Mormon ever feel foolish that their stories are recorded for all the world to read) and the people find that it is true. The part of the story that I never really picked up before is that there were five men that ran to see if the things that Nephi has said were true. As they ran to the judgment seat, they talked amongst themselves and determined that if the thing that Nephi had prophesied were correct that they would believe all the other things that he had testified to them of. And when they found the chief judge dead, they believed and fell to the earth. They were later falsely cast into prison, (and this may or may not be a correct interpretation of what the verse is actually trying to say), but when I read it, I felt that they had the opportunity to bear testimony there to the other individuals that were in the prison. These individuals were likely guilty of true crimes, but God allowed them the chance to hear the testimony of those five and be converted while they paid for their trespasses. Helaman 9:39 says: "And there were some of the Nephites who believed on the words of Nephi; and there were some also, who believed because of the testimony of the five, for they had been converted while they were in prison." God will give us every chance that we do and do not deserve to receive the Gospel. And I am so thankful for that.
And of course, I have to share about Halloween. We decided to dress up as the Elders in our ward for our ward's Halloween Party. We borrowed some ties from them and one of their name tags (We wore the Elders' tags on our shirts and our own name tags on our sweaters. Overkill?). Elder Schiess has this hilarious whale tie that he got at Goodwill and I was secretly excited when he brought it for us to wear, haha. But, we were a huge hit! We won the "Most Spiritual" Costume award and one of the ward members told us that it was the best missionary costume that he had ever seen. We (the four missionaries) were also volunteered to judge the chili cook-off. We have been warned for weeks not to eat anything that a Brother Davis in our ward made because he always makes it SUPER hot. And yes, he put ghost peppers in it (they are supposed to be the hottest peppers in the world). And we all tried it just to say we did. I thought my lips were going to fall off. But, it makes for a great story :)
Thanks again for everything and love you lots!
Sister Turley
Pictures--#1. Harbour Pointe Missionaries Halloween
#2. Yo y Hermana Wahlstrom
Monday, October 28, 2013
S. Turley in the Washington Everett Mission
Dear Fam and Friends,
This week was slow again. We discussed what we could do better to have more success, but we feel like we are doing everything we can and just nothing is coming. Our investigators have been out of town, or hard to get a hold of, so we may have to try some other tactics. We do look forward to when Lavina is in town again and we had a miracle with Nahal this week that will allow us to be in her home more frequently. It is slow, but steady thankfully.
On Thursday morning, Nahal texted us and said that she was available for us to come over until 9:45, so we promptly gathered up our things and headed over to her house. She really opened up to us while we were there and she shared with us some of her biggest concerns (she is so busy) and we tried to help her figure out how she could make time for the Gospel. She shared with us that she wants to do more and show her gratitude to the Lord because she feels so loved and so special, but she just doesn't have enough time. We asked if there was any way that we could help her make time. She shared that her biggest problem was that her son, Keeyan is falling behind in school and she cannot help him because she learned everything differently in Iran and there is a language barrier. Both Sister Smith and I felt prompted to offer to come help Keeyan with his homework a few evenings a week. She and her mother both started crying when we made that offer. We are grateful that this opportunity presented itself. It will give us an opportunity to serve and also be in there home. It will provide us a way for Bob (Nahal's husband) to see us doing good things and benefiting his family. We are hoping that this will give Nahal a little more time and that we will be able to squeeze some lessons in before or after we help Keeyan. We are mindful that we will have to make more apparent our purpose to bring others to Christ and share the Gospel and we will try to keep that on the forefront of our minds and interactions with Nahal's family. Nahal told us that she had been praying the night before for an answer that she needed to be at church and that she had gotten it. She did everything in her power to make it to church but of course, the adversary. One of her employees did not show up for work and she had to go in to her daycare. Next time! As we were leaving, her mother (the one that is reading the Book of Mormon in Farsi and came to church even though she knows zero English) said that she thought God sent us.
We set a goal with the Lord to help us find a family to teach by November 1st. We are praying so hard that it will happen!
This week in my studies, I learned a lot. It was like an avalanche of knowledge. I feel like I am starting to understand the Atonement better and more appreciate the Savior. I also am learning that I have to do a lot more and at the same time, let the Savior to a lot more. One thing I learned is that I have to really pray and trust the Lord to help with the things I asked for. In Helaman 3:26-27 TENS of thousands of people were brought into the church because they sincerely asked the Lord in prayer and the church prospered. Additionally, in verse 35 of the same chapter, it says the people were sanctified, or made holy, "...which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God." They had to give all their deepest desires to the Lord and let Him fill them with His desires. Helaman chapter 4 was also very interesting to me. The Nephites had become wicked and as a result had lost a significant portion of land to the Lamanites. When they realized their folly, they repented and the Lord was able to help them recover some of the land that they had lost. But, they only "regained the one-half of their property." It just made me realize that we should simply get ahead and stay ahead. When we disobey God, we deprive ourselves of half of all the good things that we could potentially have. I know that when I have made mistakes, I may not have deprived myself of temporal blessings, but I am sure that I have lost spiritual blessings and also joy because I had to experience sorrow instead. I also read in Helaman 5 this morning and it just keeps getting better! Verse 10 discusses that we cannot be saved "in" our sins, only "from" our sins. "From" denotes a separation or moving away and it clicked this morning that repentance is the process by which we remove ourselves from our sins. I just had this great imagery of walking away from a heavy load and then the Savior being able to pick us up and taking us away so that we will never be plagued by that load again. But we have to take the first steps. I am so grateful for the Savior and His Atonement!
Love you lots and I am thankful for all you do!!
Love,
Sister Turley
Picture--Exchange #2! Sister Wawro, my mission sister (she was trained by Sister Cromar as well). I got to spend the day on South Whidbey--almost in the land of my nativity :)
This week was slow again. We discussed what we could do better to have more success, but we feel like we are doing everything we can and just nothing is coming. Our investigators have been out of town, or hard to get a hold of, so we may have to try some other tactics. We do look forward to when Lavina is in town again and we had a miracle with Nahal this week that will allow us to be in her home more frequently. It is slow, but steady thankfully.
On Thursday morning, Nahal texted us and said that she was available for us to come over until 9:45, so we promptly gathered up our things and headed over to her house. She really opened up to us while we were there and she shared with us some of her biggest concerns (she is so busy) and we tried to help her figure out how she could make time for the Gospel. She shared with us that she wants to do more and show her gratitude to the Lord because she feels so loved and so special, but she just doesn't have enough time. We asked if there was any way that we could help her make time. She shared that her biggest problem was that her son, Keeyan is falling behind in school and she cannot help him because she learned everything differently in Iran and there is a language barrier. Both Sister Smith and I felt prompted to offer to come help Keeyan with his homework a few evenings a week. She and her mother both started crying when we made that offer. We are grateful that this opportunity presented itself. It will give us an opportunity to serve and also be in there home. It will provide us a way for Bob (Nahal's husband) to see us doing good things and benefiting his family. We are hoping that this will give Nahal a little more time and that we will be able to squeeze some lessons in before or after we help Keeyan. We are mindful that we will have to make more apparent our purpose to bring others to Christ and share the Gospel and we will try to keep that on the forefront of our minds and interactions with Nahal's family. Nahal told us that she had been praying the night before for an answer that she needed to be at church and that she had gotten it. She did everything in her power to make it to church but of course, the adversary. One of her employees did not show up for work and she had to go in to her daycare. Next time! As we were leaving, her mother (the one that is reading the Book of Mormon in Farsi and came to church even though she knows zero English) said that she thought God sent us.
We set a goal with the Lord to help us find a family to teach by November 1st. We are praying so hard that it will happen!
This week in my studies, I learned a lot. It was like an avalanche of knowledge. I feel like I am starting to understand the Atonement better and more appreciate the Savior. I also am learning that I have to do a lot more and at the same time, let the Savior to a lot more. One thing I learned is that I have to really pray and trust the Lord to help with the things I asked for. In Helaman 3:26-27 TENS of thousands of people were brought into the church because they sincerely asked the Lord in prayer and the church prospered. Additionally, in verse 35 of the same chapter, it says the people were sanctified, or made holy, "...which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God." They had to give all their deepest desires to the Lord and let Him fill them with His desires. Helaman chapter 4 was also very interesting to me. The Nephites had become wicked and as a result had lost a significant portion of land to the Lamanites. When they realized their folly, they repented and the Lord was able to help them recover some of the land that they had lost. But, they only "regained the one-half of their property." It just made me realize that we should simply get ahead and stay ahead. When we disobey God, we deprive ourselves of half of all the good things that we could potentially have. I know that when I have made mistakes, I may not have deprived myself of temporal blessings, but I am sure that I have lost spiritual blessings and also joy because I had to experience sorrow instead. I also read in Helaman 5 this morning and it just keeps getting better! Verse 10 discusses that we cannot be saved "in" our sins, only "from" our sins. "From" denotes a separation or moving away and it clicked this morning that repentance is the process by which we remove ourselves from our sins. I just had this great imagery of walking away from a heavy load and then the Savior being able to pick us up and taking us away so that we will never be plagued by that load again. But we have to take the first steps. I am so grateful for the Savior and His Atonement!
Love you lots and I am thankful for all you do!!
Love,
Sister Turley
Picture--Exchange #2! Sister Wawro, my mission sister (she was trained by Sister Cromar as well). I got to spend the day on South Whidbey--almost in the land of my nativity :)
Monday, October 21, 2013
This week in the WEM--S. Turley
Dear President Fam and Friends,
I don't have a whole lot to report this week as we didn't have loads of time in our area. We had lots of meetings, a special conference with Elder Paul V. Johnson of the Seventy (he said a prayer during General Conference!) and interviews this week. Along with my first exchange as an STL. Crazy! We are excited to be able to put all our efforts into our area this week and especially finding. I had a thought that we need to set a date with the Lord to be able to find a family to teach. I had that thought come to me actually while we were teaching some members in our ward and they were talking about setting some dates to invite neighbors over for dinner.
This is not a plea for help or anything, but I just wanted to share this story with you. The grocery stores in this area are all really expensive and we are low on funds nearly every month and we haven't had too many dinner appointments for the last two weeks. But this month we said "if we pay a generous fast offering, the Lord will provide." And what do you know? He has. We have had so many members call us and say, "I made way too much food for dinner last night, which never happens. Would you like the leftovers?" Or, (this reminds me of Lari) our bishop's wife woke up at 4:30 a.m. thinking "People are hungry, I have to fix this!" (They also have a daughter on a mission) And the ward had a few events this week and gave us all the food they had left over from them. Miracles. The Lord really will "pour you out a blessing that there is not room enough to receive it." He has showed us this week that He is true to His word and mindful of us.
Also, the Bishop's father passed away this week and his wife invited us to attend the funeral because she knew that many members of the community that were not of our faith would be there. We didn't get a chance to talk to too many people, but it was really good for me to go. The Spirit was really strong there and it was good for me to associate the Spirit with someone's passing. As soon as we walked into the church building I was overwhelmed with the Spirit. I was pretty weepy during most of the service remembering my mom and feeling true sympathy for the family. But it was very healing for me and I was grateful for that opportunity. It just made me think about my mom's life motto: "Bad things happen in the best possible way."
We were able to teach a youth fireside on missionary work last night with the elders in our ward. We taught them a little out of Preach My Gospel and then role played with them for the rest of the time. They role played inviting and answering questions. It was really fun! I hate role plays, but Sister Bonham said it best when she said that they are "the best worst thing." It's weird, but you really can receive revelation during role plays and they help a lot. Mr. Bitter/Mrs. Bennett (orchestra conductors) used to say "We rehearse to get the stupid our right now, so we don't mess up during performances." That is true doctrine. That's how role plays are. You get the stupid out and receive revelation. Role play inviting your friends to learn more!
I really loved reading Alma 60 this week. It was the letter than Moroni wrote to Pahoran giving him a hard time for not sending more troops or provisions. It just made me feel better that even though Moroni is referred to as a man who could cause the gates of hell to shake, he was still human and still drew quick conclusions and made mistakes. We all are, even if we are awesome :)
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
PS--This picture is of me and Sister Adams (from Eager, AZ) on my first exchange as an STL!
I don't have a whole lot to report this week as we didn't have loads of time in our area. We had lots of meetings, a special conference with Elder Paul V. Johnson of the Seventy (he said a prayer during General Conference!) and interviews this week. Along with my first exchange as an STL. Crazy! We are excited to be able to put all our efforts into our area this week and especially finding. I had a thought that we need to set a date with the Lord to be able to find a family to teach. I had that thought come to me actually while we were teaching some members in our ward and they were talking about setting some dates to invite neighbors over for dinner.
This is not a plea for help or anything, but I just wanted to share this story with you. The grocery stores in this area are all really expensive and we are low on funds nearly every month and we haven't had too many dinner appointments for the last two weeks. But this month we said "if we pay a generous fast offering, the Lord will provide." And what do you know? He has. We have had so many members call us and say, "I made way too much food for dinner last night, which never happens. Would you like the leftovers?" Or, (this reminds me of Lari) our bishop's wife woke up at 4:30 a.m. thinking "People are hungry, I have to fix this!" (They also have a daughter on a mission) And the ward had a few events this week and gave us all the food they had left over from them. Miracles. The Lord really will "pour you out a blessing that there is not room enough to receive it." He has showed us this week that He is true to His word and mindful of us.
Also, the Bishop's father passed away this week and his wife invited us to attend the funeral because she knew that many members of the community that were not of our faith would be there. We didn't get a chance to talk to too many people, but it was really good for me to go. The Spirit was really strong there and it was good for me to associate the Spirit with someone's passing. As soon as we walked into the church building I was overwhelmed with the Spirit. I was pretty weepy during most of the service remembering my mom and feeling true sympathy for the family. But it was very healing for me and I was grateful for that opportunity. It just made me think about my mom's life motto: "Bad things happen in the best possible way."
We were able to teach a youth fireside on missionary work last night with the elders in our ward. We taught them a little out of Preach My Gospel and then role played with them for the rest of the time. They role played inviting and answering questions. It was really fun! I hate role plays, but Sister Bonham said it best when she said that they are "the best worst thing." It's weird, but you really can receive revelation during role plays and they help a lot. Mr. Bitter/Mrs. Bennett (orchestra conductors) used to say "We rehearse to get the stupid our right now, so we don't mess up during performances." That is true doctrine. That's how role plays are. You get the stupid out and receive revelation. Role play inviting your friends to learn more!
I really loved reading Alma 60 this week. It was the letter than Moroni wrote to Pahoran giving him a hard time for not sending more troops or provisions. It just made me feel better that even though Moroni is referred to as a man who could cause the gates of hell to shake, he was still human and still drew quick conclusions and made mistakes. We all are, even if we are awesome :)
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
PS--This picture is of me and Sister Adams (from Eager, AZ) on my first exchange as an STL!
Monday, October 14, 2013
S. Turley--WEM Happenings
Dear Family and Friends,
This week I believe was a trial of our faith; it was a trial and required faith. But we saw some pretty awesome miracles! We were not able to have a scheduled appointment with any of our investigators, but some good experiences otherwise.
We had one lesson planned with Lavina and Nikhil, but Lavina ended up getting sick (really sick) so we ended up postponing until next week. When we talked to her on the phone, she said that she didn't know if she would be able to make it to church. We were sad, but then had a great idea to involve the members to help her get there. Sister Carey had gone to a lesson with us previously and mentioned that her grandson was going to be blessed in Sacrament meeting this week. When we talked to Sister Carey, she was more than willing to call Lavina and invite her to come to church this week (with the added bonus of getting to meet her family and see her cute baby grandson). So, right around the time that the baby was being blessed, we looked behind us and Lavina was walking in! We were so grateful! She was a little more distracted this week in church because she brought her six-month old son and she was worried about him. But with the help of lots of silent prayers and the baby's angel disposition, I don't think he cried once during the three hour block. He was actually really happy and smiley during the meetings. We have another lesson with Lavina this week and plan to invite her to baptism because she is ready. She just is.
We had a quick stop-in lesson with Carla this week and she brought up baptism. She thinks that her church does it wrong and explained what she thinks should happen. And it is almost identical to what we believe. We were able to share a few quick principles, but she said to get in touch with her this week to be able to talk more about it and help her with some service activities. We are so grateful for ways to be able to help her and demonstrate our desire to follow Christ in every way, including service.
We saw another miracle at church this week. We have not been able to meet with Nahal again or bring her to church because she is says she is too busy. And she is busy. We are so thankful though, for the member fellowshippers who invited her to take the lessons. They have really stepped up to the plate in inviting Nahal to come to church and participate in activities in the ward and continue to learn more. The miracle was that her mom, who speaks only Farsi, wanted to come to church even though she could not understand a word. She has been reading the Book of Mormon in Farsi that was left with Nahal by previous missionaries and I know that she knows it is true. We were walking with her after church to help her find her grandson who had come with her and she just stopped and clutched her chest and said, with tears in her eyes, "I like here. I like how I feel." She feels the Spirit. Unfortunately, she still lives about 80% of the time in Iran, so there is not much we can do about teaching her and helping her to be baptized (it is politically dangerous for her--we have to get permission from the mission president to teach Muslims), but it was a testimony builder that there are people who are ready to hear and RECEIVE the Gospel. She is humble and loves God and wants to follow Him. And there have to be others who have the same desires.
I have really loved starting to memorize D&C 121:34-46 this last week. Surprisingly, it is coming significantly faster to me than I anticipated. I must need to learn these verses. And I am grateful that Heavenly Father is blessing me in this pursuit. They truly are great instruction and inspiration. This week in my study, I really appreciated Alma chapter 49. Who knew that the war chapters in Alma had such profound instruction? I am grateful for that account. But I liked verse 8 that described their preparations for war as "a way which never had been known among the children of Lehi..." I think that applies to our preparations to share the Gospel and live according to our knowledge as well. It is in a way inspired by the Lord, rather than be men. Also, verses 23-24 struck a chord with me that the Nephites were prepared and all of their lives were spared, but they still suffered injuries that were in some cases severe. In our lives that is true as well. The enemy may have minors successes or be able to harm us a little in our struggle (due to our fallen nature), but if we rely on Christ and are prepared as prescribed by our Heavenly Father we will not fail. We can't.
Bennett and Verna got baptized in Oak Harbor on Saturday (I didn't get to go, but that is ok). A knock on the door and eighteen weeks later, they are MORMONS!!!!! So excited and happy for them!
Love you all and hope that you are doing well!
S. Turley
This week I believe was a trial of our faith; it was a trial and required faith. But we saw some pretty awesome miracles! We were not able to have a scheduled appointment with any of our investigators, but some good experiences otherwise.
We had one lesson planned with Lavina and Nikhil, but Lavina ended up getting sick (really sick) so we ended up postponing until next week. When we talked to her on the phone, she said that she didn't know if she would be able to make it to church. We were sad, but then had a great idea to involve the members to help her get there. Sister Carey had gone to a lesson with us previously and mentioned that her grandson was going to be blessed in Sacrament meeting this week. When we talked to Sister Carey, she was more than willing to call Lavina and invite her to come to church this week (with the added bonus of getting to meet her family and see her cute baby grandson). So, right around the time that the baby was being blessed, we looked behind us and Lavina was walking in! We were so grateful! She was a little more distracted this week in church because she brought her six-month old son and she was worried about him. But with the help of lots of silent prayers and the baby's angel disposition, I don't think he cried once during the three hour block. He was actually really happy and smiley during the meetings. We have another lesson with Lavina this week and plan to invite her to baptism because she is ready. She just is.
We had a quick stop-in lesson with Carla this week and she brought up baptism. She thinks that her church does it wrong and explained what she thinks should happen. And it is almost identical to what we believe. We were able to share a few quick principles, but she said to get in touch with her this week to be able to talk more about it and help her with some service activities. We are so grateful for ways to be able to help her and demonstrate our desire to follow Christ in every way, including service.
We saw another miracle at church this week. We have not been able to meet with Nahal again or bring her to church because she is says she is too busy. And she is busy. We are so thankful though, for the member fellowshippers who invited her to take the lessons. They have really stepped up to the plate in inviting Nahal to come to church and participate in activities in the ward and continue to learn more. The miracle was that her mom, who speaks only Farsi, wanted to come to church even though she could not understand a word. She has been reading the Book of Mormon in Farsi that was left with Nahal by previous missionaries and I know that she knows it is true. We were walking with her after church to help her find her grandson who had come with her and she just stopped and clutched her chest and said, with tears in her eyes, "I like here. I like how I feel." She feels the Spirit. Unfortunately, she still lives about 80% of the time in Iran, so there is not much we can do about teaching her and helping her to be baptized (it is politically dangerous for her--we have to get permission from the mission president to teach Muslims), but it was a testimony builder that there are people who are ready to hear and RECEIVE the Gospel. She is humble and loves God and wants to follow Him. And there have to be others who have the same desires.
I have really loved starting to memorize D&C 121:34-46 this last week. Surprisingly, it is coming significantly faster to me than I anticipated. I must need to learn these verses. And I am grateful that Heavenly Father is blessing me in this pursuit. They truly are great instruction and inspiration. This week in my study, I really appreciated Alma chapter 49. Who knew that the war chapters in Alma had such profound instruction? I am grateful for that account. But I liked verse 8 that described their preparations for war as "a way which never had been known among the children of Lehi..." I think that applies to our preparations to share the Gospel and live according to our knowledge as well. It is in a way inspired by the Lord, rather than be men. Also, verses 23-24 struck a chord with me that the Nephites were prepared and all of their lives were spared, but they still suffered injuries that were in some cases severe. In our lives that is true as well. The enemy may have minors successes or be able to harm us a little in our struggle (due to our fallen nature), but if we rely on Christ and are prepared as prescribed by our Heavenly Father we will not fail. We can't.
Bennett and Verna got baptized in Oak Harbor on Saturday (I didn't get to go, but that is ok). A knock on the door and eighteen weeks later, they are MORMONS!!!!! So excited and happy for them!
Love you all and hope that you are doing well!
S. Turley
The District before Transfers: E. Wells, E. Schiess, E. Combe, E. Haupu, S. Lawson, E. Beatty, E. Holt, S. Tuttle, S. Smith, S. Turley
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
S. Turley--Super Quickie
Dear Fam and Friends,
Sorry the lib was closed yesterday! And this is going to be super quick because we have half the time to email today than we would if we had Pday to do it. And sorry this email is a mess and you are probs getting more than you want to know about.
Last Tuesday, we were able to meet Lavina's husband! His name is Nikhil and he is from Southern India and was raised Hindu. We decided that evening after dinner that we needed to stop by Lavina's house and drop off an invitation to the Ward Relief Society Activity that is being held next week. Lavina had usually scheduled lessons during the day so we had never met Nikhil and were excited when he invited us in! He had some great questions and he is very intelligent. You can tell that he desires to know truth. We mostly just answered his questions (still a great place to start) and afterwards, Lavina was excited to schedule a time for this week that we can come and teach both of them! We are hoping now that Nikhil is more on board we will be able to meet with Lavina more frequently. She had previously wanted to meet only once every two weeks. Hopefully we can increase it to once a week!
The tradition of leadership calls EVERY transfer continues! I am going to be an STL (Sister Trainer Leader)... My aunt (Ally) wrote me this week, saying "It is interesting being in the Stake RS Presidency. Can I just say that I used to think that people who got those callings already have their act together? I have come to realize, however, that sometimes it is the Lord's way of giving you even MORE reason to get your act together." I am hoping the same can be for us! We NEED it! This area and calling and everything is super stressing me out. I am trying to grow my faith that the Lord will bless us, but it is definitely not going to come over night. I know He blesses us, but I forget really easy. I am trying to learn how to strengthen my mind and protect it from Satan. He is really good. I learned that I need to do more protecting this week in Alma 48:9. The Nephites are preparing their lands for battle and it says, "And in their weakest fortifications he did place the greater number of men..." I need to put more soldiers in place to help protect me from the influence of the adversary. Not to toot my own horn, but my mind is one of my greatest assets, I believe--I have been blessed with a quick mind and a good memory--but it is also my weakest asset. It can easily be persuaded to think less of myself and what I am doing. I think I am going to try to start memorizing more scriptures to help protect myself. Elder DeVictoria has been one of the best examples of being a great missionary to me (former DL. He just went home, so sad!), so I think I am going to try to follow his example and memorize D&C 121:34-46. I think it will help me in ALL aspects that I need extra fortification in. Tall order, but good stuff. My favorite scripture is Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." I know it is true. Just sometimes application is difficult. But I really do know that it is true and that Christ can help us with anything. He wants us to succeed and do good things. I might have some growing pains, but I do believe that I will be better and stronger both as a missionary and as person as I magnify my many callings and trust in the Savior.
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
Sorry the lib was closed yesterday! And this is going to be super quick because we have half the time to email today than we would if we had Pday to do it. And sorry this email is a mess and you are probs getting more than you want to know about.
Last Tuesday, we were able to meet Lavina's husband! His name is Nikhil and he is from Southern India and was raised Hindu. We decided that evening after dinner that we needed to stop by Lavina's house and drop off an invitation to the Ward Relief Society Activity that is being held next week. Lavina had usually scheduled lessons during the day so we had never met Nikhil and were excited when he invited us in! He had some great questions and he is very intelligent. You can tell that he desires to know truth. We mostly just answered his questions (still a great place to start) and afterwards, Lavina was excited to schedule a time for this week that we can come and teach both of them! We are hoping now that Nikhil is more on board we will be able to meet with Lavina more frequently. She had previously wanted to meet only once every two weeks. Hopefully we can increase it to once a week!
The tradition of leadership calls EVERY transfer continues! I am going to be an STL (Sister Trainer Leader)... My aunt (Ally) wrote me this week, saying "It is interesting being in the Stake RS Presidency. Can I just say that I used to think that people who got those callings already have their act together? I have come to realize, however, that sometimes it is the Lord's way of giving you even MORE reason to get your act together." I am hoping the same can be for us! We NEED it! This area and calling and everything is super stressing me out. I am trying to grow my faith that the Lord will bless us, but it is definitely not going to come over night. I know He blesses us, but I forget really easy. I am trying to learn how to strengthen my mind and protect it from Satan. He is really good. I learned that I need to do more protecting this week in Alma 48:9. The Nephites are preparing their lands for battle and it says, "And in their weakest fortifications he did place the greater number of men..." I need to put more soldiers in place to help protect me from the influence of the adversary. Not to toot my own horn, but my mind is one of my greatest assets, I believe--I have been blessed with a quick mind and a good memory--but it is also my weakest asset. It can easily be persuaded to think less of myself and what I am doing. I think I am going to try to start memorizing more scriptures to help protect myself. Elder DeVictoria has been one of the best examples of being a great missionary to me (former DL. He just went home, so sad!), so I think I am going to try to follow his example and memorize D&C 121:34-46. I think it will help me in ALL aspects that I need extra fortification in. Tall order, but good stuff. My favorite scripture is Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." I know it is true. Just sometimes application is difficult. But I really do know that it is true and that Christ can help us with anything. He wants us to succeed and do good things. I might have some growing pains, but I do believe that I will be better and stronger both as a missionary and as person as I magnify my many callings and trust in the Savior.
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
Monday, September 30, 2013
S. Turley--WEM, It's getting rainy...
Dear Fam and Friends,
This week was a little slower than we would have liked. We had two lessons with investigators and two with less actives. Thankfully both of our lessons with investigators were with members! I am still trying to develop the North Carolina Sister Turley's "Passion for Finding." Not quite there yet. We keep having to tell ourselves, "Just keep tracting, just keep tracting." It is getting a little more difficult to find people now that the Washington Winter is settling in. We had our first really rainy days this weekend. It poured and we were afraid that if we rode our bikes we would get blown over by the wind! We have been joking/not joking that nobody answers the door when it is dark and nobody answers the door when it rains. So pretty much all the time, haha. People actually told us "go home" like we were crazy people when we knocked on their doors. We are going to have to rely heavily on our members, especially as it gets darker earlier and earlier. They say it gets dark at 4 during the winter!
Our lesson with Carla and Joe this week was unique. They had invited a group of friends from the Edmonds Adventist Church to join the discussion. We were nervous going in because we didn't know what the format of the meeting was going to be and whether or not we were setting ourselves up to be attacked. We were pleasantly surprised. With the exception of one member of the group (who was a new-comer that they were trying to fellowship) they were all VERY open-minded. The general feeling in the group was that they belong to that church because it is what most closely resembles their personal beliefs, but they are willing to hear from others to see if there is something they are missing out on that they can find from other faiths :) We were able to share most of the Restoration and a brief overview of the Plan of Salvation while answering their questions. It was really fun! They asked great questions and most seemed to believe Joseph Smith's account of the First Vision. Following the discussion, we invited all to read the Book of Mormon and pray to know if it is true. They all accepted and thanked us over and over again for coming to their meeting and sharing what we know to be true. The Spirit was SO STRONG with all these searching hearts and open minds learning of Restored truths together. It was so amazing that they all played off of each other and helped one another understand the things they had been taught. At times, one would ask a question, and another would pipe up and explain what we had shared and it was truly a D&C 50:22 experience ("Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together").
I have really enjoyed reading the New Testament the last few weeks, and I wish that we were able to have an hour to study the Book of Mormon, an hour to study the Bible and an hour to study the doctrines of the lessons. Maybe someday I will. I read in Matthew 10 and I had a realization in verse 30 that I really needed. It reads, "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered." It was amazing to me that God loves me that much to know how many hairs are on my head. It seems so petty and insignificant. Who really cares the number of hairs they have on their head? I don't care to count. But the Lord does. I am that important to God that He is willing to keep a running total. He probably also knows how many gray hairs this mission has given me, too. It's crazy. But it is true.
Love you all lots and thanks for the Birthday wishes!
Sister Turley
This week was a little slower than we would have liked. We had two lessons with investigators and two with less actives. Thankfully both of our lessons with investigators were with members! I am still trying to develop the North Carolina Sister Turley's "Passion for Finding." Not quite there yet. We keep having to tell ourselves, "Just keep tracting, just keep tracting." It is getting a little more difficult to find people now that the Washington Winter is settling in. We had our first really rainy days this weekend. It poured and we were afraid that if we rode our bikes we would get blown over by the wind! We have been joking/not joking that nobody answers the door when it is dark and nobody answers the door when it rains. So pretty much all the time, haha. People actually told us "go home" like we were crazy people when we knocked on their doors. We are going to have to rely heavily on our members, especially as it gets darker earlier and earlier. They say it gets dark at 4 during the winter!
Our lesson with Carla and Joe this week was unique. They had invited a group of friends from the Edmonds Adventist Church to join the discussion. We were nervous going in because we didn't know what the format of the meeting was going to be and whether or not we were setting ourselves up to be attacked. We were pleasantly surprised. With the exception of one member of the group (who was a new-comer that they were trying to fellowship) they were all VERY open-minded. The general feeling in the group was that they belong to that church because it is what most closely resembles their personal beliefs, but they are willing to hear from others to see if there is something they are missing out on that they can find from other faiths :) We were able to share most of the Restoration and a brief overview of the Plan of Salvation while answering their questions. It was really fun! They asked great questions and most seemed to believe Joseph Smith's account of the First Vision. Following the discussion, we invited all to read the Book of Mormon and pray to know if it is true. They all accepted and thanked us over and over again for coming to their meeting and sharing what we know to be true. The Spirit was SO STRONG with all these searching hearts and open minds learning of Restored truths together. It was so amazing that they all played off of each other and helped one another understand the things they had been taught. At times, one would ask a question, and another would pipe up and explain what we had shared and it was truly a D&C 50:22 experience ("Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together").
I have really enjoyed reading the New Testament the last few weeks, and I wish that we were able to have an hour to study the Book of Mormon, an hour to study the Bible and an hour to study the doctrines of the lessons. Maybe someday I will. I read in Matthew 10 and I had a realization in verse 30 that I really needed. It reads, "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered." It was amazing to me that God loves me that much to know how many hairs are on my head. It seems so petty and insignificant. Who really cares the number of hairs they have on their head? I don't care to count. But the Lord does. I am that important to God that He is willing to keep a running total. He probably also knows how many gray hairs this mission has given me, too. It's crazy. But it is true.
Love you all lots and thanks for the Birthday wishes!
Sister Turley
Monday, September 23, 2013
S. Turley--Miracles in the WEM
Dear Family and Friends,
I have neglected to share with you a number of things over the past few weeks. I feel like every Monday has been crazy and we have been rushed to get in and out of the library. So this might be a bit of a catch-up letter and it may take a lot of explaining about why we are excited about different things, so here goes...
We got bikes this week!...So, we are splitting our ward with a set of Elders. We are assigned to work in the south half of the ward. The good news is that we are in our new apartment! The bad news is that it is on the very north border of the ward. Literally, if we cross the street we are out of our area. We have 600 miles a month to use on our car so that gives us about 20 miles a day. And with travel from our apartment to our area on the south end of the ward, we use about 16 miles daily. So that gives us 4 miles to use for proselyting. And our area is all culs de sac and there is only one way in and out of most places. We had hoped to get more miles, but our mission's mileage budget from Salt Lake has been cut, so that was out. So, we got bikes! Who knew that I would ever be so excited to ride a bike in a dress?? We are grateful to have them so we can visit more people in our area and not be confined to one section. I love helmet hair.
We had an investigator attend church this week! Her name is Lavina and she is Catholic and originally from Texas. She is married to a man from India whom she classifies as a "non-believer." I don't remember what I shared in the past, but a few weeks ago we tracted into Lavina and she invited us into her home. She informed us as we were leaving that she had never invited Mormons into her home, but as soon as she saw us, she felt the Spirit and invited us in. President Bonham has chosen our building and the Everett Stake Center to be guinea pigs in hosting church tours, so we will be doing some trial runs in the next few weeks. We got invitations to the Church tour on Wednesday, and we went around to our investigators and took them plates of cookies (our WMLs philosophy is "cookies work.") with the invitations. We did not get a firm response from any of our investigators about going, so we didn't really expect anyone to show up. But we had a miracle! On Saturday afternoon, we drove our car out to the Church to park and then ride our bikes out to our area. We went in to the Church for a few minutes to write down addresses to people we planned to visit and as we were getting up to leave, Lavina walked in! We were able to give her a tour and an explanation of the services and what would happen during the meetings. She told us at the end of the tour how grateful she was to have come to the tour and know a little bit better what to expect so she would not be as overwhelmed during the meetings on Sunday. She attended church with us yesterday and really enjoyed it. Her favorite class was Sunday School and she participated freely. We are grateful that the Elders were able to give such a wonderful lesson! We meet with Lavina again on Thursday morning and are excited to be able to teach her the full Restoration lesson. The tour brought up a lot of questions about the Restoration that we are excited to address!
We also have a new investigator, Nahal. She is from Iran and consequently, Muslim. She informed us that she has never practiced or believed in Islam. She said that they just lived that way growing up in Iran because it was a requirement. Her husband shared that he is not really interested in religion, even his own. We hope that this will change in the future. They also have a nine year old son. Nahal has a very interesting story. I guess was struggling at one point and really needed help. She started experimenting by praying to different gods and in different ways. And when she started praying to God in the name of Jesus Christ, she felt something different and that it was good. And shortly after that, she had experienced a miracle that was a strength to her. It has given her a very different view on Jesus Christ that is held by most Muslims. It is pretty amazing how well prepared she is to receive the Gospel. She had received a Book of Mormon in Farsi in the past, but unfortunately, the translation has never been finished (It probably was not top priority because we have to get special permission to teach individuals who are Muslim). But her mother is staying with her for a few months from Iran and picked it up and is really enjoying it! It is also wonderful that she already has a number of member fellowshippers (she was a member referral! yay!) in the ward that are excited to sit with her at church and attend lessons with us! We are hoping that her husband will be able to attend church with her in the future. I have heard that he really appreciates the social aspect of the church because they do not know very many people in the United States. Maybe the social conversion will lead to doctrinal conversion.
Yesterday I was reading in Alma chapter 39 (Lari), and had some very interesting ideas come to mind. In verse 16, Alma is describing to his son, Corianton, the work to which he had been called as a missionary. He explains, "And now, my son, this was the ministry unto which ye were called, to declare these glad tidings unto this people..." I thought about the other instances in which the phrase "glad tidings" was used in the scriptures and it is almost always with angels. We often use refer to the verse in Alma 13:24 which asserts that angels are preparing the people in the land to receive the Gospel. And if our call is the same as the errand of angels, then I think very easily that missionaries past and present may be the angels that are preparing the people. We often hear of "angels among us," and they are often described as ordinary people doing an extraordinary work. I do no think that this rules out the reality of having true angels sent from the presence of God to help with the work, but it helped me to have even a different outlook on missionary work. Missionary work is a combined effort between the many different kind of angels, both seen and unseen, resurrected and mortal and spirit. And I would suggest that it takes the efforts of all to be successful.
Do you remember Bennett and Verna from Oak Harbor? Well, they are getting baptized! Tracting miracles. Sister Slade says that they are quote: "SO SOLID." And it gets better! Verna asked Everet (the less active we taught and whose wife, Darlene, got baptized) to baptize her! I don't know if I could be any more excited! I am praying hard to be able to attend the baptism. We can go if it is within 6 weeks of us being transferred from the area and it will be 7 when they get baptized on October 12th (Happy Birthday to Griffin and happy "Rebirth" day to Bennett and Verna!). President said to ask for permission again when it gets closer and he may feel inspired to say yes. But there is another church tour that day, so we will see what happens. I am so excited for them!!!!!!!
Well, I love you all lots and hope that you have a wonderful week!
Love,
Sister Turley
I have neglected to share with you a number of things over the past few weeks. I feel like every Monday has been crazy and we have been rushed to get in and out of the library. So this might be a bit of a catch-up letter and it may take a lot of explaining about why we are excited about different things, so here goes...
We got bikes this week!...So, we are splitting our ward with a set of Elders. We are assigned to work in the south half of the ward. The good news is that we are in our new apartment! The bad news is that it is on the very north border of the ward. Literally, if we cross the street we are out of our area. We have 600 miles a month to use on our car so that gives us about 20 miles a day. And with travel from our apartment to our area on the south end of the ward, we use about 16 miles daily. So that gives us 4 miles to use for proselyting. And our area is all culs de sac and there is only one way in and out of most places. We had hoped to get more miles, but our mission's mileage budget from Salt Lake has been cut, so that was out. So, we got bikes! Who knew that I would ever be so excited to ride a bike in a dress?? We are grateful to have them so we can visit more people in our area and not be confined to one section. I love helmet hair.
We had an investigator attend church this week! Her name is Lavina and she is Catholic and originally from Texas. She is married to a man from India whom she classifies as a "non-believer." I don't remember what I shared in the past, but a few weeks ago we tracted into Lavina and she invited us into her home. She informed us as we were leaving that she had never invited Mormons into her home, but as soon as she saw us, she felt the Spirit and invited us in. President Bonham has chosen our building and the Everett Stake Center to be guinea pigs in hosting church tours, so we will be doing some trial runs in the next few weeks. We got invitations to the Church tour on Wednesday, and we went around to our investigators and took them plates of cookies (our WMLs philosophy is "cookies work.") with the invitations. We did not get a firm response from any of our investigators about going, so we didn't really expect anyone to show up. But we had a miracle! On Saturday afternoon, we drove our car out to the Church to park and then ride our bikes out to our area. We went in to the Church for a few minutes to write down addresses to people we planned to visit and as we were getting up to leave, Lavina walked in! We were able to give her a tour and an explanation of the services and what would happen during the meetings. She told us at the end of the tour how grateful she was to have come to the tour and know a little bit better what to expect so she would not be as overwhelmed during the meetings on Sunday. She attended church with us yesterday and really enjoyed it. Her favorite class was Sunday School and she participated freely. We are grateful that the Elders were able to give such a wonderful lesson! We meet with Lavina again on Thursday morning and are excited to be able to teach her the full Restoration lesson. The tour brought up a lot of questions about the Restoration that we are excited to address!
We also have a new investigator, Nahal. She is from Iran and consequently, Muslim. She informed us that she has never practiced or believed in Islam. She said that they just lived that way growing up in Iran because it was a requirement. Her husband shared that he is not really interested in religion, even his own. We hope that this will change in the future. They also have a nine year old son. Nahal has a very interesting story. I guess was struggling at one point and really needed help. She started experimenting by praying to different gods and in different ways. And when she started praying to God in the name of Jesus Christ, she felt something different and that it was good. And shortly after that, she had experienced a miracle that was a strength to her. It has given her a very different view on Jesus Christ that is held by most Muslims. It is pretty amazing how well prepared she is to receive the Gospel. She had received a Book of Mormon in Farsi in the past, but unfortunately, the translation has never been finished (It probably was not top priority because we have to get special permission to teach individuals who are Muslim). But her mother is staying with her for a few months from Iran and picked it up and is really enjoying it! It is also wonderful that she already has a number of member fellowshippers (she was a member referral! yay!) in the ward that are excited to sit with her at church and attend lessons with us! We are hoping that her husband will be able to attend church with her in the future. I have heard that he really appreciates the social aspect of the church because they do not know very many people in the United States. Maybe the social conversion will lead to doctrinal conversion.
Yesterday I was reading in Alma chapter 39 (Lari), and had some very interesting ideas come to mind. In verse 16, Alma is describing to his son, Corianton, the work to which he had been called as a missionary. He explains, "And now, my son, this was the ministry unto which ye were called, to declare these glad tidings unto this people..." I thought about the other instances in which the phrase "glad tidings" was used in the scriptures and it is almost always with angels. We often use refer to the verse in Alma 13:24 which asserts that angels are preparing the people in the land to receive the Gospel. And if our call is the same as the errand of angels, then I think very easily that missionaries past and present may be the angels that are preparing the people. We often hear of "angels among us," and they are often described as ordinary people doing an extraordinary work. I do no think that this rules out the reality of having true angels sent from the presence of God to help with the work, but it helped me to have even a different outlook on missionary work. Missionary work is a combined effort between the many different kind of angels, both seen and unseen, resurrected and mortal and spirit. And I would suggest that it takes the efforts of all to be successful.
Do you remember Bennett and Verna from Oak Harbor? Well, they are getting baptized! Tracting miracles. Sister Slade says that they are quote: "SO SOLID." And it gets better! Verna asked Everet (the less active we taught and whose wife, Darlene, got baptized) to baptize her! I don't know if I could be any more excited! I am praying hard to be able to attend the baptism. We can go if it is within 6 weeks of us being transferred from the area and it will be 7 when they get baptized on October 12th (Happy Birthday to Griffin and happy "Rebirth" day to Bennett and Verna!). President said to ask for permission again when it gets closer and he may feel inspired to say yes. But there is another church tour that day, so we will see what happens. I am so excited for them!!!!!!!
Well, I love you all lots and hope that you have a wonderful week!
Love,
Sister Turley
Monday, September 16, 2013
WEM--S. Turley 9/16/13
Dear Family and Friends,
This week, we were able to teach Carla again, as well as her husband, Joe. I truly hope that they are earnestly seeking because they are asking all the right questions. They were interested in the Plan of Salvation, so we taught them the first half on Thursday evening. They actually moved our appointment up a week earlier than originally scheduled. Carla loved hearing about the Pre-Earth Life and that we lived with God as Spirits before we came here. She said that was something she had actually contemplated just a few days earlier when her daughter asked her where we came from. Joe asked where our church building was, so we hope that is indicative of an interest to attend church and try it our for himself/themselves.
We also had a second lesson with a woman named Lavina that we tracted into on our first day in this area. During our first meeting, she told us as we left: "I have never invited Mormons into my home before, but when I saw you, I felt the Spirit." The lesson this week was kind of interesting because she wanted it to be more "free-form." We were able to fit a few principles into our answers of her questions. Next time, we plan to use "How To Begin Teaching" more fully and especially explain that when she understands some basics of our faith the answers that she will receive will be more meaningful. She also agreed to attend church next week. I am anxious for that event because she already recognizes the Spirit and hopefully it will be in abundance at Church for her.
Yesterday, we were tracting in an area where a member lives and we decided that we would knock on their door as well. It was really cool, because we had had dinner with the family our first night in the area, but the dad and oldest son were on Safari in Africa (nbd...) so we did not get to meet them that evening. Last night we got to meet the entire family, and without us even suggesting it, the dad encouraged the family to make a goal for the month for doing missionary work. They decided that they are all going to give away a Book of Mormon by October 20th. They said that we could follow-up with them on that goal and we very much look forward to that!
I have continued my studies in Alma this week (Lari) and one of my favorite verses that I have read this week was in Alma chapter 34 verse 16. It explained that our faith has to be "unto repentance" in order to fully apply the Atonement. It is always such a thought-provoking idea to me that faith is a principle of action. But I know that it is. If we don't plant our seed of faith, there is no way that it will grow. Without the action of planting the seed, our faith is good for nothing. But I loved that earlier in the verse that if we do have this faith unto repentance, "mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety." I love that mercy can potentially override justice if we are actively repenting. And I love that we can be "encircled in the arms of safety." It is such a beautiful idea and picture to me. I imagine being encircled in the arms of the Savior who is our safety and foundation in the midst of the storms of life and as we improve ourselves.
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
PS--Many have asked for my new address. It is the following:
5010 84th St. SW #D21
Mukilteo, WA 98725
This week, we were able to teach Carla again, as well as her husband, Joe. I truly hope that they are earnestly seeking because they are asking all the right questions. They were interested in the Plan of Salvation, so we taught them the first half on Thursday evening. They actually moved our appointment up a week earlier than originally scheduled. Carla loved hearing about the Pre-Earth Life and that we lived with God as Spirits before we came here. She said that was something she had actually contemplated just a few days earlier when her daughter asked her where we came from. Joe asked where our church building was, so we hope that is indicative of an interest to attend church and try it our for himself/themselves.
We also had a second lesson with a woman named Lavina that we tracted into on our first day in this area. During our first meeting, she told us as we left: "I have never invited Mormons into my home before, but when I saw you, I felt the Spirit." The lesson this week was kind of interesting because she wanted it to be more "free-form." We were able to fit a few principles into our answers of her questions. Next time, we plan to use "How To Begin Teaching" more fully and especially explain that when she understands some basics of our faith the answers that she will receive will be more meaningful. She also agreed to attend church next week. I am anxious for that event because she already recognizes the Spirit and hopefully it will be in abundance at Church for her.
Yesterday, we were tracting in an area where a member lives and we decided that we would knock on their door as well. It was really cool, because we had had dinner with the family our first night in the area, but the dad and oldest son were on Safari in Africa (nbd...) so we did not get to meet them that evening. Last night we got to meet the entire family, and without us even suggesting it, the dad encouraged the family to make a goal for the month for doing missionary work. They decided that they are all going to give away a Book of Mormon by October 20th. They said that we could follow-up with them on that goal and we very much look forward to that!
I have continued my studies in Alma this week (Lari) and one of my favorite verses that I have read this week was in Alma chapter 34 verse 16. It explained that our faith has to be "unto repentance" in order to fully apply the Atonement. It is always such a thought-provoking idea to me that faith is a principle of action. But I know that it is. If we don't plant our seed of faith, there is no way that it will grow. Without the action of planting the seed, our faith is good for nothing. But I loved that earlier in the verse that if we do have this faith unto repentance, "mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety." I love that mercy can potentially override justice if we are actively repenting. And I love that we can be "encircled in the arms of safety." It is such a beautiful idea and picture to me. I imagine being encircled in the arms of the Savior who is our safety and foundation in the midst of the storms of life and as we improve ourselves.
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
PS--Many have asked for my new address. It is the following:
5010 84th St. SW #D21
Mukilteo, WA 98725
These are from our District Pday last Monday. We went to Mukilteo beach and played around and saw the lighthouse!
The District-- Back Row: Elder Wells, Elder Schiess,
Elder Beatty, Sister Smith, Sister Turley
Front Row: Elder Haupu, Sister Tuttle, Sister Lawson
Monday, September 9, 2013
WEM
Dear President Fam and Friends,
Our numbers got a little bit higher this week. I feel like the work will be of the "slow and steady" variety for the next few weeks to get the ball rolling in the area.
We did find one new investigator, Carla, on Tuesday of last week. We found her tracting and it was a very interesting experience for both Sister Smith and I. We were attempting to find a former investigator that was in our area book, but the address didn't seem to exist. So, we decided that we would find a street somewhat close and start tracting. We drove and parked, but for some reason, my feet (of their own accord) took us to the next street over. We started at the bottom of the hill and worked our way up. When we knocked on Carla's door, she invited us in to talk and answer questions while she folded her laundry. She asked us some amazing questions and invited us to come share more in about a week. She invited us to come to a sort of dinner group that she has with some other friends that she classified as "searching." :) She is Seventh Day Adventist (toughie since they believe that Saturday is the Sabbath) and she said that she is not looking to change her faith. But she just doesn't realize that she is. Carla told us that her congregation is sort of a "black sheep" congregation and they do not do all the things exactly like the traditions of the religion says, but they strive to live the higher law, the spirit rather than the letter. Carla also informed us that their congregation has realized that the Holy Ghost does not seem to be as present in their lives today as it did in the lives of the Apostles and their congregation was having a special prayer last Saturday evening to receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost. We tried to share that the Gift of the Holy Ghost is available through the restored priesthood authority (we briefly explained the priesthood), but we were not able to squeeze it in. We look forward to our next meeting with her. Afterwards, Sister Smith told me that as she was walking up the driveway to her home she had a thought that was almost like deja vu that she felt that she would be coming back to this house a lot. Maybe that is why we could not find the former investigator and why we walked back to that street unknowingly.
We are continuing to look for new ways to find. Unfortunately/fortunately, we have already visited all but four of our former investigators and nearly all of our potential investigators. We have been reduced to a couple hours of tracting everyday. I am fresh out of ideas, so if you think of anything, let me know.
This week in my study, I read Matthew chapter 4 (Lari). This chapter contains my absolute favorite verse in all of the scriptures. It is verse 20 and describes the Apostles reactions to the Savior's invitation to follow Him. It states, "And they straightway left their nets, and followed him." I have been trying really hard to do that. To leave everything and follow Him. Sometimes I find myself singing a song or wanting to quote a movie that is not part of the missionary approved library and have to remind myself that that is not appropriate. But most of the time, it is having to remind myself to leave my nets of doubt and lack of trust, or weak desire behind. I am trying hard and it is hard to leave all those things behind and solely follow the Savior. Hopefully in time I will be able to "straightway [leave my] nets, and [follow] Him."
Thanks for your prayers and support! Love you all!
Sister Turley
Our numbers got a little bit higher this week. I feel like the work will be of the "slow and steady" variety for the next few weeks to get the ball rolling in the area.
We did find one new investigator, Carla, on Tuesday of last week. We found her tracting and it was a very interesting experience for both Sister Smith and I. We were attempting to find a former investigator that was in our area book, but the address didn't seem to exist. So, we decided that we would find a street somewhat close and start tracting. We drove and parked, but for some reason, my feet (of their own accord) took us to the next street over. We started at the bottom of the hill and worked our way up. When we knocked on Carla's door, she invited us in to talk and answer questions while she folded her laundry. She asked us some amazing questions and invited us to come share more in about a week. She invited us to come to a sort of dinner group that she has with some other friends that she classified as "searching." :) She is Seventh Day Adventist (toughie since they believe that Saturday is the Sabbath) and she said that she is not looking to change her faith. But she just doesn't realize that she is. Carla told us that her congregation is sort of a "black sheep" congregation and they do not do all the things exactly like the traditions of the religion says, but they strive to live the higher law, the spirit rather than the letter. Carla also informed us that their congregation has realized that the Holy Ghost does not seem to be as present in their lives today as it did in the lives of the Apostles and their congregation was having a special prayer last Saturday evening to receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost. We tried to share that the Gift of the Holy Ghost is available through the restored priesthood authority (we briefly explained the priesthood), but we were not able to squeeze it in. We look forward to our next meeting with her. Afterwards, Sister Smith told me that as she was walking up the driveway to her home she had a thought that was almost like deja vu that she felt that she would be coming back to this house a lot. Maybe that is why we could not find the former investigator and why we walked back to that street unknowingly.
We are continuing to look for new ways to find. Unfortunately/fortunately, we have already visited all but four of our former investigators and nearly all of our potential investigators. We have been reduced to a couple hours of tracting everyday. I am fresh out of ideas, so if you think of anything, let me know.
This week in my study, I read Matthew chapter 4 (Lari). This chapter contains my absolute favorite verse in all of the scriptures. It is verse 20 and describes the Apostles reactions to the Savior's invitation to follow Him. It states, "And they straightway left their nets, and followed him." I have been trying really hard to do that. To leave everything and follow Him. Sometimes I find myself singing a song or wanting to quote a movie that is not part of the missionary approved library and have to remind myself that that is not appropriate. But most of the time, it is having to remind myself to leave my nets of doubt and lack of trust, or weak desire behind. I am trying hard and it is hard to leave all those things behind and solely follow the Savior. Hopefully in time I will be able to "straightway [leave my] nets, and [follow] Him."
Thanks for your prayers and support! Love you all!
Sister Turley
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
S. Turley--WEM 9/3/13
Dear Family and Friends,
It has been a crazy week! It has definitely come with unique challenges and blessings. I got transferred to the Harbour Pointe Ward. My area covers parts of Mukilteo, Edmonds and Lynnwood (you will have to look it up on the map). So, now I am almost as far south as you can go in the mission. The good news is that we are only about 15 minutes away from the mission office! My new companion is Sister Smith from Odgen, Utah. We are basically starting from scratch here in the Harbour Pointe ward. The bishop expressed that there has not been a baptism in the ward for about two years and that they have had a rough go of it with Elders being sick or being dumb. So we have our work cut out for us. We are going to have to do a lot of work to find investigators because there are none. We have had the opportunity to meet with a few members of the Ward Council and are trying to get in with more. I am so grateful, because already, some of the ward leaders have given us referrals! We are also splitting our ward with a set of Elders, which is really nice because then we can get into more doors and be working with ward members in every situation. The Elders are Elder Wells and Elder Schiess. Elder Schiess was Elder Bloomfield's trainer, so that is kinda cool. Both of the Elders are really hard workers and very motivated, so I am thankful. The Assistants told me at transfers that they were sending, quote, "fireball" missionaries to the area to get the work going and to help the members to trust the missionaries again. So, I guess that makes me feel good about myself, too :)
Because the mission opened 11 new areas (one of which is mine...) there are not enough apartments for the missionaries. So, Sister Smith and I are sleeping on mats on the floor of the apartment of the other Sisters in our District. There is only one bedroom and the mats barely fit between the two beds. And we are living out of our suitcases because there is no closet space, so that is a joy. But at least we have somewhere to sleep and we are not camping out at the mission home (the housing missionaries halfway joked about us having to do that...). We hope to be able to move into another apartment sometime around the fifteenth. It will be nice to actually feel settled and able to concentrate fully on the work.
I have learned so much in my personal study this week! I have continued in Alma and also started reading the New Testament. I have been meaning to read it for a long time and when President Bonham mentioned it at New Missionary Training, I decided that it was time to just do it. One thing that I loved in Alma chapter 23 was that it talked about lasting conversion. Verse 6 states that the lasting conversion came on the part of the missionaries because the preached "according to the spirit of revelation and prophecy" and the part of "God working miracles in them." I love that the two go hand in hand. We have to do our part and the Lord will do His part. But I got to thinking about how I can receive those gifts of the Spirit, revelation and prophecy, and I turned to Doctrine and Covenants 46. In that chapter, I gathered that the following are some of the most important things that we must do to receive those gifts of the Spirit: love the Lord, keep the commandments, ask for those gifts, seek (or study out) those gifts, give thanks and (verse 33) "practise virtue and holiness before me continually." So, those are on my "To Do" list this week (and forever, in reality...), so that we find and teach those who will be truly converted.
Love you all!
Sister Turley
It has been a crazy week! It has definitely come with unique challenges and blessings. I got transferred to the Harbour Pointe Ward. My area covers parts of Mukilteo, Edmonds and Lynnwood (you will have to look it up on the map). So, now I am almost as far south as you can go in the mission. The good news is that we are only about 15 minutes away from the mission office! My new companion is Sister Smith from Odgen, Utah. We are basically starting from scratch here in the Harbour Pointe ward. The bishop expressed that there has not been a baptism in the ward for about two years and that they have had a rough go of it with Elders being sick or being dumb. So we have our work cut out for us. We are going to have to do a lot of work to find investigators because there are none. We have had the opportunity to meet with a few members of the Ward Council and are trying to get in with more. I am so grateful, because already, some of the ward leaders have given us referrals! We are also splitting our ward with a set of Elders, which is really nice because then we can get into more doors and be working with ward members in every situation. The Elders are Elder Wells and Elder Schiess. Elder Schiess was Elder Bloomfield's trainer, so that is kinda cool. Both of the Elders are really hard workers and very motivated, so I am thankful. The Assistants told me at transfers that they were sending, quote, "fireball" missionaries to the area to get the work going and to help the members to trust the missionaries again. So, I guess that makes me feel good about myself, too :)
Because the mission opened 11 new areas (one of which is mine...) there are not enough apartments for the missionaries. So, Sister Smith and I are sleeping on mats on the floor of the apartment of the other Sisters in our District. There is only one bedroom and the mats barely fit between the two beds. And we are living out of our suitcases because there is no closet space, so that is a joy. But at least we have somewhere to sleep and we are not camping out at the mission home (the housing missionaries halfway joked about us having to do that...). We hope to be able to move into another apartment sometime around the fifteenth. It will be nice to actually feel settled and able to concentrate fully on the work.
I have learned so much in my personal study this week! I have continued in Alma and also started reading the New Testament. I have been meaning to read it for a long time and when President Bonham mentioned it at New Missionary Training, I decided that it was time to just do it. One thing that I loved in Alma chapter 23 was that it talked about lasting conversion. Verse 6 states that the lasting conversion came on the part of the missionaries because the preached "according to the spirit of revelation and prophecy" and the part of "God working miracles in them." I love that the two go hand in hand. We have to do our part and the Lord will do His part. But I got to thinking about how I can receive those gifts of the Spirit, revelation and prophecy, and I turned to Doctrine and Covenants 46. In that chapter, I gathered that the following are some of the most important things that we must do to receive those gifts of the Spirit: love the Lord, keep the commandments, ask for those gifts, seek (or study out) those gifts, give thanks and (verse 33) "practise virtue and holiness before me continually." So, those are on my "To Do" list this week (and forever, in reality...), so that we find and teach those who will be truly converted.
Love you all!
Sister Turley
Monday, August 26, 2013
WEM--I'm a Grandma!
Dear Fam and Friends,
I can't believe that it is already transfers time! And the subject heading needs some explaining...So in the WEM, there is an interesting legacy of establishing a pedigree and using related terms. For instance, your trainer is your parent, your trainer's trainer is your grandparent, etc. So, Sister Cromar is mom, Sister Hepworth is my grandma, and Sister Slade is my daughter. And, guess what?! I am going to have a grand-daughter. On Thursday evening, we had leadership calls and both Sister Slade and I have been called to train new missionaries. So, I guess that means Sister Slade will also have a sister, haha. I am a lot more at ease this go round, and I am thankful that I finally finished the 12-week training this transfer, so I am now fully trained! And I literally just found that I am being transferred. Scary!
We had a wonderful baptism on Saturday for Darlene. Thirty-seven people showed up to support her in her decision to join the Church. I can't even put it in words, but it was such a beautiful experience! The Spirit was present 100% of the meeting. There were some wonderful testimonies borne and Darlene is forgiven of all her past transgressions! I loved seeing Everet baptizing his wife. It is all coming full circle. We taught Everet as he returned to Church, and then taught and saw Darlene baptized. What a blessing that is for their family to be able to strengthen their family and relationship in the Gospel and founded on the Savior, Jesus Christ. She was ecstatic all Saturday and Sunday. I love to see the Spirit influencing the lives of the people we teach as they learn and accept it!
We had another wonderful lesson with Brandon (12 y.o.) and he even came to church yesterday! Unfortunately, his mom says that he cannot be baptized until he is sixteen. I think we will continue to do as much as we can to continue to prepare him for baptism and keep him coming to church. Hopefully as we pray and fast for him and his mother we can see a miracle. He is incredibly mature for his age and so receptive of the Gospel.
You know what, we might baptize a Wican. Tiffany made it to Darlene's baptism on Saturday and says that she is now considering baptism for herself. She is incredibly open-minded and is keeping all commitments, we just nee to help her strengthen her testimony of the Savior. It is pretty incredible how far she has come in the Gospel--from praying to multiple gods/spirits, to begin accepting that there is one Father who loves us and sent His Son to Atone for us and show us His love.
I have learned a lot about missionary work as I have read in Alma the last few weeks (Lari). He is such a great missionary and I really identify with him and his experiences. I also had the opportunity to begin the account of Ammon and his brethren this morning in my study in Alma seventeen. One of the things that I loved in my reading this last week was Alma 16: 14, which reads, "And as many as would hear their words, unto them they did impart the word of God, without any respect of persons, continually." It like the advice given in Preach My Gospel about talking to everyone. That was a great example to me because Alma and Amulek were not without persecution in their proselyting efforts. But it is so important that they talked to everyone that would listen. I also think it is significant that they preached to those who would "hear their words," and that they did not waste their time with investigators that were not keeping commitments, or those who just wanted to pick a fight. Both are important. We have to talk to everyone to discover who is willing to hearken to our message. Those who will first hear and then from that point to act on it. In addition to my study in Alma, I also read the section in the White Handbook on Missionary Leadership as assigned in preparation for Trainers' Training. In one of the first paragraphs in that section on page 55, it says, "Your mission president assigns missionary leaders to help him direct the work and help you fulfill your purpose." I reflected on that idea and tried to understand how my calling as a missionary leader in the position of a trainer can help me fulfill my purpose. And I came to the following conclusion: Our purpose as missionaries is to invite and help other come unto Christ, and as I serve in this capacity as Jesus Christ did, more individuals will be able and desire to come unto Christ. Christ was a meek and humble servant, but also a leader. He was the perfect example of inviting others to live the Gospel and serving others. As I learn to do what Christ did--invite, and also serve through being a leader--I will be significantly more successful in fulfilling my purpose. As I become more like Christ, others will come to Christ.
I love you all and thanks for the emails!
Sister Turley
PS--Here are some pictures with Darlene and Everet! Love them.
I can't believe that it is already transfers time! And the subject heading needs some explaining...So in the WEM, there is an interesting legacy of establishing a pedigree and using related terms. For instance, your trainer is your parent, your trainer's trainer is your grandparent, etc. So, Sister Cromar is mom, Sister Hepworth is my grandma, and Sister Slade is my daughter. And, guess what?! I am going to have a grand-daughter. On Thursday evening, we had leadership calls and both Sister Slade and I have been called to train new missionaries. So, I guess that means Sister Slade will also have a sister, haha. I am a lot more at ease this go round, and I am thankful that I finally finished the 12-week training this transfer, so I am now fully trained! And I literally just found that I am being transferred. Scary!
We had a wonderful baptism on Saturday for Darlene. Thirty-seven people showed up to support her in her decision to join the Church. I can't even put it in words, but it was such a beautiful experience! The Spirit was present 100% of the meeting. There were some wonderful testimonies borne and Darlene is forgiven of all her past transgressions! I loved seeing Everet baptizing his wife. It is all coming full circle. We taught Everet as he returned to Church, and then taught and saw Darlene baptized. What a blessing that is for their family to be able to strengthen their family and relationship in the Gospel and founded on the Savior, Jesus Christ. She was ecstatic all Saturday and Sunday. I love to see the Spirit influencing the lives of the people we teach as they learn and accept it!
We had another wonderful lesson with Brandon (12 y.o.) and he even came to church yesterday! Unfortunately, his mom says that he cannot be baptized until he is sixteen. I think we will continue to do as much as we can to continue to prepare him for baptism and keep him coming to church. Hopefully as we pray and fast for him and his mother we can see a miracle. He is incredibly mature for his age and so receptive of the Gospel.
You know what, we might baptize a Wican. Tiffany made it to Darlene's baptism on Saturday and says that she is now considering baptism for herself. She is incredibly open-minded and is keeping all commitments, we just nee to help her strengthen her testimony of the Savior. It is pretty incredible how far she has come in the Gospel--from praying to multiple gods/spirits, to begin accepting that there is one Father who loves us and sent His Son to Atone for us and show us His love.
I have learned a lot about missionary work as I have read in Alma the last few weeks (Lari). He is such a great missionary and I really identify with him and his experiences. I also had the opportunity to begin the account of Ammon and his brethren this morning in my study in Alma seventeen. One of the things that I loved in my reading this last week was Alma 16: 14, which reads, "And as many as would hear their words, unto them they did impart the word of God, without any respect of persons, continually." It like the advice given in Preach My Gospel about talking to everyone. That was a great example to me because Alma and Amulek were not without persecution in their proselyting efforts. But it is so important that they talked to everyone that would listen. I also think it is significant that they preached to those who would "hear their words," and that they did not waste their time with investigators that were not keeping commitments, or those who just wanted to pick a fight. Both are important. We have to talk to everyone to discover who is willing to hearken to our message. Those who will first hear and then from that point to act on it. In addition to my study in Alma, I also read the section in the White Handbook on Missionary Leadership as assigned in preparation for Trainers' Training. In one of the first paragraphs in that section on page 55, it says, "Your mission president assigns missionary leaders to help him direct the work and help you fulfill your purpose." I reflected on that idea and tried to understand how my calling as a missionary leader in the position of a trainer can help me fulfill my purpose. And I came to the following conclusion: Our purpose as missionaries is to invite and help other come unto Christ, and as I serve in this capacity as Jesus Christ did, more individuals will be able and desire to come unto Christ. Christ was a meek and humble servant, but also a leader. He was the perfect example of inviting others to live the Gospel and serving others. As I learn to do what Christ did--invite, and also serve through being a leader--I will be significantly more successful in fulfilling my purpose. As I become more like Christ, others will come to Christ.
I love you all and thanks for the emails!
Sister Turley
PS--Here are some pictures with Darlene and Everet! Love them.
Monday, August 19, 2013
WEM Again
Dear Family and Friends,
Some of our numbers waned a bit this week, regardless of our efforts to keep them up. I guess it was just one of those weeks.
The good news is, we have a baptism planned for this weekend! Darlene is still excited for her baptism on Saturday and confirmation on Sunday. Her husband, Everet is going to perform the baptism and their fellowshipper, Brother Glade will perform the confirmation. I am amazed at the dedication to the Gospel that Darlene has shown. Without even needing an invitation, she and her husband have started a Gospel study together every night for an hour. She is truly putting forth the effort to prepare and develop a lasting relationship with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. She even bought a temple dress already :)
We had another great lesson with Bennett and Verna Harris this week and taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ and re-invited them to be baptized. They both answered with "most likely, yes." But not a definite answer. They both expressed that they would like to learn more of what is required of them before they make an firm decision. Unfortunately, they did not show up at church yesterday. In our ward council meeting, everyone that had met Bennet last week kept saying how excited they were about the prospect of him joining the ward. They loved him! Now we just need to figure out how the ward can let him know better that they think the world of him.
I think we will probably have to drop Tiffany. It is sad because she is one of only a few investigators keeping all her commitments, but we feel that she may just like the company and wants to please us so we will keep coming. And possibly, that she is meeting with us to get attention from her family that she is doing something out of the ordinary or shocking. She also expressed that she has no desire to get baptized but she wants to just learn. So, I guess we will give it one or two more tries and then make a decision from there.
We have one new investigator that has shown some great promise. His name is Brandon Roy and he is 12. He has been participating in our ward's Scout troop for the last year. He attended the Aaronic Priesthood Encampment at Fire Mountain a few weeks ago (it was an eight stake event with over 1100 Scouts there!), and he was the first member of our ward's troop to get the Ammon Award. It was a special award that required learning about the Book of Mormon, attending Priesthood workshops, etc. He also got his hair cut by Elder Christensen of the Seventy. While he was there, he asked our Zone Leaders (Elders Rencher and Moncur) if they could come teach him more about the Book of Mormon. They referred us to him and we had our first lesson on Thursday afternoon. We taught the Restoration and he said that he has had feelings of confusion about religion similar to Joseph Smith and we invited him to continue to read and pray about the Book of Mormon and promised him that God would reveal the truthfulness of the Gospel to him. We also extended a soft invitation of baptism to him and he said, "yes." We still need to talk with his mom some more before we set a date. She is not interested (she is Wican, too...) but she is supportive. I absolutely LOVE teaching kids between 11-15ish. They are just starting to become more aware and searching for truth. And for the most part they will listen to you openly. And because of those qualities, it is so much easier for those kids to feel the Spirit and gain a knowledge of the truth. In fact, we were doing some contacting down and the beach near our apartment and everyone that accepted the invitation to read the Book of Mormon and meet again with us was under the age of 20.
In my study this week I read Alma twelve (Lari) and I really appreciated the end of verse fifteen. It says, speaking our Savior, "he hath power to save every man that believeth on his name and bringeth forth fruit meet for repentance." This is a true principle. The Atonement makes it possible to be saved, but it does not take away our personal responsibility. Action is required to be able to use the Atonement to it's fullest capacity. There is not just an easy out to be redeemed of our sins. We have to really want it, even to the giving up of our favorite or most convenient sins. We have to want redemption more.
Well, the transfer is drawing to a close and there are between 19-21 new sisters coming in to the mission. So, more than likely my time in Oak Harbor is also drawing to a close. But we will see, the Lord moves in mysterious ways...
Hope you are all doing well! Love ya!
Sister Turley
PS--I got pics with Elder Bloomfield at Zone Conference! My favorite is the picture with the thumbs up. We have both started doing that a lot since being on a mission (couldn't tell ya why). We must be cousins.
Monday, August 12, 2013
S. Turley--WEM this week (with pictures)
Dear Fam and Friends,
This week was another great week. It was also a hard week for finding. But, we added one more to our number of investigators at church this week and had four investigators there! Sandra, Bennett, Tiffany and Darlene (our investigator on date) all attended.
We will start with the hard. We had zero lessons planned on Thursday, so it was tracting day! And goodness, we had a tough. crowd. We sure got chewed up and spit out by the people in the area we were working in. I was pretty grouchy after that and Sister Slade was crying. But it made me feel better when I was reading in Alma chapter 7 this morning and Alma talks about his experience with his initial rejection by the people of Ammonihah. He says in verse 14, that he was weighed down with sorrow because of the people and that is how I tend to get. But then, an angel appeared to him and told him where he needed to go and he found a great mission companion named Amulek and they brought a good number to the knowledge of God. Here's to having some angels tell us where to go soon!
We had two more wonderful lessons with the Darlene and Everet last week. The first was at a members home and we taught about the Plan of Salvation. She had some great questions about her family that had passed on and whether or not they would have the opportunity to accept the Gospel and be baptized just as she is preparing to do! We explained that God has provided a way for all of his children to receive and accept the Gospel and that she would have the opportunity to the work for her departed family members in the future. In our second lesson, we talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Word of Wisdom. When we talked about baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost, she burst out saying, "I am ten times more excited than anyone else was when they got baptized!" And when we discussed the Word of Wisdom, she said, "I am even going to throw away my last case of caffeinated soda!" She is just so excited and more than that, WILLING to do all and more than our Heavenly Father has asked of us.
We had a break-through lesson with Sandra this week and she is in full swing to start coming back to church and prepare to be baptized. We suggested the date of September 28th to be baptized and she said that she would pray about it this week. At church yesterday, she asked me again is the 28th of September still worked, and I replied yes, of course and she said she would have an answer for us this week. My suspicion is that she will say yes. She mentioned that she has been talking to her brother in Salt Lake and he is the one who had planned to baptize her previously, so I think that she will say yes. However I am a little afraid to count my chickens before they hatch, not going to lie...But she is getting involved in the ward which is great. She is planning to come to our ward service project on Saturday and a member of our ward invited us to have our lesson this week at her house as soon as she heard us confirming our plans with Sandra for the week. Yay for members that step up to the call of being everyday missionaries!!
We were excited to have Bennett show up at church finally. We spoke in Sacrament meeting and is was kind of fun to be sitting on the stand and she him mosey in with a big grin on his face as the meeting started. We didn't get to talk to him after Priesthood Meeting, but he mentioned to some of his friends in his ward that he enjoyed himself and was learning a lot and looked forward to coming back. We hope to follow up with him in the next few days. Hopefully his wife will decide to come next week as well.
The first counselor in our bishopric asked us to speak on Tuesday night, but didn't give us a topic to speak on, so I chose to speak on the Book of Mormon. It was a great opportunity for me to reflect on why the Book of Mormon is so important and my own testimony. As I prepared, I asked God for another witness that the Book of Mormon is true and received the quiet assurance that my testimony is correct. I realized that I have never had a big experience with the Book of Mormon and that I likely will not, but small, almost unrecognizable answer that I received was enough. The Lord told me as I prayed, "You know, Cherise. You know." I am thankful for that knowledge.
My favorite passage that I read during my personal study this week was in Alma chapter 5, verse 33. The first thirty verses or so of the chapter really called me to repentance and I had some fear struck into my heart. But verse 33 abated all those fears and spoke beautiful peace to my soul. I could almost hear the Savior pleading and letting me know that there was way prepared for all of us imperfect people. It reads, "Behold, he sendeth this invitation unto men, for the arms of mercy are extended towards them, and he saith: Repent, and I will receive you." What a beautiful admonition and promise from our Savior: Repent, and I will receive you.
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
PS--A lot of times I will get on lds.org when I am writing these letters and listen to music and today there was a link to an article about the Preston England Pageant and a place to listen to the music from it. So, I have been enjoying the music from that this morning and I think I have another bucket list item. Someday, I will be in the British Pageant. I am truly grateful for the opportunity I had to be in the Nauvoo Pageant. It did a lot for my testimony of the Restoration of the Gospel and Joseph Smith. I hope I can squeeze that into my plans somewhere in the future and have a similar experience. And hopefully do some family history research while I am there and pick up where some of the lines leave off.
Here is a picture of my district from last transfer at Deception Pass. Unfortunately I have failed with taking pictures recently, but hopefully I will be able to get a good one with Elder Bloomfield this week at Zone Conference in Bellingham...
This week was another great week. It was also a hard week for finding. But, we added one more to our number of investigators at church this week and had four investigators there! Sandra, Bennett, Tiffany and Darlene (our investigator on date) all attended.
We will start with the hard. We had zero lessons planned on Thursday, so it was tracting day! And goodness, we had a tough. crowd. We sure got chewed up and spit out by the people in the area we were working in. I was pretty grouchy after that and Sister Slade was crying. But it made me feel better when I was reading in Alma chapter 7 this morning and Alma talks about his experience with his initial rejection by the people of Ammonihah. He says in verse 14, that he was weighed down with sorrow because of the people and that is how I tend to get. But then, an angel appeared to him and told him where he needed to go and he found a great mission companion named Amulek and they brought a good number to the knowledge of God. Here's to having some angels tell us where to go soon!
We had two more wonderful lessons with the Darlene and Everet last week. The first was at a members home and we taught about the Plan of Salvation. She had some great questions about her family that had passed on and whether or not they would have the opportunity to accept the Gospel and be baptized just as she is preparing to do! We explained that God has provided a way for all of his children to receive and accept the Gospel and that she would have the opportunity to the work for her departed family members in the future. In our second lesson, we talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Word of Wisdom. When we talked about baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost, she burst out saying, "I am ten times more excited than anyone else was when they got baptized!" And when we discussed the Word of Wisdom, she said, "I am even going to throw away my last case of caffeinated soda!" She is just so excited and more than that, WILLING to do all and more than our Heavenly Father has asked of us.
We had a break-through lesson with Sandra this week and she is in full swing to start coming back to church and prepare to be baptized. We suggested the date of September 28th to be baptized and she said that she would pray about it this week. At church yesterday, she asked me again is the 28th of September still worked, and I replied yes, of course and she said she would have an answer for us this week. My suspicion is that she will say yes. She mentioned that she has been talking to her brother in Salt Lake and he is the one who had planned to baptize her previously, so I think that she will say yes. However I am a little afraid to count my chickens before they hatch, not going to lie...But she is getting involved in the ward which is great. She is planning to come to our ward service project on Saturday and a member of our ward invited us to have our lesson this week at her house as soon as she heard us confirming our plans with Sandra for the week. Yay for members that step up to the call of being everyday missionaries!!
We were excited to have Bennett show up at church finally. We spoke in Sacrament meeting and is was kind of fun to be sitting on the stand and she him mosey in with a big grin on his face as the meeting started. We didn't get to talk to him after Priesthood Meeting, but he mentioned to some of his friends in his ward that he enjoyed himself and was learning a lot and looked forward to coming back. We hope to follow up with him in the next few days. Hopefully his wife will decide to come next week as well.
The first counselor in our bishopric asked us to speak on Tuesday night, but didn't give us a topic to speak on, so I chose to speak on the Book of Mormon. It was a great opportunity for me to reflect on why the Book of Mormon is so important and my own testimony. As I prepared, I asked God for another witness that the Book of Mormon is true and received the quiet assurance that my testimony is correct. I realized that I have never had a big experience with the Book of Mormon and that I likely will not, but small, almost unrecognizable answer that I received was enough. The Lord told me as I prayed, "You know, Cherise. You know." I am thankful for that knowledge.
My favorite passage that I read during my personal study this week was in Alma chapter 5, verse 33. The first thirty verses or so of the chapter really called me to repentance and I had some fear struck into my heart. But verse 33 abated all those fears and spoke beautiful peace to my soul. I could almost hear the Savior pleading and letting me know that there was way prepared for all of us imperfect people. It reads, "Behold, he sendeth this invitation unto men, for the arms of mercy are extended towards them, and he saith: Repent, and I will receive you." What a beautiful admonition and promise from our Savior: Repent, and I will receive you.
Love ya lots!
Sister Turley
PS--A lot of times I will get on lds.org when I am writing these letters and listen to music and today there was a link to an article about the Preston England Pageant and a place to listen to the music from it. So, I have been enjoying the music from that this morning and I think I have another bucket list item. Someday, I will be in the British Pageant. I am truly grateful for the opportunity I had to be in the Nauvoo Pageant. It did a lot for my testimony of the Restoration of the Gospel and Joseph Smith. I hope I can squeeze that into my plans somewhere in the future and have a similar experience. And hopefully do some family history research while I am there and pick up where some of the lines leave off.
From left to right: Sister Slade, Sister Turley, Elder Woods, Elder DeVictoria, Elder Lorenzen (from Mesa), Elder O'Barr (from Gilbert)
Monday, August 5, 2013
WEM--Sister Turley (said in a British accent...for some reason, that is the cool thing to do when people read my name tag?)
Dear Family and Friends,
This week was a week of miracles. We met or exceeded almost all of our goals, for the first time in my mission. We taught 17 lessons and had three investigators at church. Hooray for Toad!
One of the highlights of our week was a lesson with a woman named Darlene. We just finished teaching her recently reactivated husband, Everet, a few weeks ago. We had dinner with them before the lesson and Sister Slade asked them what was left on their "bucket lists." Everet responded by saying, "Go to the temple!" and Darlene responded with, "be baptized!" We let her know that we could help her with that :). After dinner, we taught the Restoration and the Spirit was tangible during the entire lesson. It was awesome! She shared with us her tender testimony that Joseph Smith is a true prophet and that she knows that the Church is true. We invited her to be baptized and she said, "Absolutely yes! I would love to!" And when we suggested the date August 24th, she was so excited. "I can be baptized that soon!? I would love to!" It was just such a tender moment with the Spirit. We were all crying tears of joy. I am so excited for Darlene and Everet! She was one of our investigators at church yesterday (for the third time).
We also invited Chuck to baptized. He didn't respond to the invitation yes or no. When he is not sure about something, he just doesn't respond. But we heard from his wife, Sam, yesterday at Church that he told her following the lesson he almost said yes. I am grateful that he is contemplating participating in that sacred ordinance. He is making such strides. He still has a lot to learn and develop faith in, but he is progressing. He was also one of three at church yesterday.
Our last investigator at church yesterday was Tiffany. She had said that she would be at church during both of the lessons that we had with her this week, but she asked us to call her on Sunday to remind her and coordinate where to meet her before the meetings began. We called twice and had no answer and I don't think her voicemail has been changed from the last individual that had that number, so we weren't sure if we had gotten her or not--it was a man's voice. So, we decided to drive out to her house and knock on her door to invite her to join us. She was still in her nightgown, but she accepted and met us at the church about a half hour later. She really enjoyed it! And she wasn't afraid to ask questions during our Gospel Principles lesson and the members of the class all offered answers by the Spirit that she really identified with. Such a miracle! And the lesson in Relief Society was on Personal Revelation, which she had asked us about in our lesson with her on Friday. It was so perfectly catered to her. Afterwards, she said that she was even going to try to bring her husband next week. What just took the cake was that her husband's son attended church with the Zone Leaders again in the YSA ward.
Sandra told us this week that she is ready to try again. She admitted to us that she knew that Satan was working really hard on her and she didn't want to allow him to run her life. When we were talking, she said "when I get baptized..." not "if I get baptized." I know that the Lord will help her in this decision, but we will definitely have to make sure she realizes it.
I finally got to the book of Alma in my personal study this week. I was reading in chapter four this morning, and had a rather profound experience with verse 19 (Lari). At this time, Alma has just given up the judgment seat and is concentrating his efforts more fully on establishing and strengthening the Church. In verse 19, he explains that he saw "no way that he might reclaim them save it were in bearing down in pure testimony against them." My thought upon reading that was literally, "whoa." I know that it is true though. I know that the true teacher is the Spirit and the best way to invite and feel the Spirit is to testify of truth. I know that when I share my personal testimony and experiences, the Spirit is present much more powerfully than any other time. If you want to share the Gospel, share your testimony. Just before President Wilson went home, he added another book to our approved mission library. It is entitled, The Power of Everyday Missionaries and it was written by Clay Christensen with input from friends and members. It is a book for members on how to do missionary work. I am not very far into it, but you should all read it. It tells us HOW to do missionary work. We all want to but this book tells us how to do it in easy, nonthreatening ways and it is awesome.
Ok, quick funny story from Relief Society. We were talking about Revelation and one woman shared that the Spirit will always lead us down the path we need to go. She was explaining that in her life, the Lord had never allowed her to go too far on an incorrect path without stopping her and directing her otherwise. Then this funny old lady that cracks me up, piped up and said, "It like a GPS! (electronic voice) 'Recalculating.' Loved it.
Well, I love you all and hope it is another great week!
Sister Turley
This week was a week of miracles. We met or exceeded almost all of our goals, for the first time in my mission. We taught 17 lessons and had three investigators at church. Hooray for Toad!
One of the highlights of our week was a lesson with a woman named Darlene. We just finished teaching her recently reactivated husband, Everet, a few weeks ago. We had dinner with them before the lesson and Sister Slade asked them what was left on their "bucket lists." Everet responded by saying, "Go to the temple!" and Darlene responded with, "be baptized!" We let her know that we could help her with that :). After dinner, we taught the Restoration and the Spirit was tangible during the entire lesson. It was awesome! She shared with us her tender testimony that Joseph Smith is a true prophet and that she knows that the Church is true. We invited her to be baptized and she said, "Absolutely yes! I would love to!" And when we suggested the date August 24th, she was so excited. "I can be baptized that soon!? I would love to!" It was just such a tender moment with the Spirit. We were all crying tears of joy. I am so excited for Darlene and Everet! She was one of our investigators at church yesterday (for the third time).
We also invited Chuck to baptized. He didn't respond to the invitation yes or no. When he is not sure about something, he just doesn't respond. But we heard from his wife, Sam, yesterday at Church that he told her following the lesson he almost said yes. I am grateful that he is contemplating participating in that sacred ordinance. He is making such strides. He still has a lot to learn and develop faith in, but he is progressing. He was also one of three at church yesterday.
Our last investigator at church yesterday was Tiffany. She had said that she would be at church during both of the lessons that we had with her this week, but she asked us to call her on Sunday to remind her and coordinate where to meet her before the meetings began. We called twice and had no answer and I don't think her voicemail has been changed from the last individual that had that number, so we weren't sure if we had gotten her or not--it was a man's voice. So, we decided to drive out to her house and knock on her door to invite her to join us. She was still in her nightgown, but she accepted and met us at the church about a half hour later. She really enjoyed it! And she wasn't afraid to ask questions during our Gospel Principles lesson and the members of the class all offered answers by the Spirit that she really identified with. Such a miracle! And the lesson in Relief Society was on Personal Revelation, which she had asked us about in our lesson with her on Friday. It was so perfectly catered to her. Afterwards, she said that she was even going to try to bring her husband next week. What just took the cake was that her husband's son attended church with the Zone Leaders again in the YSA ward.
Sandra told us this week that she is ready to try again. She admitted to us that she knew that Satan was working really hard on her and she didn't want to allow him to run her life. When we were talking, she said "when I get baptized..." not "if I get baptized." I know that the Lord will help her in this decision, but we will definitely have to make sure she realizes it.
I finally got to the book of Alma in my personal study this week. I was reading in chapter four this morning, and had a rather profound experience with verse 19 (Lari). At this time, Alma has just given up the judgment seat and is concentrating his efforts more fully on establishing and strengthening the Church. In verse 19, he explains that he saw "no way that he might reclaim them save it were in bearing down in pure testimony against them." My thought upon reading that was literally, "whoa." I know that it is true though. I know that the true teacher is the Spirit and the best way to invite and feel the Spirit is to testify of truth. I know that when I share my personal testimony and experiences, the Spirit is present much more powerfully than any other time. If you want to share the Gospel, share your testimony. Just before President Wilson went home, he added another book to our approved mission library. It is entitled, The Power of Everyday Missionaries and it was written by Clay Christensen with input from friends and members. It is a book for members on how to do missionary work. I am not very far into it, but you should all read it. It tells us HOW to do missionary work. We all want to but this book tells us how to do it in easy, nonthreatening ways and it is awesome.
Ok, quick funny story from Relief Society. We were talking about Revelation and one woman shared that the Spirit will always lead us down the path we need to go. She was explaining that in her life, the Lord had never allowed her to go too far on an incorrect path without stopping her and directing her otherwise. Then this funny old lady that cracks me up, piped up and said, "It like a GPS! (electronic voice) 'Recalculating.' Loved it.
Well, I love you all and hope it is another great week!
Sister Turley
PS--Recently the Church changed the policies on missionaries emailing people outside of our families. We got the go-ahead to email everyone! So, feel free to shoot me an email when you get the chance. My address is cherise.turley(at)myldsmail.net. However, our computer time is limited, so please send me a return address so I can get back to you via snail mail.
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