Monday, April 28, 2014

So Excited to Tell Ya!

Most EPIC week Ever! 

I keep saying this and then I get another Epic week! Heavenly Father has truly blessed me!

 Sister Walker and I have been truly led by the spirit. I have made a goal to "open my mouth" and talk to everyone, no matter if they are a YSA or not. But Heavenly Father has placed so many YSA's in our path as a result. 

The Buddhist Prays

We read with Cody and asked him to pray. Cody does not pray. And so when we asked, "Would you pray for us?" And he said, "Yes." we were shocked. Cody is about to pray and this lady comes from across the park screaming her dogs name! And Cody gets distracted!

 I think its so interesting because this has happened multiple times on my mission, when something is going great, Satan tries to distract and take the spirit away from the moment. But don't worry... after the lady left he prayed. We testified on the power of prayer and how it would strengthen his relationship with God. It is the only way to. We need to communicate with him. 

Prepared and Waiting...

We had an appointment with a referral from the Assistants, named Danielle and we were really excited. Keep in mind that this is our first time meeting her. We were chatting with her and getting to know her and then she pulls out a Book of Mormon and the conversation continues as:

Danielle: "I've been reading the Book of Mormon."
Us: "That's awesome! Where are you at?"
Danielle: "I just finished First Nephi. I've also watched the.... "
Us: "Restoration?"
Danielle: "Ya. The one about Joseph Smith. I watched the one that is like an hour and half?"
Us: *Jaws Drop* WOW! "That's so great! Have you prayed about the Book of Mormon?"
Danielle: "Yes I have."
Us: "And how did you feel? What did Heavenly Father..."
Danielle: "I felt really good. I know it's true."

She was sooo prepared! She is dating a member who just entered the MTC about 5 weeks ago and she had been to Institute! So we extended a baptismal invitation and she will be getting baptized on July 14th! We are so excited for her.

Before we left we asked if she had any questions and she said, "well I work on Sundays doing daycare at another church... I mean I can try to get work off on Sundays, but I just love those kids." We didn't really understand what she was trying to say. And then she said, "is that ok?" And then we understood, she wanted to know if it was ok for her to work at another church! "Of Course!" we responded. It was so cute of her to ask.

Dog Park Finding

My first day on Bike on exchanges with Sister Nuttall in the Wheatstone ward. It was 90 degrees and humid! It was a lot of fun though! I felt like I lost 10 pounds just in one day. :)

Well the night before I was talking to Sister Nuttall about reaching our mission standard of inviting 25 people a day to learn and how we could do that. I asked her if they had any parks in her area to do some contacting and she said "Yes we do and a dog park." Then the idea hit me... "Do you have any members who would let us borrow their dogs?"... and they did!

So we took Crush and Pico to the dog park... It was sooo successful! We talked to so many people about the gospel and we didn't even have to initiate the conversations sometimes because their dogs would come up to Crush to play & then we would talk to them. I think we hit the jack pot in Wheatstone ward. Crush is the key! So many people thought he was so cute and would just come up to pet him and then we would get to talking about the gospel! So great!

Power of Prayer!

Sister Nuttall and I were walking back from the dog park and decided to go a different route home. As we were going through this neighborhood Sister Nuttall looked at the street and remembered that a YSA Sister Walker and I have been trying to meet, Ben, lived on this particular street. So we decided to stop by.

And it was meant to be. Ben has been struggling spiritually and so we talked to him about the Atonement and Forgiveness and invited him to read Enos 1 in the Book of Mormon. 

Afterwards we asked if he would like to pray. So we went to the side of his house, knelt down in the grass, and he offered a prayer. It was probably the most sincere prayer I have heard on my mission. He was literally pleading with Heavenly Father to forgive him for his sins.

I learned a lot from Ben that day and his amazing faith. I aspire to pray with sincerity as he did. Reminds me of a scripture...

Enos 1:4 "And my soul hungered: and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him"

Frank is BAPTIZED!

So I'll be honest... Literally thought at the beginning of teaching Frank that we would have to throw him into the font to get baptized. But it is true... He was baptized and I could not be any more proud! I just love the kid so much!

Before we started the program, Sister King, Sister Shell, Sister Walker, his friend Erin, and I went into the chapel to pray with him. The spirit was so strong! As sister King said in her testimony after the baptism, Frank has a lot of spiritual gifts. He is very close to the Savior even though he tries to hide it. 

He recently emailed me his testimony, and I started to cry. He has grown and progressed a TON since I left Sam Houston 1st Ward. He is going to be a great member and I can't wait for what the future holds for him. His little sister Daisy was at his baptism and as I was sitting next to her she just couldn't stop smiling. She was so excited for Frank and so proud of him. He is setting such a great example for her, his family, and his friends. 

Sister King told me that he was telling his mom that he was getting baptized and she said, 

"Why do you want to get baptized?"

And Frank said, "Mom, I need to get married in the temple."

And this is why I LOVE being a missionary.

Stake Conference

Thank you to all who helped me with my talk on Hastening the Work for Stake Conference. I felt that it went really well and I just wanted to include some of what I was speaking about.

1. What work is he asking us to hasten?

  • The work of Salvation- Moses 1:39 "For this is my work and my glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."

2. What is our part in the work of salvation?

  • To keep the commandments and be disciples of Jesus Christ. Let our testimonies radiate from us in love towards another.
  • D&C 11:20 "Behold, this is your work, to keep my commandments, yea, with all your might, mind and strength."
  • President Monson said- "“We cannot truly love God if we do not love our fellow travelers on this mortal journey. Usually our love will be shown in our day-to-day interactions one with another. All important will be our ability to recognize someone’s need and then respond.

3. How do we let our testimony "show"?

  •    October 2013 Ensign- “We are not being asked to engage in a new program. WE are simply being encouraged to be true disciples of Jesus Christ. Our role is to immerse ourselves in loving and serving those around us- [There] are natural, joyful ways to invite less-active members and those not of our faith into our lives and consequently into the light of the gospel. Sharing with them the fun times and the sacred times of our lives [is] the most effective way.”
  • "Remember perfection is a process, not a destination." - Paula Alger
  • Let missionary work fit in to your personality and lifestyle. It doesn't need to be forced.

4 Ways my Family and friends have "shown" their testimonies in a natural and joyful way:

  1. Be you! We must be proud of what we stand for and others will see the light of Christ within us. Let people in and openly share about our life, people are curious.
  • “Just being a good human, genuine, and loving that so happens to have the light of Christ in their life and the restored gospel of salvation.” - Dad
  • “If you take the time to invite others to be your friend, you have the opportunity to share your “light of Christ” simply by being yourself. I don’t force people into a conversation, nor do I drop my religion or my laundry list of ‘to dos’ at people. What I try to do is be available, in case someone needs what I can provide.” - Paula Alger
  • My sister Noa invited her friends to her baptism and as a result they want to come to achievement day with her as well. Even if they don't joing the church now, 10-20 years from now when a missionary contacts them they are going to remember the feelings they had at the church and the standards of the people there. 

      2. Smile! My mom's mission president said, "Smile at everyone you meet. They may think you're crazy, but they will wonder what makes you so happy."


  • " No one wants to be around someone who looks like they’ve been overcome by the challenges of living the Gospel. The Gospel is simply amazing and amazingly simple. Righteous people are like a magnet in drawing others who seek for righteousness to them.” - Grandma HoChing
  •  “When I am in stores I try to look people in the eye & get them to smile at me. I passed this young lady that looked pretty stern, if not angry (I thought), but I looked at her, said hello & smiled. I was about ready to leave the store & she came over to where I was and said, “This is going to sound strange & you’re going to think I am weird but thank you for smiling at me. You have this amazing aura about you.” - Grandma Loo

       3. Reach out and Create Unity within the Ward. Sit by someone new and say Hi to those who you haven't seen before. Do your visiting and home teaching.

       4. Pray Sincerely to be led to the "one"

  • Not just praying for missionary experiences but pray for specific ways that you can have missionary experiences or be a missionary.
  • Elder Russell M. Nelson said, "Until you know a person's name and face, the Lord cannot help you know his or her heart."

Time is of man. Not of God.

So I was freaking out a bit because Frank's baptism started at 5 and stake conference started at 6... And baptisms never start on time. I was worried that I wouldn't make it to stake conference on time with the travel time. But it all worked out! The Lord will provide! Sister Walker and I prayed and prayed that we would be able to make it on time and stay for both! Heavenly Father blessed us and time felt like it was literally slowed down because we didn't feel rushed at all. We were able to make it to stake conference with 10 minutes to spare! 

I love this church. It is truly CHRIST's church and it is the only true church on the earth! I love y'all!


Sister Loo

The Sisters "Quist".
I forgot my nametag and had to borrow one.
With Frank at his baptism


Bawk! Bawk! 
 Dinner at President Lauck's
Me and Crush! 
Exchanges with the Wheatstone Sisters 

Before...
...and After
Experimenting w/ PEEPS!

More lovely Texas stickers...

Monday, April 21, 2014

HE is Risen!

The Godhead and Gloves

We taught David about the Godhead and how he gain a relationship with Heavenly Father through prayer. I did a visual during the lesson in which I explained how Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have bodies and how the Holy Ghost does not. We showed this by having our hand be our spirits and then I put on a glove representing our spirit and how Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and us have both body and spirit. And of course the Holy Ghost is just a spirit... So the Holy Ghost is like a glove-less hand. We invited David to be baptized and he said yes! He is planning on being baptized on May 10th!

Temple

After service at the temple we walked around with Adam and David. We talked about the spirit on the grounds and how the temple is a place where we get married and make more promises with Heavenly Father. How it is such a blessing to have a temple nearby. David loved the temple. 

Afterwards we sat down and said a prayer as a group... immediately afterwards a member of our ward interrupted loudly when we were planning on having quiet time to say individual prayers. Well that interrupted the spirit but we kept going and then a huge swarm of bugs came by us and everyone was swatting at the bugs.... another interruption of the spirit. Satan was really trying his hardest on us even as we were on the temple grounds but we pushed through and kept praying. I know that Satan was trying his hardest because the spirit that David and Adam felt there was amazing and they love the temple!

He is Risen

If you haven't had the chance go to easter.mormon.org and read and watch the videos.

I have really enjoyed reading about our Savior this past week, his sacrifice, crucifixion, and resurrection. I know that He lives! I know that he loves us! It has been a wonderful opportunity to invite people to come to church and learn more about the Book of Mormon. 

"Did you know that after Christ was resurrected he visited the people here in the Americas? He appeared to them, let them feel the prints in his hands & feet, blessed the children, and continued to teach them. There are more wonderful blessings and teachings that we are able to use in the Book of Mormon as a companion to the Bible."

Sister Walker and I have been sharing a mormon message 
(http://www.mormonchannel.org/easter-videos?v=911129090001)  with our members that is really powerful and I have come to a better understanding of how much Christ truly does love us. That even after he asked Heavenly Father to "remove this cup from me" he continued forward. He saw each of us and thought to himself "She/He is Worth it." It is so powerful to think that even through all that pain, he pushed through, and completed the Atonement because I, me who is imperfect, "is worth it". It helps me understand my divine role and my relationship with the Savior has become stronger. I know that Christ is my best friend, my brother, but most importantly He is my Redeemer!

As quoted from my favorite song, 

"He lives to grant me rich supply.
He lives to guide me with his eye.
He lives to comfort me when faint.
He lives to hear my soul's complaint.
He lives to silence all my fears.
He lives to wipe away my tears.
He lives to calm my troubled heart.
He lives all blessings to impart.
He lives! All glory to his name!
He lives, my Savior, still the same.
Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives:

"I know that my Redeemer lives!"

Love Y'all!, Sister Loo

Volunteering at the temple.
(Photo Cred: Kevin Wideman)
Ran into Sis. King at temple volunteering.
David and Adam's first time at the temple.
We are hoping to get Adam back to the temple soon 
Whats wrong with this picture?...
Sis. Walker forgot shoes for after our service project,
so she had to wear my Converse to lunch...
...which are about 4 sizes to big for her!
#ohsisterwalker :)
As a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings...
...happy Easter 
Got caught in a rainstorm on the way back to our apartment.
Out tracting and said a prayer with a guy on his front door-step.
He then insisted that we take the rest of his pizza...
...don't worry mom, we didn't eat it. 
First exchanges with the White Oak Sisters.
And the first time being in a trio companionship.
And the gold medal winners are...My team of course!
Wednesday we had interviews with President, and Sis. Pingree
did an activity with the missionaries.  Well..., needless to say...
I haven't been competitive in a while and so I was getting pretty fired up to win.
...And we did...Congratulations team!!!
How do you like my outfit?...
I love holiday socks!

Monday, April 14, 2014

One Huge Leap Forward...to almost figuring out this thing called missionary work

Meet my Friend Craig

So this is some experiences and characteristics of one of my favorite people in the Sam Houston 2nd Young Single Adult Ward... So sad that he is moving today! :(

1. Found out that a man who likes watching my little pony is called a "Bronie". Yes, Craig is a "Bronie" along with a couple other members in the ward. I for reals had a hard time not cracking up laughing my first Sunday in the ward when Craig shared this as his "interesting fact" about himself in Sunday school. Apparently there are also comic-cons just for Bronies. Ridiculous. All throughout dinner he said, "I mean its A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! The comedy and songs are just so great!"

2.  Well now Craig has another obsession... Root Beer Float Cookies. He was telling us all about them and how they actually taste like root beer floats. They even have the carbonation effect to the, He was freaking out.

We asked, "So Craig do you have some at home?"

"Pshh!" he responds. "No I ate them all! When I get them they go so fast, that's how good they are."

3. I told him to wear his Star Wars tie to church next Sunday and he says, "Which one?" and then proceeds to explain in detail each one- he has 2.

I say, "Well which one's your favorite?"

He says, "What kind of question is that? It's like asking me, a nerdy guy, what gadget is his favorite in his house. You just can't choose.

"Well I don't know then Craig."

"Well what do you want? If you want a certain character then I'd choose the first. If you want a full display of the entire movie then I'd choose the second."

... So I picked the second and got a pic with him on his last Sunday at church.

Heavenly Father IS listening...

Kristin texted us while we were working out Friday morning telling us that she found her REAL birth certificate! I was so excited I was actually able to run a mile! :) The night before I was saying my nightly prayers and asked Heavenly Father what we needed to do to help Kristin and I asked that if it so be his will that a miracle would happen to help her to progress to baptism (she has a baptismal date for August 23rd). I know that this was a miracle and another testament that Heavenly Father truly does answer our prayers.

Inspired Knocking... brings forth New "friends"

BTW... I hate the word "investigators". I like the word "friends" much better. It just sounds really weird and when members come up to our "friends" asking if they are investigators, it just makes them really uncomfortable. So please don't do that to the missionaries in your ward.

Anyways...

We were early to a dinner appointment and Sister Walker and I decided to pull into a street and picked 3 doors to knock on. The first one was a bust. But we moved on to the second one and this black lady answers the door and we asked her if she would like to hear a message about the Book of Mormon. She said "YES!" So we talked about the Restoration of the gospel and the spirit was especially strong as Sister Walker talked about the First Vision. We shared a prayer with her and then told her about the YSA ward and asked if she knew anyone who would be interested and she said her son might be.

So we walked back to our car and were turning around in the cul-de-sac when we see her and her son on her porch. She waves at us and so we got out of our car to meet her son, David and invite him to church! Sister Walker later told me that David had been standing behind the door for most of the Restoration lesson with his mom.

We returned the next day and taught David the Restoration in his backyard on a blanket. Halfway through the lesson his mom brought us out cake, chips, and water. It was like another little picnic!

David was able to come to our ward BBQ on Saturday and also attended church with us on Sunday! He is really interested and has been thinking about all that he has experienced and been taught in the last couple of days. He told us that his mind was being pushed past what he thought was possible and what he had grown up believing. He is so excited to read the book of Mormon!

Trust & Faith

Wow! Heavenly Father has been blessing this area and the Sam Houston 2nd Ward. This week we found 3 new investigators and taught 11 Restoration doorstep lessons (a personal week record for me)!

Through my recent study of recognizing the spirit in Preach My Gospel and the experiences from this last week I have realized that Heavenly Father really trusts us. He doesn't need to direct us in all things. When we act following the inspiration from the Holy Ghost, Heavenly Father will then let us know that we are doing the right thing & confirm our actions.

So many times I have prayed asking where to go and have wasted time trying to discern what the spirit is trying to tell me instead of acting with faith and trusting that Heavenly Father will let me know quickly if the decision I've made is right or wrong.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, "Persons who persist in seeking revelatory guidance on subjects on which the Lord has not chosen to direct us may concoct an answer out of their own fantasy or bias, or they may even receive an answer through the medium of false revelation- If we do not receive guidance, we should act upon our best judgment."

Later Sister Walker shared with me this scripture in D & C 58:27 "Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;"


Yet another equation that works miracles! Church is true!

With Candice at the temple
   Sister Walker got stuck behind an apartment gate...
and we had to wait for a car to come let her out 
"I got the Powh!" 
   After having the worst meal on the mission yet...
we had to run to sonic for water to "cleanse"
District service
Felt like a whole new country...again. 
Even Zombie's need the gospel...
and a pass along card! 
gobble gobble!


   MOST LEGIT taco cart ever... complete with bird zoo
(The parrots were talking in Spanish)!
Too bad the food didn't live up to the experience.
Oh Craig :)

Monday, April 7, 2014

Building a Strong Testimony


Forgive and Forget

Wednesday we went to visit a less active and her mom met us on the front porch of their house and told us that her daughter is not ready to come back and doesn't know how to tell us. They have been less active for 7 years. The Mom told us their story and how they are dealing with some Word of Wisdom issues, her with cigarettes and her daughter with much more. It all started with her marriage when her husband had 3 affairs and they got divorced. But what's the most sad is that after 7 years she still has not been able to forgive him and as a result her and her daughter's lives have been miserable. 

She told us that after this happen she went to the store to buy some cigarettes and the first path that she took was blocked by construction so she turned around and the next way was blocked by traffic, if that wasn't a sign enough... but she still managed to find some cigarettes. :( The mom is struggling to help herself and as a result her daughter hasn't grown up in a stable environment and has fallen off the path. 

I was really heartbroken because you could tell that all she needed to do was utilize the Atonement in her life to forgive her ex-husband and a huge burden would be lifted off her back- something she has been carrying for 7 years! You can really see the struggle in the mom. She knows the truth. she knows it will make her happy. She knows it's whats best for her family. Yet she can't forgive, forget, and move on. 

It has also made me realize that it is during our biggest trials that Heavenly Father tests our strength and testimony. Will we conquer or be conquered? When life gets tough will we fight back or yield unto temptation? Those who continually work on their testimony- their spiritual armor- will be that much more prepared for when the fiery darts of the wicked come. And as we learned in conference, they are and will be coming. 

Pray to See Our Butterflies Daily

We have been talking to Kandice about taking steps into the light and praying for God's love. We asked her how she has felt God's love for her and she said, "I pray to see a butterfly everyday and I've seen one everyday whether big or small for the past few months. That's how I know he is listening."

I definitely was expecting her to say "my family" or "I'm happy now" but Wow! What a response. God truly does love each and every one of us! Even to the smallest and most simplest things like putting a butterfly each day in Kandice's path. It truly is amazing to know that ALL things are under God's command- not just us as his sons & daughters but animals and nature, everything he has created.

I also learned a lot from the sincerity of Kandice's prayer to think of something specific and simple that would let her know with certainty that God loves her. She didn't set him up to fail. She could have just asked Heavenly Father "show me how you love me" but she held Heavenly Father accountable to something simple he could do for her. 

We then talked about how she can show God she loves him and we each shared something we can do. We talked about how Kandice can thank heavenly father each time she sees a butterfly and let that happiness carry her throughout the day. 

I then felt impressed to just share with her how much Heavenly Father does love her and how we have seen a change in her. I can see the light come back into her eyes especially in the past couple of weeks. I was just so proud of her and the progress she is making. It truly is such a wonderful thing to witness. I bore my testimony to her of light and asked her if she has seen a change in herself. She responded, "Honestly, no." I just thought, How can she not see it? So I told her again, "Kandice I can see it! The light is coming back and we CAN see a big difference in you. You are making big steps towards the light. You are almost running towards it!" She is just like me and is hard on herself. So we encouraged her to think of something positive about herself each day, and soon it will hit her and she will realize that she is an amazing daughter of God!

I realized that my favorite thing about being a missionary is this: I LOVE seeing the light returning to people's eyes. That is what missionary work is all about!

So I encourage all of you to do as Kandice: Pray to See our Butterflies Daily

General Conference = Christmas!

Being a missionary and watching general conference is like a little kid on Christmas Eve. Sister Walker and I were so excited to watch conference! It truly is a blessing to have living apostles and our prophet, Thomas S. Monson on the earth today! We are guided and directed by a prophet who receives revelation from God on the things that we can work on and how to cope in a world that is getting more and more wicked!

I loved David A Bednar's talk on Carrying a load. It made me think of the scripture Mosiah 24: 14-15 and how I think that Christ will lift our burdens completely, he will take away the rocks in our backpack as we are hiking up the hill of life. But after his talk, I realized, he does not fully take away the backpack but helps us make it lighter and helps us carry our "load". I realized that we will always have a "load" we are going to carry but are we carrying the right load? Are we carrying rocks or are we carrying diamonds, rubies, and gold? It's all about carrying the right things so that when we get to the top of the hill and the end we have what means most to us. 

I was so motivated to do missionary work after conference ended! I wanted to go into all the churches here in Texas and just yell, "YOU GUYS ARE MISSING OUT! THE PROPHET IS SPEAKING... NOW REPENT!" But I didn't. It really was a wonderful opportunity to just encourage everyone to watch conference. Sister Walker later said, "Everyone's church's must have been really boring in comparison to what we were able to have this weekend." So true. 

So what was your favorite conference message?

Love you so much! 

Sister Loo

   Saw Sister King at Missionary Leadership Council (MLC).
It was so great to see her! 
Picnic in the park
   Heart Attacking Sister Greggson's Apartment for her birthday
   Conference with the Relief Society & our favorite Victoria Craig of course 

   Sunday Sessions of Conference with the White Oak Sisters
Sunday Sessions of Conference with Victoria & Luis
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