Team #LooHuber

Anxiety & Excitement over Transfers

So... Transfers were yesterday. I wasn't feeling like I was going anywhere until about early afternoon I FOR SURE thought I was going to be transferred... and to a family ward. When we got the call that Sister Huber and I were both staying, we both screamed for joy! And then I proceded to jump up and down on my bed like a little kid. Maybe a little too dramatic? yes. But I AM SO EXCITED TO STAY IN Sam Houston 2nd YSA... and also so excited I don't have to pack. :)

Retirement of the Braids

I took out my braids this week and I felt like I lost 10 pounds! There was SO much hair! Sister Huber was a trooper and helped me out. #compunity to the extreme! 

Viet is Baptized!

Viet was baptized this last week! He was SO nervous! He didn't sleep for the two days leading up to it! KP was able to baptize him which was a really good experience for them both. Because he is so tall he had to be baptized twice.

We went over to KP's house to go over the baptismal prayer. We read it to him once and he had it memorized already! He is so awesome! He was reciting it to us...

"Viet Ai Bui. Break. (Which more sounds like Brick in his African accent) Having been commission of Jesus Christ. Break. I bAPhtize you... break."

 It was so funny, but so cute at the same time. He didn't even have to look at the cheat sheet in the font!

"Welcome to Allyria... Welcome. Welcome. Welcome. Welcome. Welcome to Allyria!"

We met with a new investigator Aieliaria (pronounced Allyria like on She's the Man) this week. She has been coming with her friend Marcus Castro to church and was so excited to meet with us! 

We taught her the Restoration and then asked her what it would mean to her if she received an answer if the Book of Mormon was true. She paused and then started crying and said. "So much. I just have felt so lost. I've been looking and this would mean the world." It was such a tender moment. I think all in the room, even Marcus, had tears in our eyes as we expressed to her that she has found the truth. She is not lost anymore. She can find the answers.

She texted us the next day and told us that she had been reading and loves it! We are trying to persuade her and Marcus to come to the YSA ward because they currently go to the family ward. I really want to teach her and so we hope she comes! Her and Danielle would get along perfectly! :)

If you are looking for answers. Open the Book of Mormon. The truth is there just waiting for us to act and read! No one needs to be lost! Share your testimony and find those honest seekers of truth who are waiting to receive answers and be led out of the dark!

The Book of Mormon = truth!

Now just read it! :)

Temple! 

Taking out the Braids (or dreads)... :( 

Matching shoes with Danielle!

The guys! They are all so close and have been such great missionaries in our ward!

We are going to miss them all when they go back to BYU!

With KP and Viet

Practicing before the baptism

Taking pictures with members because I thought I was leaving...

Amanda (fellowshipper of Matthew and mastermind behind the Articles of Faith)

Laura Tait and James Thornock our Ward Mission Leader

Better Than I Ever Imagined!

I LOVE to see the temple

This week we had the wonderful opportunity of going to the temple with 5 recent converts- Luis, Danielle, David, KP, & Isaaclyn. Frank was able to be there as well! It was such an amazing experience thinking that just a month ago, they were following the example of Jesus Christ to be baptized. 

We met in a waiting room and the temple president came to speak with us. He was talking about how whomever was going to be baptizing that they were standing in place of Jesus Christ. He pointed to Brother Larson who is a counselor in the SH1st ward and asked what make him special enough to be able to be that person who would be able to baptize and hold the priesthood. We are given that wonderful responsibility!

Later, Ford who is a member of the SH1st ward and has Down Syndrome, got ready to be baptized. It was such a neat and spiritual experience to be able to watch him be baptized for those who had passed away waiting to receive the gospel and be a member of the church. 

As Brother Larson said the baptismal prayer and was about to baptize Ford, Ford  would look up at him and then he would smile with the cutest little grin. And this happened each and every name and time he would be baptized. 

With what the temple president said earlier I just couldn't help but cry thinking that as Ford looked at Brother Larson, he saw Jesus Christ... and he couldn't help but smile each time. :)

Searching... Articles of Faith

This last week we had a lesson with an Investigator Matthew who is here for the summer helping his Uncle do home renovations on two houses. The sisters in the Fairfield ward stopped him as he was running, earphones in, with his Uncle's dogs. When they stopped on their bikes to talk to him he almost tripped over the dogs!

Well here we are a couple weeks later meeting with Matthew. We had just finished giving him a church tour and we were talking about Heavenly Father. Matthew shared that he believes that no matter what you call god- allah, dios, god, heavenly father- that he is the same for everyone. The member who we took with us, Amanda, pulled out her phone and started reading Article of Faith #11:

 "We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may."

Matthew asked her to read it again and then started laughing... I thought. "Oh No. What is he thinking?" But it was PERFECT! His jaw dropped to the floor and he was speechless. 

We ended up reading the rest of the articles of faith and talking about what they meant. Again. Speechless. Coming from the guy that ALWAYS has questions. He just couldn't get over it.

He told us that for 6 years he has had all these thoughts about religion and god. When we read the articles of faith, each and every thing that he had in his head was on paper. He just couldn't believe that he was now reading something that he had felt no religion understood until now. 

We sat in silence for a good 30 minutes and the spirit was so strong as he struggled to express what he was feeling. He was so happy and was trying to just soak it all in- spirit, thoughts, excitement. He just couldn't believe it. 

He said a prayer and started to cry. He talked about how he finally understood why he needed to come to Texas, and that it was to learn more about the gospel. Again we sat in silence and the spirit was testifying to each of us so strongly of the truthfulness of the church and of this gospel. Matthew had been searching for so long and now he had found it. We left the chapel and he went for a walk to continue to sort out his thoughts and feelings. 

It was such a neat experience and taught me how important it is to follow the spirit. Sister Huber and I weren't getting any spiritual prompting to share the articles of faith with him. But Amanda did, and he knew that she would act on it. He knew that is what matthew needed.

Mike is Baptized. What? What?

Mike was baptized this last Saturday! It was a "dunking contest" as he called it because he is so tall, but it is done! He can now say, "I'm a Mormon!"

 We went to the thrift store to buy him a button down shirt and khakis. It was a miracle that we were able to find him the right sizes... all for $7! #win

The spirit was so strong as he was being baptized! Before his baptism Sister Huber and I had been so worried about wondering if he was ready and the spirit confirmed to us that he indeed was! It was probably the strongest I have ever felt the spirit at a baptism on my mission so far. 

We took Danielle to a lesson with us to confirm plans for his baptism and coordinate his program. We asked who he would like to speak on the Holy Ghost. "umm... hmm... You!" And he points to Danielle. She was speechless and so nervous. She did not want to speak. But she did and she did an AMAZING job! Wow! Only a month ago she was baptized and she gave a wonderful talk on the blessings of having the Holy Ghost in our lives. I just couldn't stop smiling the entire time. I was so proud of her.

On Sunday he was confirmed and was given such a beautiful blessing that talked about his ability to share the gospel and that his tongue would be loosed. That Heavenly Father loved him so much and that he would see so many miracles in his and others lives.

Teshawna who we met at Target and Rashawn who we met a couple of days ago came to church and LOVED it!

It has been another great week! There are so many people ready to the receive the gospel. It can be really overwhelming and tiring at times... mostly all the time this week. But it is worth it, and I couldn't think of anywhere better to be. This is the best work that we can ever do. 

I love being a missionary!

Best License Plate... Make sure to read all of the license 

Danielle gave me Mariah Carey's new drink! Now I can sing all day long!

Danielle's Dog Snookie 

Houston Texas Temple

Mike with Benjamin who is the Brother in Law of the McGlinchy Family

Mike with Fellowshipper Heidi who went to SUU and was in my student ward my freshman year!

"Count your blessings...See what God hath done!"

Finding the “10’s” of thousands

President Pingree always told us that there were tens of thousands here in Houston who were ready to receive the gospel. And Sister Huber and I were determined to find them, so we set a goal to hand out 10 Book of Mormons a day for a total of 70 Book of Mormon’s for the week. To be honest we were a little nervous and anxious about it because we had so much to do with very little time. We are trying to get Danielle, Isaaclyn, KP, and Luis prepared to go to the temple this week plus their new member lessons along with our investigator lessons... AND did we tell you that this week was 100 degrees with 100% humidity?! Wow! We picked a good week to be out in the sun all day. :)

But, we knew that with the Lord all things would be possible! 

On monday we weren't able to pass out any. Tuesday we had exchanges and passed out 5 Book of Mormons.

Wednesday we were getting even more anxious and discouraged. We thought we had set a goal way too high. But it was already set and so we needed to accomplish our task... and when you set a goal it happens. This week we found in many different ways... in the car, through a fence, walking around parking lots, in grocery stores, and talking to people in parking lots sitting in their cars to name a few. It pushed us to be bold and talk to everyone! Here are a couple highlights from the week.

Wednesday- 16 Book of Mormon's

Contacted a lady and her daughter through a fence in the apartment complex parking lot. Sister Huber and I felt that we needed to talk to her and so we did it, no matter how awkward it was!

Met an inactive member that the ward knew nothing about.

We were walking to our car and this guy waves at us and so we of course wave back. After looking closer we thought it was our investigator who we were meeting with in 10 minutes and he was going in the same direction we were. He pulls into a store parking lot and turns around, and waves at us. So we pull in as well. He rolls down the window and says, "Hi. I'm David." Definitely not our investigator, Sister Huber and I were so confused... So we asked if he was a member. He wasn't. 

So we started talking to him about the Book of Mormon and he accepted it! Then, he asks if we can go out to coffee... oh dear. Nope not coffee but we can talk to you about our church! We exchange information and then we tell him we will text him to set something up and he says, "I'll be waiting." At that moment, I literally busted out laughing... mind you the window was still down. But I just couldn't help it. It was too funny! Later he texted us and we stated our purpose as missionaries and he responds- see picture below. 

Thursday- 14 Book of Mormon's

We walked around the same apartment complex for about 3 hours talking to people as they left their cars and were outside. With how hot it was, I was so surprised by all the people walking around! 

Met this awesome guy on his porch. After telling him our names, he introduced himself as Brother Branch and we explained to him in depth Alma 32:27. He was so into it and even wanted to give his neighbor a Book of Mormon. He went with us to see if he was home but he wasn't so he is going to give him one when he sees him next.

Mike was interviewed for baptism and will be baptized this Saturday at 5:30! We are so excited for him and he is so excited as well!

Friday- 13 Book of Mormon's

Saturday- 14 Book of Mormon's

We had 2 left to reach our goal and immediately as we walked out of our car we talked to 2 workers sitting in their car. Then as we were talking this guy pulls next to us as well and asks if we are Jehovah's Witness because he wanted a pamphlet. Well we can give you something even better and I offered him a Book of Mormon. He accepted it... and the two guys Sister Huber talked to accepted 2 book of Mormon's as well! In about 15 minutes at that apartment we had passed out 4 Book of Mormon's! #miracles

Sunday- 9 Book of Mormon's

We had about an hour before dinner and 8 Book of Mormon's left to reach our goal. So we went and walked around an apartment complex and we did it! It was such an amazing feeling! With pretty much all of these people, we even were able to share our testimonies of the Book of Mormon and Jesus Christ. That Heavenly Father wants all to witness him and the blessings of the Atonement. We read scriptures with each one and we only ran into very few that didn't want to accept a Book of Mormon. We were very blessed.

So... I guess I'm getting baptized this Saturday

We went and had our weekly lesson with Joseph and we really wanted him to commit to a baptism date. We talked about obedience and invited him to pray and ask what date he should be baptized. We all got down on our knees and he offered a prayer. However he didn't ask what day he should be baptized. So after the prayer ended we shared that sometimes its good to be specific with Heavenly Father and maybe share what specific days would be best. So I told him the dates that would be available... "July 12th, July 19th, July 26th, August 3rd..." and he interrupts me and says. "Well July 12th just stuck out to me... so... I guess... I'm getting baptized this Saturday... Yeah... July 12th... I'm getting baptized." 

The spirit was so strong when he said that. I knew that July 12th was the right date for him and he knew it as well. We have always known that July 12th was the right date. It was the first date we extended to him about a month ago and he just was stubborn to admit it!

We rushed to get everything ready and teach him the rest of the things that we needed to. He was baptized and confirmed a member of the church this last weekend! There were so many people there to support him and his mom and cousin were also there as well!

This week we are so excited to go to the temple to perform baptisms for the dead with 5 of our recent converts! Frank and Ashley are planning on going as well! I am so excited and so blessed to be able to be here for this great opportunity for them to partake of the blessings of the temple!

I love this church! It is SO true!

Sister Loo

   Text Message from David... #sistermissionaryprobs 

Texas Summer Skies = Beautiful

This is a high school football stadium, which is bigger than most colleges...

Welcome to Texas!

Joseph's Baptism

The last 2 Book of Mormon's!

We did it!

Humidity, Heat, Rain storms, Lightning, Thunder... Good thing missionary work is steady!

Heat and Humidity

We haven't been able to get very good sleep this last week... Saturday night we came back to the apartment and it was 80 degrees! Our Air Conditioning decided to not work and of course on a day we weren't able to contact the office. Yesterday we came back and it was 86 degrees in the apartment... Gotta love this Houston heat and humidity!

Highlights!

~David's brother Joshua got baptized this last Saturday! Their dad was able to come, so hopefully the Sisters will be able to teach their parents, David & Patricia. Keep them in your prayers!

~Viet was able to come to sacrament meeting! He loved it! He even borrowed a white shirt and tie from a member of the ward.

~KP bore his testimony during sacrament meeting yesterday on Faith!

~Had an awesome lesson with Joseph this week! Completely following the spirit! There is so much truth to asking inspired questions!

We helped to clear up his confusion and encouraged him to pray and ask about three things. 1- if the Book of Mormon is true 2- if Joseph Smith was a prophet 3- What day he would be ready for baptism.

He told us yesterday at church that he felt good when he prayed and took that as his answer. He is praying about a date to be baptized!

~Mike's brother's heart definitely is being softened as we are helping with his house. Everytime we have come over he says, "I still can't believe you're helping me out." We were able to give him a Book of Mormon and talk to him about his faith. He says he has a desire to strengthen his faith and come back to church. We are hoping that we will be able to teach him!

~We taught Teshawna yesterday who we met at Target! She says that she doesn't go to church because she feels like when she goes something is missing and so she does't want to waste her time! We shared the Book of Mormon and told her this is what she is missing in her life! We are excited for her!

~We are doing a 30 day fast in our ward and members sign up for each day. We are hoping to raise member referrals and missionary work through them. I think it will be a good way for them to prayerfully fast and pray for the goals they want to set. 

~Helped a Less Active member clean her house for the Fourth of July! It made me realize that as much as I wanted to be out popping fireworks and doing something fun, that providing service is what matters and was probably the best time spent on the fourth.

President and Sister Mortensen

We were able to meet our new mission president and his family! They are awesome and I know they are going to continue to hasten the work here in Texas! They are very young and have a really good sense of humor. He gave an awesome training relating Ammon as a servant to King Lamoni and Missionary work. 

Some good quotes from the training...

"Adversity is what servants of God Embrace"

"God wants to bind so he can free. 

Satan wants to free so he can bind."

"When we miss the sacrament, the spirit gets farther and farther away from us."

"Sin robs you of the ability to reason properly." - James E Faust

Atonement and Sacrament

I was reading an article in the June 2014 Ensign titled, "Amazed at the Love Jesus Offers Me" on the Sacrament & sacrifice of the savior, in the importance of "remembering the body of thy son."

I LOVE this part of the article:

"We folded back the beautiful white tablecloth that covered the bread. As I held the bread, I knew I had the responsibility of breaking it as part of the ordinance, but I hesitated. The bread represents the body of Christ. I thought of the soldiers hurting the Lord, and I didn’t want to break the bread. When I broke the first piece, I thought of the painful and humiliating way Jesus was treated prior to His death—the crown of thorns, the whipping, the suffering. The tears continued to roll down my cheeks as I prepared the bread.

Then the thought came to me that these painful and humiliating events were necessary. They were part of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and He made the sacrifice because of His love for me and each one of us.

I began to feel a great peace and joy. I broke every piece of bread carefully and slowly, knowing that what I held in my hands was about to be blessed and sanctified for a special purpose and represented something very precious, beautiful, and extraordinary. I felt the great responsibility of doing this ordinance so that those in the meeting could renew a covenant with the Lord and receive the blessings of the Atonement.

When we finished, I saw the trays filled with the broken bread. The sight was marvelous and sublime. My companion said the prayer. Never before had I so clearly understood the phrase “that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son” (D&C 20:77).

When I partook of the bread, I felt my Savior’s love once again. I felt protected, humbled, and determined to do what’s right. I wanted to examine my life and repent of all I had done wrong."

As the bread represents his body, I was struck by the breaking of the bread and imagined Christ's pain in the way that he was treated before His death. he was broken, humble & suffering for OUR sins, MY sins. Each week we "break bread" representing his body and have the opportunity to partake. As we partake and lay up our sins we are in turn cleansed and come closer to him. I just really love how we can continue to learn more about the Atonement and our Savior! The sacrament is important!

Love y'all! 

Sister Loo

   Happy Fourth Y'all! 

Gas Station Pass Along cards!

To my mission mom!

I miss you and know that you are in a better place now!

I will always cherish your example and the love that you have given to me!

Your testimony always and will always strengthen me!

Love you Kristin! Miss you so much already!  

AMERICA! Happy 4th! 

HUGE Rain Storm... but we had to make it to an appointment!

Our investigator invited us to his cousin's Vietnamese engagement party!

I was in heaven with all the good food!