Seeeester Bennett Here

November 5, 2012

 

Hello to my lovely family!

Thanks for the emails, those of you who emailed me today. Cortney and Nan both used the same subject title "hello seeeeester!" That's right, I'm Seeester Bennett! How is everything going for all of you? It sounds like Brandice had a really great baby shower! The picture from the shower was so cute. Those cupcakes looked delicious! It sounded like you three (Cortz, Nan, and Mom) had a fun time together for the weekend. Baby McGee is already a spoiled little girl, I can tell. How many baby showers are you going for, Nan? Sorry I'm not there to throw you another!

This week I got a nice package from my amazing friends from BYU! Jay, Sarah Beth, Kate, Sarah G, Adrianne, Ben, Quin, Tyler, and Mike all recorded messages for me on a voice recorder. They sent it across the US just so that all of them could record a message for me. I loved listening to their messages! They were really sweet and it was fun to hear about their lives and get caught up on what's going on with them! I was thinking, before I got that from them, about how I wish we could do that as a family. Think about it. It's a cool voice recorder thing that doesn't use tapes or anything. I think you can get them at Best Buy or even Walmart, probably. Then you can record messages for me and send it and I can record some back! How fun!

Halloween was really great this week! At around six we went to our investigators' homes and trick or treated there and gave them a treat back, a spiritual treat! We decorated little cards and put a scripture on each one to give to our investigators for their Halloween spiritual trick or treat. Haha. It was really fun. I don't know where I got that idea from, but they all seemed to love it! Then at 7 we went to some members' home for dinner. They fed us rat shaped meatloaf. GROSS. I hate meatloaf. That was the second time this week that we were eating it. Don't worry Mom, I ate it…well most of it. It was even more gross because it really looked like a rat. haha. It was fun though. Then after dinner we went in for the night, at 8pm, because they wanted all missionaries in early. Sis Putnam and I played Jenga together. It was left behind by some elders who lived there before Sis Tippetts and I got there. That was fun, just playing and munching on our trick or treating candy. Mom thinks I'm too old to trick or treat, but see, I even found a way to do it on my mission! Hah! Thanks for the Halloween card, by the way, Mom. It was soooooo cute and I literally laughed out loud at it. Haha.

This past weekend the BYU womens' soccer team was playing at Pepperdine. The Lutz family, the ward mission leader in the 2nd ward, loves BYU soccer because Sadie, 13 years old, plays soccer. She is way good and is planning on playing at BYU someday. Anyway, they told me about the game coming up and sis Lutz was talking about how she and Sadie were planning on going to the fireside that the team was doing that Friday night. They knew that I know a ton of girls on the team, so I wrote a note for Erica Owens, the goalie, and told Sadie she could use that to go and talk to her. Well, we went over last night for a lesson and Sis Lutz was so excited while she told me about Sadie giving Erica the note and freaking out because Erica loves me. Haha. It was cute. Sis Lutz was very impressed by the soccer girls and what great young women they are. Plus, they beat Pepperdine, apparently, and are currently ranked 5th. Sweet!

We had "round 2" dinner with the Barkers this week. Laura Barker is the girl that I played football with and last time we ate with them she said my name a ton. Well, Laura did great this time! I can't say that she didn't say my first name at all, but she did way better.  It was fun eating with her family because they're really great. It was fun to catch up with Laura and hear about her plans and get an update on some of our friends. Good work, Laura! I didn't feel like I was in a weird limbo this time as I ate with them. Haha.

Now for the update on the work.

This week we didn't have as many lessons as we usually have, and actually did a lot more tracting. It's not my favorite, but I pushed ahead as we did it because I know that as we work hard, the Lord will place his people in our path so that we can teach them.

We taught the Matweyews, Mathew, Nancy, Heena, Kelsey and Nanci B, Sean, Sergio, the Bergs (less-active), the Eatons, Cameron Caudel (less-active), and Brother Peters (less-active).

We actually picked up quite a few new investigators this week as well, and I'm really excited to teach some of them. I think we got 7 new investigators this week. That obviously made me feel great, because I felt like our hard work in tracting has been paying off. I fasted, yesterday, that we could work diligently and be obedient and as we are, that we can find someone very elect this week. Now we just have to go
and do those things and I know that the Lord will carry through on His part!

Teaching the Matweyews is always such a delight. I love that family more than anything. I'm so excited for them to get baptized this Saturday! On Monday we went over and had our usual dinner with a lesson. We taught them about the Law of Chastity and Sis M really loved it because she was talking about how that's something so important to her for Gavin. She wants him to be pure and respect others. Gavin was great throughout the lesson. He asked any questions that he had, and he kept saying "yea, that makes a lot of sense." He's always so funny because when we extend commitments, I always used to tell him "I want an audible 'yes' Gavin!" Now, he knows what I want to hear. When he hears a "will you" statement he replies, "Yes, Sister Bennett - I will!" Hahah. He's a cute kid. We also taught them on Friday night, to prepare them for their baptismal interview on Saturday. We went over the baptismal questions with them and it made me so happy as they both bore their testimonies to us when they answered each question. It's amazing to see the difference in Sis M, especially. She is so ready to be baptized. She has a strong testimony. She doesn't know everything, and she understands that, but she knows that this is Christ's church and she has seen the blessings in her life as she has learned and kept commitments. Gavin was so sweet when he talked about keeping the Sabbath day holy. He said that he hasn't ever seen his mom so happy like she is on Sundays. He said "she's even happy right away in the morning while she gets ready for church, and then after church she is happy all day." That was cute. We then had their baptismal interviews on Saturday, which was fun for me because while Sis M was in her interview I felt like I got to know Gavin even better. He's really excited to be baptized and he said he knows it will really help him feel like he's a part of the church. Yesterday, we had dinner at a family's home, the Manwarings, and they invited the Matweyews to come to dinner as well. It's been fun seeing them so much this week and it was so nice to get them more integrated into the ward by having dinner with the Manwarings. The ward members here really are so wonderful! They're so willing to help in the missionary efforts.

Mathew is doing well this week. He still says that he won’t come to church because it's just not something that he has ever done or will ever do. I'm trying to understand what he really needs. I know that church is unfamiliar to him and he probably feels uncomfortable with the idea of going and not knowing anyone or what's going on. We're working on getting him some fellowship, so hopefully that will help him feel more comfortable and ok with coming. We suggested the idea of doing a church tour with just us, but he even said no to that. Mathew is interesting. He's always really quiet when we first get to our lessons with him, but as we teach he opens up and I know he really enjoys having us come to teach him. He has strong faith, but says that he doesn't think he'll ever be ready for baptism. We told him that he needs to read the Book of Mormon and that it will answer all of his questions, because he said he has a lot that are unanswered at this point. Mathew was one of the people we visited on Halloween to give a "spiritual treat." He was happy to see us! We, of course, had given him a scripture about baptism to read and I hope that it hit home with him. I know that if he does pick up the Book of Mormon and read from it that he will have a great desire to be baptized.

We taught the Bergs, a less active family, this week. The Bergs are the family who haven't been sealed in the temple. Sister Berg, who is a convert, has hold ups about being sealed and brother Berg, who has grown up in the church, also says that he's not sure if that's their goal at this point. They're a young couple, in their late twenties, and they have a little boy named Cole and another little boy on the way. I just have a hard time understanding how they wouldn't want to be sealed to each other and especially to that sweet little boy. As we've taught them, it's become very obvious that Brother Berg doesn't have a testimony and probably never has had one of his own. Growing up, he most likely just leaned on his parents' testimonies and now we can see that he's leaning on his wife's. Sis Berg actually kind of got upset with him when we taught them this week. She started talking about how she can't do everything for him. He has to want to go to church even when she can't (she's on bed rest right now with her pregnancy) and that he needs to want to read the Book of Mormon for himself, not just to please her. It was the perfect moment to talk to him about gaining a testimony of his own, but right then Brother Fenn, their home teacher, knocked on the door to bring them dinner. Well, our goal is to help Brother Berg gain a testimony. He actually did come to church yesterday, on his own! That was really neat to see. I think what his wife said really hit him. I really like their family a lot. I just know how much happier they will be if they are able to be sealed in the temple.

One new investigator that we got this week is named Tina. She was a referral that we received from her next door neighbor. We had tried her more than 3 times before, so it had been a while since we last tried to meet her. When she opened the door she had the look on her face that every missionary knows, "this is weird and I'm definitely not interested." It was really amazing to see the Spirit work through us to soften her heart. As we spoke with her about the restoration and about her family she started to open up. I know that I had the Spirit, because I was asking questions that I know weren't coming from me. They were definitely inspired. As I asked these inspired questions, she slowly opened up more and more. It was such a HUGE testimony builder to me. Just like it talks about in D&C 84:85, the words are given to us in the moment that we need them. As long as we work hard, study hard, and are obedient, I know that the Lord will be guiding us. How do I know that? We are promised it over and over again throughout the scriptures. It's such a blessing to know that we are never alone in this work. We are working WITH the master of the vineyard to bring about great fruit (Jacob 5:71-72).

I felt like I've had a lot of great learning experiences this week that have built my testimony a lot and have changed my perspective on this work. I love being a missionary in the Great California Ventura mission! I love this gospel. Most of all, I love my Savior and the opportunity he has given all people to come unto him and be cleansed. How wonderful is it to be a member of His church - THE one and only true church of Christ?

I hope you all have the most amazing week, because I know that I will! I mean c'mone, the Matweyews are getting baptized on Saturday!!!! I CAN'T WAIT!!! AHHHH!

I love you!
Sister Bennett






P.S. - In other news, my watch broke on Wednesday and I've gone without all week! I've been going crazy! I am seriously obsessed with time, so it was really hard! Sis Tolliver always got mad at me because I looked at my watch so much. I can't help it! This is the Lord's time we're on here! Anyway, I'm going to buy a new watch today, just fyi. I want to get a nicer one that will last longer.

P.P.S. - Dumb story - for some reason, all week there have been so many dogs when people open the door to talk to us. The people just crack the door open and say "I have dogs. I can't hear you." Then the dogs would be quiet until we start talking, then they would bark overus! Then we'd stop and they'd stop. I hate dogs. Ok, "all creatures ofour God and king" should be loved, but it's HARD!

P.P.P.S. - One lady we talked to didn't speak much English, so Sis P and I just assumed she was Spanish and kept talking about Spanish elders to her and how mormon.org is in Spanish. Then right before we left, and we had gotten her info to give to the Spanish elders, she said "I'm Turkish, not Spanish, by the way." What the?






                                       Halloween Candy!











 

"The Worst"

October 29, 2012

 

Hey there!

Happy Birthday to Britt this week! Oh and Happy Halloween!!! We get to go in an hour early on Halloween night...for safety purposes, so Sis Putnam and I are planning to doing something fun together. If only we had some ideas. haha.

As of late I've started using the saying "the worst" way too much. I think I tell Sister Putnam that she's "the worst" like 50 times a day. Obviously it's used in sarcasm, but I'm trying to drop it. haha. It's difficult to do. I didn't realize how often I say it!

Thanks for the pictures, Erin! They are so cute! Zachy is looking scruffy as usual. Keep up the good work Zach. The boys look adorable. The sister, Sister Wutkee, from Thousand Oaks who opens the FHC told me that Talmage looks like me, a lot. That was surprising. He's cute, so I'll take it!

I'm happy to be out here in sunny California while all of you back in Minnesota are enjoying some Halloween snow! Haha. Suckers! It's been really nice here. Actually, the past two days it's been a bit hot, but at night it's in the 70s or mid 60s. Sister Putnam is cold all the time because she came here from Bakersfield. She gets mad at me because I always notice when she's cold and turn off the air for her. The goose bumps on her arms are just too obvious. Haha. She's pretty funny. We've stayed up late talking probably one too many time this week. One night we just went on this tangent of talking about baby names and what name we really look like. She told me I look like an Ashley or Brittany. GROSS! Not that those names are gross, but that's not what I look like! I look like a Haley! Duh. It was hilarious for some reason. We were like rolling on the ground laughing about it. I'm not sure why we were on the ground and not in our beds, but it was fun. I'm enjoying being her companion...STILL! It's a Christmas miracle!

On Thursday we had to go get our oil changed in Thousand Oaks after district meeting. It was going to take about an hour and a half and we hadn't had lunch yet, so we walked over to California Pizza Kitchen and had lunch together. That was soooo good! Mmm! CPK!  Oh, and thanks Mom and Dad for buying me lunch. Haha. You're so sweet. :)

Oh and Dad, did you know that Dennis Pitta went to Moorpark High School? He grew up in the ward that I am currently serving in. Pretty cool, huh? Too bad his family no longer lives here. It's still cool though.

Ok, enough small talk. Now on to what's important!

I hope you've had a really great week like we had here in Moorpark. This past week I have been thinking a lot about the Atonement and how as my understanding of it grows, so will my desire to share the gospel. I feel like there are too many times when I just pass by someone on the street and don't stop to talk to them. I'm working on being more bold and giving everyone that we see the opportunity to hear about the gospel. I know that we really need to find more people to teach and I have faith that as long as we are obedient we will have the Spirit with us to help us recognize those who are prepared to hear the message of the gospel.

We were able to teach the Matweyews, Mathew, Michael, Penny B (less-active), Nanci and Kelsey, Jim and Heather, Nancy V, the Eatons, Anthony, Heena, Sean M, Brianna and Justin (less-active), Jan Diaz (less-active), and Hans this week.

The Matweyews are moving right along toward their baptism. They have come to church the past two weeks and I know that Sister M has really been feeling the Spirit as she's attended. Yesterday, Gavin even stayed for all three hours of church and he said he really liked it! We taught them this week about the prophet on the earth today and we also taught them about prayer. Our lesson about prayer was really good, because I think it helped Sister M, especially, understand that it's a relationship. It doesn't matter what other people think when you pray, but it's about developing that strong connection with our Father in Heaven through prayer. Gavin is really great. He loves praying and a few weeks ago we made him a "prayer rock" to help him remember each morning and night to say his prayers. He said he loves having that prayer rock and has been praying every day. He's such a sweet kid. He is always so excited when we come over to teach them. He told us last week that he thinks it's kind of exciting if we're a few minutes late because he's always waiting and watching at the window for us and he gets nervous that we might forget or something. Don't worry, we're not late often, but it was cute to hear about how he's excited to see us and learn more. I have really developed a strong relationship with the Matweyew family. I feel so much love when I'm with them and I feel like I really am able to see them the way that the Lord sees them. I've been day dreaming, maybe too much, about when I'll come back after my mission in a year and go to the temple with them when they are sealed as a family. Just thinking about it gives me the chills and makes me feel so much joy. I can't wait for November 10th when they're able to make the first, so important, covenant of baptism and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

We were able to get in contact with a former investigator named Sean this week. Sean is 17 years old and when I first got to Moorpark Sister Tippetts and I met him and talked to him about meeting with him. He told us then that he would need to talk to his dad because his dad had been against it before. We tried to start teaching him, but it didn't happen then. Well, we stopped by last week and saw him and set up a time to go back and teach him. When we came for our appointment, Sean said he didn't have much time, so we talked with him and shared a scripture on his doorstep. I asked him if he really wanted to meet with us or not, because I didn't want to just keep showing up to his house and sharing scriptures on his doorstep. He looked surprised when I asked him that, and he said that he really does. He is going through some hard things right now with his family and with school, and I know that he needs the gospel in his life. When I first met him he had talked about how he knew he would become a Mormon someday, but just didn't think that he was ready for that yet. He has a lot of faith and I  pray that as we teach him, he will be open and willing to heed the promptings of the Spirit.

Meeting with Nanci B (less active) and Kelsey (investigator) this week was interesting. We taught them about the Plan of Salvation. Nanci really wants Kelsey to learn and get baptized. Kelsey is 18 years old and doesn't seem to have any idea of what she believes. She doesn't have any friends and she is constantly consumed by reading books, which is great, but I think Nanci just wants Kelsey to learn for social reasons. We've realized that Kelsey honestly isn't interested, or she really isn't ready at this time to hear about the gospel. As we taught her about the Plan of Salvation she was all over the place. She was very argumentative throughout the entire lesson. It was really hard to be patient with her and not just argue over different points that we were teaching about. It was probably good for me to have been in this situation, because it really helped me understand the importance of my testimony. No one can argue with me and tell me that I don't KNOW these things are true. Kelsey kept wanting things to be more complicated than they are when it comes to gaining a knowledge for herself. I bore my testimony probably ten times in that lesson and each time I felt the Spirit telling me, and Kelsey, that these things are true. I think Kelsey was just feeling uncomfortable and maybe even scared about trying to pray before reading in the Book of Mormon because she isn't used to thinking about these things. Her mom didn't raise her in a religious atmosphere so this is all very new to her. Anyway, we're not sure what to do with the situation because we want to keep teaching Nanci so we can help her get back to church, but Nanci wants us to come over for Kelsey. At this point we're just planning to focus on Nanci when we plan the lessons and hopefully Kelsey will be humbled through the lessons so she can accept the gospel. We'll see how this goes.

We had a really good lesson with Heena this week. About two hours before our lesson with her, she called us to confirm the appointment. While I was on the phone with her she told me that she had a bad week and she sounded really stressed. Then, out of nowhere, she kind of unloaded everything on me. She said she felt like she wasn't really getting answers to her prayers. She also talked about how when she had gone to church, the Sunday before, she felt like I had ignored her. She said that Sister Putnam came and hugged her and gave her attention, but that I was very distracted. She was right. I am very busy at church. Sister Putnam was trying to help me get things done as much as she could, but she doesn't know everyone yet so she can only do so much. We had just spoken in sacrament meeting so there was even more going on than usual because everyone was coming up to us and introducing themselves or telling us we did well. I remember giving Heena a hug and saying hello, plus when I was on the stand I was smiling at her and waved to her. I felt really bad, though, that she felt like I hadn't given her attention. That made me a little nervous to go to our appointment with her, but as we drove there I prayed to myself and I felt a lot of comfort so I knew that we would have the Spirit with us to guide us in helping resolve Heena's true concerns. When we got there she told us about how great she felt after church on Sunday, but then the week following was really rough. We talked to her about Satan and about how he will do anything he can to stop us from knowing the truth or doing things that the Lord wants us to do. We totally had the guidance of the Spirit as we taught her that night. It was really amazing to feel the Lord working through us to help Heena. When we left, Heena felt great and she had a better perspective on things that she can keep with her as she will go through more trials while learning more from us.

Those were just a few of the experiences that we had this week. There were so many more, but there just isn't enough time to share them all! I'll just have to type faster next week!

Here's a scripture I read this morning - Alma 37:6-7. I was thinking about how we, young, immature, simple missionaries are the small and simple means by which the Lord brings about great things in missionary work. It's humbling to know that we are instruments in the Lord’s hands. How are all of you being instruments in the Lord's hands? How have you seen the Lord use small and simple means to bring about great things in your lives?

Well, that's just something to think about.

 

Have a wonderful week. I love you all!

Love,
Sister Bennett

 

P.S. - Funny story: This week when we were tracting, we got to a door and there were obviously people home. They didn't have a doorbell and I really wanted them to answer the door, so I took it upon myself to knock REALLY hard so they would be able to hear that someone was at the door. Well, that hurt really bad. About an hour later I had a really big bruise on the knuckle of my middle finger. Hahah. Well...I need to give them the best chance possible to hear about the gospel! :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I Said No Thank You!"

October 22, 2012

Bonjour Famille,

Congrats to Baby Eilish on being blessed! Woot! That's awesome! The pictures were super cute and all of the missionaries here agree, she's adorable. :)

It has been a really good week. My new companion, Sister Putnam is great! She's from Draper, UT. She's a really cute, sweet girl. She is always willing to compromise to how things have been run here in Moorpark for the past 4 1/2 months. We've had a fun week getting to know each other. I haven't laughed so much since I was with Sister Tippetts. She's a really good teacher and what I really like about her is that I feel like she always has my back. As we've been talking, I've gotten the impression that she hasn't always been EXACTLY obedient, but that's ok. She will be now, because I'm not willing to be disobedient in any way. Obedience is way too important in this work. We must be obedient to have the Spirit, and we have to have the Spirit in order to do the work. I think she understands that she's about to become exactly obedient. This morning, in companionship study, I actually asked her if she found it kind of annoying that I'm so obedient. She told me no and that she needed to be more obedient. She said she's always been obedient, just not exactly obedient. I then said "good, because we're going to be exactly obedient. End of discussion." I laughed a little after I said that, but I know she knew I was serious. I'm glad that I can help her recognize the blessings of obedience, because there will be blessings. Then, after we are companions, she can go on and be more obedient. I've heard way too much about how English sisters aren't exactly obedient. That needs to change, so I'm glad I can be an example. Anyway, Sister Putnam is awesome, so I'm excited for this transfer with her.

We were asked to speak in sacrament meeting yesterday. I was kind of nervous about speaking, but a little excited, too. I was excited to help the members feel more excited about missionary work by hearing both of us speak. I spoke about how we become converted to the gospel and what we see, as missionaries, in people as they become converted. I was praying a TON before I stood up to speak, because I was worried I wouldn't speak for long enough, but as I spoke the words flowed easily. I'm grateful that I had the guidance of the Spirit. A lot of people came up to me afterward and told me that they really loved my talk and they said that I'm a really good speaker - that was a new one. Haha. In my talk, I shared examples from people that we've taught, including talking about Tonya and Kayli - who were at church. It was good for me to speak, because I know that I will have to so much more throughout my mission and my life.

It's been a good first week of the transfer. It's nice to have a new transfer to review and refocus on things that are important at this time. It's been a great week here in Moorpark with Sister Putnam. I think we are going to be able to do some great work this transfer. We seem to work really well together so far, so I'm excited! I'm really grateful to be able to continue doing the work here in Moorpark because I still feel like there is more for me to do.

I really enjoyed transfer meeting. Something that stuck out to me was when President Castro talked about making the small choices to be obedient. I have seen the blessings in this work as my companions and I have decided to obey with exactness. It was a good reminder to hear him speak about those small decisions and how we should remember that we can only control the choices that we make. Having that perspective will really help me a lot, because sometimes I feel down when people choose to not listen or to reject the message when I know they've felt the Spirit. They still have their agency and I can only decide to use my agency in the best way possible.

This week we were able to teach the Matweyews, Nancy, Michael, Nanci and Kelsey, Anthony, the Eatons, Jim, Heena, Brother Mason, the Abdelsayeds, and Kayli. We also had lessons in which we dropped Annette and also Sam.

At the first of the week I was looking ahead and it looked like we were going to have to do a lot of tracting because we really didn't have many appointments set up to teach. I didn't want to do tracting all week, so I was praying that we would be able to get in contact with those investigators with whom we hadn't set appointments up yet so that we could have a good balance of teaching appointments and tracting. Well, it all worked out great. We contacted a lot of investigators and they were all willing to set up return appointments, which was such a blessing.

We taught Stephani and Gavin Matweyew on Monday night, as we always do. They usually feed us dinner and then we have a lesson afterward. We asked Sister Matweyew about how the Word of Wisdom was going, and she confessed that she had coffee the day before. I was really sad when she said that, because she had been doing so well. She went a week without drinking coffee. We talked to her about reading D&C 89 to gain a better understanding of the Word of Wisdom and we invited her to pray about it as she tried her hardest to keep that commandment. She said that she wanted to do it, and that she wouldn't mess up again. I know it's hard for people to give up these things, but I know the blessings that come as we obey God's commandments. I just need to remember to be patient with them about keeping the Word of Wisdom. I have never experienced trying to give up an addiction, so I will be doing my best to just support them and offer any help that I can so they can receive those blessings. On Monday, we taught Gavin and Stephani about tithing. It was a good lesson. Sister M said that it was really good and simple and she understood what was expected with tithing. She then asked if it was ok to just pay a small amount one month but then make up for it the next month. We explained to her that it is a principal of obedience and we are promised that we will receive blessings that we will not have room enough to receive (Malachi 3:10). She started to tear up and talked about how they're barely scraping by and that it was going to be really hard. Then brother M spoke up and told her that they should test God and see if He really will do that. He said that they should try paying tithing for a few months after being baptized and watch as God does bless them for their sacrifice. I was really grateful that he was there and that he could bear his testimony about the importance of being obedient. I know that they will be taken care of if they pay their tithing. I just want them to pay it as soon as possible because I know that it will give them comfort and peace concerning their finances. The best part of the week, with the Matweyews, was at church. Sister Putnam and I were sitting on the stand because we were asked to speak in sacrament meeting. As I looked over the congregation, I knew that Sister M was there with Gavin, but then I realized that Brother M wasn't sitting with them. They had come to church by themselves, without Brother M because he was sick. I was so happy! She told me that she really loved my talk and her eyes filled with tears as she talked to me about it. It was a sweet moment.

This week with Nancy was a little difficult. She just doesn't keep her commitments. She enjoys reading the Book of Mormon with others, but she won’t make time to listen to it on her own. She says that she just likes to read with other people. I was doing my best to try to help her understand the importance of reading the Book of Mormon and finally just told her that she can't expect us to do all of the work for her. She can't just wait for us to read with her or to take her to church, but she needed to do those things so that she can have the experiences that are crucial to gaining her own testimony. She has strong faith in Jesus Christ, but she still needs to really come to know for herself what we share it, that this, His one and ONLY true church has been restored to the earth. We read 3 Nephi 11 with her to help her understand and see that when the Savior visited the Americas, he established his church. He did the same in Jerusalem. We explained that chapter to her as we read and invited her to pray specifically to know if the Book of Mormon is true. We asked her if she had tried doing that yet, and she said "to tell you the truth, no." Then Brother Shorten, the member whose home we had the lesson at, spoke up and asked Nancy if she found it kind of scary to ask Heavenly Father that. She told him that it was. Then he shared his testimony and it was really powerful. I was so glad that we had the lesson at his and his wife's home because I wouldn't have thought to ask her that question. I just hope that it sunk in with Nancy and that she did go and pray about the Book of Mormon. She said that she would, so we'll see when we meet with her again.

Michael was a referral from the Spanish elders. It's kind of a cool situation, actually. When we were leaving an appointment at Nancy's apartment one day, I stopped and started talking to this Hispanic man. He told us that he doesn't really speak much English, so we asked if we could send missionaries that speak Spanish to his home. He agreed and gave us his address. Well, when the Elders went to meet him, they talked to Anthony (the 16 year old who is getting baptized) and Michael (Anthony's cousin). They then sent us back that same address and told us to go and meet them. I'm glad that we had been diligent in talking to everyone and had talked to that Hispanic man, because it ended up blessing us with two great people to teach. We taught Michael twice this past week. He has gone through a lot. He has two daughters out of wedlock who have different mothers and the mothers aren't the greatest about letting Michael be around his kids. It's hard to teach Michael because he just wants to tell us about his problems. Well, the second time we taught him, we made sure to go over the expectations of us coming to meet with him. We talked to him about how we are there to teach him about the Savior and help him know for himself if the things we teach are true so that it can bless him and his family's life. We then read through the introduction to the Book of Mormon with him and at the end of the lesson I invited him to be baptized. He first said "I don't know" but then I just asked him again and said "if you come to know these things are true, will you be baptized?" He said yes and we set the goal for him to find out for himself and be baptized on December 1st. That was really cool because I felt the Spirit urging me to invite him to be baptized again, even though I had just asked the same question. I'm excited to continue teaching Michael because I know that it will help straighten out his life and give him the perspective that he needs as a father.

We had a really good lesson with Heena. She hadn't done what she said she would, which was to go a week without saying Hindu prayers, but only praying to Heavenly Father as we have taught her to. She said that it was too scary. We read in the Book of Mormon with her and as we read, a verse about faith really stuck out to me. We talked about faith with Heena, and having faith that she can receive answers to specific questions like if she should be baptized. We invited her to just go one day without Hindu prayers and only pray to Heavenly Father and in those prayers we invited her to pray about baptism. She said that she could do that. I knew in that moment that if she did, she would get the answer to be baptized. We invited her to come to church and it was a blessing that we were speaking because she said that she wouldn't miss us speaking for the world. Well, when Sunday came around, sure enough, Heena was sitting on the back pew of the chapel and she brought her father, who is visiting from India, with her. She had a huge smile on her face and as I spoke I looked at her a few times and she had that same big grin on. She stayed for our Gospel Principals class, as well, which Brother Lutz taught. We had to leave in the middle of it to go to the other ward, but Sister Lutz told us that Heena had been asking really great questions and afterward she told Sister Lutz that she really enjoyed church. I can't wait to meet with Heena this Thursday and see what she has to say about everything! I love her!

Anthony is still doing really well. He has been praying every morning and every night on his knees and he said that he had been reading in the Book of Mormon. Before we could really ask him about how he felt as he did those things, he said "I feel really good when I pray every day. Plus, I really like reading the Book of Mormon, too, so it's not that hard to do it when you ask me to." I just had to laugh, because he's way too great! We taught him about the 10 Commandments and about keeping the Sabbath day holy. He agreed to obey those commandments. He came to church on Sunday in his nice purple shirt and black tie, and he said that he wanted to try going to the normal youth Sunday school class. I guess he wanted to meet some of the other youth, or go with friends that he knew from school. I kind of wished that he had gone to gospel principals because we talked about the Priesthood, but I'm sure it was still good for him. It is good that he's making friends so then, hopefully, he'll start spending his time outside of school with those kids. Anthony is a really good kid and he is always expressing how much joy he feels from learning.

It was a really great week full of great teaching experiences. I'm excited to continue seeing these people progress and come closer to our Savior. I have already seen the happiness that it has brought them and I know that that joy is only going to continue to increase as they work toward and are baptiz

I hope you all have a great week! I love you!

Love,

Sister Bennett

 

Moroni 7:41 - This is what we should all be striving for. The Kingdom of God.

P.S. - Funny Story

Yesterday we were tracting and we walked up to this open garage to talk to a man who was working inside. When we walked up, I introduced us as missionaries and he said "no thank you." Well - he doesn't even know what he is saying no to, so we proceeded to start declaring to him and he said "I said no thanks." Then sister Putnam started in and he SCREAMED "I SAID NO THANK YOU!!!"

Moorpark Is My Home!

October 15, 2012

Hey family!

I don't have much time, so this will probably be short!

I'm staying in Moorpark! We got transfer calls this morning and I get to stay!!!!!! I couldn't believe it. I still can't believe it!! I'm so happy! That will be six months in Moorpark. My new companion will be Sister Putnum. I hear she's really quiet and I bet she'll be good for me. I'm really excited. I just can't believe it, to be honest. I was so sure that I was going to leave Moorpark. Haha.

I got some mail this week from the sweet primary kids in the branch - a bunch of really funny pictures and some letters. I didn't know half of the kids, but I recognized Blake and Jared. That's about it. Mom, you'll have to tell them thanks from me. I'll try to send them something cool, but I don't really have time. hahah.

I'm sorry I won’t really be replying to any questions. I just don't have time today. I will answer any questions/respond to your emails through written mail or next week. Thanks Solon for sending me an email and a pic of the finished bathroom. It looks really nice!!! Woooot! Someone teach Dad how to send pictures because when I get them they're so small. Anyway, I'm going crazy right now! I'm staying! AH!

Now for the update,

This week was good. It seemed like we had a lot more time to tract and find new investigators, although we didn't pick up as many new people to teach as I had hoped. This past week we taught Heena, Nancy, Anthony, Annette, Amanda V. (less active), Sean, Sam, Brother Mason, Stephanie and Gavin Matweyew, Delfy, and the new converts.

We had a bit of a mix up this week with Anthony. He is really hard to get in contact with because he doesn't have a phone. Cody, his cousin who is a member, usually relays messages from us to Anthony at school. Well, that method isn't the most reliable because sometimes Cody forgets what he is supposed to tell Anthony or forgets to tell him anything at all. We went by his apartment a few times trying to catch him, but nothing was working! Finally, on Saturday morning we went over and Anthony was home. He looked so happy when he opened the door. He said "I was worried you were mad at me or weren't going to teach me anymore." That was pretty funny. On Saturday morning we read in the Book of Mormon with him, and he really enjoyed that. He said that he learned a lot and he thinks it's really fun to read with us. We set up an appointment to teach him on Sunday at Tonya's house, which is what we usually try to do with him. Yesterday, we taught him about following the prophet. It still always surprises me how much he takes in as we are teaching him. You would never guess that he is listening when you're teaching him, but whenever we ask him questions or when he asks questions it shows how closely he really was listening. He really wants to be baptized so we're working toward that with him. He wants to be baptized by his cousin, Cody, who isn't worthy right now to do so, but we are going to figure out what goal to set with Anthony for his baptismal date when Cody will be able to perform the ordinance. I love Anthony and I love the recent converts (Tonya, Caitlyn and Kayli) for bringing him under their wing. The thing that is stressing me out is that Anthony lives in the boundaries of the 1st ward but all of his support and his cousin live in the second ward. I'm not really sure what to do, but I've been praying about it and trying to understand what will be best for Anthony.

Nancy met with the Bishop in the 1st ward to get to know him and so he can get to know her. That was really good for her, because afterward she felt like she really has support from him and from the ward. She decided that she needed to push her baptismal date back. She was supposed to be getting baptized this Saturday, but she feels like she isn't quite ready and like she doesn't know enough. I would be disappointed about that, but I was feeling like she wasn't ready to be baptized. Nancy has a hard time understanding things sometimes because she is basically illiterate. We have the Book of Mormon on CD for her to listen to and we are working with her a lot, going over and reading with her a lot of times, so she'll be able to feel more comfortable with what she knows. Also, I just didn't feel like she could be ready for baptism since she's only been to church in 1st ward once, hasn't been going every week, and doesn't keep all of her commitments. Sis Wilkinson really felt like she should just get baptized, so we didn't know what to do. I guess Nancy coming to us saying she wanted to push it back was an answer to my prayers about it. Sister Tolliver has been really great with Nancy, so we'll keep working with her and get her ready to be baptized on November 10th!

We also pushed the Matweyew's date back to November 10th. They said that they would get baptized this Saturday, but Sister Matweyew needs more time. She has somewhat of a belief in everything we teach her, but she needs time to get a testimony of Joseph Smith and that this is Christ's church. When she talked about baptism, she talked about it like she's ripping a band-aid off, as if she just wants to get it over with quick. That kind of put up a red flag for us and we decided that they needed more time to really come to a knowledge of these things for themselves. She felt good about the 10th. She actually said that's what she was thinking before. We just have to make sure that we don't let her  keep pushing her baptismal date back. We've set this goal with her and we're going to help her take the steps to reach that goal. It was really cool because on Monday we asked them why they want to get baptized. Sister Matweyew said that she wants the weight taken off of her that she believes will take place when she's baptized, she wants to be washed clean. Gavin said that he really wants to feel like he's a part of the church and he knows that baptism is a part of that. He also said that he wants to be clean as well. The Matweyew family is really great. The gospel will bring so many blessings into their lives and they really need that right now.  Sister Matweyew has been noticing the way things have been turning around for their family as she has been keeping her commitments and has begun to obey the commandments that we've taught her about - like the Word of Wisdom. I was worried about teaching her that, because she loves coffee, but she agreed to keep it and she hasn't had any coffee since she said she would live that law. I'm just so excited to continue working with them and watch them progress and be baptized as a family. Hopefully we can break down Courtney's wall and she'll be taught as well. I'll be praying that we can teach her.

We had two short lessons with Heena this week. We had just stopped by both times before going to other appointments, but last night was really great. We only had time to share a scripture with her. It was a great experience for me because a scripture I had read a few days ago came to my mind that we could share. The scripture was Alma 22:18 - talking about King Lamoni's father's prayer in which he asks if God is there, and is willing to give up his sins to know God. I had thought about Heena a lot when I studied that particular scripture earlier in the week, so I was grateful that the Lord prepared me to share that with her last night. We talked about real intent with her and how King Lamoni's father had real intent as he prayed to God. The Spirit was really strong and we invited Heena to pray only to Heavenly Father, the way that we pray, and not do any Hindu prayers for one week. We promised her that she would feel the strength and support from Heavenly Father and her relationship with Him would be really strong. We also promised her that if she did so, she would recognize that He is our Father and He is the one and only God. I know that if she does what we invited her to do, she will have very powerful spiritual experiences and it will help her progress toward baptism. She talked to us about how she feels like there has been a void in her life since her husband left her and requested a divorce. I know that it has been really hard for her, and she talked about how happy she has felt as she has learned from us. Once again, we told her that is the Spirit that she's feeling that makes her so happy and told her that she can have that with her all the time if she is baptized. I know that the gospel will fill that void in her life.

 Love,

Sister Bennett

D&C 45:3-5 - Christ truly is our advocate with the Father. How humbling is it to think of Him pleading for us at that last day?

Pictures: The kid with the long hair is Anthony. The guy with the Ravens shirt on is Tyler! He's so awesome!!!