"Look!!!!! It's Sister Missionaries!"

March 18, 2013

Dear People that I am related to and who I love,

That's right - being a sister missionary is like being a celebrity. Seriously. Whenever we see little kids, they freak out and run to say "hi," or they turn to their parents and say, "Look mom!" Just the other night we were in the church and opened the gym door to see who was inside, and these two little girls turn to each other, as the door was closing, and said, "Look! It's the sister missionaries!!" I don't know if elders get the same reaction, but who knows. :)

I can't believe that this is the last week of the transfer! Where has the time gone? I will have to repeat myself, but have been learning so much every week that it seems that it must have been more than 4 weeks that have passed by. That time has flown! That's pretty crazy. I had a neat experience yesterday at church. . . a small, personal experience, but it meant a lot to me. We were in our gospel principles class and the teacher, Sister Overton who served a mission recently with her husband, was teaching about the fall of Adam and Eve. She said that her mission really helped her to understand more about the fall and really about the gospel as a whole. She said that she was forced to gain a better understanding because she was expected to teach people about the gospel. As I sat there, I pondered on my personal understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ and His atonement before my mission and compared it to where I am now. I had a strong feeling come over me of gratitude and clarity. I realized exactly the same thing that President Castro shared with us today from a quote by Elder Christofferson; "Even the mundane and repetitious can be tiny but significant building blocks that in time establish the discipline and character and order needed to realize our plans and dreams." The knowledge of the gospel that I have now is so much more fulfilling and so much greater than what I had before my mission. I know that came through PRAYERFUL study every single day in which I was guided by the Holy Ghost to understand the things that others needed from me. At times, that one hour of personal study seems small, in all reality I always feel that I need so much more time, but I know that it is the Lord's way and now I can see why. I have been building upon my knowledge "revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge (D&C 42:61)" over these past 10 months. I'm so grateful for that and especially for the revelation that I gained in church yesterday. 

This week we had our last exchange of the transfer with the sisters in Agoura Hills. I spent the day in Agoura with Sister Burwell and Sister Lupashko. It was a beautiful day in Agoura. It was super sunny outside and it was about 84 degrees. I actually was caught off guard by that and got a little sunburned. . . whoops! It was a really fun day, as far as the work goes. We talked to a lot of people. Sadly, all of the people we had lessons with cancelled on us, but we still got to teach one investigator and we talked to tons of people on the street as we walked around. I was so excited to get to work with Sister Burwell because we get along so well - she's from Pennsylvania. We worked around each other when I was in Moorpark and she was in Thousand Oaks. I had heard many good things about her, so it was exciting to finally see her in action. She is great! She has a kind of zeal for missionary work that I have honestly never seen. She is just go, go, go. That's definitely my style. I was really impressed with how she literally talks to everyone, no matter what. She's very bold and she isn't afraid to tell anyone that she knows the message of the restored gospel is true. I think my favorite thing about her is how much faith she has in the message. She sometimes can become a bit overbearing/too persistent with people because she knows that if they'll just give us a chance to teach them about the restoration that they'll feel the Spirit and want to learn more. That's one thing that we discussed that she needs to be careful of, because a few people got a bit angry or upset with us because she became a little bit pushy. That's ok though, it's because she loves what she's sharing. Sister Burwell is a bit hard on herself at times, and it reminded me of myself. I think the Lord wanted me to see how Sister Burwell is so I can have a better perspective of myself and so I can help her. She really wants to improve as a missionary and I know that she will because she trusts the Lord to help her. We talked a little bit about teaching people and not just trying to sell a message. She said that is something she's been working on, and I know that if she'll try to connect with people and meet them where they're at that she'll have so much more success. I think she's just a fantastic missionary and with a little refining, she'll be unstoppable.

Agoura Hills

 

 With Sisters Burwell and Lupashko

Sister Lupashko is doing really well, also. She is so great at listening to everything that people have to say rather than listening for a bit, hearing something you can respond to, and then figuring out what to say. She listens the entire time and then responds to them in a very patient and loving manner. I think that people can really tell that she is very interested in them and isn't there to just try to "sell them religion." She didn't get to talk too much because Sister Burwell gets very excited and wants to share a lot. I talked with Sister Lupashko about taking the lead in talking to everyone and stepping in to teach and testify whenever possible. She's a really positive person and I really love her attitude. I'm sad that she is going back to temple square this week because she's such a wonderful missionary. I'm grateful that I was able to work with her twice while she's been here in the Great California Ventura Mission.

This week, in our area, we taught Gabby and Skyler, Jose (twice), Kristyn, Lisa, Rich and Christina, Brother Wages (recent convert), Julia and Daniel, Judy, Sister Ellis (less-active), Richard, Bob, and the Rabagos (less-active).

I'm really excited about teaching Daniel and Julia. Daniel is 12 years old and Julia is 9. They are a part member family. Their mom, Kristi, was less-active for a while but has recently moved in with her mom and dad and has been coming back to church. Daniel and Julia were never baptized and Kristi has received permission from both of their dads for them to learn and be baptized! They are planning on getting baptized on the 30th of March. I'm really excited! They're so fun to teach, because I've never had the opportunity to teach such young people. It really has helped me to simplify the way that I teach, because I have to. They are always so excited when we come over and they just really love missionaries. Julia and her little sister, Alexa (6), always want to hug Sister Lillywhite and me and they always hunt us down at church. That definitely makes us feel appreciated. Anyway, we're excited about teaching them!

We taught Kristyn again this week. That was a disappointing lesson. It seemed like everything was just going wrong. We've felt like we've been making so much progress with Kristyn. She's been learning from missionaries on and off for about two years now. She was finally reading from the Book of Mormon and praying and we felt that in our lessons with her she was getting a lot of answers she was looking for. She's also said, many times, that she feels drawn to the church. Well, when we went over this time it seemed like we had never answered the questions that we had, because she was asking all of the same questions again. It felt like we were back at square one, because she didn't understand why she needed to be baptized again, she hadn't been reading, and she wasn't praying specifically about the message. When we had left her the lesson before, she understood and said she felt really good about everything. She just hasn't been consistent at all with keeping commitments and that's why we have to keep answering the same questions over and over again. She hasn't resolved those concerns herself with the Spirit. This has just helped me realize how important reading the Book of Mormon and praying about it is. As we sat there, the member who came with us, Sister Ruiz, took over the lesson and barely let us speak. That made both of us feel even worse because we didn't get to talk. I just felt really down as I sat there, because I was excited for Kristyn to be getting it before and I just felt powerless in helping her receive the blessings that come through baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. When Sister Ruiz finally stopped talking, I was overcome with so much love for Kristyn and expressed that to her. I felt that she needed to know how much her Heavenly Father loves her and I think even more so, I needed to realize that. It made me get over the anger and frustration I was feeling and seek the guidance of the Spirit to know how to help one of His daughters. I don't know what's going to happen with Kristyn, but we're going to do our best to follow the guidance that we receive from the Spirit to know what we need to do for her.

It sounds like life in Minnesota is exciting. You have had snow every time mom emails me, and what a treat it must've been to have Nanner and Eye-liner there with you. Sounds pretty fun! I love you all and hope you have a good week.

Hey Jordan, you're getting married like in a week. That's so weird! Hahahah.

Love,
Sister Bennett









 

Sniffles

March 12, 2013

 

Dear Family,

Ahhhhchoooo! That's me....ALL THE TIME! I think I've developed allergies. Well, really that I have them here because the stuff flying around in the air is different than Utah and Minnesota. Allergies are THE WORST! Now I know what you feel like, mom, when you have them. They just come and go as they please and annoy me. Also, daylight savings. It's great because it's light out longer, but boy it makes it harder to wake up because it's still dark in the morning. Ugh. I always feel like I was hit in the head with bricks when I wake up now. Hahah.

We just had zone conference yesterday at the Camarillo stake center. It was great to see President and Sister Castro there. It seems like it had been forever, which is weird since I'm a traveling sister. I don't know how I made it so long when I was in Moorpark. I just love Sister Castro. She's such a powerful, dignified lady, but she's funny on top of that. We joke a lot together. Yesterday I just felt so much love from both President and Sister Castro as they spoke to us. Overall, it was a really powerful zone conference and I was able to receive a lot of revelation for ways to become a better steward. President talked a lot about stewardship. He shared with us from a talk by Elder Nelson and we read in D&C 104. One thing that really stuck out to me a lot was when President talked about how Christ was the perfect example of stewardship - He was the steward for His father. I know that we are representing Him in our areas, and I want to understand Him better so I can better represent Him. I'll be finishing the Book of Mormon, again, tomorrow, and I plan on studying Christ's atonement as I read through the Book of Mormon again. I was really touched by one of the assistants, Elder Brodie’s, testimony and how I could just feel that his relationship with the Savior has grown greatly on his mission. He is going home on Monday...he extended but it's time for him to go home. I want that. I know that my relationship with Jesus Christ has become stronger, but there is so much more for me to learn of Him so I can really know Him. I'm just so excited to read through the Book of Mormon again with this focus. It will bring some great spiritual experiences, I'm sure.

We had a really good week. We had two exchanges and some great lessons in our area. There just seems to be a lot going on, so everything that's stuffed into one week is hard to report on. I'll do my best to share the most important points from this past week.

I'll start with the exchanges.

We had an exchange with the Moorpark sisters on Tuesday. That was a treat, to say the least. I was able to work with Sister Stoker here in Ventura. I just love Sister Stoker so much. Being with her again reminded me a lot of the learning experiences I had as her trainer and the help that I received from the Lord. It was also good to talk with Sister Stoker about how things went when we were companions and share my feelings with her about it. She is an awesome missionary. The neatest thing was seeing how much she has grown since I trained her. She has so many strengths as a missionary - her tool belt is definitely full. We had a great day. We had 4 lessons and found a new investigator, as well. It was a bit difficult in lessons since we were working in my area, because that meant that I would take the lead more. She did really well still. She has always been so good at listening to what people say, internalizing it, and then following the Spirit to respond to their concerns or ask more questions. She always asks inspired questions that invite the Spirit. That's something I'm still really working on. Her goal for the day was to be more detailed in her teaching when we're out tracting and declaring. She did great with teaching the Restoration in declarations. When I was with her she would seem to run out of things to say, but now she just continues teaching people if they'll listen. She did great with her goal. If she saw that they had time and weren't going to slam the door, she'd go a little bit deeper in detail about the Restoration. That's how we were able to get a new investigator - she was teaching in detail. Another goal that she had for the day was to be the one to approach people on the street. She said that her companion always approaches people and she almost wishes that she wouldn't. I think it's great that she recognizes that and is working to overcome her fears. Sadly, it was raining the whole day on Wednesday, so there weren't any people outside. Sister Stoker is a strong, powerful missionary. She's still going through a hard time. She seems to be enjoying missionary work more now, but she told me that she is still having a hard time. She wants to feel like she's actually making a difference in these people's lives. We talked about that a lot, because that's been a concern that I've had, and I hope that my words of advice helped her. A few things that we discussed were slowing down in declarations and recognizing that you're talking to a person. Sometimes we get in a routine and just spew off a lot of information at people and don't take the time to check for understanding. She'll be able to adjust and get better at that. I'm just so grateful to have gone on exchanges with her. It's been so neat to go on exchanges with all of my old companions this transfer.

On Friday, we went to South Bakersfield and had exchanges with Sister Tagaloa and Sister Vandenhazel. I went with Sister Tagaloa for the day. She is from Samoa and is a convert. Her family converted before her, but then when she was 16 she was baptized. She's having a hard time. She talked to me about how she thinks a lot about going home and she's been very stressed this tansfer. She really wants Sister Vandenhazel to have a good last transfer and she wants her to know that she is loved. Sister Vandenhazel is going home at the end of the transfer and has struggled throughout her entire mission. I think that is so great of Sister Tagaloa. It just shows her selflessness. I just worry that she's not taking care of herself, emotionally, at the same time. We talked about it on Thursday night when I got there, but on Friday we didn't talk about it again. I just wanted to help Sister Tagaloa have a good day. I think she did. We had a few lessons and spent a lot of time out talking to people. One great thing about Sister Tagaloa is that she talks to literally everyone. I loved that! She doesn't care who they are, they need the gospel and she's going to share it with them. Her goal for the day was to teach to the commitment. She feels like people don't really understand why they should keep the commitments that they are left with. That was a good goal and she did well with it. In declarations she talked about the Book of Mormon and how important it is to read it to know if what we share is true. She always bears her testimony. It's wonderful and powerful. She has such great conviction as she tells people that she knows these things are true. I loved that, too! One thing that we discussed was slowing down when teaching. Sister Tagaloa is SO excited to tell people about the gospel, but they already have a hard time understanding her because her English pronunciation isn't so great, but then she's also speaking very fast. She agreed that she needs to slow down, because she noticed that a lot of people would turn to me and say, "What did she just say?" It may be good for her to have language study. She has a good vocabulary, but it's her pronunciation that could use some help. That would help her teach with more clarity. I enjoyed our day together and she said that she was so happy after working with me on Friday. I was glad to lift her spirits a bit so she can get through the rest of this transfer.

This past week, in our area, we taught Gabby and Skylar (twice), Sabrina, Elaine, Julia, we had our Book of Mormon class, Rhoda, Kristyn, Jessica, Jose (twice), Cryshauna, Jessica S., and Bob.

Last night after zone conference, we had a lesson with Gabby and Skylar. I've just been so excited about teaching them. I want them to accept this message so bad! We talked with them more about Christ's church and the great apostasy. Then, we watched the Restoration DVD to help them understand more. The Spirit was really strong in the room with them. I felt so much love for them as I was able to bear my testimony about receiving my own answer about Joseph Smith. I was 15 when I came to know that he was a prophet, so I can relate to them. Obviously, it's a little different since I was raised in the church, but we all are converts. We have to be. I just could feel how proud Heavenly Father is of them and how He wants them to be happy in their lives. They are such bright girls and they have a pure desire to know truth. They understand what we've taught them and know that it's up to them to find out. Gabby said the closing prayer and offered a simple, heartfelt prayer. She prayed that she could recognize if these things are true and she said she wants to know because she feels like this is a good message. That was pretty cool. When we got back in the car to go to our next appointment, I realized that I hadn't checked the phone all day since we were at zone conference and I hadn't looked at it on the way back! When I looked at the phone there was a text from Gabby, she was saying that she was grateful for us but didn't think they could be Mormon. I was so grateful that we hadn't seen that message. I think we were able to help answer her questions. I just hope she doesn't start doubting and drops us. She just needs to pray and read! It's so simple....I just wish everyone would do it. Why don't they? If they have faith in God they must know that He'll answer them, right? I don't know. I just hope we'll get to teach them again.

We had another great lesson last night with Jose. He's so quiet but he listens closely and he's smart. He understands what we're teaching and he told us he understands what a great difference this would make if it's true. When we talked with him more about the great apostasy, he said that the world today is still so confused. The great thing is that we don't have to be. It's our choice. The gospel brings so much clarity. It's always so powerful when we get to teach people who recognize the confusion in the world and that they no longer need to feel confused. I know that Heavenly Father loves all of His children just as much as He loved Joseph Smith. He answered Joseph Smith's prayer in a spectacular way, but I feel that the answers that I have received were spectacular, to me, as well. My favorite part of missionary work is feeling the love that God has for His children. I'm so grateful for that. Jose accepted a baptismal date and said that he wants to work toward being baptized on the 20th of April. I'm excited for him, because I really feel like he'll do his part. We'll see though.....he still has his agency!

This past week was great. I always say this, but there are just so many miracles, whether big or small, in this work.

I love you all! Thanks for your letters and especially your prayers!

Love,
Sister Bennett

P.S. - I got my shoes, both pairs, and they work great! Thanks so much, Mom.
P.P.S. - I got Jord's wedding announcement! He and Amanda look great! Jordan, you're one handsome redhead. I love that little black and white picture. It's so cute!
P.P.P.S. - The first presidency has changed the policy on emailing and we can now send and receive emails from friends and we can email converts. That last part is great! I'm not sure if I want my friends emailing me, but we'll see. I was wondering if you, Mom, can get me Tonya's email address since she emailed you a while ago when she made me missionary casserole.
P.P.P.P.S. - Can I get aunt Nicole’s mailing address. I never wrote her a thank you for the Christmas package she sent. I'm the worst.

 

 

Sister Tagaloa braided my hair













 

 

Reunited and It Feels So Good

March 4, 2013

Hey Mom, Dad, and everyone else.....

Ok, I'm sorry I didn't mention more about the Bakerfield mission opening up. I didn't have time last week and I hadn't read all of your emails yet. Basically, I feel torn about it. It would be cool to go and open a new mission, but it's Bakersfield...I mean come on! Also, I don't really want to be moved over because President Castro will be staying here. At first I thought that there would be no way that I'd go, because the switch isn't happening until July and I will only have like 3 months left at that point. However, we had dinner at the stake president's home, President Jones, and he talks to President Castro a ton. He's actually President's home teacher. haha. Anyway, President Jones told us that President Castro talked about how he's going to put two assistants out there and have the mission up and running, basically, in Bakersfield before the new mission president even gets there. That worries me because I'm a traveling sister. President Castro has two sets of traveling sisters, English and Spanish, and I think that may have been inspired when he did that. He may want to have a set of traveling sisters there for when the Bakersfield mission opens as well. Who knows what's going to happen. I'm just trying to not think about it at all. Whatever happens is what the Lord wants to happen and that's all that matters to me. I will do what He asks of me, but that isn't happening for another few months, so no worries anymore on my part. Those transfer calls in June will be the most nerve-racking calls of my life though, that's for sure, because whoever is in Bakersfield at the time of the switch will just be staying there. Crazy, but great! The Lord is hastening His work!

I had a really wonderful letter waiting for me here in Ventura when I got home from exchanges. It was from Brenna Lutz telling me about her mission call! She has been called to serve in the Utah Provo Mission! Isn't that awesome! She's going to be so great! She'll be speaking Spanish. The greatest thing about that is that I can see her in Provo while I'm at school! I'm totally going on splits with her! Hahah. I'm so proud of her. Obviously, I'm sure it was a bit of a shock for her at first, but she was so positive and optimistic about serving in Provo. It's the highest baptizing mission in the world....I would love to serve there! I love baptisms! Hahah.

We had a really great week. It went by so fast, but it seems like so much happened throughout the week. We have started again with exchanges, which is really great. It's so fun to get to go and work with the other sisters and I love it even more because we get to have really wonderful, spiritual experiences with them. I definitely think Heavenly Father was blessing me a lot this week, to lift my spirits because I felt the Spirit so much and just felt really good and happy this entire week.

Before I start the rest of my letter, I just want to share a cool miracle that happened just this morning. Sister Lillywhite and I were walking out to the car to come and email and a man named Ted stopped us. He said "I could tell you’re Mormons even if you didn't have your name tags on!" He said that he had talked to missionaries a lot of times, but he never had time to really engage in a conversation because he was always working. He wrote down his name and number and asked us to call him and set up an appointment so we, or whoever the missionaries in his area are, can meet with him. Well, sadly he isn't in our area, but it was still really neat! We usually don't talk to people in our apartment area because we get in trouble by the apartment manager, but this guy stopped us. He seemed genuinely interested in talking to the missionaries. I bet he'll get baptized. Miracle!

This week, in our area, we taught Tammy/Gabby/Skylar, Brother Dumond (less-active), Missy, Jessica, Sister Rous (less-active), Rich, the Biglers (less-active), Cryshauna, Richard, Bob, the Rabagos (returning to activity), and we had our new Book of Mormon class that we're teaching.

We started the week out really great last Monday night. We had Hermana Anderson with us for the night and we were just out trying to contact potential investigators. One of those potentials was Tammy. We went to her apartment and two girls opened the door - Gabby (17) and Skylar (14). They were so cute! They were really open with us as we talked to them about the gospel. They said that they used to go to church every Sunday and they really liked it a lot. Gabby also talked about remembering a service activity that they had done at their church and how fun it was to give service. They said that they wished they could go to church again, but their lives have been so crazy. They are both avid softball players and are super busy with that all week. On top of that, their mom is a single mom and works long hours every day. As we were wrapping up with them, their mom, Tammy, walked up. She was talking on the phone as we were setting up a return appointment with the girls. Right before we were about to leave them with a prayer, Tammy walked up and said "hello." We shared our message with her, briefly, and asked if we could leave them with a prayer and come back in a week. She then invited us in and we talked a little bit more before saying a prayer with them. It was great! Tammy seemed more skeptical; she said she had her own church, but she still said we can come back. The girls seemed very excited. I'm really looking forward to going and teaching them tonight. I just love teaching youth, so I hope their mom will allow them to learn.

The next morning, Tuesday, we were again trying to contact some potential investigators and we stopped by an apartment right around the area where Jimmy lives. A girl named Missy answered the door. She is possibly in her 30s and she is from American Samoa. How cool is that? She told us that she had a lot of family and friends who are members of the church and that the missionaries had visited their home before. Right now, Missy is living with her aunt and going to school, but she is planning on going back home to American Samoa sometime soon. As we talked more with her about the Book of Mormon, she opened up to us and told us that she had always noticed a difference in her cousins and friends who are members of the church. She saw a light in them and a joy that she couldn't seem to attain. Then she said that she really wants what they have and that she knows it is because they are members of the church. We invited her to be baptized and she once again said "Yes, I would because I really do want what they have." I just felt so grateful in that moment to know what the difference is between Missy and her cousins who are members - the gift of the Holy Ghost. We have the Spirit with us and I know that other people recognize that. That's why people always like the missionaries. Not because we're great ourselves, but because we have the Spirit with us and the mantle of our calling as representatives of Christ! We invited Missy to join us for church but she said even though she wanted to come, she didn't think her aunt would like it (the aunt that she is living with). That may be a barrier for Missy, but hopefully when we go back the aunt will be home and we can teach her as well. That would definitely take care of the barrier. We're teaching her tomorrow morning, so I'm excited to help her progress toward baptism.

On our way out of the lesson with Missy, we saw the assistants standing out by the street. When we first got to the area that we were working in that day, we saw the assistants in the park teaching a lesson to Jimmy! We were really excited about that, so when we saw them standing outside we went over to talk with them and ask them how Jimmy is doing. It was so great to hear all of the updates on him. He is so prepared to receive the gospel. They told us that Jimmy expressed a great desire to be baptized now, but he understands that he needs to learn more from the missionaries first to prepare. He also went to family home evening the night before and loved it! We were told that when he walked in to FHE, he saw 5 of his friends from high school. That's a miracle because Sister Lillywhite and I were praying so much that he would know someone who is a member and can help him as he progresses. The greatest part was when Elder Cary told us about Jimmy walking up to one of his close friends from high school and saying to him, "You're a member? (This guy was a convert who just got off of his mission) Why didn't you tell me about this? You knew this whole time and didn't share it with me?" That made me almost sad, because it caused me to reflect on my high school experience and the opportunities I had to share the gospel with my friends. I hope there won’t come a day when someone walks up to me and says "You knew this whole time and didn't share it with me?" That would break my heart. The best part was that after Jimmy said that, he then replied again and said, "That's ok. I'm here now." That must have been a beautiful moment. I felt the Spirit a lot just as I heard the story from Elder Cary. I just love Jimmy a lot, and I'm glad that the Lord has placed these people in his life to help him as he comes unto Christ through baptism into His church. This work sure is amazing.

Alright, so now on to reporting about the exchanges we went on this week. We went to San Luis Obispo and Santa Maria on Thursday and Friday. The weather was beautiful but the work was even better!

I worked with Sister Putnam in San Luis Obispo. It was so great to be reunited with her for a day! I loved being her companion, and it was neat to see the changes in her since the time that she was my companion. We had a day filled with tracting. That was ok, though, because Sister Putnam's goal was to teach the entire Restoration in declarations. It was an interesting day. I'll leave it at that. We had some interesting run-ins with people and a lot of door slams, which I haven't experienced for a while, I guess, because it was very surprising. Sister Putnam is good at teaching to needs because she is such a good listener. She's able to take in what the person is saying and then figure out what their true need is. I could tell because I saw the light go on in people's eyes when she started testifying to the need that Sister Putnam had discovered. That's one thing that I learned from her, ask more questions in declarations so you can meet needs. She struggled a bit with teaching the entire Restoration. She was definitely trying to do it, but it seemed like she wasn't really sure how to. We talked a lot about how to approach teaching in declarations while still trying to meet their needs. I talked to her about just starting to teach the Restoration right away and asking questions as you go, because I know that the Spirit will testify to them according to their needs and it will also testify to us so we can understand their needs. She'll do well with that, she just needs to keep working on it. One thing that I also talked to her about is being more persistent. The funny part is that she knows it. There were a few times when we finished talking to someone and she would say, I should've kept going and not taken no for an answer so quickly. I agreed and was thinking about what Elder Holland said in Preach My Gospel - the people we talk to may not understand the importance of what we share, but we sure do. We need to act like we do and do our best to help them recognize the importance of the message. Sister Putnam is doing really well. I can see that she is a lot more obedient now and that she has seen blessings in the work as a result of her obedience. That was nice to notice, because that was something that she struggled with at first when she was my companion. Now it's obvious that it's a part of who she is as a missionary.

On Friday I worked with Sister Wilkinson in Santa Maria. That's two of my old companions in two days! That was really neat, and this week I get to work with Sister Stoker. If only Sister Tippetts could come and be my companion for a day, then I would have worked with all of my companions this transfer. Anyway, it was really good for Sister Wilkinson and I to work together. We struggled a bit at the end of our time together as companions, so it was nice to talk about things and about ways that we've grown since we were companions. I was amazed at how much Sister Wilkinson has changed as a missionary. She is more calm and collected, but even more determined and diligent. She is so open about her love for the gospel and she testifies with sincerity to everyone she meets. She really does talk to everyone. We stopped for lunch at Taco Bell and she talked to two people while I was ordering my food! That's great! We had some really powerful declarations as we taught and testified of the Restoration of the gospel. I seriously couldn't take the smile off of my face that whole day, because it was just that great. Sister Wilkinson's goal was to find the needs of people in declarations and teach to their needs by asking more questions. When Sister Wilkinson puts her mind to something, she does it. That's one thing that always has stuck out to me about her. She applies what she learns and when she sets a goal she doesn't forget about it until she achieves it. She was doing her best to ask a lot of questions, but one thing that I talked about with her was finding a balance between asking questions and quickly referring to the message of the Restoration. We still need to make sure to be teaching people the doctrine, and if we don't get to it quickly enough we'll miss our chance to teach them about it. She was able to find the balance while I was there, because I quickly started teaching about the Restoration after she would ask questions. She said that she'll work on just starting to teach more quickly and asking questions throughout the declaration to understand their needs better. I am so grateful for Sister Wilkinson. She is so loving and just made me feel so good about myself. I know that she's that way with all of her companions and all of the missionaries - especially the sisters. She is so obedient and focused on the work, and I'm grateful to have spent the day learning from her and hopefully giving her some help with things that she struggles with.

It was really such a great week. There are so many miracles in this work that it's blowing my mind! I'm just so grateful for all of the amazing experiences I'm having...whether they're hard or not.

I love you all sooooooooo much!

Love,
Sister Bennett

P.S. - Funny story time!!!! Ok, so while I was on exchanges with Sister Wilkinson in Santa Maria, we were going to contact a referral we had received. There was a gate outside of these people's home and I was too short to reach over and unlatch it, so Sister Wilkinson worked on it. While she was trying to open it, I noticed barking and turned around and saw these two little dumb dogs, one was a chihuahua and the other one was some fluffy little white dog (they were both ugly...because they're dogs). Well, they were annoying me, so I did what I always do when I see these pestery little dogs....I juked at them (aka - I did a quick little move like I was going to run after them...you know like a cut in basketball to get open or something). Well that was funny, both of them took off and Sister Wilkinson got the gate open then and we went to try this referral. No one was home, so we were walking back to the car and these two little dogs were in the driveway, at the house next-door, barking at us again. I turned to Sister Wilkinson and said "Watch this" and did the juke move toward them again. They ran away and Sister Wilkinson and I laughed and continued walking back to the car. Then Sister Wilkinson, who was walking a little in front of me, looked back and said "Look!" Now there were three little dogs and they were coming at me! I stopped in the road and tried to scare them away again with the "juke." It worked on the first two dogs that we had seen, but the new dog just kept coming at me. It was seriously going for my ankles! I tried to scare it away, but it was about to bite me so I kicked it in the head and started running for the car! Hahahaha! As I was running past Sister Wilkinson, I briefly saw her facing the dogs and saw her bent over waving her arm or something. I had no idea what she was doing, but I wasn't going to stop to check. When we both got back in the car, Sister Wilkinson said that she had waved the Book of Mormon at them and they ran away! Hahahah. Isn't that hilarious! It was also funny when Sister Wilkinson told me that she had thought about how they might come after us with our backs turned, because she remembered a story I had told her about Erin when she was in Guatemala. You know, when Erin turned her back and some little dog got up the courage to run up and bite her. Sister Wilkinson just thought that she needed to beware of that ever since she had heard Erin's story. hahaha. Fun stuff! My adrenaline was definitely pumping. Hahahaha.

P.P.S. - The picture attached to the other emails is of our exchange in Santa Maria with Sister Wilkinson and Romero. We were all wearing red to bed that night! Nice!

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bakersfield Mission?!? Uh OH!

 

February 25, 2013

 

Dearest Family!

Bakersfield is going to be its own mission! Ahhhh! I'm super excited, actually, but nervous! I don't want to be moved over, but we'll see what happens. I'm glad to go wherever the Lord needs me. I don't have much time to write, so this one won’t be the longest...but it will suffice.  

I feel like this past week I haven't been able to gather my thoughts. I have been feeling, as I've mentioned in previous letters, like I'm plateauing. As a missionary, that's the last thing that I want to be thinking. I'm working hard to continue growing, but it seems like my efforts haven't been placed in the right areas or they haven't been enough. I've been studying the past few days about receiving revelation and I have also been reading in my patriarchal blessing a lot in order to seek guidance. I have realized that I need to be more actively seeking what the Lord wants me to change rather than doing what I desire or what I think is best. I'm glad that I've come to realize that because when I go by my own list of "things that Sister Bennett needs to change" I become quickly overwhelmed. I find myself, in those times, only focusing on how far I have to go to become like the Savior. It makes me feel as though I am disappointing my Father in Heaven because time after time I make the same errors. As I studied my patriarchal blessing, I was able to recognize promised blessings that I have yet to access, and I know that I can have those things present in my life if I will seek after them. Lately, I have been able to understand better what these wonderful people we're teaching must go through. At first, they look at the changes ahead of them as large mountains to climb without a rope or without a harness. That is how I have allowed myself to feel for the past few weeks, but through many sincere prayers and more focused study, I have re-established something that I already knew. The Savior is always standing on the tops of the mountains in our lives and attached to Him, always, is the rope of the atonement. Some of the struggle in our lives is trying to understand how to use that rope to climb up and over each mountain, but I know that our Heavenly Father isn't going to leave us alone or confused. As we actively seek Him, we will recognize how the atonement can be used for each specific and personal mountain that we must overcome. As we more fully understand how to use the atonement, it is then up to us to take one step at a time, clinging to the atonement. As I think about it, I recognize that when you literally hike up a mountain, it may seem, at times, like you are making no progress at all, but as you keep pushing forward and take only a few brief moments to look back you can recognize the progress you have made. That's what I am now striving to do. I need to understand how the atonement can be used in my life, and as I work to overcome my weaknesses, I just need to keep my eyes forward until He tells me that I can look back to see how far I have come. 

We met this last week with President Castro to talk about exchanges that will be taking place and to receive counsel from him, I felt the Spirit infusing me with an even greater drive to make changes in my life. At first after the meeting, I just felt overwhelmed. I didn't understand how I would be able to really give the sisters what they need from me. I just want them to be able to have powerful experiences on exchanges with me, and I want them to be able to go away from the exchanges with a desire to change and grow. I recognize now, after Sister Lillywhite said it to me, that I need to not be so hard on myself. I remember that President Castro had given me similar counsel when he issued the call to me to become a traveling sister. I expect a lot out of myself, but I know that I cannot and will not be perfect. However, with the Savior's help and the guidance of the Spirit I know that He will use me to take care of these sisters. I'm just going to focus on one sister at a time as I prepare to go on exchanges with each. I know that I have been called to serve as a traveling sister because I have certain gifts and abilities that will be able to bless these sisters. I am grateful for the spiritual gifts that I have been blessed with and I'm excited to seek guidance on what other gifts I need and can acquire to bless others’ lives more. I was glad to receive the direction concerning our areas and that these sisters are a part of our teaching pool. I have been focusing on them a lot, but at times I felt that I didn't know who I should focus on more - the investigators we're teaching or the sisters. Now, I just view them as all being investigators who have specific needs and challenges that I can help with. I am just grateful to be able to serve in this mission with these great sisters here. I love them so much and as I have been praying for them that love has only become greater. 

This week we taught Jimmy, Sabrina, Lisa, Kristyn, Bob, Kelly, Matilde, the Evangelistas, the Biglers (less-active), Sister Rous (less-active), Bette (less-active), and the Rabagos (less-active).

I really love Jimmy. He is just such an inherently good person and I'm so grateful that we were guided by the Spirit to find him. He needs the gospel. He doesn't live in the best situation and doesn't have the best friends, but I can see right now, in my mind, what his life will be like as he continues to progress in the gospel and is baptized. Jimmy is 20 years-old. He's Hispanic and is renting a room in his friend's apartment so that his mom doesn't have to worry about providing for him. This past week we taught him the Plan of Salvation and it was so amazing to just follow the Spirit throughout his lesson. We were able to ask questions and read scriptures that really got Jimmy to think, and the most amazing part was listening to him talk through things and figure things out for himself. Then, when he would realize something, his face would light up and he would just say "Wow, that's powerful." I can feel how much Heavenly Father loves Him. He is one of the Father's choice sons and Jimmy's future is so bright with the gospel lighting it up. Sadly, for us, we won’t be teaching him anymore. We passed him off to the young single adult ward elders on Saturday. I know that is what's best for Jimmy. He'll be able to make some really good friends who have good morals just like Jimmy. On Saturday night, we had dinner with the Stassforth family and their daughter and her boyfriend are in the singles ward. We were able to talk to them about Jimmy, and Chandler, the boyfriend, said that he will definitely get in contact with the elders and go to the appointments they have with Jimmy. I was so grateful to hear that because I was praying a lot that day about Jimmy and that he would be taken care of. I have felt a lot of comfort about it and I know that he is in good hands. 

 Well, I seem to have run out of time, but the work is going well in our area. Sister Lillywhite is a great example to me and I'm doing my best to learn the things that I need to from her before she leaves. It's hard though. It's like trying to take a drink from a fire hydrant. I'm doing my best. 

 

I love you all,

Sister Bennett 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fwd: California Bakersfield Mission to Be Created

 February 25, 2013

 

 

Can you believe this!?!??!!!!! I need the whole family to start praying that I won't be moved to the Bakersfield mission! I don't want to leave President Castro! 

 

 

 

 

 ---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: Fernando Castro ‪<frcastro@ldschurch.org>

Date: Sun, Feb 24, 2013 at 11:49 PM
Subject: California Bakersfield Mission to Be Created

 

To: All Missionaries

The First Presidency recently announced the creation of 58 new missions in order to accommodate the influx of new missionaries. One of the new missions to be created as a result of this historic announcement is the “California Bakersfield Mission.” This is exciting news and further confirmation that “the field is [indeed] white already to harvest” in this part of the world. 

This announcement means that the current boundaries of the Ventura Mission will be realigned to form the new Bakersfield Mission. As far as which missionaries will serve in the Bakersfield Mission and which missionaries will remain in the Ventura Mission, that determination will be made through revelatory direction from the Lord, whose work this is, during the June 17^th transfer. At that transfer, those missionaries serving in areas within the new boundaries of the Ventura Mission will remain assigned to the Ventura Mission, and those missionaries serving within the new Bakersfield Mission boundaries will be permanently assigned to the Bakersfield Mission under the jurisdiction of a new mission president on July 1, 2013.

Please share this information with your family. We will keep you informed when we receive additional instructions from the Brethren. For now we simply need to carry on as usual with our responsibilities to find, teach, and baptize worthy converts.

What a blessing it is to be a missionary at this time when the Lord is raising up “laborers” (both elders and sisters) and “hastening” his work of salvation (D&C 88:72-74).

With love,

President Castro

Will You Follow the Example of Jesus Christ and Be Baptized?

 

February 18, 2013

 

Dear Family!

You all have had a TON going on! First off, congrats to Brandice and Solon! I see that they named their baby something as close as they could to my name without it being awkward. Nice work nan! I knew you loved me! Haley...Eily. Sounds alike! Just saying! Ok, maybe not. Hey, also congrats to Jordan and Amanda! I'm excited to have another sister, but saddened that she is another blackhead. That's ok, Amanda, not everyone can have beautiful red hair like us....right redheads? Right. Happy Birthday to Solon! I had no idea when your birthday was, so I'm sorry I didn't send a card! I feel terrible! I'm the worst sister-in-law ever. Forgive me...I'm a missionary. Wow! I'm just so happy to hear about all of the great things going on in your lives! Really....I'm feeling really full of joy right now, my chest is all tight! Weird! Haha.

Well, my first transfer as a traveling sister has come to an end. It went by so quickly, but it seems like it should have been 12 weeks rather than 6 because so much happened in that short span of time. I'm excited to start a new transfer. It's always nice to have a "fresh start," in a way, that comes with transfers. I'm mostly excited to get going again on having exchanges. I've missed seeing the sisters. They help me learn so much and I'm excited to see/hear about the improvements that they've been making since the last time we had exchanges with them. I'm happy to have Sister Lillywhite as my companion for another transfer. She is a great missionary and I know that I still have so much to learn from her before she heads back to New Mexico at the end of the transfer. 

President Castro sent out a message that this week will just be a five week transfer whereas transfers are usually six weeks. A lot of missions are doing this so they can get the new missionaries into the field quicker. That's exciting! That also means that I will come home a week earlier than I would have since that will affect the rest of the year. Crazy, right! I'm excited for all of the new sisters to come next transfer. This week we're getting just one English sister and two Spanish. I'm still excited though! Haha. 

Well, this week was great! It was a very successful week in our area. It was nice to spend the entire week just working here in Ventura, in our part of the vineyard. We had a goal to invite more people to be baptized because we felt we really could be doing better on that and that if we were focusing on doing that, our declarations would be more focused on our purpose. Well, we invited a lot of people to be baptized this week and we now have 4 investigators with baptismal dates! We will, sadly, need to pass two of them off to the YSA elders, but we're so excited to see the Lord help us as we had righteous desires. 

This week we taught Rita, Eve, Lizette, Jose, the Evangelistas (recent convert), Kelley, Jimmy, Kristyn, Lisa, Brother Juker (less-active), Karina, Bob, Arianna, Jessica, Sister Rous (less-active), Brother Allen (less-active), the Biglers (less-active), Cryshauna, Sister Ellis (less-active), David, and the Rabagos (less-active).

This week was my first time meeting Lizette. She was a potential that the Sisters had met tracting a while ago, but she was sick and didn't really have time to talk. Lizette has lupus, so she gets sick very often. She is in her early 30s, is married, and has an eleven year old son. She actually used to live in the same apartment complex as the assistants and she would do laundry at the same time as them a lot. They, of course, talked to her a lot about the church and then she moved. She is familiar with the missionaries, but she wasn't too familiar with what we believe. She let us come inside, and we taught her about the Restoration. She's Catholic, she was actually wearing a rosary, but she doesn't always attend. She talked about how she likes different pieces from a lot of religions, so when we taught her about the great apostasy she thought it made a lot of sense. At times I wasn't sure if she was really listening because she seemed like the type of person that wants to seem like she already knows things, but when we asked her questions she seemed to have grasped a lot of what we taught. She really felt that Joseph Smith's experience was amazing and she understood the importance of reading and praying about what we shared. She was so happy when we gave her a copy of the Book of Mormon and she said that she really was going to read it and pray about it. We invited her to be baptized and she said, "Oh yes! Of course I will when I know!" She is set for March 23rd! We're meeting with her again this week, so we're really excited. I've just been praying that she'll feel well that day so she can still meet with us.

We also had a great lesson with Lisa. Lisa is in her 40s. We met her tracting a few weeks ago and she seemed pretty interested. When we went back this last week, she has actually read a bit in the Book of Mormon, so she was more serious about this than we originally thought. We taught her about the Restoration and she had a lot of good questions. I really enjoy it when people ask us questions, because it shows that they actually care and are paying attention. I don't like it when they just take our word for it on everything. People should be skeptical and should take this to the Lord in prayer. That's such a crucial step for every single member of the church, whether they were born in the church or not. We won’t have our own testimony of it until we ask. In PMG it says that "no one can know of spiritual truths without prayer." I know that that is true, no matter what, we need to help investigators understand the importance of prayer. Lisa, at one point in the lesson, kind of broke down and cried about her divorce. She doesn't seem to have a lot of self-worth. She kept saying that she wants to make changes but she doesn't think she can do it. I'm excited to continue teaching her and help her understand who she really is. The plan of salvation lesson will be so great for her. She also accepted a baptismal date. She'll be working toward the 30th of March! 

We just saw so many miracles this week! I almost couldn't believe how many miracles we saw. I'm just grateful that as we work hard, the Lord will reward us with these great miracles. He always pulls through, always! It's up to us whether or not we get to enjoy them by the decisions we make. 

Thanks for the package mom! Sister Lillywhite is grateful that you also sent her a valentine and I really like my new purse! It's the perfect size! Give baby Eily a huge kiss from her favorite aunt and make sure you show her my picture once a day. Thanks. 

I love you all so much! Have a great week! 

 

Love,

Sister Bennett 

 

P.S. - Sorry this one is short. I'm short....on time! 

P.P.S. - What's the status on the shoes, mom? I'm in need! :) 

 

 

 

 

Back in Moorpark with Sister Stoker.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Obedience is Bliss

 

February 11, 2013

 

Dear family,

Onward Christian Soldiers! We are forging onward in our area here in Ventura. We had a successful week topped off with an inspiring baptism. We had our last exchange of the transfer this week and I surprisingly was back in Moorpark for the day on Wednesday. We had some great lessons this week and saw a lot of miracles. It's neat to see that we can find miracles in every single day if we'll just look for them. I love my companion because she helps me recognize the miracles and I can see that we are growing together. We set goals as a companionship and work to reach them, as well as helping support each other with the individual goals that we have. We are preparing! We are preparing for the new sisters who will be coming, the exchanges that we'll have next transfer (if we're both traveling sisters still), and most importantly for the Lord's elect that He wants us to teach. Preparation precedes....well everything. I guess you could say that this is a lesson I definitely learned this week and have been thinking about a lot. 

This week, as I mentioned earlier, our exchange was with the sisters serving in Moorpark! At the beginning of the week, Sister Lillywhite and I weren't sure of who should go to Moorpark for the exchange and who should work in Ventura for it. I didn't want to say much because I wasn't sure if I should go back to Moorpark so soon. When the day for the exchange came, Sister Lillywhite suggested that I go to Moorpark for Sister Kiyotani's sake. We wanted to see how well she knows the area and how she would do with the lessons without Sister Stoker there since Sister Stoker knows the people better. I had very mixed emotions about being in Moorpark, but when it all came down to it I felt grateful for the time I had there and even more grateful to be serving in Ventura now. I think that helped me a lot. It was good to see how well those two sisters are doing there and I know that they are the ones that the people in Moorpark need at this time, so that was a great side revelation for me. Now, the more important part - Sister Kiyotani. She is from Japan! She came out the same day that I did. Actually, I sat in front of her on the plane ride here and she taught a guy about the gospel the whole way! She is so great! I really enjoyed working with her. She is doing really well with her English, but she gets nervous when we are out declaring so it gets a little bit harder to understand what she is saying. She is a really great teacher. She teaches simply and powerfully. I really loved how often she bears her testimony in lessons. It made me think about that for myself and I have a goal to be better about not just testifying at the end but throughout the entire lesson. Sister Kiyotani is so humble and she is always looking to teach, no matter what. In one situation, this lady that we had an appointment with was home, but she said that she just didn't have time right then. She set up another appointment, but Sister Kiyotani didn't just say "bye" and leave. She asked how this lady's scripture reading was going and then taught her about praying as she reads the Book of Mormon. I thought that was so great. That is our job as missionaries...we TEACH! She's definitely doing that. She is a great example to me and to all of the sisters. I actually got to see a lot of people that I LOVE while I was there in Moorpark.

 

 

 

 

 

Nanci Buchalter had a lesson with the sisters the night before I came and they told her that I would be there, so she said "I need service!" Haha. We went over and helped her put away Christmas lights. It was so great hearing about her. She's been going to church every week and is set on getting herself back to the temple. Man. It was just so great to hear about everyone from Sister Kiyotani. I just felt so happy and full of love as she told me about everyone and the progress that they are making. I almost started crying, not because I miss them, even though I do, but because it just made me so happy. Weird. I haven't been emotional AT ALL throughout my mission, but that was a bit emotional. Miracle - Sister Kiyotani and I were walking down a random street in a not so nice part of town, and this car came driving around the corner. You know me, I recognize cars. I thought to myself, "That looks like Nancy's car." It didn't make sense though, because there would be no reason for her to be in that part of town. Well, I saw her son and then recognized her....so I ran into the street waving my arms (sorry mom...I know, safety first. I was excited!). She pulled over and got out. She was freaking out! Haha. I was so happy to see her, and Sister Kiyotani said that was a real miracle because Nancy has been having a hard time with her family. I'm glad I got to see her. The cherry on top of the day in Moorpark was having dinner with the Lutz family, of course. Sister Stoker is so kind. When she found out I would be the one coming to Moorpark for the exchange, she called the Lutzs' and told them that I was coming and they said they wanted to feed me. It was so good to see them! I just love them so much. It was especially good to see Brenna. We've been writing each other since I left. We just became such good friends while I was there because she came out and worked with us and things like that. Brenna, over dinner, told me that she had her interview with the stake president (for her mission papers) and he asked why she decided to go on a mission. Brenna said that it was because of me, that she said she wanted to go on a mission before, but that she didn't really. Then we met during the summer while she was home from school and kind of became friends, but then in November she came back and I was still there! Hahah. She said she learned a lot from me and it really made her want to go on a mission not for herself, but for those who she will serve. Wow. That's just funny, because Brenna helped me so much. I think with her it helped me find the happy middle between being a missionary and still being me, and I am very grateful for that. I told her in one letter that "obedience is bliss," and the whole Lutz family kept saying that to me. haha. It's just funny because brother Lutz used to give me a hard time about always looking at my watch and for being a "stickler." I know he loved it, but he still made fun of me. Brenna did say that she really loved that and is going to make a bookmark out of it for herself....haha. Whatever, obedience really is bliss! It was good to be in Moorpark and it was harder this time to say goodbye to the Lutz family, but I'm glad to be serving in Ventura. I know this is where I should be. 

This week we had more time in our area, so we got to teach a lot more lessons. That was nice for me to get back to the everyday work. We taught Bob, Brother Dumond, Rhoda, Jimmy, Brother Wages, Cheryl, Denis, Jessica, Sister Rous, Sister Ellis, Zarima, the Biglers (less-active), and the Rabagos. 

It was really neat finding Jimmy. He is Hispanic and is 20 years old. We found him when we tried to contact a potential investigator who he lives with, but Jimmy answered the door so we just started teaching him. He seemed really interested, but I was kind of doubtful about how genuine he was. I thought he was just being nice and didn't want to say no to us. WRONG! When we went back to teach him later on in the week, he was home and ready. He talked about how he really wants to have God in his life more and that he's been looking for a church but just hasn't found one. Sister Lillywhite and I taught him the restoration and he really connected with it. As we taught, he would ask a lot of sincere questions that led right into what we were teaching about next. When we shared the experience that Joseph Smith had, with seeing Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, he had a really positive reaction. He said "Wow, he really saw angels?" I was so happy to tell him "Not just angels. He saw our Heavenly Father and His son Jesus Christ." The Spirit was so strong when we told him that and we invited him to be baptized. He accepted a baptismal date as well. His goal is to be baptized on March 23rd. Sadly, he is a young single adult, so we'll have to pass him off to the elders who serve in the YSA ward, but that's ok. He seemed excited about the idea of going to church with people his age and I know that will be really good for him. I'm just grateful that we got to teach him because I felt the Spirit a lot and it gave me extra "umph" to keep going. Those experiences are definitely blessings from the Lord for that reason exactly, to help us keep working and pushing on. 

Bob was baptized on Friday night! It was so great to see President and Sister Castro and Samuel there. I felt the Spirit so strongly. I was really grateful for all of the support from the ward. I was actually a bit surprised, but at the same time I shouldn't have been. Bob is so great. He just talks to everyone, so I know that he's met a lot of people at church. Bob asked me to speak on the Holy Ghost, so I talked about the story of King Lamoni's conversion. His story is one of my favorites in the Book of Mormon, because he felt the Spirit so strongly and then he acted on it. I just talked about how great the power of the Holy Ghost is, so how much greater it must be to have the GIFT of the Holy Ghost. You can basically read my talk in Alma. Read Alma 18:39-42 - that's when Ammon teaches King Lamoni the "discussions" and King Lamoni feels the Spirit and passes out. Alma 19:6 is one of my very favorite scriptures in the Book of Mormon....it describes what exactly happened to the king. Then Alma 19:13 - the King wakes up and bears his testimony! It's all because of the Spirit, which Ammon has (Alma 18:34-35). That was my talk in a nutshell. :) There were some really powerful testimonies that were borne and I felt so grateful that I've made covenants with my Heavenly Father. I know that those covenants make us free. I know how much He loves me because He gives me the chance to enter into those covenants with Him. Once again, I'm just grateful to have been along for the ride with Bob. He was so prepared that we barely had to do anything. I'm not sure what I've done to deserve the opportunity to teach so many of the Lord's elect, but I feel very thankful. I told Bob that his baptism was so spiritual and powerful for me that I would be fine if I don't have any more the rest of my mission. I didn't say I don't want one, but I could survive from the strong feelings I had at this baptism. Hopefully we'll have some more baptisms. I really love them. :) 

 

Well, another great week to be a missionary! I doubt that will ever change! It's "always good weather" when you're a missionary. I love you all! I hope Brandice has her baby soon! Good luck to you on that one Nanner....you're definitely in my prayers. 

 Love,

Sister Bennett 

 

P.S. - I went to the chiropractor this week. Sister Ruiz is a chiropractor, a member of the ward, and she said that she would take care of me for free. I actually forgot to tell you that last week I had to go and get x-rays of my back. I just have discomfort in my upper back and can't breathe in really deep without it feeling really tight. Anyway, Sister Ruiz showed me the x-rays, which are SO SWEET! She talked about things that are going on with my back and the worst part of my spine is my neck area. She said she hadn't seen it like that before. The right side of my neck is SUPER tight...the muscles there are like always contracted. Anyway, she has realigned me a few times and I need to keep going so it will get back where it is supposed to be. Missionary medical paid for the x-rays and Sister Ruiz is taking care of me for free. I just thought you would want to know about that. haha. She's taking good care of me. She'll probably send you the x-rays so I have them after the mission. You'll have to check it out. They're saaaaaweet! I might want to be a chiropractor when I get home. I really enjoyed that. Maybe a sports chiropractor....we'll see. Ok love you! 

 

P.P.S. - This scripture describes Mom - Moroni 10:32.

 

 

 

Bob's Baptism