My Mission and Before

AUGUST 12, 2013

Hello my wonderful family and friends,

It never ceases to amaze me how fast time flies by. I literally feel like I wrote you all yesterday. I don't know how this happens I really don't. We have had a busy week though and quite a stressful one at that. We just had so many things to do. Here is a list.

1. Our washing machine broke so we had to go over to the Bensons to fix it. And call the guy to come over and fix it as well.

2. District meeting and Puppet show. The senior couple here the Bensons wanted to put on a show for younger kids about smoking and being healthy (showering, washing food, other things) And so we had to practice it. We do a puppet show and the kids have loved it so far. It's really becoming successful.

Just so you know I have seen kids smoke here at the age of like 10. So it's really good that they are trying this.

3. Lessons with our investigators (bine inteles) we were actually going to have a drop lesson this week but that changed. Will have to tell you why in a later paragraph about that beautiful lesson. We also got bunged a lot this week and I mean A LOT. 

4. A member from Alexandria... don't know if I am spelling that right... anyways came into town for a job interview and she needed help getting there so we helped her around town. Turns out she wants to go on a mission and really wants this job so she can live in Bucharest. Because we are there SISTERS and she wants to do splits with us and learn more about missionary work. SUPER COOL! We really like her and we pray she gets the job ;)

5. I PICKED UP MY NEW COMPANION! Sora Irina Letinu! She is adorable and I already just love her to pieces seriously! 

6. We have started a new area of trying to obtain new investigators and people to just come to the church. SPORTS NIGHT. We have tried to introduce American Football here and we played volleyball, battmittion... how do you spell that? basketball... and other cardgames for those that just want to hang out. It was really successful and fun and we are hoping this Wednesday will be the same :)

7. Well and then Sora Letinu and I are basically starting from scratch. It's like we opened a new area for Bucharest. And we aren't starting off with any investigators because the ones we are teaching before are the other sisters. Gosh super crazy. So now we contact... tot timpul. And ya'll know how much I just love contacting :)

 

So yeah it was a busy week for us. Not to mention that Sora Stapley and Sora Gerhartz were in Arad for exchanges so it was just me and Sora Letinu dealing with the big things in Bucharest. :)

 

First I think I will talk about our wonderful lesson we had and then a lesson that wasn't well my favorite...

So Adina. I believe I have talked about her before and her husband Stuart. We went in preparing for a drop lesson because she hasn't kept any of her commitments and these lessons were now becoming more for her husband who was a less active. And so we went in and if she hasn't kept this last commitment we were going to move on and just kinda teach Stuart. So we go in and I had just been praying that she would hav read the chapter that's really what I wanted. Because she is so wonderful she just wasn't progressing. And well she hasn't read but her husband read. I was so MAD. I am not kidding. I don't think I have ever felt just so dissapointed and mad in a lesson before. But I was just so angry. And I didn't know what to say and what I probably would have said if it wasn't for my companions is that I am not here for myself. I am here for her to help her and she doesn't even see how much she could have and what she would have if she would just keep her dang commitments. AND JUST TRY! But I didn't. And we started talking about Alma 32 again. About a seed being planted. And I wasn't saying much because I didn't want to offend her and I didn't want her to be out of the church for ever ya know especially since her husband is trying to come back to church. So I thought about everything and really just tried to follow the spirit. I had an impression to ask a question, a very bold question that would let us know exactly what she wanted to do. To continue or not or about what she is thinking really. And as some of you know I'm not very subtle about things. And my question was,"Do you have a desire to learn more about this gospel of Jesus Christ." Now I know my companions were worried about this because... well they already know I am super loud and I say things that come to my head... But it was absolutely perfect. And I am just glad that this question was purely given to me by the spirit. Because she paused and thought about it for a while. Her response was this (of course I am paraphrasing) "I want my children to grow up with good standards and morals and I see this in the church. I don't know if I want this in my life right now. But I want it for my future family and for my kids. I want to raise my children in this church. Because I see that it's good and I see the kids in the church and how they are. I want that for my future kids..." Now how interesting was this that she would say this and that opened up a whole new discussion because we were finally able to see and understand that even though she doesn't understand fully the importance of what we are teaching and why she needs it in her life. She sees that it is good... and it will help her kids... and her future family. And we knew that she will someday see how important and see how it can personally help her. We are going to meet with her once more with her husband before he goes off to America and we are hoping we will meet with her again after that. We are also going to meet with her parents tomorrow so HOORAY! We believe that they are curious about what we teach and what we do so it'll be a great thing tomorrow!

Now about my wonderful Companion! I have said very little about her and really because I didn't know much about her! But she is so great. Not even exaggerating she has such a desire to learn and to grow. At first I wasn't really sure what I was doing to be honest. I was told because she already knew the language I really wouldn't be training... but oh gosh was I wrong. So completely completely wrong. I am training and more. She does know the language which is great :) but she didn't know what a missionary was really. And all the things we put into it. How we study and prepare... how we teach... how we plan and what we reallly do. And so I have had to teach her all of this... also it's kinda hard because I have to explain it all in Romanian. But hey my Romanian is getting a WHOLE LOT BETTER. I have been asking Heavenly Father to bless me with the gift of tongues and now He is. My understanding has sky rocketed and I am able to express myself better. Anyways back to my companion. I have really been praying that I would be able to help her in any way that she needs because she really wants to go on a mission. She speaks Spanish like a boss too fyi. And so we have focused so much on the lessons and things in PMG (preach my gospel) and she just gets excited everyday for companionship study and other studies. It's so cute. And she told me she's really grateful because she is learning a lot. I feel like I really am so blessed because I am learning A TON! I have to take lead on everything and I feel like Heavenly Father is training me again :) It's great I love it. She isn't a huge fan of contacting and I am not either but because... we are kinda opening a section of Buch.. not really but we don't have any investigators because we are starting brand new we have to contact. So we do role plays a lot to get her to feel more comfortable. And well I am getting into the contacting thing. It's getting easier and easier. Which I am also really grateful for.
My companion though is fantastic she is so loving and a very determined person. She is a little shy and quiet but when it's just me and her we laugh all the time. And she will tell me  jokes in romanian that I don't really understand yet. She has told me all about her family and the church and her conversion story. She is such a powerful member. She has wanted to go on a mission for a while but because of weight issues she hasn't. But she will be getting her call really soon and then she just has to loose 5 more kilos and then President can set her apart.
She bears testimony like a boss and is so open with the gospel. The spirit just radiats off of her. She will do great things wherever she goes. I am so excited for her. And I really have just been praying that I will be able to help her to become a good missionary. :) She will have so much success.

 

A few other things that have gone on this week. We went paintballing... I didn't get hit hooray! I was sweating like a pig it was super hot. Sora Gerhartz was the star of that day as we were playing President. (President has no gun and has 3 guards who have guns and they basically just protect the president and he has to cross to the other side of the arena...) Anyways Sora Gerhartz like a boss basically crosses over and kills two guards who by the way are WAY BIGGER THEN HER! She is like 5"1' if that and they are way over 6 feet. Anyways she crosses over and sacrificed herself to take out the guards. It was great. She got some bad bruises from it though that made it hard for her to walk around the next day.

We gave the lesson in Relief Society about missionary work. For some reason this branch really is just kinda a stick in the mud when it comes to missionary work. And that makes it so much harder for us. Our investigators really aren't involved with the members and the one time we had a member they fought... ughhh it's extremely frustrating. Especially since I don't know these members well enough. A sweet sister approached me this week though and told me that she has a son living in Henderson. That's not the first time someone has told me they have a romanian relative living in vegas. How interesting is that???

 

We went Chalk Contacting on Sunday! It was so much fun and exhausting. There is this HUGE park and Sora Stapley and I drew a book of mormon and a bible and wrote down some questions and verses. It was so fascinating as people approached us and asked us why we did this. We were told later that we didn't have voie to draw with chalk... I guess they have been changing rules there. 

 

I am super excited for the new movie in the temple! HOW COOL IS THAT! I really miss the temple. So be grateful you get to go :) Remember what a blessing it is! I am also really excited to hear about all of the changes and exciting efforts of missionary work that is going on at home. I had been thinking about this a lot actually. Because I wasn't really a good example at all when it came to missionary work back home. And I felt really bad about it to see what I could have done to have been better and have helped out the missionaries even more. And our ward is small. And we are all kind of the same people I havent really seen a lot of changes that have happened unless a new person or family moves into the ward. But when I hear about how it's starting to happen more at home with missionary work. I really just want to cry because it's so important. So important that as members we do our jobs and help out missionaries as much as possible. Even though life gets in the way and we have jobs and work and families. Just the happiness that we have if we share the gospel and you see someone have that light and life in them. A whole new meaning a whole new lifestyle. It brings so much happiness into my life. And I think our ward would be a whole lot happier if we really focused on missionary work and really really really concentrated our efforts to bring souls unto christ. That's all of our duties as members.

Sorry I'll get off my soap box now. :) Sorry it's such a long letter. I just have so much to say and tell and gosh I just love everything that's happening here. All the new experiences and things that I Get to learn. I AM SO LUCKY! SO SO SO LUCKY AND SO BLESSED!

Love you all!
Sora Jenna Stewart