September 28, 2015

September 28, 2015

Greetings my fellow Americans! This week I've been grateful FOR Americans and not all the European tourists that are not the nicest people around!

This week started off with a bang! The Elders found a woman, Carol, who is interested in Family History so we swung by her house to tell her about the class we have twice a week on it at the chapel! Remember how I said everyone here has multiple dogs? Well we noticed her gate was especially difficult to get through but thought nothing of it until she opened her door and her demon rat dog came at me for the kill. The little devil nipped me five times, but thankfully everything's okay. So we went into her house afterwards and even though she isn't interested in the gospel, she agreed to come to the family history center! We met up on Thursday there and it was so cool! She was finding old census records, discovered her dad was a bartender (which he conveniently didn't tell her haha) and her mom's maiden name! Worth it!

We had an incredible lesson with Nick on the Book of Mormon! He's starting to see how important it is to actually READ THE BOOK in order to gain a testimony that our message is true! He has such an amazing spirit and is so close with our Heavenly Father! Then of course we discover HE'S ALREADY A MEMBER!! He was baptized when he was 18! So now our efforts have been swiftly redirected to reactivating him and helping him get back that testimony of this gospel he once had!

We spent a while having the most civil discussion with a person of a different religion that I've ever experienced in my time here. He asked genuine questions, accepted our answers and was very grateful for our visit! Of course at the end he said we were all wrong and he was just curious, but still! I love it when people can actually have a nice discussion about our beliefs without a constant attack!

We've been visiting a lot of the older people in the ward since they need a bit of extra support and this one couple, the Bartholomew's, casually mentioned how their son is the home teacher of PRESIDENT UCHTDORF! They're full of interesting stories; I can't wait until I've reached an age where the things that come out of my mouth can actually spark interest instead of mere amusement at my ramblings.

You asked about music.  We sing a hymn for comp study every day and we sing in the car constantly. They’re picking less common songs in sacrament meeting so we can become more accustomed to the hymnbook. There’s no ward choir in Bishop, since only 40-50 people come to church every week.

Next week there’s a big potluck between Sunday sessions of conference so that’ll be fun! We're planning on doing a lot of finding this week, we've been pushing ourselves but this week it’ll be to the max!! And we didn’t plan for Tuesday and most of Wednesday since we had exchanges in Ridgecrest, which is 2.5 hours away, but that got cancelled, so we'll see what we end up doing!

The biggest blessing this week was of course WOMEN'S CONFERENCE!! What an amazing opportunity we have to be able to listen to leaders and apostles give us insight that is specifically for us at this time! My favorite point made was how happiness is a choice and that anyone can achieve it through faith and hope in the Lord and His plan for us! That happiness will spread to charity, the pure love of Christ, and of all man! We should never make our love conditional, only by giving it freely to all men, whether we feel they deserve it or not, can we be able to receive that love and acceptance in return, not only from our peers, but from the spirit our Father is waiting to bless us with! I also finished the Book of Mormon this week (!!!) and one of my favorite passages I read relates to this directly! Moroni 7:45, " And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things."

I know that as we strive to see everyone as beloved children of our Heavenly Father, our joy and desire to share this good news with them will only increase! I love the work and I love it here in California! And I'm so excited for GENERAL CONFERENCE!! Everyone should go watch it (it's on TV!), even if it is only for a bit! The blessings and insight gained from heeding to the words of these inspired men and women has changed my life for the better and is one of the biggest blessings this restored gospel gives us! God reveals his secrets unto His servants, the prophets, and WE'RE SO LUCKY HE DOES :D

Sister King

Sister King, Sister Liebelt,
outside Bishop, CA, September 2015

Devil's Postpile National Monument,
Mammoth, CA, September 2015
http://www.nps.gov/depo/index.htm

Devil's Postpile National Monument,
Mammoth, CA, September 2015

Sister King, Sister Liebelt, 

Bishop, CA, September 2015

Monday, September 21, 2015

September 21, 2015

I'm restraining myself from saying "hey y'all" like I normally do. Apparently I get a southern accent when I get excited, so that's been the object of amusement among the missionaries this week. The other has been us debating with Elder Iguasnia about which is better, USA or England. I think we're winning!

I CANNOT believe we're going into week 4 of my second transfer!! WHERE DID THE TIME GO?! It's scaring me. 

We spent a lot of time out on the streets talking to people, and it is safe to say that every single person in Bishop is either a hardcore hippie or cowboy. It's the greatest thing in the world. 

This week we got a new investigator, Nick, who met the Elders on exchanges! He ended up here because he was hiking the Pacific Coast Trail and ran out of money. He is just about the nicest dude ever. Plus he's super spiritual. He was in foster care for a year when he was in high school and stayed with a Mormon family, so he knows quite a bit still! He shared some experiences he had growing up and when he was in the marines (he was in it for 8 years), it is extremely evident that the Lord still needs him on the earth. 

We need extra prayers for Claudao this week! His health is continuing to decline and it's getting to a point where he can’t stand up for more than 5 minutes at a time. It's breaking our hearts.

This week we focused a lot on working with the members, so we had a few Family Home Evenings at their homes, and it has been such an amazing experience! One family has 3 sons so we taught them how to use Preach My Gospel and how to teach. The spirit was SO strong in that house and they're all naturals! The 11 year old explained how a dispensation is the opposite of an apostasy and my mind just about exploded. Duh. We talked all about Doctor Who and Star Trek and books; needless to say I fit right in with that family! They live outside of Bishop because, since Bishop has a population of a whopping 3500 people, they need to get away from it all... they live in what looks like the wild west of the 1800s. Cowboys.

We also had a lesson with another family on how to answer questions simply, and I was just overwhelmed with how simple our message is! We have a loving Heavenly Father; and since he loves us he's given us a savior and a prophet once again on the earth. The Book of Mormon testifies of that and can bless us. The rest falls into place if we JUST have a testimony on those things! I love spending all my time on the Lord!

I got a lot of strength this week when talking to strangers. I feel my concerns about what the world thinks of me melt away, I don't care if they think I'm crazy; I just want them to know about this gospel! It's the best thing we can follow! 

I finished reading the Book of Mormon (not the book book, but the book in the book if ya know what I mean) and what struck me the most is how often the Lord says "let vengeance be mine." It reminds me of D&C 121:7-8, how we will "triumph over all our foes," as long as we're on the Lord's side! In this war between good and evil, we ALREADY KNOW who wins in the end! The Lord's side does! And even if it SEEMS like we lose a battle, whether people reject us or slam the door or walk away or insult us or say we're wasting our time, I know that I am on the winning side. I know that I'm supporting and representing the King of Kings, and I am so grateful for this opportunity!

Fellowshipping through basketball, August 2015

Read your scriptures, say your prayers and serve every day! It's the recipe for happiness! 

I love you all :D

Sister King

September 14, 2015

September 14, 2015

The fair is finally over, which means that people are finally home! We had a fun Labor Day, we went on a bike ride with the Romero's along the canal right up to the base of the mountain, it took three hours! We forgot to take pics, but I'm sure we'll do it again, it was so beautiful!

We worked a lot with Christina again this week! She came to a Relief Society activity on Thursday and loved it! It was so cool to see her interact with other women of the ward, and they were so eager to jump in and answer questions, it was such a fun evening! We also had a lesson with her at Sister McLaughlin's house, and we had such a good discussion on the atonement and Heavenly Father's plan for us. My testimony in that has increased significantly in the last week! I am eternally grateful for a loving savior who knows me and my struggles perfectly, and I am especially grateful this week for the constant strength given to us from our Father in Heaven. He truly is mindful of everyone of us, and getting a chance to see Christina through His eyes has been humbling. He loves EACH OF US individually and perfectly! He is just waiting for us to cast our burdens on Him so He can make them light!

We were leaving the Swain's at one point (the senior couple) and the house across the street from theirs had Utah plates and a BYU sticker! So we immediately jumped out and knocked on the door. It was a guy named Danny who moved here a few months ago. BUT HIS DAD IS A MOLECULAR BIO PROF AT BYU! I didn't end up taking a class with him, but he taught mmbio240 which I DID take with Poole. I was slightly disappointed that I didn't know him personally, but I'm still excited nevertheless. 

At one point we were driving down Main street when we see Ron's dad walking with what first appeared to be Ron's family. When we got closer we saw it was Michelle, his sister! To make a long story short, we haven't been able to meet with her in a while. She took the first 2 discussions and wanted to be baptized but there was a death so she was grieving for a while and we haven't had a chance to see her. We pulled into the McDonalds' parking lot and pretended we were just casually walking down main street when we "happened" to run into them. She said she wants to start seeing us again! She has a brand new baby boy and 3 other kids, she's super nice too! So tender mercies from the Lord! 


The bishop told me about the BYU game.  I picked a bad year to not go to the games....

We do service at City Hall every Wednesday which usually consists of weeding or cleaning the bathrooms and stuff like that. We help with a super old member's garden every other Tuesday, and we've been helping Christina with cleaning and laundry. Nothing too overwhelming.

It's 100 degrees during the day and in the 40s at night, and IT SUCKS!! We're freezing when we wake up and so we think it'll be cold that day and we walk outside and melt.

A BIG thing that's been coming up in my studies this week is diligence and valiance! It's all summed up in this quote my Mission President sent us:  "Once we enter into covenants with God, there is no going back. Giving in, giving up, and giving out are not options. In the kingdom of God, there is a standard of excellence for exaltation. It requires valiant discipleship! There is no room for AVERAGE or complacent disciples. AVERAGE is the enemy of excellence, and AVERAGE commitment will prevent you from enduring to the end." Heavenly Father has the ability to give us MIRACLES, but He can only do so if WE put in the effort first! The Celestial Kingdom is for those who are valiant! We need to be constantly working, there's no middle ground for us.

I love this work and I love you all, have a great week!


Sister King

September 7, 2015

September 7, 2015

WOW what an amazing week! The Lord has definitely been answering our prayers as a zone to have increased energy and passion for the work and it has paid off!

On Monday Sister Liebelt and I were depressed about the district being broken up so we got Jack-in-the-Box and went up to the canyon for a picnic. Sometimes I just sit in awe at the wonder of this earth, and boy did we do that when we got to Lake Sabrina! the drive there was breathtaking and the view was incredible. God is such a good artist I tell ya!

Sister King, Sister Liebelt,
Lake Sabrina, California
August, 2015

Sister King, Sister Liebelt,
Lake Sabrina, California
August, 2015

We finally got a chance to meet with Claudao, the former investigator who moved to Mexico but came back! It turns out he came back early because he was at a restaurant when there was a shoot out. He felt the spirit prompt him to jump under a table and right after he did the mob showed up and killed 20 people there. Can't say I am too surprised he's back! But our lesson with him was insane! He is SO in touch with the spirit, he's teaching us way more than we're teaching him. Not only that, but he is the kindest guy in the world! He has a ton of health problems that take up his time and energy, but he's a fighter! Unfortunately, something happened with his vision so he had to leave after our lesson so we won't see him again until Tuesday! I've seen that a lot, when someone begins to commit themselves to our Heavenly Father more fully, Satan comes in and rips them down. The key to conversion is diligence and fighting through the bad times by relying on our Savior instead of putting Him off to the side!

We also got a chance to teach Cindy about the Restoration. The missionaries did some service for here a few months back and we've been friends ever since! She is the bubbliest person on the planet and being around her changes my entire attitude! The Lord has really blessed me with amazing friends out here, I love the people of Bishop!

The biggest news has to do with Christina though! A less active referred her to us after the Elders gave a blessing on her home. She has been through more than anyone I've ever met, but she is so ready and so willing to rely on her Savior to help heal her, and it's been amazing to see that growth in the 3 days we've known her! We taught her how to give a basic prayer to Heavenly Father and the one she gave was the MOST sincere prayer I've ever heard in my life. Then she had us pray to help her sleep since it's been months since she's had more than an hour or two a night. When we did, she said she felt a wave of fatigue wash over her and we found out the next day she finally slept! I wish I could give a full account on all the blessings prayer has brought into my life, but I feel like that story suffices. Our Father is waiting to bless us!

We went to the bishop's for dinner one night,  that was the first time I'd been to his house, and one meal with our mission mom Sister McLaughlin, she took us out for Chinese and there's is place here that has THE MOST amazing orange chicken in the world.

We're going on a bike ride with the Romero family this afternoon since the kids are off of school!

Someone mentioned the BYU-Nebraska game at church on Sunday AND I WAS FREAKING OUT I WAS SO EXCITED MY GOODNESS I HAD NO IDEA THAT HAPPENED! And poor Taysom, Heavenly Father just does not want him to be playing football.....

The biggest thing I've learned this week is showing our faith through actions! We're told in James 1:22 to be DOERS, not just hearers, of the word for a reason! As we work hard to draw closer to our Savior and understand his infinite atonement, then act on what we've learned through service to to others, the Lord just POURS OUT BLESSINGS!! And an unshakable testimony is just one of them! I've felt the Lord bearing us up and giving us power as we live worthy to have His spirit with us and I'm so glad to have this gospel in my life! There is nothing better than using that gospel to help others! The line "sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven" keeps echoing in my brain. I just love this church!

Sister King