Easter Thoughts from Texas!

As a missionary, I have come to know the role Jesus Christ plays in our salvation. The Atonement is truly a miraculous gift given to us and without it, nothing we would do here on earth would be worth anything. We can truly find happiness when we base our lives on his teachings and his example. We can grow closer to him by learning of his doctrine, his teachings, and his life. His doctrine is simple and easy to understand. We live it because it is worth it.

Como misionera, yo he venido a saber cual es el papel de Jesucristo en nuestra salvación. La expiación es un don milagroso que ha sido dado a todos nosotros. Sin la expiación, no hiciéramos nada en la tierra que sería de valor. Podemos encontrar la felicidad cuando edificamos nuestras vidas en las enseñanzas de Cristo y su ejemplo. Podemos crecer a estar más cerca de él por aprender de su doctrina, sus enseñanzas, y su vida. La doctrina de Cristo es muy sencilla y fácil de entender. Nosotros la vivimos porque es re importante.

Jesus Christ's Atonement

easter.mormon.org

Be a Member Missionary!

 We had been trying to get in touch with one of our investigators, but we were having a hard time. It was very discouraging. But last Sunday, he showed up at church, stayed for all three meetings, and enjoyed it! This is all made possible by a wonderful member who has been teaching him at work during the time we were unable to meet with him!

 

Without the members of this little branch, none of this would be possible, so moral of the story: get involved in missionary work at home!!!!

Zone Conference = Familiar Face!

We had Zone Conference on Thursday.  I ran into Elder Paulsen there.  (He and I went to high school together.)  It was fun to see a familiar face and I updated him on all that was happening in WVC when I left. He got a picture of us, but I didn't have my camera that day.

The rest of the Zone Conference was really fun.  We had great presentations by President and his wife complete with a slot song and video. 

My mom later spotted me in a couple of pictures that President and Sister Trayner took at the conference.  They were posted on their blog.

Windmill Forest

We had exchanges on Wednesday.  The area was only about an hour from where I usually am, but it was a completely different world.  There were train tracks everywhere, everyone knew everyone, the roads were super small, and we found a payphone.  Ouside the towns were forests of huge windmills that went on for miles.  They were kind of creepy to look at during the day, but at night they were way creepy!  All of them had these red lights that would flash on and off at the exact same time.  It looked like something off of a post-apocalyptic alien movie.  My companion and I decided that if Courage the Cowardly Dog lived anywhere, he would live in the windmill forest.

Busy in Texas!

Most of the people we see are incredibly nice and wonderful to talk to! We talked to this one man, who though he wasn't interested, was quite excited to find out that we were Mormon. He had nothing but good to say about the people of the Church.

The manager of our apartment complex considers herself to be our "resident grandma," and this week, she met some troubled fourteen year old girls. She sat and talked with them until we came in for the night. As soon as she saw us, she said, "Oh hey! We were just talking about you two! Come and meet my two new friends!" She waited until we started up a conversation with them, then silently snuck away. We had a wonderful talk with them about the Doctrine of Christ. Both girls had faced incredible difficulties in their lives, and they were really receptive to the message we shared. Unfortunately, they are from Austin, so we will not be able to teach them. But we left them with a pamphlet and a card to call so they could contact the missionaries out there.

Wednesday Exchange!

I'm going on an exchange further north, and more inland, on Wednesday!  So, I will be taking a little vacation and doing work somewhere else for the day!

Three Baptisms!

We have had three baptisms in our little branch this past week.  They are people who my companion worked with before I came out and we were moved to our new area.  I am officially the branch pianist, so we were at the baptisms.  There was this one little eight year-old boy who got baptized yesterday.  To me, he is a mixture of Brian (my little brother) and the kid from "Up.".  He looks pretty much exactly like Brian.

Preparation Day Fun!

We went to the beach with members from our zone.  It's Spring Break, so it was kind of crowded, but it sure was fun!  Unfortunately, we weren't able to get in the water.

My Mission "Family"!  My MTC Companion and I have TWO mothers!

 

Spring Break Shadow Missionaries

My "Mission Mom" (first companion in the field) and me.

We also went out to eat to celebrate my companion's birthday!  We were joined by her old companion and my MTC companion at this place called Snoopy's.  They have the best fish and chips ever (and I don't even like fried fish very much)!  It was so deep fried that you could just feel the grease running down your throat...yum!  Welcome to the South!

I Love the Members!

I love the members here!  They are truly amazing people and they take really good care of us missionaries :)  We went to eat at this family's house and we ate on their back deck.  Their backyard is pretty much this huge canal where you could fish, swim, boat or kayak, and it looks like a paradise!  Honestly, this area is America's best kept secret!  It's next to the beach, it's affordable, and it's good weather.  Forget California, I'm moving back here!

Tracting!

Tracting is really hard!  This week has been rough...It's been really hard to find people to teach.  I'm hoping it gets easier!

Missionary Email!

The biggest news of this week is they changed the guildelines regarding missionary email - We now have one hour to email each week and we can email anyone outside of our mission boundaries!!! :)

President and Sister Trayner

I really like my Mission President!  He has a great sense of humor.  His wife is just as wonderful!  I'll be sad to see them released in July.

 

texastrayners.blogspot.com

Incredible Happenings!

I can't believe I've only been here two weeks...it seems like an eternity!  We have had a number of setbacks, but also a number of miracles.  Something incredible happens almost daily.

My companion and I were planning out our week at a little bakery.  We were there much longer than we were expecting, and we were tired.  As we were packing up to leave, a woman came up to us and said she didn't know why, but she felt strongly she needed to talk to us.  Immediately we sat her down and had a wonderful conversation with her about prayer and the love Heavenly Father has for her.  We got her information and forwarded it to the missionaries who are working in the area where she lives.

Adorable, Quirky, and Comfortable!

Holy cow!  Our apartment is adorable and quirky.  To get into the building, you have to have a key and then you walk into this roofed courtyard with a pool in the middle.  When you get to our apartment, you walk into the living/dining room and directly behind it is a small kitchen and a bathroom.  Then, you have a spiral staircase leading up to this loft or our bedroom.  Tiny, but comfortable.

This is our view of the beach from our apartment balcony.

This is me at the beach (on a "P-Day") located across the street from our apartment.

Work in Progress

When we go tracting, I find I am really out of my comfort zone.  I am uneasy about going up and talking to people, but I am slowly getting used to it.  It's a work in progress, but I am trying my hardest!

St. Patrick's Day Baptism!

We are teaching a family.  Their two teenage sons are planning on getting baptized on the 17th.  The dad is taking the lessons, too.

We have quite a few potential investigators.  We are starting this place pretty much from scratch so things have been slow as of yet.  I'll keep y'all updated.

My Companion's First "Trainee"!

Sister Dudding is from Ohio.  She is way nice, reminds me of Mom, and I am the first missionary she is training.  She is super spiritual, so compared to her I look really not spiritual...

All I've ever wanted...!

The area I'm serving in is right on the Gulf of Mexico.  We are staying with the Branch President and his family.  When the Mission Office finally locates the landlord and signs the lease of our apartment, we will move into a complex that is right across the street from the beach. :D  It is super warm here and we get to drive a red car!

The beach, a red car, and warm weather all year round...This is pretty much all I've ever wanted out of life.  ;)  Needless to say, I am very excited for this area.

Zone Training and More...

President and Sister Trayner took Sister Perez and me to Corpus Christi for a Zone Training.  We were without an area or our training companions.  Everyone kept telling us that we had been dropped into the weirdest situation to start off our mission.

Thursday afternoon, we finally got our companion and area assignments (normally they're given within the first few hours of getting off the plane).  My new companion is Sister Dudding and we are assigned to North Padre Island.   It is in the Corpus Christi Stake. Our area was opened the day we arrived so that is a fun situation to begin with.  I am really nervous, but we've already had miracles in the short time we've been here.