The One with all the New Investigators!

January 25, 2016

 

Kaitlyn and Sister Killpack celebrating Kaitlyn's half birthday!

So miracle on miracle this week! this week started out ruff but after transfers on Wednesday we have seen soo many miracles.  So this week started out ruff because sister young was a mess about transfers. Originally she was supposed to got St. Cloud and be in a trio but she called president Forbes and he said that he'd pray about it and get back to her that night (Monday). So she was a nervous wreck all day and he ended up not making a decision till Tuesday night around 9:30. So sister young was a nervous wreck Tuesday as well and broke down several times that day and was literally making herself sick with worry. So we were just about to leave Pat and Sister B's house at 9:30 and we get the call from president Forbes telling us that sister young was now getting transferred to cottage grove to be in a trio, and she LOST it. Like it kind of scared me, she was sobbing, and I finally called president Forbes back and got permission for her to call her parents. So two hours later we finally leave sister B's house at like 11:30 after she'd calmed down a bit and went home and proceeded to pack till 4:30am because she'd been in Anoka for 6 months so she'd accumulated a ton of junk that she wasn't keen on getting rid of. So we took a three hour nap from 4:30-7:30 then got up loaded all her stuff in the car and headed over to Bloomington for transfer meeting. It was really ruff. So this is the second time I've had a companion break down on me and I do not have very good comforting skills so I'm thinking maybe this is something Heavenly Father is trying to teach me. How to comfort people. I don't know... Maybe. So yeah only three hours of sleep was hard. I was on the struggle bus hard on Wednesday.

Sooo getting into all the good of this week. I met my new companion Sister Killpack!!!! She's from Hyrum, Utah and she's just out of training so she's been out a transfer less than me (3 months) and I'm her missionary dad! (First companion whose not your trainer). She's so great! I'll include some pictures but her and I are ready to work so hard, teach people, and see miracles. We're pumped that president trusts us enough to trust us with the Anoka area. We stayed in Bloomington for a sweet worldwide missionary broadcast and then sister Killpack, Peterson (MTC Comp.) and Brett all went to red robin together for lunch. I've been craving it for such a long time so I was really happy. I'm so excited that sister Peterson and I are finally in the same zone! We want to be companions so bad!

 

So we gained 4 new investigators since sister Killpack and I got together!!! That was one of the big miracles of this week. First new investigator is Cecelia. We found her while stopping by potentials (people missionaries have previously met) and she invited us and we talked for a while. She's a sweet old German lady who moved to the US from Germany because of world war 2. We are gonna see her again and found the PERFECT joint teacher to come with us through a dinner appointment that I'm sure was divinely inspired cause we didn't have a dinner and sister Sophie randomly called us up and invited us over. We're pumped for Thursday when we are supposed to go over again. Also that day we went over to see Peggy and it was cool because as we were leaving she was like I really needed you guys today, how did you know? And we just said the Holy Ghost does amazing things. That's one of my favorite parts of being a missionary is being put in people's path exactly at the right moment when they need us. It's the coolest thing ever.

Then miracle 2! Oh my gosh I still can't believe that it really happened. So we got a referral for a couple that requested a bible online and we went to deliver it and it was FOREVER AWAY, but we decided that we just needed to spend the miles and go. So we show up to the door and this heavy set man without a shirt on answers the door, so I just blurt out "hey we're looking for Larry and Brenda?" And before we say anything else he's "like come on in! I'll get Brenda!" So we were super confused (never happened to me before) but we go and sit down and are talking with them about the bible and we give them a Book of Mormon and they gave us a few bible books to read and they downloaded gospel library and said they might come to church on Sunday. (They didn't make it but oh well) and we are going back hopefully Tuesday night and they wanted to invite some of their friends from church over too, so any prayers that it'll go well and not turn into a bible bashing session would be MUCH appreciated. So new investigators 2 & 3.

Then on Sunday there is a nonmember friend of a member whose name is Jerri. She's been coming to church for a while but hasn't been able to have the missionaries over because her mom does NOT like the missionaries or that she's going to a different church. But we were talking with her yesterday and she wants to take the missionaries lessons at her friends house. WE ARE SO PUMPED! She's golden, like she could potentially get baptized this transfer! Which makes new investigator number 4!

Then also yesterday pat came to presidents fireside! It was really fun, I love being around all the other missionaries and seeing people I've served with. Sister Peterson was there, Sister Jolley, Sister Kirkby, elder Judd, and sister young was there. She's doing a lot better that she's now in Bloomington instead of cottage grove. We got home a little late but we realized that yesterday was my half birthday! So we made a really funny video of us celebrating that I'll hope to attach.

Love, Sister Richardson

Spiritual Thought of the Week:

So I'm in the book of Mosiah right now in the Book of Mormon and I came across a part in chapter 24 verse 17 that stuck out to me. God was commanding his prophet alma to do something not particularly easy and he said "... Go... And I will go with thee...". This really stuck out to me that if we are willing and faithful in keeping the commandments of God and put our trust in him that he will be with us strengthen us always.

The One With All Of The Tender Mercies

January 18, 2016

 Transfer news: So really aren't sure right now. I'm not training which was a surprise cause we were pretty sure I was. The transfer sheet said that I am staying in Anoka and getting a new companion, sister Killpack. Sister young is supposed to go be in a trio with sister Schmidt and sister mortensen in St. Cloud. She was having a lot of anxiety about it though so she called and talked to president about it. So he's gonna pray about it and decide by the end of the day. We might have a trio in Anoka or something else might happen. Don't know. But when president asked to talk to me after he finished talking to sister young he even thought I was training and then mentioned that the sister coming in from Sweden didn't get her visa so I'm thinking I was supposed to get the sister from Sweden. Woah!

So this week was chalked full of tender mercies. It was awesome. On Tuesday I met Nana Vicki for the first time. She's a cute investigator grandma who loves the missionaries and she made us pancakes. We are gonna see her again tomorrow. I had a sweet experience on Wednesday. I have been worried about not doing everything that my Heavenly Father expects of me while here in Anoka, and there was a situation this week, where sister young gave me the choice of taking it easy and not going to contact a potential and just going to the church before our preach my gospel class or going to contact him. I decided that we should go contact him and after I made that decision to work a little harder I felt the spirit witness to me that my Heavenly Father was proud of my decision. That was really cool. Kind of hard to explain but it meant a lot to me to know that I am doing what I need to be doing, and my Heavenly Father recognizes my efforts.

Thursday was sweet because we got to go to the temple! I love going to the temple. It's always so peaceful and you just get to relax and feel the spirit and kind of recharge. Then the lady from the ward who drove us, sister Fosvick (she went on a mission to Washington!) took us the long way home and we went through downtown Minneapolis (it was sweet seeing my old area) and saw the cherry spoon and new us bank stadium. We had a sweet member lesson with the Delongs. They are both extremely smart like Ph.D. smart and we sometimes don't know how to approach teaching them but we decided to go super basic and it went super well. The spirit was really strong during the lesson.

 

On Saturday we had a lesson scheduled with Muriel and we saw her but she was working a lot but her 16 year old daughter Cheyenne came down and we went out to lunch with her and began building a friendship and she said she wanted to come to church! Muriel said she'd come with but had to work. Unfortunately she wasn't able to come this week but she asked if she could come next week so we are still super pumped for that. BUT MIRACLE OF THE WEEK! Pat surprised us and came to church with sister B!!!!!!!!! Holy flip we were so excited! That was awesome. Sunday was both an amazing day and a really big struggle. It was awesome because there were so many tender mercies and blessings that I recognized but it was a struggle because I was sick. Man I was so sick. I had a fever and my head hurt and I was so nauseous. Man I was so nauseous. I got to the point where I just wanted to throw up because I'd probably feel better. But even in getting sick i saw a lot of tender mercies. I kinda wanted a blessing but didn't want to inconvenience anybody and the elders called just then and asked if they could come fix our dishwasher so I was able to get a blessing. Then elder Johnston called sister Woodward and asked her to come over to see if she could help (she does weird health treatment things). And the stuff she did wasn't the tender mercy, the fact that she was there was  the tender mercy, because she really reminds me of mom. I don't know what it is but she reminds me of mom and it was really nice having her there because when I get sick, I get super homesick and really I debated asking president if I could call home just so I could talk to mom and hear her voice, because that always makes me feel better. So even though yesterday was awful because I was sick there was just one tender mercy after the other.
 

Spiritual Thought of the Week:

Mosiah 9:18 "And God did hear our cries and did answer our prayers; and we did go forth in his might." 

-If we ask God for help and rely on him we don't need to be good enough. He already is and we can lean on him, "and go forth in his might".

The One Where We Hit Negatives!

January 11, 2016

 Boiling water to snow, curtesy of our elders, so cold out!

 Fun pictures with Katie B. She's a 17 year old YW from our ward. I love her!

Here's a selfie for ya😏😎

So this week was good. IT WAS FREEZING! We have hit negatives here in Minnesota!!!! Three days this week we have left the house in negative degree weather. The worst was Sunday morning at -10. My Gosh! And that's not including wind chill. It was -30 with wind chill. Don't worry, I've have been wearing 2 coats, 3 pairs of socks, gloves, my winter boots, and 2 pairs of fleece lined tights. So I say bring it on!

 

Aaannyways, We were able to see one of the coolest ladies in our ward this week, Tina. She's so funny, she loves the sisters, all things nerdy, hallmark movies, and is a die hard Pittsburg Steelers fan. She sends us text updates whenever they are playing :) We love talking to her.

 

So Thursday, Sister Young was sick. I woke her up to study and she said (and I quote) "My brain hurts". I thought that was a funny description. So she slept most of the day and I watched church videos on my iPad and read conference talks. Then we went to dinner and synced our iPads and reported on lessons at the church. She's still fighting off her cold but we haven't stayed in any other day.

 

Friday was a good day. We went and saw a less active lady and had sister lambert (her visiting teacher) come with us and it went REALLY well. We shared Alma 32 and talked about faith and the spirit was really strong. So that was great. Then we weekly planned and by the time we were finished we had like less than an hour before dinner and weren't quite sure what to do in that time but Sister Young thought we should stop by Gladys and see if she was home, because we have had appointments with her before but she was never there. We stopped by and SHE WAS THERE. Her little girls let us in and we were able to talk to all 3 girls and Gladys and see how they were doing and shared the Christmas video. That was awesome. And she said that she had already taken off work to come to church this coming Sunday! We are so excited for her. Sister Young was really pumped as we walked out of that apartment building. Sister Young was so happy that we went to Applebee's and she paid :) That was super yummy, even though everyone probably thought we were a couple hahaha.

 

Oh! AND we got permission to watch another movie this week. We watched the War Room, which is a movie all about the power of prayer in our lives. I had already seen it before the mission, but sister young hadn't and she absolutely loved it. We watched it with sister B and pat and they loved it too. Especially pat and we had a good discussion about prayer afterwards. Oh! And today we had interview with president Forbes. I was really happy about it and looking forward to it. I was able to talk with him about some of the things that I have been struggling with and he gave me advice and was really understanding I love having one on one time with president cause that never happens. And CRAZY NEWS! So while I was talking with him he said he has 7 new sisters coming this transfer and asked me how I felt about training. I answered that I was open to it and thought it would be a good experience for me. We finished our interview and I was talking to sister young and she said he asked her if she thought i was ready to train to which she said yes, so I'm like 95% sure I'm training this next transfer! Ahhhh! Yeah that's it.

Spiritual Thought of the Week:

"How are we supposed to act when we are offended, misunderstood, unfairly or unkindly treated, or sinned against? What are we supposed to do if we are hurt by those we love, or passed over for promotion, or are falsely accused, or have our motives unfairly assailed?

Do we fight back? Do we send in an ever-larger battalion? Do we revert to an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, or … do we come to the realization that this finally leaves us blind and toothless?" (Teachings of the presidents, Howard W. Hunter, Ch. 1)

It is one of the hardest things in my opinion to not fight back when we feel we are wronged, or have been badly treated. Our pride, or our Anger, or our Jealousy rears its ugly head and prevents us from acting as the savior would and did. And why do we continue to do these things when no one ever truly wins? I believe part of it is because it's easier not to change and to simply justify our actions. I was right he was wrong. But in order to become the people our Father in Heaven wants us to become and be better disciples of Jesus Christ we have to say, as King Lamoni did in the Book of Mormon... "I will give away all my sins to know thee... ” (Alma 22:18.) "When we, too, are willing to give away all our sins to know him and follow him, we, too, will be filled with joy" (Teachings of the presidents, Howard W. Hunter, Ch. 1)

The One where I fell on the ice for the first time

1/4/16

 

So another awesome week here in Anoka! It started with exchanges and  me taking over the area for a day. Sister Kirkby, one of our STL's  (sister training leaders) came to Anoka for the day with me and sister young went to their area and was companions with sister Jacklin. I loved exchanges! I was a little intimidated of sister Kirkby at first because she can sound pretty mean over the phone ( her nickname is Ross, the receptionist from monsters inc.) but she's an incredible missionary. We went and stopped by a seventeen year old named McKenzie that we are trying to pick back up as an investigator and were able to have a good long chat and she said the prayer at the end and mentioned
that she wanted to come to church! We were freezing by the end cause we were talking on her porch but she's so worth being cold over, I love that girl! Also while with sister Kirkby I was able to talk with her about the frustrations that this transfer has brought and she completely understood. That was a nice breath of fresh air. I was sad to see her go. We would do some pretty great things together if we were ever companions.

I also slipped on the ice and fell for the first time since in Minnesota and sister young wasn't even there to laugh at me. Oh well, my shoulder hurt for a couple days but I've been asking for it for a while. I like to run and slide on the ice whenever I can and hadn't fallen yet. Only a matter of time.

I had my own personal family history miracle this week. Okay so it wasn't so much a miracle
as I was actually able to do something remotely normal but it was super exciting for me. I was able to find and attach the parents to one of the ends of my lines and now all I have to do is resolve
duplicates and I can take that name to the temple. I have been so excited and all I want to do is get on a computer and do it! It's kinda silly I haven't been able to stop thinking about it all week.

 New Years Eve ( Thursday) was so sweet! We started teaching a really cute 8 year old girl whose mom and older sister are converts from New York and she really wants to get baptized. We set a date for January 16th. We are gonna be hard pressed to get all of the lessons in before she gets baptized, but we can make it happen. Then we were over at Pat (our friendigator) and sister B's, helping take down sister B's Christmas decorations since she just had surgery and we had no solid plans that night, it being New Year's Eve and all, and neither did the Andover elders, so we invited them over to play games on New Year's Eve and we had a blast. We played spoons and just had so much fun together. Then sister young and I ran home, grabbed all our stuff and changed, and headed over to the STL's apartment in Brooklyn Park for a zone sisters sleep over! Man that was so much fun. I got to hang out
with sister Teuscher all night whom I have missed dearly. We played tenzi and talked about weird stuff and made a video at 12 which can only be described as uncomfortable to watch. We got really weird. Then I got to sleep by sister Teuscher and we stayed up till 2:30 am talking and laughing. I'm sad she's almost done, I'm gonna miss that weirdo. So then this Sunday was also really cool. It was fast and testimony meeting and one of the less active members that we go and visit who has been coming back to church got up and bore her testimony. And one of the members, Sister Anderson, got up and she was talking about the Book of Mormon and ever since we went in and taught her family the first lesson and challenged them to read and pray about the Book of Mormon that she has started seeing a light and strength come back into her life that was missing, which all started with our
invitation to them. That was really cool to see one of our invitations change lives and see the power in invitations. And last but not least cool thing about this week is that pat has quit smoking! She finished her last pack of cigarettes that she had and isn't going to buy anymore. She's tried quitting a few times before and has never been able to stick with it but we are really hoping that this time is it.
Any prayers in her behalf would be much appreciated. So that kind of wraps up this week. Love you all! -Sister Richardson

 Spiritual though of the Week:
    "Assembled is a throng of Roman soldiers. Assembled also are natives to the land of Jerusalem. Faded into the still night, and gone forever are the militant and rowdy cries, "Crucify him, crucify him."  The hour has come. The personal earthly ministry of the Son of God moves swiftly to its dramatic conclusion. A certain loneliness is here. Nowhere to be found are the lame beggars who, because of this man, walk; the deaf who, because of this man, hear; the blind who, because of this man, see; the dead who, because of this man, live."
('Behold thy Mother' Thomas S. Monson, October, 1973, General Conference)

This brought me to tears. Here is a man who has done nothing wrong and has dedicated his entire life to the service of others. The literal son of God, and when he has endured agony and is lifted up on a cross in the ultimate act of service and love for every person who has lived or ever will live. Even those who had received and witnessed miracles by his hands deserted him. We are one of those affected by his miracles. The atonement. When Christ is attacked in our day and our belief and testimony of him are called into question may we not desert him like those who were not with him when he was crucified.

Beginning

Hello Everyone,
Sister Richardson has been serving the Lord in the Minnesota, Minneapolis Mission now for 5 months.  I have created this Blog to facilitate sharing her weekly experiences with family and friends who have asked to be included in her weekly emails.  If at any time you'd like to be removed from this list just send me a separate email or text!  Hope you enjoy!