MONDAY
even
though sis. stone was sick, she pushed through it so that we could go
shopping. a girl can do a lot, if it means shopping! we went with one of
the members in the ward, sis. johnson. she is skyler's age and is the
best! she is so stinkin' funny and is just a riot. we went and i got
some boots, because, like i said, it is windy and cold now! so by the
end of the day, sis. stone had lost her voice completely, which is SO
bad for missionary work. so we stayed in another night, but it is ok, we
made the most of it and had a blast. the blast consisted mostly of me
talking her head off because she couldn't say anything. hahah, we have
really learned to love each other and have a lot of fun together, even
when the circumstances aren't that great!
TUESDAY
tuesday we had our weekly district
meeting. our district leader, has each companionship prepare a lesson
for the training and practice, and then he picks a pair to teach it.
then, each of us are going into the meeting already exposed to the
topic, it is quite helpful. but, he keeps picking the zone leaders to
teach the lessons, which cracks me up! i think he is mad at them or
something, because without fail, they have taught like four times this
transfer, it is so funny to me. but, they are wonderful teachers and we
can always feel the spirit when they are teaching! they prepare so well
together and really portray their message well. after, we practiced
extending baptismal invitations and talked about why they are so
important. it was a wonderful practice and applied really well to this
week. baptism is such an important part of this gospel and if we truly
understand why it is important, there is nothing that would keep us from
it.
today was ken day again. he is so funny and he hates
rules and being told what to do, so sometimes the commandments are a
bit difficult! he has a date set for his sealing, it is on november 7th! i am so happy for him, and i hope that i am still here!
we had another lesson with yahir and alondra and of
course it went beautifully. those two are just the perfect investigators
and so darn happy! we taught the plan of salvation and when we talked
about the premortal existence and living with our Father before, yahir
said, "i wish i could remember when i was with Him." holy cow that got
me and has really stuck with me. Pres. Uchtdorf said in one of his
talks, "though they do not remember, they too at one time yearned to
return to their Father again." that is one of my favorite quotes now,
and yahir illustrated it perfectly to me. he can't remember, but he
wants to, and i get to help him on the path so that he can live with Him
again. after the lesson their aunt that lives with them and speaks zero
english, made us hot chocolate and laid out graham crackers for us in
their tiny little apartment. we had so much fun just chattin' with them
and enjoying each other's company. they make me so happy and we make
them happy too, they are always so excited to meet with us! i love
them.
WEDNESDAY
today was our first FULL day back since sis. stone has been sick and it was exhausting!
first,
we met with bro. bruce again. after we left the lesson, we were
reminiscing on our first visit there and totally cracking up! it had
been so awkward and it is miraculous how much he has opened up to us and
how much we love meeting with him and he loves meeting with us. he is
just a crack up. he has wild, wild hair (like einstein) and electric
blue eyes and he always looks like he is just going to pass out from
exhaustion during our lessons.
we got to go over and help out nancy some more, by
going through more of her boxes. we came across a box of old pictures,
which are my favorite! i got to see her on her wedding day when she was
16 years old. she was darling. then she came across an album of her
husband when he was a child. she said, "oh now isn't he darling? now you
understand why i was so head over heels for him!" basically the most
adorable thing ever. i hope i find someone i love enough to talk about
him like that for over 60 years! that is a darn long time.
we received a referral back on monday
for someone named steven. we decided to go and contact him today! we
type the address into the gps and end up at the jail. i laugh and retype
it into the gps thinking i must have messed it up, nope i was right!
into the jail we trotted. i had never been in a jail and had no idea
that we could just walk in there and set up an appointment with someone!
it kind of scared me and i was pretty nervous, but it was wicked
exciting. what better time in your life to want to hear the gospel of
Jesus Christ!
i wrote in my journal, "i really need a letter from one of my sisters, i miss them so bad today!"
THURSDAY
i got a letter from my mom and addey today! answer to my prayers, literally!
this morning we went and helped ken with his lawn.
we mowed and fertilized it before winter gets here. i love doing service
for people, for a couple of reasons. 1// of course i love helping
people and it makes me feel good. 2// i feel like a normal human being
while mowing the lawn again. 3// i get to wear my pants. ken was a hoot
as usual. he hates that we come and help him, well he loves it too. he is
so embarrassed to have us do HIS yardwork. he is a bit of a stubborn
old man!
we had another lesson with yahir today. at the end
we had his mom, miriam, and alondra come in so that we could talk to
them about baptism all together. alondra helped by translating into
spanish for her mom. they're still kind of hesitant, just because they
all want to be sure and ALL want to be ready together. it is kind of
difficult because we can't teach them all together, so they are at
different levels. yahir asked his mom to say the closing prayer, she
said, "no only spanish." yahir said, "that's ok!" we all knelt down and
miriam offered a prayer in spanish, i have no idea what she said, but
the spirit was so strong! i loved seeing their family kneeling down
together praying about baptism and the things we have been teaching
them. i made my heart so warm.
we invited alondra to mutual and a girl named kayla,
who's mom is a less-active member. it was the best mutual ever! they
did a beauty pageant, which was hilarious and they felt so welcomed and
just warmed up to the girls so much! it was a perfect segway to bringing
them into the ward. it could not have gone any better! like i said last week, the Lord is trusting our ward with His precious children.
FRIDAY
today
we met again with brother bruce. i mentioned last time that he always
looks like he is going to fall asleep and today he DID. funniest thing
ever and one of the hardest times i've had with holding in my laughter.
he was a total chatterbox when we first got there and were visiting,
just wanted to tell us everything that was going on. then we had an
opening prayer and started into the lesson. sis. stone started to read a
scripture to him and i looked up and he was actually asleep. i try not
to bust up, but then sis. stone and i made eye contact - bad idea! so
then i say something loud to wake him up, he looks at me and i think,
"well maybe reading is a bad idea, let's just try and talk about it and
get him talking again." so i start talking about the scripture in easier
terms and bearing my testimony, while we are making eye contact he
passes out! hahaha, i am boring!
that evening we had another lesson with alondra. we
taught about the gospel of Jesus Christ and talked a lot about why we
need baptism. we also talked a ton about the holy ghost and the blessing
that can be to each of us. she told us that she knows that she needs to
be baptized and she will be, she just doesn't know if she wants to
right now. she has had experiences with feeling the holy ghost in the
past, but she said, "i just want to know, i want a sign from heavenly
father that this is what he wants me to do." we talked a little more,
then she went to say something and couldn't, because she had started to
cry. she looked shocked and said, "i have never felt like this before,
why am i crying, it feels good." by the end alondra had committed to
baptism and said, "before, i was praying because you guys were asking me
to, now i am going to pray because i want to feel that again." what a
rewarding thing to hear! she is doing this because she knows that is
what He wants her to do, not us. their family is working towards oct. 19, that is when they will all be ready together. i am so, so, SO happy to be a part of their lives, i just love them so much.
SATURDAY
today
we went to the church and helped sister coy. sister coy is a
less-active and her husband and children are not members. she was
putting on a baby shower for her visiting teacher, sister arendes, and
asked for our help in set-up and prep. it was so fun to help her out and
she has opened up to us an incredible amount. she told us that her
daughter has expressed a desire to be baptized and said it would be okay
for us to talk to her about it! we have been trying to see where things
would go with their family, and having the mother tell us that was
huge! the baby shower was a blast too. and we got sent home with ALL of
the leftover treats, which a lot of them sis. stone cannot eat because
she is gluten free. i have a LOT to eat.
p.s. sister arendes introduced me at the baby shower
like this. "this is sis. kerr, she is serving in our ward from upstate
NY. she LOVES dairy." i died laughing, hahah! this is the sister that
brings me milk and cheese every week. haha, it was so funny :)
oh yeah! we also went over to alondra's sisters'
bday party! miriam made sure to invite us. we showed up and they served
us some really yummy, spicy soup that you top with lettuce and radishes.
it was delicious. then, the side dish was pig's feet, if you wanted!
hahaha, of course i tried it. alondra, having grown up around that her
whole life had never tried it, which surprised me. so i begged her to
try it with me and she did! i couldnt believe it. it was not that bad,
but not good. it was really slimy! i am such a big girl. sis. stone
wouldn't try it haha!
and of course, there was the General Relief Society
meeting which was just wonderful. i cannot believe how perfect it was.
jennifer came and literally every talk was written for her. if you want
to get to know her better, listen to that session and you will know her!
it was incredible, INCREDIBLE!
i cannot wait for general conference this weekend.
it is going to be magnificent! invite people over for it. what a great
introduction into the gospel, where you can really feel the spirit, but
not an intimidating environment. DO IT.
SUNDAY
it was the fifth sunday,
so during the third hour of meetings, everyone met back in the chapel.
our bishop and ward mission leader planned a time on missionary work,
where they used the work of salvation broadcast to really get people in
on the loop of how missionary work is supposed to be working in the
ward. bishop asked me to be the first to speak after they showed the
videos and to share something that would excite the members and help
them to see of the miracles that are going on in our ward and how we
need them for the work to progress. i was so stinkin' nervous! i usually
don't get nervous when public speaking, but i was SO nervous. i know
it's because this is something that is so important to me and i wanted
it to be perfect. i don't really remember all too well what i said, but i
was crying, which is a good sign, because i am always crying when i
feel the spirit. several people came up after and thanked me and
expressed their readiness to work! we are so excited. i pray i do not
leave this area at transfers, i love it and the people we are teaching
too much to leave!
challenge of the week. pray about inviting someone
over for general conference in your home, just one of the sessions! pay
attention after you pray and invite the first person you think of, don't
ignore those promptings. heavenly father can only help us if we let
Him, so follow your promptings. i expect to hear a report back from each
of you (my family) and anyone else who does it! i love you ALL so much.
xoxooxoxoxoxoxoooxoxoxo.
Sista Kensey Kerr
highlight
of this week: just watching my sister, Whitney and her family reunited
after her husband's deployment. sweetest thing i have ever seen! thank
you Kyle Copeland for your service and Whitney, Pepper and Kade for your
sacrifices. You are ALWAYS in my thoughts and prayers. <3
watch it here!
YouTube - Videos from this email
oh my gosh! cutest video ever whit!
ReplyDeleteI love this and can't stop watching it!!! I am so happy you are all together again!!!
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