Hey everyone!
This week I wrote about our missionary call letter, which tells us to leave behind all our personal affairs and dedicate a period of our lives to serving the Lord. I just want to let you know that this is why I left behind the blog for a year and a half. I considered doing a weekly update on the blog on my mission, but then I realized that it didn't line up with my purpose to invite others to Christ. I really wanted that time to be entirely about serving Jesus, and I tried to make it that way. I know you'll all understand that. I'm happy it happened, and I'm happy to be back!
Enjoy!
Hello one and all!
LA LOVE:
Okay, so I don't even really know how to explain this one, but we have this little chili guy named Jose who dances in the sun and he jams to a new hymn or children's song frequently. Also, I got a new bike and his name is Todd! Patricia will be greatly missed but she was also causing me a lot of problems and the mission got a ton of new bikes donated to it so I'm not upset.
When you're the companion of a sister training leader but not a sister training leader yourself, you go on exchanges a lot. Super fun getting to be with the other sisters of the zone!
So I'm super famous in the zone for baking which is something I'm really proud of no lie. We were picking Sister Pace up from zone leadership council (another part of being the companion of a sister training leader) and the first thing Elder Lee said when he saw me was, entirely out of nowhere, that Sister Day makes the best cookies ever. I made brownies for Sister Pickett's birthday and all the sisters love them, plus the zone leaders (they live in the same building as them so they were lucky). I have given trainings in district council on how I bake my cookies. I feel so honored.
Every night we watch movies in the apartment, meaning Sister White describes movies in vivid detail and Sister Pace and I listen. Last night I got to assist her in describing The Lizzie McGuire Movie and The Princess Diaries.
EVENTS OF THE WEEK:
On p-day we went to Star's (super cute diner) because Sister White had been thinking about a burger for literal days. It was a party!
We went to the El Camino Real Bible study. While I didn't really understand much of it because I don't speak Spanish, the Spirit was present as we discussed the word of God.
We had the last district council of the transfer. At the beginning of each district council on e of us bears testimony, but this week we all did and it was awesome. We received a training on how to use the Bible during street contacting and then went at it in a game of Jeopardy. It was Sister White and I against the zone leaders. Ugh I love the Teancum's Javelins district. Also made lemon bars for the whole zone which were a big success as always!
Transfer call was this week. I've been serving in Reseda for four transfers, which is a pretty long time, so I was expecting to get transferred somewhere else for the first time. At the same time, I was thinking on all the people I had met in this area and felt so strongly that there was more that I specifically could do for them, that they needed me. President Cordon emailed us this week and told us that this transfer would be full of a lot of changes, and that only eleven companionships in the whole mission would stay the same. So which was right? The zone leaders called and told me I would be staying another transfer in Reseda. That's almost half of my mission in Reseda! Sister White will be staying in the area with me. We are one of eleven companionships in the mission that are not being changed! Sister Pace is staying in El Camino Real (although she is no longer a sister training leader) and training again. We are super excited for the upcoming transfer. President also said that this transfer would be a significant turning point in our missions and even our lives, and the second I heard that I knew it was true. This has honestly been the hardest transfer of my mission, and I've been hanging on until the end for a lot of it. But it's also definitely been the best. I have grown so much during this time. I am more filled with gratitude to be a missionary and hold this sacred calling than I ever have been. What a blessing to be a servant of the Lord at this time.
FRIENDS:
We taught Sylvia the beginning of the Restoration. She said she is like Joseph Smith because she has a lot of questions and she is looking for something real. She is so awesome.
I had the best moment of my entire mission this week with Sukki. We were teaching her about the Book of Mormon and how Joseph Smith translated it by the power of God. Sukki asked why the Book of Mormon wasn't translated in all the languages of the world like the Bible was. That's when we pulled out a Book of Mormon in her native language and asked if it was right. She started giggling so much and said, "I can't believe it. I am definitely going to read this!" I almost started crying right there. She is so sweet and progressing so much.
This week we taught Tony the Restoration and told him my favorite statement in all of Preach My Gospel: our message is either true or it is not. The only way to find out is to ask God and really want to know. We also talked about the divine mission of Jesus Christ, faith, and repentance.
We read Mosiah 2:36-41 in the Book of Mormon with Silvia, a recent convert in the El Camino Real ward. She told us her conversation story and said she wants to learn everything about the gospel.
We taught David about the Restoration of the gospel and about living prophets. He is going to pray to know the truth of priesthood authority and to know this is the true Church of Jesus Christ. He loves studying the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We had a lesson with Rolando! It was super fun to teach him because he is someone I already knew. He called me Hermana Dia haha. We read 1 Nephi 8 with him in the Book of Mormon--in Spanish! It was super fun to be reading in Spanish I love and miss that language. He understands the Book of Mormon super well! After that he accompanied us to a dinner at a ward member's house. Super fun!
This week I was studying for a lesson and by the grace of God fell across a Bible verse that brought me much peace and comfort, John 15:13:
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
It was a verse I had heard many a time before, but it really filled my heart with love and joy that day. Jesus Christ is of course the ultimate example of this scripture. He literally gave His life so that everyone to ever live would be saved. But it brought me comfort to know that I and all the missionaries of the world are doing the same thing on a small scale. Our call letter tells us to leave behind all our personal affairs to serve the Lord, and I'm doing it so that all the people of Los Angeles can come closer to Jesus Christ. I feel so privileged. What a blessing.
Thanks and much love!
--Sister Day
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