Giving Away what is Precious

New scriptures mom sent me

**Questions for Our Missionary**

**We are having the sister missionaries over for dinner this week, what foods do you not get enough of or too much of  (I've heard to many roasts and tacos, not enough of breakfast for dinner)?

OOOOh! I would say make more caseroles and fruits and salads! we get so much roats , meat and starchs I just have to remind myself I need to have more fruits and veggies or I will get too big!!! haha but something fun and creative is perfect!

**Do you have branch missionary leaders like we have ward missionary leaders here?  If you do, how do you use them to help you?

Yes we do! that woman that called you at the beginning of my mission is our branch mission leader's wife! Their names are Marilyn and Chuck Hawes! Brother Hawes is a second grandpa here, I love him a lot! THey help with meals for any investigators or members going through a hard time, or they help with us for anything we need or they host any lessons we may have with investigators or they also contact the Branch President if there is something we need information on-we are not really supposed to contact the Branch President unless there is an emergency

**How was going to the Louisville Temple last week?  (I'm hoping you were able to go - I'm guessing the roads were too bad to travel on)

We weren't able to go :( we are gonna try to go this Friday as a better time and see what happens! this weeks weather was unreal but its all over for now and just has snow on the ground.

**Did you get to do that family name I send of your Great Great Grandmother Peggy White?

Yes I did! and I love everything in that package!!! :)

**Are you getting transferred this week? ( I kind of hope not - I think you are doing so awesome and made such great friends it would be hard to move on)?

I DONT KNOW-I honestly don't want to leave because this is home for now and I was "Born" Here (it a missionary term) but I honestly desire a new companion but I have ventured on the thought that I might stay for another one because the Thaxton's go home April 28th and I would like to be here with them as long as possible; Mom, I love the Thaxton's so much and the people of this Branch it would be so difficult to leave!

**What is with that picture of you on a tractor with Sister Hinton?

We were out a 'Cookie' (Gordon, he goes by cookie haha) Nettleton's house, we go every Wednesday morning with the thaxton's to see him! He owns a farm and a ton of geese and ducks! kind of a funny man but he is great! 

**Why were you on a gold toilet posing - what is that all about?

HAHAHAHAH  oh my goodness we were driving with the thaxtons down to Albion, IL and for some random reason a golden toilet was just sitting there by a company on the side of the highway! We took advantage of the moment and took model poses! I have to send you a picture of Elder Thaxton posing as "The THinker" on the toilet! So funny

Oh mom I am just so glad to hear that life is normal and great back there in Idaho! Elder Polson is my district leader! (I don't know if you remember that) he is only 35 minutes away from our area! I absolutely love him and his companion! His companion is from VEGAS! He lived in Henderson! He used to be this wayward kid with a tattoo and nose and ear piercings and now is on a mission! His name is Elder Hardy and he is like my best friend out here. It's so nice to know someone in my district because Elder Polson and I talk at district meeting about people we both know, and things that have happened and all that jazz and its such a blessing!

-Sister Jones

P.S. Thank You for the package this last week it has made my entire world! keep on truckin'!

Olney - Home of the Ice Storms this week!

Good Morning Everyone!

Well this week has been a slow one! Since we were in the middle of an ice and snow storm all week we have been quite determined to stay out of the lovely snow! But wonderful things have happened!

We had the opportunity to teach Caiden this week and he has finished the Book of Mormon! crazy!! This 10 year old boy has beat many adults in the world (including me) in reading the Book of Mormon! He told us this when he came to a dinner and we wanted to cry we rejoiced so much! 

Well we scheduled another lesson with him and came back on Tuesday. We were late and he told us that straight up! We laughed and then realized he had a shirt and tie on, and cleaned the entire house and set up four chairs in the living room just for our lesson! We sat down and the first thing he said was "I have bad news. I am moving away." Sister Hinton and I looked at each other and we wanted to break down. he told us that his mom got a job in Terra Haute and is coming to pick him up on Saturday! 

We decided to teach him the plan of salvation and explain that he had a huge purpose in his life and that part of it was meeting us. Sister Hinton couldn't speak during that lesson and then we left and sat in the car and teared up. 

But I walked out of there with the distinct impression that I needed to give him my Quad set of scriptures---Also that for a few weeks I have been desperately wanting new scriptures (not knowing why). After talking with Sister Hinton about everything about it I made my decision to give him them-it was SO hard! Those scriptures have so many memories and things about them that I just will never forget. however, when I gave him my scriptures Caiden was so excited that he got to get a quad like ours he started looking through them and picking scriptures and verses to read! it was so cute!! When I told Sister Thaxton that I gve them and she said "Are you sure you wanted to do that? Those scriptures have been your friend for a long time now." I pictured that as something my mom would say but then I told her that God placed a reason for me to need to get knew scriptures and gave me the desire to give them to someone who is willing to take care of them. Yes I felt uneasy about it and will always want them back but Sister Hinton said it best "When you gave those to him I could just picture him in years down the road explaining in his farewell talk for his mission about a set of missionaries and how one of them gave him a set of scriptures!"    She was right! and I did not doubt that those were in the right hands-who knows what conversion they will bring to someone else.

    Later in the week we got to meet a new member that moved from....LAS VEGAS (Henderson) ! He is 17 and he decided to move here and has been a convert for a few years and he was so excited that the first people he met were missionaries! (He loves missionaries) He came to church on Sunday and the only young man in the ward, Evan, got to pick this new member up for church and after Evan passed the Sacrament he went right over and sat next to this new member! They are now best friends! The Lord works in super mysterious but wonderful ways!

Last night we drove to Noble to visit the Toliver's and eat dinner with them! We had soooo much fun! We went and played on Evan's banjo (super sweet!) and Drum set! It is so hard to play on the drums. Than we ate home-grown corn, fried chicken and Non-Idaho potatoes (I give everyone around here grief for not making Idaho spuds apart of their meals, Ha-ha!) 

We shared a story from President Monson's talk called "How do we show our love" and we shared this story:

 "Another example is a family in the mission over which I presided, a family by the name of Agnew. They were difficult people to convert. William Agnew, particularly, would not listen to the missionaries, but finally he consented to attend our Sunday School with his wife, three children, and the two missionaries. However, when the missionaries came on Sunday morning to escort the family to the chapel, there had been a little disagreement in their home. Brother Agnew had insisted, “I will not go to the Mormon Sunday School.”

His wife replied, “But you promised, Bill. You promised these young men that you would go.”
“I’m not going, and that’s that!” he said. He became rather angry, but somewhat reluctantly he permitted his wife and children to go to Sunday School. He later told me of the events of that morning. He said, 

“When my wife and children shut the door and left me alone in the living room, I had nothing good to say about the Mormon faith. I was about as angry a man as one could imagine. I picked up the morning newspaper to see if I could read about the problems of the world and get my mind off religion, but it was to no avail. I kept thinking, my wife and my children have gone to meet with the Mormons. I then went into my daughter Isabel’s bedroom. I thought that perhaps I could turn on the news and hear something different. As I turned on the little radio on her nightstand, what do you think I heard? The Mormon Tabernacle Choir! What message do you think I heard? Richard L. Evans spoke on the subject ‘Let Not the Sun Go Down on Thy Wrath.’

I felt as though the Lord were talking to me personally. I got down upon my knees and promised my Heavenly Father that I would no longer rail against Him—that I would do what these young missionaries had taught me to do.”

When his wife and children returned from Sunday School, they found a new husband and a new father. They couldn’t understand why he was in such a pleasant mood. Finally they asked him what had happened to change his attitude.

He said: “I’ll tell you. I was so upset when you left that I read the paper in an attempt to get my mind off all of you. No success. Then I went to Isabel’s bedroom and turned on the radio to hear the news, and of all things, I heard the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. This man, Richard L. Evans, spoke to me and said, ‘Don’t let the sun go down on thy wrath.’ I felt closer to God at that moment than I have ever felt in my life. I am ready to go with you to the meetings. I am ready to pursue a diligent study with the missionaries.”
Isabel said, “Dad, that’s a wonderful story—if only it were true.”
Her father said, “Isabel, it’s true.”
She said, “No, Dad. Did you say that you turned on the radio on my nightstand?”
He replied, “That’s the one—the little white one.”
“Dad,” she said, “that radio hasn’t worked for several weeks. I think the tubes are burned out.”
“Isabel,” he said, “that radio works. Come with me.” 
     
He led his family into Isabel’s bedroom, walked over to the nightstand next to her bed, and turned on the radio as he had done just one hour earlier, but no sound came forth. That radio did not work! But when our Heavenly Father needed to communicate a message to an honest seeker after truth, that radio not only worked, but it tuned him into the very program and to the very message he needed to bring him to a recognition of the truth. Little wonder that he later became the bishop of that ward. Little wonder that all three of his children are active in the Church and continue to fill positions of responsibility.

When we serve our God, when we love Him, He knows it, and He will take us by the hand and give us answers to our prayers."

     This story greatly shows that if we searching for truth that God will find a way to help us know  and an example this week of an honest seeker of truth is Jeff. He has been taught on and off for a year or so and  he is already most-way done with reading the Book of Mormon and he is the type of person where he will ask questions and get off topic a lot to where we can't even get through a lesson and so we felt that we needed to just have him ask his questions and answer them through the spirit. We did that and with us four missionaries there we all bounced off one another the answers to his questions when he asked about D&C 89 (W.o.W.) and it was as though Heavenly Father truly spoke through us and helped him to understand why we have the W.o.W.   I know that things which our Heavenly Father reveals to us are sacred and that they are precious and if we seek, ponder and pray earnestly to receive more of those sacred things that He will manifest them more fully to us for our own strength and guidance.

Happy Valentine's Day & Week!

Get Ready For TONS of Pictures  (Yay!)

     Well this week was a crazy one! We had Zone conference first of all and had to drive down to Evansville! Happy valentines day!! I got to see my sister missionary mother! it was so good to see sister Clark before he leaves! Sister Hinton got to see many old friends and an old companion.

     Then the best of all moment we got to stay in the mission home with president and sister Brough this last Friday and woke up early the next morning on valentines day for the D. Todd Christofferson conference! We made it there and sat quietly in our chairs and were told to study our scriptures until he came in and then to stand when he does. They conducted us to stand and as we did d. Todd Christofferson walked in and I could hear a pin drop and Holy Moly the spirit was so strong! there wasn't a doubt in my mind that he was an apostle of the Lord. President Brough said that we would go row by row and he would let us say 'Hello' and Shake his hand! We were in the back so we talked a little while before we had our chance and then we did and he was proably a half an inch shorter than me and I thought it was weird because he seems like a fairly tall person on t.v. but nope he wasn't haha! But Elder Christofferson had us all ask questions (As we were supposed to come with some prepared for revelation) and each question was so perfect that everything that he said -I needed to hear. One of the Elder's asked a question that was so cool, he said "What is the significance of 'the laying on of hands' " and of course Elder Christofferson had some great humor and whipped right around and turned to President Brough behind him to ask him what he feels inspired to say about that. We all laughed as President Brough made a wonderful effort to teach us and then it was Elder Christofferson's turn to give his insights, he said : "It is the physical evidence of God's power. During a blessing the Lord is reaching down and touching you." I loved this because of how significant it is that God is literally blessing us through his holy servants and priesthood holders, just to give us strength when we need it the most

    One of my questions I had that he answered was How do I more effectively forget myself and go to work and a sister stood up and asked that. Elder Christofferson said that that was a wonderful question she asked and as we all sat there with our notebooks in hand we listened intently to The Lord's advice through this apostle:  

1. Receive a testimony of your calling

2. Watch what we do, think and say

3. Go and DO, no matter what

4. Identify distractions--> than stay away

5.Continue to act

# Itssosimple! I felt so enlightened and it is amazing how the Lord is willing to prepare us for spiritual information not matter how long it takes and according to our comfort and stretching level-I have heard a lot of these things this last week and kinda took it to heart but it became even more clear that an apostle of the Lord was inspired say repeat and say more of the things God has been telling me all week, I now know I need to listen!

   Than I got to shake his hand a second time as he walked out the door! I wasn't even planning on it and I turned as I walked out to - he was coming up behind me and I turned and shook his hand! :)

     

        A wonderful miracle happened this last week! So we have recently been teaching Chris but to make it short he has been sick and hard to catch but when Sister Clark and I first met him we gave him and his nephew, Caiden, a Book of Mormon; we moved on with Chris not really thinking about Caiden. Well since sister Hinton has been here we had a few reading lessons with him and on his own Caiden has read all the way to Alma 30!!! We were so excited that we couldn't hold back our leaps of joy! We asked him to be baptized and he picked out a baptism date and chose March 7th! which is super close! I am just praying I get a chance to be here to see it happen because transfers are coming up and I don't even know if I will leave this area or stay! 

     But we had the Thaxton's come with us to a teach one of the many lessons that we quickly have to get through before baptism and taught the restoration! We walked in and Caiden (10 years old) had cleaned his entire house and was wearing a button down blue shirt with his tie that we wore to church yesterday and angled the chairs and tables in the living room so that we could talk. The spirit was so strong because Chris and Misty (Caiden's aunt and uncle) joined in on the lesson and had so many questions and Chris was crying and Caiden asked when he could be a missionary too. Also! since Caiden was at church yesterday he saw one of the primary girls get baptized and confirmed! There were literally 10 priesthood holders that surrounded her for her confirmation and as we flipped through the pamphlet he was the picture of Joseph Smith receiving the priesthood and connected that to the little girl getting confirmed! We asked him if so far he believes that the Book of Mormon is true and he said yes and looked at our scriptures and said he wanted a 'Quad' just like ours!

    

Caiden is truly an elect child chosen from Heavenly Father to learn about His Church! The Thaxton's were so honored to be apart of this process because Caiden turned to Elder Thaxton at church and asked him if he could baptize him! Elder Thaxton teared up! AWE!! :)

 

   Lastly, this week has been so fun and crazy that I have learned so many lessons that I have grown from a tiny seed (as a missionary) to a small but larger sapling but how mighty the Lord has pushed and grown me and I cannot wait to see the ending result of my mission when I am the tree, shrub, bush or even orchard I am meant to become! 

 I Love you all and hope there was Christ-centered love for your valentines day! Talk to you all next week! BYee!

-- Sister Jones 

P.S. I am going to the temple this Friday! The woman that I gave my Liahona necklace to invited us to see her get her endowments out and President Brough gave me permission to go! So if you send something a name fast and the scriptures and temple clothes? (probs not the temple clothes) and get them here quick I might be able to do them down in the Louisville temple! :)

-- Sister Jones loves you!

Questions for our Missionary:!!!!

Did you get the Valentine package on Valentine's Day?***

Yes I did and I was actually thinking about the necklace you sent and was gonna email today asking for you to send it out Ha Ha but I kinda pushed aside the thought and then I opened the package and got it! Thank you so much! I teared up!!!

Did you get my hug from Sister Robinson?**

Yes I did! Oh my goodness she came up to me twice saying that she met you and I thought she was fibbing but I guess not Ha Ha she is the grandma of our mission and is the cutest lady ever!!! :)

What color of scriptures do you want? (I will get them and send them to you this week)?***

Either Black, dark blue, or maroon (Preferably maroon to remind me of you! ;)   ) and if there was like a baby blue set-that would be kinda cool! ;) Ha Ha just kidding there probably any!

We saw the baptism photos on FB from Monalisa, how did that go?  Tell us all about that wonderful day!***

It went well! it wasn't a baptism for anyone that we taught Ha Ha but we really connected with Mona and her friends! So I probably looked like a giant compared to them! Ha Ha, but it went well we had two investigators with us this last week and their both within this next months planning to get baptized and were super inspired! :)

Yes please still send out the clothes still! It helps change out the wardrobe and I am not a hundred percent sure if I am getting transferred yet, but I am up for anything the Lord has to offer!

***Did you see that note about your 9th grade BF ending up in Grandma Renee's ward in Sacramento - and they figured out the connection?  She pulled out pictures of you, Crazy Small world!***

Oh boy when you sent that package with that note about Elder Bates I just kinda felt awkward that he met Grandma Renee......(Edited....PRIVACY INTENDED:  Don't post this please)  :)

Ha Ha I will start sending out more pictures-you know me I am not the picture taking type!-But Sister Hinton oh boy is a Selfie fanatic! She is slightly crazy!;)   

OH! I don't know if you were going to buy a scripture case and send it out for the scriptures? if not I request one haha...sorry I am being needy but I am so excited about new scriptures and you are doing well as a missionary mother! ;)

**(Told her about her friend Ashley Butikopher's farewell we went to yesterday - going to Moskow, Russia)**:

Oh wow Ashley must have done a wonderful job at her farewell talk she is amazing! Text/Call her and tell her that I love her! and that I will pray for her success! :)

Right now there is a vicious (Not too vicious, don't worry) snow storm driving through our area! Ha Ha.  We have about a foot and a half of snow that started last night. Ha Ha.  President Brough told us to stay in until tomorrow afternoon, so we are spending the entire day at the Thaxton's and they made us lunch and will make us dinner and we are emailing here and I'm wearing jeans!!! :) and holy crow its fun! I might go shopping with some of my tax return money tomorrow just for fun! Ha Ha!  But technically tomorrow will be our PDAY. 

NOTE TO THE READER------  As Sister Joneses mom, we have sent her two cameras and we have always begged for more than the one, maybe two pics each week...WELL,  her new companion, Sister Hinton's mom is AWESOME to have a selfie queen of a daughter, and is tagging me & sharing all these pics.  We now have a whole ton of photos to really see some of the fun parts of Olney and Katelyn in action.  Thank you so much Kami Hinton!  Get ready for an onslaught of pictures :)

I'm sure this was done reverently

Study space & the following living spaces:

shared room (notice Grandma Pam's homemade quilt)

Brother Thaxton & meeting time

My new companion Sister Hinton

Trip to Mt. Vernon training

Olney, IL white squirrel capital of the universe

Milkshakes and downtime

Monalisa's daughter's baptism:

Hamming it up with the Sistas:

Conversations in the Womb - A Parable of Life After Delivery

Well Mulan went to war and before she did she cut her hair....I am off in the battle between good and evil and I cut mine also!!! I decided to chop off my hair! But no worries its not too short! ;)

This week was a weird one because I had a nice minor case of Bronchitis and with some wonderful medication and rest I got feeling 100% better! So this week we tried our very hardest to keep track of our investigators and out of all things that happened this week unfortunetly we are learning that one of our investigators, Nikki Ray, may not be getting baptized along with her daughter and her husband. As much as I have been taking it hard that she hasn't come along as fast as her family I was reminded by the spirit and my companion that everyone converts at their own pace and comfort and she isn't going to be lost forever. I know that, and I also know that Heavenly Father is mindful of every person here on earth and that they all will receive the gospel (or at least have the opportunity to) because Heavenly Father loves each and every one of us!

   Yesterday at church the speakers spoke about faith and repentance in the Gospel. Brother and Sister Vastbinder did a marvelous job at teaching and explaining the meaning and reason for the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ. Sister Vasbinder also read a wonderful story called "Life after Delivery" and for us knowing whether or not there is a God:

Conversation in the Womb – A Parable of Life After Delivery

In a mother’s womb were two babies . One asked the other: “Do you believe in life after delivery?”The other replied, “Why, of course. There has to be something after delivery. Maybe we are here to prepare ourselves for what we will be later.”

“Nonsense” said the first. “There is no life after delivery. What kind of life would that be?”
The second said, “I don’t know, but there will be more light than here. Maybe we will walk with our legs and eat from our mouths. Maybe we will have other senses that we can’t understand now.”

The first replied, “That is absurd. Walking is impossible. And eating with our mouths? Ridiculous! The umbilical cord supplies nutrition and everything we need. But the umbilical cord is so short. Life after delivery is to be logically excluded.”

The second insisted, “Well I think there is something and maybe it’s different than it is here. Maybe we won’t need this physical cord anymore.”

The first replied, “Nonsense. And moreover if there is life, then why has no one has ever come back from there? Delivery is the end of life, and in the after-delivery there is nothing but darkness and silence and oblivion. It takes us nowhere.”

“Well, I don’t know,” said the second, “but certainly we will meet Mother and she will take care of us.”
The first replied “Mother? You actually believe in Mother? That’s laughable. If Mother exists then where is She now?”

The second said, “She is all around us. We are surrounded by her. We are of Her. It is in Her that we live. Without Her this world would not and could not exist.”

Said the first: “Well I don’t see Her, so it is only logical that She doesn’t exist.”

To which the second replied, “Sometimes, when you’re in silence and you focus and you really listen, you can perceive Her presence, and you can hear Her loving voice, calling down from above.”
​
I absolutely loved this little parable and it is so true that we cant see or sometimes feel God and justify that God is not there because or lack of Physical evidence. However I know that God is there, that He is all around us and wants to strengthen and bless us and help us in everything we do. Sometimes we just need to listen closely and do as he asks of us and we will be given the testimony that we know He is there.
   Another wonderful thing that I learned this last week is the importance of Agency! I have been using it wrong out here on my mission! Now this doesn't mean that I have purposely been breaking rules or being disobedient but I haven't been truly using it at all. We were reading in the Ezra T. Benson book for relief society yesterday and how agency is our God-given ability to choose how our "Life's story" will pan -out. We read this scripture from a passage:26 For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.
 "27 Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;
 28 For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.
 29 But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned." (D&C 58:26-29)
I learned that I cannot just wait for God to give specific direction without really doing anything and expect a prize for waiting- I have to put my every effort in being a servant of the Lord, do all I can to do good continually and then pray for guidance and inspiration and then "get on my feet and work". I am not ashamed to do so and I am not afraid to work hard, I know that Lord is here every step of the way when I use my agency right! :)
Last night we and the Thaxton's went to have a lesson with Stephan (Sister Clark and I taught him at the beginning of my mission) and he has been coming to church for a good three and a half months now and we taught him the plan of salvation last night! It went so well and we explained everything so slowly that he could simply understand everything and we asked him if baptism is something he would want, and he said yes and we were jumping out of our clothes we were so excited! But we know we still have to go slow and told him to pray what day that he wants to be baptized on and he said he will, so we just will be patient and "Do our duty, that is best, and leave unto the Lord the rest!" (Quoted by Thomas S Monson).
Anyway I love you all and pray for you in every moment I can! This work is moving forward, I promise you that.
Love ALWAYS ;) ,
Sister Jones
Questions for our Kizzer:

*Who is Mona Lisa? (Part of my letter to Kizzer:   "Bro. Thaxton added me as a friend on FaceBook - and so I accepted him.  Pulled up his profile and pics - and Low and Behold --- there were pics of my awesome daughter at Christmas time.  I just had a permanent grin seeing you out there and about.

Monalisa (her Facebook name?) also added me and said she knows you- saw you at YW nights etc.  Who is she?  She is so nice.  She said her mom and sister live in Idaho Falls?  Tell me some about her too!")

Answer:  Mona Lisa is the young woman's leader here in Olney and she is probably 4'9 and is the sweetest philopino lady every! She converted when she was 18 or 19 and got her sister to convert and one day they expect her mom but she says like she told you that her mom and sister live in Idaho falls and she says that you should visit them and get a picture and send it to her! But she wants to talk to you more and I love her and you would too! :) Brother Thaxton thinks your a cool woman-no lie! He saw a quote that you put on FaceBook and wrote it down in his planner and he saw that you call me "Kizzer" and now calls me that and than smiles and laughs at me ha ha he a is a great mission grandpa! :) ha ha give grandpa  high five for me! :) Is he doing better? his knee doing well? anyway let me know!

*What happened this week with you being sick?

I am feeling soooo much better now! and not my comp has a stomach bug and possibly the flu so this next week is going to be not so fun again but we are trying to make the best of everything! 

     Katelyn went on to tell her Dad in an email that Sister Hinton is now super sick and they are spending some time at Bro. & Sis. Thaxtons.  They must be awesome mission grandparents to watch out for these two!

I have a request? will you send out my spring clothing?  I am ready to trade out some of them, the weather is on and off here so I will keep my thicker stuff but I really need a change in wardrobe before I go crazy- I borrow a lot of Sister Hinton's clothing! haha

Sick, Spiderman & D. Todd Christofferson

                            Letter from President Brough (mission president):

FROM: President Brough

Dear Elders and Sisters:
With great pleasure I invite all full-time missionaries to attend a very special Mission Conference on the morning of Saturday, 14 February 2015. We will have the privilege of receiving instruction from Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles and Elder Ulisses Soares of the Presidency of the Seventy..."

 

          ~we are gonna meet D. Todd Christofferson! on valentines day!~

*Got a very early email from Katelyn - earlier than normal, she was emailing from Bro & Sis. Hixton's apartment on what to do on feeling so sick.  Side Note:  Interesting that it took nearly 4 months for her to get sick for the first time.  At least we got to 'break the rules' and talk back and forth.  It was wonderful to hear her 'voice' even if she was not feeling well.*

SICK:

(7:30 am) Hey mom I have been sick the last few days (since Saturday). I have had a headache, sore throat to the point of not being able to breathe and an insanely stuffed nose and I have been coughing and spitting up mucus. I just wanted to let you know so if I were to go the medical center today you would know why I might be using the insurance card

-please write back.

 

(11:00 am)  Okay, I just talked to the mission doctor and he said that he is going to call in a prescription at CVS and he thinks I might have a case of Bronchitis-if it were worse he would say Pneumonia but its not that so will you put 20 more dollars on the card just in case it costs a lot? I am told to just have fluids and mucus medicine, Advil and rest, with the prescription. So I think that everything will get better now that there is some sort of diagnosis. 

Thank you mom for talking with me- I feel better knowing that in a way you are still there ha,ha. 

I know you always are but its different being on a mission, its like everyone has disappeared ha,ha. Anyway, I love you momma and tell dad that I love him too! and Jaden and Syd too! ;)

-Sister Jones

         (notice not even a hint that she is really sick in her family letter - what a trooper!)

Dear Family & Friends -

Well this last week was one crazy week! We have done some fun and crazy things: Tuesday we went and painted nails at the Arch here in Olney and it was Sister Hinton's first time serving there and we painted a few nails and chatted and then I painted this one old ladies nails and her name was Evelyn and she said "You will have to clip them first" So I did and it was so hard because I was trying to be gentle but at the same time I was clipping the thickest nails ever! Than she says to me "you having a hard time?" She joked and her and I laughed. As I was doing her nails she was telling me all about her life and explaining that she has been a hard working all her life and she is now 91 and the only physical issues that she has is she is old and her hips hurt, other than that she beats all the old ladies there because she can walk and talk and do a lot on her own. I thought WOW! I hope that I get to be that way when I am older and have a strong enough body! Than her and I took a Selfie and she says oh no I will break the camera! Ha ha, she didn't but she is a cutie!

That night we helped Sister parker (who owns a skating rink) take down her winter decorations and put up valentine decorations! It was a blast, she had pizza, cake and then top it off she had spiderman and Patrick star costumes! I had to try them on! And since we had kids there from the branch as well they got a kick out of it all!

 

Thursday and Friday we had exchanges with the Sister training Leaders and I went down to Mt. Vernon for the day and night and it was a fun day. Sister Goodrich decided that we would go to New Harmony to visit some members and Less-actives in that town. And it was one of the creepiest places I have ever been to. Its this small town in the middle of the woods where everything is super quiet and squeaky clean; and their main attraction is this weird labyrinth made out of bushes and then in the middle of this random maze is a small stone building with a door and windows in it-but there is nothing inside. The information box said that the religionists called the "Harmonists" built the town and had a weird prayers in the middle of this labyrinth. Some people are freaky but I can say I visited this town!

 

Lastly, We went to teach a former investigator and she has been taught on and off for over a year by sisters. We felt impressed to read "Your Happily Ever After" to her and she started to cry and we explained that she has so much more to live for and keep going with trying not to smoke and she set a baptismal date with us, ready to start over and change! You just never know when people need to hear that they are worth so much more than what the world tells them and that God indeed has a plan for them! We should be mindful that every person that walks in our path because we never know what they have gone through and how their day has been; you might make someone's day by how you treat them!

My favorite scripture that I read this week is in Alma 34- When Alma is speaking to his son Hela​man and basically explaining his conversion story and bearing his testimony of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and how he is struck by an angel of the Lord and how he tasted as much joy as was his pain. I know that people in the Book of Mormon are testimonies how we should try to live - as they come to grow closer to the Lord we should do so daily. The only way to do that is through the Atoning blood of our Savior Jesus Christ and the use of His enabling and loving power. I testify that we are loved Sons and Daughters of God and that we have all the opportunities to change and turn towards our Heavenly Father! I love you all!

-Sister Jones