"Bear Lake" Service. Merry Christmas!

We were going to Olive Branch to do service for toys for tots on Friday and it was raining so hard! It was really hard to see and there was a lot of flooding. 

The service project was in a warehouse and we were getting lost but as we got closer there was a BIG puddle, probably like a good sized pond. I called it Bear Lake, after the huge lake near where my family lives in Utah.  :) We started to drive though it, but it was SUPER deep and the water splashed a little onto the hood of our car. We quickly turned around and got out of there! 

But then we called the Collierville sisters and found out that the service project was on the other side of the pond. We thought they had driven through it so after we watched another small car successfully go through the puddle, we decided to go for it. It was pretty deep, but we made it across! And then it turned out that it wasn't near as deep when the Collierville sisters went through it and it drained by the time we left so no one else had to do that or even saw it. We took a video though, so we have proof that it happened.

*"Bear Lake" video will go here

This week as I was reading in the Book of Mormon, the last part of verse 30 in Alma 49 stuck out to me. "Being baptized unto repentance, and sent forth to preach among the people." Even in Book of Mormon times, preaching repentance and baptizing converts was the goal. When a person has truly learned repentance and been baptized because they are converted, they will never, ever fall away. This is what happened to Helaman, Shiblon, Corianton, and Ammon, and they never went less active. That's why it's so important for me to be continually repentant and teach my investigators how to repent, so that we never become less active.

Exchanges with Southaven- Hermana Keller with Sister Woolley, Sister Zollinger with Sister McNall

Caroling

Dropping off Christmas

Cavesha's baptism

More Cavesha's baptism

Trusting God

This week, as we were on our way to a meeting on Friday, we had just crossed the Mississippi and were in West Memphis, when we saw a car straddling the lane line. It was very odd but then it kind of drifted back over towards the far side of it's lane so President Faulkner sped up to pass it. Right as we were in the car's blind spot, it started drifting back towards us. The car got really close to our car. President Faulkner started honking the horn and Sister Johnston started yelling that the driver was asleep. It was so scary but right before he hit us, he started drifting the other way. We called 911 to let them know and said a prayer for him. I am so glad Heavenly Father watches out for his missionaries!

In my BoM reading this week, I read Alma 38 and I love verse 5:

And now my son, Shiblon, I would that ye should remember, that as much as ye shall put your trust in God even so much ye shall be delivered out of your trials, and your troubles, and your afflictions, and ye shall be lifted up at the last day.

I think trusting in God is one of the biggest lessons I've learned on my mission. It's not enough for me to trust him most of the time or even 99% of the time. But when I give him my all and fully submit my will to his, then that's when I'll be delivered from my trials. And with that, every burden can be made light, sadness can be made happy, and we will be lifted up at the last day. And all of that just because God is our loving Heavenly Father!

Exchanges with Oxford

Welcome to Memphis

Merry Christmas from Hermana Keller and Sister McNall

Being Better Leaders and Servants

This week, the zone leaders called and asked us to read Matt. 20:25-28. After we did, they asked us to think about what we can do to be better leaders and better servants. I studied that one day this week, and as I was clicking on the footnotes on my iPad, I saw something that talked about humility and then something else about repentance in relation to those verses. So the answer I came up with about how I can be a better leader is by being humble and continually repentant. I think that's important because those are the things I need to do to have the spirit with me.

On my mission, I've been so surprised at how I don't actually know what I'm doing. I'm still only 21 years old, but Heavenly Father trusts me to help him bring salvation to his children. I don't want to mess up. But what I'm learning is that as long as I have the spirit with me, then I won't mess up. The key to being a successful missionary is living worthy of the spirit always so that He can always tell us what to do. And I think the same thing applies with a leadership position. I need to be constantly worthy of the spirit so I can know what the best way to serve those around me is.

Exchanges: Sister Jones, Hermana Keller, Sister Smith

Paint Memphis! :)

  

Headed to West Memphis. Fun fact: West Memphis is a town in Arkansas! LOL. It's across the Mississippi River from Memphis, TN. We had to go across to West Memphis to get our TIWI fixed. 

Headed back to Memphis, TN. Fun fact #2: TIWI is a device that are in the missionaries' cars that monitors driving and reminds them not to speed, etc.

Exchange, Gabriella's baptism photos

I was on exchanges this week with the Russellville Hermanas, working with Hermana Colwell in the Russellville area. We had planned to go see some less active members. The first one wasn't home, so we went and talked to some kids that were playing by the apartment next door. We gave them some stickers and showed them the Light the world video, and then asked them where they lived so we could go talk to their mom. They showed us, so we went and knocked. She was on her way out the door, so we just set a return appointment but then I looked inside her house and saw a Finding Faith in Christ
pass along card taped to the cabinet in her kitchen! It was so cool!

None of the other less actives we had planned to see were there either but we were able to set up return appointments with two more women we saw outside. It  was so cool and I know Heavenly Father leads us to where we need to be.

Memphis: Sunset coming on

Little Rock Mission Hermanas Skype call

Gabriella

Hermana Keller, Gabriella in baptism whites, Hermana Petty

Hermana Keller, Gabriella in baptism whites, Hermana Robles

After the baptism: Hermana Keller, Hermana Petty, Gabriella, ward member

Las Hermanas at Gabriella's baptism: ?, Keller, Petty, Robles