Nov 1, 2010

Hello everyone!

Can you believe that it's November already! Not me! October farely flew by!!! And what a fabulous month for missionary work here in Antelope California. We saw two baptisms here, and 6 more people accept the challenge to prepare themselves for baptism. 5 of which will be baptized in November! But I'm getting ahead of myself. :)

This last week we met with Hieu and her two kids a few more times. The ward is embracing them, and they're already practically members. It's wonderful. They'll be baptized on the 20th. Also, Joe, the nine year old we've been teaching will also be baptized on the 13th. He's really excited and looking forward to becoming a full member of the church.

This week we saw a crazy amount of miracles happen on Wednesday and Thursday. We had an appointment to meet with Don, and less active who just moved into the ward about 3 months ago. He ran into some of the office senior missionaries at the grocery store a few weeks ago and asked what ward he was in, since he had just moved here and hadn't been to church in 20 years. He said he was ready to come back, and could they please send the missionaries in his ward to his house... so to his house we went. It was a wonderfully spirit filled lesson. He bore his testimony and made it clear that he is ready to come back to church, which was AWESOME! The best part was that his landlady, from whom he rents a room, was also there, and sat in on the lesson. She felt the spirit and asked a few questions, and when we taught her, she asked, "so what do I need to do to become a member of your church?" "Well, Eileen, let us tell you..." lol. So we commited her to be baptized and she said yes! We haven't set a date yet, because she's not fully committed yet, but within the next couple weeks, we should have some great news!

We were pretty excited about that lesson, so we called the mission president's wife, because she always loves to hear those kinds of stories. We told her what happened, she told her husband, and then President Pendleton got on the phone. He asked how big our apartment was, and when we told him there's tons of room (because we actually live in a one bedroom house, with two bathrooms, a full kitchen, and a living room) he said that he was going to keep Sister Silva and I here in Antelope for another transfer and call us both to be Trainers. So we're going to be in a Threesom, training. He specifically said that we're training because there are so many good things happening in Antelope, and he wants the new sister to see what we're doing right. The new transfer starts next Monday, so Sister Silva and I are getting the ward and our investigators ready for the three of us. :)

The next morning, we had a lesson with San. We were going to start the New Member Lessons with her (which means that we teach the same missionary lessons over agian, but with a little more detail this time. Also, this time we only teach the first lesson. After that, the ward missionaries take over and teach the rest of them...) So we went over there to teach San, and Henry, San's husband came in and sat down with us. He had previously been pretty unsupportive of San's decision to be baptized, to the extent that for a long time, we had to meet with her at other members houses, or at the park... but he came in and sat down, and chatted with us for a few minutes. Then, out of the blue he asked, "when is my baptism scheduled?" So we ended up teaching Henry about the church instead, and committed him to be baptized, and he said yes, and we scheduled his baptism for the 13th!

A really good couple of days. :)

The work here is really moving. For a long time, we didn't have anything happening, and no investigators coming to church, but now we have 5 or 6 at church on a regular basis, and we have 5 baptisms scheduled for November, and we had two in October, and we have one on the backburner for December, hopefully. Plus, Lewis's work schedule (remember Lewis, the guy who lives with his girlfriend that we taught when I first got here?) changes in December, so he'll be able to come to church agian, and then we'll be able to move forward with him as well. Things are really going well for us here, and I'm so grateful for the opportunity that Sis. Silva and I have to stay here for another 6 weeks, and to continue working with all of these people. It's going to be a great holiday season!

I love you all and I'm grateful for all your support!

Love, Sister Reid

Oct 25, 2010

Hello again to everyone! Sometimes I feel like I was just here at the library, and I just emailed you. It feels like last monday was only yesterday! All the missionaries say that the first six months of your mission supposedly drags on, and then things start to speed up. If this is dragging, I hate to see what happens when I have only four months to go, instead of just finishing four months.

I'm glad to hear that Grandma Kathy is doing okay. Next time you talk to her, tell her that she and Grandpa are in my prayers.

Also, say hi to Jean, and Kayti, and Cale for me. :) And as a side note... Pres. Rawson: Could you send me Dana and Krista's addresses?

This week week was really good here. We had another baptism on Saturday... It's official. Napa McArthur is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints!!! YAY!!! It was such a wonderful day. And very busy. We had to weekly plan on Saturday Morning because we were too busy on Friday to do it. Then we went and filled the font, set up chairs, and nervously paced until 4:00 when the McArthurs arrived. We took pictures, and almost 70 people from the ward came to witness Napa's Baptism. It was really special. The spirit was so strong there. One of the coolest things, I thought, was that her sister, Ida, came, and she was very visible affected by the spirit that was there. I'm excited for the things that will come from that experience. I remember the first time that we brought Napa to the chapel, for a chapel tour (back when we were trying to convince her that church attendance wasn't going to be a hard thing). We ended the tour in the chapel, and sang a hymn from the hymn book. It was the first time Napa had heard any of the LDS hymns. Well. I can't play that many of them, so I picked a short one, since only Sis Silva and Sis Molina would be singing, really. I played "Love One Another." Since then, we've sung it once or twice in church, and every time, Napa points it out. And I always just grin and say, yep, that's the first song you heard. Well... She picked it to be the closing song at her baptism, and I was leading the music... As I looked at her while we sang, I saw that she couldn't even sing because she was crying so hard. It was amazing to see that something that I thought was a simple thing, like picking a shorter hymn at a chapel tour, could really effect her. She'll remember and love that song for the rest of her life. And I'll remember and love that song for the rest of my life too. We're learning as missionaries that when we love our investigators, we grow when they grow. And it's really true. Because of San and Napa, I'm a different person than I was 4 months ago. And I know that I have so much more growth and learning to do. I'm excited!

Speaking of more growth, Hieu and her kids, Eva and Harold, accepted the baptismal commitment this week. They'll be baptized on November 20th! They're already more active than a lot of the members in our ward. lol! They come to mutual, scouts, church, and all the ward and stake activities. They also came to San and Napa's baptisms, and they're very excited for their own day. Harold remarked in our last lesson that he wanted to be baptized when San was. He didn't want to wait. :)

We had a ward halloween trunk-or-treat on Saturday night after the baptism which was also a great success. We went, because that's what we had for dinner (chile and cornbread) and also because most of our investigators, and now our Recent Converts went too. It was great, and lots of fun. I'm glad that our ward did it, and that the investigators could see how much fun we have together.

That's pretty much all the big news for this week. Now that we're winding down with San and Napa, we've finally got some room in our schedules to find more people to teach. We're looking forward to the challenge that Bishop issued yesterday in PEC. He said that we, both as missionaries and as a ward, shouldn't let this success just be a little blip in the year... but we should continue to keep it building. We're looking forward to the challenge, and we're praying that the Spirit will lead us to more and more people who are ready to hear the gospel. :)

I know that I'm lead in everything I do and say. I can feel it. And I know that your prayers help me every day. I'm grateful for all of your support, both my immediate family, and everyone else that reads these letters. You're all amazing, and I couldn't be here without all of you. So thanks.

Love, Sister Reid

PS. More pictures from this week's baptism. Have a great week!!!

Oct. 18, 2010

So this week I hit my four month mark on my mission! It's crazy how fast it happens. The last couple weeks especially have flown by, which is crazy.

First let me say that we didn't get to go to Apple Hill today... Which is sad. We found out that it's about a half hour outside the Mission border, and our District and Zone leaders said we couldn't go. It was very disappointing to both us and the Less Active Family that was going to take us. Hopefully, this doesn't damage the relationship we've built with them. :) But I know that we have rules for a reason, so we didn't go.

This week has been really busy. We were gearing up and preparing San for her baptism on Saturday, which went so well!!! We met with her almost every single day this week, finishing up the lessons, and helping her prep for her interview, which she had on Thursday and passed with FLYING colors! She was so excited! The Baptism on Saturday night was a whole other kind of experience. I'm not sure I know even how to talk about it. San's husband came, which is pretty incredible. Afterwards he said that it was a nice experience, and not what he was expecting at all, since he was raised catholic. Bishop Summers performed the baptism (wearing my tie - YAY!), and right after San came out of the water, she was glowing, and so happy. She said she felt light, like she could fly away. Napa and Bro McArthur offered the opening and closing prayers, and they REALLY brought the spirit. I just think it's incredible that Napa, who has never prayed in public before in her life, and who isn't even a member till the 23rd, gave a touching, sincere, heartfelt plea for the spirit to be present, and she gave thanks for the gospel in all our lives. Well. It was over for me right at that moment. I was pretty much teary eyed for the rest of the service. lol. Then, yesterday, she was confirmed a member, and that was amazing too! The whole ward has really come out in support of her and her decisions to join the church. We're having a chili cookoff on Saturday, after Napa's baptism, and San, Napa, and Hieu (who I'll talk about in just a second) all signed up to bring stuff. It's so cool!!!

Hieu also came to San's baptism. She was the first one there, along with her kids. It was a pretty cool thing for her to come to I think. Afterwards, I asked how they liked it, and Hieu wanted to know if they're all like that. Then she said, "At my baptism, I'm going to have everyone who comes sign the program, so I remember who came." Can you believe that! We've only met with her twice! Her kids, ages 11 and 12, both also really liked the baptism. Eva, the 12 year old daughter, said that she got kind of emotional. lol... All three of them came to church. It was amazing to see how the ward really embraced them. The young women pres. Sis Bourgeouss, came and took Eva to Sunday School, and then didn't even need to introduce her to anyone because it turns out that most of her friends from school are mormons! Sis. Sobieralski, the primary pres, took Harold to Sunday School, and hooked him up with a few of his friends from school too. Hieu really loved Relief Society (and I thought it was especially awesome that the lesson was on Baptism... :) And she really liked hanging around afterwards for a little while, meeting everyone, and hearing how much Eva and Harold enjoyed themselves. She's already planning on bringing the kids to mutual on Wednesday night, and participating in both the ward trunk-or-treat, and the stake youth activity -- both on Saturday night, after Napa's baptism, which she's also planning on attending. It's so great!

We had exchanges again this week. This time I went to a different ward and Sis. Wallentine came her to be with Sis. Silva. It went okay for me, but I really missed the lessons that Sisters Silva and Wallentine were teaching in my absence. Apparently, the investigators and ward members who went to the lessons missed me too. I guess the lessons didn't go so well, and that's sad, but It's nice to hear that I'm making an impact in this area, and that people miss me when I'm not around. I especially love that almost everyone in the ward recognizes Sister Silva and I as an awesome team, who work hard. They trust us, which is amazing. And we're seeing miracles because of it! The work here is progressing. We'll have two baptisms in October (Joe's Mom decided to push his baptism a couple weeks) and so we'll have at least one in November. We're hoping to set a date for Hieu and her kids for the end of November as well. So we'll have 4 more. That's six in the six months I will have been here, where this ward hasn't seen that many converts in 3 years. Miracles really happen when people catch the vision of what missionary work can be.

I love it here! I love my mission, I've decided I REALLY love seeing my favorite people be baptized! It's so special!

Anyway. I've got to go. I've rambled on long enough. I've attached some pictures from the baptism, and Jared and Daniel you should pay special attention to the tie that Bishop Summers is wearing!

The one of Napa and San in the focus of the picture also has Hieu in the background. :)

Oct. 11, 2010

Hiya! I hope everyone is doing really well! I love to hear from mom, of course, so I know that the immediate family is doing good. But, in being honest, I haven't heard from Daniel and Cat, yet, or from Jaymi and Steven, in a while. Also, I got one letter from Jared while I was at the MTC (which you didn't finish or sign... you sent it with the rest of the letters from the branch, so I didn't even know whose letter it was for a long time, and I had to rely on the spirit of revelation to figure it out. lol). On the flip side, I did get the white tie this week. Again, my companion, and everyone at the mission office, got a big kick out of the fact that there was a package for me from my family, with no letter. I just laughed. I asked Bro McArthur to wear it when he performs Napa's baptism, and he said yes, and then got all choked up when I told him how Daniel and Jared had both used the same tie for their whole mission. I just love that guy.

Speaking of... Bro McArthur was ordained to be a Priest yesterday. I am so proud of him I can hardly come up with the words. To see the change in him and his family is one of the strongest testimony builders I can even imagine for how the Spirit changes people. He's reading the Book of Mormon for the first time in his life, and he and Napa have started a family scripture study program with Keith (age 3) and Tyler (age 6). It's the best. For everyone who is in the Derby Singles Branch, you'll understand when I say: "Finger thing!!!"

San is getting baptized this saturday. It's going to be amazing! She and Napa hang out all the time, and San is also starting to get to know other members of the ward. She sat with the Goldthorpes yesterday at church, and even brought her 30 year old daughter too. I know that the daughter, whose name I can't pronounce yet, but who told me I could call her Terry, was surprised to see that her Mom has so many friends at church. San has been lonely for a long time, I think, and Terry was worried about, I'm sure. So it did Terry good to see that San's testimony isn't just the crazy talk of a lonely lady, but that it is also worth something good. I know that San's prayers for Terry will help Terry to investigate the church someday.

So, Friday was the best day this week (outside of maybe Sunday, because of Bro. McArthur). We started out by leaving the house early so that we could teach English to Alicia. She's a mexican grandmother of one of our member's neighbors. We're teaching her English as a way to get into the home to talk with her son in law, who has reservations about the church. Once they're resolved, we'll be able to start teaching the whole family. So for now, we're teaching English as a way to gain trust. Anyway. It's going really well, and it's a lot of fun. I love Alicia... she's hilarious, and very serious about learning English, which I give her props for, because there are many people who live here in the United States who never bothered with learning English.

Then we went to Napa's house. We had another lesson with Napa and San together. Since they're both so close to baptism, we've been teaching them together, so that we have more time to find other new investigators. We were pleasantly surprised to find out that Napa had invited her sister, Ida to come to the lesson. We had prepared to teach the Law of Chastity, which both San and Napa needed to hear and commit to in order for them to be baptized. So we looked at each other, checked with the Spirit, and then proceeded to teach it, even though Ida had never heard anything, really about the church. That part of the lesson went well, especially since we had another ward member there, Sis. Goldthorpe (who, by the way, is my mission mom, here in Antelope. I love the Goldthorpe Family. So mom, don't worry, I'm being well taken care of :-)... After we wrapped up that lesson, Ida started asking questions about what we believe, the history of the church, and the Book of Mormon. We answered a few of her questions, and Napa answered the rest. It was AWESOME!!! Ida asked why Napa could even consider joining the church because there were so many restrictions, and Napa, like an old pro, answered by telling Ida that, now that she knows what's right and wrong, every time she does something wrong, she feels guilty, and wants to repent. She wants to attend church because the spirit instills in her that desire. She loves having the spirit with her, and KNOWS the difference between when she has it and when she doesn't. And she said that she never wants to not have it. After that stirring testimony, Ida looked at us, and asked if we could start teaching her too. *** BIG GRIN!!! ***

After that lesson, we were flying high on the spirit, but had to rush off to another lesson. This time with Heiu. We met Heiu at a member's home (Sis. Smedley - the Relief Society President, and another one of my favorite ward members). The lesson went really well, and we taught about the Godhead (because she has no foundational knowledge about God) and the Doctrine of Christ (Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Holy Ghost, Endure the End). The best part is that we committed her to be baptized, and she said YES!!! We didn't have time to set a date, but she said she'd come to church this week (which she wasn't able to, but this next week for sure), and that we'll get to meet her kids, and hopefully start teaching them as a family. It'll be so great!!!

That's pretty much it for this week, really. Next week's email will be a little later in the day because one of our ward members is taking us to Apple Hill, which is a collection of Apple Orchards about an hour from here. It's going to be really fun, and I'll take and send lots of pictures... but we won't be home till later in the afternoon, so I probably won't be able to email until 5:00 or so.

I love you all a ton, and I look forward to all your emails and snail mails. Keep 'em coming!

Love, Sister Reid

Oct. 4, 2010

Hello everyone!!! I hope everyone is doing well. :) Life here in the mission is AWESOME!!! Things are really picking up here, just like I knew they would. We're having THREE baptisms this month, the 16th (San), the 23rd (Pupe/Napa) and the 30th (Joe). So Jared and Daniel, I'm not kidding, if you want that white tie to be in my pictures, and I do, then you'd better send pretty quickly!

The week went really well, and you'll never guess, but we've started teaching another Buddhist! it's crazy! Everyone in the ward leadership just starts laughing whenever we tell them. But it's good. I believe that the Lord prepared us to know how to teach them by first giving us Napa, and then San, because we learned a lot about how to teach someone who has no knowledge of Jesus Christ. So now we're teaching a Vietnamese woman named Hieu (pronounced Hue). She came to the US when she was five, and speaks better english than most americans. We taught her about prophets the first time, because of General Conference, and we showed her where to go to watch it online. She was very excited, and we showed her where to watch old sessions of conference, and she saved the website, and then started the first session of the April Conference before we even left. We meet with her again tomorrow, and I hope she had a chance to watch some of conference this weekend, because it was AMAZING!!!

We taught Napa and San agian together. And it went about like last time. We taught about the principles of the gospel: Faith, Repentance, Baptism, Holy Ghost, and Enduring the the End. We would teach for a few moments, then check for understanding, and have Napa translate, as needed. It was a good review for Napa, and we noticed agian that she would speak in Thai for sooo much longer than we spoke in English -- answering San's questions without even stopping to ask us what the answers were. We went over the baptismal interview questions as well, for both of them, and they are both excited. Napa was still not committing to a date, but said that she would tell us Friday, which she did, and she's getting baptized on the 23rd! Finally! The best part is that her husband, who has not been active for years, and who, until recently has been disruptive in the lessons, has made a total 180 change. He's met with the Bishop and is doing what the Bishop asked so that he can be ordained to a Priest so that he can baptize Napa. He even asked us yesterday where he needs to go get Baptismal Pants and a white tie so he can baptize Napa. And he's started memorizing the prayer he needs to say. It's amazing to watch the change in this family!

In fact, they invited us over for the Sunday Sessions of conference. So we showed up bright and early to make breakfast. I made belgium waffles and egg hash (thanks mom, it was a total hit!) and they made us lunch (thai style fried pork and rice). Being there for their first conference was incredible. As talks came on that applied to one or the other or both of them, they would call each other's attention to it. Bro McArthur especially liked the talk on the Holy Ghost and Napa really liked the talk about Prayer. It went so good and I was so happy to be there. It was a great experience that I will cherish for the rest of my life.

Speaking of conference, I wanted to tell you that my favorite talk was Elder Holland's on gratitude, and if I could, I would plagarize his words here, and say the same thing to all of you who have helped me get here. You really are the best people in my life, and I know that I couldn't be here with all of your love, support, and prayers. Not to mention all the headaches each of you had over me before during and after I decided to serve a mission, and even up till I got my call. You really have helped me be here, I know it's all because of you. So thank you. All of you. But especially Mom and Dad. I love you guys.

Love, Sister Reid

PS. I found "14 Fundamentals of following a prophet" which was quoted twice in conference. You can find it here: http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=browse&speaker=Benson%2C+Ezra+Taft&topic=prophet&type=&year=&x=9&y=7 and in case you need to hear it agian, to think of me saying it, here's Elder Holland's Talk: http://lds.org/conference/sessions/display/0,5239,23-1-1298,00.html