Monday, May 19, 2014

5-19-2014

Hey famery and friends!

Whew, sorry, not a lot of time. But hey, that could be said about my whole mission, huh? I hit a year in 3 days. Pretty crazy.

But we gotta go fast!

UPDATE:

Very good week this week, though we're working on getting people on date and to church. Quite a few solid lessons though, and Sister Steinacker and I are still having a blast. She 'took charge' this Saturday, which kind of turned into a joke (my bossiness and 'I'm in control!'-ness, as well as her happy-go-lucky comfort with being a follower made any inversion of control structure a little...unstable. And not long-lasting. It was funny.) Good times though, though kind of feeling like my time in this area is ticking...No! It's...pretty much the best area in the mission. Or close to it. ;) Anyways...

ANOTHER INTERESTING SOUL WE MET THIS WEEK:

Name: William-Christopher Christensen
Height: 6'3''
Defining characteristic: Massive hunk of hair, just...popping out of his head. He'd cut it by the second time we saw him.
Failed icebreaker on part of the missionaries: "Wow...cool bottles on your shirt! Are those...? Oh dang, it's a Vodka shirt, isn't it? *sigh*...I don't know anything about alcohol."
Interesting relationship to the Mormon Church: Almost got baptized when he was 7.5! Until both of his parents got excommunicated! Just one of those things I guess...
Why it's so difficult to understand him: His vocabulary far outstrips his actual understanding of what he's saying (as far as we can tell)
Excerpt from a typical comment: "This picture just exacerbated me. The triangulation of their intellect, combined with the psychosomatisms of their position just makes me so overwhelmed..." It's worse than that though. Way worse.
Reason why we are planning on a second lesson: His prayer was actually understandable. And pretty good. Maybe he'll come to church!
Why we haven't seen him in the past two days (with the exception of spotting him riding his too small colorful bike down the highway as we were driving home from church): Sundays and Mondays are his holy days apparently. No touchy!

THOUGHT:

Dangit, no time. But! I learned from President Holland this week that Tolerance is not love (see his most recent conference address). This is what he says

Christlike love is the greatest need we have on this planet in part because righteousness was always supposed to accompany it. So if love is to be our watchword, as it must be, then by the word of Him who is love personified, we must forsake transgression and any hint of advocacy for it in others. Jesus clearly understood what many in our modern culture seem to forget: that there is a crucial difference between the commandment to forgive sin (which He had an infinite capacity to do) and the warning against condoning it (which He never ever did even once).

As I read this, it occurred to me that telling someone else that something is okay when it's not isn't really an expression of love for them (contrary to the world's perspective: 'If you loved me you'd let me do what I want.'). I know for me, when I don't put up a fight when someone I love is doing something that I think is going to make them ultimately unhappy (or at least tell someone I don't agree with what they're doing), it's because I'm concerned with my own comfort (what they'll think of me, etc.), moreso than being concerned with their actual well-being. Pretty cool.

PICTURE:


This is Casey, a super sweet returning member that we're teaching...and this is her dragon drawing! :D

BAHHH!! No time. I'm the worst! BUT! All you out there (Dallin, Annie, etc) who have not communicated with me in a while...get on it! Love you love you!

Sister Hale

5-12-2014

Hey y'all :)

Yep! Obligitory time passing comment! Really though; in 10 days, I will have been out for a year. A YEAR. That's completely bizarre to me. And even more strange, I will be hitting my year mark in the same apartment I was in when I first came out (due to us not having an apartment in my first area yet, and bumming with the Beverly Park sisters for the first 3 weeks of the mission). And I'm emailing all y'alls in the same library I was in when I first came out also! TIME WAAARRRPP...! It is true that I've been in the south most of the mish, so maybe that isn't so surprising...but my last mission wish is to go to Bellingham or somewhere up north at some point to finish things up. We'll see how it goes...

But I did want to share one thing that I've had impressed on me in the last week or so REAL QUICK before I start, and that thing is...that I've come to have a great appreciation of where I've been called to serve. At one point in my prayers this week, I just felt a deep sense of gratitude for being called to serve the people of Everett Washington rather than anywhere else on the globe. I've always felt warmly about my mission call, but that feeling kinda turned into a conviction and testimony this week, and that makes me happy. I know I really would not rather serve anywhere else, even though being English speaking is going to make me take some grueling language classes at BYU. :P Alright, moving on!

UPDATE:

We've been doing well! It's true that post-Carla's baptism I was a little bummed that we didn't have anyone else to baptize THIS Saturday (baptism really is a stinkin awesome highlight), but that's okay. We found 4 new investigators this week and took some definite strides in helping some other investigators progress, and we had someone at church this week! (which we were hoping for, but not necessarily expecting) So blessings all around!

PROFILE:

Name: Rosemary Mutchler
Relationship to member in ward: Wife to Les Mutchler, High Priest and consistent attendee
Characteristic of note: British accent! Preserved, even though she's been in the US for over 50 years.
Her religious journey: From Episcopalian to Mormon for 17 years to diehard Catholic
Bad Habit: taking our Dinner Doctrine card (bulletted list of all the Preach My Gospel Lessons) and going through point by point the things that "We" (the Catholic church) did not believe.
My response: scarcely concealed irritation (may have been hormonally influenced)
Her kind offer: Cookies and water, any time we felt like stopping by!
Sister Hale's response, once we were out of her presence: tears and frustration that someone who'd been in the church for 17 years had never gotten a testimony of the book of mormon, and was deserting to another religion that Sister Hale saw as considerably less palatable.
A weird request this morning: She called us, asking that 'next time we come over, if we would not discuss religion'. Strange only because we offered her basically no invitations to re-learn about the gospel, as it was pretty clear that she was not interested. ...*sigh* Anyway!

SPIRITUAL THOUGHT:

No time! Had a lot of fun reading all the introductory stuff in the front of the Book of Mormon. This was my favorite part:

"The record is now published in many languages as ajew and additional witness that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God and that all who will come unto him and obey the laws and ordinances of his gospel may be saved."

We get asked a lot why we have the Book of Mormon; isn't the Bible already enough? I read this also this morning, which is one answer to that question:

D&C 10: 52

"Behold, I do not bring it to destroy that which they have received, but to build it up."

If God and Christ are there and love us, they would be able to keep producing word, right? The Book of Mormon is literally evidence that that is true and actual, and that it has happened. It's at least worth a read if you haven't yet, I think. ;)

PICTURE:


INJUNCTION TO WRITE!

Really. Now that Ben is in Mexico, I literally get no letters. PATHETIC! I know my friends and family are better than THAT! If you are a lazy bum, just send me your address in an email and I'll get something to you (Catie, Dallin, Katie S--not sure where all y'all are now). If you're a really lazy bum and you don't want to look at Facebook for my address again, here it is:

Sister Hale
Washington Everett Mission
PO Box 13390 
Mill Creek, WA 98082

email:- bronwen.hale@myldsmail.net

:P ...Love you all!

Sister Hale


5-5-2014

Hey all!

I always make a comment about how time is passing so quickly. It's like when I was writing obsessively in my journal in college, and always made the comment at the beginning that it was SO SO late and I shouldn't be writing (but then I proceeded to write for 40 minutes anyway of course)...so yes. I've fallen into a rut. I apologize. :)

UPDATE:

The biggest update is...that Carla got baptized this week! Yes! It was a really really wonderful service; spirit was strong, we had a great turn-out, the talks were great, the water was warm, she only had to get dunked once...good good stuff. :D Picture to follow. It did take a lot of our energy for the week, which was a bummer....BUT, just got word, and Sister Steinacker and I are staying in the area for another transfer! Wooo...! :D That's what I expected, but glad to hear that that's the case. Keep workin hard, let's go. :) :)

PROFILE:

...oh y'all, I'm tired and time is limited. I apologize! But as a substitute, I will tell you the punch line of the profile I was intending to make. And it is:

"I never thought I would be using the scriptures to talk someone out of committing murder." But yep! No fear though, this recent convert is smarter than that. :P

SPIRITUAL THOUGHT:

Moroni 7:20-21,26,28

"And now, my brethren, how is it possible that ye can lay hold upon every good thing? 
And now I come to that faith of which I said I would speak; and I would tell you the way whereby ye may lay hold upon every good thing.
...And as surely as Christ liveth he spake these words unto our fathers, saying: Whatsoever thing ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is good, in faith believing that ye shall receive, behold, it shall be done unto you."

People talk about this new book, 'The Secret' (new/old...not sure when it came out), which basically is that if you ask the universe for something, believing that you get it, you will. The interesting thing is that this is not really a secret. According to the Book of Mormon, it's actually something that's been known throughout most of Christian history--that if you ask God, with faith believing that you can recieve, that you may "lay hold upon every good thing". I want my life to be full of good things, and I may not always deserve them, but ultimately I have faith that all good things come from God, and that as I align myself more with his will, good things will come and continue to flow.

PICTURE:


Gross hair that day, but whatd'ya do? :P

Alright, I love you all. Write me write me! And know that the work continues to go well here in Washington. :)

XOXO

Sister Hale

4-21-2014

Hey y'all!

Wow, 11 months tomorrow. Pretty insane! And the weirdest thing is that I'm emailing from the same library I was the first week I came out (thanks to some crazy transfer stuff and my staying in the same general area for the majority of my mission so far ;P). It feels like forever and like no time at all. Pretty insane. So here's the update!

UPDATE:

Doing well! Sister Steinacker and I really hit our stride this week, at least in terms of getting to know each other and growing as companions. We had one of those companionship DTR's that's all like 'LET ME INTO YOUR BRAIN!!' and since then, things have been much better. :) Some talents of hers I especially enjoy: her skill at turning non-mission approved songs (mainly from very appropriate musicals like Les Mis and Fiddler on the roof) into mission approved songs by changing the lyrics! Totally okay, right?! "One Day More" from Les Mis becomes "One Door More" and the like. It's pretty fun. Also she's very flexible and accommodating to my occasional caprices, which is nice! But in other news...

We're also working with 2 investigators who are on date for baptism! One, Carla, has withheld from smoking for the past 4 days! And now she's on day 5! Pretty crazy. Another, Sheila is doing well...except for the fact that she needs to get her little fanny to church. So we're working on that. Otherwise had a wonderful Easter yesterday with several families coming out that we hadn't seen for a while (always a blessing when they have to re-bless the water). Great spirit, and great reminder of what easter is all about. If you haven't had a chance to see the video put out for Easter yet, WATCH THIS:


It's awesome, and we've been using it in contacts all week. GO GO GO!

PROFILE:

Name: Robin Dahle (Pronounced 'Dalley' or something)
Accessory of choice: Several piercings that are not church approved, and a 10 year old son who prefers to be in Relief Society rather than his own class.
Burden she's currently carrying: the weight of balancing her burgeoning testimony with a husband who's not supportive
Why I like her so much: Though she grew up sort of in the church, she still doesn't know too much about the workings of the church and has a lot of questions. In our Gospel Principles class on the Priesthood she lit up the discussion with some of her questions, and it was a lot of fun.
What impresses me so much: She's working through the repentance process with the Bishop about a few things, and she told me in Relief Society about what a change that is making in her life. She said both that it's so hard, but that she loves it, that she feels things at a much deeper level now, that she cries all the time, but that life has taken on new depth and new meaning. So awesome to see someone's life as it's turning around. As I read in D&C 18 this morning "And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!" And we get to share in that joy as missionaries; it's pretty awesome. :)

SPIRITUAL THOUGHT:

Here was another D&C verse I found this week that really stood out to me. Here goes!

"Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am."

That's a pretty outstanding promise. What do we have to do in this life to see the face of the Lord and know that he is? 1) leave behind our sins (repent), 2) come to Christ (through ordinances like baptism), 3) Pray, 4) Obey the voice of the Lord (promptings), 5) keep commandments. If you have a question whether or not there is a God out there that loves you, you've got to do some stuff to figure it out. So many people I meet out here who generally reject faith admit that they don't 'know' that God isn't there. They just may not care right now if he is there, and may not want to put in the work to find out. You can find out, but it requires some change. The result is a sense of knowing, faith being strengthened into knowledge, and a lasting sense of peace and purpose. I think it's worth it, but you'll have to try it and see for yourself.

PICTURE:
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Yes, that is a giant carved peace symbol, at the home of one Buddhist lady who broke into tears just because we were out doing what we were doing. Huh. 
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Peeped means that someone looked through their peep-hole and didn't open up. :P

Love you guys!

Sister Hale

4-14-2014

Hey there family and friends!

21 year old Sister Hale here. Well, 21 and one week, but who's counting? ;P It's been kind of a crazy week, some ups and downs...but here goes with the update:

UPDATE

So, some things went well this week, and some things were kind of hard. I realized again that it's tricky training a new missionary, even if she's very able and willing, that I still am the one that will break her into the fact that sometimes missionary work is hard and people are mean to you, and that every day's not going to be a successful day. I remember when my trainer did that for me. We were knocking on a particular complex and hadn't had any success, hadn't found the people we were looking for...and I was grumbly about it and kind of unhappy, and she sat me down in the car and told me that lots of missionary days were like this and I'd better buck up. (In slightly nicer terms I think, but only slightly. :P) She also told me that my disappointment with the day translated in her mind to disappointment in her, which I didn't understand at the time, but now (with a similarly young sweet wonderful and occasionally idealistic missionary) I certainly do. Sister Steinacker and I are going through that transition a little bit as we've faced some opposition this week (disenchanted former members, Bible bashers and the like), but we're okay. Reading the scriptures this morning was a great help, as was the reminder from General Conference that's it's in the name of the game to face persecution sometimes, and the best we can do is be courteous and do what we can to defend our faith. But! Enough about that. 

PROFILE

We did actually have some success this week also! And here's a profile of one of those:

Name: Nellie
Approximate age: Mmmm....mid 30's
Surprising feature of the contact: She invited us right in!
Impressive fact: Nellie has given up smoking and drinking on her own in the last few months, and couldn't be happier.
Big blessing: The spirit was present to help her really understand the first lesson, and she accepted a soft invite to be baptized!
What pumped her up: a free Book of Mormon! When we told her that she could read and pray about it to know for herself if it was true, she said "Sounds like I need to get me one of those books," and we were more than pleased to tell her that we gave them to people for free. :D
Why we're excited: It was a great lesson, and a pretty durn golden contact. MISSIONARY SUCCESS IS REAL!
Her perfect fellowshipper: Beth Sherwood, who was recently baptized, is of a similar age and circumstance and is going to hit it off with her wonderfully when she meets her tomorrow. :)
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This is Sister Steinacker and our investigator Sheila. And that monster thing is a purse (you reach into it's mouth to get stuff out and things. PRETTY WICKED. Show Manon!)

THOUGHT

I'm chuggin through the Book of Mormon for the second time on the mish, and I'm lucky enough to be in Mormon right now. As you may know or remember, there's a lot of war and destruction in Mormon, specifically of the Nephites, a people who used to be favored of the Lord, but who have fallen into pride and disbelief. In Mormon Chapters 2-3 they have a few victories against the Lamanites, and "boast in their own strength," perceiving that their victories have come through their own efforts (not having made an effort to call on the Lord for help previous to battle). When the Lord's had enough of this, his voice comes to Mormon and says "Vengeance is mine, and I will repay; and because this people repented not after I had delivered them, behold, they shall be cut off from the face of the earth" (Mormon 3:13).

Pretty cheery stuff. But, what stood out to me this week is that even when we don't ask for help, even when we're not relying on the Lord, he is in charge and all victories come from him. Sometimes we are asking for help, and still don't perceive the Lord's hand in things; we think we're alone, and not seeing the difference, we chalk any success we have up to our own strength. I'm grateful for this example in the scriptures that tells us that no matter what we're doing, the Lord has his hand in it, perceptibly or imperceptibly. And he delivers us from tricky situations so that we have an opportunity to repent. 

PICTURE

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This is what happens when there is no woman at home when you go to your Ward Mission Leader's house for missionary correlation. OBEDIENCE!! :D ;P

Love you guys. Stay strong, and write me when you can!

XOXO

Sister Hale

4-7-2014

Hey y'all!

Yep, so a lot of you caught it...APRIL 6TH IS OFFICIALLY CHRIST'S BIRTHDAY! And also mine, by coincidence (or by virtue of my righteousness). :P I have to confess, when Elder Bednar said that, I silently thanked him for advertising my birthday with all those I'd joked about April 6th with. THANK YOU to so many of you who took the time to write me a quick birthday note. I'mma print 'em all and read 'em when I need to feel loved. ;)

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UPDATE:

Not too much to report...rather slow week, but still good. I am having a lot of fun with my companion, Sister Steinacker. She is a bit of a nerd, and...A WHITE-YELLOW PERSONALITY TYPE! MY FAVORITE! :P We are getting along well and having fun. I just need to avoid being a natural man selfish-bum, and we will continue to have fits of giggles as we tramp around Beverly Park ward knocking on doors. It's the bomb.

PROFILE:

Name: Carla Belgum
Super-power: all things animal. Dog-training, dog-discussing...also super-power of incredible offense at the stupidity of people in regards to animals. She can talk about it for hours.
Super-weakness: Messy house. Very messy house.
Reason she picked our church: We were persistent! And we got her a ride! Yaaaayyy...!
Impressive fact: She has read the Book of Mormon all the way through Alma 35. I'm super pleased. And she's at church most every week. *score...!*
Reason I love her: BEST HUGS. And when we come over every so often for dinner, she agonizes what to make us and then grinds up a bunch of frozen peas and carrots into a smoothie. MMMMmmmmm...
WHAT I'M PUMPED FOR: Her baptism date of April 26th! 19 days away!! And all she's got to do is quit smoking in those 19 days. *whewwww* We'll be teaching about it tonight, and praying about it. She can do it, but it won't be easy.

THOUGHT:

Oh man. Did you watch conference? I sure hope so. It was pretty awesome, and I'm really looking forward to the text coming out so I can READ and study them. Favorites included Elder Holland, Elder Bednar, Elder Zwick, Elder Adjikitus, Elder Scott, Elder Nelson and Sister Reeves. I heard that Priesthood session was pretty rockin too, so I look forward to reading/watching some of those addresses (in all my free time). Spiritual thought that would relate...I just really enjoyed feeling the spirit after all those addresses. I have faith that we are lead by men (and women) who are close to God, and who direct us to the way that will most promote receiving blessings of lasting happiness, joy and peace of conscience. 

PICTURE:

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The family that fed us last night gave me a crown and made cupcakes for my birthday. Chocolate with white frosting! How did they know?!?
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Love you all, stay safe and live the Gospel!

Sister Hale

3-31-2014

Hey Famery!! And friends I guess, hey to you too. :P

How are y'all! <insert obligatory comment about how time is passing quickly. (it is ;P)> <insert blanket summery about how it's been a great week (it has ;P)> <insert comment on the necessity of my moving along and getting this letter written (here I go :) )>

UPDATE

So! Main features of this week have been 1) new baby companion, and 2) crazy productivity. Lots of fun, in general! My new companion is Sister Steinacker, and I received her on Tuesday (before then, following the mother-daughter/trainer-trainee thing, I was technically 'expecting' (though who the father is, you will NEVER KNOW!! Alright, too far. Moving on. :P) ). She's from Utah (counting Sister Mailau, she's the...4th companion I've had from Utah. Sheesh! Though my other two were Samoa and Texas. That's diverse enough I guess. :P) She's very smart, very willing, very obedient and quick to learn. Grew up a half hour from Provo and then went to BYU for a year, likes YA fiction (her affinity for which caused me to have a dream about Percy Jackson, which I have never read) and plays the piano (finally! Both our ward and our zone have been suffering for lack of pianists). We're getting along fairly well though, (she doesn't like to take charge; a plus for me ;P) and will be getting to know each other better and better in the coming weeks. Rushed selfie to follow in the picture section. :)

PROFILE

Name: Roxy
Mode of introduction: Staring into the half-lit car while missionaries rush to get their numbers in Sunday night, until said missionaries look up and roll down the window.
Drug of choice: Probably pot. I've learned that smell very well since coming to Washington.
Scary circumstance: I don't remember the whole story, but apparently some guy stole their trailer with all their stuff, and now she's homeless. Whewwww...
What we gave her: A long prayer, a listening ear, and a Plan of Salvation Pamphlet
Why it might be a bummer if we never see her again: Towards the end of the contact, Sister Steinacker asked Roxy if she had any gloves for her walk home. When the reply was no, she gave her her brand new leathery missionary gloves. Like a pro. And maybe we'll get them back, but probably not. But that's okay.

THOUGHT

Like I said last week, still blessed to be in 3rd Nephi, where the Savior visits the Nephites. Just read Chapter 27 this morning, which is one of the best. Towards the middle of the chapter, I read this:

vs 14-16: "...even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of all their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil--And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works. And it shall come to pass, that whoso repenteth and is baptized in my name shall be filled; and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will I hold guiltless before my Father at that day when I shall stand to judge the world."

The 'shall be filled' part isn't the essence of my thought; it's just my favorite part of these verses and deserves notice. :) BUT! Essence of my thought:

People in the Christian world at least accuse us fairly often for being a 'works centered people' (thinking that we can save ourselves by what we do). And perhaps just looking at the external manifestations of the church this makes sense; we are very fruitful in the 'works' that we do (delivering dinners, offering service, missionary work, etc.) And Christ says right there (as well as in the Bible) that we will be judged by our works...so what does this mean exactly? Do we think we can be saved by what we do? ......well, yes and no. Depends on your definition of 'saved' and 'what we do', and I don't have time for all of that. But, saved in the sense of overcoming physical and spiritual death and living with God again, it's that last verse (16) that really shows what it is important for us to do. 1) Repent. 2) Be baptized. 3) Endure to the end. So we have to change, give our sins away so we can be cleansed from them (steps 1 and 2), and then continue in that path, with integrity to that first decision for the rest of our lives. That means continuing to avoid sin and to emulate the Savior as best we can, which in large part means serving and blessing others. This might be the traditional 'works' that Christians are all hung up on us thinking we can be saved through, but really those works matter only as an indication that we are keeping our baptismal covenants and staying true to the Lord. In other places it says we are juged by our 'works and the desires of our hearts,' so even if our works are good but our heart is sour, it won't profit us anything. 

ANYWAYS, long thought. And I think that's enough on it. In essence, our works only matter as an indication of what we are and what we're trying to be. DONE! 

PICTURE
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See? She's cute and stuff. And skinny. With all new missionary things. *jealous* :P

Love y'all! WRRIIITTTEE MEE...!

XOXO

Sister Hale


3-25-2014-

Hey y'all!

Wow, can't believe how fast time goes. Officially been out for 10 months! Over the hill! And all that jazz. But, like everybody says, the mission just starts to feel like life after a while (and a joyful life, at that), so...I should probably stop commenting on how fast time is passing. ;P But anyways!

UPDATE

So...guess what? TRANSFER OVER. And with that, we've gotten our transfer calls ANNNDDD...Sister Kennedy is outta here. Too bad. We have a lot of similarities (read: shared weaknesses), and even though it's hard sometimes to like people that are too similar to you (Mom, you know what I'm saying), I've been blessed to really overcome that and come to love her. The Lord can help you love anyone, it's true. One of the great lessons of the mission I would guess. AND, with her leaving...I've been called to train! Again! So I'll be picking up my baby missionary tomorrow from the mission office. I'm excited. :) Both times I've trained before it felt a little panicked and was rather unsystematic (I whitewash-trained, 2 transfers in a row. It was a crazy time). But! Now that I've had more time to get comfortable in the area, I think I'll be a little better able to focus on the needs and skills of my baby missionary, and raise her up in the way that I should go. I'm looking forward to it. :)

PROFILE

Name: Noah
Accessory of Choice: Bulky jacket that he can stuff his cardboard signs into (and sweet set of raybans)
How we met him: He was holding a pretty entertaining sign on the side of the road, and when an appointment fell through, we decided to pull over and talked to this guy.
Why he moved to Washington from California: He says because his friend had a really sweet house for him to move in to, his Mom says that it's because pot is legal here. :P
Why he can't move back: No $. Hence the holding the sign. He's sleeping in a tent in his neighbor's back yard, AND, because he was so hipster looking, I totally thought he was making a Youtube video or something (instead of being a certified homeless guy)
What we gave him: 2 clementines, a granola bar, and a Restoration pamphlet
What he gave us: Permission to take a picture with him and his sign
Why he may not be ready for the gospel yet, but MAYBE ONE DAY: He thinks that living without caffine would be impossible (so do some members apparently), and who knows how he would respond to the Word of Wisdom in its fullness? :)

THOUGHT

I'm reading in Christ's visit to the Nephites right now, and it's excellent. One part I read in particular about not excluding people from the church stood out to me specifically. Christ says (and I'm going to be mish-mashing a lot of verses together, but it's all in 3 Nephi 18:22-25) :

"And behold, ye shall meet together oft; and ye shall not forbid any man from coming unto you when ye shall meet together, but suffer them that they may come unto you and forbid them not..and ye see that I have commanded that none of you should go away, but rather have commanded that ye should come unto me, that ye might feel and see; even so shall ye do unto the world; and whosoever breaketh this commandment suffereth himself to be lead into temptation."

So! What is this saying? It's saying (to me at least) that Christ doesn't exclude anyone; that he wants everyone to come to him, and that we should desire that and work towards that end also. Also any thought of exclusion ('oh, they really don't belong here' or 'they don't really need the gospel') is not of God, but from Satan, and it's the gate way to being lead into temptation (in this case, temptation to self-righteousness and pride, all bad stuff). No exclusion; all inclusion. That's missionary work, and it's pretty awesome.

PICTURE

And! because I can't give you a rockin profile like that without some kind of PROOF...here's the picture itself :)
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And the sign has got an awesome flip side as well, but you'll just have to hope you get lucky and I send the other picture to you in the mail or something. ;)

I love you all! Hope you have a fantastic week!

Love,

Sister Hale





Sunday, May 18, 2014

3-17-2014

Hello!

Happy St. Patrick's Day, y'all :) Wish I had a cute picture of me all decked out in green, but I think I have one of me eating a sweet potato instead (big deal for those of you who know of my childhood picky-ness!), so you'll have to make due. But--onward and upward!

UPDATE:

Things are going pretty well out here. I'm very happy! Don't know if that's just today my being very happy, or the lasting results of doing work that's very edifying and fulfilling. Who knows!? Suffice it to say, I am generally quite pleased with life and the work. Here are a couple reasons why that might be:

1) Sister Kennedy and I are getting along very well, even though I did not think that would be the case from the outset! We are talking regularly and openly, and it just takes such an incredible weight off the work, to have a good companion you're jiving with. She's training, and still feels like she's learning a lot, but as her follow-up trainer I feel like I'm teaching her what she needs to learn, so that feels nice. :)

2) Just...glowy happy I guess. Had a great lesson on the Atonement yesterday, and realized that the reason Christ is important is that hope and faith in him is like a spiritual or psychological safety net that keeps you from hitting rock bottom. If you believe in Christ, and are willing to do what he says, there is always hope. And that was really cool for me to realize this week.

3) Meeting lots of cool people and working hard! One of those cool people (and one of the cooler experiences of my week) is detailed below...

PROFILE:

Name: Cayla (Last name?)
Background: Military, served for 7 years, including a tour in Afghanistan
Major Stressor: Though she's been home for 4 years, she's still plagued with a lot of issues; things she's seen, stuff she remembers...though she's very bright and well-put together, she f
How I described her in ward council, to the gaffaws of the members: 'Blond, willowy, asian-ish girl' (I could do better, I know)
Why our meeting was awesome: She let us into her house for water and cookies, and when I pulled out the scriptures to share a quick message, started to tear up (mind you: we didn't really do anything besides listen and pull out the scriptures). Kind of confused, I said: 'Yeah, it feels good to have someone listen to you,' and she was like, 'No, I feel like I need to listen to you.' Super cool. A lot of trust God's putting in us there. We need to be better! We left her with a chapter to read and an invite to church, and will be going back on Wednesday to state our purpose a little more fully and invite her to learn.
Why she needs the gospel: She's got spiritual and psychological wounds that I have no idea how to fix on my own strength. However, the Lord has taken upon him all things "that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities." If we can direct her to that source of healing, I think it could really benefit her. Exciting (but scary)!

SPIRITUAL THOUGHT:

Mmm...I've been pretty spiritual in this letter already (overdose anyone?) Buutttt...I'll just share this quickly from my reading: 3 Nephi 9: 13-14

"O all ye that are spared because ye were more righteous than they, will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?
"Yea, verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me."

We met this guy Austin in a park the other day. Young kind, cool, going to school, wanted to break the chain and defy other's expectations, become something really awesome on his own accord...and I told him straight up that the way to really do that, to gain the power and strength to change was to learn about the Gospel. I told him that that was one of my favorite things about being a missionary, was being able to be honest with people about what could really change their lives (rather giving indirect solutions or incremental steps to coming closer to the Savior; 'just love yourself' things like that). I love it. People may not always respond to such a direct invitation, but there's nothing more beautiful than the last phrase of vs 13, "and be converted, that I may heal you." Pretty incredible.

PICTURE:

As promised!
Inline image 1

It was huge. And I almost ate IT ALL.

And...that is all. I love you! Hope you all are doing well. Don't hesitate to wrriiiiitteeee...! :P Love love love,

Sister Hale