Less Me & Much More YOU!

Sister E & I have received revelation for this area..... We need to
find our Brothers and Sisters who were once with us. Currently on our
ward directory there are 790 members and.... 190 are active. How are
we to find/teach & bring in new people when the ones we already have
aren't coming? We feel that as we work with the members & less actives
this area will begin to harvest! We CAN NOT do this work alone. I
think members in our church don't understand missionary work! They
don't understand the role they play in this amazing work. Do members
realize that this work cannot be accomplished merely by a random
sentence in family prayer?

"We properly pray for the safety and success of the full-time missionaries

throughout the world. And a common element in many of our prayers is a request

that the missionaries will be led to individuals and families who are prepared
to receive the message of the Restoration. But ultimately it is my
responsibility and your responsibility to find people for the missionaries to teach. Missionaries are full-time teachers; you and I are full-time finders. And you and I as lifelong missionaries should not be praying for the full-time missionaries to do our work!"
-Bednar

An opportunity for member missionary work...gone wild.

My Peeps:

O** is a mother, we've been meeting with her a
lot over the last 7 weeks. We recently found out she is actually a
member our the church, and has been inactive for about 30 years.
She's really nice and Loves having us over! This past Thursday I felt
prompted to invite her to our ward chili cook which was held this
past Saturday. We didn't think she would come.... But she actually
did! We were SOOOOO excited she came and she also brought her daughter
E****(non member). When we first saw her I was overwhelmed with joy! I
thought to myself what an amazing opportunity our members have to
fellowship her and E****! During this 3 hour gathering 5 people spoke
to them... And 3 of the 5 we had to ASK them to introduce themselves.
It was extremely hard to watch our members be so consumed by the
conversation within the groups they already know, and so easily over
look those who need the fellowship. O** and E**** left before the
party was over.... They didn't feel loved or wanted...

Sis E and I were so saddened by what happened and

pray that they will open their hearts to us again.

I can't stress enough how important the role the members SHOULD be in this work!!!! Do we as members of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints realize who
is at the head of our church ? Did we somehow forget the convent we
made when we were baptized? We are to stand as witnesses in ALL TIMES,
IN ALL THINGS & IN ALL PLACES. After countless talks, and lessons,
members still don't understand. In D&C 88:73.... It says "I will
hasten MY work in its time." Well brothers and sisters... It's time!!!!
We cannot be so wrapped up in ourselves that we don't even notice the
lost sheep that are an arm's length away... The gospel is so simple &
brings so much joy and happiness into our lives, how dare we keep others from those blessings because we can't see past ourselves!

 Sister E says the darndest things - the other day we were walking and 2
doe's walked by and she said with a straight face... If those are deer
why don't they have horns? HA! She cracks me up she's so stinkin innocent and cute!

I love you all! Tell Marianne and Scott I got the card and money and I big HEART them!

Kiss those little babies and tell the big babies to write me!

XOXO

Sis Z

Short....Fat....& Proud of That!

 

Oregon + no sales tax = happy missionary :)

I have a sick broach collection! (Remember my acceptance lesson, DON'T JUDGE!)

Things I have memorized:

- D&C section 4
- Our purpose as a missionary
- The standard of truth by Joseph Smith jr.
- The First Vision
-D&C 6:34

My peps:

I was chastised by grandma about not writing enough about my people
so I'm going to do better, sorry grandma :(

S--'s baptism is this Saturday !!! Ekk! We can't wait. He was sick
last Sunday which is why he wasn't at church. We haven't been able to
meet with him this week because we've been stuck In our apartment
since

Thursday due to 3 feet of snow :) speaking of snow and
church.... Church was canceled yesterday! Never in a million years
would I have guessed a Sunday would go by on my mission thought I would not be at Church.....it was weird!

R-- (our other baptism) has been avoiding us so, we are having to
move his date back. Agency is such an amazing gift our Father in
Heaven has given to us but, can be a frustrating little booger to an

missionary who is eager to bring souls unto Christ.

L--(former investigator/our new investigator) is awesomesauce! He is
so freakin funny! We've only had one lesson with him... and because he
has the attention span of a goldfish...we didn't have much gospel
talk, the conversation consisted mostly of jokes and a few raps. He
is the cutest man ever! We met at Barnes and Noble...He came around
the corner looking like a hardboiled egg.... He sat down and said "hi
sisters, I'm L--... I'm short, fat, and proud of that.... I literally
fell out of my chair laughing!!!! We can't wait to meet with him
again!

H-- (former investigator/our new investigator) is the best!!! We had
such a great lesson with him! We talked about the plan of salvation,
prophets, and the Book of Mormon. He had so many great questions!! He
says he's not interested in joining the church which is fine because
our purpose is to "... Invite others to come unto Christ.." :)

He likes to mix science and religion....which is way over my head!

... So we have to rely on the spirit A LOT! He also told us that he is writing
a book about missionaries....we are really excited about that! Hope I have

a starring role and after probably "too" much thought; I think I want Halle

Berry to play me in the movie!

Y-- (recent convert) is literally the cutest women I've ever seen!!
She so sweet! She just joined the church in August. She is such an
example to Sister E and I.... She has so much love, desire, and faith.
It's amazing! Our very first meeting with her... She said "Sisters I
have something for you and I want you to take it, I've already asked
the Lord and he said it was okay if I give you goodie bags each month." :)

So, of course we said Yes.... When we opened our goodie bags there was trail
mix (yes!!!!!) a drink and money... She's literally so stinkin sweet, I could pinch her cheeks off!. Sister E and I call it our Betty allowance :)

 

 

Sis Z's lesson:

 

On February 7th, we received a text that stated "all mission owned cars were to stay
parked for the entire day." Sister E and I decided that we would stay
in for a while....there were things we needed to do. Later In the day
...even though it was snowing, we decided that we would continue our
missionary efforts... to find those The Lord has prepared for us.

 

At 1pm we began our journey. We both knew it would be hard, we would be
cold, and we would be wet, but....we KNEW what we needed to do.
The first few moments in the snow were great! We took pictures, shared a
few laughs, and sang a few hymns.... We walked about a mile and
stopped at a less-actives home for a short visit. About 30 mins
later... Book of Mormon in hand.... we began again. It was snowing
harder, it was much colder, but we were determined! Soon we realized
not only how far we had gone but how much further we had to go. Our
hands were numb... each step was harder than the last... and the snow
seemed to be getting deeper each time we looked up. We stumbled and
almost fell a few times....catching each other right before giving up..... We did not
find a new investigator, we didn't teach a lesson, nor did we place a
Book of Mormon, but we did however do what we were asked to do....not
only by our zone leader but by The Lord. This was our Trek.... Our
Trek to becoming more faithful... More courageous...Latter-Day
Pioneers.

Our journey was hard... It was long... There were tears shed...
Prayers uttered...and moments when the only sound to be heard was the
snow crushing beneath our feet. We reflected on the journey of the
pioneers as they crossed the plains. The trials, the extreme weather
conditions, the deaths, the illnesses, the sacrifices.... These
pioneers were indeed strong and faithful servants of The Lord. Our
experience touched Sister E and I both, individually and as a
companions.... It made us grow closer as a companionship, as members
of the church, and as daughters of God. The end of our Trek wasn't
crossing the plains... It was in the understanding that, no matter how
difficult, how long, how many times we stumble, how many times we seek
for guidance, or how many times we want to give up, IT IS WORTH IT!
This whole day-to-day life journey... Is SO worth it. When things seem to
be too hard to bare... Apply the atoning sacrifice of our savior. He
has been where you are, where you've been, and where you're going. We
are never alone! The day we leave this mortal life, return to our
Fathers presence, surrounded by the ones we love most.... We will
received the blessings of our faithful service, and as we stand before of Father we WILL know it was worth it.

" come, come, ye Saints, No toil Nor labor fear ; but with joy wend
your way. Though hard to you this journey may appear, grace shall be
as your day. 'Tis better far for us to strive our uses less cares from
us to drive; do this, and joy your hearts will swell - all is well! -
all is well! " <~~~~~ I LOVE these words!

 

 

Things I need:

Love

Videos from my sissys
Whitening stripes (Cause Seriously nobody thinks "butter teeth" are cute!)

I love you ALL! Don't forget me!

Sis Z

 

I heart Oil!

Today it was 27 and it snowed and sadly that is warmer than it has been :( 
I can't believe it's in the 70's there, seems like it's been forever since I've been warm. So...I have a new obsession........wait for it.......essential oils. Look it up! Seriously they work! Apparently it's a Mormon thing, maybe it's a "cool person" thing, either way they Both apply to me! And...well they are Expensive! Doesn't do well for a missionary to have an expensive habit, we are even worse than starving college students.....well, first lets be honest we all know my big tail ain't starving! :) 
However living a Christ filled life can slightly resemble the life of a Quaker, I've never worked so hard and been so pocket poor! Which is fine, I'm in no hurry to get back to bills and taxes - I have all I need serving the Lord and spreading his word except...yep, you guessed it essential oils! I LOVE the Lavender Oil I put it on my feet at night, Mom I KNOW you are calling me a weirdo right now...which brings me to my lesson this week, acceptance!

Matthew 7:1-3
1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

I guess it is human nature to judge, maybe it's human flaw to judge....often I have thought something "negative" about someone and instantly caught myself and thought, "Why did I think that?" I have focused on this a great deal and I wonder if I have to catch myself and then ask for forgiveness is it the same as not being judgmental? If we judge someone are we accepting them? It is the same thing? I think so. How can we truly accept someone for who and what they are if we judge parts of them or their life? Is it us being vain? How superior we can be sometimes to think this person is awesome if only they did this or thought that...what does that mean, if only they were more like us? Sometimes we are "Christ-Like judgers", meaning we use the cover of saying if they were more Christ-like, the cover of our personal Christ-like beliefs to make our judgement have validity...how perfectly that works to allow us our faults and to make us feel righteous in having them. He smells- She smokes- They steal - They lie - He has a scar - She's divorced - Look at those shoes - Look at that car - Have you seen her house!? SO WHAT!? Different is different, no better, no worse - each of us are different, because we are children of our Heavenly Father and unique in our own way. Parents who laugh at the man on the street unknowingly teach their children being different is unacceptable....being judgmental is unacceptable! This week I challenge you to guard your thoughts, watch your words and be honest, how many are unkind, how many are judgmental....would you think it about our Lord, would you say it to our Lord, if not then...don't! Accept those who have wronged you, accept those who you do not agree with, accept those who are different, accept those you do not understand, accept those that you have previously found unacceptable. We are our Gods children, would we have our son pass judgement and not accept his sister, our daughter - no! Then how dare we act differently! I am not perfect in this, it is something I work on everyday. But, I say to those that have small eyes watching them and small ears hearing them, lead them wisely, no sin is small, no lesson goes unlearned - Judge not, that ye be not judged!

Thank you all for the letters, some days getting the mail gives me the strength I need to make it through. I love getting them and Always wish there was more! Hopefully that doesn't sound greedy :)
I need more pictures, more, more MORE! Mommy & daddy I miss y'all SO much that sometimes it physically hurts! I don't know if it's "socially acceptable" to say how hard a mission is or how home sick I get sometimes but, it's the truth! I would not change a minute of my mission and I long for the next day to serve my Lord and pray that I am doing his will as he would have me to. But, my arms miss holding my sissy and my eyes miss mommy's face and my heart longs for daddy's hugs. 

 I love you all more than french fries and chocolate shakes!

Sis Z