Making History

Hello Family and Friends!

 

This week was the first ever Oregon Portland Mission Sisters Conference. In attendance were all forty sisters in the mission. They informed us that last year, there were only twelve sisters in the entire mission. We were taught by President and Sister Morby, the Assistants, and the Training Sisters. We were spiritually and physically fed. Sister Porter and I, along with four other sisters sang the hymn "You Can Make the Pathway Bright" for a musical number. After the conference we had a clothing exchange! :) It's nice to not be one of the newest missionaries anymore. Though I learned that some of the sisters I came out with began training last transfer (after being out only six weeks!) I consider myself fortunate for not having to train yet. It's inevitable that I'll have to train in September though because there are 42 incoming missionaries and only 20 outgoing missionaries. President will need many trainers. And we learned that there will be numerous 'white-washes'.

 

The zoo was so fun! It was great to rub shoulders with some great members of our ward as well as see the many animals. It is a big zoo! We didn't get to see everything, even in the four hours we were there! We also helped with a funeral this week. It was interesting because the woman who died was a member of the former rLDS church (Community of Christ church?) while her husband was a very active member of our church. There were many nonmembers there and some great talks about the Plan of Salvation.

 

This work has been fairly slow this week. All of our investigators have been too busy to meet :( Rhonda, Jeff, and Nicholas requested a break from the whole world so we're going to get in contact with them today to set up a lesson this week and follow up on their commitment. Dennis has been swarmed, unfortunately, with visitors so he feels like he's being recruited. We're going to work to convey to him our love and support and concern for him as a person. We helped at the Family History Fair and taught the Bull Mountain Sisters how to do a church tour. We were able to talk to a return missionary there and hear lots of great tips on how to be an effective missionary. (He was definitely in the right place at the right time!) He shared with us the following: "If you don't taste the adversary working against you, you're not working hard enough. You have to experience a portion of what Joseph Smith went through when Satan bound his tongue. Satan only surrounds those he's trying to capture. Wicked people are targeted by only one or two because they are already walking down to Hell." It reminds me of a scripture in 1 Peter 5:8. We need to continually press forward against the opposition.

Well, I love you all!

Until next week,

Love,

Sister King

Quick Note

Hello family and friends!

 

I apologize in advance for the short e-mail; we're headed to the zoo today!! (With four member families in our ward) And Sister Porter has a dentist appointment in less than an hour (mine is next week). So, buckle up and here we go! What a great week it has been! We were finally able to have a church tour with Rhonda, Jeff, and Nicholas! :) One of the ward members offered to bring them a meal and we thought that was a great idea! Rhonda has been telling us that they've eaten out a lot recently because she doesn't feel like cooking. We made dinner with a member that lives down the street from them. She delivered it with us and then had to go to a meeting. We stayed and ate and talked with them. Some questions about teh Restoration came up and we again offered a church tour. They agreed and we went right then and there! (They live really close to the church so we walked) The spirit was SO strong!! I felit it the entire time. Afterwards we invited them to church. However, Rhonda had a terrible migraine so they weren't able to come yesterday :( Soon for sure though! Another member family from the ward delievered dinner to them on Friday. They Facebook stalked her on Saturday and saw a long descriptive post describing her gratefulness! :) It was so sweet to hear. At the church tour we also invited them to pray to know if the Book of Mormon is true.

 

This week we had zone meeting (it's once a month and it replaces district meeting). We also had zone and district sports (usually both once a week). Sometimes I feel like the majority of my time is spent in meetings, but they're always superb and very motivating! I got your letters!! Thank you so much!! :) Sister Porter appreciated hers too! We probably won't have time for letter writing today, so next week for sure :) Saturday we had our monthly breakfast with President Doty (the Stake President). All the missionaries from the Tualatin Stake/Zone gathered, ate, and discussed the work. It was great to be with the Stake Presidency! We talked a lot about area books and how the work is hindered when meticulous records aren't kept. We don't want anyone to fall through the cracks!

 

Well, I need to go e-mail President now. Hopefully this e-mail will satiate your craving until next week. I love everything about living this gospel! Just as the scripture says in 3 Nephi 14:20 "By their fruits ye shall know them". Tasting of the sweetness of this gospel is one way you can know that it is true. Everything good comes from God and I am surrounded by good :) I love you and am so grateful for each one of you! Keep on keeping on :)

 

Love,

 

Sister King

Be Grateful

Dear family and friends,

 

This week has been fabulous! On Tuesday we visited Rhonda, Jeff, and Nicholas and thoroughly explained the Plan of Salvation. Now they have all the pieces to the puzzle rather than the scattered few we shared with them after Rhonda's mother died. We also discussed Alma 22. She brought up some questions she had after reading it and we were able to explain more fully the background as well as the context. The whole family continues to read the Book of Mormon. Rhonda talked about how we're all at different stages on the pathway of life. We invited her to read about Lehi's dream in 1 Nephi 8. All of their questions started to lead into the Restoration but we had already been at their house for awhile so we invited them to a church tour and they accepted this time! It was scheduled for Friday. However, when we showed up to the church with a member, no one was there :( We were sad until we found a note taped to the door from them! They couldn't find our number to tell us that something had come up. They gave a legitimate excuse. We'll have the church tour this week for sure. We're planning to go to their house tonight to teach them what Family Home Evening is :)

We also had a great teaching appointment with one of our investigator Lisa. We brought a member from our ward with us--he's a convert and was able to relate really well to her and her situation. Because of his 'wise yet harmless' (Alma 18:22) questions, we were able to obtain some much needed information on her and where her family stands towards the church. We invited her to pray specifically for a question she wants answered. We'll keep praying for her and especially her husband. He is not open at all to the church. It's very sad because he has such a great relationship with Jesus Christ!

This week I was attacked by a large dog! We were at a less active members house (outside) and his dog came charging at us! I took the hit and he nearly knocked me over! He was pretty harmless though, thankfully :) I walked away with saliva on me is all, haha. It felt like a bad dream. He lives near the Relief Society president. Speaking of her, she and her presidency put together a 72-hour kit for us! How sweet :) I know that'll make you happy, mom ;) We're kind of spoiled up here! Brother Aanderud (the ward mission leader in Cedar Creek ward) encouraged us to make an appointment at his dental practice :) Many of his patients are mormon and he always gives missionaries free teeth cleaning :) There's also a chiropractor in our ward so he adjusts our necks and backs when we have dinner at their house. Okay, I'll stop bragging now. ;) I just wanted to express my gratitude for the ward and area I'm in.

 

This week we got a new phone! Our old one was pretty beat up and was glitching frequently; it would send blank messages to people randomly! We're also due for a new car pretty soon because ours has almost hit 50,000 miles.

 

We had a great ward council meeting yesterday! Our ward is really coming together regarding missionary work. I love our ward mission leader and his family. He is really diligent and puts a lot of time into his calling. Hopefully we get some more ward missionaries soon though, recently many have been released. I am so grateful to be a missionary! I wish I would have brought my study journal with me to the library :( It has all the neat insights I've learned this week. What I do remember though is the portion of the talk on faith from the Ensign that grandma sent me last week; it was phenomenal! It really made me want to study faith more in depth. We also had a wonderful lesson in Relief Society yesterday on Faith, Hope, and Charity. The teacher talked about how they are the foundational elements of a celestial character. We truly are to walk by faith here on earth, and we hang on to that hope of the gospel--that abiding trust in God. I know that when I lack faith, I bind His hands and He is no longer able to help me. If I exercise even a tiny portion, He can work with it and produce miracles. Even though I stand in the way sometimes, even I can't stop this wonderful work from progressing :) I believe, hope, and know that this church is true!

 

Love you all!

 

Love,
Sister King

 

Tender Mercies

Dear Family and Friends,

 

Our hard work paid off this week! By diligently striving to meet our goals, we were able to witness miracles!! Teaching opportunities skyrocketed this week! The potentials we've been working on (Rhonda, Jeff and Nicholas) have finally become investigators! :) We stopped by their house Tuesday but only Nicholas was home. Afterwards, however, we realized we were there for him that night. We talked with him on his porch for nearly a half and hour about the gospel! I don't know many twelve year olds who would enjoy that. Sometimes it's even hard for the young people in the ward to make conversation with us. Anyway, he asked for his own copy of the Book of Mormon!! He wants to read it but hasn't really had a chance because his parents are usually reading it! :) Later in the week on Friday night, we stopped by again and were able to have a lesson about the Plan of Salvation with the whole family! Unfortunately Rhonda's mother passed away on Thursday night. We were able to offer hope and peace through the spirit. It was a wonderful lesson. They are definitely an elect family. They are also excited to come to the upcoming stake Family History Fair! Rhonda started crying when we explained that families can be together forever. The spirit was so strong when we talked about being sealed for time and all eternity. We're going back tomorrow to teach the first lesson. We still haven't had an opportunity to give them a church tour since they've been busy taking care of her mom, but we hope to do it this week for sure. That way, they'll most likely come to church on Sunday :)

 

We also have another new investigator! His name is Dennis; he lives with a family in our ward. He's a single man in his late forties, early fifties. His mother passed away last year and he recently recovered from a motorcycle accident. We briefly explained the Plan of Salvation and faith. We invited him to read Alma 32. Towards the end he asked one of the common questions: "How do you know which church is true when they all claim to have the fullness?" We didn't want to overload him, we have a habit of doing that :P So we told him we'd answer his question next time as long as he's read that chapter with an open mind. We'll teach him the first lesson some time this week.

We're also trying to contact all of the part-member families in the ward. We're excited to work more closely with the ward after our phenomenal sacrament meeting on missionary work with President Doty (Stake President). We're going to put our best efforts into 'rescuing' (his topic for the meeting). Elder Risenmay from the quorum of the seventy also spoke. His talk was about reaching out to the one. One by one as Christ would.

Today is transfers. Two members of our district as well as one of our Zone leaders are being moved. It'll be interesting to see who joins our district.

I try not to think about how my time with Sister Porter is winding down. We're really starting to be one in thought, teaching, and action. Each day we try to be all the places we've said we would be, all the while heeding the promptings of the spirit. We've discovered that we're complete opposites in nearly everything :) Though together, we balance each other out.

 

My prayers are becoming longer and longer each day as I reach Heavenward for help, pray for the people in my area, and express gratitude for the miracles I'm witnessing. I am so grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ, who makes it possible for me to be perfected in Him. I've recently learned more about grace. Just as it says in 2 Nephi 25:23, "it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do". Because Christ suffered for us, the grace is already there so we're doing all we can do to become like Him. It's not the opposite: after all we can do, we are saved by grace. We need the grace daily as we beg for forgiveness. I hope that made sense. I find that the more I feel the spirit, the harder it is to articulate my thoughts; it's hard to put feelings into words. It's something I'll keep working at so I can convey my testimony and the feelings of my heart. I know that this is the true church; it's reaffirmed to me every day. I am so grateful to be a missionary. I love you all :) Thank you for your letters and support!

 

Love,

Sister King