Sometimes, ministers in training, come to Sunday school

Hi everyone!

So, this last week wasn't too exciting... I got  really sick on Friday and Saturday, so we stayed in. But luckily, as a missionary, you can never have too much paperwork, so we did paperwork while we were inside. We were also able to witness an AWESOME dust storm! Yes, my first dust storm! Did I document it for posterity's sake? Yes. Did I take pictures? No, but I took a video!! Or two... :) On the plus side, I was feeling betterby Sunday, so i was able to go to church. We also taught Gospel Principles this week and there were 2 nonmembers and 2 investigators (Sharlene and Stephanie) in class! It was awesome and the Spirit was so strong! Practically everyone in class bore their testimony of different parts of the lesson, so it was a really powerful experience. I was exhausted by the end of the lesson, though. It turns out that one of the  nonmembers is actually working on his Masters degree in theology and is preparing to become a minister, so that was interesting to find out. I'm just super glad that I didn't know that before the lesson, otherwise I would have been unnecessarily intimidated. After all, I HAVE a ministerial certificate of my very own. The Lord qualifies those whom he calls. But the lesson went extremely well. 

Other than that, the week was pretty mellow. I got to go back to Mesa on exchanges and it was really weird to be back in my old area. It probably didn't help that we were on bike in 117 degrees, but I survived :)

Well, besides that, Sister Isert and I are singing 3 times this week! So that should be fun. Stephanie is also getting baptized tomorrow!!!! I'm super duper duper excited for that! She's so excited to be baptized! She's so happy and she lights up every time she talks about it! She's been working toward it for so long! Now we just hope we can get tickets for her for General Conference so that she can come up  and watch it! It'll be so cool!

Anyway, I love you all a ton and hope that you all have a fantastic week and an absolutely WONDERFUL 4th of July!!!

Love,

Steph

1) So, I didn't have time to figure out how to turn the video right side up, so it's currently upside down, but this is Sis Isert's and my top pick for our mission song :)

In the desert, the arid desert, the sisters sweat again! Aweeeeoooeeeooooeee ahbumbawe

Hola!

This week was fantastic! We had a baptism on Saturday!!!!! Yes, his name is Quinn, an adorable 8 year-old and it was so cool to see his dad (a recent convert) baptize and confirm him. It was amazing! And his non-member mother was there! It was a super crazy Saturday because there were actually 4 baptisms scheduled between the times of 6 and 7pm and so we had to arrange it so that we could all do our programs in different rooms in the building and THEN walk over to the font for the baptism. It was nice because we were able to hold ours in the Relief Society room (which is across the hall from the font) So we were able to see all 4 baptisms and Quinn's mom was able to view them all as well. It was an amazing day! And guess who forgot to take pictures? I did.... oops. I'll get them tonight, though. Never fear!

It's been a super busy week! We have another baptism scheduled for next week with Stephanie (haha it's a great name isn't it?) and we had a new investigator, Sharlene, come to church and she said that she wanted to get baptized in October! We weren't expecting her to have a date picked out already, so we were a bit floored. And she really enjoyed church yesterday and said that she would definitely come back! It was super funny because she came to our Gospel Principles class and we had another nonmember in class whose name was Arlene. So we had Sharlene and Arlene. It was so ironic :)

Other than that, this week has been a blur... Again. It must be the heat or something because it's been over 110 degrees consistently all week... Yep, it's definitely the heat.

In other news, Sister Isert and I discovered that, when I'm sick, my verbal filter goes *kahplut* Apparently it was a super hilarious experience. All I know is that I was super embarrassed and Sister Isert and Sister Grooms were on the floor, gasping for air. because they were laughing so hard. (Sigh) The joy that they have at my expense...

I love you all muchas muchas muchas and I can't wait to see you all soon! In case anyone was wondering, this is my 2nd to last email as a missionary.... :'( Stay smart, wash behind your ears and read your scriptures! haha

Love,
Steph

random pictures form the past few weeks.
1) the Pattersons, whom I miss dearly and am definitely going to visit when I get home

2) Our temple trip

3) We're not allowed to hold babies, so I had to find the next closest thing... Tippy
4) service with a smile!

I'm like an elephant, but cuter!

Hi everyone!

So, due to some technical difficulties, this keyboard that I'm typing on will not allow me to type certain letters/symbols. So, it it looks a little weird, it is haha.

This week has been pretty fun. It's been a super fun week because we got a car! Granted, it's only because Sister Isert isn't allowed to bike for a couple of weeks due to an injury, but it's been a major blessing! It's been so hot and biking around in this weather is no bueno. SO, a car has been lovely.

We met with both Stephanie and Quinn this week and they are both so excited and so ready to be baptized! Sister Isert and I will be singing at Stephanie's baptism on the 30th, then at our Mission Leadership Meeting on July 3rd and again on the 4th of July for a Chinese cultural celebration. We learned "I am a Child of God" in Mandarin and Cantonese. It's going to be super fun!

These past few weeks have been a bit of a blur. We had exchanges this week and I got to go to the Spanish Branch with Sister Vargas. It was really cool to spend most of the day in Spanish work and by the end of the day, I understood much more Spanish and I could speak at least a little bit more than I used to. I knew enough to say the closing prayer in Spanish in 2 of our lessons and it was super awesome! Our dinner was with Hermana Zalgado and she made us some super delicious tostadas! They weren't tex-mex tostadas, they were spicy chicken tostadas. They were absolutely delicious! But there's a funny story attached to this dinner. So, when Hermana Zalgado dished us up, she gave us 4 tosdadas each. Well, I've been raised to clean my plate, so I ate all of them. Of course, these tostadas weren't just any tostadas. Each one was about as big as my hand, with my fingers fully extended, and all were piled high with this spicy chicken. So, I ate 4 and then Hermana Zalgado asked for my plate. Me being the gringo that I am, I thought she was just clearing it for me. Then I look back at the stove and she's dishing me up more tostadas!!! I turned to Sister Vargas and asked if she could see how many more she was giving me. Sister Vargas turns around, snorts, and starts laughing! I asked her what had happened and she said that Hermana Zalgado was dishing me 4 more tostadas!! Despite the deliciousness of these marvelous tostadas, I thought I was going to die! I was already super full from the first 4 and then Hermana Zalgado plops my plate in front of me with the sweetest smile ever, and I knew I had to eat more. I ate 7 tostadas. 7 MASSIVE tostadas. The Lord loves his missionaries and definitely blesses them with stomachs that can down all of that food. It was delicious, but I was so full! I got the recipe, though, so I'll be able to make you all these authentic tostadas when I get home.

I love you all and want you all to know that I pray for you daily and that I'm so grateful to be here in Scottsdale! I wouldn't be a missionary for this church if I didn't know, with all my heart, that it's the restored church of Jesus Christ. I know it, and I know that God knows it, and I can't deny it.

Love,
Steph

PS the title comes from a wonderful quote by Sister Isert

Here's a look at the weather forecast!!

Me:

Jon, Morgan, and Travis:

Allison:

(notice that this is the temperature AT NIGHT!)

All you Utahns:

Amy (rainy...something I miss):

Andrew [oh boy, you must be freezing! ;)]:

I got y'all BEAT!!!!! Haha just thought I'd put in a plug for this marvelous Arizona weather and it's looking like it's going to get hotter! But, no worries, I'm still biking around and loving every minute of it! I mean, where else can someone put a frozen capri sun in their bag at 10am and have it completely melted by noon? This week was pretty eventful. Sister Isert had some pretty epic crashes and may have sustained some minor injuries, so we're taking it a bit slower, but we're fine!

This week we had a couple miracles. One was from the lady that approached us last Sunday and wanted to meet with us. We've seen her twice since then and she's accepted baptism!! She set a tentative date for the winter, but we're hoping that she'll move it up as she learns more.

this week I got to have a few cool experiences. One of which was helping new immigrants in a service project. I was on exchanges with Sister Grooms and we got to help unload donations of furniture for these families that had just barely received visas to the United States, some of which entered the country under really dangerous circumstances and some had lived in refugee camps for over 10 years. It was really cool to hear their stories and to see the effect that the service had on them. There was only one refugee that could speak English, but despite the language barrier, we were able to communicate our love and concern to them through service. Service is the language of love, kindness, and charity that EVERYONE can understand. Actions truly DO speak louder than words.

Speaking of service, another miracle of the week happened wiith Chip. Chip is a nonmember that lives with 2 members (one of which is his daughter) and, just yesterday, he fed us dinner and then started telling us about all of the years that he had denied the missionary  lessons because he wasn't interested and then he said, "what I guess I'm trying to say is that, NOW, I'm interested." And we were able to set up times we could come and teach him!! And it all started with us weeding his yard. He wouldn't even stay in the room when we would come to visit, but this last week he stayed and even participated in the prayer! It was incredible!

I am so grateful that I get to serve here and see the change that the Gospel of Jesus Christ brings into these people's lives. Its been one of the most humbling, inspiring and rewarding experiences that I've had in my entire life.

I love you all and I hope you have a wonderful week! See you soon!

Love,

Steph
​

Let the summer begin

Hi everyone!!!

I am now getting a small taste of the Arizona summer! Don't worry, I"ll probably get more of taste as the month goes on. 

So, the weeks are becoming a bit of a blur (you know, the heat and all that)... That being said, I now only remember the good things that happened!!! :)

This week we had so many miracles!

Miracle 1: We had a random lady (that we had unsuccessfully tried to contact over a month ago) show up at church yesterday and ask for us! She wanted to meet with us this week!!! It was a miracle!

Miracle 2: We had a really good lesson with Ricky this week, but that's not all! So, background. When we go to teach Ricky, Chip (the family friend that he lives with) used to go back into his man cave and basically ignore us. But, recently, he's been staying in the kitchen when we visit and this week, he came into the room near the end of the lesson. But wait, there's more! He asked us, after the lesson, if he could talk with us the next time we came back!!!! We're keeping our fingers crossed that he wants to learn more!

Miracle 3: We've been able to visit with Kaitlin on a weekly basis and have been able to answer her questions and it's been amazing! Also, we're having dinner with President and Sister Sweeney this week! Apparently, my new companion makes some really really good curry. Not to worry, Amy, I'll enjoy it in your behalf!

Love you all and can't wait to see you all again! The countdown begins!

Love,

Steph

The LAST TRANSFER has begun

And you know what I keep telling myself?

"Breathe"

Besides that, I had an absolutely AMAZING week! This last week we had many miracles! We had 2 people get on date for baptism!!! Stephanie walked up to us in the hallway at church and said that she'd picked June 30th as the date that she wanted to be baptized on and that she was ready to meet with us however often she needed to stick to that date! It was incredible because we hadn't recommitted her to pray about another date since the last one fell through! It was awesome! Also, on Monday, we were able to get Quinn on date for June 20th! It's just been one miracle after another and it's been super cool to see their progression!

Sister Gross and her sons are more involved at church now. They've come to church the last 4 weeks in a row and the difference in their home now compared to what it used to be is night and day. The spirit is there and they've even signed up to feed us several times this month! It's been amazing! They are some of my favorite people! We even made up a special handshake for Michael to use with all of the missionaries.

We met with Brother Cortina this week and he is doing much better! He hadn't been to church for a while, but one of the members went to visit him and the member invited him to come back to church. Well, he's been coming to church the last 3 weeks in a row and has been attending all three meetings! It just goes to show that member missionary work is so effective because we've been trying to visit him for months and that invitation just needed to come from a member of the ward. It was a miracle!

We were able to meet with Kaitlin and Kyle twice this week and we were able to talk about her commitment to baptism and we were able to have an actual "sit down" lesson with them. It's been so cool to see their commitment to learning more! It's been amazing to see how much has changed from when we first started meeting with her to now. The gospel really does change lives and it's so cool to see how it effects lives for the better.

This week I lost Sister MacKillop (sad day) but I got Sister Isert! Andrew, that name might be familiar to you. Why? Well, Sister Isert (or Becca, as she was known at that time) life-guarded with Andrew and I at Seven Peaks for 2 summers! She got called here right after I did and I thought, "We'll never be companions because I knew her before the mission." and look what happened?! She gets to be the person that sends me back to Provo! It's going to be a fun/crazy transfer, but there's a lot of things happening and we'll be super busy! I'm so excited, I love this work so much and it'll be a sprint to the finish because I have so little time left to wear this badge, so it's going to be exciting!

Also, as a side note: we got ipads this week. No biggie ;D Just kidding. It was a huge deal and the meeting we had was absolutely amazing! We had Elder David F Evans, Brother Allen and Brother Warner come and talk to us. THey wanted to shake our hands and Brother Allen looked at me and said, "Hi Hermana Lee! Didn't know your call is being changed to Spanish, did you?" I about had a heart attack. Thus, I have now downloaded the approved duolingo app and am now studying Spanish. My call hasn't changed yet, but I'm not taking any chances, especially when the head of the missionary department makes a comment like that.

Anyway, I love you all and will talk to you all next week!

Love,
Steph

Honey is Bee vomit

This week was full of little "light bulb" moments. We had several really good lessons, especially with Quinn and Stephanie. With Quinn, we taught him about the reason we are baptized and why it's so important. It was really cool to see his eyes light up when he understood it. With Stephanie, we got visit her AT HER HOUSE (no one gets to go to her house!) and we were able to talk to her for a while and answer tons and tons of questions. It was awesome to be able to help her understand the gospel better and it was wonderful to see her eyes light up.

We had a really good lesson with Kaitlin this week! We were able to clear up a lot of questions that she had from Sunday School last week  and we discovered that it's easier for her to focus when she's multitasking, so we taught the lesson while crocheting a blanket! Yep, we thought outside the box! It was super effective and now we're learning how to crochet while teaching her about the gospel. It's a win-win situation. 

There was an amazing thunderstorm this week and it poured for a couple of hours and the streets were completely flooded. When we were walking, I kept getting puddles of water in my shoes, so I finally took them of whenever we had to cross through the massive puddles and just put them back on when we were back on the sidewalk. Thank goodness for sturdy shoes. It was so cool and I was reminded of how much I love extreme weather! I was in heaven, especially because it cooled everything down to about 75 degrees, so that was wonderful :)

We had a miracle happen this week. There was a family that I was teaching in Mesa that moved to Scottsdale... In this ward!!! And we got to have a lesson with them this week! It was good to see them all again and we re-committed them to have family scripture study every night that week. It's funny how people are continuously put in our path. It's interesting how the Lord knows us and knows where we need to be. It was incredible to find out on Mother's Day that the person that donated the money for my sister's thesis trip is in the ward that I'm currently serving in. And we have dinner with them next week. It's really amazing how the Lord works. 

We had an interesting experience this week where I got to call on my rusty tech skills (as well as Heavenly Father) to help a less-active in our ward fix her dish hookup. She was super nice, but she kept forgetting who we were. It was especially funny that after we fixed her dish hookup and were trying to share a message, she kept turning the tv on to see if it still worked. We finally were able to change the channel from the Billboard music awards to BYU-TV and left her happily dancing to a really old and hilariously ridiculous movie that was playing (Bullwhip Griffin or something like that). She was a gem and she really brightened up our evening.

So, an explanation of the title of this email. We had dinner this last week with a lady that's in her 80s and that's a 4th degree black belt. Yep, pretty legit. But she had a great-grandson that ate with us (he's 7) and he's a very precocious child. He kept firing off all of these random facts about sharks and THEN (as we're all enjoying our ice cream and brownies) he suddenly bursts out saying "DID YOU KNOW THAT HONEY IS BEE VOMIT?!" We all laughed as his grandma tried to tell him that he shouldn't say those things at the dinner table. To which, he replied, "but we're done with dinner!" It was hilarious.

Well, I hope you all have a wonderful week and enjoy to temperate weather because I'll be down here, biking around in the extreme heat. Talk to you all soon!

Love,

Steph

Showers of blessings

So, I hope you all had an absolutely wonderful Mother's Day! I know that I did! The call was awesome and I'm glad that I got to see most of you. I think that's been the thing that I miss the most: seeing your faces and hearing your voices. So it was awesome and I feel super rejuvenated!

We had so many miracles this week! First off, we finally met Kyle! Kyle is the husband of Kaitlin (one of our investigators) and in the whole time that I have been here (which has been almost 5 months) I have never met him... Until this week! It was so good to meet him and talk with Kaitlin AND him. Also, they both came to church on Sunday!!!!! AND, after Sunday School, HE said that they would be coming back next week!!!!! That there, folks, is a bona fide MIRACLE!!!!! 

We also had several less-actives that came to church that we haven't ween in a while! And we had a wonderful Sunday School class and then we stayed for Young Womens and got cheesecake.

Yes, it was a wonderful end to a wonderful day.

Now for the sad news. Sister Thomas is not with us any longer. She left early this morning for the land of eternal PDays. We're all a bit sad.

Well, I'm not sure what else to talk about.... So, here's my testimony. I know that this is the Restored church of Jesus Christ and that God has again called a prophet to lead his children in this day and age. I know that the Book of Mormon is sacred scripture and that it gives us another witness, next to the Bible, that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer. I know that God has restored his priesthood to the earth and that we're lucky enough to have the blessings of that power in our lives. I'm grateful for the opportunity to dedicate 18 months of my life to serving my Savior and helping others find the same peace and happiness that I have in my life. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love my family. I know that because of the Restored Gospel and that restored priesthood power that I can be with them FOREVER. The temple is where that happens and it is an amazing place where we can feel closer to our Heavenly Father. I exhort (yep, I just said exhort) you all to accept the blessings of the temple and to remember those blessings by continuing to go to the temple. Not only will you bring yourself greater peace, but you will also bless the lives of those who have passed on. I love you all and I pray for you all EVERY DAY.  

Love,

Steph

pic: This is a statue in Old Town Scottsdale. I thought it was cute :)

Another crazy crazy week

Hi everyone!

This week went really well! We had some struggles but, all-in-all, it went really really well. We had some really good lessons this week with the DeBoards and the Gross family. And the Gross' came to church on Sunday! Granted, they were late and they left during Sunday School, but they came! We're finally clearing that hurdle! 

We had an amazing lesson with Heather this week! We had the lesson at one of our returning less active's house and it went so well! They were able to relate to each other on so many levels that we'd never anticipated! It was incredible!

Tsahai is making so much progress. We all fasted for her this Sunday that she'll have a miracle happen that will help her quit smoking. I've been praying so hard for her. But she seems a lot happier and our lessons with her have been giving her the added boost to keep trying instead of giving up. We discovered that she absolutely loves the Mormon Messages, so we've been looking into a lot of those for her. I've also discovered a love for Mormon Messages as well. They are so good! It's so nice that they're so short, but they seem to be just what you need when you watch them! They're awesome!

We met with Kaitlin this week and watched Meet the Mormons with her! She absolutely loved it and wants to watch it with her husband this week, so we're super excited to meet him! I love Meet the Mormons. It's such a good movie! It was funny watching it this week because the Navy football one made me reminisce about all of the football games that we went to as a family. Good times, good times :)

We had a pretty good lesson with Ana Rivera this week. Sister MacKillop was able to teach her in Spanish and it was so cool to hear the lesson in Spanish! I could follow most of the conversation, so I'm that much closer to speaking it! In a month, she'll be able to change her work schedule, so she'll be able to come as well! We also did service for Chip and he was a lot more friendly with us! He still declined joining in on our discussions, but he's warming up. He made us some pretty fantastic biscuits and gravy for breakfast after we weeded his yard. It was so good! My taste buds were singing!! The awkward moment was when he said that I looked just like his wife... I just laughed and said that it's so funny that I have a twin.

Last night, we were able to have a really good lesson with the Roses and we got to know them better and taught them the Restoration, so we'll hopefully be able to clear up any questions that they may have and get them ready to go to the temple! They had such a nice home and they gave us a ride back to our bikes in a really really nice Mercedes. Like, super nice.

I love the work here! It's so nice (despite the hot weather) and I truly love being able to spend this time serving  my Father in Heaven. Thanks for all your support!

Love,

Steph

Sister MacKillop had some pretty epic crashes this week... They had to be documented. None of these were staged and, please, don't do this at home :)

How God shows that he loves me? He sent me rain :)

Hello everyone!

So this week was pretty amazing! It was super busy and we had some crazy stuff happen, but all is well in Zion... haha

First of all, it rained!!!! And it was a lovely warm rain. And it was super windy and cloudy. I loved it. I love extreme storms.

Anyway, We had dinner with the Maughans this week and it was awesome! We showed up a little early, so she let me play her grand piano for a little bit before dinner. They have a beautiful home and I'm super excited for the ward picnic there next week. Tuesday this week was a bit insane (again). We had 5 set appointments all across town from each other and THEN we had to pay a visit to the doctor for Sister MacKillop. We also didn't have a car... So, thankfully, we were able to get a ride from Sister Bass (the mission secretary) and we were able to shift our schedule around just enough to make everything work out. The Lord definitely blesses us when we're doing his work and when we're working for a good cause.

This week was amazing! "Why?" you may ask. Well. I'll tell you why. Stephanie has a baptismal date!!!!! Yes, this wonderful woman who has been consistently coming to church for over 3 years has made the commitment to be baptized! She's amazing! AND we are currently hitting almost all of our mission's standards of excellence! Yes, be proud. I'm proud. I've worked my tail end off, so I deserve to be happy with the fruits of my labors. Although, none of this would be possible without Heavenly Father's help. He has given me strength when I've been weak and he's helped us all along the way. This work is never something that we do on our own. The Lord is with us every step of the way. And, just like the poem about the footprints in the sand, he carries us through the most difficult times. I'm so glad that we've emerged through the tough times and are now in the times of plenty. It's such a relief.

Anyway, we also did a pretty awesome service project this week where we're helping one of our investigators make dresses for little girls. One of the patterns is made from a pillowcase and they turn into the cutest dresses!! We helped with that for a bit and then later this week, we helped Stephanie (it's such a nice name, isn't it?) weed her front and side yards. It took me back to the Saturday mornings during the summer doing yard work with dad. It was awesome. You could tell I was a perfectionist because I pulled EVER SINGLE SOLITARY WEED. Yep, even the baby ones. That yard looked pretty good when we finished with it.

We had so many blessings this week! Really, when we do what the Lord asks us to, when we are obedient and when we are trying our hardest, he rains so many blessings on us. We got the downpour on Sunday. We had almost 20 nonmembers at church and 3 of our investigators were there as well. Also, many of the less-actives that we have been working with and praying over, were at church and it was so good to see them there! It was an amazing day and I felt so much love for all of them! I played for primary (they were desperate) and we had the opportunity to teach the Young Women how to use the Restoration pamphlets. It was an incredible day. Absolutely incredible. An incredible day to round off an incredible week.

Congrats Allison on graduation! Congrats Jen on finals! Congrats on everyone else for surviving another week! :)

Love you all and have a wonderful week!

Steph

pics: So, I was riding behind Sister MacKillop when this happened, and it looked like her bike had fallen apart as she was going up the stairs. Luckily, it was only her basket, but it scattered everything (including our phone) all over the sidewalk.

Also, I found an arrowhead!!!! jk it's actually a piece of a confetti egg. I thought it was pretty cool, though

Sleep? That's a part of the schedule?

So this week was great! I'm a little bit fuzzy on remembering things (lack of sleep) BUT, I have my handy dandy planner to help me remember it all!

Monday was pretty crazy. Tuesday was insane. Wednesday was also super packed. And then we had Thursday. Yes, it's in a category all it's own because, apparently, no one wants to set appointments with us on Thursday... Seriously.

Tuesday was my favorite day because it was, like I said before, INSANE!! We were able to meet with Heather, Ricky, Kaitlin, AND Tsahai all in one afternoon. And because none of you really know how crazy that is, in this area and on bike, let me tell you something. It takes us 30 minutes to bike from the church to Kaitlin's apartment. From her apartment to Ricky's it takes us 15 minutes. From Ricky's apartment back to the church is 15 more minutes. From the church to Tsahai's is another 30 minutes. Yes, we bike 15 or more miles every day. That being said, Tuesday was insane! We had a really good appointment with Heather and she prayed with us! For the first time! She's so amazing and she really wants the best for her family, so please pray for her. She's going through some really tough stuff right now.

I've discovered that I absolutely LOVE object lessons! We've been teaching several 8-10 year olds and the object lessons are GOLD with them! It keeps them focused and it keeps me focused too! We've been doing a lot more visual aids with our teaching recently and we've seen a huge effect on the participation in the lessons. It's been awesome!

So, due to the shortness of the letter, I will include a short little snippet about one of our dinners this week. We ate dinner with 2 British women that are both in their mid to late 70s and it was so funny! Their mannerisms were so different and I really loved talking with them! Especially hearing their funny stories about missionaries (one of them had been a mission president's wife) and it was fantastic! I wanted to talk in a British accent for the rest of the night!

We had an amazing Stake Conference this weekend! We had Elder Nash come and it was an absolutely amazing experience! The Spirit was so strong and it was such a good experience! I took a lot of notes. It was amazing :)

Well, I love you all and I hope that you all have an absolutely FANTASTIC week!

Love,
Steph

Also, I'll be going to BYU-Idaho in the Fall!! I'm super excited :)

pics: Arizona sunsets are the best! Also, my wonderful companion, Sister MacKillop, drew a simple comic to describe the 10 commandments... I though it was epic :)

Miracles Grow

Hi everyone!

Did you like my little play on words in my title? Yep, only took me 30 seconds to make that up. BUT the reason for the title is that this week was a week of miracles!

First off, I need to explain our standard of excellence in the Arizona Scottsdale mission. The main gist of the standard is to have 3 progressing investigators, 3 investigators with a baptismal date, and one referral from a member per week. Well, we've been doing really well with earning referrals from members every week, but this week was a milestone in that we now have 3 PROGRESSING INVESTIGATORS!!! This area hasn't had very many progressing investigators and hasn't had any baptisms in OVER A YEAR. So yes, this was a major milestone and it stemmed from miracle after miracle after miracle. 

We had several lessons this week that were absolutely AMAZING! One was with Stephanie (with a name like that, you know the story is going to be good). She was taught several years ago and, for some reason, the missionaries stopped teaching her. We were introduced to her art church the other week and found out that she's been coming to church regularly ever since she was initially taught. Wait, back up. An entire TWO YEARS has passed since she has been taught. And she's been coming the whole time. I told you this story was good :) So we have her praying about a baptismal date now and we are so excited for her!

Another lesson that we had was with Heather. She's been hard to catch recently, but we've had 2 lessons with her in less than a week! This is the same investigator that watched the Saturday morning session of General Conference with us. She's amazing!

We're also helping a part-member family with FHE on Mondays and the 8 yr old son is so excited to be baptized! It's so cool to see the effect that the Gospel has had on their lives and how happy they are in the church. It's so cool to see the change in everyone's lives. I really never really realized how much we have as members of the church. We have so much that brings us so much happiness and peace. It truly is a blessing to be a part of the Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints. And to know that it's Christ's church Restored to the earth again. The blessings and miracles that follow his church are here. It's incredible to be a part of that process of bringing those blessings to others lives. I love this work and I wouldn't be anywhere else right now. It's the most fulfilling thing that I've ever done!

I love you all and pray for you all, by name, every single day! I'm keeping that promise and I'm reaping the blessings from keeping it.

Love,

Steph

pics: my district and the box for the vacuum... It fit :)

Also, Tanya, my recent convert from Mesa! We ran into her last night at the fireside and I had to get a picture!

Also, I have become dad. I left my camera on video instead of picture, so this is a crop from the video of me with Sister Hurst (Mesa comp) and Sister Lopez (MTC comp)

College acceptance!!!

I GOT INTO BYU-IDAHO!!!!! WOOHOOO!!!! Just thought I'd let you all know. It's awesome because I just sent in my application last week and my acceptance was sent to me 4 days ago! Man! YAAAAAYYYY!!

Love you all! I'll keep you posted :)

Steph

Happy Easter! Happy Birthday Travis!!

So,this week was awesome! We got to go to the Easter Pageant with a less-active (whose name happens to be Deanna) and it was awesome! And the member that we went with, the Jensens, invited some of their non-member friends to come as well! It was an amazing experience and you could definitely feel the Spirit. This week we were also able to have a lesson with Heather! Heather is an investigator that we've been having a hard time pinning down because her schedule is so crazy, but we were able to meet with her Friday! AND she watched the Saturday morning session of General Conference with us!! It was incredible! There were so many miracles this week! Because of all of the miracles, I have gained a testimony of record keeping. Basically, keep a journal. I know that I'm not the best at writing in my journal, but it's so good to be able to go back and look at all of the daily miracles that God has worked in our lives. I love reading through my mission journals. I've been blessed in so many ways, and when we write those blessings down, we remember them. And we remember "how great are the dealings of the Lord among the children of men." (I don't know if that's an exact quote, but I know it's in the Book of Mormon somewhere). Sorry the letter is short this week, but I'll make up for it next week!

Love you all!

Love,
Sister Lee

From the land without seasons

Hi Everyone!!!

You know you're in Arizona when people tell you the weather for the week and they say, "It should cool down by Friday!" and then when you ask how cool it's going to be, they say, "92 degrees!"... Arizona problems.

So, currently in the frying pan and I'll get to the fire by June. I'm just happy that I won't be in the area for the rest of the summer. I've heard it's brutal... And I totally believe it.

Anyway, we had a lot of miracles this week! We've had several investigators just pop out of the woodwork and we finally have some that are progressing! We even had 3 at church yesterday! I wanted to cry, I was so happy! And our Gospel Principles class was full to the brim! All of the chairs were full! No empty spaces! And one of our recent converts got up and bore her testimony and it was the most amazingly spiritual thing that I've ever heard! She bore her testimony on how we're examples to others and that, even though it may seem like we can't get a break from all of the trials that we face, we can still hold on to the Gospel and we'll be blessed. She said this yesterday and she had just barely lost her job (that she absolutely LOVED) just 3 days earlier. These people are amazing! They are so strong! They truly are the elect of the Lord. He needs them in his kingdom and we all have the privilege of seeking them out. I really almost cried when she was bearing her testimony because I've seen her change her life around completely and I feel so honored to work with her and all of these other amazing people!

Despite being sick again this week, we were very blessed to be able to have some really amazing lessons with Kaitlin. She told us that she's preparing to go to the temple. Wait. Pause. Rewind. Our INVESTIGATOR just straight up told us that she's preparing to go to the temple! Her only hold-up on baptism is church attendance. Seriously, she's amazing! I really feel so blessed to have the opportunity to meet and to teach the people in this area! Really, they are SO amazing! I feel so humbled when I speak with them.

I love it here! Even though it's hot and I sweat all of the time, I've never been more happy in my entire life! The Lord definitely knew that I would be the happiest doing his work. Isn't that when we're all the happiest? The Gospel truly does bring us so much hope, but it's the sharing of it with our heavenly family that brings us joy. I love you all! Talk to you next week!

Love,
Steph 

Well... It's March, it's hot, and the sun is shining. What more could an Arizona missionary ask for?

Hi everyone!

I'm going to start with the funny story of the week. It all starts with District Meeting. Sister MacKillop and I were asked to give a training on companionship unity. The training went well and we committed everyone do do something during the week to serve/work better with their companion. So this week, Sister MacKillop and I practiced the lessons a lot, I made her bed and did her dishes and she made me dinner one night. Doesn't sound too funny or interesting, right? Here's the funny part; that dinner she made me? I got food poisoning haha. It was hilarious when we figured it out! She was fine, I guess my body didn't quite accept the lentils, though.

That was definitely a great addition to a pretty eventful week. We had several miracles happen with some of our investigators this week! Two of our investigators are actually next door neighbors. Which turned out to be a really awesome thing because we were on our way to an appointment with Jayne and we ran into Kaitlin, who we hadn't seen in over a week. Kaitlin invited us in and we had to make that awkward decision of whether to tell her "yes" or "we can't". We compromised. We  said that we had an appointment with her neighbor, but could come over afterwards. She was completely ok with that. Our appointment with Jayne ended up falling through and so we got to meet with Kaitlin and set up a return appointment!! The funny thing was that the same thing happened with Kaitlin. Our appointment with her fell through later this week and we were able to meet with Jayne. It's like everything did a perfect flip flop. It was fantastic!

Also, we discovered that we bike around 10 or more miles every day. I can definitely feel it. But it's fun because we can go where cars can't go. There's something so empowering about seeing a road end and realizing that you can just take the bike path straight through to the other side where it continues on. I feel like a boss every time. Also, apparently I do a pretty accurate impersonation of Smeagul from Lord of the Rings. Yes, I don't do the voice in public. And I thought I sounded like Stitch, but apparently not.

I love the work here. I love the people. It's challenging, but the challenge makes life interesting. It's helping me push myself farther and it's helping me depend on my Savior when my strength and my knowledge are insufficient. I love it here. There isn't anything in this world that can compare with the wonderful satisfaction that the gospel brings to our lives. And I have the wonderful task of dedicating 24 hours a day to this work. It's work, but it's the best kind of work. I'm so grateful to be serving here and I'm so grateful for the continuing support that you have all been to me. I love you all so much and I pray for you every day!

Love,
Steph

Happy Birthday DAD!!! And Uncle Nelson!

This week was pretty amazing! We got 2 new investigators! And the ward is amazing! AND we got kicked out of an apartment complex for tracting! Not really kicked out, but we were politely asked to leave and not come back. It's sad, that Satan can influence the work in that way, but we've got the best back-up ever! The members. Yep, with the help of the members, Satan doesn't stand a chance :)

The 2 new investigators that we got this week were both miraculous experiences. One of them, Veronica, we've been trying to set up an appointment with since I've come here with no success. That all changed this week! We now have 2 appointments set up with her per week and we're super duper excited for it all! Our other new investigator, Jayne, was a referral that we received from Church Headquarters and when we knocked on her door, she opened it up, invited us in, and asked us a whole bunch of questions about the Plan of Salvation! So, we taught her the Plan of Salvation, answered her questions (that's the amazing part about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, it answers all questions!) and as we were leaving, she asked if we could see her on Monday (today). So, we are booked solid for a Monday night... Something that hasn't happened to me in a while. It's amazing how the Lord blesses us when we are faithful, obedient, and WILLING to do his will.

I have the opportunity to read a book called the Inevitable Apostasy (don't worry, I got it approved) and it's so interesting to read about the state of the early church and the personal apostasy that brought on the widespread apostasy that most of the world is still experiencing. Recently, there have been many articles on press releases from the Church. It's saddening to see the doubts replace the faith in the eyes of the people we work with. Something that I've learned is that, if you have a doubt or a question about the validity of the Church, KEEP reading the scriptures. KEEP praying. God can answer all of our questions and can erase all of our doubts. Don't look for answers from the enemies of the Church. God is who we should be looking to for our answers. There is an article in this months Ensign about doubts. I would highly encourage EVERYONE to read it. Don't go into a personal apostasy while you wait for answers. If we want to get answers from God, we need to do the things that he's asked us to do.

I really love the work here. I love the people and there are amazing things that are going to happen in this ward. I love you all and pray for you all constantly! Literally, several times a day. Keep being amazing and I'll see you all when I see you!

Love,
Steph

me and Sis MacKillop outside the temple after our temple trip
Arizona sunrise 6:30am
Jon, guess what was parked in the temple parking lot?! your welcome.

You know you're a missionary when...

This week was the week of service!

We did many much service this week and it was amazing! The first service activity was filling in holes in a Sister's backyard. Sounds completely humdrum doesn't it? Pero espera, ay mas. She has greyhounds. 8 greyhounds. 8 slobbery, huge greyhounds. And she was getting another one the next day. Yeah, it was a bit nuts trying to fill in holes that they'd dug. Once we were done, we ended up trying to run with them and that is, by far, one of the most terrifying experiences that I've ever had! I thought that I could do it because I used to do it with Rosie all of the time, but she's a bit smaller than a greyhound. Seriously, the sound of 8 greyhounds thundering after you is a bit terrifying. But of course, we got it on film, so it will be enjoyed for years to come :)

We also got to help someone reorganize their garage to prep for a garage sell and I discovered an allergy to cats when we helped another member go through some boxes to clean out her storage room. It probably doesn't help that it's allergy season out here, with all of the pollen and flowers and the 80 DEGREE WEATHER. Don't worry, you can be jealous, because karma is going to hit in a few weeks and I'll be jealous of your "under 90 degree" weather. It'll be interesting to be out biking when it's super hot... I might melt if my bike doesn't melt first.

My new companion is pretty awesome! Her name is Sister MacKillop and she's from Dallas, Texas! And she let me teach her how to crochet! Now we are both hopelessly addicted and there will be some pretty awesome Christmas presents that will stem from this addiction. Just kidding. We're not that crazy about it, but it helps us both de-stress. She is also a Spanish sister, so this will be the 5th companion of mine that has spoken another language. 5 out of 10. So, technically, I've been in a "zebra" companionship for more than half of my mission. I figured that this meant that I needed to learn Spanish, so Sister MacKillop is going to teach me Spanish!

I was studying President Bensons talk about the First and Great Commandment this week. I really really loved the part where it said that when we love the Lord, above all else, everything will either fall into place or drop out of our lives. I loved that because, many times, we expect miracles, but the miracles that WE want to happen, when really, God has much better miracles in store for us. I LOVE that. Because, honestly, life isn't going to be sunshine and roses all of the time... Oh wait. It is! Granted, there will be random thorns on every rose and every once in a while a cloud will block the sunlight, but that doesn't mean that the sun will stop shining! Thorns don't lessen the beauty of the rose. If anything, the clouds and the thorns give us greater appreciation for the soft petals and the warm sunshine. God's love never stops shining. His blessings never stop. We may have a hard time recognizing them when it's overcast and we may have a hard time seeing them when we get poked with a thorn, but they are ALWAYS THERE. When we love God and put him above all else, we recognize the beauty of the rose, despite the thorns. We know that, the clouds are a necessary thing in life, but that the sun will always come back.

Look for the beauty in the trial. Look at the darkness with the knowledge that the light is there. It's always there. I'm so grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life and for the amazing opportunity that I've been given to serve my Redeemer for this short amount of time. I know that this is his church. I know that God loves us and speaks to us through his prophet today. I pray for and sustain the prophet and apostles. I especially know that families can be together forever and that I've been blessed to be sealed to mine for time and all eternity. That hope is what helps me see the sunshine when I seem to be surrounded by clouds. I love you all and hope that you all have a wonderful week! I pray for you every day and I know that God has been answering my prayers. He always does.

Love,
Steph
pic1: the greyhounds.
pic 2: I really love the sunsets and the "moon-rises" here. They are gorgeous!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!! (yep, I remembered!)

So, It's the beginning of March already! Honestly, the time seems to be flying... probably because we only have 2 seasons here. Warm and hot. If you want to get really specific, we can add a third one which is Hot and rainy (monsoon season). Right now, everything is delightfully warm-ish with the nights getting cool enough that I need a jacket. Honestly, it's no use telling myself that I'm from Utah and that it shouldn't feel cold. It's too late! I've acclimatized.

This week was amazing! We had so many miracles! We got 2 new investigators this week! AND one of our former investigators (Kaitlin) still wants to be baptized! She came to a Family History Fair that our ward put on, and it was amazing! The Spirit of Elijah really works and it works really well! Seriously! She's 21, but is super interested in family history and she was able to find several people in her line and her husband's line at the fair! THEN we were able to go visit her the next morning and help her make dresses for little girls out of pillow cases and she's donating them to an organization that takes them to Africa for the little girls there. She's awesome!

Our new investigators were a miracle as well because we were looking for an address and we decided to knock on a few doors on the way there. Well, one of the doors we knocked on turned into a wonderful opportunity to testify about the Family, a Proclamation to the World. It's amazing how the Gospel works. It is here to bless our families. When we focus on families, we will have doors open that would never have been opened previously. It's so incredible to see it. It really is the hearts of the children turning to their fathers and the hearts of the fathers turning to their children. I have the opportunity to see that scripture come true every day as we search for families to teach. This Gospel is true. It is the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ on the earth today.

And it blesses, not only us, but our families. It's incredible.

I love you all a ton and I hope you all have a wonderful week! I know that mine will be!

Love,
Steph

Pics:
1) From the temple with Ricky (also included are his original missionaries)
2) Our apartment last transfer
3) The dress we made with Kaitlin

The week of miracles!!!!

Miracles Miracles Miracles!!!!! It's been a wonderful week :)

Miracles are so amazing!

Miracle 1: I got to meet the Craiths this week! They are so amazing and so sweet and they both came to church this week!!! Yep. Miracle

Miracle 2: We had another lesson with Tsahai this week and she's making so much progress with quitting smoking! She's a bit disappointed that she hasn't been able to quit cold turkey, but we just keep telling her that God doesn't expect immediate perfection, just immediate progress.

Miracle 3: (by the way, there are many many other miracles that happened this week, but these are the bigger ones) We got a new investigator!!!! His mom is a returning less-active and she wanted him to be taught the Plan of Salvation. The lesson went extremely well and we are so excited for Joseph!

Miracle 4: We got to go see Meet the Mormons with a less-active. She needed a break from stress, so we went to the Mesa Temple Visitors Center and watched it with her. It was fantastic!

Miracle 5: We went through the temple with a recent convert!!! It was amazing and I loved it so much! However, if there is a recent convert in any of your wards that is going through the temple, please go and support them, even if you don't know them. They really need that support and they appreciate it so much, just knowing that the ward is happy for them and supports them. As we were walking out, he made an appointment to be sealed to his deceased wife and daughter next week! Yep, I was so so so so so so so HAPPY!!

Miracle 6: (last one) We were finally able to get into a house that has been "impenetrable"! We had been going to the front door the past however many times we'd been trying to set up an appointment with this person, but last night, we felt impressed to go to the back door. It reminds of a talk that one of my District Leaders played in District Meeting last transfer. It told the story of a missionary in the same situation as I was. He was leaving the area at the completion of his mission and he felt impressed to try again. He knocked on the front door a few times and no one answered. Finally, he went around to the back door and pounded on it. The lady opened the door and he was able to testify to her and she was later baptized. Well, the lady that we talked to has already been baptized, but we were able to have an amazing visit, share a message, and get a return appointment. Follow the Spirit. It's AMAZING!

I love this gospel so much. It brings so much hope and happiness in a world that has less and less. I'm so grateful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the knowledge that, no matter what happens, we can be clean if we are sincere in our repentance. I love the opportunity that I have to serve in this area. I'm grateful for the bad days because it makes me appreciate the miracles even more. We can't have the sweet without the bitter, and I've really come to appreciate that even more on my mission. I love you all and I pray for you all every day!

Love,

Steph

pic1: We found Sirius Black's Arizona vacation home. (The address that we were looking for should have been in that vacant spot)

I tried to include some pics from the temple, but this computer is being ridiculous. Never fear! I will send them next week!

Happy "God Loves Everyone" Day!

Hi Everyone!

This week was pretty great. Sister Boss got really sick on Monday and so we were in for 2 days with her being sick sick sick. So, I called people, updated our records, cleaned, watched church movies, and crocheted. Yes, I am crocheting again. Don't judge :)

On Tuesday I was able to go on splits with one of the Sisters in our apartment so we could make it to our appointments that day. We had a really cool meeting with Tsahai, one of the members that we're working with to help her prepare for the temple. We talked about the importance of studying the scriptures daily and we found out that she had paid her tithing! I'm always so happy when people pay their tithing, because it brings so many blessings! Really, it's a huge leap of faith, especially if the person's financial situation isn't super great, but it's so amazing to see the changes in the people that pay their tithing.

The blessings are real, and there will ALWAYS be blessings. The Lord has promised them and he NEVER breaks his promises.

We were also able to help a recent convert start her mission papers this week! We're so excited for her and her family! They are super solid and she comes to church even if she has to come alone. People that are truly converted to the Gospel are so incredibly strong. And I'm not just referring to people that were baptized later in life, but EVERYONE. Everyone can have that strength and that conviction. And we just have to do the simple things. Pray sincerely. Read our scriptures daily. Share our testimonies. Be obedient. It's so easy to be obedient. We're told exactly what we need to do; we just need to do it.

We also had a really good experience with the youth this week. We had a really good activity where we went and "heart attacked" several young women's homes that haven't been to church in a while. It was a really cool experience to see the girls so excited about the activity because it's fantastic preparation for their own missionary work. It's so interesting how everything in the church prepares you to serve a mission. So, (ahem) anyone that's been thinking about serving probably should. It's pretty cool :)

I love you all! You're the best family anyone could ever ask for! Talk to you next week!

Love,

Steph

AND HERE ARE PICTURES!!!! Thanks for the camera, by the way :) These are from Valentine's day and the pic of the other two sisters? They gave us a wonderful cake :)

contacts contacts are so fun! We will talk to everyone!

Hi everyone! 

This week has been pretty great and it's gone by SUPER SUPER FAST!! Honestly, even the days have been flying!

Crazy story of the week? We got to go to a concert. Granted, it was a concert for a school of performing arts, but it was still pretty cool. The guy that owns the studio put and insert in the program about missionaries and then he talked to the audience about us while a number was getting ready to play, so that was pretty cool.

While I was there, I really realized the importance of good, wholesome music. The music didn't affect me like it used to. It was funny because the song that I enjoyed the most was sung by a Gospel choir. It's interesting how when you focus on the Gospel 24/7, the things of the world just don't appeal anymore. I felt like I hit a major milestone when that thought occurred to me.

Other than that, we did a lot of contacting this week and passed out Easter pageant invitations like candy! Consequently, we contacted more that 120 people this week! It was awesome!

I love you all, I pray for you constantly, and I KNOW that God will always answer our prayers! He is our loving Heavenly Father. He will NEVER abandon us!

Love,

Steph

Oh, and I spoke in Sacrament Meeting this week and President Sweeney said that I did really well :)

On to February!

OK. First off. We had a major major MAJOR miracle this week! And guess what happened? Come on guess!

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 Pretty sure that one of you may have guessed that we found a family. CORRECT! But not just ANY family! This particular family has 9 KIDS!!! NINE NINOS!! (picture Sister Lee screaming and running in circles and passing out on the floor for joy) The best part about the whole experience was that after she invited us in, and after we testified of the Restoration (she cried. The Spirit was TOTALLY there!), we asked her if there was a time that we could come back to share a message with her entire family. She said, "wait just a moment" and went and gathered all of her kids and we taught them all the Plan of Salvation! It was so amazing!! The Lord definitely blesses us when we're working hard and following the promptings of the Spirit. 

Other than that, my companion was sick this week, so we spent most of Thursday inside. I tried to catch up on my journal writing, but after a few hours, I needed a break, so I decided to sweep the floor in the kitchen...which turned into cleaning and organizing the pantry. It had been bothering me for days. The next time she gets sick? The Laundry closet is going to get scrubbed and organized :)

Later that evening we were able to go over to the mission office (I live down the street) and we helped President and Sister Sweeney pick the citrus from their fruit trees! Who would've thought that citrus trees would have some pretty crazy thorns on the branches? Not me! And yet, we learn something new every day. I got speared in my fingers a few times and I carry battle scars from the lemon tree on my arms, but it was a super fun experience.

The people here are pretty nice. Seriously, even when they reject us, they are very polite and courteous and just say "no". It's so refreshing. Another example was when we were biking in the rain the other day and, as we passed someone on the street, they yelled "Be careful! Arizona drivers are stupid!" It made me laugh super hard.

Today, I had a thought. I was studying for a lesson with a less-active family and we're talking to them about family history. So I decided to fill out one of those "My Family" booklets and I realized that Grandpa Lee is gone. And we are the only people on this earth that remember anything about him. It's a bit of a scary thought, especially because we are human and we forget things. So, my commitment to the family this week is to go onto familysearch and type in your memories and stories about grandpa Lee. Because, not only do we need to remember him, but our descendants need to be able to learn about him. Honestly, we should be doing this for everyone in our family, but especially for him while the memories are fresh.

 I love family history work so much! I love getting to know more about my ancestors and seeing the work done for them so that they have the opportunity to be sealed to us forever. That's what missionary work is. It's working to make sure that our families can be eternal! It's reaching exaltation versus immortality. It's sharing that joy with everyone! I love this scripture in 1 Nephi 8:12. The Gospel fills our lives with joy and our first reaction to that is to share that joy with our family. Index, research, go to the temple. There are so many that are waiting, patiently waiting for this work to be done in their behalf. I love the temple, I love my family (yep, that's all ya'll) and I love the Gospel and the hope it brings. I hope you all have an amazing week! Talk to you soon!

Love,

Steph