Spiritually renewed

Hi Family,

What a spiritually renewing week! I feel filled up. 

We went on a few exchanges this week - on one, a newer sister, Sister Thornock, came here with me. She has a crazy mission story so far... She was originally called to Tahiti, Tahitian and French speaking, and was in the MTC for 8 weeks when she unexpectedly got sick, and had to get a new state-side call. So she got called here, and came in the middle of a transfer a couple transfers ago. She's been in the field about 3 months, but on her mission for over 5. She's training this transfer, and I talked to her a lot about her feelings in the work. She reminds me so much of myself last September. As she spoke of the challenges and struggles she finds in the work, a wave of all the emotions that come with training and being a new missionary came back to me. I had almost forgotten what those days were like! We had a day of great lessons and contacts, and I felt the Spirit carry us through each hour. At the close of the exchange, I invited her to accept all the emotions that come with being a missionary - the awkward, the difficult, the trying, the disappointing, the discouraging, and especially the rich and the rewarding. All of those feelings are what make our mission experiences so sacred. The exchange was a sweet reminder to me of all the special lessons I've learned here. 

Our Halloween here was fun. The ward held a trunk-or-treat on Friday night - I always love eating up the chili and cornbread at those, haha! Sister Haycock and I get teased all the time that we don't have accents, being from Texas and Georgia, so we threw on the most Southern outfits we could find in our limited wardrobe and spoke with Southern accents for the night. Not sure if we passed off as Southern Belles or not, but it gave us a good laugh nonetheless! We also decided to switch name tags, so I introduced myself as Hermana Haycock from Atlanta, Georgia for the night, haha! Also (as a side-note), we made sure to record our voicemail at the beginning of the transfer speaking with our accents... we've gotten some good laughs from people who listen to it when we miss their calls! On Saturday for Halloween, all the missionaries gathered at the mission office so that we were all off the streets for the evening.  President surprised us with showing the movie "The Cokeville Miracle". Have you seen that? I don't think there was a dry eye in the room. It was so good. There was a tangible spirit there... I almost felt like we were all elevated to a different plane. It was incredible. That would be a great movie to watch for family home evening, if you haven't already seen it!   

Things are going so well here. This week we set 4 people with a baptismal date! Geoff finally accepted a date of December 26th - he wants to wait till after Christmas when his divorce has died down. He openly admits that his head isn't all into the lessons right now because he's so distracted with the trauma of the divorce, but he wants to keep meeting with us until that full focus comes. We also found a woman named Tracey who is a single mom with 2 young kids - Elizabeth (6) and Michael (4). She's a kindergarten teacher, and she doesn't have much religious background, but she's very obviously interested in gaining peace and stability in her life as a single parent. The father of her kids was really abusive and is no longer in the picture, and I think she carries a lot of anxiety over some things that have happened in the past. I don't think she grasps alot of what we teach at this point, but the Spirit is strong in the lessons, which I think was the biggest factor in her agreeing to baptism on December 5th. The ZL's got this new program from a man in their ward that he used as a missionary in the Ogden mission - it's called "Proselyting for the Elect", and it basically outlines little things we can do differently to be more effective and find more elect people to teach. One thing it suggests is called the "Holy Ghost Dialogue", where you explain the role, purpose, and power of the Holy Ghost before you even say the opening prayer when first meeting with someone. You explain that it is through the HG that they can understand our message and feel it is true for themselves. After explaining it, we ask: "When you receive these feelings throughout our visits, will you accept them as an answer from God?" So we did that with Tracey, and when we followed up with her the next visit about her prayers over Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon she said: "I did pray, and I got those feelings. It was in the morning. I felt peace and understanding." Ah! You can imagine our excitement. I feel like it's pretty rare that someone gets a direct answer after the first visit, at least it has been for me. Probably because I haven't been the best at explaining how to receive answers to prayers. So I'm thrilled about this "Proselyting for the Elect" thing! It has awesome ideas, especially for working with members. 

I feel like I've caught another wind, and I feel so energized and invested in my relationships here. Next week marks the start of my last transfer, and I still feel a deep love for what I'm doing. Thank you for the thoughts and prayers. 

Have a happy week!

Love you forever,

Sister Robinson

Hey Family, 

The time is passing so quickly. September already! I'm grateful for the fall rolling in and the temperatures dropping... Oh how I enjoy these temps below 100! Sounds like school scheduling is coming in full swing. I was laughing with Sister Smith that the people who were freshman when I was a senior are now seniors! I guess that means I'm getting old haha! 

Kari's baptism on Tuesday was awesome. So many from the ward showed up! Before the service was over, she had her 6 mo old little one get blessed too. It was really special for Sister Smith, as she feels it may have been her last baptism. I wish I could send pictures, but the place we normally email is closed for Labor Day so I'm just writing from my iPad, and I only have the pictures on my camera. I also got to go back to Paradise for my investigator Harold's baptism. Remember him? We met him in one of our complexes back in December. Well, I guess I should say we actually met his girlfriend he was living with at the time, Angel. She's in her mid 50s and he's 70. It was the strangest situation because she is this sassy black lady and had so many health issues that it was impossible to teach her (she was on 20 different medications so her mind was never in a state to really grasp what we taught), and he's this gentle white old man who had a stroke a few years ago and no longer has control over the right side of his body. Not your typical couple. We initially started teaching her, but he sat in the lessons and kept all the commitments better than her. After the 2 transfers I spent there (December-February), he was ready to be baptized. The problem was that he was actually still married to a woman he'd separated from years before in Chicago, so he had to either get a divorce and marry Angel, or move out. But he couldn't live on his own given his health condition. So anyways, to make a long story short, I just got word a few weeks ago that he finally moved out and was ready for baptism. It was the best news ever. The baptism was small and held in one of the oldest chapels in the valley, but it was one of my favorites on my mission by far. Harold was so happy :)

Sorry for the short update this week. I don't have the time I wish I had! 

I love you, 

Sister Robinson

Learning and Growing

Family,

Anthem is treating me well. I love being Sister Smith's companion - it is kind of like being Sister Emily Cook's companion again. Everything is so light-hearted and we are constantly laughing at something or other. It's kind of therapeutic (have you noticed how much I love that word lately?).

Mom asked for details of my apartment... sorry, no pictures, but it's a nice little place. Henderson is probably one of the safest places in the country - so I definitely feel a stark contrast in my surroundings here compared to Paradise and North, haha. I feel so safe here... almost like I'm in a little bubble. Our apartment is really little compared to some of my previous ones. We have one bedroom, one bathroom, and a little living room and kitchen. One missionary described it as "eclectic" - I think because it's filled with some nice furniture and happy canvases from the members here. One canvas reads: "This is your life now", and Sister Smith comments at least weekly that she isn't sure how she feels about that one (I think it brings out apprehension/fears of her mission ending in a month, haha!). It is a homey place, and it's been kept pretty clean and tidy, which I'm grateful for! We have a washer and dryer and good storage space for all the stuff we accumulate throughout the mission! 

Preparing to meet God

Hey Fam,

Oh, it was a roller coaster week! I honestly felt like I experienced the full spectrum of emotions. Pday was busy - shopping and cleaning and packing and energy sessions and Pday sports and saying goodbye to people in my area. Thank goodness for Sister Montandon and her energy work... I went in for an hour and a half with her and she worked her magic. I walked out of her house feeling well-equipped emotionally, spiritually, and mentally to face transfers and head to Henderson. Transfer day was busy - I got into the area in Anthem with Sister Smith and got to work setting goals and making plans for the transfer. For the first few days, I was overwhelmed being there. It was like a sensory overload experience - everything felt so new and different! We are over the Inspirada ward, which is up in the mountainous/"hillcountry" part of Anthem stake... our geographic area isn't very big, but the ward has over 800 members. In sacrament meeting yesterday, we had nearly 450 people in attendance! The membership is HUGE! Half of them are primary-aged kids... we have 2 primaries and 2 nurseries. We have tons of young couples - many of them are just a few years older than me. Yesterday after sacrament, one couple came up to Sister Smith and me and introduced themselves. They just got married in March, and they both served missions - He in Uganda and she in France. "We just moved in - this is our firstSunday here - and we just wanted to let you know that we will be happy to go out with you anytime! Seriously, we know how it is, and we have a lot of spare time right now as we're looking for work and going to school, so call us any time!" So we invited them to come out with us that night, and it was so fun. They're only 21 and 22 - I felt like we'd been friends for years. Because I know that I soon will be in a similar stage in life, I think it will be a good experience for me to serve here and see how so many young couples, freshly returned from their missions, begin their lives together as member missionaries! 

A Stellar Week

Family, 

This week was stellar. The first bit of good news is that OUR CAR GOT FIXED. Remember the video I sent of Sister Blanchard and I in the car with our doors roped shut? Well our passenger door had been broken since then - about a month! So with Sister Martin and me, one of us has had to sit in the back while one of us drives. I didn't realize how much of a strain it had been putting on our companionship until this week when I sat in the front seat beside her for the first time.... Ohhh my, it was a breath of fresh air! I could actually talk and laugh with her! It has put a whole new dynamic to our work and companionship this week, I could cry with relief! I realized that this month with one of us in front and the other behind has taught me an important life lesson (silly as it may seem) : in companionships (as a missionary, or a friendship, or a marriage), we have to work side-by-side. The relationship just won't work the way it's supposed to if one is ahead of or behind the other, not necessarily in a physical sense, but a spiritual, emotional, and mental one. Equal partnership is a powerful thing. 

The sole focus of my mind, and the sole passion of my heart

July 13, 2015

Hello Family!

It was a good week. Sister Martin got in on Tuesday. She is so sweet and Christlike, and I am enjoying serving with her. She is teaching me a little Spanish too :) It is her first transfer as a sister training leader, so she is learning the ropes, but she is incredibly committed to being obedient and working hard and helping our investigators progress, so she's getting the hang of things quickly. We sat down on Thursday and set goals for the transfer - it was motivating and refreshing, as new transfers usually are. It is always like a breath of fresh air being in a companionship that is equally-yolked!

I have been feeling so much joy in finding and teaching people. There is a talk by Tad R. Callister called 'Becoming a Consecrated Missionary' that I have read countless times on my mission. This week these sentences stuck out to me: "In my day the white handbook contained this all-inclusive statement: 'Put out of your mind all thoughts of home, school, your girl and worldly things.' It was a powerful reminder that our mission was the sole focus of our mind and the sole passion of our heart. As hard as it may be, the consecrated missionary disciplines his passions. His eye is riveted on the work." That statement was daunting to me as a a greenie missionary. How was I ever going to possibly attain that level of commitment and dedication? I felt overwhelmed. But 13 months has done quite a bit for me, and I now feel the power of his words - this work truly is becoming the "sole passion of my heart".

We found some golden investigators this week - the Hall family and a single mother, Leticia. Add them to your prayer list! The Halls are a family of 7, with one on the way. Kenisha, he mom, lost her job is week, and we showed up at their doorstep at the perfect timing. Heavenly Father is the perfect orchestrator of such connections :) We taught them the message of the Restoration last night and it went so well. They have so much potential.

I love you and miss you.

Have a wonderful week!

Love, Sister Robinson

Miracles

Letter from April 13, 2015

Dear Family,

It made me so happy to hear your voice this week! When I got the call from President about being a Sister Training Leader next transfer and he told me I could call my family to share the news, I was giddy. You sounded so good. 

This week was so good. Sister Morceli and I had so much fun just laughing and working together. She really has become like a sister to me. I'm so glad I'm staying in the zone with her here in North! We'll even still be in the same district, and we'll go on exchanges too, so I can come back to the area and visit our investigators! I am thrilled that I'll be serving with Sister Kraus. She is a powerhouse missionary. She turns 22 this week (so I may or may not be humming Taylor Swift throughout the day...), and has 3 transfers left on her mission. She's going back up to BYU Provo in the fall, so I'll see her around campus next winter semester :) I love having so many new friends for after the mission. Transfers are going to be super easy tomorrow, because I'm literally just moving across the road to the closest apartment complex nearby where we live. I am really looking forward to the rigor and work of this next phase of my mission! 

District picture! Sister Kraus (my new companion) is to the left of me!