"dear Jesus God, I love you...I love white girls, amen." Green Bay 7/23/18

Dear everyone,

Hello!! What a week. We've had some crazy adventures! I've been kinda freaking out that this coming week is my last full week as a missionary.....AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! But it's fine. 

So first off funny story. This happened Tuesday? I can't remember. It's all a blur. But we were backing out of our garage one morning. Our car has a handy dandy back out camera on it. So sister Oborn and I were in the front--making our trainee sister Squires back us. We noticed that there was something in the camera clear at the bottom, it was pretty tiny. As we started moving we realized that it was a spider. yeah. No bueno. It starts to freak out cause we're moving and crawling UP it's web. So on the camera it starts to get bigger and bigger and bigger!! We both freak out! *side note the only thing sister Oborn is afraid of is spiders...and she is deathly afraid of them* We can't move obviously since we are in the car...that was our first reaction even though it wasn't actually in the car. So sister Oborn realizes that the only way to make it stop is to put the car in park. So she halts the car immediately and screams. Ha. sister Squires was super confused. Then when she realized what was going on she couldn't stop laughing. It took us some time to re-cooperate. So that was fun!

Update on Amanda: We had a really good lesson with her on Tuesday! We taught her gospel of Jesus Christ. So if you haven't heard yet...there's a new Preach my Gospel out! We've been having a lot of fun studying it. But it has added more focus on Jesus Christ. I love that! We helped Amanda to realize that it is through Jesus Christ that we can over come sin. How important it is to make that connection! We need to realize that it isn't from an ambiguous term called "the atonement" that we get strength and the power to become clean from sin. We get that strength from Jesus Christ. John 8:12 "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."  Amanda loved the idea of receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. I love how much she loves the gospel!! We also taught her on Saturday about the Plan of Salvation. She also understood and loved it! But we brought Marla....and wow. She told us how much the gospel has changed her life. It was so powerful. By the end both Amanda and Marla were crying. Tasha, Amanda's friend was also there. They both came to church! Tasha said she came to church because of Marla. Her story touched her. AH! So amazing.

We had some crazy lessons with Megan. She is a returning member. And she is bringing a lot of her friends with her! Every time we've met with her she has a new friend with her that is interested in learning about the gospel! So first is was her and Rose, then her, Rose, and Quisha; ect. So we have been teaching all these people with a ton of kids running around. I love it. Megan is so funny though. In the middle of our Restoration lesson she says, Oh! tell them about the word of wisdom! So we had to tell them about that...interesting results. :)

Oh! We met with Kendal this week! We met him a couple of weeks ago and finally had a lesson. He was really interested! He is excited to learn more! We had fun with his daughter haha. Her name is Navea (spelling??). She stole all our phones and different times and took videos and pictures. She also put BRIGHT blue eye shadow on us. She did say a prayer! Here's how it went roughly, "dear Jesus God, I love you...I love white girls, amen." Ha. So great. 

Saturday was an adventure! We rode the bus all day. :) So after our lesson with Amanda it started to rain. So we caught the bus to Culvers for lunch. We had to walk a little after we got off the bus...and by the time we got to Culvers we were SOAKED. I was dripping. It was so funny walking in there...everyone already stares at us haha. We had to go into the bathroom to dry off. Also on Saturday we tracted into a lady who let us in! She said how she just came from Chicago. Some missionaries had given her a Book of Mormon and she was excited to read it! But she lost it. It is so amazing when the Lord leads us to people who are searching and prepared to receive us. #blessed

Anyways, that is a few of our adventures from the week! I love being a missionary. One thing that really struck me this week was how valuable the message of the Restored gospel of Jesus Christ. As a missionary I've gotten to talk to so many people. There are sooooooo many different crazy and confusing ideas out there. I've seen how families get torn apart. I've talked to depressed and discouraged people. Just as Preach my Gospel says, all people are best helped by receiving the gospel of Jesus Christ. Through Jesus Christ and his teachings lives are changed. Relationships are healed. We often take the church for granted. But the blessings we receive are so bountiful! Don't ever take it for granted!! Share the goodness. Look for ways to help those around you. Please! It changes lives. 

Okay, I'm done preaching.  ​

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So I think that's about all for this week. Hope you all have a wonderful week!!

Love you!!

Sister Johns

To bus or not to bus. Green Bay 7/16/18

Dear everyone,

It was a lovely week! A few highlights: 

We got caught in a down pour while we were tracting. So we took cover under a porch. The lady who lived there came out and was wondering why we were there. We said that we were representatives of Christ. She said, oh this should be interesting. Heh. She was actually willing to listen! And we set a return appointment. 

Amanda came to church for the 1st time! She absolutely loved it. Crystal also really enjoyed church! She said she didn't want to leave cause she was having such a good time. 

On Saturday we took the bus! We were on exchanges--3 duos again. It was a blast! So much fun. No body got lost too much! Ha. 

One of the most powerful things you could ever give someone is the Gospel. I love being able to share that with everyone I meet. 

Anyways, it was an awesome week! 

Hope you all have a fantastic week!

Love,

Sister Johns

We work for God. Green Bay 7/10/18

Hello everyone!

Have no fear, I am not dead. I did not get lazy. No one kidnapped me--in case you were all wondering. ;) We had interviews with President yesterday, so we turned it into a work day. So, happy Tuesday P-day!

So in Green Bay the 4th of July is pretty chill. There were a whole bunch of venders in a park by the bridge down town. They even blocked off the bridge to traffic so more venders could set up. It was a very HOT day. But we celebrated with pizza. :) We were super hot and sweaty by the end of the day. But it did down pour in the middle of the day. So that was a fun break from planning our zone conference training. We had dinner at the Bytheways so that was a party! We got to hang out with their newly found frogs. 

Zone Conference was on Friday! It was sooo good. So sad that it was my last one! But we did win the golden plates for the cleanest car. :) Funniest part of was when sister Oborn went up to share her departing testimony and ran into a pillar. Ha. 

Also Saturday was fun! We drove 0 miles. We got a ride from Marla to a lesson with Hilkiah. It was so cool to see Marla testify of things she's learned! So powerful. For the rest of the day we basically walked everywhere. :) Other exciting things...we ate watermelon from Marla for lunch. We had a lesson with a guy who got lost in sister Oborn's eyes......yeahhh. 

Over all it was an awesome week!

Story on the subject line: We were knocking this apartment building and met this kind lady from Somalia. She let us in and gave us some water--kind soul!! Her kids (who spoke much better English than she did, although her English was very good) asked us, "who do you work for?" Sister Oborn's response, "God." Which is true! I have probably said this before, but there have been countless time when we've showed up at a door and the person says, wow I can't believe you caught us at home! Sister Oborn's response, "Well, God sent us!" He does send us to people. I love being a representative of Jesus Christ. It is very humbling to stand in his place and try to emulate Him as you talk to and teach everyone you can. 

This week we got to teach Amanda again. She is someone we got in with last week or so. We stopped by on Saturday randomly and caught her as her was about to leave. She said that is was crazy that we caught her because she was supposed to leave a while before, but she hadn't felt like leaving. As got to share the story of Joseph Smith and tell his story with his own words. In response she got teary eyed and said how beautiful that was. In our return appointment yesterday we taught her the full restoration lesson. She seemed to understand and love what we were teaching her! At the end she said with teary eyes again how she could feel our non-judgmental love for her. She hasn't had that a lot in her life. But she could feel the strength of the Spirit--because the Spirit was there. It was so tender! She is an honest seeker of truth. You don't find people like that everyday. We testified that God loves her. She is His daughter and is very aware of her unique circumstances! I can say the same thing for everyone. 

This week we've talked to a lot of people. Something that I have noticed is how confusing, dark, and hopeless the world sometimes seems to be. The one light of the world is Jesus Christ, as He Himself testified: Johns 8:12 "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." We can feel and receive that light if we come unto Him. We can do that in small and simple ways. Studying the scriptures, having meaningful prayers daily, and coming to church, and partaking of the sacrament. I have found that these small things make life so much lighter and hopeful. Let His light come into your heart. 

Love,

Sister Johns​

Not your average week. Green Bay 7/2/18

Dear lovely people,

What a week! 

Monday: We had a busy day! It was sister Squires 1st Pday! So we got a bunch of groceries. We had an awesome lesson with Ben at the library. He was only off on Monday, so we decided to have a lesson with him anyways. There's a garden outside the library and so we made ourselves at home. Ben is pretty well versed in the Bible, so he had lots of questions as we taught him about the Restoration. His last question was my favorite. So it was a pretty good lesson and the Spirit was there, so we invited him to be baptized. He said that he had already been baptized. So sister Oborn explained about the Priesthood authority. Then he said, "okay so random question...what are those things on your arm?" Sister Oborn had put some produce stickers on her arm from the grocery store (she collects them). And that ended our lesson. But we did some sports with the other GB missionaries and some slacklining. So it was a good time. That evening we dinner with a cute couple in our ward. 

Tuesday: We had a surprise breakfast with one of sister Oborn's previous companions who is now home. So that was fun! She also used to be my sister training leader. WE had district meeting, which was awesome! We have a smaller district now, but it was fun to see new faces. It was a day of setting goals. We set district goals and zone goals afterwards. I am pumped for them! It's the last month and I really want to work hard so we can achieve the goals we set. We had a lesson afterwards with a lady we met a while ago. But she ended up not being home. So we went to another lesson with a guy named Mike, who is actually a member. WE did some finding then had dinner with the Cooks--they are awesome. We laughed a lot and left later than we should have haha. But we had a good quick lesson with sister Kline in our ward, who needs our support. Then we went on exchanges with the Hermanas! I got to spend the night with Hermana Brimhall in my apartment. 

Wednesday: Wendesday was full of miracles! We had an awesome lesson with Trent. Travis is a recent convert in our ward and came to the lesson. He and Trent have a lot in common. So it was a powerful lesson. You know it's good when the member you bring is explaining the apostasy and Priesthood then causally pulls up his phone which has a picture of Christ getting baptized in the back. yeah. He's awesome. So that was a highlight. We also got to meet up with Sister Squires and Hna Koplin--they were together so it was fun to meet up with them. WE also got to meet Amanda. She let us in but was a little apprehensive. We ended up helping her make dinner (we chopped potatoes) and teaching her about the Book of Mormon. It was so neat to see how her heart softened by the time we left. Miracles!! That night we had correlation which is always fun. Elder Tarone's line, "yo soy una tortuga" (Spelling??) Cause Hermana Brimhall is obviously Spanish haha. Good times!

Thursday: We had a cool lesson with an old man named Gary. Sister Squires met him when she was with Hna Koplin. We invited a priest to come with us. He cant' drive on his own so his omom came as well. He wasn't home...but pulled in right as we were about to leave. He accidentally came home. So we ended up meeting with Gary and his 2 grandchildren. It was a houseful! But so good. We helped our neighbor move while doing weekly planning. We went to see Amanda again, but she wasn't home. So we were about to leave when sister Oborn pulls over and we get out to talk to this lady on her porch. She was super nice! When we told her about the Book of Mormon she got really excited! So that was awesome. 

Friday: Sister Oborn and I went to MLC! Sister Squires stayed in our area with Hna Koplin. We are baptizing her by fire haha. They did great! It was really fun to see all my friends at MLC haha. It was also a really good meeting. I had to give my departing testimony however...probably the most nerve wracking thing I have done in a long time. But I survived. That night we went tracting. We met this little boy outside these apartments. We told him that we were talking to people about Jesus. He said that we should talk to his mom. So while we were waiting we went to the other doors. He came with us and knocked on all the doors for us! When one guy came out the little boy said hey these guys want to talk to you about Jesus! It was the best thing ever. Also his mom said that she'd been looking for a church and his dad is actually a member! 

Saturday: Most of our plans fell through. SO we got to go finding! It was SUPER hot. Like 100 degrees hot with humidity. We met a Native American guy who was really nice. He got super defensive however...even when we introduced the Book of Mormon. We also met this guy who peaked out the door with one eye...his eyes were huge and the room was mostly dark. Slightly creepy haha. Oh the people you meet!

Sunday: Always so good! It was my last fast Sunday as a missionary. So weird!! We had a fun dinner with the Ballards in our ward. Not much to report....just a refreshing Sunday.

A little thought for the day: I have learned that faith in Jesus Christ is trusting that everything will work out. There have been so many times when I can't see the end or I don't understand. But I just have to trust and continue to walk forward. Quote from Elder Harold B. Lee  

You must learn to walk to the edge of the light, and then a few steps into the darkness, then the light will appear and show the way before you.' 

Hope that you all have a marvelous week!

Love,

Sister Johns

GB take 2. Green Bay 6/25/18

Dear fam,

Hello! This week has been crazy!! quick run down of everything...

Tuesday was spent running around like crazy basically. Sister Koford had to finish packing....and say good bye to all her friends in Green Bay. She's been here since January so that's a lot! We also had a couple of appointments. So our day was packed! To add to that we went on a impromptu exchange with the Spanish Sisters. One sister had something she needed to be at in Milkwaukee but they had some appointments they also needed to go to. SO i left sister Koford to balace both schedules while I took a road trip to Milwaukee! It was actually super fun! Lots of driving though, it takes about 2 hours to get there. So we got back around 7--we were later than we thought--and I had to just turn around and drive all the way back to Milkwaukee. We had stay the night in Milkwaukee because we were supposed to be at the trainers meeting at 7:30 the next day. SO 6 hours in the car that day. I was exhausted by the end!

Wednesday we got up bright and early to meet our new trainees! I am training sister Squires! She is also from Idaho, so is awesome. ;) Sister Oborn wasn't there because she was driving all over kingdom come to make sure no one was alone that was getting transferred. SO poor sister Squires had to wait with me until 2 at the church. It was fun getting to talk to everyone though! I saw sister Eadie again! I forgot how much I love her. I also met another Elder that slacklines! So that was fun. So when sister Oborn finally arrived we headed back to Green Bay. Funny thing was though that my GPS had died a couple weeks before. And we found out that sister Oborn had given her GPS to her last trainee. SO we were GPs less. We were able to use the tiny map on our area book planner app though and found our way home. We used that app for the next couple of days. BUT in desperation I tried to charge my GPS AGAIN. But miracle! It worked again!! So blessed. Also on Wednesday we took sister Squires tracting for the first time. We got to talk to some interesting people. But the first door she did on her own she set up a return appointment! She got so excited. I think that we are going to rock this transfer! It was exciting.

Thursday we had several appointments. We were pretty busy which was fun. We didn't get a lot of time to weekly plan..whoops. We did have a lesson with Trent. Sister Squires invited him to be baptized! She did awesome! And he said he would pray about it. He is definitely a seeker of truth. We had a fun dinner appointment with the millers. Their kids are so smart! They have a 1st grader that knows a LOT about birds. Oh also we ended up driving down to Oshkosh to get a different car, it's about an hour away. They decided to total our car....wow. 

Friday I hit my 16th month mark! So crazy. We had lunch with a sweet little Hmong lady that comes to church. She made a LOT of food and it was sooo good. She didn't think we ate a lot, but I seriously couldn't eat one more bite. She makes traditional Hmong clothing for the Hmong new years, and she let us try it one! IT was so fun to play dress up haha. We also helped at a funeral. We had a lesson with Crystal which was really good. We brought a member with us which was so good! Crystal opened up to us a lot and told us some very personal things she's been struggling with. It was so neat to help her see how the gospel can bring peace and comfort into her life when nothing else can. That evening we ended up stopping by Hilkiah and caught him drinking with his friends. Ha. We got to talk to them a little, THAT was fun. but we set up an appointment with Hilkiah for the next day.

Saturday we attended a baptism in the GB 1st ward. Crystal was going to come but didnt...whoops. We had a really good lesson with Hilkiah! He told us how he's been trying to live the word of wisdom. Even though he hasn't been perfect he has seen how living it has brought more clarity and peace in his life. He also has a 10 year old son. He asked him if he wanted to stay at our church or go to a different one. Hilkiah jr said that he liked our church! So they are staying. We are so excited for them! We had some quality finding time that day. We found an AWESOME guy named Luis. We were talking to him and his friend...his friend was a little crazy. But Luis told us he's read the Book of Mormon and loves it! #golden. Miracle happen. We got to have dinner at the Vanderheyden home. We saw some of Brother Vanderheyden's art work! He was working on a little colt--he does metal art. So that was cool.

Sunday was lovely! I always love Sundays. We had a looong day at church though. Correlation, ward council, then church. And we stayed afterwards so that sister Oborn and I could do my plan...which was weird. (for those who don't know its a 6 week program that prepares missionaries to be regular people again...I don't think it will help me be less awkward though haha). Exciting things though. For 3rd hour the YMs leader asked the elders and us to come join them. They asked us questions, so that was fun. But we had to leave Marla and Crystal in RS alone. BUT we asked Marla to sit by Crystal. Marla is our recent convert and Crystal is our investigator. Crystal is normally very quiet and keeps to herself. So we heard from Marla that they talked and Marla was able to help Crystal feel welcome. Oh it just made me so happy!! Also Marla got her temple recommend and a calling!! She also gave me a gift haha. A DVD to help me learn Spanish...and her notes from trying to learn Spanish (she tried for 3 days then gave up). HA. It's a joke between us. Remember the one time at church...we grabbed a Spanish Hymnal instead of an English one. We were both real confused. Then in RS the only hymnal in the room was a Spanish one. So we've just laughed about it ever since. Haha, Marla is so funny. So that made my day. I love Marla!

So I guess that wasn't a quick run down of the week haha. It's been an eventful 1st week of the transfer! We are excited. I love the gospel! It really is the good news that we get to take to everyone who will listen. I read these verses this morning that made me really happy in D&C 76:

40 And this is the gospel, the glad tidings, which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us—

41 That he came into the world, even Jesus, to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness;

42 That through him all might be saved whom the Father had put into his power and made by him;

No matter what mistakes we've made or times turned away from God we STILL can come back to Him. We can be washed clean and receive the peace and joy that comes from Jesus Christ's atoning sacrifice. 

That's all I got for this week,

love you all!!

Sister Johns

Ending the transfer with a bang! Green Bay 6/18/18

Hello everyone!

So after much anticipation I have received the news about the last 6 weeks of my mission. *drum roll* I'm staying in Green Bay! Sister Koford is getting 6 weeks shafted to Muskego! And all the STLs are training! So trio life for my last 6 weeks. My new comp is Sister Oborne. She is awesome! It will be a wonderful time. 

SO Tuesday we went on exchanges. I was with Hermana Bennett in GB, we had an awesome time! When we exchanged back we went to an appointment right after. On our way to the next appointment we were driving down main street. As we were stopping at a light it turned green we were speeding up when someone crashed into is from behind sending us into the car in front of us. Thank goodness sister Koford was driving. She pulled over and we went out to see the damage. We were fine just a bit shaken up. The police and a fire truck and an ambulance all came. But we were fine. Our car wasn't as fine though...yeahhhh. Our mission nurse made us go to urgent care to get the all clear...so after going to one in a Walgreens we found one that would take us. What an adventure! 

Other things from this week....the zone leaders have a new greenie! So now there will be 6 missionaries in one ward...ha. 

That's all for this week! If you're bored check out this video we've been obsessed with..its so good!

The Savior Understands Me
http://mediasrv.lds.org/media-services/ML/size/5180492360001/1280/720/1337069

Have an awesome week!!

Love you all!

Sister Johns

When life gets you down, ya know what you gotta do?? Green Bay 6/11/18

Dear everyone,

Wow. What a week. It seemed like 3 weeks long. But it's P-day again! So quick run through of the week:

Monday: So we've been trying to do things other than zone sport...cause we're sick of zone sports. Monday we went to the wildlife sancuary! It was full of geese...so many geese. There were other animals too like possums, snakes, and some turtles. But mostly geese. We had a good time feeding them with the corn people drop haha. That was our P-day fun!

Tuesday: We had district meeting! It was all about member missionary work. From MLC it is going to be a bigger push now. So I am excited about that. We are going to be trying to do this specific member lesson that was presented this week. SO we will see how it goes! Our lesson with Trent fell through so we stopped by several potentials. WE also went to the Sprint store cause our phone was having troubles. We have a good time talking to the people there! They're pretty cool. We decided they need to have a show similar to the office in that Sprint store. It'd be great. We had dinner with they Pypers! I love the Pypers. They are just awesome. Then we went out for ice cream with a less active member in the ward. 

Wednesday: We got to play volleyball in the morning! There is a group of ladies that play every Wednesday morning and most of them aren't members. SO that was fun. I realized just how bad I am at volley ball haha. We were going to have a lesson with Crystal, but I guess she's out of town. SO we ended up having a good chat with the new Relief Society president. Wednesday afternoon was crazy...nothing ever goes as planned haha. Bu we did have dinner with the Behms! They are also awesome. They are so good! A family of girls so I felt at home. :) We had correlation that evening. The Elders weren't there, so that was weird. Since they are zone leaders they were in the UP doing exchanges all week. 

Thursday: We were going to have lunch with a member....but stuff happened and she never showed up. We actually did have a lesson with Trent and it went well! We talked briefly about the restoration and the Book of Mormon. He's a black guy with dreds, he's pretty cool. We just sat outside of his apartment in the grass. Afterwards he said we made a peace circle haha. We had dinner with the Raus. They live about 30 minutes away...it was such a beautiful drive! We love road trips. So funny! So we pull up and--oh they have 3 boys, one's on a mission and they have a bunch of land. SO we pull up and see one of the boys without a shirt on...we're like ahhhhhhh!!! Shirtless Rau boy!! Haha. THEN we get inside and he comes down (with a shirt one this time) and he has a hug gash on the top of his head! They are in the process of trying to find things to stitch him up...so I felt at home haha. But they didn't have all the stuff and they both had to go to his office to get the supplies. Everyone was So calm. They've done this before. Here's the funny part...brother Rau isn't a doctor...he's a dentist! I didn't know that until they left. It was pretty funny. Also we had prepared a message with a story about some boys who'd gotten hurt...how perfect right? Anyways, we also saw Marla that night! Last time before her baptism! We had a real talk about how Saten works hard on people before and after they make good decisions. She teared up (as always) as she said she wasn't doing this on a whim, she was doing this for herself and was completely  committed. ANy fears we had were set at rest. AH! I love Marla. We also exchanged that night with the Manitowoc sisters.

Friday: So I was with sister Bounds all day Friday. The day before the baptism. Aparently we had a lot more to do to plan the baptism than we thought. Cause all the other plans we had fell through and we ended up helping sister Lieberenz prepare for the baptism (she's Marla's good friend from HS). 

Saturday: Marla's baptism!! It was so lovely. She came 45 minutes early haha. She had her other good friend come down from Minnesota. It was quite the programs haha. So we were there setting up. It was about a quarter to 11 (when it was supposed to start) and no one except Marla and her friend Ann were there. Haha, but people did come. Mormon standard time. It was really good though! There was a lot of music. It was so sweet as we started Marla just couldn't believe it was actually happening. When we took her back to the baptismal font she so excited! We had her pause for a minute before she actually went into the font. She was so emotional, it was to tender. When she got out she said, "I did it! I did it!" and she punched her fist into the air! Haha, I love Marla. It was a wonderful time. It took a long time to get everything all cleaned up afterwards, but we did! We had dinner with the Vanderhydens, they are also awesome. WE had a good discussion about The Infinite Atonement, Believing Christ, and Following Christ--so basically a book club. Haha, they are great. We love them.

Sunday: Best part of the week! (besides Marla's baptism of course). Church was really really good. Marla was confirmed and is now officially a member! It was great, after church we were talking to the Elders. We were talking about how it really was a difficult week for us leading up to the baptism. They said yeah it's hard because Marla is different from any one else. She isn't going anywhere! It was so good to hear because it's true. Teaching Marla has been a miracle. She is a miracle. Funny story. So we went and visited a sister from our ward in the hospital. As we were driving away from the hospital we got stuck at a light. Then we realized that brother Behm was next to us! We started talking to him and realized that he was going to go visit the same sister! But he thought that she was at home, he didn't realize that she was in the hospital. So we helped him out. Isn't that great? It made us smile. :) 

There has been a lot on my mind this week. But to everyone who may be struggling, or discouraged, of feeling weak remember the words of Elder Holland (I think this was him), you are doing better than you think you are. I know Heavenly Father is mindful of everyone. I know that he hears and listens to prayers. I know that everything He does is for our good--somehow. I am learning that everything happens for a reason. So take heart! Life is good. Don't forget to laugh this week. And that's all I got this week. ;)

Love you all!

Sister Johns 

Pictures from this week! 

1. MTC district reunited at MLC!! 

2. Green BAY

3. The Behms!

4. and 5 Marla's baptism!

Here's a district picture. Except 3 of the elders are Hmong, the 3 in the back. They are in our ward but not in our district. :)

Green Bay week 4. Green Bay 6/4/18

Helloo everyone!!

So quick run down of the week:

Tuesday:

So Tuesday evening we had a lesson with Marla. She is so awesome. We got there before sister Lieberenz--which never happens! But it was a blessing because she felt like she had to tell us some things when it was just us together. It was very good! When we were all there we went over the baptismal interview questions. She passed with flying colors! She bore the sweetest testimony after each question. Then when we were done she said, "Oh, but there's so much more!" She then proceeded to tell us all about prophets, the Plan of Salvation (including the names of the 3 degrees of glory and the qualifications for each of them, the temple, and serving in the church. Haha! She is definitely ready! She also has a degree in reseach...so she is prepared. :)

Wednesday:

We had a CRAZY morning! We were getting calls from everyone it seemed like. We had to do a quick conference call with the zone leaders and all the district leaders to talk about our goals and readjust one of them. So that was crazy. We also felt like we needed to do an impromptu blitz in our area with the Manitowoc sisters after district meeting. We had district meeting and it was really good! We discussed finding and how we can become better at it. Several people shared D&C 84:88

"And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up."

We are working together to share the gospel with all those around us. This is the greatest work there is! It is bring salvation to all those who will head our message. Sometimes I forget just how important this message really is. As I have come to realize the importance of the gospel in my own life, I've felt the urgency to share it with others. And we are not alone in this work. 

Anyways, we had a good time blitzing for a few hours and getting to know the sisters more. They really appreciated it. We had a busy evening with a dinner appointment and correlation. At the dinner we tracted into them and shared a quick message like we usually do with someone we just met. It was fun for them! 

Thursday:

Was weekly planning day. We needed it! It just seems like there is so much to do and so little time. We did get in contact with a lady named Lori who is a member and wants to return to church. We've been trying to get in contact with her for a while. So that was good. We has dinner with a member family who lives about 30 minutes away. Their home is soooo beautiful! IT is so green. They have a cute little garden, chickens, a few cows, and some horses. It was so beautiful. We had to rush out because we drove to Nennah that night. We have MLC the next day. We stayed in the Winnebago sisters apartment with 2 other sets of sisters. Slumber party! 

Friday:

So MLC was held in the Oshkosh building. It was so weird to go back to somewhere I've served before! We went to McDonalds for breakfast. I was standing in line deciding what to order when behind me I saw Mirto! A recent convert who lives in Oshkosh! AHH!! It was sooo good to see her! We both about cried haha. It was so fun. After that we went to MLC (mission leadership council). It was a big deal cause all the district leaders came as well--that usually doesn't happen. There was a couple guys from Salt Lake who went out with several missionaries that week. They talked to us a lot about how we can improve our missionary work in our mission. It was really neat to hear his insights! It motivated me to work harder--but not just harder, smarter. So that lasted ALL day. WE got back around 8 then exchanged with the Spanish sister at 8:30. I was SOOO tired. But it was fun talking to them about what I'd learned that day!

Saturday:

I got to be in several lessons that were all in Spanish. I tried to dust off my mediocre (at best) Spanish skills. But I could say much haha. It was fun though! The sisters are so good at Spanish! It was fun. Then as we drove to the church to exchange back it started to down pour! So Sister Koford and I took off our shoes and ran and jumped in all the puddles! It was the best. Best part of the week. :)

Sunday:

Church is always the best. WE had our investigator Crystal come to church with her 7 year old daughter Miracle. They are black and she is sooo cute and sassy. Haha, she almost come home with us! SO we didn't have dinner that night and were kinda super sad because we were fasting and so starving. But just as we were about to go home we get a text from brother Mills, our ward mission leader inviting us over for dinner. Blessings! We also celebrated Gayle's graduation from HS (she is sister Lieberenz daughter). So fun stuff.

That's about all I've got! It was a short week because of Memorial day last week. So that was kinda weird. But it was good! 

Hope you all have an amazing week!

Love,

Sister Johns

Green Bay 5/29/18

Door County

Dear everyone,

Hello!! Happy late memorial day!! Our P-day is today because of that. Hope you all had a wonderful memorial day! We sure did. 🇺🇸 it's so wonderful to take a day to remember those who have served our country. We got to drive out to Kewanee, which is about 45 minutes away from where we live. It's in the edge of out area. We looked the road trip! It was SO beautiful to take a drive in the country. We saw the green rolling hills and so many farms with red barns. AH! It was so beautiful. It was a perfect way to spend memorial day! We went out there to contact a HQ referral that hadn't been contacted in over a year! We met the old man and found out that he was a veteran. At first he didn't have time to talk, but 45 minutes later we left. We got to show him about the Book of Mormon. So awesome! So yeah, that was our memorial day.

What else happened this week...

Oh another miracle. So we are helping Marla to prepare for baptism. She is super prepared! She has a very close friend in our ward. So we already taught her about the word of wisdom and she agreed to give up coffee. This week we learned that Marla smokes...BUT wait there's more to the story. Sister Lieberenz however knew this, and prayed that Marla would feel sick at the thought of smoking. SO when we found out that Marla smokes we also found out that she feels sick eveytime she thinks about smoking. Sister Lieberenz's prayer was answered. Miracles happen!! 

Another funny story. We went with Marla and sister Lieberenz to a baptism in Sturgeon Bay. It was so nice. Afterwards (sister Lieberenz drove) we started driving the wrong way. Marla then says soooo we are kidnapping you and taking you around Door County! Hahaha, it was so much fun. It is sooooo beautiful! I am beginning to loooove the flatness and green here. We went all the way up to Fish Creek. The little towns are so cute. It was a blast.  

I'm not going in order of the week, but I had my first district meeting in Green Bay. It was fun! Afterwards we went out to lunch with the Manitowoc sisters. 

What else happened...oh! So Saturday after our adventure in Door County we had to do some weekly planning. After we realized that we hadn't eaten anything but cheese curds all day (squeaky cheese). So we were starving. And all we felt like was pizza. So we were going to go to Costco cause we could get it by the slice. But it was closed! We are sooooo sad. So we just kept driving cause we had to get to an appointment. Then sister Kodord felt like we should go down town and turned down a street. Then low and behold we found Palitos! Pizza by the slice! Heavenly Father is mindful of everyone. It was a good dinner. :) 

Fun finding story. So lately we've been pretty busy. So we haven't had a lot of time to go tracking. But we do our best to talk to everyone and find on the way. We've found that this is a lot more productive than simply tracting. So one time this week we had about 15 minutes before we had to go to an appointment so we decided to knock a few doors of this apartment complex we found. Before we got there however I saw a door to a house that had a poster of toy story on the inside of the screen door. So obviously I wanted to knock it. So we did. And we found this lady who wasn't super interested in religion. But we somehow got her talking and found out that they don't party, drink, or any of that stuff! We were amazed! So we shared our testimonies and set up a return appointment. It took all of the 15 minutes we had. I love being placed where the Lord needs us to be. 

Anyways. Thabks for putting us with This random email haha. This week I've been focusing charity and how that is the center of the gospel. Taken from a recent general conference talk:

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said: “The first great commandment of all eternity is to love God with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength—that’s the first great commandment. But the first great truth of all eternity is that God loves us with all of His heart, might, mind, and strength. That love is the foundation stone of eternity, and it should be the foundation stone of our daily life.” 

Love is at the center of the gospel. We can receive the gift of charity if we pray for it. At a dinner appointment this week one member talked about the scripture Mornoni 7:47. In it it says possessed. When we usually think of that word it has a negative connotation to it. But think about it. What if we were possessed with charity. It would move us, take possession of our thoughts, desires, and actions. How wonderful would that be?? I hope that this week we can all be a little bit more kind and loving and tolerant of those around us. That is what Jesus Christ would do if He were here. 

Love you all!

Sister Johns

Baptism by FIRE. Green Bay 5/21/18

Dear Lovely People,

Wow! What a CRAZY week!! This first full week of being a sister training leader has been absolutely crazy. But also wonderful, exciting, and full of learning opportunities. Sister Koford made the comment that I'm being baptized by fire this week as a brand new STL haha. SO...

Monday we had interviews with President. It was much needed! I have grown to love and respect President Williams. He is so loving and good. We also had a zone BBQ! It was super fun! We made brauts and had watermelon. I brought my slackline! It was fun to meet and hang out with everyone in our zone. Our zone by the way includes the UP (upper Michigan). So fun stuff!

Tuesday we had zone conference! I have never been so nervous for a zone conference my whole mission haha--which makes sense since this is the first time I've gotten to give a training. Sister Koford and I gave a training on the Holy Ghost. And it was very led by the Holy Ghost. I learned a lot by preparing and giving the training. We also had trainings on Revelation by President, Meekness by the zone leaders, and ministering by Sister Williams. The topics were largely taken from general conference talks, which was awesome. We also received our smart phones! SO crazy! So that was exciting. I learned that I am faster at texting with the old slider phones now...so that's fun. But biggest pro is we get to see and send emojis! Haha, jk. It really is exciting to see how the Lord hastens His work. And I think that receiving smart phones is one way that He is hastening His work. Tuesday I also went on my first exchange! And I took over the area! So that was nerve wracking...but I survived! And I only got lost a couple of times. So blessings!! I was with Sister Bounds, who has actually served in Green Bay. So she knew the people and that helped a lot. It was a good day!

Wednesday we had an awesome day finishing our exchange! WE taught our investigator Marla, who is getting ready to be baptized. She is sooo sweet and SUPER excited for this next step in her journey. We taught her about the Word of Wisdom which she had heard of before. Quitting coffee is going to be a struggle, but she is all in! SO wonderful! We got to talk to some other cool people. It is soooo awesome to see how the Lord places people in your path. All we have to do is have the courage to open our mouths and testify of what we know. After we exchanged back sister Koford and I went to stop by a HQ referral that we'd met last week. His name is John funny enough. SO we got to stop by and meet a different John...who is drunk. But we start talking to him and end up meeting his friend named Bill (who wasn't drunk fortunately!). Bill we found out has been studying different religions for along time BUT hasn't studied Mormons yet. It was definitely NOT a coincidence that we came by that day. We talked for about an hour just on their front porch. By the end we smelt like beer and smoke, but we knew that we were an answer to a prayer. I just love being a missionary!! Also we didn't end up eating dinner until like 9 at night cause we had to do some paper work haha. 

Thursday we had a normal day! It was so fun! We had a lesson with a semi-active member named Caitlyn. She has a crazy dog who is so cute. But during the prayer she came up and licked my right on the mouth haha! Anyways, we did some weekly planning and also had a dinner appointment. I love getting to know the members here! Another cool story, we went to contact this referral we received for a less active member who just moved into our area. But we were having troubles finding her address. So we end up knocking on the wrong apartment. WE met this lady named Barbie and her boyfriend. They kindly directed us to the right apartment. As we were going back to our car we felt like we needed to give Barbie a card. So we go back and talk to her. We ended up learning that she just has surgery and was interested in learning more about God! Blessings!!

Friday we had exchanges again with the other sisters in our zone. The Spanish sisters in Green Bay. I got to go with Hermana Bennett and Koplin and work with them (they are in a trio right now). It was so fun doing Spanish work for a day! Also kinda frustrating cause we'd knock on a door and I would want to talk to them but I couldn't cause I don't speak Spanish. Even at our dinner appointment I could kinda make out what they were saying, but I could reply very well cause...yeah. But I loved it! We had a good time.

Saturday we had our return appointment with Bill--and guess what?? He was actually there! He listened attentively and is very interested in reading the Book of Mormon. John, his drunk friend was there along with his girlfriend (John's). I love teaching and testifying about The Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. It is so powerful! I love it. At the end of the lesson He go to leave and Bill says, so can we meet again sometime? AH! So excited. :) WE found out later that sister Bounds was sick. And all of our plans for the day had just fallen through...God is so good haha. So we decided to take a road trip to Manitowoc! Sister Koford took sister Crockett out to work and I stayed with Sister Bounds. It was fun! The drive was so lovely. It is soooo green now! I am learning to love and appreciate the beauty of Wisconsin--even the flatness. 

Sunday was lovely! We had a nice church service. Hilkiah came to church! He is this awesome black guy who in our investigator. But we cancelled our appointment. SO it was my first time meeting him! We also found out that Marla hasn't drank coffee for 5 days! It was such good news! Cause we were honestly a little worried about her. But she is doing awesome. Blessings! We also had our return appointment with Barbie that afternoon. IN the morning we were planning on what we'd teach her. And somehow we found this video about life after death. We were initially thinking about teaching the Restoration, but some how we decided on that video. So as we are talking with her she tells us that she has been married 4 times. And out of those 4 times, so of her husbands have died. The last time was fairly recent and she is still struggling with it. It was truly inspired to share the video we did. I love how the Lord is able to work through us as imperfect as we are! AH! It made me so happy. 

Anyways, sorry for the novel. But this was a crazy week and I wanted to share everything that happened! This week I have had to face some of my fears. As I have struggled to do what the Lord has called me to do I have learned some very vital lessons. I have learned that "whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day." (Alma 36:3) When we do put our full trust in God and Jesus Christ that He will help us to accomplish all the He needs us do to. But it required us putting our faith, trust into action. I also came across this quote which I thought was perfect for this week.

"As we make Christ the center of our lives, our fears will be replaced by the courage of our convictions"

~ President Thomas S. Monson

I know that this is true! I know that Joseph Smith was called to be a prophet of God and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I love it! 

Have an amazing week! And don't forget to take a second to slow down and recognize how the Lord is helping and blessing you from day to day.

Love,

Sister Johns