Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Photos 05/20/13
Memorial Day letter #9
Hello Helloooo!
Well, I hope everyone is having a wonderful Memorial Day and that the sun is shining as much as it is over here! I'm grateful to be serving here in the states so I can still celebrate the same holidays and enjoy the fun festivities...such as BBQ's! This week seemed to fly by pretty fast. We've had some leadership training with our Mission President (I love getting trained by him...he's such a spiritual giant...not just because he's so tall haha). We got to do some exchanges again and I had Sister Lee come out from Burley for a day. She is from Korea and so sweet!
I was a little sick this week, the common cold seems to be floating around, but we were able to still go out and teach, though we did take it a little easier...
The work is still progressing great! We are continually getting support from the members out here and even if we feel that some of our investigators aren't progressing too much, they still desire us to keep coming. Anna has been still been feeling a little under the weather, but still smoke-free and we helped her clean her house a little bit this week! We've been teaching a young adult, Britney, who has been progressing greatly and has a baptism date set for the end of next month. She just soaks in everything we tell her and just seems blown away by the simple doctrines of the gospel.
We will have my first baptismal service this coming Saturday for Holly! We're so excited and she's so excited! We attended a baptismal service for a Bermis family last weekend (a family of 8!) and it was incredible. Even though they were speaking in a different language, the Spirit was so strong and it just goes to show that the Gospel is the same, no matter where we come from or what language we speak.
One of our favorite member family's out here, the Hornaday's, took Sister Hamilton and I out to sushi Saturday night. Thank goodness I like sushi now! It was all you can eat and so we were stuffed. It's really funny when people realize that I can EAT! I'm always "putting it down" and often finishing my companions left overs...pretty sure this fast metabolism won't last forever....But we are definitely getting treated well out here. Unfortunately the Hornaday's are going to be moving in the next couple of months so we're going to help them pack. It's sad to see people go who we've grown so close to, but I know that these are friendships that will last forever! (Another reason I'm grateful to be serving in the states...get to visit when I'm done!)
Yesterday, Sister Hamilton and I got to teach our Gospel Principles class in one of our wards as well as Sister Hornaday's primary class (5 year olds!). The G.P. class went really well and the Spirit was strong which was great because there were people visiting yesterday that don't attend church often or aren't even members, so I'm grateful that they were able to have a good experience. In the 5 year olds class, we taught about Nephi building the ship and keeping the commandments. It was a small class, but the kiddos were so cute. I love their imaginations and how much their minds work and retain! It was definitely a good growing experience to be teaching these classes. Definitely something out of my comfort zone, but I'm getting a LOT of experiences in this so it probably won't be such a weakness for me by the end of my mission (watch...I'll be called to be a Sunday School teacher when I get home...).
I love my mission! I love that the Lord is mindful of us even when we may not be feeling up to par. That there is always something to be grateful for and that blessings and miracles seem to continually come. I know that that is a witness of all your prayers and support back home. The Lord is so merciful and all that He asks us to do is have faith, just a desire, and to act through that faith, and He will help us through and the blessings will come. I know that prayer is so powerful. Our Heavenly Father WANTS to hear from us, He WANTS to bless us, and He IS aware of us. I am so grateful for the Gospel and how it has blessed my family. I know that it truly brings families closer together. I know that having that faith really makes a difference. I know that the Book of Mormon continually testifies of families and how they were blessed even through the trials that they faced. If you haven't told members of your family that you love them lately, do it. The few simple words have great power. We all need to be told we're loved. We all need to know someone cares about us. And I'm grateful to know that there are two who will always tell us that no matter where we are in life: our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ! The Gospel is so true!
Have a great Memorial Day and rest of your week :)
Love,
Sister Wightman
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Monday, May 27, 2013
Letter #8
Hello hello!
Well everything is going pretty swell still over here in the great Twin Falls area. Sister Hamilton and I are having a great time together and working hard. We have a lot of people who are progressing in the gospel and are continuing to witness many tender mercies. One of our investigators, Anna (who has a baptismal date next month) has been working on her committment to quit smoking. She decided to quit starting this last tuesday. She has been sick ever since (a bad cold), but has had no desire for a cigarette as a result, and we know that this has been the Lord reaching out to help her succeed in this goal. It's interesting how the Lord works, but I know that if we trust in Him, He WILL help us!
Our weeks have been a little chopped up lately as we've had meetings and trainings, preparing for the new mission splits, but the work is still going great. The people here are so wonderful and we keep meeting amazing families in our wards who we just bond with! They are definitely great examples of families living in the gospel and are a great example to me of how I'd like my own family to be one day :)
We were able to teach the young women in one of our wards yesterday at church and talked about the importance of scripture study. It's amazing how much that has become something of importance to me here on my mission! I love and pretty much crave for that time to study my scriptures. There is so much truth and peace in those pages. Elder Richard G. Scott referred to the scriptures as packets of light, that as we open them and read, we receive that guidance and light in our lives to help with the things that we face each and every day. What a wonderful gift and tool we've been given!
I am so grateful for all of you at home as I continue to feel of your love and prayers and support. I am continually seeing evidence of how hard life today is for everyone, in very different circumstances, and I hope you all know that none of us are ever alone. That as long as we trust in the Lord, just like Anna has seen in her life, He will reach out and guide us to where we can be comforted and feel of that peace and joy. If life seems a little too overwhelming, take a second and make a list of 5 things you are grateful to the Lord for. Count your blessings and try to see the bright side in the situation. There is ALWAYS a bright side! If we focus too much on the negative, it's gonna be pretty hard to see the positive.
I love you all! Have a great week!
Love,
Sister Wightman
NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.
Monday, May 13, 2013
Mother's Day
Well again, Happy Mother's Day to all the beautiful women out there! I was so happy to be able to talk to my parents and brother last night. It was great to be able to see their beautiful faces (Yes, Kurt, even yours haha) and hear that all is well at the home front. I'm grateful that we get to talk to our families twice a year, but that it's no more so I can stay focused :)
The work is going great out here. I am loving my new companion, Sister Hamilton. She is a fireball and full of energy. She is a prime example of being lovingly bold! She can tell those that we're teaching that they need to get their act together and have so much potential, and they're like "yeah, yeah I do!". If I were to say that, they'd probably stop letting us meet with them. Haha.
We have been able to witness great miracles this week and have been able to invite a few more people to be baptized. We had an incredible experience with one. Holly was a referral from the ward who is dating a member in the West Stake. She was introduced to the gospel through him showing her the "Come Follow Me" program and wanted to know more. We taught her the first two lessons and they went well. She is a very educated woman and it makes things easier to teach her but she also likes to make sure she knows for herself these things are true (which is perfect!). We were planning on teaching her lesson three and inviting her to be baptized and as we confirmed the appointment with the fellowshipper who's house we teach at, he informed us that the boyfriend had suggested we invite her to be baptized that night. We were excited to hear that we were all on the same page and prayed about a date to commit her to. May 25th and June 1st were the two dates in mind and we felt comfortable with either one so we went in going for May 25th. As we taught her the Gospel of Jesus Christ she continued to take in everything we taught and then we gave her the hard invitation. She seemed a little hesitant, surprised that we would be asking her so soon but we discussed why it's important and why we think she's ready. We invited her again and Sister Hamilton suggested the date June 1st. Though surprised that she said June 1st instead of May 25th, I felt good about it too. We looked at Holly and she had this look of bewilderment on her face and turned to her boyfriend asking, "Did you tell them?". We asked what she was talking about and she said that they had news for us. They had recently gotten engaged and had talked about her getting baptized the same day as their wedding which was set for...JUNE 1st! What a tender mercy! The Spirit was SO strong and we all were just beaming. It's amazing how the Spirit can truly guide us and teach through us IF we open our mouths!
We've been sending those that we are teaching and some church members spiritual thoughts each day and it's great finding uplifting thoughts and finding simple but powerful quotes that can motivate us throughout our days.
Life is not easy. Temptations and trials are at our hands at every corner, but if we keep our faith in the Lord strong and rely on Him to help us, we can conquer anything. Faith is an ACTION word and so we can't just say we know, but we also must DO! Pray and then ACT on what answer you receive, read and then ACT on what is taught. If we have a sincere heart (desire) and real intent (willing to act), the truth can be revealed to us. I am so grateful to know that as I do all that I can do, He will provide the rest! The Gospel is still true and together the Bible and Book of Mormon help testify of that!
Keep smiling everyone :)
Love,
Sister Wightman
The work is going great out here. I am loving my new companion, Sister Hamilton. She is a fireball and full of energy. She is a prime example of being lovingly bold! She can tell those that we're teaching that they need to get their act together and have so much potential, and they're like "yeah, yeah I do!". If I were to say that, they'd probably stop letting us meet with them. Haha.
We have been able to witness great miracles this week and have been able to invite a few more people to be baptized. We had an incredible experience with one. Holly was a referral from the ward who is dating a member in the West Stake. She was introduced to the gospel through him showing her the "Come Follow Me" program and wanted to know more. We taught her the first two lessons and they went well. She is a very educated woman and it makes things easier to teach her but she also likes to make sure she knows for herself these things are true (which is perfect!). We were planning on teaching her lesson three and inviting her to be baptized and as we confirmed the appointment with the fellowshipper who's house we teach at, he informed us that the boyfriend had suggested we invite her to be baptized that night. We were excited to hear that we were all on the same page and prayed about a date to commit her to. May 25th and June 1st were the two dates in mind and we felt comfortable with either one so we went in going for May 25th. As we taught her the Gospel of Jesus Christ she continued to take in everything we taught and then we gave her the hard invitation. She seemed a little hesitant, surprised that we would be asking her so soon but we discussed why it's important and why we think she's ready. We invited her again and Sister Hamilton suggested the date June 1st. Though surprised that she said June 1st instead of May 25th, I felt good about it too. We looked at Holly and she had this look of bewilderment on her face and turned to her boyfriend asking, "Did you tell them?". We asked what she was talking about and she said that they had news for us. They had recently gotten engaged and had talked about her getting baptized the same day as their wedding which was set for...JUNE 1st! What a tender mercy! The Spirit was SO strong and we all were just beaming. It's amazing how the Spirit can truly guide us and teach through us IF we open our mouths!
We've been sending those that we are teaching and some church members spiritual thoughts each day and it's great finding uplifting thoughts and finding simple but powerful quotes that can motivate us throughout our days.
Life is not easy. Temptations and trials are at our hands at every corner, but if we keep our faith in the Lord strong and rely on Him to help us, we can conquer anything. Faith is an ACTION word and so we can't just say we know, but we also must DO! Pray and then ACT on what answer you receive, read and then ACT on what is taught. If we have a sincere heart (desire) and real intent (willing to act), the truth can be revealed to us. I am so grateful to know that as I do all that I can do, He will provide the rest! The Gospel is still true and together the Bible and Book of Mormon help testify of that!
Keep smiling everyone :)
Love,
Sister Wightman
Photos 05/013/13
Letter #6
Hello hello!
Well my time is limited today because we are having transfers. But it's bittersweet news! I'm staying here in Twin Falls South (so same address) :) The bitter part is that Sister Christensen is being transferred to Meridian South. But this is funny...She's getting my MTC companion, Sister Edstrom, and my new companion was HER MTC companion, Sister Hamilton. I've gotten to meet Sister Hamilton a couple times and I can tell already that she is amazing! She is polynesian - her dad is Tongan and her mom is Samoan but she grew up in Cali and then SLC. We are picking her up in just a little bit and I am just so excited. I am grateful for Sister Christensen and have learned SO much from her. Truly blessed to have had her as my first trainer, but I knew it couldn't last forever.
This week has been great. And yesterday was amazing. We had almost all of our investigators show up to church yesterday (10 people!) and they all loved it! We had another investigator accept the invitation to be baptized as well so that makes for two people that are ready to make that change in their life! It's so exciting and I am truly seeing miracles happen here. I am so grateful to be here and every day my testimony of the gospel and it's truth is reconfirmed through the lives of others and the guidance of the Holy Ghost. As we continue to study the scriptures, pray and live a Christ-like life, we can see the blessing continue to come and feel of our Father's love! The gospel is TRUE!
Talk to you all soon and Happy Mother's Day to all those mothers out there :)
Love,
Sister Wightman
Well my time is limited today because we are having transfers. But it's bittersweet news! I'm staying here in Twin Falls South (so same address) :) The bitter part is that Sister Christensen is being transferred to Meridian South. But this is funny...She's getting my MTC companion, Sister Edstrom, and my new companion was HER MTC companion, Sister Hamilton. I've gotten to meet Sister Hamilton a couple times and I can tell already that she is amazing! She is polynesian - her dad is Tongan and her mom is Samoan but she grew up in Cali and then SLC. We are picking her up in just a little bit and I am just so excited. I am grateful for Sister Christensen and have learned SO much from her. Truly blessed to have had her as my first trainer, but I knew it couldn't last forever.
This week has been great. And yesterday was amazing. We had almost all of our investigators show up to church yesterday (10 people!) and they all loved it! We had another investigator accept the invitation to be baptized as well so that makes for two people that are ready to make that change in their life! It's so exciting and I am truly seeing miracles happen here. I am so grateful to be here and every day my testimony of the gospel and it's truth is reconfirmed through the lives of others and the guidance of the Holy Ghost. As we continue to study the scriptures, pray and live a Christ-like life, we can see the blessing continue to come and feel of our Father's love! The gospel is TRUE!
Talk to you all soon and Happy Mother's Day to all those mothers out there :)
Love,
Sister Wightman
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