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Monday, December 9, 2013
11/25/13 Letter #35
It's the most wonderful time of the yeeeeeeaaaaar! Or at least it's getting there! haha.
It is definitely winter here now as our car is iced over every morning, the pond in our backyard is almost ice-skating worthy, and we constantly are seeing our breath in the air. Grateful for pea coats and boots ;)
It has been a great week. We have begun teaching a sister from Madagascar. She only speaks Malagasy and her daughter and son-in-law are able to translate for us. She just moved here a month ago to live with her daughter and has a desire to be baptized. That's what we like to hear! She is so sweet and already has such a strong testimony. It is such a testimony builder to me and helps me to really slow down and appreciate the simple things. We were supposed to teach her last night, but had to reschedule for tonight and hope to extend a baptismal invitation. I love all these international experiences I am getting!
Wednesday, we got to take Kelly to the Family History center in Eagle and help her get started on doing her family's work. She is the first member of the Church in her family and has not had anyone do any genealogy work yet so she is starting from scratch, but the people at the FHC were so helpful and she found 3 family members! I have grown such an appreciation for family history work. Not only is it fun to find about our ancestors and where they come from, but to be able to do temple work for them, to link those bonds and give them the opportunity to accept the gospel so our families can be eternal. Familysearch.org is such a wonderful site and continues to show all the great resources our church has, holding one the largest genealogical database in the world! I'm excited to go back and help Kelly find more. My companion is still trying to figure out if she's indeed related to David Archuleta.
Thursday I had a trainers meeting at the mission office that was for all senior companions. We discussed how we can be more effective in finding those "elect" that are prepared to receive the gospel. There was an emphasis on talking to everyone and using things like Family History to connect to people as most people want to know more about their family. It was definitely inspired. We then got to go on exchanges and I was with Sister Houseman, back in my last area in Meridian! I guess my work is just not finished there cuz they keep sending me back haha. It was so fun though to work with Sister Houseman (she was companions with Sister Chen after I was) and to see people I had worked with before. We tried applying the things we had been taught, but had pretty much no success during the day as everyone wasn't at home. I got to see Erika again and although I keep in touch with her weekly through email, it was great to see her face and hear how she is doing as she continues to progress in the gospel. That night, we had the privilege of having our mission president's wife, Sister Winder, go out with us. We contacted a couple of families. The first were the Johnson's, who claim they're active, but don't go to church. The husband is a lieutenant and his wife is a nurse, so I'm sure their crazy schedules play a factor. It was perfect timing as they were packing up to head down to Utah for Thanksgiving week. They took the time though to have us come in and get to know them, hear Brother Johnson's conversion story and then share a message. As we left, Brother Johnson shook my hand and thanked us for our visit and message as it set the tune for their trip. That's the first time missionaries have been able to make full contact in at least 6 months with that family. We then went to see the Curries who always made us fresh homemade bread. It was great to see them again and to see how much their son has improved as he is recovering from some health issues. We talked about the Prodigal son and discussed the different views, from the son who left and the son who stayed and remained obedient. Although we may go on different paths, Heavenly Father continues to bless us and be there for us, whether we've always had it or we are coming back to it. I was so grateful to have Sister Winder with us. I thought it might be scary/more pressure, but she was just another part of our companionship.
Saturday, I got to teach Sister Archuleta the things that I had learned in the training, and then we set goals and took it to action. We decided we were going to talk to everyone we saw. It can be hard, being in a car, but we wanted to allow for extra time so if we saw someone we could pull over and talk to them. We have actually been short on our miles for our car so we had Kelly drive us around. It was fun for her to get to see what we do. It was amazing. Everyone we tried to see, we saw! And we even had an opportunity to talk to someone that wasn't part of our planned contacting. He was a neighbor of a sister we were trying to visit and was unloading his car full of groceries. We offered to help and as we walked with him, he began to share about his beliefs and how we have different religious views. I was a little nervous as the conversation began (I'm grateful we're not really a tracting mission because these situations are not my favorite) and I didn't want it to become a competition. He asked for clarification on what we believed about the Godhead and how the Atonement works and where we will go after this life. We were able to bear our testimony of the Plan of Salvation and share some scriptures in the Bible that showed why we believed these things. He wasn't convinced, but I knew that as long as I was bearing my testimony, I was doing my part and he had his agency to take or leave it. In the end, he appreciated our help in taking in the groceries and we went on our way. Successful? Some may say no, but I know that I was able to at least testify of what I knew was true :) We had the most success that day than we've had probably since we've been serving in this area (almost 3 months)!
Yesterday, we got to perform our musical number again in the other ward and also in the ward choir. It is so fun to use our musical talents. In the Beacon Light ward there was a guy who was giving his mission homecoming talk. He had just gotten back from Brazil. He did a great job, but then at the end, he did something unexpected. He had Sister Archuleta and I go up to the podium with him and talked to the congregation about what our responsibilities are and we can't do it on our own, and then he had the whole congregation stand up and said that we are all part of the God's Army and that we are all a part of this work. It was so powerful! I think everyone was moved.
Transfers are coming up this next week, and although I am nervous to hear what happens, I'm also at peace that I will be where the Lord needs me. I don't think I'm done here in Star, but I'm grateful for all the experiences I've had here and the people I've met. I know I've made a difference as I've shared my testimony and served the people here. This is a GREAT area!
Thank you for all your love. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy these times with your family and loved ones!
Love,
Sister Wightman
Monday, November 25, 2013
11/18/13 Letter #34
Well another week of highs and lows. Luckily the highs out-weighed the lows. (I'll start with the lows so that we can end on a good note ;)
First of all, my heart goes out to all the missionaries and their families that are out serving in the Philippines. It was so tragic to hear about the awful storm they had, but I am so grateful to have heard that every missionary was accounted for. My prayers continue to go out to all the people of the Philippines and their safety. How grateful to be serving where I am.
So last week I expressed my excitement about some referrals that we got and how golden they seemed! Well, unfortunately it was a too-good-to-be-true situation. Although Jamie (the one who felt prompted to stop by our church) came to Sacrament meeting last Sunday, she flaked on us on our appointment Tuesday and has not responded to our phone calls since. It is a bit discouraging, but I am very glad for how she was received at church and how everyone welcomed her with warm arms. I know it was nothing that we did, but just her choice. Another referral fell through as well which was more because of the negative influence of her husband. Maybe one day she'll desire to learn more and not deny the experiences she's had.
Tuesday night was fun as we attended one of our Relief Society's monthly activities. We learned how to make pies. Mom, you'd be so proud. It was really fun to get to interact with the sisters in the ward and we even had 2 nonmembers and a less-active attend! It was great because the less-active, Ashley, was someone we had been trying to work with. Her husband had had a baptismal date set and everything, and then last minute backed out. So we've been trying to reach out to him and also their 9 year old daughter, Izzy. But it was so great to see Ashley there, and she even won the "cutest apron" contest!
Wednesday, we got to participate in the monthly stake Humanitarian service project. We got there a little late, but were able to write holiday letters to the servicemen. Having my dad serve in the Army makes this a little more special for me and I tried to make these letters as personal as possible, helping them to know that they were thought of and prayed for. I feel that I can relate a little bit, taking a good amount of time out of my life to serve for others, leaving behind my family to bless so many others. I am grateful for all the servicemen and for their great sacrifice to our country and our freedom. Later that afternoon, we got to have another lesson with Mary Jo. She is probably our most progressing investigator right now and we just love her! I don't know if I've mentioned her before, but she is what we would call a "dry Mormon". A lot of her family is already LDS, including her deceased husband. In fact, he was kind of holding her back from joining before, but now that she on her own, she feels more of a desire to join. As we have gotten to know her, it has been so amazing to hear what testimonies she already has of the gospel and the Book of Mormon and as she has expressed her concern, it is such a comforting feeling as I think in mind, "we can answer that!". She wants to understand the Atonement better and to feel like she knows enough before making the commitment of baptism. Another thing we have to be patient about is that her daughter and son-in-law have been gone in Ghana for almost the past 8 months as they try to adopt a couple children. There have been so many struggles there and we know that she won't get baptized unless her family is all here. So we just have to keep them in our prayers. That night, we got to visit with the Karren's who are a less-active family we've been popping in on since we got here. The husband has made it to church 2 weeks in a row now with their two little girls! Although Sister Karren doesn't feel quite ready, I'm grateful her husband is setting that example for her. We shared a couple Mormon Messages with them and got to have a good visit. Although it's exciting to see someone get baptized, it is JUST as exciting to see someone come back. The Karren's haven't been active in Church since they were in their teens and having a family of their own now, they are realizing how important religion plays a part of raising their girls.
Thursday, we had Zone Conference. With the mission growing, more zones are being created and so they are breaking up the areas into smaller groups. It was a wonderful Zone Conference as we discussed the Abrahamic covenant and what the literal gathering of Israel means and includes. President Winder then transitioned into how the Book of Mormon is a sign that the gathering of Israel has begun and the importance of helping others gain that testimony of the Book of Mormon. This is not the first time we have had training on this, but I know it is because it plays such a vital part. I was reminded of when Elder Martino of the Quorum of the 70 came to our mission and shared his conversion story. He had said that he had lots of questions for the missionaries, but before they would answer any of them, they asked if he knew the Book of Mormon was true. He had not gotten that answer for himself yet and so he went into another room and prayed for that confirmation. Ideally, he wanted an answer with lightening bolts and thundering, but that would not be the case, as it really never is. However, as he prayed sincerely and realized what he needed to do if he discovered it was true, he had an overwhelming feeling come over him of peace and comfort that, indeed, the Book of Mormon was the word of God. As he shared this with the elders, they testified of his answer and began to walk away. Confused, he asked "well what about my questions?" (about poligamy, prophets, etc), they turned and simply said, "they don't matter anymore". Simply, what they were saying is that if we know the Book of Mormon is true, nothing else matters because everything else will fall into place. If we know the Book of Mormon is true, then we know that Jesus is the Christ, Heavenly Father still speaks to us today and called Joseph Smith to be a prophet to restore Christ's church and translate the records of the ancient inhabitants of the Americas, and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Saints is the true church once again on the earth today. This one book holds so much evidence and power and how grateful I am to know it IS true! On another high note, we won the "clean car" award with our new Jeep. Woohoo!
Saturday, was another day of miracles. I've been praying a lot to find success, especially since our referrals have not been panning out. So as we were out contacting, we were able to meet with a few less-actives, including Ashley, that we have not been able to get in contact with successfully before. One was LuGene who is a less-active member and her husband is not a member. Last time we tried, she quickly turned us away, but this time she welcomed us in without any hesitation. It was great just to visit with her and get to know her more. She welcomed us back and we hope that through these visits, we can reach out to her husband as well. Ashley was another successful contact. Izzy welcomed us in, showing us her new pet albino rat (joy!). Haha. Ashley told us to just come upstairs where we found her and her husband painting their bathroom. We rebuked them a little for not calling us to help, but they quickly apologized and we set up a time to help them paint more next week. We then had a great visit with Ashley and Izzy and Ashley gave us her word that she would be at church the following Sunday (which is great since Sister Archuleta and I will be doing a musical number in her ward that day too)! This was a lot more receptivity than she gave us last time. As we got back in our car, we gave a prayer of gratitude to Heavenly Father for the success that he had given us that day and softening these people's hearts. We ended that evening at our stake president's house. I love President Firmage! His energy and passion for the gospel and missionary work is so motivating. He expressed his gratitude for the work that Sister Archuleta and I have done and told us that he would have no hesitation sending any one to us to hear the discussions. Coming from a stake president, that is one of the biggest compliments a missionary can receive. He does have a couple people he has been trying to have us work with and we are very grateful for that. He informed us that in our next transfers (Dec. 2), the Star stake will be getting 2 new sets of missionaries and that 5 out of the 7 wards will have their own set of missionaries. The wards that we cover though will continue to share us. This kind of hinders my predictions, as I felt that they would split Sister Archuleta and I and I would take the 2nd ward and she would take the Beacon Light ward. Now we have no clue what will happen haha. But I will leave it to the Lord. I have loved serving here in Star and would have no problem staying longer as things are really just starting to get going.
I am so grateful for these experiences I am having on my mission and the humility I am continuing to gain. Every day I am reminded that this is not my work and that it is so important that we continue to give the glory to our Lord. My companion shared about miracles the other day and helped me to fully understand that a miracle is not defined as something that has to be huge, but can be the little things. Since then, I am realizing that we are seeing miracles EVERY day. In these season of gratitude, let us all continue to think of what we are THANKFUL for every day and then thank our Father in Heaven for blessing us with those things.
Love,
Sister Wightman
11/12/13 photos
Cool fence we drive by a lot (made of skis and snowboards)
Sister Archuleta and I with the YW wednesday night (enjoying some pie... don't worry Mom, I didn't eat any. I'm still cutting back on sweets!)
11/12/13 letter #33
It is a season for gratitude and my heart is full of it. I feel like I have been blessed with so much and especially lately, Heavenly Father has helped me to see those blessings.
Sister Archuleta and I have been praying a lot lately to find more people to teach and for those that we are teaching to progress more because a lot or stuck at a road block. As we have fasted and prayed, we have seen those answers and miracles come. Wednesday night, we were at a Young Women's activity in one of the wards in the stake as we talked to them about preparing for missions. On our way home, we received a phone call from one of our ward mission leaders explaining that that night at our ward building, a girl had come in asking about the church. She explained that as she drove by, she felt a prompting to go in. She said that she has seen how the world has been lately and feels a need to make changes in her life and to be more prepared spiritually. A brother was able to greet her and after she explained her experience, he gave her a copy of the Book of Mormon and shared with her Moroni's promise at the end (Moroni 10:3-5). She said she wanted to learn more and gave her contact info. We were able to get in touch with her the next day and she came to Sacrament meeting at church on Sunday. Although she may have stood out from her dress and appearance, she said she felt so welcomed as members came up and introduced themselves. She said she' looked into quite a few churches and never felt as welcomed as she had with us. We are meeting with her today and we are excited to answer her questions and help her to learn more. She said she's heard a lot of things about our church, not all great, but she wanted to find the truth from us and not from others who aren't even LDS. I appreciate that!
Sunday truly was a blessed day as we had Jamie along with a couple other investigators and less-active members come to church. That can be a hard thing for people to commit to, but it's so important. As they come to church they can be strengthened by those around them, they can feel of the Spirit and receive answers to things they've been struggling with, and they can learn more about the Atonement as they partake of the Sacrament. Sister Archuleta and I were able to perform a musical number in one of the wards. We had planned this a while back, but with General Conference, fast sundays, and my companion and I being sick, it had to be pushed back. Sister Archuleta was still a little sick but is a trooper and wanted to still sing. We had another song in mind, but Saturday decided to change to another song "He Knows Me Better". We downloaded the sheet music and went over to the church to practice. One thing I am grateful for with my companion is her continual encouragement and compliments of my piano skills. It truly was a tender mercy as I was able to so quickly pick up this song. Although I was nervous, as I always am when I perform, we were able to perform it well and the Spirit touched many peoples hearts that day. I am so grateful for the gifts and talents that Heavenly Father has given each of us.
That evening, we had the opportunity and privilege to go to a council made up of all the stake presidents in our mission boundaries, the temple president, our mission president and the area seventy, Elder Rowe. As we've had so much more of a focus on missionary work, they wanted to hear some experiences and conversions that have occured. We were able to stand in front of all these men with Kelly and Brad Bartholomew and share Kelly's conversion story and Brad's "reconversion" story. I am so grateful for the Bartholomew's and the journey they have had and we've had with them. We have become a part of their family and they are so special to me. This opportunity does not happen every day and so it truly was a pleasure to be a part of!
My Heavenly Father has blessed me with so much. A wonderful family, great friends, and many second chances. One thing I have learned this week is that He has never given up on me. Never. I had learned that that is why I am out here on my mission. I just want to tell everyone that same thing. That I won't give up on them because He won't give up on them. It takes time and we are all at different levels, but He is always there when we're ready to make that change. He wants ALL His children to return to Him and that's why He continues to give us so many opportunities. It takes humility and patience, but it is possible. I've seen it in my own life and I'm seeing it so many others. Don't give up, keep going!
I love you all and I thank you for your continual love and support. Have a blessed week full of love and gratitude for the things you've been blessed with. Someone's had it just as bad, if not worse, and they've overcome it. So can you :)
Love,
Sister Wightman
11/04/13 Letter #32
Fall is almost over :( I feel that that season went so short here, but it's so pretty. I love all the colorful leaves. The rain has been sporadic, but we did have our first little snowfall yesterday. This part of Idaho doesn't get it as heavy and it melts pretty quick, but it's still fun to see. The cold is definitely a little more to the core, but thank goodness I've got some good jacket and boots ;)
This week has had some highs and lows. I had a little cough for a while, but Thursday I woke up with my voice almost gone (Laryngitis). My comp and I joked that it was because I talk too much and now she'll get to say what ever she wants ;) Luckily, it was Halloween and we had to be back at home by 6pm. However, we still had some teaching appointments that day. One of them was that Sister Archuleta and I got to teach the Plan of Salvation to the special needs seminary class at the local high school. These teens are so sweet and have a very special spirit about them. At the end, one of the girls (has cerebral palsy) sadly commented about wanting to be in the same kingdom as her birth mom (she's adopted) who has not accepted the gospel. Sister Simmons, the seminary teacher, tearfully explained that she will have the opportunity in the Spirit World to teach her mom the gospel. I am SO grateful for the knowledge that we have in this gospel and that EVERYONE will have the chance to accept the gospel, whether here on Earth or in the next life :) Also to know that these beautiful children will have these handicaps removed from them in the Resurrection. Heavenly Father loves us all so much!
We are starting to get some more legit referrals that will actually go some where. We met a man who had been referred to us by his neighbor. We found him sitting out on his porch and had a great conversation with him. He recently joined the Catholic church for his wife and has a lot of faith, but it seems he did it more for her. Turns out both he and his wife graduated from Cupertino High School back in the 60's! Small world! We were all able to share our testimonies with each other and the Spirit was very strong. Even though it was extremely cold outside, my companion and I both were warmed by the Spirit that we didn't even notice.
Yesterday was incredible. We had quite a few people come to church that have not been in a long time. There is so much power in fasting and prayer. I love seeing people coming back and progressing :)
We met last night with Kelly and Brad Bartholomew (she recently got baptized) and with our stake president. He wanted to hear about their reconversion/conversion stories and shared with us that their story was so incredible that it has been sent up to Elder Christofferson of the 70! How cool is that? We have all been invited to a leadership council next week to share our parts of this experience. It was so amazing as President Firmage explained about how inspired Sister Archuleta and I were to be serving in these particular wards. When he first found out he was getting sister missionaries in his stake and was praying about which wards to put us in, he was uncertain, but as he took it to the temple, it was as clear as day. Kelly also shared that if we had not come along, we all would not be having that conversation. I KNOW that Heavenly Father has a plan for each and every one of us and that we are meant to be in certain places for a reason. Not only was I meant to be serving in Boise for my mission president and companions, but also for those that I will meet and teach. I feel so honored to be a part of this work. Kelly and Brad are now preparing for the temple. It was incredible as President Firmage encouraged Kelly to get a temporary temple recommend to do baptisms for the dead and that as she performed those ordinances for her ancestors, her long-time fear of water would disappear. He testified in the name of Jesus Christ and it was so powerful! There is so much power in the priesthood as these men represent Christ and act in the name of our Heavenly Father! I know that power is real.
I am so grateful for all the tender mercies I have seen in my life and especially out here on my mission. As I ponder on how I can continue to be more of a representative of my Savior, I have been studying the New Testament to learn of His ways and teachings. I am continually blown away with His love and mercies. Although I can't perform the same miracles He has, I know I can still make a difference and continue in His work. I love my Savior. I am grateful for all He has done for all of us and for me.
Have a fantastic week!!!
Love,
Sister Wightman
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