Week 9

It's a little bit weird after a baptism, I've decided. Last week was so full of baptism preparations, and now it's over. But the work moves onward and upward continually, so no time for rest! We had hoped that we were going to have another baptism this week, but the woman who was going to be baptized, Edna, has been really sick. She had a knee replacement a while ago, and then this week she had a kidney removed, so the baptism has been postponed. We went and visited her in the hospital on Thursday before she got moved to a bigger hospital up north.

We have been teaching one of Ashley's friends, like I think I told you a while ago. It is such pleasure to teach this family. They interact with us, they ask questions, they are excited for baptism! In fact, in
our lesson with them this Tuesday, the mom asked us, "So, how do I let you guys know when I'm ready for baptism?" Sister Richardson and I sat there like, "uhhhhhh." No one asks that! Okay, don't worry, we did ANSWER the question, but we were very excited about it. A couple of nights ago, we set up a baptismal calendar with the mom and the oldest daughter (she's nine). We are hoping that we can convince her boyfriend to sit in on the lessons as well, but maybe he will see the blessings come as she starts to live the gospel.

Sometimes, I wonder what our investigators would think if they could see how much they really affect us. I mean, my day really depends on them. My emotions are invested. We are hurt when people tell us that they don't want to change, or they are not interested in learning about the gospel, or they did something that they know is wrong. It really makes me sad. And when someone surprises you, by showing that they do want to change, and they do want to learn more about the gospel... that's when you really feel joy. I felt joy this week with one of our investigators. It's a young woman who has made a lot of bad choices, and she has had a lot of bad influences in her life. But we talked with her about sacrifice, and she said that she is ready to sacrifice some of the big sins in her life that have been keeping her from progressing. We were so happy when we came out of that lesson!

We were tortured some by Ashley this week. She was babysitting the most adorable two week old baby, and we're not allowed to hold kids during the mission!

We found a new investigator this week who is awesome. We decided to go tract a row of government housing that is near to our house. Sister Richardson had never knocked on them before. It had been a while that we wanted to go try them, but we finally got over there on an afternoon where it was raining pretty hard. Umbrellas in hand, we went up one side of the street--and nothing. The only man who answered either said that he wasn't interested in black magic, or he has been practicing black magic, we weren't sure. Then we started on the other side of the street. Nothing... until we got to the second to last house. A woman answered the door. She was on the phone, but she invited us inside anyway (yay!). Her house was cute, clean, and Christmas-y. We talked with her for a while. She has two kids, and she
is currently expecting twins. And she said that she would like to meet with us again! From what she said, she only invited us in because she felt bad that we were out in the rain, so blessings come from tracting
in the rain, I guess!

We also visited some members who have been having health issues: one had hip surgery a while ago, and the other has MS. It was a little tough for me to visit the sister who has MS, because she was basically bedridden and just having a rough time. It reminded me a lot of how Dad was when he was sick. It's actually hard for me lot of times to visit people who are sick, like the woman we visited in the hospital, but it really hit me that day. But missionary life isn't about doing things that are easy, or just doing things that we like. If it was, I certainly wouldn't be knocking at strangers' homes or speaking
spontaneously at ward parties or talking about the gospel to people on the street! Luckily, the Lord has promised us that He will support us, and strengthen us as we strive to do His will. Isaiah 41:10 says,
"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God:I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." You might recognize that
scripture! I really recommend going through and reading all of the verses to the hymn "How Firm a Foundation." I studied that song recently, and it really took on new meaning. I especially like the
fourth verse:

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not thee o'erflow,
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee, and sanctify to thee,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

The weather this week has been getting cold! Starting to hit freezing and below. Sister Richardson and I have been breaking out the coats. The next transfer will be December 18. I can't believe that this one
is almost half over already! Time flies out here... except sometimes it also moves super slowly. Mission time is weird.

Love all of you! Keep up the missionary efforts :) and keep me updated!

Sister Barret

Week 8: So I Was Spat on This Week!

...of course, it was by a two year old. During church. Haha.  This week was insanely busy! Of course, so is every week, but we had two big events this week. First, on Friday, we were in charge of the ward activity. It was a Thanksgiving dinner, potluck style. So we spent a lot of our day preparing food, getting the tables and chairs set up, helping to decorate, making sure people were coming... It went really well, in the end. And we had three investigators come. One was Ashley, and she had her baptismal interview that night, because the next day was her baptism!

Ashley's baptism was the other big event this week. The baptism was awesome. Stressful, scary, and amazing. Ashley is 26, and has three kids:  7,  2, &  1. Her husband is in prison right now. They are a super cute family, and Ashley is just amazing. She has had a rough life, but she has a strong desire to follow Jesus Christ and be a good person. The missionaries started teaching Ashley in July of this year. She allowed them in because they offered to help with their dishes :)  I started teaching her in September. She was actually the very first investigator I ever met, and the first one I ever taught... and now she's the first one who has been baptized!
She has wanted to be baptized for a while, but she didn't feel like she was prepared or ready to make that commitment, until about three weeks ago. We had been encouraging her to pick her own date, but she hadn't done anything about it. Then, three weeks ago, she looks at us and said, "I just need to get baptized." Sister Richardson and I looked at each other, then said, "Yeah, you do! How does November 9, or November 16, or November 23 sound?" "November 16. Yep. That just sounds right."
So, two days ago, Ashley was baptized! She was nervous, of course. We were nervous too! It was the first baptism for both of us, so we were kind of uncertain about how to go about doing stuff. But we set up chairs, cleaned and filled the font, baked cookies for afterwards, bought a thing of flowers, and made the gym as pretty as we could (the font is in the gym). Also, bet you never thought about who has to clean the font between baptisms! Answer: The missionaries. It was disgusting. So many dead (and alive) bugs. Also, fonts should come with instructions. Seriously.
Anyway... the baptismal service was nice. The sister missionaries (us) spoke. Ashley was baptized by Brother Pierce, a member of the bishopric. She bore her testimony afterwards, about how she knows that this is the path she needs to be on. We sang "A Child's Prayer" with her daughter. The bishop welcomed her in the ward.
The one thing I was a little disappointed with was that there were only a handful of people from the ward who attended the baptism. Amanda invited her friends and family, which was awesome, but I thought it would have been nice if more of the ward had showed up to support her. (There you go, Mom! One thing that ward members can do to support the missionaries)
Afterwards, Ashley said she almost felt weird because she felt so different :) She said that she could tell that there was a difference already, in how she felt and thought. Then yesterday, she was confirmed. It was so stressful: she's perpetually late, so she didn't come to sacrament meeting until 9:30. We were so worried. But she did come, and she was confirmed a member of the Church. It was just a great experience. Amazing.
So, ways that members can help missionaries...
1. Be really welcoming to investigators and recent converts. Go up and introduce yourselves. To you, it might seem like they're being overwhelmed or that too many people are going up to them. And yeah, for some people, it might be too much. But, speaking as a missionary, I'd much rather have an overwhelmed investigator than an underwhelmed investigator. And be kind. They're new to this. They are usually trying their very best, and they're going to be worried about being accepted and welcomed. Help them out. I would have been soooo happy if someone had come and sat down by us during sacrament meeting, because Ashley had her two little boys, and the two year old was misbehaving, so she had to try to hold/control both at the same time. We help as much as we can, but we can't hold kids!
2. Be willing to go out with missionaries and help them with lessons.  We love that. Love love love. Having members along is awesome. Even if you just give a brief little testimony, we so appreciate it. But more importantly, it allows you to build a relationship with our investigators (see number 1) so that they feel more comfortable at church. And you can get a new friend! Everyone wins! Get invested in these people's salvation.
3. Help the missionaries find people to teach. I almost hate the word referral, because I think that some members think that we're going to go hunt these people down or something. I promise, referring your neighbors or friends is not that scary. Here's the ideal situation: you're talking to your friend and the gospel comes up. You share one of your beliefs, like "Well, I know that my family can live together forever." The friend asks, "What do you mean? Do tell more!" haha. You discuss it a little. Then you say, "I have some friends who can teach you more about this. Would you be willing to come to my house (a couple of days later) and we can all sit down and talk about this?" The friend, ideally, agrees. (Even if they say no, you're being a good missionary!) Then you tell the missionaries, invite them over, you all sit down for a lesson. Then you feed them dinner ;)
4. Introduce people to the missionaries. If you bring a nonmember friend to a ward activity, or to church, or whatever, make sure you introduce them! Missionaries are usually very friendly people, they'll do a lot of the talking, but they can't know everything or talk to everyone (but we'll try!).
5. Give them rides. Limited miles stink. Anyway, the biggest thing, #1 way  to help missionaries, would be to go to lessons with them.
Other highlights from the week:  Biking is painful. My legs sometimes feel like they're going to fall off. But it's also really fun. It was really cold (below freezing) at the start of the week. Then yesterday was at least 78 degrees. Weather here is nuts. I've spent more than 50 days in Poplar Bluff, and it's been more than two months since I left on my mission!
I've officially graduated the 12-Week Training Program in 7 weeks. I always have known I'm precocious ;) Haha, ok, not really. President Morgan told Sister Richardson that we should move faster back when Sister White was still here, because he wanted her to finish before she left for Argentina. But now we will spend one less hour in the morning studying, and instead head out at 10 AM to proselyte.
Overall, it was a great week. Some down times, but good times. I felt that this week I knew what those amazing missionary scriptures in D&C 18:15-16 meant:

15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying
repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me,
how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!
16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have
brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your
joy if you should bring many souls unto me!"

I realized that this wasn't just talking about our joy in heaven, it is also talking about the joy we will have here and now. As I witnessed Ashley get baptized, get confirmed, even just being at church with her, I felt so happy. It's almost overwhelming how much happiness. I just want EVERYTHING for her and her family. I didn't know that it was possible to feel so much love for someone I met only 8 weeks ago. But I know that we can receive the gift of that pure love of Christ, when we seek it.
And of course, when we are talking of D&C 18, I also have to quote verse 10: "Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God." Returning to the theme of member missionary work: That's the point, I guess. That's the thing that we really do have to remember. Every soul is valuable. We should do everything we can to help every soul, because that's what Christ would have us do. I'll wrap up with that, I guess. Love you all! Send me lots of letters! :)   Love,  Sister Barret

Bike Riding...in the rain!

Week 7

Day 55 in the wilderness of Poplar Bluff. We sought out rations today
and found a new form of transportation. The other missionaries call
them "bikes." It was nerve-wracking to purchase, but we managed to
wheel them out of Wal-Mart in one piece. We were warned that Wal-Mart
bikes might fall apart, but they were also cheap. We decided to save
our funds for a more important pursuit: finding clothing. After much
hunting, we snagged some skirts and sweaters for reasonable prices. It
had been many weeks since we last replenished our clothing, and I
found myself actually enjoying the heat of the pursuit of sales.

After reaching our shelter, we spent some time restoring our energy. I
made banana bread. We visited a local family who are members and they
fed us. We made our way back to our shelter and attempted to contact a
new investigator. She lives only a short distance from us, in a kind
of apartment. It was very dark, since there were no street lights or
lamps, and her door was in a recess and there was not a light over the
door. Then, as we were approaching the door, a house down the street
starting emitting a very creepy noise. Sister Richardson was freaked
out. We pressed forward though and I knocked on the door. No one
answered. So we returned again to our shelter and then rode our bikes
for the first time.

Day 56: We utilized our new forms of transportation and learned that
we are indeed out of shape. But they have saved us from using our car
as much and walking is really slow.

We taught two less active women today, one investigator, and one
former investigator.

It was Elder Tiegs' last day, since transfers are the next day!

Day 57: I believe that I am about 1/10th complete with my mission.
10%. It's crazy. That doesn't seem like that much, but wow, when you
think about it? It has not felt like it has gone that fast.

Sister Richardson has had problems sleeping. We're going to try to get
her some help from the mission president's wife. Sister Morgan is the
one in charge of the missionaries' health.

We taught Amanda today and it was AWESOME! Even though I couldn't get
a lot of the words out in an articulate way--I butchered certain
parts--the Spirit was still there. She's really interested in learning
more about the gospel. We hope that her boyfriend will sit in on the
next lesson. I extended the baptismal commitment (soft version) and
she said that, as she learns that these things are true, she will be
baptized. It's amazing how the Spirit can really make up for our
weaknesses when we are doing our best and working hard.

Day 58: Today we met our new district in district meeting. There are
now two sets of sisters and two sets of elders. Elder Vincent is the
new elder in Poplar Bluff (replacing Elder Teigs).

Day 59: Our mail drought ended today. For five days straight, we
opened our mailbox only to be faced with immense disappointment. But
today: O happy day! We received a package, and two letters--one for
each of us! The package was a candle (thanks Mom! also, thanks from
Sister Richardson).

Sister Richardson got her advice about sleeping: relax before bed.
Only write soothing things in her journal. Take Benadryl. Read boring
things.

Today was little hard. We found out that one of our investigators has
been doing some really bad things, and lying about it to us. She knows
that she shouldn't be doing these things, but she still wants to do
them. She wants to change and come closer to Christ... but at the same
time, she doesn't want to make the changes.

Which brings us to our spiritual thought of the week! I love these
scriptures from Matthew 9:

10 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold,
many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his
disciples.

 11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why
eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?

 12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole
need not a physician, but they that are sick.

 13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not
sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance.

Now, the publicans were the tax collectors of the day for the Roman
Empire, and they were hated by the Jews. So when the Pharisees saw
Jesus eating with them, they were appalled. But Jesus used this as an
opportunity to teach both the Pharisees and his disciples. "They that
be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." People who are
satisfied with how they live, people who think that they are doing
alright: they often aren't going to see why they need the gospel in
their lives. But people who are struggling: with poverty, depression,
addiction, their families... these are the people who can recognize
immediately the blessings that come from changing their lives. These
are the humble and meek. Already on my mission, and I've only been out
for six and a half weeks, I've seen this. I'm here to follow the
example of Jesus Christ, and call people to repentance.

I'm also working on breaking some bad habits this week. Apparently I
say "you know?" a lot. So I'm working on stopping that.

Day 60: Great news! We met with Ashley today and she really wants to
be baptized! So we are planning a baptism for November 16! YAY! She is
so amazing and I'm so happy for her.

Day 61: One thing I've learned on my mission: hair picks up smells.
Especially cigarette smoke smell.

Stake conference today! A lot of talks on missionary work. President
Morgan was there, and he spoke, which was pretty fun to see.

All in all: a kind of slow week. But there are definitely amazing and
miraculous things happening in Poplar Bluff!

Keep up your own missionary efforts :)

Sorry my letter is a bit weird this week... Got to switch things up,
right? Haha.

Love you all!

Sister Barret

Week 6

Hello all!

I'm super tired, so this email might actually be a little shorter than normal, and I'm not just saying that! I've attached a couple of more photos. One's of me and Sister Richardson breaking out the winter gear. The other is of our candy haul from the ward Halloween party!

I don't have my journal with me, or my planner from last week, but I will try to remember some of the things that have been happening! It's amazing how busy you can be, even when you only have one thing (missionary work) to fill all of your time.

I might jump around a bit, so bear with me.

Lots of teaching this week! It was great. I think my favorite part of missionary work, or my favorite thing to actually do, is go and teach lessons. That's when you have the chance to really feel the Spirit, testify, and get to know the people you're teaching.

Halloween was really fun, but not as off the hook as it was going to be originally. There was rain and rain and rain (just like in Washington!) so the party got moved to the ward building, and instead of trunk-or-treating, it was door-to-door inside the building. So it was still pretty fun! Ashley and her kids came, along with some other members of her family, and a couple of less active members that we have been working with came. We were excited about that. Sister Richardson, Elder Dorland and I were also some of the chili cook-off judges. We took it very seriously. The winner was a cheesy chicken chili, that was delicious. (Not as good as Dad's chili though. I seriously got a craving for that while we were trying all the chilis. I know I ask for a ton of recipes, but could Chelsey or Mom send me our chili recipe?) Ashley also gave us princess crowns, so Sister Richardson and I were "dressed up" as princess missionaries. You can see Sister Pumpkin White wearing my crown in one of the photos.

We have three people with baptismal dates! One for the 16th, one for the 23rd, and one for the 30th. Now, sometimes these dates are uncertain, because baptism is such a sacred covenant, and we want people to be completely prepared to make and keep that promise. But they are working towards those dates, and we are so excited for them. In case you're wondering, Ashley is working towards the 16th, Edna the 23rd, and Abby for the 30th. It's amazing to see how much each of them is learning and growing, and how they really desire to be baptized.

I gave Parker Quinn's letter, but we haven't taught them since then, so I haven't had a chance to ask him what he thought.

Transfer calls were on Saturday. Only one member of my district, Elder Tiegs, is leaving. He's heading to Illinois. We're getting three new missionaries though, because they're reopening Sikeston (the two elders who used to be there left because one tore his ACL and had to go home). We're getting two sisters in Sikeston, and an elder in Poplar Bluff to replace Elder Tiegs. One of the sisters who is coming to Sikeston is my great-grandmother.

I think I explained before: your trainer is your mom, then her trainer is your grandma, etc.

So my mom is Sister Richardson, and my grandma is Sister Johnson, and my great-grandmother (who is coming to Sikeston) is Sister Allen.

In my personal study this week, I have been reading in 2 Nephi to Jarom (hitting up Omni tomorrow!). I want to share my thoughts on 2 Nephi 31 in particular, though. I love this chapter. 2 Nephi 31 is one of the chapters in the Book of Mormon that explains the doctrine of Jesus Christ so clearly. The doctrine of Jesus Christ is the way that He has given us to return to Him: faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end.

Christ showed us this way throughout His life: "And he said unto the children of men: Follow thou me. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall be willing to keep the commandments of the Father? And the Father said: Repent ye, repent ye, and be baptized in the name of my Beloved Son. And also, the voice of the Son came unto me, saying: He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do." (verses 10-12)

Sometimes, we try to make things complicated, because it seems like things that are complicated are somehow better or more advanced. But the way of Christ is powerful in its simplicity. Follow Christ. Have faith in Him and His Atonement. Repent. Be baptized. Receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. And then continue following His way, and live true to the covenants you have made, throughout your life: "And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save. Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." (verses 19 and 20)

Sorry this week is kind of short. I'll make it longer next week!

I love each of you! Thanks for keeping me updated on your lives. I'm always so happy when I get mail.

Sister Barret