9 Months!!

This last week was great! The weather was sunny and nice. Things are starting to bloom. We were able to come in contact with a few Less-Active members that we hadn't met before, and grew even more in our knowledge and testimonies of the gospel!

My half-way day would have been February 29th. But since there is no such thing I celebrated it the 28th and March 1st! Both days were quite amazing. I have been blessed to see many little miracles this week, I know that the Lord loves me :)

We have started teaching this cute little nine year old boy. He has wanted to be baptized for awhile but family circumstances prolonged the opportunity. Now that things have settled down he is ready to continue learning about the gospel! The date he picked out is March 22nd. We are so happy for him and his family! We are so blessed to have the privilege of helping him be baptized :D.

So these days there's lots of talk about members doing more to help share the gospel with others. To be honest, whenever I heard "missionary work" at home I would almost tune out. The thought made me a little uncomfortable. Sharing the gospel was way out of my comfort zone, sometimes it is still hard for me. So I totally sympathize with people who are scared to reach out! But since being out here I have learned a few things that might help others over come their fear, and have more faith.

First off, WHY do we need to share our knowledge of the gospel?

-It makes us happy.

-When we were baptized we promised that we would.

-And because we know that living the teachings found in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the only way that we will be able to fully access the blessings of Christ's Atonement, perfect ourselves, and be worthy enough to return to our Heavenly Father and live with Him.

I once heard a quote that went something like this:

"If you really understood the Atonement, then you would not hesitate to share it with others."

~Missionaries are trained to teach, not  to find.~

When people think of missionary work, they think of a couple Elders on bikes going door to door. While the method of knocking on doors may be the most common method of finding people. It is one of the most least effective ways to share the gospel! 

What is the most effective way? For a member to introduce their friend. 

Why is this more effective?

A person learning about the gospel will respond better to it when they have someone that they can trust. Who they know would not encourage them to do learn more unless it could benefit them. They will have someone they can turn to if they have questions, because missionaries can't be there all the time. They have an immediate support system.

Keeping this in mind, here are a few simple ways that you can find opportunities to share the gospel with others:

- Just be a good example! It will attract questions about why you live a certain way.

- Love others. They will feel more comfortable asking questions if they know you love them.

- Dont be afraid to tell people you are LDS. You can also go further and ask them what they know about the church. This is great for correcting misconceptions they might have. 

- Keep a picture of the temple or Christ on your phone/computer/tablet wallpaper, or keep a Book of Mormon or Church Magazine on your desk/in your locker. Having items like this will draw others to ask questions.

- Always invite. People will not likely perform an action unless they are invited to do so. Invite them to church. Invite them to mutual, to ward activities, to dinner. Elder Holland said that an invitation extended in love, will never be seen as offensive. They worst they can say is "no thank you."

To wrap it up, doing some of these suggestions may be a little uncomfortable, but I can promise that that's the hardest part! The only thing we have to do is be a friend to others, and provide them with the opportunity to learn more. As they desire to become more involved, then you can let the missionaries do the teaching. You don't even have to worry about it! The member's job is to find. and the missionaries job is to TEACH. They are the ones set apart and given authority to do so!

If you feel a little apprehensive about the missionaries, think of it this way: A missionary is set apart and given the same authority as an Apostle. But their authority is not for life, only for their missions. They are "little a's". You would probably love to have an apostle teach your friend, right? 

 

All in all, don't worry. As we strive to live Christ's teachings and have His Spirit with us, we will be guided to know what to say and do!

"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 roundabout you, to bear you up."

 I love you all! <3

Just Another Day in Paradise :)

The weather this week has been pretty great. 60s and 70s the whole time. I'm loving it. This is what spring looks like apparently :) We have been trying to take advantage of the awesome weather and contact as many people as we can. 

On Thursday we were lucky to do lots of service! We came and volunteered at the library. We helped cut out papers, organize, and shelf books in the children's section. The lady who is over the kids place is named Miss Penny. She is sweet. We look forward to getting to know her better and sharing Jesus with her. The same day we also helped a family clean their kitchen and pack their dishes to move. The Coleman family. They are a family that the sisters met a while ago, we went to go see if they would be interested in taking the lessons again and ended up helping them clean. The good news is that they do! The bad news is that they are moving to another house in the 2nd ward. My district leader gave us unlimited permission to travel anywhere in the district! So we can probably still teach her. But if it ends up being too far away we may just have the 2nd ward elders teach them. We are still pondering about it.

I learned a lot about revelation in my studies this week. I know that obedience is the key to receiving guidance and assistance from God. When we are obedient, we can be trusted with more knowledge and responsibility. We bring ourselves closer to the Spirit by standing in holy places, just as we are commanded. I love the scripture:

 "Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." D&C 88:63

My goal is to be an AP-status missionary. Everyone knows that the ones who are the most obedient are the ones who get to be AP!
I love y'all lots! Have a good week :)

Michelle's baptism cake

Merry Christmas!

Christmas:

     On Christmas Eve we had lots of fun caroling at the Hospital! President Cottle encouraged us all to go as districts caroling, rather than knocking doors. A suggestion that Sister Ramdsen and I loved! We started at the hospital, just visiting a member of the stake, and then we decided to just stay there all night. We worked with a very helpful nurse who gave us lots of patients to sing to. (Sometimes it was because she knew they loved music, and sometimes it was because she thought they needed some Jesus) Only in Georgia. Sister Ramsden and I are the only sisters in our district so we pretty much carried all the elders while we sang. It was very fun!

     We also went to go visit Miss Ana and her son Edrick Bisher. We took them Sparkling grape juice and played games with them. We read the christmas story from Luke 2 and dressed up like the Nativity (pictures to come!). It was such a sweet way to end the night.

      Christmas day I got to skype mi familia. I love them :) We also visited some members and Less-active members. Helped them remember the Jesus-part of Christmas.

Thanks for all the cards and Christmas wishes! 

Warner Robins

I've been here almost 6 weeks already, but the area is fabulous. We are in a city, much like St George with how many stores there are. Nothing like tiny Thomson GA at all! We are also right next to a Military base, so there is a lot more diversity with all the people! Lots of asians, white folk, one or two hispanic here and there. There is also more diversity with religious beliefs. There still tons of baptists, but there are more people here who are not christian at all. And the housing is nicer. The people are richer (because they're in the military). Which is both a positive and a negative. It is not as easy to find people humble enough to teach.

I am the assigned driver, I like driving. Sister Ramsden doesn't like my driving, but that's okay. I drive like my dad.

We were blessed to have two baptisms on Saturday! (Dec 28th) Michelle Henson, and Ana Bisher. Its been a long journey for both of these ladies! We are so excited and happy for them :)

My favorite Mormon Message video! Origin.

http://www.mormonchannel.org/youth-videos?v=2505987918001

Change is in the Air

This is Kemyiah. She is 8. She will be getting baptized on November 9th! We are so excited for her :)

Here is a pic of us two with our Missionary name tags! She got hers from Primary :)

The leaves are changing colors! It is so pretty down here. It is also getting a lot colder. But no snow for us yet!

  I listened to Elder Nelson's talk this morning and I really liked it. Y'all should read it or re-read it!

Love Y'all!

All things point to Him

"...And all things denote there is a God..." :) Alma 30:44

 

     I really loved that verse as I was reading my Book of Mormon this morning. I thought about how yesterday I saw a beautiful pink flower and an amazing sunset. All things, especially beautiful things, denote there is a God. And He loves us so very much! I know that He loves me individually and has created things to add light and happiness to our lives. Such as that simple, single, pink flower that I saw as I was tracting. I don't know why, but it really did bring me joy.

 

Another verse from Chapter 30 also stuck out to me as I was reading today.

"And now what evidence have ye that there is no God, or that Christ cometh not? I say unto you that ye have none, save it be your word only." (v40)

 

    We have so much more evidence that there is a God than not. Einstein himself said "Perfect Science proves there is God". Many can try and try to prove otherwise, but have you noticed, how unhappy they make themselves?

    I know with my whole heart that God exists, and He has a Son, Jesus the Christ, who came to earth and suffered for our sins; that we may have peace, that we may be happy, than man might be and have joy!

I've never been happier in all my life :)

 

Love yall!

Sister Madsen

Conference Weekend! :D

I loved conference this weekend!

While many of the speakers said things that touched me; the talks by

Sister Bonnie L Oscarson and Richard J Maynes addressed and confirmed many of the thoughts I have had since before my mission. I wish to share these thoughts with you all this morning :)

Sister Bonnie Oscarson began her talk with the statement: "If you do not have a testimony of the church, now is the time to do what it takes to find that testimony!"

A couple thoughts crossed my mind when I heard that statement. First, she is right. NOW is the time for us todevelop our testimonies, because, as Elder Ochoa expressed, "The perilous times are now upon us!" At a younger age, children need to find their faith because of how crazy the world is becoming! 

My next thought was a question: How do we find our testimony? I then thought about the word 'find'. It is a doing word. To develop faith we must act. I believe the word "faith" to be an action word, a verb. If we wish to have a stronger testimony then we must exercise faith to obtain it. 

"Dedication"

"Perseverance"

 and "Self-discipline"

are verbs that Richard J. Maynes says will help us find and strengthen our testimonies. The best way to gain a testimony of somebody is to LIVE it, according to Sister Oscarson. What better way to gain a testominy of Christ and His gospel than to live it? 

Sister Oscarson challenged us to choose a principle of the gospel and apply it more fully to our lives. If our desire is to know/become like Christ, then we must emulate the characteristics that He has.

Hope

Charity

Love

Virtue

Patience

Diligence

Obedience

All of these attributes of Christ are action words!

As Elder Maynes discussed how we can keep our testimonies in shape, I was reminded of the famous Nike catch-phrase "Just Do it". This gospel is a doing-thing! I will be working harder to live the things taught in church so that I can have a stronger testimony of it. I invite all to join me :) We are promised that as we strive to "Develop spiritual stamina," then we will find peace and strength to endure any trial given to us, which is something that we all need to face these perilous times that are upon us!

I know that is true. I love you all! Have a fabulous week!

-Sister Madsen

Met the Mission Pres. on J-Day :D

This week has been pretty eventful. We got to see our dear President and Siste Cottle :) We love seeing them because they're like our parents away from home. They love us like we're their own children and we love them back :)

We also had companion exchanges this week. That's where we trade companions with another set of sisters for 24 hours. I always learn a lot about how to be a better missionary/teacher on exchanges. I went to work in their other area and we saw lots of little miracles. I always love my assigned companion even more after exchanges too :)

We are so fortunate in this area, because we have a member who likes to come out with us as much as he can. He is going to the mission field soon and he wants to do as much missionary work as he can before he gets there! Its so wonderful because he knows everyone in the area, so the people are more receptive to us. His testimony is a great addition to our lessons as well. I know that we have seen God's work unfold here at a faster pace because of his help!

The three of us like to wear our glasses to work because it makes us look smarter, haha. We call ourselves the "Four-eyed Three Amigos".

Hope you all are doing well this week! If you didn't get to watch the Relief Society Broadcast, I highly recommend it. Even if you're not a part of the Relief Society :)

Here's a link:

http://www.lds.org/broadcasts/archive/general-relief-society-meeting/2013/09?cid=HPTH091213087&lang=eng

Scripture of the week: D&C 88:115