Week 58

Hey hey!

So this email is going to pretty short because I don't have a lot of time.  This week was pretty good :)  I was exhausted all week from not sleeping super well but it still was good :)

Life still continues with talking with everyone.... I am continuing to work really hard at it and I am slowly growing but I am going to work even harder at talking with everyone this week.  I have seen some cool blessings and experiences from doing it, I just have to make it a habit now :)

Our investigator, Courtney, is still committed to baptism on July 5th and she is doing SO good! :)  We taught the Word of Wisdom to her this week and was totally fine with not drinking coffee anymore :) I really feel like she knows that the church is true and she knows how much just meeting with us has changed her life and influenced her family! :)  I love her and her family so much and am so happy for them! :)

We had zone meeting this past week and it was so good!  We talked about families and how we can connect that to the gospel and help others realize how the family is central to the gospel and the Plan of Salvation.  I learned so much!

Mom, Sister Russell (the one you texted for a few hours) is moving to Utah this weekend and she said she is willing to take a package of stuff for me.  I am sending all my winter stuff home since I won't need it, and a bunch of other stuff that I am just lugging around/not using.  She probably won't get it to you until next week but it will be coming :)

Dad (and everyone else out there), I hope you had a happy Father's Day :)  

Well, hope all is well at home or wherever you are :)  Keep up the great work with everything you are doing :)  Love you all!

Love,

Sister Megan Hills

Week 57

Hey!

This week was great!  Honestly, I don't remember too much of what happened... just busy and quick.  We had a great lesson about the Book of Mormon with Courtney last Monday and she is progressing well!  She is still coming to church and has been reading the Book of Mormon too!  We were also able to have a lot of opportunities for service this week :)  I loved being out in the sun and helping others :) This next week should be great as well!  We have a lot going on, which is awesome!

I am still working hard at talking with everyone but it is slowly getting better :)  I was able to have 1 conversation a day with someone which is better than what it has been :)  I will definitely continue to work up to 10 conversations a day as I replace my fear with faith :)

This morning was interesting..... It started off with me waking up at 4:00am, wide awake and ready to start the day.  I fell asleep until 6:30 and the day continued as normal.  10:00 rolls around and we are waiting for the Federal Way Sisters to come pick us up.  We text them and get no response from them... so we text our District Leader because we start to worry that something happened to them.  Finally at 12:00pm, the Zone Leaders call and ask, "What would it take for us to be forgiven? We rearranged P-day rides and sort of forgot about the two of you."  Such a funny experience.... This week is going to be interesting if it's starting out like this....

Thanks for everything!  Love you all!

Love,

Sister Megan Hills

P.S. Mom, the camera cards are fine to be sent whenever you can :)  I should be fine if it's not for a couple weeks :)  Another question, in the next package you send, could you send my graduation dress, cream shoes, and cream belt?  The belt should be in one of the drawers of my dresser.  I don't know why I didn't bring them with me but if you can get them to fit that would be great!  If not, don't worry about it :) Love you!

Week 56

Hey everyone!

This week was great!  We saw so many miracles as we really made the effort of talking with everyone! :)  We had some great lessons with investigators and less-active members this week but I really saw the miracles start on Friday while we were on exchanges with Sister Wolfe!  It was so great!  While we were on exchanges, I noticed that I was compelled to go and talk with everyone, which I haven't been super great at (as far as transitioning to a gospel message).  When we were talking with someone and other people passed by, I was thinking to myself "wow, there's tons of people to talk with and some of them we don't get to because we are in other conversations."  It was amazing to see how the Lord really places people in our path or He places us in their path.  We were able to find a bunch a great potential investigators and even set up some appointments with them for this week!  I am so excited to continue to talk with everyone now! :)

On Friday, we were pulling into an apartment complex and noticed a girl sitting on the curb and she looked like she was or had been crying.  As we drove past, Sister Swapp and I both felt like we needed to go talk to her.  We parked the car and then walked back to where she was sitting.  Her name is Holly, she's 20, and she is having a tough life right now.  Her boyfriend just passed away, she's homeless, and she has a rough family situation.  We just started to talk to her and testified to her about how the Savior truly knows how she felt and about the Plan of Salvation.  It was cool to see how her countenance changed while we were talking to her.  By the time we finished talking to her, she looked happier and was excited to read the Book of Mormon.  I hope we will be able to meet up with her again so we can keep teaching her.  I think this made more of an impact on me because of seeing the miracles that come from talking with everyone on exchanges.  I think if this had happened before exchanges, i don't know if I would have gone up and talked to her about the gospel.

Other big news this week..... COURTNEY IS COMMITTED TO BAPTISM ON JULY 5th! :)  We had a fantastic lesson with her on Friday.  We taught the Restoration and all of us could feel the Spirit so strongly!  She had no hesitation when she said that she would get baptized which was awesome!  She's been to church 3 times, occasionally drinks coffee (don't know when her last cup was) and is reading the Book of Mormon and praying about it and Joseph Smith!  She is GOLDEN!  Sister Swapp and I are super excited and so is Courtney.  Miracle!

That's about it for the week! :)  I can't wait to see what miracles come to us this week!

Love you all!

Love,

Sister Megan Hills

P.S. Look up Genesis 49:22-- Elder Dawson found this during the week.  It's a prophecy about the Book of Mormon :)  Apparently, a long time ago, people would call the ocean a "wall" because they couldn't cross it.  Such a cool thing to think about!

Week 55

Hey!

This week was pretty good :)  It was definitely a very spiritual week, with Zone Conference and Stake Conference.  I learned so much at Zone Conference that I am excited to work into the work here in Lakota Creek :)

* Monday:  We had a great preparation day and then we also had a great lesson with Joy, a less-active in our ward.  The Spirit was SO strong in our lesson.  We talked about the Book of Mormon and how it blesses our lives.  It was sad to see how she wouldn't commit to read the Book of Mormon every day, just because she likes to read other things.  I know that she felt the Spirit though, because we felt it.  I know that all of us will find strength and power in the Book of Mormon as we read it everyday. 

* Tuesday:  Zone Conference!  I love Zone Conferences!  They are always so powerful and amazing!  This Zone Conference, we talked a bunch about the Atonement and how to apply it into our lives.  2 things that I learned:

1) D&C 84: 19-21

    This scripture says that in order to fully access the power of the Atonement of Christ in our lives, we have to partake of the ordinances of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I love that it teaches us that.  We truly have to partake of all the ordinances of the gospel (baptism, endowment, sealings, etc.) in order to have full access to the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

2) Sister Eaton told this story of a little boy that was playing a game or sport with other kids.  This little boy wasn't doing great but at the end of the game, he told his parents, "I won because I never gave up!"  I think that this is such a great thing to remember, especially when you don't think that you are being successful.  As long as we are trying to do our best, we will always succeed :)

* Wednesday:  Normal missionary work... Talking with everyone that we saw and taught a few really great lessons.

* Thursday:  We met with our investigator Courtney.  It was a super good lesson :)  We taught her and her family the Plan of Salvation and it went super well :)  You could really feel the Spirit in the lesson and I can't wait to go teach her again tonight :)

* Friday:  More service at Steel Lake Park :)  It was so fun! :)  We were laying sod and finishing up the last little things before the park opens again in 3 weeks :)  They are almost done and it is looking great! :)  I got super soaked this time around because it was raining again and the sprinklers came on while we were working but it was fun all the same! :)

* Saturday:  Normal everyday missionary work again :) We were able to go to the Adult Session of Stake Conference, which was something new for us as missionaries :)  They talked about hastening the work and it was so good! :)  One of the speakers was a recent convert of 2 months but he sounded like he had been a member his entire life!  He did such a great job and he talked about the Holy Ghost and how that is how he knew that the Gospel was true.  It was so powerful!  The Stake President also spoke and his talk was awesome too!  Something he said that I really liked was "the Gospel is like music.  it doesn't need to always be defended but it does need to be played."  We just need to "play" the gospel and get it out into the world, regardless of what results come from it.

* Sunday:  We had the General Session of Stake Conference.  It was so good! :)  Such an uplifting conference :)  One of the Counselors in the Stake Presidency spoke and he talked about coal fires that happen in the mines.  He talked about 2 types of fires that could be burning within us, 1) the fire of pride, and 2) the fire of murmuring.  While he was taking about the fire of murmuring, he told the parable that is in D&C 101: 43-64.  He talked about how the Lord of the vineyard wanted his servants to build a tower for a watchman.  He then talked about how we need to build towers in times of peace so that we can be prepared.  The Seattle Temple President and his wife was at Stake conference as well and they talked a lot about the temple and how we are blessed as we serve in the temple :)  Then the Stake President, President Nicholls, talked about having hope in the Atonement.  He talked a lot about how perfection is not the standard to enter the temple, and how it isn't a standard to even to enter the Celestial Kingdom.  He also talked about how we can receive Christ's grace:  1) we have to believe that Christ can save us, 2) We need to make and keep the covenants of the gospel, 3) we need to pursue virtue.  He also made some great promises to us as we have hope in the Atonement.

This week was such a great one, one definitely filled with the Spirit!  I am so thankful for this time that I have to feel and recognize the Spirit in my life and that I have this opportunity to help others feel and recognize those promptings that they receive :)

Thanks for everything :)  Hope everyone has a great week! Love you all!

Love,

Sister Megan Hills

Week 54

Hey!

First week of the transfers and it was good :)  Nothing super exciting happened this week but it still was good :) We were able to find a couple really great potential investigators.  I am super excited to see what is going to happen to them :)  They will totally make some great members :)  

Yesterday we also had our second Missionary Devotional and it was super good :)  There was one recent convert that bore her testimony about the Holy Ghost and receiving forgiveness that was super good :) 

Hopefully next week I will have a little bit more to talk about :)  I am so thankful for this opportunity that I have to serve a mission and for the things I am learning and doing :)  It truly is a great blessing :)

Love you all! :)

Love,

Sister Megan Hills

Week 53.... Lost tract of the week last week

Hey!

Whew!  This week has been an interesting one.... and a quick one at that.  I don't really even remember what happened.  I know Sister Swapp and I have been working really hard this week but it also was a tough week.  We had to work so hard at having the motivation to go out and actually work.  It definitely has been an interesting one.  

We did have some great experiences though!  

Monday, we celebrated Cinco De Mayo by eating tacos :)  They were yummy! :)

Tuesday, last district meeting of the transfer :)  Took some fun pictures :)

Wednesday, was on exchanges with Sister Sharp.  Super fun!

Thursday, we found a new investigator!  Her name is Courtney and she's from a Part-Member family!  Her husband is Less-Active so we are working with them to get them to come back to church.  She is such a wonderful person!  Her girls wanted to start going to church so they have come to church for the past 2 weeks!  They lived in Logan for a while so she knows quite a bit about the church but she is really wanting to learn.  We are so excited to teach them and help them come closer to the Savior.

Friday...... Service at the park...... in a torrential rainstorm!!!! That was an interesting experience :)  But it was so fun all the same!  All the missionaries were soaked to the bone when we were done but it was totally worth it :) 

Saturday..... was AWESOME!  The Elder's investigator Nick was baptized and so was our investigator Rob! :)  It was such a blessing to attend both baptisms and to feel the Spirit so strongly!  Both Rob and Nick will do wonderful things in the church as they continue to grow closer to the Savior! :)

Sunday was such a beautiful Mother's Day!  Sister Swapp and I did something super fun too!  We bought a little bunch of 10 flowers and delivered them to our "mothers" in the ward that we really appreciated.  It was so cool to see how much that touched those that we gave them too.  I would do that everyday if there were a reason to give out flowers :)

Yesterday was such a great day too!  Sometimes I totally dread the Monday before transfers because it always seems like the day goes super, super slow but this Monday was great!  We were able to see a lot of people and we definitely were led by the Spirit.  We were supposed to have a lesson with our investigator, Shelia, at 2:00 and when we got there, she was just leaving to go somewhere.  We decided that we would come back in a little bit and have a lesson.  Well, because of things that were going on yesterday afternoon, we weren't able to go back to Shelia's until around 7:00 that night.  Let me just say though, that was EXACTLY when we were supposed to go back though.  Sister Swapp and I talked about how if we had come back in the afternoon, we probably wouldn't have had the same conversation that we ended up having.  Shelia really opened up about her family and what happened with her daughter over the weekend.  It was such a great experience to be there to listen and to strengthen her faith that the Savior really knows her and knows what she is going through.  We gave her "You Matter to Him" by President Uchtdorf for her to read.  She skimmed over the first page and a half and then told us, "This is exactly what I need right now."  It was such a testimony-builder to me to know that we were following the Spirit and that we were where we were supposed to be.

Last but not least..... TRANSFERS!  I am staying put in Federal Way for another 6 weeks! :)  I am so excited!  I love this area and this ward!  Elder Dawson (from my MTC district) is going to be our new District Leader.  He is going to do a great job!  Can't wait to see what this new transfer will bring!

Love you all!

Love,

Sister Megan Hills

Week 52

Hey everyone!

This week was pretty good!  Nothing super exciting happened but it still was pretty good :)  We were out working for half of the week and then Sister Swapp got sick so we were in the apartment for the rest of the week... Let's just say I got lots of cleaning done :)  Which was good because we got an A++ on our housing inspection today :)  It was awesome because I guess that hardly ever happens with the lady who checks our apartments here :)

This week, we also got a ton of referrals that we will get to contact this coming up week so hopefully we will have a bunch of new people to teach this week :)  We also have Rob's baptism this week! :)  We are both so excited! :)  Rob is doing great and continuing to progress which is what we like to see :)

On Saturday, while Sister Swapp was sick, I was able to go to the Mirror Lake YSA Luau with Sister Patterson and her daughter, Kristen (who we have been teaching).  It was super fun! )  They had a performance and we got to see a lot of different dances from the Islands :)  I loved it! :)

That's about it for the week!  Hope everyone has a great weekend and a Happy Mother's Day!

Love you all!

Love,

Sister Megan Hills

P.S. Do me a favor, before you eat a York Peppermint Patty, hold it up to you ear and listen!  Coolest thing ever! :)