april

Hey Family!!

 

First off, Happy Birthday to Andrew and Annie this week!  I hope it's a good one for y'all and know that I'm thinking of you both.  Be sure to give Annie a hug for me okay.  Enjoy some cake or something and have fun!

 

To say the least this week has been a great one.  Here's a couple miracles just to start off with:

 

numero uno: we taught 21 lessons this week!!  Our mission goal is to teach at least 20 lessons everyweek and for the past couple weeks we've been teaching maybe around 10 or so.  But we just planned a head this week and went without a few meals and were able to fit tons of lessons in.  Seriously it's the best feeling reaching a goal you're working so hard toward.  We ate with our stake president, President Riggs on Saturday as well and he talked alot about teaching more lessons and how we all need to work harder.  And then President Wall also mentioned it yesterday right after conference.  Pretty sweet.  :)  we have a goal to teach 20 lessons every week for the rest of the transfer as well.

 

numero dos:  Sister Anderson.  Inbetween sessions of conference on Saturday we were trying to visit some less actives in our ward that lived in the area.  Either no one was home or we couldn't find their home (with no GPS it's difficult because the streets here will randomly cut in half by another street and continue going without us even knowing...anyways it's confusing).  We were about to give up finding this one home when we miraculously found it.  She was home and we got talking with her and what not.  Turns out she hasn't been to church in a while and yeah but right before we came over she was praying and then knocked on her door.  We were an answer to her prayers and she was an answer to ours.  She even came to conference the next morning as well!  And she's got a sweet strong testimony.

 

numero tres:  I ALMOST hit someone while driving...don't worry though, I didn't.  :)  It's a long story but we were picking up the LSU Sisters at the institute building on campus and we were late for an appointment.  There was a runner and I was turning right and literally didn't see him.  So I kinda started pulling out when all of a sudden he was infront of the car.  No worries though, I stopped and all was well.  Well, except for the fact that he was super pissed and came around to hit the window and yell at me.  I think his face will forever be engraved in my memory...but I just drove away.  Sister LaPorte and I just laugh about it because here we are going around saving souls and yet almost took one out in the meantime.  Also the LSU Sisters probably think we're crazy.  Oh the things you experience while serving a mission.

 

 

I love seeing all the pictures of you guys back home and all over.  The temple looks so pretty down there.  It's crazy over here, so many members don't even know there's a temple in Baton Rouge.  But seriously the temple is so important...we need to get them all there!  I bet Arizona was nice and warm for you guys.  The weather here is kinda like Utah.  One morning it will be super cold and then burning hot in the afternoon.  By the end of the transfer though it should be real hot outside.  

 

Dad thanks for sending the package with music and whatnot, hopefully I'll get it today and if not I'll get it by tomorrow for sure.  Y'all can still send letters and packages to my apartment because I'll be here for at least another five weeks.  Oh and while I'm mentioning it did ya get my letter to Sarah about the GPS?  We currently don't have one and we're going old school with a map but a GPS would be so helpful at the moment.  So if you're cool with it can ya please send it asap.  We would appreciate it so much!!  And as for pictures go feel free to send a little picture book or just plain regular pictures.  Either one would be great.  :) 

 

 

Emily how was school in the new building today?  It's so weird to think that Olympus is in a completely new building now and it's giant.  What else did y'all do in Arizona over spring break?  Did you guys do anything fun for easter?  School starts in just a couple short weeks for you Sarah!  Are you getting excited to move back to Rexburg...I miss that place. Andrew, you lucky duck getting to back to France in a couple weeks.  I miss you all so much but there's no place I'd rather be than right here right now.  I love Sister LaPorte and all the people we get to serve with in our ward so much.   

 

 

Okay and here's some of the pictures within the past weeks.  Sorry they're so late and most of them are from last tuesday at the swamp tour.  Enjoy!

 

 

Oh hey and I have a challenge for y'all.  Our stake has some goals for this year and I think it would be sweet if y'all worked on it as well.  Here's the list:

 

-daily personal and family scripture study

-daily personal and family prayer

-weekly family home evening

-monthly temple attendance

-missionary discussion taught in your home this year

-strive for physical and spiritual self-reliance

-make the sabbath day holy

 

I promise that as you do these little things to strengthen your own testimony it will bless you all in your daily life.  It's taking the time out of the little things we do that don't really matter and replacing them with something meaningful and worthwhile.  My favorite talk from conference was President Monsons because really that's what a mission is all about, obedience.  We were talking after and it really hit me, obedience isn't just not doing what you aren't supposed to.  Obedience is doing what you know you're supposed to be doing.  So like in personal study you aren't being obedient when you take the time out to study your scriptures unless you are actually pondering and learning, not just falling asleep and reading something here and there.  It's just something cool to think about...what do you need to be doing that you know you aren't?  All these people say that Christ just wants them living a good life, but really that's not enough.  There's specific things he has asked us to do that we need to do in order to return to live with Heavenly Father again.  

 

 

The gospel is so amazing and true!!  There's also another goal I have for y'all before the end of this year.  As missionaries if we're tracting to find people we're failing at our job.  The members role is to help invite others to listen to the message the missionaries can share.  And really the only way we can teach investigators is through referrals.  So here's your challenge...invite someone over for dinner while the missionaries are there and talk about the gospel.  I promise it's not as scary as you think it is.  And think of it this way, after you die would you rather have someone come up to you saying sorry they wouldn't listen or asking why you didn't share the message about the restored gospel to them when you were right there.  Become everyday missionaries!

 

I love y'all so much.  Let me know if there's anything I can do for ya!

 

Love Always,  Sister Schmutz