Sunday, August 9, 2015

April 27, 2015

Hey there everyone! I don't have much time today, but this week was super great! It was crazy busy, but it was good. I'm so thankful to be serving out here, yesterday I hit 14 months. CRAZY!!! I had a mini freak out when I realized I only have 4 MONTHS LEFT! But, that just means I gotta work even harder, right? Anyways! On to this week!

Monday night was good, we were able to see Laura, one of our investigators, we were able to establish more of the purpose of missionaries, and how the having Christ in our life can strengthen us. We invited her to be baptized, and she said she would pray about it. So Hopefully she receives her answer!

Tuesday:We were able to see our other investigator, Monique, we taught her about the plan of happiness . The Bishops wife came with us to the lesson, and she bore a powerful testimony of the Atonement, and the lesson went super well. We also invited her to be baptized, and she really wants to pray about it before she says yes. Her boyfriend that she lives with isn't super supportive about it, so I'm not sure what's going to happen. But I have faith that Heavenly Father has a plan, and that all will go well!!

Wednesday we were on exchanges, Sister Ellis came to our area, she's one of my former companions from a year ago! It was super fun being with her again, it was a little bit weird, but it was great. I would love to be companions with her again because we've both grown SO much!! But she goes home in a week, so I don't think that'll happen.
But on our exchange the entire theme of the day was the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and what that means to us. We talked about it and experienced it in the same day, then we taught a lesson about it, and I know that the sister we taught it to felt the Atonement as well!
    Lemme tell you about the lesson! So once upon a time this lady is Sister Love, shes a less active member, and we got there and she just vented, and yelled, and cried, and all of the above. It was CRAZY!!!! Whenever I would try to say something she would cut me off. When about 45 minutes into her talking, I said a prayer in my heart to know what to do. When all the sudden, the impression came to me that we needed to sing her a hymn! So I asked her if we could, and she looked a little caught off guard, but said that we could, so we sang the song "Where can I turn for peace?" Here are the lyrics
1. Where can I turn for peace?
Where is my solace
When other sources cease to make me whole?
When with a wounded heart, anger, or malice,
I draw myself apart,
Searching my soul?
2. Where, when my aching grows,
Where, when I languish,
Where, in my need to know, where can I run?
Where is the quiet hand to calm my anguish?
Who, who can understand?
He, only One.
3. He answers privately,
Reaches my reaching
In my Gethsemane, Savior and Friend.
Gentle the peace he finds for my beseeching.
Constant he is and kind,
Love without end.
    As we sang the song, the spirit was SO strong, I was almost in tears, after we sang, the spirit was there and we were able to testify of Jesus Christ, and how he gives us peace, and comforts, and that all can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
It was probably one of my favorite lessons I've experienced on my mission, I would like to say that I taught the lesson, but if I did that would be a lie. I know that the spirit taught that lesson and I was able to be an instrument.
     Basically it was a great learning experience and a great exchange.

Thursday not a whole lot happened, we were able to do service at squash for friends, a charity squash farm! We pulled weeds for a while, then he fed us lunch! And then he gave us lunch to take home and eat another day! A totally different mean than what he fed us. It was some kinda chicken stew with a bunch of stuff hes grown. It was delicious! :D I just love food!

Friday Was another less eventful day as well, but we were able to do our weekly planning for the first time this transfer! Normally you plan for you week in one day for a few hours, and you do this every week. Nope. Not us! The struggle is real.  But we did it!!! YAY! It was a blessing. I love planning, I just feel so much better when I do!

Saturday was great as well! We went on Exchanges again, I stayed in the area again, and the theme for the day was prayer. We were able to see Nicole, Sister Stagg and I found her back in January, but the last month or so we haven't been able to teach her, but we stopped by and had a great lesson on Christ and building a foundation on him. At the end of the lesson we invited her to pray. And guess what! SHE PRAYED!!!! That was the first time she prayed during a lesson of ours!!! It was such a heartfelt prayer, she just talked with Heavenly Father.. Then started crying.. Everything. The spirit was so strong! It was another tender mercy.
   Then that night at dinner we shared a message about prayer, and guess what happened. The wife that we were eating with just starts crying and I'm like "oh snap, I just said something wrong!" when all the sudden she tells us that we hit the message right on the nail, and it was exactly what she needed to hear. Heavenly Father answers prayers!!!! I know that to be true.

Sunday we went to church, and were able to see Sister Holt, a little old lady who is just the cutest. Not a whole lot else happened yesterday, but goodness gracious, I'm so thankful to be a missionary! That's when I hit my 14 month mark, and I had a little heart attack, but I'm so thankful for the blessing it is to be in California!

So as you know, every morning we study for two hours. And I'm studying in the book of Luke, and I read about the Atonement of Jesus Christ when he was suffering in the garden. These are the verses I read:
And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him.
And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.
And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.
And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow,
And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

I learned that the first part where it says "wont" it means accustomed, which means familiar, so Christ was familiar with what was going to happen, he knew what he was going to do.
Then when Christ is praying, I looked up the word will and willing, and I learned that it means to desire and to have purpose, so if you change the wording to what it means it says  "Father, if thou desires, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my purpose, but thine be done." Christ was fulfilling his purpose. He knew his fathers desire, and did all that he could, and did everything that was required of him.
    I know that Christ suffered for me. I know that he suffered for you, I know that he was obedient to our Father in Heaven, and that because he was obedient, and loved us, we can receive peace in this life, we can experience joy and snappishness, we can learn and grow. I know that Christ is our friend, and that he will strengthen us. There are angels all around us strengthening us, just as they did Christ. I know that we can be enabled, or receive strength to overcome our shortcomings and trials. I love my Savior Jesus Christ, and I'm honored to be a missionary and being able to serve him, and my fellow brothers and sisters.

As for the funny moments of the week, there were a few.
The first was on the first exchange this week, we went to the park and were there for about an hour, about 15 minutes into us being at the park, these teenage boys drive up in a car- totally ditching school- and start smoking something, but they were coughing up a storm! We just ignored it, and went along our way. Well it was time to leave so we walk to the car, and they had parked right next to ours. Well, as I'm walking to the car, one of the guys rolls down the window and goes "Hey ;) how you doin?" While examining my body. Or in other words checking me out. And me being the awkward person that I am say good and walk on by. Well, as missionaries whenever the car is in reverse we have to get out of the car and back out, so I'm backing out and I hop into the car, granted they are still watching me and they yell out "have a great day!" and I get in the car and we drive away. I start laughing about the situation and then realize that I should have talked to him! And told him about how I'm a missionary or something. So we turn around to go and talk to them, and pull into the parking lot only to see that they had driven off. THEY WERE WATCHING US FOR 45 MINUTES! #stillgotit  #notsureifishouldbecreepedoutorflattered
It was hilarious. But very creepy and awkward. But, I still got it! ;)

The next funny thing happened on our  other exchange, so I went to go and contact a man, and he tells me he doesn't speak English, so what do I do? I speak Spanish to him! But, then I realize I don't speak Spanish. So I point at my name tag and say "Uh, Jesus Christ" in Spanish, and give him a card with our phone number on it, well, he just looked at me with a look on his face like "I have no idea what you're saying to me" and so we leave and stuff. Well, as we're walking away, the sister I was with leans over to me and goes "Sister Bond. He wasn't Spanish, he was Chinese!" Ha! That explains why he didn't understand!

Well y'all, I sure love you! Thank you for all the love and support y'all give me! Have a great week!
Love,
Sister Bond


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