"Hmmm..." - Letter, September 30, 2013

Ok. Here it is. This week has been an interesting one. It has been a good week for learning about the area and about ourselves. I have received revelations for myself that I know are going to help me in the work that I do.

On a funny note, this week we had to get the oil changed. They told us that we could leave the car and come back for it later. So we went walking around town. The funny part came when I tripped, and went flying. I totally skinned both of my knees. Not bad, but I have scabs on both of them. I must have looked pretty ridiculous when I fell.

1.) Sam. Sam is amazing. I don't know if I told you all about him, but this is great. We found Sam while out street contacting a couple of weeks ago. He knew that we were missionaries and that we taught people about Jesus Christ. Why? Because his family in Columbus is taking the lessons, and while he was home for the summer, he heard some of the stuff that they taught. But he has 3 much younger siblings and so he didn't get to learn as much as possible. So, when we found him, he wanted to learn more. His family is from Ghana and he is really humble. When we talked to him at the lesson, we had a member there and she made things go so much smoother than we could have. She asked all the right questions and said all the right things. It was great. And so we taught the 1st lesson about the Restoration. The Spirit in that room was sooo strong. And at the end of the lesson, he said a prayer that made me fog up a little, it was so beautiful. We committed him to baptism. But it wouldn't have been as awesome if we hadn't had a member there with us who had a strong testimony of the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. So, this week, pray about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith (even if you already have, do it again), and then do something with the missionaries. Go to a lesson with them, or better yet, invite them and their investigators to have a lesson in your home where the Spirit can be even more present. It works. I promise.

2.) Judy. I still love her to death. Our only problem is that her boyfriend is a jerk. He is sooo controlling. We have been doing lessons at the park with her, and recently he has been following us down there so that he can keep an eye on her. He pretends to be helping with the kids but a lot of the time, he just stands there over us, trying to be scary, but let me tell you. He fails. You know what he's doing and all it does is make things awkward. So, next time he does that, we are going to ask him to join. If I ask him, I might just tell him how awkward it is when he stands there and that he is more than welcome to join the conversation. Who knows. But ya, we can't get her to baptism until we get her moved out. Yesterday, we fasted that she would have a place to move into by this Friday. I have faith that the Lord truly will make it happen.

3.) Brianna. So, my dad just sent me an email that I think is going to be the key. In it, he mentioned a story where and investigator knew it was right, but just wasn't getting baptized. The mission president actually met him and told him that sometimes, all you need to do is take that leap of faith and do something, and the rest will come. I think that with Brianna, that is going to be it. She keeps hesitating because she doesn't have permission from her dad and she doesn't think he has time for her. But we told her last night that if she asks him to call her, he will. Daddy's have a soft spot for their baby girls. So, while we were there, we had her send him a message telling him to call her. Honestly, action is going to be the best medicine for her.

4.) Kate. So Kate is awesome. She is part of a larger family that the missionaries have been working with for a while. She has two kids, who have told us that they want to grow up to be Mormons. Kate is fine with that. But Kate is really confused right now. She is taking a couple of religion classes at MU and is learning what the world things about God. She had no idea that there were so many different views. She is starting to doubt the Bible, and is so unsure about what is what. But when we come in and clarify on ideas, she accepts it. She doesn't question what we believe, or why. She told us the other day that between the two classes, and us, she is learning more about God than she ever did in church. And she finds more understanding, I think, about God from us than she does the class. We taught them the Restoration, after a year at least of missionaries being there. When we did the 1st Vision, we asked how she felt and she said she feels calm. Now, Kate does not get a lot of calm. Ever!!!!! So we told her that that was the Holy Ghost testifying of truth and then we invited her to be baptized. She didn't respond, but I know it made her think. We love Kate. She is getting more than the normal investigator stuff though. Because of her class, she has a lot of questions, and so she asks us about a lot of stuff. I love it though.

5.) Brazil. No, there is no one named Brazil, but that is a cool name for a person. Anthony and Leigh, I wouldn't think Brazil is too weird...off topic. Ok, so on our way back from our weekly meeting, we stopped at a little drive in burger place to get lunch. While we were there, there was a lady that I saw coming up the parking lot. When she got to the window and was looking at the menu, she looked at me and my badge and asked about our church. I told her, and we got into a conversation. She seemed so sad and lost. But we kept talking and eventually, SHE ASKED US if she could be baptized and if that was something that we do as Latter Day Saints. We said absolutely. The reason that I say Brazil is that in my first transfer meeting, when I got here, Pres. Porter told us that this mission would become like Brazil, where people walk up to us on the street and ask to be baptized. It happened. Brazil in America!!! Sadly though, we had to turn April, oh and she wants the same for her son, over to the missionaries who's area we were in. Like I said, we stopped on the way home. But how blinkin' awesome is that? She asked us!

Ok, well, that is my week. I love you all, and I know that this Gospel is true. There is nothing more amazing than to help others find Christ in their lives.

Love, Sister Worthen

Photos, September 23, 2013

I woke up one day and found 11 bug bites on my legs.  I started to freak out a little because I thought they were bed-bug bites.  But we are pretty sure they are mosquito bites.  We were somewhere where there were a lot of skeeters.

Us at the food drive.  The vest is a Mormon Helping Hands vest.

"Hey, Hey!!!" - Letter, September 23, 2013

Hey all you awesome people. I hope you are doing fantastic, because I am. I always feel weird writing this email. I don't really know what to say. But here goes. So this week has been really good. We haven't found as many people, but we have had some amazing experiences.

1.) Judy. Judy is amazing. We went and saw her Friday and she was on Alma 35, about. It took her less than a month to get that far. Crazy, huh? I know members who have never read that much that fast. But then we went back Saturday, and she had finished it, and then started over and was about to 2nd Nephi. In One Night!!!!!! She told us that as she had been reading it, she felt the Spirit, but not anything like we had lead her to believe. And then as soon as she finished it, she had this amazing feeling come over her and she loved that feeling so much that she started over. How insane is that. She knows the Gospel is true. And she is really developing Christ-like attributes. She said that before she met us, she cussed all the time, and that she doesn't like gossiping anymore, or even fighting with her boyfriend. And on the last, when he starts in, she just tells herself that she has Jesus on her side, and then walks away. Blows my mind. Blows it clean away. I don't really know how to describe her. If only we could get her out of her house. She has accepted the Law of Chastity, but she literally has no place to go. So, this week, that is one of our tasks. And we are involving the branch in it too. So, if we can get them excited about helping her, maybe they will be more excited in general.

2.) We have come up with a plan to get the members involved, beyond just Judy. We are going to focus on them a little more this week, and in every home we are going to share miracles from other missionaries, and from us too. But we have been doing this thing as a mission where every time we have a miracle, we send it to the rest of the mission via voicemail. So we are going to let people listen to some of those. We are going to pray before we enter their homes to help us focus the conversation on the work, and not on other stuff. And then we are going to organize a two week long challenge for them to focus on missionary work, and at the end do a soup night where they all invite someone. We don't know quite when yet, but we are excited about this. A lot of the revelations I have been getting in my study the past couple of days is for the members.

3.) We helped collect food for a food drive Saturday. Last Saturday, we distributed about 1100 door tags, not just us, and then this weekend we went and collected the food. We got 1111 lb. of food. The food drive is part of a greater food drive called Feed Ohio, and we worked in conjunction with the local Bethel AME church to get it done. The food went to a food pantry called the Oxford Choice Pantry. It's really a cool place. We volunteer there a few times a month and we really like it there. The lady who runs it is amazing. She really cares for the people there.

So, a little sad news. I told you all last week about getting Brianna and Judy on date for the 28th. Neither one of them are going to make it. Judy can't move out until she has money for a place to live, and a place to live, and Brianna is like me: as in she has to make sure she knows everything. I'm not like that now, but when I was 12, I was an adult. I know adults who are more child-like than I was when I was that age. But she doesn't feel like she knows enough to be baptized. That and she has to get permission from her dad, who is Catholic. They have to drive to Indiana to get that from him. They can't do it over the phone or letter or anything. So, we are working toward the 12th now. But when I say she wants to know everything, I mean everything. She wanted to read the whole Bible before she got baptized. We told her that wasn't needed, and that neither of us had ever read it all the way through. But that is Brianna.

Well, my well has run dry. I love you all, and am praying for you. I know that the Gospel is true, and that no matter what, the Lord will be there to help us. He knows us and pays attention to us. If we turn to Him, he will be there to help us out. I love this Gospel, and I am so glad to be able to teach others about it.

Love, Sister Worthen

"It's a Miracle!!!" - Letter, September 16, 2013

Hola. How are you? I hope great because that is how I am feeling. We have had some really amazing experiences this week. Ok, so first, Judy. Judy continues to blow our minds away. No joke. We had a lesson with her on Friday about the Law of Chastity. Awkward right? Wrong. Earlier in the day, I was freaking out about it, because she lives with her boyfriend. I was nervous because I thought she was going to tell us that she never wanted to see us again, and she was all offended, and all kinds of crap that Satan wanted to put into my head. So I started to pray really hard that the Lord would lead us in the things that we said. So when we got there, the lesson was great. It was sooo smooth and not awkward at all. I really felt the Spirit guide me as I spoke to her so that she would be able to understand it. And so she is going to find her own place to live. And that's the other thing. She had told us at a previous meeting that she wanted to find a place for her to live away from her boyfriend and his mom and her boyfriend where she can raise her kids in a good atmosphere. And so when she told us that, we were sooo excited about it. She is sooo prepared for us. We talked to her afterward and she told us that every time that we are coming over for a lesson, she starts thinking about stuff, and then we come and answer those questions that she has been thinking about. Oh my goodness, it is really amazing how prepared she is. And guess what!!!! She came to church, and we have gotten permission to go ahead with her baptism early. Normally, we need to get a person to church three times before we can get them baptized. And now we will be able to get her baptized by the 28th of September instead of the 5th of October. We are stoked for it. And the Brianna. Little Brianna. She reminds me of me when I was that age. You know, the adult in a child's body. That is this girl. So anyway, Wednesday, we went over there and got into the apartment for the first time. And we invited her to be baptized on the 28th. We told her to pray and to think about it. Yesterday, we were doing our studies and Sister Savage suggested that we do a prayer to know whether we should push harder if she says she wanted to wait, or just let her wait. We felt that we should push harder. President Porter keeps telling us that if we use the Spirit in situations like that and are bold, we will be successful. If we don't have the Spirit, then we are being pushy and rude. So we felt the Spirit so strong. It was amazing. We both testified of how important this is going to be for her and how much she really is prepared because she was saying that she didn't feel like she knew enough. We told her that because of that, that she wanted to understand and to be ready, and because she understands that it is important, she is prepared. And then she told us that her dad has to sign a paper, and he might not be able to get that to her in time. And I just had the strongest feeling to tell her that as a Missionary of the Lord, I have the right to promise her that if she wants this, the Lord will make it happen. I cannot tell you how powerful it was for me to say that to her. I walked out of the apartment and I started laughing because I realized that I had just made a prophesy for her. Crazy. I laughed because it was a surreal experience. But the Spirit was sooooo strong while we were there. And then the other night, we found two new investigators. The first's name is Kayla. We started talking to her and all I could see in my mind was this flashing neon sign saying, "SHE'S PREPARED!!!!". It was really cool. So we are going to try to meet with her this week. But really, she is ready for the Gospel. And then that same night, we found the second. His name is Sam and he had started taking the discussions with the missionaries in Columbus this past summer. So we are going to meet with him on Saturday, and hopefully get him to the waters of baptism by the end of this transfer. Oh my goodness. We have seen miracle after miracle after miracle. I am so excited. I know that this is the TRUE gospel of Jesus Christ. There is nothing else that can compare to what we have. I love you all, and I want you to know that the Savior loves each of us. And then I am going to leave you with a quote I found in True to the Faith this morning. "You will find that forgiveness can heal terrible wounds, replacing the poison of contention and hatred with the peace and love that only God can give."

"Greetings from Oxford" - Letter, September 9, 2013

How are you? I hope you are all doing well. I am doing fine. In fact, I slept really well last night, and so I feel really good today. I didn't fall asleep, or almost fall asleep, during study time today. I have been fully awake. I love it.

So this week, we taught Judy. It was a really good lesson. She is so ready to do what it takes to make it to heaven, but we can't get her to church. It makes us so sad. And because we can't get her to church, we have to reschedule her baptism until the first Saturday in October. We were originally aiming for the 21 of September. Oh well. We love her so much. She is such a wonderful person, and she wants what's right for her and for her kids. If only we could get her to church.

Ok. So this is really cool. This past week was transfer week, and in our zone, we got three new sets of missionaries. That means that we got 6 new missionaries, and we are expecting at least three new companionships within the next two transfers. Currently, we have 14 companionships. We have the largest zone in the mission, and we consist of the leaders of the mission. We are nothing but leaders. We have the AP's, 3 sister specialized training leaders (like zone leaders, but for sisters), two? district leaders, and everyone of the missionaries, except our zone leaders, are training new missionaries. So that means that we have a lot of leaders. People should look up to us to find answers. So, we have set some really amazing goals. For this month, we as a zone, are aiming for 230 member present lessons, which are vital!, 210 new investigators, and 15 baptisms. In October, we are aiming for 310 new investigators, 410 in November, and 510 in December. Can you imagine how many people that is. If you do the math, that is over 1000 first lessons alone. And we don't have numbers for member presents and baptisms decided yet, but that number will also increase. How amazing is that? Oh, and Sister Savage and I have prayed and we believe that there will be 6 baptisms in this transfer alone in our area of Oxford. That is almost half of the zone goal! But while we were talking about goals, the idea was raised that if we allow our doubt to overcome our belief these goals will never happen. So, our new motto has come from Mark 9: 23, 24 (think). It's when the dad brings his son to Christ and asks him to cast out the devil and heal him. Christ tells him that if he believes, all things are possible. He replies, "Lord I believe. Help thou mine unbelief." So, that is our motto. We are going to pray so hard to overcome our doubt.

Yesterday, our branch president pulled us out of RS and told us that he is going to get a Face Book page ready for the branch, and wants us to be involved in that. We can't yet, but we will as soon as we receive training for it. But he was sooooo excited. I have never seen him so excited about anything. He is so excited for missionary work. He wants so much for his branch, but the members haven't been ready. But I think they are now. So the work is going to explode! I am really happy.

Well, I don't have a lot to say this week. I will let you go. But pray for us. This is a miraculous goal, and one that will be impossible if the Lord is not involved. But with Christ, all things are possible. I love you all, and am praying for you. Keep up the good work. The Gospel is true, and this is the only correct church on the earth.

Love, Sister Worthen

"I ran out of subject titles" - Letter, September 4, 2013

This week has been really good. The students are back, and we have been trying to talk to them as much as possible. A lot of them are really receptive, and would be willing to hear about more of the Gospel. The problem is that they are really busy. So, my companion and I have been thinking of other ways to get them to hear a lesson. We have been thinking that we can do group lessons on campus, and invite the young single adults in the branch to take part in the lesson. We think this would be really great to get people together, and then it's less awkward because we aren't just going to their appartment, but rather are doing things in a really casual way. I love that we can be on campus. I am really surprised though. The major religion here is Catholic. I was expecting a lot other groups, but the vast majority of them are Catholic. Don't get me wrong, we have run into a lot from other denominations.

It makes me kind of sad though. A lot of the other churches are really involved in the community. Ours is not. They are great people. But they keep to themselves. So, we have been trying our best to think of ways to get our name out there. We have been inviting a lot of people to church. But we need other things to get people involved in. Any ideas?

It's been good, but also odd. We feel like we have been doing really good as a companionship, but we just can't seem to get any return appointments. We are working really hard, always trying to find ways to better ourselves, but we just are not getting there. I guess I should be patient. I am grateful for all the things that we have seen happen already, but we want to do more. I just don't know what else we can do. But we keep praying and working hard, and I know that things will happen.

We just met a guy, whose name is Lonnie, at Walmart. He said he would call us and let us come and teach him more about the church. He was really curious. He checked us out. He is 23, and started asking us about the church as soon as he saw my nametag. His dad is a preacher, and he has no problem going to church. But he hasn't been going to church. He says, "I am in college, and I do college things, and I don't want to lie to God." It was really funny. But he was really nice. It was a miracle.

Oh, and Marcia. We have been helping her pack. She is this 60+ year old lady. We love her to death. She is a non-member, and she loves having us over. She is our Amulek. She knows what we go through, being so far from home. She loves letting us in. She has had a lot of missionaries over the years. She doesn't want to learn about the Gospel, but loves talking about God. Yesterday, while she was out smoking (she shouldn't-she's on oxygen and has COPD) we told her about church on Sunday. She asked how it went. We told her about Sacrament meeting, and how we are all invited to share her testimonies. She asked us if we would share ours, and then she shared hers. It was really cool, and caught us off guard. Oh, so Saturday we were helping her pack. We got there at 11:00, and knocked. She didn't answer. We rang the doorbell, and then we heard her call for us to come in. There she was in the doorway to the kitchen in her nightgown, and there was a young black man laying on her couch. So we went in, and went straight to the kitchen. he wasn't dressed, I could tell, but thankfully he did have his blanket pulled up all the way. It was awkward. So while we were in the kitchen, he got dressed, and came in and was talking to us and Marcia. Eventually, we started packing. He stuck around to help us pack. He actually was really nice, and asked us a lot of questions about missionary work. We answered them all. So anyway, all day long, I knew that he needed to hear about the Gospel, and not just the work we do, but it never really felt right. So we wanted to be up on High Street to do some contacting. We left her with a scripture, Alma 7:11-13, about the Atonement. D'Andre jumped right in and started talking to us about it. It was really cool. So anyway, we left, and we came back about and hour and a half later. Marcia wanted to have dinner with us. So we came back. D'Andre opened the door. Marcia was asleep. We came in and just sat down and had a really cool conversation about the Gospel. This is a man who has really SEARCHED for Truth. He has read the Bible, Koran, and several other religious texts. And he has felt like there is truth in each one, but not all truth. We handed him a Book of Mormon, and told him it is all right there. And then we told him about Joseph Smith and the 1st Vision. After Sister Savage recited it, she asked how he felt. He responded, "Wow, that's intense, and you know, It's true!" We were so happy to hear that. I wanted to do a happy dance. I didn't. But we then invited him to be baptized. He accepted. Oh, before all this, he actually asked what it takes to become a Mormon. Come on. That doesn't happen in real life. But honestly, we feel like we are going to get that a lot. Anyway, we had found out earlier in the day that he smokes marijuana, not cigarettes, but weed. So we told him he would have to give that up. But he wasn't too upset about that. It was so amazing. And he could feel the Spirit. Great. Just Great!!!! Anyway, Marcia woke up not too long after. We ended up spending the rest of the night there. But when we sat down to eat dinner, he told us that he really liked spending time with us. He could feel how different we were, and he like that our whole purpose is Jesus Christ, and the way we made him feel was really nice. He's not used to that. That really made me feel good.

Too bad we have to hand him over to another set of missionaries. He doesn't live in our area. And if you are wondering why a young, black man was asleep on the couch of 65 year old woman, it's because Marcia is a good Samaritan. She really is. She wants to help people as much as possible. And she has a heart as big as the whole out doors. We love her.

Well, I love the Gospel. I know it's true. There is nothing that can bring us closer to Christ than this. I love you all, and I hope the Good Lord keeps you while we are apart.

Love, Sister Worthen