Humility

Good morning, my dear mom! 

Monday is here again.. weird stuff.  How was your week?? It sounds like everything is going great at home! We had a really good week.  There was a lot of random stuff that happened.  I wish I could remember all that happened but that is what my journal is for, right?  There were a lot of different emotions from this week!  I had a lot of really hard moments, but I had some incredible moments to make up for them.  We had a six month training this week, (President Weidman started trainings for missionaries who have been out for 6 and 12 months) and we did a bit of goal setting. We looked at where we have gotten in the last six months and where we want to be.  So I have been thinking a lot about goals.... actually I have been thinking about goals my entire mission. It is so amazing to think of where I was six months ago to now.  I am so different, I can only imagine what another 12 will be for me.  But I was thinking of some of my most important goals, and one of them is humility. So I have been studying it a lot and trying to learn how to better achieve it. I've prayed about it.  And I've prayed to be humbled.  I am not sure if that was a good idea or not!  I have felt very humbled this week!  We had a lot of hard days that weren't really filled with a lot of "success".  I caught myself a few too many times not having the attitude that I should.  But then as I have really thought about it, I saw that I am receiving an answer to my prayers.  That I have the ability to pray for help in these times.  To ask my Heavenly Father how I can do this, because I can't do it alone.  And so I've started praying more and more.  I have felt the frustration and disappointment lifted off of my shoulders.  I have felt humbled.  That's an understatement, haha.  But I am grateful for these difficult times.  I have learned so much, mom, and I continue to learn even more.  

Another humbling experience I have had this week is with some less actives we are working with.  I have felt my heart so heavy this week, as we have been working with them. There are two specifically.  We have been working with them since I have been in the area and I have grown so close with them and have developed such a strong love for them. They shared with us some really tramatic experiences that they have had in their lives, and right now what they are facing. I left a few lessons feeling heavy and wonder what I can do to help them.  Sometimes as a missionary, I am not sure if I am helping and I just want to be able to do everything I can to help!  But I thought as well that I am doing what I can. Heavenly Father has qualified me to work with these people because he knows that I can help them. And so there comes prayer again!  But I have seen these prayers answered.  As missionaries, sometimes we feel unqualified, but we have been called and set apart to do this.  And if we are obedient then we will know that the Lord has qualified us.  

I hope this email doesn't sound like a downer!  We had a lot of fun this week, a lot of laughing and a lot of learning.  We have some amazing people that we are going to start working with!  We have seriously seen so many miracles this transfer.  We have transfers in a week and a half and we are stressing about it! We want to stay together so much, but we will go where we need to!  We went to a fireside with Jackie and Joseph last night (she loved it) and we were talking about transfers.  She said, "I want to talk to the guy in charge of these, so my hijas will stay!"  But then she said, "You know sisters, you just gotsta go where Heavenly Father wants you to".  And she was telling Joseph that there were other people here that needed our help.  Yes I did just sit there melting into my seat!  She is so cute and I love her so much.  I love being here more than I could tell you.  

Hna Wright, Jackie, and Hna Warner outside LA Temple VC

Joseph and Hna Warner

I feel like I got here yesterday, the time is flying by.  I hope that others are able to feel the joy of missionary work... do it!  I am working on being more bold, so you need to, too. Thank you for your love and support always, my dear :) I hope you have a wonderful week!  I love you! :)

Love,  Hermana Michelle

Side note... Joseph didn't get baptized this week, he had some issues with his real father and he wouldn't sign the papers....humbling experience number 1.  I was really sad about it.  We will keep working with them, but we just need to wait a little while.  Jackie is progressing really well, I love her so much.  Also, mom, I got a blessing this week that literally told me everything that I needed to hear. The Priesthood is amazing, always use it!

 

Hello my sweet dad,

It was a good week!  A lot of learning went on this week, lots of laughs too.  The people are amazing.  We have some amazing people that we are beginning to work with.  I am learning more from them than they are learning from me!  I love my bike, still!  It has been super, super windy here, so it has been my enemy the last few days.  My legs are sore but it's fine.  We live at the top of a hill so it's always a fun ride home :)  I love what Brigham Young said.  Sometimes I don't feel like I am doing much, but I know I am.  Mission life is just awkward all the time, haha, but we always have a lot to learn from it.  Things are really going great!  We will have transfers next week... yikes!  So we won't email until Tuesday.  Hopefully we stay together in this area, it's awesome right now.  I am just keeping my focus where it needs to be and it's been a blessing!  I think about you often and I hope everything is going well for you :)  Thank you for your constant support daddy!  You are always in my prayers!  I love you so much!

Love

Michelle

Awesome week

Hello my dear family!

I cannot believe it is Monday again, seriously how does this happen?  Okay, so I say that every week but I really don't understand how... How has your week been?  Sounds like it has been an eventful week in the Warner home, with Bryan getting engaged!! SO awesome!  We had an amazing week here. Seriously I could say that this has probably been the best week of my mission.

I have learned so much this week.  I'm pretty sure the tender mercies were flying through the windows (good luck trying to figure out that analogy, I don't understand it either).  I have the coolest mission in the world, it's fine.  I love being here and I love my bike.  I say that because it is pretty much the joke in our companionship. I hated biking and was so mad when I found out that we were going to be on bikes.  But I literally love it so much! We definitely see the weirdest things on our bikes, but it's great.  I feel like I have so many things to tell you I don't know where to start..... 

I will start with Joseph.  He is getting baptized on Saturday! We have the best and funniest lessons with them, pretty much we are laughing the whole time. He is so excited and we are so excited too.  I really hope that his baptism helps Jackie, I think it will.  He is the sweetest boy ever and everyone already thinks he is a member!  Funniest thing happened this week.  So we have dinners with the members and someone had signed up on the list for Monday. But we literally had no idea who it was, so we called the RS president and still couldn't figure it out because they weren't on the ward list.  So, we just didn't worry about it.  Until we get a call from Jackie, saying, "Sisters, where are you?!!"  We were dying for a number of reasons; we didn't know Jackie's last name and it was just a funny situation.  So we learned what her last name is, haha.

So we have been teaching the English class for the last two weeks and I literally cannot tell you how amazing it is. Seriously *amazing*. 

Our ward had three investigators at church yesterday from the English class. We are starting to work with a man from the class named Roberto.  He is so cool. He is probably about Dad's age and is just super quiet and so sweet.  We had an activity called "El dia de la Spanidad" on Saturday and he went!  We were able to talk to him about the church and set up a return appointment.  We had a member that stayed with him all during the activity and church.... Hello, I love members like that.  It has been the coolest thing ever to be able to work with these people.  It is bringing in people that I really don't know how we would ever find.  And the class is super fun/funny.



Griffith Zone!

I love my mission......

I had an amazing experience yesterday at church that I want to share.  I was sitting there before Sacrament started when I noticed that a less-active that the sisters had been working with for a while, was up at the table blessing the Sacrament.  And then I turned to my left and saw a less active that we have been working with.  And then I turned around and saw the 3 people from English class.  I truly don't know if I have felt the spirit so strong on my mission before.  I can feel it right now as I describe this.  I love what I do.  I love this so much.  We are changing others through this beautiful Gospel.  We are bringing others closer to Christ, to feel of this sweet joy that we have.  As I sat there, I knew without a doubt in my mind that I was supposed to be here.  That there are people that I am going to work with that will change my life forever.  I love what I do, and I love being here.  It is hard and the days go up and down, but somehow through the craziness of missionary work, I have never felt more content.  I just feel blessed to be here and work with these humble people.  I feel so humbled.  I am not the same Michelle that I was six months ago and I am grateful for that.  I am truly becoming. This is amazing!  I have a few experiences to share with you that I will send in a letter, but I am happy.  

Home sounds great, but not as great as it is here ;)  I have been thinking a lot about my cousin, Erick, lately -- tell him that I love him.  I remember how when I was little, I prayed for him every day on his mission to Peru!  I hope he is doing well.  I love my companion, she is amazing!  We have grown and learned so much together, it's so cool.  Let me know if there is anything I can do for you!  Have fun planning for your trip, mom, and enjoy yourself!  I love you so much, mom and dad! 

Love,
Hna Michelle

Joy....

Dear Family!
Well another week down, I really don't know where the time goes!  It goes way too fast on a mission.  We hit our 6 month mark together and it was weird.  It literally feels like I just got here yesterday!  Time goes by so fast here, it's crazy.  We are working with some of the most amazing people.  I wish I had time to describe ever lesson that we had with them.  We have been working with cute Hermana DelCid and she has been coming to church :)  It has been so cool to see how she has changed even over the little time I have been here.  She is always so happy when we see her at the church and when we have lessons with her.  It makes me so happy to see her light up when she walks into Sacrament meeting. 

We had an amazing lesson with Jackie and Joseph!  Joseph has already invited people to his baptism on the 22 of September!  He invited his family and is sooo excited for it.  Jackie doesn't have a date.. (yet:) but she is doing so great.  We talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them and it was awesome.  The spirit was so strong and it was such a fun lesson!  They have progressed a lot.   Jackie told us that she bought 3 skirts so that she could wear them to church (yes, my heart just about melted when she said that) and she wore it yesterday :)  I am always so happy when I am with them.  

I will tell you about last night.  So we went to go visit a less active and were late leaving and so we missed another appointment.  It was 8:40 p.m. so we were going to go try and visit our other appointment, but figured it was safer just to call and reschedule.  So while Sister Wright was on the phone this man walked by.  He said something in English, but I answer in Spanish.  He stopped in his tracts and was like, "Wait, you speak Spanish?"  And so we talked for a little while about how I learned Spanish and what we were doing here as missionaries.  He told us that he is from Honduras (thanks to Hna Sorto, I love literally every Honduran) and that when he moved here he wanted to go to a Christian church, but wasn't sure which one and so he found one down the street.  He was telling us how good it was that we were able to tell people about our message in Spanish and in English.  At this point I was dying, I was so happy.  And then we asked if we could go over another day and we was so receptive to it.  We set another appointment with him and got all of his information.  There is a point of this story.  One - it was the biggest tender mercy, that he was so, SO sweet and so receptive.  And two, I love that my mission is pointing out all the of small tender mercies.  I have been able to develop gratitude for the small things and feel the happiness come from these things :)  I love that I am able to talk to so many people, whether they choose to listen or not.  In other words I have the best mission in the world.  I really am so grateful for it.  I have learned so much already and I still get to have another year out here.  I wish that everyone could see the blessings of a mission though, it's amazing.  I will make sure that I create some cool stories to tell you next week haha :) 
Things are going well here, I am working a lot with gaining the attributes of a consecrated missionary.  It is hard!  But we have been blessed with miracles, it is amazing.  I have been so happy the last few weeks because I literally have put everything into my mission and becoming better.  I am so thankful to be here.  It was a great week here and it's going to be even better this week!  Please pray for me so I don't fall asleep during any lessons this week (I fell asleep during a prayer on Saturday....)  Hope you both have a wonderful week!  I love you both so much!  Love, Hma Warner

P.S.  Those skirts are PERFECT!  Thank you so much, I love them!  I need like 17 more! Another P.S., will you accept some people on my facebook?  A member added me the other day.  You are always welcome to my facebook, I have no idea whats going on with it!  I am so happy not to have it either! 

Okay, I love you!

Six months in the Mission!

Good morning, mom!!!

Los Angeles Temple P-Day with Michelle's zone

Hermana Wright - "I love her!
She is like my sister"

How are you doing today? I am doing wonderful because we just got out of the temple!!!  We saw the new movie and I think I died.  I loved it so much, you have no idea.  It was so sweet and beautiful.  

I have soooo much to tell you!!  First off, do you remember me telling you about Kinoah??  I am really hoping I did because.... he got baptized on Saturday!!!  He was in my Samoan ward and he is 15 years old.   I taught him for about two transfers but the last two weeks of the transfer he went MIA so I didn't say much.  His dad is less active but his uncle is in the bishopric and he had been coming to church for a few months.  We started teaching him and he was the sweetest boy ever.  He had some of the sweetest answers I had ever heard.  He has already been through a lot in his life, so being able to go to church was so good for him.  When we asked how baptism was going to help him he answered and said, "It's going to give me a new start." If that doesn't melt your heart, I don't know what will.  So I hadn't heard much about him until last week when they called and told me he was getting baptized!  The service was so sweet.  I wish you could have seen his face when he came up from the water. He looked like all of his worries had left when he came up.  I felt so warm and peaceful.  I just sat there and was so grateful I was here and that Heavenly Father helped us to help him.  So you could say it was a great week for me :)

Kinoah's Baptism, in my old Samoan Ward.  I miss that ward!  Here I am with my sweet companion who served with me in that ward, Hermana Rudd.

We have had some amazing people that we are working with.  Whether it be less active, members, or investigators.  I have had so many tender mercies this week.  We had a lesson with Jackie and Joseph and they are doing well :)

We have been working with a less active, Hermana Chicas. She is the sweetest thing in the world. The first time that we met with her, I just had such a strong love for her. We are pretty much best friends and I ask her why she doesn't go to church every time we go over, haha.  But she has the sweetest, strongest testimony.  She grew up a member but married a non-member.  

We have been working on showing her how strong her testimony is and how special it is. We went over yesterday and made empanadas, and everyone loved them but me (I'm still a picky eater!)

Yesterday this week, a girl in the ward came out with us. She rode a bike from 2-9 p.m. in the blistering heat!  And it was probably the worst day for her to come.  Every door got shut on us, our appointments got cancelled, and someone dropped us.  My heart felt so sad that she had been with us on that day, I just wanted her to see the amazing and happy parts of missionary work!  She came with us to coordination, and the ward mission leader had her stand up and bear her testimony.  She stood up and tears started rolling down her face and she said that after today she knew that she was supposed to go on a mission.  That she loved what we had done and wanted to do it on her own.  I can't even tell you how happy that made me.

That someone could see the hard sides of missionary work, and still see the beauty of it.  That was a lesson learned for me, is that literally every part of missionary work can be beautiful.  I have gotten used to the hard parts and it doesn't affect me, but I am incredibly thankful that it has made me stronger in my testimony.  That when people do share their doubts with me, I still have my knowledge and my testimony.

Best part of my week:  Kinoah got baptized!  And it was the sweetest thing.  It brought the spirit so strong and I was able to leave with such a peace that I shared with others that day.  Greatest challenge... well, probably that it was 800 degrees every single day this week and it was humid.  I am surprised I didn't die.  I wear the same thing like every day... it's gross, but I don't have other clothes to ride a bike in.  I am going to try and get some today.  I haven't gotten your package with the skirts yet, it has to get here by Wednesday, but I'll get it this week.  

This is how sister missionaries load their bikes on the car!

We walked into the chapel last night for a PMG class and an Hermano told us to stop so that he could take a picture of us.  We were so sweaty and looked exhausted, but he loved it!  I love riding a bike!  I love that it is so weird.  I feel like a real missionary doing it, ha ha.  Even though I think I am going to die in this heat!  It is soooo worth it!

I will try and send a letter FOR SURE this week!  I am sorry I am so bad, I will tell you more stories :)  Thank you for everything my dear!  I hope things are going well at home!  I love you so much xoxoxox

Love,

Michelle

Michelle is still just Michelle !

Oh daddy, thank you for the email.  Sometimes out here, I think of how I didn't do enough.  I wish I would have helped you and mom more while I had the chance to.  I have thought about you a lot this week!  We helped someone paint this week and it reminded me of when we (you) painted my room and I watched, haha.  I will help as much as I can when I am home, but for now this is my help :)  And I love it.  I absolutely love being here and wouldn't trade it for anything. It was an awesome, awesome week!  I had so much fun this week!  I hope everything is going well for you, I love you so much!

Beautiful Los Angeles skyline at dusk
The 'City of Angels'

Letter Home:

Dear Family,

Ah, it has been so long since I wrote you, I am so sorry!  This letter is going to be all over the place, heads up!  First off, mom, I am so happy! We have Korea town, Thai town, little Armenia, and Mexico here.  There are sooo many languages spoken everywhere!  I see some pretty crazy things here! But I LOVE my area!  I am in the coolest mission in the world.  I'm like in seven different countries.  We started keeping tract of how many people say 'hi' back to us - the ratio is definitely uneven.  But here is the coolest thing, it really does not affect me!  It's just life here. I've really realized that it's okay if we get ignored, as long as I show these people the happiness that we hold.  This mission is so incredibly different than Bryan's mission, it's crazy! But it is PERFECT for me.  

Sooo, this Hollywood project, it's really cool! The AP's are working more full field.  They are in my zone right now.  There were like 700 less-actives in the Hollywood ward.  We are working with a part-member family.  The day before we got here, the dad (who isn't a member) got up in Sacrament meeting and said it was his time to get baptized. His sweet wife has been a member for 15 years. We helped them paint the other day. It was a great opportunity to get to know him. He is soo sweet. We have been working with a hermana named Hma D.  She is from Honduras and is SO cute.  I am going to take a pic and send it to you!  She has gone to church the last two weeks.  It is the best feeling when I see her walk in.  She went to Relief Society last night, and I have never seen her so happy!  It has been so neat to work with her.  She has so much desire.
Do you remember our convert, Jose?!  He mentioned that he wants to serve a mission!  I am literally crying.  He is the best person ever!
It is hilarious seeing me on a bike all day but I love it! I always feel exhausted at the end of the day, it's a good feeling.  I never thought a mission would make me so happy. This church is the most precious thing, share it.  Tell and show others how special it is to you.  By doing this, my life has changed.  I know without a single doubt in my mind that I am supposed to be here.  I feel pure JOY!  A joy I will not feel anywhere else.  It's worth the sweat and migraines!  Thank you for always loving and helping me.  Especially on my mission, you have no idea how much it means - every letter and every package.  I hope you can feel and see the blessings of my mission in your life.  You are always in my prayers!  I love you so much.... Hermana Warner