May 20, 2013

Greetings from Costa Mesa!

First off I want to apologize for not writing last week. I felt horrible about it. Luckily last week was really slow and I didn't really have much to report anyways. I did get to skype home for Mother's Day which was awesome! It was so good to not only talk to but see my parents and Spencer. I thought I was going to get all homesick and bummed out but I didn't. I was so grateful. I took that as a sign that I am used to being a missionary, finally. 

This week was a busy week with lots of different stuff going on. 

Tuesday we had zone conference from 9:30-3:30. We were trained by the AP's on making our daily/weekly planning more efficient and meaningful. Sister B talked about obedience and faith. President B gave an awesome talk on principles. He taught that a principle is an eternal truth. He then went on to talk about the importance of helping our investigators understand and apply repentance in their lives. I decided later that week to study repentance during my personal study. It is amazing to truly recognize that sacrifice that our Savior made for us which made repentance possible. It is such a comfort to know that Jesus Christ knows exactly what I going through when I feel guilt from sin. It is incredible to know that I can be forgiven. It made me think of the commandment that we are required to forgive all men. This is because that is what Christ would do. He is the perfect example of charity which isn't possible without faith and hope. 

On Wednesday we spent all day helping set up flags for armed forces day. It was an awesome expereince. We helped make and plant 1776 flags. It was hard work and took a lot out of us but it was so much fun. Not to mention seeing the finished product and result of our labors was very neat. You are given countless opportunities as missionaries to participate in great causes. I felt so lucky to be a part of that project. 

Thursday-Saturday we focused on finding new people to teach. We are still struggling to get out investigator to church. We meet with A, the D family, and a few other potential investigators and our lessons go well. We were able to get a few member presents which was awesome as well. It really does make a difference. When we meet with our investigators I feel the Spirit so strongly and I can see that the Holy Ghost is teaching the people we visit but for some reason I feel like it doesn't stick. We are always received well but our investigators aren't keeping their commitments which is frustrating. Costa Mesa is a lot harder to tract in compared to La Habra. People are rude and not interested in listening at all. This week we were threatened a couple times. I mean harmless stuff. People are just freaks. Our investigators do have agency. I have to remember that and realize that everyone I teach is unfortunately not going to be baptized. We just need to remain faithful and work hard to eliviate concerns and find new people to teach. It teaches in Preach My Gospel that success is not measured by how many lessons you taught or how many people you baptized but by how hard you worked and we did all we could this week. We just need to keep doing what we're doing and be patient. 

Sundays are just the best. We had ward council at 7am which was no fun. I actually started the day pretty blah and grumpy but by the end of sacrament meeting the Spirit was there. I was finally able to snap out of is and enjoy the sabbath day.

It is hard to believe that there is only two more weeks in the transfer. Time is flying by. I continue to learn so much about myself from handeling different situations. I am growing, learning, and changing which is always good. 

Life is good. 

I hope you all have a wonderful week!!

Love,

Sister Kimball

Calling home for Mother's Day!

Hi All!

I just wanted to start off by thanking those of you that take the time to email me. I apologize that I don't always respond but it means a lot to hear from you all and receive that support and encouragement. I often tear up and feel so motivated to continue pressing forward, especially when times get rough. Love coming from home means more than you realize, so thank you. Just a reminder that I can still receive dearelders and love getting those in the mail midweek. No pressure but just something to consider if you don't get around to emails on Monday. 

This week was much better. I still hate change and struggle with it but I am getting better at adjusting to new situations quicker. Which is a blessing because i was pretty miserable at the beginning of last week. I just had to keep reminding myslef that I get to choose the attitude I have. I am starting to really like Mesa View. Tracting here is not easy. White people are a lot ruder than hispanics. But I am more confident in my abilities and getting rejected just doesn't sting as much anymore. What hurts the most is when someone starts to bible bash and there is little hope of the Spirit being there. It's in those times that we just share a genuine brief testimony and agree to disagree. I often walk away from those houses thinking how sad I am for those people. If only they knew the truth. If only they would be open to hearing it. But I know their time will come. They just aren't ready yet. I have come to have such a love for the simplicity of the gospel. It breaks my heart when people don't want to be a part of it. But my job is to invite others to come unto Christ. The Spirit is there to convert them. But in the end agency is still there, as well as Satans influence. As a missionary I have seen how hard Satan is working to tear me down and cause me to doubt. It is hard. But I have gained a deep testiomony of the power of the Holy Ghost. Satan only has as much power as we give him and when we are worthy and call upon the Spirit to be with us he has no chance. Heavenly Fathers power trumps Satans everytime. Realizing this has helped me realize just how incredible the gift of the Holy Ghost is. It motivates me to want to allow as many people as possible to have the opportunity to receive that gift. This life is hard. It is full of trials and tribulations but the Spirit is what guides, comforts, and carries us through those times. 

Sister M and I are getting along much better. She is not the most obedient when it comes to waking up on time or getting places in a orderly fashion. As her companion I have decided to take the role as an example instead of enforcer. Not to say that I am always the perfect example. But she knows the rules and expectaions. Nagging her every morning to get up or rushing her out the door isn't going to do any good. All I can do is love and encourage her. I have seen a change in myself as I have stopped worrying about her. I can't allow her actions to dictate my happiness. I know that as I do what I need to and stay obedient our companionship will be blessed. It is not always easy to do. Heavenly Father is incredible and truly knows the intents of our heart. I have been receiving so much help. I learned very quickly that I am not a very patient person. But that is one of the weaknesses that is slowly becoming a strength. I have also learned to be flexible and work with the unexpected obsticles that arise. My mission has helped me see that I have so much to improve on but that those improvements are possible. We are put with companions that need us sometimes and other times we need them. I am learning things about myself through the interactions and experiences I have with my companions. Although, situations might not always be pleasant I am learning and growing and becoming more Christlike. I now know that trials really are blessings in disguise. We just have to put our trust in the Lord and believe that His way is better than our way. 

Investigators:

We are struggling to get people to church. I don't know if that is normal for some of the investigators or not. There is a lot of interest as we teach them but committing to coming to church is proving to be hard. I am hopeful with time and as their testimonies grow they will make the effort to come. 

D Family- We taught them the restoration this week. The mother joined in this time and participated. We were hoping that the dad would join us as well but he excused himself into the other room. He is open to his wife and kids learning but he has no interest for himself. His wife talked about how she is hoping she can be an example for him and eventually he will come around. She wants him to do it for himself though and not for her. The kids love when we come over and the 10 year old daughter asks such inspiring questions. I can see her desire to know Christ better. She has given the prayer twice. I know that the mom wants religion for her kids and the kids want that knowledge so badly. I am hoping she will help them get to church. They were not home at the time we scheduled our lesson but she called and asked if we could come back. It was nice to see that they really did forget and wanted to be taught. I see a lot of potential. 

A- We taught him the first lesson as well. He is so ready to make a change. He has a lot of struggles in his life and I think feels like he has "hit rock bottom". He knows that God is there and that everything happens for a reason. We invited him to church and he said he would let us know if he could come. He is wheelchair bound and sometimes unable to go places because of discomfort. I look forward to every lesson we have with him because I can see the progress he is making. Again we just need to get him to church so he can be fellowshipped and feel the Spirit. 

Tomorrow is another "Princess Party" where all the sisters meet together for lunch and a lesson. I am excited to see Sister S (mtc companion) and Sister S2 (from my previous zone). I haven't heard much since the transfer and look forward to catching up with them. Not to mention it is always a treat to see Sister B. If I do get transferred missions I hope my new mission president and wife are as great as the B's. He was the President of the PCC in Hawaii prior to his mission president call. I'm sure he is great.

Oh a tender mercy of the week. WE GOT A CAR. It pays off being in the same ward as the senior couple that just got released from the mission working with assigning cars. They are still training the new couple and put in a good word with the AP's and we got it. They received 5 brand new cars last Monday. We got a beautiful Chevy Cruze. We are so blessed. it has made life so much easier. It is nice to re self sufficient and not rely on the other sisters in the zone for a ride places that are too far to bike. Heavenly Father has a close eye on me. I am feeling very blessed. 

I feel like a lot of times my weekly emails are so random and just a jumbled mess of my emotions and experiences. I hope things make sense. I try to include what I am learning. Because I am learning A LOT. 

Missions are so valuable. They bring blessings that I didn't even know I was in need of. It's great.

I love you all. I encourage you all to trust in God. Pray often. Read your scriptures. Go to church. Serve others. These are not commandments just for the heck of it. They are ways we can more fully have the Spirit to be with us. We all must endure to the end. 

2 Nephi 31:20 my favorite scripture!!

Have a wonderful week. Look for the miracles. They are there!

xoxo

Sister Kimball

April 29, 2013

Hello Friends!

Well this week has been an emotional roller coaster which is to be expected when you are dealing with change and trying to readjust to a new place, companion, ward, and mode of transportation. But in the end the week finished up well. I am feeling good about things and have figured out how to deal with what this new transfer has to offer. 

My companion is difficult for me to get along with. She is very set in her ways and not interested in trying or listening to other peoples points of view. She's always right. I have quickly learned that in order to eliminate contention, I just go along with what she tells me. I do my own thing and don't worry about what she says. It keeps me from being upset and feeling crappy. It is easier just to let her be. I tried the whole sticking up for myself and that proved to be a mistake. As long as I can be obedient and feel good about things we'll do it her way. 

We had the unique opportunity to participate in a 'mormon helping hands' service project this past weekend. Along with local members and missionaries we cleaned the grounds and cafeteria of the local high school. It was fun to see the church take part in service. The mayor ended up dropping by to see our efforts. It turns out he lives in my area and the member that was in charge of this event is going to give is his address so we can 'accidentally'  tract into him and his family. That will be interesting. Who knows, maybe they will be interested! 

We also had the opportunity to help prepare for the YW's bake sale pie auction to raise money for Girls Camp this summer. It was fun to be involved with the ward and get a jump start on meeting people. Being part of the activity made me realize how sad I am that I was never able to experience Girls Camp. I hope my daughters will have that opportunity. It sounds pretty dang fun. 

The ward is rather old. There are a lot of senior couples, which is quite different from my La Habra ward which was packed with young families. It was weird to experience silence during the sacrament yesterday. Everyone is very friendly and I received a very warm welcome for everyone I met. 

It is neat because I have a senior couple in my district and ward. They come to our correlation meetings and everything. It is nice to have a couple looking out for us and there to support us when we need them. They actually took us out to lunch on Friday which was very sweet of them. They are fun to be around but make me miss my grandparents. 

My zone is huge compared to the Fullerton zone. When we showed up to District meeting on Thursday I though there must be two zones meeting but nope it was all of us together as one. It is nice to have the chance to get to know a lot of new missionaries. I am excited for our first p day activity today. It will be fun to get out and have a little down time. 

As far as the investigators in the area go:

We have the D family. The husband is from Vietnam and the wife is from the Philippines. They have 5 kids (4 girls 1 boy, 3 baptism age). They are very interested in teaching their children about Christ and helping them grow up to have good strong values. We taught them this week. The mom was there but was in and out chasing the little 2 year old around. The oldest daughter (15) and husband were't there either. The 11 year old daughter was very interested and begged her mom that we could come everyday. It was cute. We plan to visit them on Tuesday. We explained to the wife that we would like to teach them as a family and she agreed that that would be a good idea for next time. I see great potential and I am excited to meet with them again this week. 

A is 35 and wheelchair bound. He is currently unemployed and going through a lot of self esteem issues. He opened up to us a lot when we met with him this week. He told us that he has habits that he wants to quit and he wants to start coming to church. I think that the gospel is exactly what Aaron needs and I am hoping he is ready to make the changes necessary for baptism. 

Finally, we have A. I haven't met her yet. She is a teacher and referral from a member. She is progressing well but doesn't want to get baptized until the summer when school is over and things aren't so hectic. We are hoping to help her see the importance of being baptized when you are ready and confident she will make time when she gains that assurance for herself. 

Overall, it's been a good week. I am as happy as I can be and trying my best to stay positive. I know that nothing lasts forever and I just have to fight through and give this transfer my all. 

Oh and Spencer got his mission call and I could not be more thrilled! Warsaw, Poland! September 4th, 2013! I never would have guessed but the Lord needs him there and he is going to rock it! I am so proud of him!!

Thank you for all the prayers on my behalf. I appreciate them more than you know! 

Have a wonderful week! Trust in the Lord. 

Love,

Sister Kimball

April 22, 2013

Hi All,

Well I have officially completed my second transfer and am no longer a 'greeny' (or however you spell it). It is weird to think that I am just a normal missionary now. I get to go out an hour earlier and not worry about training which will be nice. So nothing that I thought was going to happen ended up happening. I am not in La Habra anymore nor am I training. I am now in Costa Mesa in Newport with Sister MI who is from Samoa. She is nice but her English isn't the best and she has a hard time understanding me sometimes. I am sure with a little time all of that will work out. I am dealing with A LOT of change and it is hard. Especially, since I was so sure I was staying in La Habra. The Lord has bigger plans for me. I think I might be transferred to the new mission in July. I say that because there is a good chance I will train next transfer which means I will be in the middle of training when the mission opens officially which means I stay. We will just have to wait and see. Next transfer is the big deciding time. I have mixed feelings about leaving the Anaheim mission for the Irvine mission. I am trying not to worry about it now and just focus on my new area. Oh did I mention I'm now on bike. Ahh. I am so out of shape and terrified but oddly enough excited at the same time. I think Heavenly Father is helping me out with that. I feel like I am a new missionary all over again. I think my first few transfers are going to be rough but I know I have something to learn and they are all inspired. 

It is hard to be away from my old zone, ward, and just area in general. It really did become home. Even though I am struggling again I know that things will get better and Heavenly Father is aware of me. I was worried things would never get better when I first entered the field and they turned out better than I ever could have imagined. It really is all about faith and trust in the Lord. I am reminded of the same principles over and over again. Two elders from my old zone were transferred to my new zone and I know the zone leader and one of the other sisters was in the mtc with me. It is comforting to know that there will be friendly faces around. I can do anything for 6-12 weeks. I am learned that. It's not always easy but when you focus on the people and the work it is possible. 

At transfer meeting this morning the departing missionaries bore their testimonies. It was weird to think that their missions are over. It made me realize that day is closer than I think and I want to make the most of everything. As a missionary you seriously learn so much about yourself. You realize a lot of good and impress yourself but you also start to see a lot of your weaknesses. It is a humbling yet empowering experience. It is hard to explain. 

My last week in La Habra was slow but we met with a lot of people. We did district tracting which was fun as well. I just love being out with other missionaries. It was hard not being able to go to p day activity today with transfers but I got to see a lot of people at transfer meeting which was a blast. I just love the strength I get from seeing Gods army come together. 

I will report more on my new area and how everything is going next week!

Love,

Sister Kimball