Letter received 12/10/13 ("Baby it's Cold Outside!"):
Hello from Omaha!
The snow is stuck on the ground and the temperature is 2
degrees today!! It is wonderful being a missionary.
Thank you:
- Danville 2nd youth! i loved the package, and laughed
really hard watching all the "mormon message" skits. how i love you
all. Thanks for your strong examples to me :)
- Family: i wish i would have filmed myself listening
to "Don't save it all for Christmas Day". i don't think i have ever
enjoyed that song more than the first time i listened to it this week. haha.
thank you Dad for sending all of those cd's! it has made such a fun difference!
and thank you for the hand/feet warmers, gloves, slippers, socks, protein
powder... all of it. it was such a fun surprise!
What a humbling week. I am exhausted haha but so happy. I
love when the Lord humbles us because it reminds us of who is really in charge.
I am so grateful to be His servant, and to be able to witness miracles each day
through His guiding hand.
Miracles:
- ah. this one is so cool. So Sister Hamilton and i went on
exchanges several weeks ago (before we were companions) and we met this couple,
Michael and Jessica. I hope you remember them. Michael was a member of the
church and his wife is super religious and awesome. well, we had set up a return
appointment with them, but it fell through. super bummed... anyway, fast
forward to this week. Sister Hamilton and I were praying to know who we should
visit, and we both remembered Michael and Jessica, who we had met when we were
together! so, we decided that we should go try them again. not going to lie, i
was super nervous for some reason. I guess because i had gotten so excited
about them before and then had it fall through. But, we prayed, found strength
and faith, and knocked on their door. and guess what? we saw a miracle. Jessica
talked to us for a good 20 minutes about how she has been thinking a lot about
us, and how she really wants to meet with us! we were able to bear testimony
and help her feel the spirit, and then set up a return appointment for this
week! It was also so awesome because Michael came into the rooom, and he said
"wait, you two are together again? i thought that was just for the
day?" we then told him about transfers and how sister Hamilton is now my
companion, and instantly he goes "well that is no coincidence!" ha.
even HE recognizes the hand of the Lord. it was wonderful, and such an answer
to prayer!
- We had a lesson with mr. Akwani this week, a referral from
an old mission president who served in Omaha. Akwani is from Nigeria, and has a
really strong religious background. but it was so neat to talk to him about the
book of mormon, the prophet joseph smith, and to see his countenance change and
to accept joseph as a prophet. We brought sister weston with us on a team up and
it made all the difference. He is so prepared, and i love him so much. It was a
miracle even just to meet with him, and i know that he truly is the elect... i
can't wait to see him progress.
- On Friday we had a leadership council for all of the STL's
and zone leaders in the mission. it was incredible. i feel so blessed to be
able to serve alongside so many amazing people who have so much faith.. it
strengthens mine.
Exchanges:
Saturday was my first day doing exchanges with the sisters!
ah i was so nervous. ha. i have been on plenty of exchanges, but i was so
nervous for this one. i wanted it to be a great experience for the sister i was
with, along with a learning experience for me. I prayed my guts out that it
would go well, and sure enough, it did!
we saw so many miracles...
- we had lunch with a member of the ward, and while we were
there Michaela (who we have been teaching but who has kind of been dodging us
the past week) called the member to tell her she got a new car and wanting to
show it to her. so, the member, who is SO awesome, invited Michaela to eat
lunch with us right then. Michaela agreed, and came and ate lunch with us. it
was an amazing experience, and i will never forget this member bearing her
testimony so boldly to Michaela about the blessings of the gospel... it was
earth shattering. ha. i was so proud of the member for being 1. so willing to
invite her friend into her home to meet with us and 2. to be unashamed of
bearing her testimony, with no sugar coat, of why she is a member of the
church. it was so cool, and exactly what Michaela needed to get her fire
burning again.
- We had a really neat lesson with a family in our ward, the
Kaisers. We do service for Sister Kaiser quite a bit, who is active, but her
husband is not. We have tried to set up times to come visit their whole family
but it has never worked out until on exchanges! we were able to have a really
great lesson about the plan of salvation with their entire family, and we
invited brother kaiser to share his testimony... it was amazing to see the
light come back to him as he professed of his belief in Christ and how he knows
that this is His church. This truly IS HIS church, and the spirit was so strong
confirming that to me as brother kaiser spoke. it was a miracle.
- we ate dinner at the alldredge family's house. i love
them. they have 8 kids all under the age of 12. they are one of my favorite
families i have met on my mission... haha attached is a photo of them literally
"climbing on the walls".
Sunday:
Sister Hamilton and i spoke in church on Sunday! we
literally had no time to prepare talks until sunday morning before church, so
it was kind of hectic. But it was such a testimony builder for me that when we
are doing what the Lord wants and what He has asked, everything else falls into
place. The spirit was so strong as we spoke, the congregation was silent. It
was one of the most powerful experiences of the spirit speaking through me that
i have ever had. We spoke on how to become more Christ-like, focusing on
chapter 6 in preach my gospel. i know that as we develop christlike attributes,
we truly will be made perfect "IN Him" (Moroni 10:32).
Fun facts:
- mormon.org chat is
miraculous. refer all of your friends there. ha. we were chatting with this man
named Bruno, who was from Cameroon! We were testifying to Him about the
authority to baptize residing in this church (talking about John the Baptist
baptizing Christ..) and he types out:
"Wooh! how i wish i could see you facially. You speak
well."
haha. i love the spirit.
Thank you for your prayers, thank you for your love. Isn't
it the most wonderful time of the year? i am so grateful to have a Savior. I am
so thankful for the sacrifice of the pioneers... it has hit me so hard the past
few weeks, i think just because of how cold it is here. they were the most
incredible people. for example: the missionaries have been warned to dress
super warm because you can get frost bite in this weather just being outside
for 30 minutes. now think about the pioneers who had to LIVE outside for
MONTHS! ahhhh! i am so amazed by them.
One of my favorite pioneers, Amy Porter, said
"The Lord knows my heart, and all that i have is
His"
i feel the same way.
love you! have a wonderful week!
Sister Peterson
Letter Received 12/16/13 ("Come, let us adore Him"):
Surprise!
Because of exchanges this week,
we switched our p-day to monday!
We have had such an amazing
week. Right when you think you don't have the energy to keep going, the Lord
gives you a miracle or two to spark that "flame of faith". He is the
only reason that i am able to be out here, and i am so grateful for His love..
i felt it so strongly this week.
Thank you's:
- the Neal's! i got your
package but haven't opened it yet... i am so excited. you did not need to send
me anything, but it made my day to see your name on a package. how fun. i love
you guys.
So many great things went on
this week, and i am so thankful to be a missionary!
We had the privilege of going
to the Temple this last Friday, and it was exactly what i needed. I love the
Temple. so much. This may sound bad, but it is the only place/time that we get
to take our name tags off and (selfishly) get to feel the spirit that dwells
there while being ourselves. in the temple i am Lauren.. It is so wonderful. I
want to share a sacred experience i had:
I went to the temple with a lot
of questions in mind, looking for answers that i feel i desperately needed. One
of those questions was whether or not i have been a successful missionary...
That may be a silly question, because even i feel very happy with my missionary
work. But it has been weighing on my mind a lot, especially since i hit my half
way mark. I really felt like i needed an answer from the Lord, a recognition
that He truly was proud of the service i have rendered and the person i am
becoming.
As i sat in the Celestial room,
i prayed fervently for an answer, but nothing came. So i prayed harder, and
still.. nothing. I instantly thought that maybe THAT was my answer, and that my
work actually wasn't acceptable! ha looking back on it now, i know that
Heavenly Father would never do that.. but at the time i definitely was feeling
kind of frustrated and anxious to feel of God's overwhelming approval. It was
time to leave, and i continued to search my heart/brain for any sort of
revelation... with no travail.
Sister Hamilton and i decided
to stop by the Trail Center to pick up some things before heading out to
Ralston... "unusually" (no coincidence) we went through the back door
of the Trail Center, through where all the gingerbread houses are. I realized
while down there that i hadnt taken any pictures of my favorite ones, so i
grabbed my camera and decided to snap a few pictures before heading upstairs.
Well, while i was taking a picture of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir gingerbread
house (see attached photo), i feel someone close to me and here them say
"isn't this one awesome?" i turn to look who said that, and by my
total surprise, it was Troy.
When i served in Rockbrook, my
first area, Sister Whittaker and i worked our tails off trying to get Troy back
to church, and his daughter, Ty to be baptized. I love them so much, and it was
such a miracle to see Troy! Well. While catching up with him, he begins to tell
me how he has been meeting with the bishop, has been attending church, and how
he will be baptizing Ty on January 4th, and how he has been praying to have an
opportunity to tell me! ah i am crying even just typing this because that is
SUCH a miracle and it was a literal, physical answer to my prayer. Ty getting
baptized is exactly what i needed. the Lord is so good.
I know that God lives. I KNOW
that He is aware of EVERY one of His children. He cares so much about us, that
He answers our prayers. I am so grateful that He is patient with me. It was a
great testimony builder for me of a few things:
1. The Lord answers our prayers
in His time. I was wanting an answer IN the temple, RIGHT then... but little
did i know He was going to answer my prayer just 5 minutes later. there is no
reason to be impatient with the Lord, because His timing is perfect.
2. Our Heavenly Father knows
the thoughts and intents of our hearts. He knows us better than we know
ourselves. He knows exactly what we need to be happy, hopeful, and He has
provided the way for us to be so.
What a wonderful moment.
Sunday we saw so many miracles
as well. We were able to have 6 less active members at church, along with one
of our investigators, Walt. It was truly a beautiful day, and i know the Lord
has been blessing us so much.
While in gospel principles, one
of our less actives, Terri, raised her hand and started telling the whole class
how "grateful she was for the sister missionaries" and told the class
how after we left her house this week, she realized that she and her husband
were not setting the best example for their son. So, to fix one of the problems
they have been having, they decided to cut out all music/videos that contained
bad language or scenes, and they made a "cuss jar", where every time
they swear they have to put a dollar in. It was such a sweet tender mercy to
see how the spirit has been working in her life... our lesson this week with
her was on faith, but that is what the spirit told her she needed to change. i
love it.
We found 4 new investigators
this week. ha. so fun.
Walt: i love that man so much.
he is progressing a ton, and i cannot wait till that guy is baptized. ha he has
made me study more than any one yet on my mission, so i am grateful to be
working with him. we are teaching him this week about the word of wisdom, so i
am praying with all my heart he is willing to finally stop smoking. i know that
through the Lord's help, he will.
I love this work. i love being
in Omaha, even when it is so cold outside and i feel like my toes are getting
"the black" like the pioneers ha. But i am so thankful for the
spirit, which truly keeps my spirit warm every day.
I adore my Savior. i know that
this is the best time of the year because He lives.
All my love!
Sister Peterson
Pictures from December 10th letter:
