Best Week Yet!!!

Hello!

I am already crying even just typing this letter. what a miraculous, beautiful, crazy week. I am so humbled and thankful to be a missionary, to do the Lord's work. I know without a doubt that it is HIS work. He is in charge, and oh how grateful i am for His continual love and support.

I came on a mission not really knowing what to expect.. actually, i had no idea what i was getting myself into! ha. But i think i did have a few expectations, and things that i wanted to "see" on my mission. The past few months i feel like those "expectations" of sorts have been met, something that i can only owe to my Heavenly Father. Being able to find someone, teach him all of the lessons, and then see him baptized is unlike any other joy i have ever experienced. It is a miraculous feeling. I now truly understand the verse "And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!"

Bill's baptism went perfect. It was a beautiful, snowy Nebraska day, and the spirit couldn't have been stronger as He was baptized. Many of the ward members came to support Bill, and all left in tears as Bill bore a powerful, simple testimony of Joseph Smith and how he knew that he had "found Jesus". While Bill was changing, sister Hamilton and I were able to teach the Restoration, and i think i cried through the whole thing. ha, i RARELY cry since being out here on the mission, but it was almost like the spirit forced it out of me as i recited Joseph's vision. It all hit home as i realized what a sacred, and amazing ordinance baptism really is, and how because of Joseph Smith we have Christ's authority on the earth again. I teach that every day, but i think it "sunk in" on Saturday. Oh, how grateful i am for that power of God. What a beautiful day. i will never forget it.

This whole week has been crazy in every way possible. ha. So many journal entries came from this week! haha.

some fun things:

1. i got a haircut today. finally. (sad that that is fun to a missionary, but honestly i was so excited. it's been a good 8 months since my last haircut!)

2. Our mission is doing an Olympics competition, which includes push ups, sit ups, ladders, jug curl, and stick pole. We have competed in districts, so next will be at zone training, and then the winners will go to zone conference. It was honestly so fun to get a little competitive and win some of the events. I will be competing in the push-ups, sit ups, and ladders this thursday for zone training.. haha. i'll try to send some pics!

So, we got some snow this week! on Tuesday we were on exchanges, and i was out in Fremont with one of the sisters. while we were out there, the snow was pretty crazy, and the sister i was with accidentally dropped the phone in the snow somewhere, and so we went the entire day without a phone. We continued on our day driving to appointments and visiting people, and then drove 45 minutes that night back to Omaha to switch back. Well, come to find out when we got to Ralston that the cars had been "grounded" all day, and so we were supposed to be on foot because of the terrible snow! ha. we had no idea since we lost the phone, and i guess the AP's, ZL's, and the sisters were extremely worried about us all day.. thinking we had crashed somewhere. It was quite the day/event ha. But super fun.

Wednesday, the weather was still crazy, so cars were still grounded. Even though the cars are grounded though, it doesnt mean we still dont do missionary work! ha so sister hamilton and i bundled up, and started walking around Ralston to visit people! ha i honestly thought i was going to die, and everyone who was on the road literally thought we were crazy. It was awesome, and definitely something i will never forget doing. I am so thankful we have a car! man alive. 

We were able to teach a lot of lessons this week, and i really feel like the Lord led us exactly where we needed to be, right when we needed to be there. We were able to contact people that we have been trying for months, and able to get a new investigator named George which was so awesome. His wife is a less active member, and we have been teaching their son who is turning 8 and will be baptized in May. It was so cool to see that because of Joey, the little boy, having the desire to be baptized, this whole family has had a "return to God" experience, wanting to learn more. It is a miracle. I love teaching families.

This week was Leadership Council, and sister Hamilton and i gave part of the training by doing a "role play" helping the missionaries use the members. i realized how awkward i am going to be when i get home, because we were "role playing" with elders, and i honestly couldnt even look at them. i am going to be in deep trouble haha. But it went really well, and the spirit was super strong! 

ha i am so happy. The greatest birthday present i have received is my Savior, Jesus Christ. I am forever grateful for His sacrifice for me so that i can be happy in this life. I know that He lives. 

in Sacrament this week one of the speakers said something i really liked. he said:

"Yesterday's meal won't sustain us through today. We need to be FEASTING on the scriptures EVERY single day". 

I loved that. Our ward is committed to reading the Book of Mormon for 30 minutes every day this month. It is wonderful, and i find so much strength from the Book of Mormon. We are so blessed to have that source of strength.

love you all! Happy Valentine's Day!

Sister Peterson

Lauren is the one in the middle (in the lead!)

 Bill and his wife Jonie on Bill's Baptism day

 Bill on his Baptism day!

Brother Stimpson and Bill

2 letters Jan 27 & Feb 3

Letter from January 27 - "Cut your own firewood. It will warm you twice."

Hey.

Another great week has flown by, and as always i am filled with gratitude today for our savior Jesus Christ, and for His gospel. I have been thinking a lot about agency this past week, and what a beautiful gift that is. I am so thankful that the Lord loves us enough to let us "choose liberty and eternal life... or to choose captivity and death". As a little girl in our ward said as we were talking about this, "I choose ETERNAL LIFE!" i hope we all do. Thankfully, through Jesus Christ, we can all choose eternal life and happiness.

We read the talk "Waiting Upon the Lord: Thy Will Be Done" by Elder Hales in Gospel Principles this week, and i was moved to tears. We have the most merciful Father in Heaven. it really hit me as we were studying this talk, that God already knows what choices we will make. He is all knowing, and all powerful. So the reason we have agency is to, really, prove to ourselves what choices we will make. As we make righteous choices, that is when our will and God's will are aligned and we receive power. My favorite line of the talk is one of the last.. He says:

"May we wait upon Him by PRESSING FORWARD in FAITH".

Waiting upon the Lord is not sitting around, waiting for Him to send us happiness, or an answer to our prayer, or help we are in need of. Waiting upon the Lord is using our agency to follow Christ in faith. Waiting = DOING. what a wonderful concept. I want to wait upon the Lord all the days of my life.

This talk, and the doctrine of agency, have been the theme of all of my experiences this week. Whether in lessons, at the Trail Center, or in my own personal life, i have had my testimony strengthened of Dad's classic saying "you have the choice to ACT or be ACTED UPON". I choose to press forward in faith, or to ACT.

While we were visiting with Walt this week, we talked a lot about the hope that comes from Christ. Hope in the future for both ourselves and for the world. I have seen that time and time again as i have turned towards Christ, interestingly enough, my HOPE has increased. Hope always comes as we turn our focus towards Christ. Walt struggles with the idea of hope, and sadly feels hopeless in all aspects of his life. As he turns to Christ and believes in Him, that is the only way that he will find hope. Because a "brightness of hope" only comes from Christ. Unfortunately, we have our agency to choose who we believe in.. and so it has been quite the process of finding that hope for Walt. But i have perfect hope that He will discover his own testimony of Christ, because Christ truly is our Savior.

Jonathan is progressing and is very in tune with spiritual things. He has been loving reading the Book of Mormon, and finds hope in it's pages. We have met with him twice, and will be meeting with him a third time tonight. I am so excited. I love teaching people who are wanting to learn and change. it is so fun. I know that the Lord sees Jonathan as his child, and i can feel the Lord's guiding hand each time we talk to him. He is so aware of Jonathan, and each of us. As we taught the Plan of Salvation this last week, once again my testimony of agency was strengthened, realizing that God really has a plan for us and wants us to choose to come back to Him. And thankfully He loves us so much that He has given us the step by step process to do so, found in the doctrine of Christ. Hopefully Jonathan will accept to be baptized tonight!

I am so thankful for the scriptures, and for our prophet and the apostles. I know that they are men of God and they really do receive revelation from God for us. We are so blessed, it is overwhelming! I hope we each use our agency righteously to keep God as our number one priority. As we do so, that is when we find true, lasting happiness. 

I love you all! i am so thankful for you!

Sister Peterson

Letter from February 3 - "Make the decision to do what Jesus Christ has asked us to do"

Family! Friends! Loved One's! Everyone in-between!

what a beautiful, snowy day it is in Omaha. Nebraska. The sun is shining, and it is beautifully cold. I never thought i would see the day when i was grateful for snow. But snow = warmer weather and less wind. Hallelujah!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Eddie! Love you so much! I've been thinking about you all week, and am so grateful for you! i have absolutely LOVED hearing about your family party/love notes/memories. You are such a great example to me, and i absolutely love you with all of my heart.

We have seen so many wonderful miracles this week, and i am so grateful to be a missionary!

I have very little time this week to e-mail, so it is going to be super short. sorry.

Miracles:

We met a less active we have been trying to get in touch with for over 3 months! SUCH  a miracle. the greatest part is that we had met her non-member fiance a few weeks ago, and he is so cool and willing to learn. ALSO, their 11 year old daughter is not a member, and we are now teaching her! i have always wanted to teach a family, and so i am so excited! the Lord is so good.

Bill is getting BAPTIZED this saturday! AH i could scream! He has slowly been giving up smoking, which is his main hurdle. He got a blessing this last week, so we are praying so hard that he can make it without smoking this week so he can get baptized. i have total faith that he can. the Lord can do all things! Saturday @ 12 :)

Our investigator Deborah, who i love so much, is doing great. her granddaughters were over at her house this week, and we were able to teach them how to pray! it was the sweetest experience. They each wanted to pray like 6 times ha and their prayers were so sincere and pure. i loved it, and am so grateful to have been there to hear their first prayers to our Heavenly Father. what a tender blessing.

Karla, who we re activated, is almost done with temple prep classes and will be going to the temple in like 2-3 weeks! AH! it is so amazing to see how far she has come. she honestly looks like a different person from when i first met her. She received a calling on sunday, is staying for all three hours of church, and is on her way to receive her endowment. what a beautiful blessing. the gospel changes us.. it is incredible to witness.

This last saturday Sister Cleverly, our director's wife, threw a "birthday brunch" for all of the February birthdays. it was COMPLETELY pink ha and there were hearts everywhere. i love valentines day.. and i think i ate enough for everyone that was there. it was totally fun and excessive. haha.

I love this work. i love the Savior. i am so thankful for him. I love the quote by Elder M. Russell Ballard in the subject line. following the Savior is a lot about our own personal decision to do so. i am so grateful for Him.

love you all! 

Sister Peterson

3 Letters from 12/31/13 to 1/13/14

Dad’s Note: I am finally getting Lauren’s last three letters out.  I, again, apologize for the delay.  I have put the three letters in chronological order with the earliest first and the one that came this week at the bottom.  Note that Lauren’s preparation is now on Monday’s so when you write your letters adjust accordingly.  Lauren also found out that her return date will most likely be the first week of August.

Letter from December 31^st.”… and a Happy New Year”

Hello!

It was so wonderful to be able to talk to you on Christmas! Definitely the highlight of the day. I have the best family... in the world. I can't get over how blessed i am to have such amazing support and love all around me. i was so overwhelmed with the spirit of gratitude this Christmas, it truly was the most wonderful day.

I want to thank each of you who sent me gifts! holy cow, i am so thankful, and know that i loved everything that i received! everything fits (maybe not now after i have eaten all of the christmas candy! haha) and i am so grateful for the time put into each present. thank you thank you. i love you all so much. thanks for making my Christmas special!

This truly was one of the most beautiful, wonderful, amazing Christmas's i have ever had. The peace that filled my heart the entire season is indescribable. To know that i am here, serving the Lord has been the greatest gift. I am so thankful to be a missionary.

We had an absolutely incredible week. 

We have been teaching this man named Bill for about 2 weeks now. We met him while we were over at a less active members home, and Bill came over because he had heard we were there and wanted to meet us. He is SO prepared, and the first time we met him he had so many "golden" questions, i couldn't wait to start teaching him.

well, this week we went on two exchanges, back to back, so i was absolutely exhausted ha. but they were amazing, and so miracle-packed. I was out of Ralston in a different area, but sister Hamilton was in Ralston and they set Bill for baptism! I had brought up baptism with him the first time we met, and he was excited but anxious about it. so on exchanges, sister hamilton and her companion for the night were able to have dinner with members and have Bill come, and then address concerns and set him. He is getting baptized February 8 :) so incredible. He came to church on Sunday, and while we were in gospel principles this is what he said:

"We are made in the image of God, so we naturally seek truth. There is a lot of falsehood in the world trying to pull people down, but the other day when i met these two sisters (sister hamilton and i) i felt Jesus. I know that this is Christ's church".

ah!!! isn't that incredible?! he is absolutely amazing, wants to learn, and has been diligently searching the Book of Mormon. He is a miracle.

That same night that Sister Hamilton and her companion for the night set Bill for baptism, i was serving in the Walnut Creek (i know.. funny..) branch with sister Whipple! She is my "grandbaby" in the mission (sister palmer trained her). We saw SOOOO many miracles, and were able to set one of their investigators for baptism as well! ha it was a miraculous night. This woman, named Kathy, she had been invited to a church activity, and was so blown away while there at how friendly everyone was. She couldnt get over it, and it sparked her interest. she came to church the next day, and loved it. So sister whipple and i went over while on exchanges to basically follow up with church, and see if we could start teaching her. Well, that visit ended up with her being set for baptism! ha it was awesome. missionary work is so fun!

I also was able to go on exchanges with another set of sisters who are serving out in Fremont, Nebraska. I got to go there for the day, and it was such a tender mercy.. it brought me back to serving in Glenwood. Such a small town, where the people are so humble and willing to talk about Christ. i loved it. we topped the weekend off with dairy queen soft serve dipped cones (thought of you dad). it was so humbling to see the Lord truly working through us, and leading us to people who are prepared. there ARE people out there who are prepared! it is our job to "beckon them" (1 Nephi 8)

One of the highlights of the week was receiving a package on Christmas from a woman named Cathy. Several weeks ago when sister Barton and i were companions, we saw Cathy raking her leaves outside her house. We had felt inspired to bring our service clothes that day, and when we saw her all by herself, we knew we needed to jump out and help. We did so, had a lot of fun, and then left her with our number. We never heard from her, so we went back a week or two later and brought her an invitation to the gingerbread festival. She was SO kind, and her heart had been softened. she told us that we could even come back and visit her/share a thought about Christ with her :) we were stoked. Well, transfers came, and life just got hectic ha. Come Christmas, i get a call from Sister Weston, saying that Sister Barton and i received a package that was sent to her home. I had NO idea who it could have come from, and was SHOCKED to see it was from Cathy! She send us a package of apples and pears and chocolate, just to thank us for helping her with her yard! it was SO sweet, and was such a testimony builder to me of how even a little service can go a long way. I am so grateful for the spirit, and how it can lead us to those who are being prepared, and those who are in need of the "master's touch".

I cannot believe that it is the end of 2013. It has been the best year of my life. i am so thankful to be on a mission, to be serving the Lord and His children. What a life.

2014 will be even better. Let's do this!

Anne, Happy 17th! i hope you got my card :) i love you, am SO proud of you, and i feel so blessed to have you as my sister!

All my love and more,

Sister Peterson

Letter from January 7, 2014 “Mormonism is the joy of my heart.  It is my love, my jewel!”

Hello!

hahaha.

the weather... 

Some fun Facts:

- it was -38 (including wind chill) yesterday. THANKFULLY i served at the trail center all day! tender mercy.

- yesterday morning our car wouldnt start because it was so cold! we had to call our mission "car guy" and he came out to jump it in - 11 degree weather. bless his soul.

- frost bite is a real thing.. who wouldve thought. you can get frost bite here in less than 15 minutes with any exposed skin outside. i am staying bundled up!

- If you throw boiling water up in the air when it is negative degree weather, it looks super awesome (see attached photos)

This week has been absolutely wonderful. The Lord is so good to me, i can hardly stand it. i am so thankful to be on a mission, even here in freezing cold Omaha. it is so great.

The Miracles:

- we are teaching a woman named Deborah right now, who is so awesome! She lives in a lower end part of the ward, and she is just so humble and willing to learn. i love it. We have taught her a few times, and this last time we taught her we were able to set her for baptism! She is getting baptized on February 22. I just love the spirit so much... it was so cool, because going into the lesson sister Hamilton and i planned to only set her for baptism if the spirit was right. Well, the spirit was "right" and the words literally just came out of me. i was planning on saying something different, but right as i opened my mouth i was saying something totally different than what i intended to, and asked her to be baptized! ha it was so awesome. She is so willing to change her life, and come closer to Christ. I love her.

- Another one of our investigators, Bill, came to church again this week, but this time brought his wife! It was fast and testimony meeting, and they really felt the spirit as the testimonies were born. It was so neat because that morning Bill had called us to say he couldnt come to church because it was so cold. I was able to talk to him and challenged him to pray and ask God what He wanted him to do, and then to call us back. So, 20 minutes later we get a call from Bill who said "well, i am coming to church today. and my wife is coming with me". haha. the spirit is so awesome, and i am so grateful they came. what was even cooler was President Weston was the first person to bear his testimony, and as he was doing so he said "i just want to let all of you know that you made the right choice to come to church today, even though it is freezing outside and you probably wanted to stay home. The spirit has confirmed to me that the Lord is extremely pleased with your decision" !!! totally inspired and exactly what Bill needed to hear. Such a wonderful day.

- On Saturday i was able to attend Ty's baptism! She is the little girl i taught in my first area. the spirit was so amazing as i watched her less active (now active!) father, Troy, baptize her. I will never forget it. I cant get over how the gospel LITERALLY changes people. I didnt even recognize Troy.. he has become a new person, and i am so proud of him. It was a beautiful experience and i am so grateful i was able to attend.

Other:

This week is transfers... can you believe it? it is so crazy to think that another transfer has gone by. I am so grateful to be serving in Ralston with Sister Hamilton. it has been wonderful. a very difficult transfer with a lot of business and emotions ha, whatever that means, but we have been so blessed because of it. I love being here.

Since the trail center has been slow, i have had a ton of time to study! it is such an amazing blessing. Right now, along with the scriptures of course, i am studying and reading a book called "Did You Know?". it is all about different pioneer individuals and who they are, and what made them so important. i have absolutely LOVED every page and story and find myself day dreaming about the pioneers. i know.. it is so weird. ha. But i am so grateful for the legacy these people left us! here are a few of my favorite quotes of those i have studied about:

Heber C. Kimball: 

"Mormonism is the pride of my heart. It is my love, my jewel."

"When i went into the water of baptism i made a covenant i would forsake the world with all that pertains to it, and cleave unto the Lord God with all my heart all my days. This is the covenant that i made, to turn away from the world. That is the covenant you made, or the one you should have made. Now, will you fulfill it?"

John Taylor:

"What did Jesus come to teach? To teach men how to be happy. He came to teach men how to provide for themselves in this world and in the world to come. He taught them the true science of human happiness"

I love this gospel! i am so grateful for it! 

Love you all! make it a great week :)

Sister Peterson

Letter from today, January 13, 2014 “Hallelujah”

Hello!

Hallelujah i am still in Ralston with Sister Hamilton! such a blessing. This is my 4th transfer in Ralston, and i absolutely love it so much. i am so grateful to have this transfer to start harvesting what we have been sowing for the past 4 1/2 months! it is so fun as well to be able to start a transfer off running... literally sprinting. we have seen SOOOO many miracles this last week, the Lord has been so good to us. but then again, what's new? He is always so good.

I have so much to say. so many miracles.

1. I went on exchanges this week with the spanish speaking sisters here in Omaha. haha. talk about the most humbling exchange/experience i have ever had. I was in Omaha with Hermana Kennion, and the day felt like i was down in mexico! not one word of english was spoken in any lesson, haha so i literally had to rely on the spirit like no other. But it was so amazing, and thank goodness i took 3 years of spanish so i could kind of pick up some words, because i was able to flip to scriptures while Hma Kennion was teaching, and then have the investigator read a scripture to go along with what she was teaching. ha i had to have total confidence and trust that the spirit was guiding me to scriptures to do with the lesson, and it totally worked. The spirit does not have a language. it can speak to everyone, even if we cant communicate with our words. it was so fun.

2. One of the less active members we have been working with since i got into the area a few months ago FINALLY came to church on sunday! it was so awesome! she stayed for all three hours, and absolutely loved it. The ward enveloped her with love, and she has made it a goal to continue coming because her work schedule changed. such a miracle. It is a perfect example of how when we study behavior, most likely our behavior wont change. But when we study and apply the doctrine of the gospel, our behavior changes. It has changed her, and now she is wanting to come to church. love it.

3. Man alive so many people to catch up on. here is a one liner for each of them:

- Walt: he is not getting baptized on the 23rd. such a bummer.. he is still progressing but cant stop smoking. his goal now is to stop smoking on the 23rd so he can get baptized after that. pray for him, he is my favorite person. i love him.

- Bill: still set for baptism on February 8th.. hopefully we can baptize him sooner. has to stop smoking as well, but i totally think he can do it. He has come to church the past 3 weeks, and is SO prepared to be a member of the church. he throws out words like "atonement" and "gospel" and wanting to "align his will with God" all the time. so cool. so miraculous.

- Deborah: the woman we set for baptism last week. well, we went over this week and found out she is in the hospital. we havent been able to see her since, but she is still set for baptism on february 8th as well. 

- Debbie: AHH this is SO COOL. so there is this woman named debbie that we met several months ago. she is a former investigator, and is so solid. she knows the church is true, but is scared to tell her husband she wants to be baptized. well a couple of days ago we had about 30 minutes left till we needed to be home for the night, so we prayed to know where we should go. Debbie popped into my head. Sister Hamilton hadnt met her yet, so we went over there. before we even reached the door Debbie opened it and let us right in! we have been having such a hard time contacting her that it was a total miracle. we were able to teach her about the restoration, and rekindle her fire to want to learn. we were able to set her for baptism on March 8th, so that is the plan! she is SO awesome and totally prepared. i love the spirit so much.

Angela and Jonathan: Angela and Jonathan are not related at all, but i put them together because their story is about the same! they both live with members of our ward, and we have talked to them many times but never have taught them. well, this week we were able to set up appointments with both of them to actually teach them! 2 new investigators, and they are so amazing. 

didnt i tell you the Lord has been so good to us? and seriously that is only a FEW highlights of the week. i am so eternally grateful to be serving a mission. it is so FUN!! i am so grateful to be 

here in Nebraska. it has been warmer the past few days which has been a God-send. ha.

the church is true. the Book of Mormon is the word of God. i am so thankful to be able to read it every day. 

all my love and more!

Sister Peterson

Many are Cold, few are Frozen

Merry Christmas EVE!!

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year, and it is the MOST wonderful time to be a missionary! i am so grateful to be serving our Savior, Jesus Christ. It is the greatest blessing and gift.

I have been so over joyed the past few days. i love Christmas! i love that it is 2 degrees outside and that people are willing to talk about Christ. I love how amazing the ward and members are in Ralston. we have received countless packages, gifts, food, love... it is so amazing. i feel so blessed to be serving among such wonderful people. I am also so grateful for the family and friends i have! every day i have gotten something in the mail... i cant thank you enough for all the love. it is so humbling. thank you.

Christmas Miracles:

- The Lakes came in to the trail center! Daniel, Sister Lake, Desmond, and Carlton were all there, and it was the biggest surprise ever and the most joyous reunion. Daniel was going around to everyone she saw and telling them that i baptized her! haha she has grown up so much, and she is still doing so well. it was truly a miracle and a blessing to see her and her family. i love them so much.

- the Saufley's also came into the trail center to see me! it was ALSO such a great reunion, and it felt like seeing family. i love them.

- i finished the Book of Mormon a day or two ago. and let me tell ya. that book is the greatest book i have ever read.. it beats harry potter. i am so grateful to have the book of mormon, and i KNOW that is is true. it was so neat to pray once more about the book of mormon, and once again the feeling of peace and joy that filled my heart as i did so was undeniable. It being Joseph Smith's birthday yesterday (merry smithmas!), i have been thinking a lot about him and about his great life. i know that he was a prophet of God... like Elder Holland said " No wicked man could write such a book as this; and no good man would write it, unless it were true and he were commanded of God to do so". 

- the Trail Center has been playing Mr. Kreuger's christmas the past week, and it has brought tears to my eyes watching it and thinking about the memories associated with it. what a beautiful film.

We had our Christmas zone conference this week, and it was absolutely incredible. It was completely centered on the atonement of Jesus Christ. i was so touched as i listened to the various trainings and musical numbers, all centered on the REAL reason that we celebrate Christmas. it is because of the savior. it is because of His sacrifice, love, atonement, and resurrection. He is the way, the truth, and the light and i am so so so thankful for Him. 

I was asked to share my thoughts on the atonement/testimony at zone conference, and i was really nervous. i was also asked to sing, so that didnt help the nerves! but i just prayed and asked God for strength and to say what He wanted me to say. the song went really well, i sang the really pretty rendition of Abide with Me. i then got up to speak, and instantly the spirit told me that i needed to share the story about scratching the tacoma! haha. i argued with the spirit for a while, and then decided to share my experience. talk about embarrassing! but at the same time, it was a perfect connection to the atonement, and how only through christ can our "scratches" come off. i think it went really well, so i was grateful for the spirit's guidance :)

This week we went on two exchanges, which was exhausting! but, so good. on our first exchange, we met this man named Jebediah. he was just walking down the street and so i told the sister i was with we needed to go talk to him. as we approached him, he instantly knew who we were and we had a great discussion about Christ and how the gospel can change his life. right as we said that, he looked heaven ward and said "hold up... i need to talk to Jesus because i think you are the answer to my prayer". He gladly gave us his information and we set up an appointment for later on in the week. 

.... well, that friday we were on exchanges AGAIN, and we went and taught Jebediah! it was SOOOOO COOL! He has met with missionaries off and on his whole life, and he told us he feels like God is trying to tell him something by sending us to him all the time. he said that before he met us, he had been praying that morning for the Lord to send him something that would change his life and improve his situation. he also asked that he would send him "women" missionaries instead of boys... haha, and guess what? we met him that very day. no coincidences! it truly was miraculous and strengthened my faith so much on how important it is to follow the spirit. unfortunately jebediah is not in our area, so we have to give him to another set of missionaries, but it was still so incredible. He is so cool, ha and he rapped for us a couple raps he wrote about christ. they were surprisingly really good ha.

i am running out of time! ah! but guess what? we get to talk tomorrow so it's all good! i cannot wait. we get to talk for 30-40 minutes, so it should be wonderful :) 

i love this work, and i am so thankful it is christmas time. i love Christ.

love you all! Merry Christmas! i'll be listening to Oh Holy Night tonight, eating banana cream pie, and sleeping at the Trail Center! (literally.. in the trail center.. haha it should be so much fun)

Talk to you tomorrow!

Sister Lar

Letters from 12/10 & 12/16

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:

O Come All Ye Faithful

Hello from Omaha!

What a wonderful, humbling, beautiful week. 

It was transfers this week, and thankfully i am still serving in Ralston La Vista! i absolutely love this ward, and i have found friends here that i know i will have forever. it is wonderful. 

I do, however, have a new companion. It was definitely unexpected, and i was super sad to have sister Barton leave, but i am so incredibly grateful to now be serving with Sister Hamilton. She has been out a transfer longer than i have, she is from Layton Utah, and is one of the most amazing missionaries in the mission. i feel so honored to serve with her, i dont know how i got so lucky! 

We are both now serving as the sister training leaders for the fully proselyting sisters, which is a huge, humbling, overwhelming responsibility. I am so grateful that the Lord trusts me, even when i feel so weak. I cannot wait to learn from the sisters i will be serving, and i know i will learn a LOT this transfer! sharp rocks at the bottom? bring it on :)

Thank you grandma Bonnie for the package! i hung grandpa's bicycle ornament on our tree at the trail center, so i get to look at every day :) it is a little piece of home that only i know about... ha it is wonderful! thank you again. and i put the fuzzy socks on right as i opened the package! they are perfect!! love you!

This was a great week, and i loved Thanksgiving!

We had lunch with that referral, Laura, that i told you about last week. She is a hoot. We laughed and talked and ate for a few hours, and i loved hearing her crazy stories. She is a friend of the Saufley's, and it is amazing to see what a huge influence there example has played on her life. Just through their membership in the church, Laura has totally dived in to learning all that she can about the church... and it is all because she respects the Saufley's so much, and "wonders" why they are so happy! We, as members of the church, are always being watched by others, and i am so grateful for those faithful members that leave such a great impact on others lives! 

We had dinner with Latoya (non-member), her mother Elaine (member), and Latoya's three boys. They are from Georgia, and man. did we eat good! haha i have never seen so much food in my life. it was so much fun.. and it was a miracle. It has been so amazing to see how open Latoya has gotten, and how comfortable she now is with us and the church. She still isnt ready to completely jump in, but she is definitely a lot closer than she was a few months ago! i love seeing little baby steps of progress. i know she will eventually join, and it is fun to help her start out her journey to do so. her son, Lamont, who by the way has been attending seminary every day!, came to church on sunday! MIRACLE. i almost cried. great things are happening in their family.

So this week i have been thinking a lot about the pioneers. i think about them all the time, haha but ESPECIALLY this week. we had an incredible training on Saturday, where we were taken "on tour" around the gallery at the Trail Center by some of the sisters/senior couples. Something stuck out to me so strongly, and i wanted to share with you what i learned:

We were standing by the handcart, and Elder and Sister Williams were giving this part of the tour. They talked about the pioneers walking through the snow, barefoot, during the Christmas season. and it hit me SO hard that these pioneers didnt have anything. They didnt have shoes, coats, hats, gloves, sweatshirts, their families!.. ANYTHING. All that they had were their testimonies of the Savior, Jesus Christ. what were they thinking about that Christmas? were they thinking about the newest and greatest gadget they wanted? were they thinking about how many gifts they would receive? no. Their thoughts were solely on the Savior. They knew the real meaning of Christmas. they knew it so well that they were willing to DIE for the greatest gift we have ever received.. the Savior's gift of the atonement. I want to be like the pioneer's this Christmas. I hope you all can join with me, as we celebrate the true reason for the season.

there is my soap box for you. ha.

The past few weeks have been so wonderful at the Trail Center! there have been so many non members that have come in to see the gingerbread, and then have come upstairs to take a tour! i have seen countless miracles.. it is so exciting! 

i took a tour just a few days ago with a couple, who were members, and they had brought another couple, who were not members (yet... the woman is getting baptized this saturday). It was amazing to see that 1. this member couple were being such great missionaries! and 2. that the non member couple were so touched by the pioneers story, that they left crying. i absolutely love to see that the influence of the pioneers can bless so many lives, and that one life can change the lives of hundreds! Just sharing the sacrifices of say Amy Porter, a pioneer mother who died at Winter Quarters, can bring the spirit strong enough to inspire someone to be baptized. ah. i love the pioneers. and i feel so blessed to serve at the Trail Center.

I love you all! I know that Christ lives, and i know that this is His church.. His ONLY church that has His authority and priesthood.

see a wonderful week this week!

Sister Peterson

Here are some fun pics :) Happy 9 months pregnant pictures! haha