Chapter 22: Miracle! Kind of:)

Hello Everyone! 

Did you all have a very Merry Christmas?!? I know I certainly did :) Talking with the family was certainly the highlight of my week :). It's amazing how being away for so long really makes you so grateful for your family. I love my family with all my heart and even though we have been apart this holiday season, there is no where else I'd rather be. I know that this small sacrifice I'm making now is hardly anything in comparison to the great sacrifice that HE made for me. I am more than happy to give this time now to help others to be with HIM forever.  Can I just say that I love being a missionary?

So here's a cool story! We finished skyping our families and then we headed over to the Jenkins home for Christmas dinner. All went well and afterwords we headed out to the car. All the sudden Sister Johns realized that she didn't have the phone anymore. We headed back to the Clifford's to try and find it ( wasn't there), then back to the Jenkins ( wasn't there), and then back to the Clifford's to see if it fell in their driveway. Sister Johns pulls out her little her little flashlight and starts shinning it on the street. I call out to her to stop and I point to the sewage grate. It had managed to get wedged in one of the holes! After some careful maneuvering we were able to get it out, no hard to the phone :). You could say that was a huge tender mercy for us!  Awesome way to end the evening :) When we got home we popped in a church movie into our tiny, portable DVD player and made balloon animals ( that's right, we are the coolest missionaries ever now. Thank you Sister Michaelis!)

We got to go caroling at Guardian Angel nursing home this week and it was such a neat experience. Many of these little old people suffer from Alzheimer's or Dementia but to watch the looks on their faces as 20 missionaries walked in the door to sing to them and to talk with each of them, it was priceless. One lady even cried and said that it was just too good :). I love being able to serve Gods children everyday. The young ones as well as the old ones :)

Lets see..... What else... We have been trying to work with a few less actives which has been awesome! One of them said a few weeks ago that she wanted a break from the missionaries but we decided that she could probably use a visit, especially because of the holidays. We were in the perfect place at the perfect time. We think we may be able to start working with her soon! I love it when the spirit prompts us to go somewhere we usually wouldn't. It always ends up just fantastic.

Well.... That's my week for ya! We are turning into a tripan this week so I will have plenty of news next week! I already know Sister Cox but it will be interesting to have two companions! 

Now for my weekly inspirational thought :). I was reading a talk this morning from this last General Conference. I wish I could remember his name but it escapes me right now. In his talk he told a story about how when he was a child his mother would read from the Book of Mormon every day at breakfast. One day he asked his mom why she read to them every day and he said something along the lines of " Well I'm not listening!". She said that President Romney gave a promise that if our families read from the Book of Mormon every day together then no one would be lost and that she wouldn't loose him. That really struck me today. Sure, I don't have children of my own ( maybe someday) but I think this can be applied to each of us. Are we nourishing ourselves with the good word of daily, or are we risking getting lost? I know that as I have studied from the Book of Mormon daily, my testimony has deepened and I have found lasting joy. If anyone is seeking happiness, they will be able to find it within those pages. I promise :)

I love you all! Have a fantastic week! 

Sister Tobler

-- 

Sister Johns and Lindsey

Santa came!!!!

A Christmas Eve tradition, new PJ's.

Chapter 21: Almost Christmas

Hello Everyone!

First off..... MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!! You can bet all of the missionaries are super excited for this weekend :). Gonna be the best Christmas ever. And can you believe that it has already been 5 months? I certainly can't! 

Let me tell you a little about Sister Johns. First off ( and most importantly)... She's from Texas :) From Dallas specifically so you can bet we are "enjoying" this freezing weather here. On average it was between 6 and 10 degrees this week with a few negative temperatures in the evening I heard. We thought we were going to die but it's amazing how we are able to find ways to get out of the cold :). We may not be finding new investigators at the moment ( people all want to wait until after Christmas to meet) but the Less Actives are realizing that they need to get back in the swing of things so we spend lots of time with them! God provides a way to help His children return to Him, and get His missionaries out of the cold :). It's a win win :). 

Let me tell you about a funny experience. We were sitting there doing our weekly planning and we get a call from the Zone Leaders. A member in the area sent a referral for a lady named V____ but funny thing, the address was for Great Clips. That's right. A member was able to talk to his hairdresser about the church and turns out she took discussions and he thought she might be interested in leaning more. but what do you do if you don't have an address or phone number? That's right, missionaries get haircuts :). But I wont let you see it yet :)  You'll just have to wait :) But to end the story, we were able to figure out what ward boundaries she's in and send her off as a referral again to the missionaries out in Pasco. Super fun experience!

Our investigators are all doing really well. Just trekkin' along towards their baptismal dates. G______ was going to be baptized on Saturday but her boyfriend is going out of town and she wants him there so she is possibly pushing it back to right after new years. But she's still gonna do it! I feel so lucky to get to be a part of all these wonderful people's journeys. I feel like I'm not really doing anything because they are so prepared when we find them! They just fall into our paths ready to be baptized. It's just amazing and I feel so humbled.

Yesterday was really crazy. So a little context, we keep tract of our proselyting hours ( how long we've been out working. It's a new thing President is doing) and usually we average about 9 pros. hours a day. Yesterday... 12.5 hours!!! Absolutely crazy! We were out the door but 6:45 and weren't home till 9 and we got one hour for lunch. There was just too much going on to stop! I love days that we are all over the place because I know that we are doing exactly what God want's us to do. We are fulfilling our purpose! But it is really exhausting.... ya.

So we had this great service opportunity this week! It may not seem like much, but we got to help one of the YSA recent converts move this weekend. She's not very good at asking for help but she knew that she couldn't do it alone so we got to help! No one EVER asks the sisters for help so it was fun to run up and down all those stairs ( she lived on the third floor) carrying tons of boxes and pieces up furniture in the 7 degree weather. I know, I'm sure I sound crazy, but I love getting to do service. I know it's what Christ would do if He were here and I love getting to be His hands, even when I spend the next 3 days stiffer than a board :).

I hope y'all can feel my excitement for the work going on here. Don't get me wrong, it's the hardest thing I've ever done, and supporting a companion who has moments where she struggles is hard, but, I know that this work is so important. We are saving souls people! We are working hand in hand with the Savior of all mankind to save our brothers and sisters, to help them return to God. There isn't a better work that we could be doing. Especially this Christmas season, remember why we really celebrate this special time of year. Lately I've been reading Jesus the Christ by Elder Talmage and I thought it was so appropriate that where I ended up in my reading this week was about the birth pf the Savior. The circumstances were so humble, His mother so innocent, that night so Holy. Now we remember Him and His life. All the miracles, the teachings, everything. It all was so important and I feel so lucky to be serving Him, especially this time of year. I love Him and I love His work. 

Merry Christmas Y'all!!!!!

Sister Tobler

-- 

Sister Lindsey Tobler

Kennewick Washington Mission

Chapter 20: Let is snow! Let it snow! Let it snow, and snow and keep snowing...

Hello Everyone!

So transfers are this week. Wanna guess where I'll be??? Drum role please............ I'm staying here in Richland! Woohoo! Sadly though, Sister Evans will be leaving me to head back to East Kennewick. So sad to loose her! When we both woke up this morning we knew it was happening though, and she even knew that she was going to go back to her "baby area"! Too funny :) I'll be receiving Sister Johns on Wednesday which means that I'll be the senior companion. Gulp. Me, the Texan, driving around in the snow. Yikes! I know that God will help me though and that we'll make it everywhere we need to be safely. And until I figure it out I'll be driving SUPER slow :). 

We woke up this morning to a foot of snow on the ground and received orders to stay indoors until further notice. Some missionaries in Kennewick got in a car accident this morning which was pretty scary. We do lots of walking now and accepting rides from members because the roads are so slick. Whats amazing to me though is that seriously, nothing, and I mean NOTHING will stop this work from progressing. God protects His missionaries and will give us the means to help spread the gospel. We were panicking a little this morning wondering if because of the weather we would have to stay indoors all day. If you couldn't tell, that would be torture for a missionary. We have to get out and talk to people!!!! We love it!!

On to some exciting things from this week. So I told you all that we are teaching a gal' named G_____ in the YSA right? So we had a lesson set with her but for some reason she didn't show. While waiting we got a text from a former investigator named S_____ asking if we could meet. Of course we agreed! Now we have two YSA investigators, and they both came to church on Sunday, and they are both on date to be baptized :). You can imagine how much I was beaming there in that pew watching them both sing and partake of the sacrament and feel the healing power that comes with it. So amazing. So G_____ is still preparing to be baptized on December 24th ( she's just got to check with family to be sure they don't have plans) and Sidney is preparing for the 10th of January. She picked this date after lots of prayer and finally feels ready to take that step in her life and I feel so lucky to get to be a part of her journey :). 

I wish I could share some of the funny things that happened this week but I fear they wouldn't sound as funny in writing. They might sound slightly concerning but I promise, their funny :) I'll have to tell you all in person when I get home :) Just remind me to tell you about S_____ and E___ and their trip to jail :). TOO FUNNY! 

We met with a less active this week and it was amazing to see the change in her. We have been meeting with her for a while and she hasn't been active in years due to some health issues that used to keep her from attending. When we saw her on Friday she shared how seeing her mom and seeing us are the ONLY bright spots in her life. I could have burst into tears right there for her. She has had a tough life with her kids and husband and all and I just wanted to wrap her up in the biggest hug ever. We were able to set up another time to visit with her and read from the Book of Mormon together and she got it. She finally figured out how she could apply the scriptures to her life and find strength from their experiences. So neat. It will be and uphill climb, but she can do it. Anyone who wants to return to the fold of God can do it. It wont necessarily be easy but there are so many people there to love and support along the way. Christ is the way to healing and hope and light. Rely on Him and you will be made stronger and better than you ever were before. 

I am so grateful to be a missionary. It is the hardest thing I have ever done. It really is. I have no clue where I am some times. I worry about the future. I worry about our investigators. I worry that maybe I'm not doing enough, but when I lay in bed at night, so incredibly tired, I know that God is pleased with my tiny little bit that I can offer Him. I feel so lucky to get to give my all to Him and His children. It truly is an honor.

I love you all! Till next week! Keep warm!

Sister Tobler

Christmas in the apartment

Kyle's baptism

Lindsey and Sister Evans

Lindsey shoveling snow for the first time ever!!!

Chapter 19: O Holy Night

Hello Everyone!

I can't even believe that another week has come and gone so quickly! Crazy! I swear that it was Monday 2 days ago right??? 

First off, I had the amazing experience of being able to go back to my old area on Saturday for the baptism of K__ S___. Remember him? Super golden man who just soaked up the gospel. I felt so privileged to have been able to head back and be a part of his special day. It's amazing how people change their lives for the gospel and the light that it brings into their eyes. I got to chat with him for a minute after the service and he seemed so much brighter. So cool!!!! Plus it was fun to see Sister Miner again :). But as fun as it was to be back there and see those members who I love with all my heart, I knew that it was good that I was transferred to Richland. Even in the short few weeks that I've been away, I have grown and changed and become an even more confident missionary ( if that's even possible :)). I love this work so much and I will love it probably until the day I die... maybe even longer :)

We got to spend this weekend ushering for an activity that the stake put on this weekend which was super fun! They did a nativity showcase and had nativities from all over the world set up around the building plus a room entirely dedicated to pictures of Christ. So amazing! Walking around, there is no way you could deny that Christ is the center of all that we teach. He is our Savior and Redeemer and there is no way that I could be out here without Him. He is my rock and with Him, I shall never fall. Also, interesting little tidbit about the activity, Sister Evans and I performed in the musical program that was going on during all this :) We threw it together with a member of the ward about 2 days in advance which was a little crazy but it came together beautiful. Only one problem... now the entire stake and zone knows that I sing... Yikes!!!! This should be fun :) At least they aren't aware that I play the piano a little bit... I'm safe for now :). 

So yesterday we had the amazing opportunity to listen to the First Presidency Christmas devotional. Did you all tune into that? SO GOOD! We didn't get to see the whole thing just because it was a crazy day, but I loved it. One thing that stuck out to me ( not sure if it was actually said or if I just thought it because of something that was said) was that because of the Sacrifice on Easter, that night in Bethlehem became holy. Without Christ's suffering and ultimate death for us, it would have been just another night and just another star. But because He came, it's a different sort of day. Families gather together and make new memories, people are kinder to one another, and everyone has a tune humming in their hearts. I love this time of year and I don't think I expected to love it this much as a missionary. Sure it can be hard at times because people are SO busy, but I love that I am set apart to proclaim this joyous news, that Christ came and that because He came, we can return to live with God again as we apply the gospel of Jesus Christ to our lives. I feel so lucky to get to be apart of this great work. 

So a few miracles from this week:

C__. We were knocking doors in an apartment complex and literally either no one was home or they weren't interested. Plus to make the story even greater, it was freezing. May have been raining too if I remember correctly. We stopped him at the top of the stairs and started sharing the message of the Restoration. He said that he's new to being a Christian and would love to learn more and really loves what we do as missionaries. He literally spends his days out singing about Jesus and telling people to become Christian. and he "accepted" Christ less than a year ago. Sounds pretty golden to me :). I'll be excited to see what comes of our appointment with him this week!

Saturday. let's just say that this was our craziest day this week. We had to drive all the way out to Benton City for a zone council and then rush back into town to usher for the stake thing. on our way in we grabbed lunch and as we are getting ready to pay, a member steps up and buys us lunch. So much gratitude!!! Then, the same thing happened at dinner that night! and at lunch today! Members are truly amazing and heaven sent. I am so grateful for strong members of the church who are willing to support missionaries in whatever ways they can, even if it's just buying us a meal because really, it makes our day :).

I love this gospel so much. I am so grateful for all that it is helping me to become. I know that through all the ups and downs, Christ is carrying me. I'm becoming stronger through His grace. I'm being made better. How grateful I am for that babe in Bethlehem who came and gave it all so that I wouldn't have to. I love this gospel and I love you all! Till next week!

Sister Tobler

P.s. Transfers are next week so we will see what happens!!!

-- 

Sister Lindsey Tobler

Kennewick Washington Mission

Working at the nativity as ushers.

They found a cow!

Thanks mom for the December 1st package.

Check out their cute tree.

Richland had their first snow last week.

Brrr!