Ever-lovin' in the Evergreen State: Chapter 15: Trust in the Lord with all thine heart...

Hello Everyone!

First off..... I'VE BEEN TRANSFERRED! How nutty is that?!? I'll be the first to admit that I am very sad to leave the people that I have met here but I know that God has a plan for me. I know that there are lives that He needs me to touch and by golly I'm going to go and serve with all of my might :). Have I kept you in suspense long enough? I am being transferred to Richland WA! I'll be serving in a YSA ward as well as the Candy Mountain ward ( Yes that's the name of the ward and I'm kinda loving it :)). In the words of Sister Miner, "This just means that you get to love more people." and in the words of Nephi, " I will go and do the things that the Lord has commanded." I'm so grateful that God trusts me to help the work progress in another area and I can't wait to meet all of the people there!

So onto the work! We have been working our little tails off! We found 4 new people to teach this week and they are just incredible. When we met F____, I'll admit that I didn't think she was interested. She shut down a little bit after she said she was a baptist and not interested in looking for a different church. Sister Miner jumped into the restoration and I had no clue how far she was planning on going with it. 20 minutes later we are still there on her doorstep and I'm sharing the first vision and she accepts a copy of the Book of Mormon and says, "so how does this work? do I give you my phone number and can you come back on Tuesday?" We had to try to keep our jaws from dropping to the floor! She is so elect and prepared to receive the gospel! So amazing!

Another lady we met, T_____. So we also met her husband, S______, and they are from Texas ( my sweet love :)). Yes they have a very thick southern accent that I just love ( Sister Miner and I may have spent the next hour speaking in southern accents wondering if we were convincing at all :)). We taught her the first lesson and when we started talking about baptism she said that more people should take baptism more seriously. Right off the bat she accepted a baptismal date of December 10th :) I can't wait to hear more of how she progresses with her family.

So another fun thing ( kinda sorta missionary work related), this missionary choir that I have been put in charge of... It's amazing!!! It is so powerful to stand in front of 50 missionaries and direct them in songs of missionary work. A few of the elders and sisters had some really good suggestions too so it sounds just incredible. One of the elders from my zone ( who turns out is very musical) came up to me afterwords and said that he has been in some very dull choir rehearsals and really appreciated how I made it fun and light to practice for 2 hours. It was nice to hear that :). Nice to know I'm choosing a good career post mission :).

I love this work so much and I can truly say that. It is the hardest thing I've ever done. The idea of leaving Kennewick and Sister Miner and all of the members I've come to love here scares me a little, but God is giving me the increase that I need to press forward in faith. This morning I was studying Joseph Smith's account in Liberty Jail ( D&C 121 & 122). If anyone had to show faith in God in the midst of adversity, it was Joseph. For those who aren't super familiar with the story, Joseph and a few other church leaders were thrown into Liberty Jail which was a little room that was about 6x6x6. They stayed there for a very long time under terrible conditions. During this trial Joseph cried out wondering where God was amidst all this heartache. Joseph was told to have peace and that these afflictions would be for but a small moment ( I'm paraphrasing of course). I have no clue what is coming my way. The opposition we face daily is very real. Satan wants to keep this work from progressing and if he can "get to" the missionaries or make the members believe that they can't talk about what they believe because its not "PC", then he has won. We can't let him win. Have faith that God will carry you through the ups and the downs. Put your trust in Him and you will have the strength to bear whatever is put before you. I know that I have seen that as I have relied on Him.

I love you all so much and thank you for all of your prayers. I promise that I feel them :). Y'all keep me going :) I love you will all my heart and keep praying for missionary experieces! God will put people in your path!!!

Hugs!!! ( only for the sisters :))

Sister Tobler

P.S. I think next week I'll be emailing on Tuesday because of a Mission Conference so don't be looking for anything on Monday!