May 22, 2017

Well... I don't think I'm in Omaha anymore...

Hi Y'all!! 

 Well, transfers were this week, and something changed! I left Omaha! I am just so grateful for the opportunity that I had to serve in Omaha, and especially the Eagle Run ward! I have learned so much from the people there, and I will be eternally grateful! Eagle Run has a special place in my heart! I absolutely loved it there! Ahhh! Missions are just the best thing ever! Well, now I am in Lincoln, NE! It's the capitol and everyone who serves here calls it the Celestial Land- so it must be pretty good! I am in the Pioneer ward and it is a pretty neat ward! The Elders in this ward are Spanish speaking so it is almost like a Spanish branch as well, they have someone who translates for them and everything!  

With that being said... there is so much work to be done in the Pioneer ward! It is kind of mind blowing! I think in the past the sisters had been visiting with a lot of members and less actives, so it has been pretty rough... But, Sister Bringhurst and I are determined to change that! We have been doing a ton of finding, and we will continue to do so so that we can really get the work going! And we have seen so many miracles that have come of that! We have plans to work more with the members and their member missionary work! It is going to be so good!  

In my studies this past week I was in Alma Chapter 39, and this chapter is obviously talking about the Law of Chastity, but I related it to missionary work and it was actually pretty cool! In verse 1 it says, "And now, my son, I have somewhat more to say unto thee than what I said unto thy brother; for behold, have ye not observed the STEADINESS of thy brother, his FAITHFULNESS, and his DILIGENCE IN KEEPING THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD? Behold, has he not SET A GOOD EXAMPLE FOR THEE?" What I got out of that was I always need to be diligent  in being exactly obedient, and I need to not only be setting a good example for the members that I am serving and my family back home, but I need to be setting a good example for other missionaries as well! Then the next couple of verses talk about how Corianton went about his work and he was relying on his own strength and he was prideful. And in missionary work, there is just no room for pride, you have to be humble and you HAVE to be relying on our savior Jesus Christ. And lastly, verse 4, "Yea, she did steal away the hearts of many; BUT THIS WAS NO EXCUSE FOR THEE, my son. THOU SHOULDST HAVE TENDED TO THE MINISTRY WHEREWITH THOU WAST ENTRUSTED" I just love that, while we are on our missions, all we need to be worrying about is our investigators and the people in our stewardship. We just need to focus on Missionary Work, and helping others come closer to Christ. I don't know if any of that made sense... but in my mind it did! 

This is my address!!

1331 G. St. #309

Lincoln, NE 68508

and the mission office address is 

11027 Martha St.

Omaha, NE 68144

Love, 

Sister Rook 

Transfers!

Sister Monroe and her new companion!

The Guerrero Fam! 

The Mattsons!! 

Sandi... and the Eagle Run Elders! 

I just love Sandi so much!! 

The Gill Fam!! 

The Deleons!! 

Last pic with Sister Monroe!

Generation pic! Sister Monroe is now training a new missionary!

First night together and our dinner was 5 guys! 

This is Joseph- he was brave enough to go finding with us for 2 hours in the rain! 

We picked cross streets to go finding at... and there were no houses to be seen... so five minutes of fun came in! 

My cute companion!! 

Mama Smith!!!

Taking out the new missionaries!! And president Gardner!!! 

Sister Atwater!! 

Sister Solko!

The Meyer Fam!! 

Papa Bruun!!! He cheated and he put his arm around me! It was so weird! haha 

May 15, 2017

Another Week Down!

Hi Y'all! 

This week has been so crazy but so so good! Here are some of my favorite miracles that have happened- they were so evident this week as we were out working!!

1. Every week I mention Katie, but that is because she has so much potential and she is starting to recognize it and live up to it! This past week we have seen her once and we are going to see her tonight as well. She is in so much awe of the gospel and how it has already helped her and how she is changing to live the gospel more fully in her life! By her taking the lessons it has almost started to reactivate her boyfriend. He has been expressing to her that he has more of a desire to come to church and that it would be awesome if he could be apart of the lessons as well! It made us so happy and it really showed me how the gospel can affect anyone no matter who it is. It reminded me of my purpose as a missionary when it says, "Your purpose is to invite others to come unto Christ." It doesn't say nonmembers, it doesn't say less active, or active members, it just says others and that includes every single person!! 

2. Holy Moly, a couple days ago we were trying one of our potential investigators, Daniel. We had an appointment with him but then he cancelled so we were trying him again, and it turns out that his girlfriend Kelsey lives with him. We were able to teach her the message of the Restoration, and she is interested in learning more! It was just awesome to see that both people are not only interested but they are excited to learn more!! So we will be going back later this week to teach them! It was also crazy because every time we have gone to this exact same house we always find another person who is interested in learning more about the gospel- this is the third time that it has happened! 

3. Don. He is crazy prepared. We had a lesson with him and we had brought a team up with us. He hadn't read from the Book of Mormon, so we read with him and committed him to pray to know if it was true. We tried doing it right in the lesson but he said he was uncomfortable praying but that we would definitely pray on his own, and he would pray during the next lesson. But since meeting with us he has really come to know that Heavenly Father has a plan for him no matter what it is, and even though he is going through trials right now, he knows that everything has a reason!! 

4. Lavonda has completely changed since we started meeting with her. At first she was completely closed off, and now she has opened up so much and she is truly coming to understand the gospel. The last lesson we had with her was awesome! She was asking so many questions and she told us it was finally starting to click with her!  We are planning on having a lesson at the Trail Center with her soon so that she can watch a video- that is how she really understands things! 

5. Saturday was insane!! There were so many miracles going on!! We had a lesson with our investigator Michelle Wright. She was taught by missionaries before and her hang up is Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon.  Last time we met with her we committed her to read 3 Nephi 11, and to pray about it. She ended up not doing it... so, we did it with her! As we were reading I kid you not she stopped us right in the middle of a verse and said, "Oh my goodness! This makes sense, so the bible is about people in Jerusalem, and the Book of Mormon is about the people in the Americas,  and it is in the same time period? I never knew that! I NEVER even thought of that! It just makes so much sense!" She then described it as a light bulb going off in her head! We then taught her about the Holy Ghost, and by the end of the lesson she was so excited to read chapter 12! It was an awesome experience!! Also on Saturday, Tracy ended up being baptized!! We found out about 3 days before Saturday and so that gave us enough time to find Sandi a ride to the baptism!! Also, the Elders asked Sister Monroe and I to teach the Restoration there and oh my heck. That was so powerful. The spirit was strong- I don't even have the words to describe it to you other than it was simply incredible. I could just feel the spirit so strongly in my heart, and the investigators that were there said they felt moved. It was a time when my heart was filled with complete joy! I want everyone to be able to feel that same spirit as they are learning from the missionaries and taking the lessons, and going to church.     

In my Studies this week I was in Alma chapter 37, and a couple of verses really stood out to me. Verses 38, 40, and 44, "38 And now, my son, I have somewhat to say concerning the thing which our fathers call a ball, or director—or our fathers called it Liahona, which is, being interpreted, a compass; and the Lord prepared it." When I read this I got to thinking what is my personal Liahona? And I came to the conclusion that it is the advice that I receive from my parents, and other family members. Then I realized while I'm out on a mission I don't always have the advice of my parents, but then I thought, yes I do!! I have a heavenly father who speaks to me ALL THE TIME!! and that is truly my Liahona!! Which leads us to verse 40, "And it did work for them according to their faith in God; therefore, if they had faith to believe that God could cause that those spindles should point the way they should go, behold, it was done; therefore they had this miracle, and also many other miracles wrought by the power of God, day by day." It order for my Liahona to work, I need to be praying with faith! Otherwise I am not going to be able to recognize the advice that Heavenly Father is giving me! And lastly verse 44, "For behold, it is as easy to give heed to the word of Christ, which will point to you a straight course to eternal bliss, as it was for our fathers to give heed to this compass, which would point unto them a straight course to the promised land." As I am listening to my Heavenly Father and the promptings I receive from him I will be led to be able to live with him again, the scriptures are a part of my Liahona, because it is Heavenly Father's advice to all of his children! This week I felt like I was truly able to feast upon the Words of Christ! 

Sorry this was super super long! I just learned so much and I had to tell you all about it! Thank you for all you do for me! I love you!!! 

Love, 

Sister Rook

Monroe Sign, we had to!!

Last District Meeting of the Transfer! 

Taco Johns!!! It is a Nebraska thing... SO good!! 

Tracy and her daughter Abigail!!! 

Pink Lemonade and Lucy left us a message!! 

What Lucy wrote hahaha

Bro DeLeon!! 

His Jehovah Witness Wife!!! I absolutely love her to pieces!! 

Skyping with mi familia! 

May 8, 2017

I think this is week #55 but I'm not too sure! :D

Hi Everyone!! 

Special Shout-out to all the Mom and Future Mama's out there!! Happy Early Mother's Day!! Well, this week has been so good! I feel like some pretty cool miracles have happened this week and I am so excited to tell you all about them!  

1. The first crazy miracle happened on Monday when we were in Walmart. A couple weeks ago we had taught a man named Don. We taught him the Restoration and set up a return appointment, and we got all of his information! We go back for the return appointment and he wasn't home, but his friends were at his house! So we were able to teach them the Restoration instead! They didn't live in our area so we were able to get their information and send the referral! So we kept trying Don the next week and he would never be home so we kinda put him on the back burner and we determined we would try him in a couple of weeks. Well, a month went by and we ended up seeing his friend Hoth, the one we taught at his house, in Walmart! He didn't have time to talk to us but we immediately thought of Don again and how we should go try him! We visited with him the next day and holy moly, talk about perfect timing! He was going through a really hard time, his car had gotten towed, and he didn't have the money to get his car, and he didn't have a way to get to work because of that. We were able to teach him the Restoration on his porch and testify that everyone goes through challenges and hard times but with the gospel it would enable him to improve the quality of his life and he would be able to find the peace and the happiness that he needed in his life right now! It was awesome!! 

2. The Mattson Family!! We saw Sister Mattson (la) this past week and we were able to role-play with her the Restoration. It is so awesome to see the change that has happened in her since we started meeting with her and her family. When we first went over there she was pretty closed off to us and it seemed like she didn't want anything to do with us. Now she has opened up so much and she is thinking a little bit more about religion. When Sister Monroe told her of the First Vision, you could tell she felt something and that she was thinking of the times that she was taught by missionaries! It was pretty cool, and I just know one day she will come back to the church! 

3.   Sandi!!! Sandi is so solid!! She is living the Doctrine of Christ and she feels so happy doing so! We taught her the Plan of Salvation this week, and she just gets it, she knows that it is the true Plan of Happiness! We also reviewed the Word of Wisdom with her (We found out she had been drinking White Tea) And she was so willing to stop drinking it! It is incredible to see the changes that she has been making in her life so she is more willing to live the gospel and to not only learn it! Her baptismal date is May 27th, and she is so excited!! She knows that that is not the end but only the beginning to her journey!! 

4. Katie!! She is part of the Guerrero Family that I think I have mentioned to you. We taught her the Plan of Salvation this week and she felt the spirit so strongly and she just gets it! She is so sincere about wanting to learn more, and she has changed so much since we have been meeting with her as well. She always tells us that when she meets new people she is pretty closed off, but she told us that she just feels so comfortable with us and super peaceful, and also that since she has been meeting with us she isn't as stressed as she usually is! We invited her to be baptized, she said yes... but then she told us that she wouldn't be baptized until a year or two because she wants to get married first. So there's that. But she recognizes the spirit when she is reading the Book of Mormon, or when she is watching a church movie. It just makes my heart so happy hearing that!! 

5. It has been so cool this week as we have gone out finding. Every time we go out we ALWAYS find someone right away and we are able to teach them the Restoration!! Sister Monroe likes finding now! So that is such a miracle by itself! But on this particular day we were trying a potential investigator, Paul, and it turns out Paul's daughter and her boyfriend live there as well. Unfortunately Paul wasn't there, but Danial was! (he is the daughter's boyfriend) And we were able to teach him the Restoration and set him for baptism! It was so awesome! We got all of his info as well, and as we were walking away we got a phone call. We had no idea who it was from but we answered it! Turns out it was a boy named Austin. Austin and Mary (his mom) had just moved here from Chicago, and their friend back in Chicago had been talking to them about the LDS religion!! We invited them to church... they didn't show up, but we are hopefully seeing them this week!! It is so cool because in Zone Conference we talked about the prime age for people to join the church, and Austin fits that category!! He is 17 years old!! We were so happy when we heard that!! It is so incredible what faith can do, and especially when you act on your faith.. you see miracles!! 

I think that's pretty much it! I have been thinking a lot about this scripture that was shared in Zone Conference this past week. Alma 43:45, "Nevertheless, the Nephites were inspired by a better cause, for they were not fighting for monarchy nor power but they were fighting for their homes and their liberties, their wives and their children, and their all, yea, for their rites of worship and their church." I absolutely love this scripture so much!! It just makes me so excited to do missionary work, because I know that the work I am doing is small, but it is still helping Heavenly Father in some little way, and by me serving a mission it is helping my family and even my future family and that thought just makes my heart so happy! I know for me, serving a mission isn't about how many baptisms I can/will have, it is just about helping others come closer to their Savior, Jesus Christ, and being able to feel the joy that comes from doing so.  Well, I think that is about it! Thank you for all the support y'all give me! I love y'all to pieces!!! Have the bestest week ever!! 

Love, 

Sister Rook

Zone Conference!

Omaha Zone and Zone Conference. We were trying to copy the Elders... but only half of the Sister's caught on hahaha

We went with Lucy last Monday to the Lauritzen Gardens! It was so beautiful! In the gardens they have these statues that people make out of Legos, and since Sister Monroe is terrified of butterflies we had to take a pic with one hehe :) 

This is us as ants... haha it was too funny not to!

Us in a fancy looking garden! 

This is the inside of one of the greenhouses. 

Us in front of a HUGE train! 

Our Recent Convert, Scott Warren, got to go to the temple and do Baptisms for the Dead!!! 

Our ice cream shakes afterwards!! 

This is our investigator Lavonda, and one of our returning members Brother Schouveiller. We call him Savage Schou... because he is so sassy!  

May 1, 2017

Pina! .... Colada! Week #54?

Hi y'all. 

It's you're favorite Sister Missionary again. Haha, jussssst kidddding. How has everyone's week been? Mine was pretty darn incredible!! So many miracles happened this week, it was crazy!! Here are just a couple of my favorite that I want to share with you!! 

1. Katie. This miracle all starts with the Guerrero family, and it technically started last transfer. They are an active family in our ward but some of their kids just moved here and they are less active. They have family dinner every Monday night and they love having us come over to join them for their family home evening, in which we prepare the lesson. Just recently their son Gabe (less active) moved here from Texas with his girlfriend Katie. Katie is not a member, but she is just about the cutest human you will ever meet. About 2 weeks ago we had dinner with them, there were active members, less active members, and nonmembers there and we felt prompted to share the message of the Restoration with them. The spirit was so strong as we testified of Christ and how he is the way to find lasting peace in our lives. We could just tell that Katie felt the spirit but we didn't think she was interested at all. After the lesson/dinner we always talk to Sister Guerrero (mom) about what the next step is and how we can better help her and her family. We set up a time to have dinner with their family again, which would've been last Monday, and we had planned on teaching them the Plan of Salvation (we were going to go through all the lessons super slow with them) but on the drive over there we did not feel good about it. So instead we watched the Mormon message, "Mountains to Climb" and we testified that Christ is always there for us no matter who we are or what we are going through. Holy Moly, the spirit was super strong and Katie was tearing up, we had another appointment right after dinner so we didn't have time to talk to Sister Guerrero. Our appointment fell through and we had the strongest impression to drive back and talk to Sister Guerrero. While we were in her driveway Katie came right out and said that she needed to learn more about our message. She said that she felt something and she didn't know what it was.  We explained to her that it was the spirit, and that it was definitely what she felt! She was so excited to meet with us and to learn more!! We had a lesson with her yesterday and she is so prepared! She recognizes that she doesn't have the best relationship with her Heavenly Father and she is working on making that a priority so she does have a better relationship with him. She texted us later that night expressing her gratitude for us taking the time to meet with her, and that she just needs it in her life so much right now!! It was such a happy experience!!

2. Candi. We met with her on Tuesday and we finally were able to teach her the Restoration. When we first got there she was so depressed and so tired but once we started  teaching and we mentioned church and baptism her face lit up! She was so happy and filled with joy and she was so excited!! We set her for May 20th and she is so pumped to be baptized! Since she doesn't have a car we set everything up so she would have a ride to church this Sunday. We were so excited to see her yesterday, then we got a text at about 10:30 yesterday morning from the member that was supposed to pick her up saying that she was sick and she wouldn't be able to pick Candi up. We were pretty sad but next week, she will for sure be there! We are seeing her tomorrow so that will be super fun!! Candi is just the most incredible human that y'all need to meet one day!!  

3. Sandi. She is going through such a hard time right now but she recognizes that Christ is helping her, and that this is God's will for her. Her significant other is moving away to New York, and she refuses to go with him because she recognizes that this is where she needs to be and she knows she needs to be a part of the LDS church. So, they are breaking up after being together for over 9 years. She completely stopped smoking on Friday and she said that it has been so hard but she knows she needs to do it! We went to the Trail Center with her yesterday and it was so powerful being there with her! We committed her to be baptized on May 27th, and she was so happy and so excited and she knows that this is the only way to find true happiness in her life!! Sandi is so prepared, and every time we meet with her she just amazes me even more!!

4. This week we have tried singing in lessons more. We have been incorporating the song, "Gethsemane" into just about all of our lessons and it has been so fun! Y'all know that Sister Rook isn't the best singer... but somehow it has turned out okay! I just love singing so much, so it has been a little miracle for me throughout the week:D  

The subject of my email comes from yesterday while we were with one of our members,  Brother De Leon. He is One of the Most funniest humans I have ever met. Sis Monroe says he is a live version of Nacho Libre.  Yesterday we got on the subject of transfers.... and he told us that Sister Monroe and I could never be split up because we are like an orange.. and if we get split up then there will be a slice of the orange missing, then he nonchalantly added... or whatever fruit you both like best.... And since I LOVE pineapple and sis monroe LOVES coconut we both thought of pina colada. Hehe we thought we were so funny- missionary humor kinda goes down the drain after a while...  

This week in my studies I have been thinking a lot about the Doctrine of Christ, (Faith in Jesus Christ, and in his Atonement, Repentance, Baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End.) and how it has changed me, and how it can eventually change my investigators and the people we are working with  if they start to live it. I came across this verse in my studies today, "Yea, and from that time even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the Holy Ghost." -Alma 36:24.  I feel like this completely describes my mission! At the beginning of my mission I wasn't the best at living the Doctrine of Christ because I wasn't really sure how. But over time I really came to know how to truly live it and ever since then I have become so happy and filled with joy, and that has been my motivating factor! To help others feel of the same joy that I have felt!! So my challenge to y'all this week, is to find a way that works for you to start living the Doctrine of Christ in your life more fully. Whether that is praying to know how you can live it, or making some small changes so that you can live it better! I can promise you that you will be able to experience the same Happiness and Joy that I have felt, and you will be able to recognize the miracles that are happening in your life every single day!! 

Well, I think that is about it for this week!! Thank you for all the support y'all give me! Y'all are the absolute best! I love you all to the moon and back!! 

Love, 

Sister Rook  

Interviews with the President...pointing to some of the baptisms that occurred this year

We had dinner with one of our members, Sister Solko, and our job was to bring rice and beans and cinnamon twists  to dinner. This is us with our Taco Bell. Mexican food just makes my heart happy. #imahispanicpersontrappedinawhitepersonsbody :D 

This is us with our investigator Carrie, and we teamed up with Sister Smith! Sister Smith surprised us and Carrie with donuts. Carrie LOVES donuts! 

Us and our "boyfie's" (boyfriends) Sister Monroe always jokes about how she needs a boyfriend... this is our solution! I always have my scriptures with me, they are literally always in my hands, annnnd so is her water bottle! haha