Querida Familia y Amigos,
We had a very sister-missionary experience this week. One of the members of our ward got married this week to someone who speaks Spanish as his first language and is one of our investigators. For our service hours for the week they asked if we would go and set-up the decorations for the wedding (iron tablecloths, arrange flowers, tie bows to chairs). We happily did it but laughed because I don't think elders would ever be asked to do something like that.
Elder Kikuchi challenged us to contact 80 people a day. We really struggled this week because we're trying to find 80 people who speak Spanish in one day in a big city where they are all spread out. But we love the challenge and we are having to be more and more creative. On Saturday one English-speaking member told us about some elementary schools that have high Spanish-speaking populations so we know what neighborhoods have Spanish-speakers. We had a dinner appointment on Sunday and the couple told us about some other places we might consider going. It is nice to see all the members pulling together to help us out in the work!
The Relief Society broadcast was great, wasn't it? We were on exchanges that day so Hermana Probst and I went to the stake center and watched it in the Spanish rooms with four other sisters. We don't have a lot of active Spanish-speaking members here in Federal Way but we love working with them. There is a really good feeling in the group.
We were blessed with a miracle on Sunday! Another one of our members, from Peru, just got married two weeks ago to someone who is not a member. She has not been interested in the church and didn't attend with him for the last few weeks. This week he gave a talk and she came to support him! He also brought his younger brother that had been going to church with him, but when he got married and moved out, his brother stopped coming. We had been so disappointed on Saturday because it looked like all of our investigators weren't going to come to church and this happened. We were so thankful.
I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and that we are all privileged to be a part of His work on the earth today!
Con amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Fotos
+and+their+uncle+Salvador+after+the+luau-740970.JPG)
1) All of the missionaries at a Spanish meeting
2)A beautiful sunset over the Puget Sound
3) Sanchez girls (they were baptized last year)
Me quedo en Federal Way -- Parte 2
Querida Familia y Amigos,
Last night Hermana Melton and I were able to have a Noche de Hogar (Family Home Evening) in the bishop's house with a few of our investigators. I love this investigator family. The mom is so sweet and a little bit shy. She has twin daughters who are twelve and then an almost-two-year-old. The girls have been going to Young Women's and they really enjoy it. We were able to watch "Finding Faith in Christ" and talk about the importance of following Jesus Christ and we are trying to motivate the family to really do their reading because some read and others don't.
I also wanted to share a story that Sister Larkin shared at the meeting yesterday. She talked about when she was Young Women's President and she had a neighbor who lived across the street named Jody who was young woman age but not a member of the church. One day they were having an activity at her house and she saw Jody standing out side in her front yard. She felt like they should invite her but decided to wait until the young women showed up and to ask them to do it. The young women arrived and told Sister Larkin that it was a bad idea and that Jody was not the type of girl that would like young women's and she would probably say no so they shouldn't invite her. They convinced Sister Larkin so no one invited her. Then two years later, Jody knocked on her door and said that she was graduating from high school and that she had always seen the Larkins and that she loved the way their family was and the respect that they had for each other and that she had always seen the activities they had there and that they were so clean and fun and that she always wished she could go. She asked how she could be like them and ended up being taught in their home and joining the church. This was a good story about how we need to follow the promptings of the spirit and the importance of always inviting others to come unto Christ (missionary or not).
So family (and friends), I would love to hear about your missionary experiences (whether people accept or not). It just gives me so much motivation as a missionary to hear about all of your member-missionary experiences.
I love you all so much!
Con muchisimo amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
Last night Hermana Melton and I were able to have a Noche de Hogar (Family Home Evening) in the bishop's house with a few of our investigators. I love this investigator family. The mom is so sweet and a little bit shy. She has twin daughters who are twelve and then an almost-two-year-old. The girls have been going to Young Women's and they really enjoy it. We were able to watch "Finding Faith in Christ" and talk about the importance of following Jesus Christ and we are trying to motivate the family to really do their reading because some read and others don't.
I also wanted to share a story that Sister Larkin shared at the meeting yesterday. She talked about when she was Young Women's President and she had a neighbor who lived across the street named Jody who was young woman age but not a member of the church. One day they were having an activity at her house and she saw Jody standing out side in her front yard. She felt like they should invite her but decided to wait until the young women showed up and to ask them to do it. The young women arrived and told Sister Larkin that it was a bad idea and that Jody was not the type of girl that would like young women's and she would probably say no so they shouldn't invite her. They convinced Sister Larkin so no one invited her. Then two years later, Jody knocked on her door and said that she was graduating from high school and that she had always seen the Larkins and that she loved the way their family was and the respect that they had for each other and that she had always seen the activities they had there and that they were so clean and fun and that she always wished she could go. She asked how she could be like them and ended up being taught in their home and joining the church. This was a good story about how we need to follow the promptings of the spirit and the importance of always inviting others to come unto Christ (missionary or not).
So family (and friends), I would love to hear about your missionary experiences (whether people accept or not). It just gives me so much motivation as a missionary to hear about all of your member-missionary experiences.
I love you all so much!
Con muchisimo amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
Me quedo en Federal Way
Querida Familia y Amigos,
I wasn't transferred so I will be here in Federal Way for at least 6 more weeks. We had exchanges this week and I was able to be with Hermana Hoskins again. She goes home at the end of next transfer. I can't believe it! It was nice to teach with her again because it just reminded me of the beginning of my mission.
Elder Kikuchi came to speak to the mission yesterday it was amazing. This was the first time since I've been here that our whole mission has been together in one room and it was great to see missionaries that I had served with before and how we've all grown so much. I was able to sing while Sister Fillmore played I Know That My Redeemer Lives as the special musical number. First we heard from President Larkin and he talked to us about following the Spirit and about setting goals with the Spirit and about never giving up on our goals but having faith that we can complete them. He shared some personal experiences from his mission in Japan. It is kind of neat because when he was in the MTC learning Japanese Elder Kikuchi was called to be the first Japanese-native general authority and he came to the MTC to speak to all of the missionaries going to Japan. President Larkin said that after the meeting he talked with Elder Kickuchi who told him to "Go love and save my people." President Larkin said he took that to heart and went to work in Japan. Then one day he was contacting in a train station there and happened to run into Elder Kikuchi again. He asked how many baptisms he had last month. President Larkin was so proud to tell him that he had three. Elder Kikuchi grabbed his lapel and said, "Elder Larkin, if you only believed you could have ten baptisms a month!" So after fasting and prayer the next month President Larkin and his companion felt like they should set a goal to have ten baptisms that month. They had seven baptisms by the 25th of the month but they really felt like they could have ten so they kneeled down and prayed with faith that they would be able to find someone, in the words of his companion's prayer, "that was looking for the restoration of the ancient order." That day they approached a man on the street after contacting all day long. President Larkin felt like they should talk with him so they talked with him and started walking with him toward the church. The whole the man protested that the didn't want to listen but when they arrived and had the lesson the man was shocked. He said that he had been reading the bible since he was young and had been to 16 different Christian churches look for the restoration of the ancient order." He said that he had been to the Mormon church two times when he was younger and sat in the meetings but no one had ever talked to him. He met the required number of times to attend church and was baptized that day. Then the next day they taught an English class and President Larkin realized that one of the teenagers in the class had been attending church for years but was never baptized. He asked him why and he said that it was because his parents had never given him permision. President Larkin was going on exchanges because he had a meeting with the mission president and some stake presidents that night so his brand-new companion had to go to the house of the family to try to convince them to let their son be baptized. The new missionary tried to talk to them but they could understand them so finally he just said, "I love you." The teenager's parents eyes started to water and he gave permission for his son to be baptized. Then the next day they had been contacting all day again with no success when someone hit President Larkin on the back. It was one of his former investigators who had gone out of town for school break and said that because he was visiting family in the country he was so bored that he read the whole Book of Mormon and that he knew it was true and wanted to be baptized! Anyway it was an amazing story and I love our mission president and his faith. It really motivated me to have even more faith as a missionary. I know that with faith, all things are possible.
Then Elder Kikuchi talked to us about reading The Book of Mormon every day in our personal study because of the spiritual power that it gives us through its testimony of Jesus Christ. My favorite quote of the meeting was, "Truth can be repeated a thousand times and never wear out because it is true!" We were also able to talk about the new training system that they will have for missionaries that starts next summer. It will make us all better teachers and is centered on helping the investigators receive and recognize revelation through prayer, reading The Book of Mormon, and attending church. When we were in that reading I realized that there was no where else I would rather be in the whole world than right here in Seattle preaching the gospel. I love being a missionary!
I hope you have a fabulous week!
Con Amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
I wasn't transferred so I will be here in Federal Way for at least 6 more weeks. We had exchanges this week and I was able to be with Hermana Hoskins again. She goes home at the end of next transfer. I can't believe it! It was nice to teach with her again because it just reminded me of the beginning of my mission.
Elder Kikuchi came to speak to the mission yesterday it was amazing. This was the first time since I've been here that our whole mission has been together in one room and it was great to see missionaries that I had served with before and how we've all grown so much. I was able to sing while Sister Fillmore played I Know That My Redeemer Lives as the special musical number. First we heard from President Larkin and he talked to us about following the Spirit and about setting goals with the Spirit and about never giving up on our goals but having faith that we can complete them. He shared some personal experiences from his mission in Japan. It is kind of neat because when he was in the MTC learning Japanese Elder Kikuchi was called to be the first Japanese-native general authority and he came to the MTC to speak to all of the missionaries going to Japan. President Larkin said that after the meeting he talked with Elder Kickuchi who told him to "Go love and save my people." President Larkin said he took that to heart and went to work in Japan. Then one day he was contacting in a train station there and happened to run into Elder Kikuchi again. He asked how many baptisms he had last month. President Larkin was so proud to tell him that he had three. Elder Kikuchi grabbed his lapel and said, "Elder Larkin, if you only believed you could have ten baptisms a month!" So after fasting and prayer the next month President Larkin and his companion felt like they should set a goal to have ten baptisms that month. They had seven baptisms by the 25th of the month but they really felt like they could have ten so they kneeled down and prayed with faith that they would be able to find someone, in the words of his companion's prayer, "that was looking for the restoration of the ancient order." That day they approached a man on the street after contacting all day long. President Larkin felt like they should talk with him so they talked with him and started walking with him toward the church. The whole the man protested that the didn't want to listen but when they arrived and had the lesson the man was shocked. He said that he had been reading the bible since he was young and had been to 16 different Christian churches look for the restoration of the ancient order." He said that he had been to the Mormon church two times when he was younger and sat in the meetings but no one had ever talked to him. He met the required number of times to attend church and was baptized that day. Then the next day they taught an English class and President Larkin realized that one of the teenagers in the class had been attending church for years but was never baptized. He asked him why and he said that it was because his parents had never given him permision. President Larkin was going on exchanges because he had a meeting with the mission president and some stake presidents that night so his brand-new companion had to go to the house of the family to try to convince them to let their son be baptized. The new missionary tried to talk to them but they could understand them so finally he just said, "I love you." The teenager's parents eyes started to water and he gave permission for his son to be baptized. Then the next day they had been contacting all day again with no success when someone hit President Larkin on the back. It was one of his former investigators who had gone out of town for school break and said that because he was visiting family in the country he was so bored that he read the whole Book of Mormon and that he knew it was true and wanted to be baptized! Anyway it was an amazing story and I love our mission president and his faith. It really motivated me to have even more faith as a missionary. I know that with faith, all things are possible.
Then Elder Kikuchi talked to us about reading The Book of Mormon every day in our personal study because of the spiritual power that it gives us through its testimony of Jesus Christ. My favorite quote of the meeting was, "Truth can be repeated a thousand times and never wear out because it is true!" We were also able to talk about the new training system that they will have for missionaries that starts next summer. It will make us all better teachers and is centered on helping the investigators receive and recognize revelation through prayer, reading The Book of Mormon, and attending church. When we were in that reading I realized that there was no where else I would rather be in the whole world than right here in Seattle preaching the gospel. I love being a missionary!
I hope you have a fabulous week!
Con Amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
El templo, Mi cumpleanos, El Libro de Mormon, y mas!
Querida Familia y Amigos,
Thank you so much for all of the birthday packages and cards I received. We were able to go out to Casa Oaxaca a Mexican restaurant with food from the state of Oaxaca (Wa-HA-ca). The food was so good! Before my mission I liked to change the type of food I ate when I went out but now I always just want to eat Mexican food. It's what we make at home and we always eat food at Mexican restaurants if we go out and it never gets old. Plus we are able to practice our Spanish and we pretty much always see a contact, former investigator, or member if we go to Mexican restaurants.
I will be sure to send pictures next week. I forgot the cord this week.
We had a great time at the temple on Tuesday. I was able to buy the Primary Children's Songbook CDs there and we have been listening to all of the primary songs in Spanish this week.
We have been teaching a little 8-year-old girl in a less-active family to prepare her to be baptized. Her mother spoke with the bishop this week and she will be getting baptized on October 9. It's not a convert baptism but we are really happy for her. She is so cute and we can see how the lessons with her are changing the spirit that is present with the whole family in the home.
We are teaching a family with 12-year-old twin girls. They went to mutual this week and they really enjoyed it. One of them is a little more receptive to the message than the other and has been reading The Book of Mormon in her reading time at school.
We just received an email today from President Larkin that Elder Yoshihiko Kikuchi of the First Quorum of the Seventy will be speaking to us next Monday morning. In October Elder Ringwood will be visiting us. We are all reading The Book of Mormon in preparation for his visit. President Larkin asked us to mark it with two colors: one to mark the words of Jesus Christ and the other to mark what the prophets say about Jesus Christ. This is the first time I have ever read The Book of Mormon this way and I find my testimony that The Book of Mormon is a powerful testimony of Jesus Christ growing. For the first time I noticed that 2 Nephi 29 is a beautiful chapter with Jesus Christ speaking to Nephi. I am starting to understand more and more the purpose of The Book of Mormon to testify that God remembers all nations (2 Nephi 29:8), that God lives (2 Nephi 19:8), that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever (2 Nephi 29:9), that God declares his word according to His will (2 Nephi 29:9), to be a clear testimony of the truth (2 Nephi 31:2-3; 33:5).
I love this gospel and I love you all. Have a great week!
Con amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Andamos ocupadas
Querida familia y amigos,
We found out this week that we are going to the temple on September 7 so that will be our preparation day instead of Monday. I am so exited for the temple! The last time we went was in April.
We met a great family this week. We only talked to the dad once because the parents have opposite schedules, but they are both very kind. They have twin daughters who are twelve and a little two year old. The mom is bringing her daughters to mutual this week and we are going to give them a tour of the church on Tuesday so that they can meet one of the young women and her mother beforehand.
We felt like we should stop by this one former investigator last night. The sisters lost contact with him because he works on Sundays and couldn't get it off, but he reads the Book of Mormon all of the time still and really wants to be baptized. He just needs to go to church. Well because we felt like we should stop by last night we were able to learn that he has one week of vacation coming up and that he won't have to work on Sunday and that he will be able to come to church. Great! It is great to be lead by the Spirit in our work.
We have been doing a lot of work with the memebrs lately. We visit them and help them understand the principles of missionary work, especially as outlined in Preach My Gospel so that they can have a successful missionary experience. We love missionary work but we also know that all of the members who love the Gospel want to have good experiences too but often times they lack the skills or the understanding to share the gospel. We love going into their homes and having regular lessons with the same family to help them identify who they might want to share their testimony with, what their friend or family member's needs are, and how they can best share the Gospel with them. We call them member lessons.
I love you all so much! Happy Labor Day!
Con amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
We found out this week that we are going to the temple on September 7 so that will be our preparation day instead of Monday. I am so exited for the temple! The last time we went was in April.
We met a great family this week. We only talked to the dad once because the parents have opposite schedules, but they are both very kind. They have twin daughters who are twelve and a little two year old. The mom is bringing her daughters to mutual this week and we are going to give them a tour of the church on Tuesday so that they can meet one of the young women and her mother beforehand.
We felt like we should stop by this one former investigator last night. The sisters lost contact with him because he works on Sundays and couldn't get it off, but he reads the Book of Mormon all of the time still and really wants to be baptized. He just needs to go to church. Well because we felt like we should stop by last night we were able to learn that he has one week of vacation coming up and that he won't have to work on Sunday and that he will be able to come to church. Great! It is great to be lead by the Spirit in our work.
We have been doing a lot of work with the memebrs lately. We visit them and help them understand the principles of missionary work, especially as outlined in Preach My Gospel so that they can have a successful missionary experience. We love missionary work but we also know that all of the members who love the Gospel want to have good experiences too but often times they lack the skills or the understanding to share the gospel. We love going into their homes and having regular lessons with the same family to help them identify who they might want to share their testimony with, what their friend or family member's needs are, and how they can best share the Gospel with them. We call them member lessons.
I love you all so much! Happy Labor Day!
Con amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Nuestro fundamento en Jesucristo
Querida Familia y Amigos,
We were able to have another great week here in Federal Way.
We found a great family this week. The elders had given us a referral in a neighborhood that we didn't even know existed. When we got there we found the home but had to drive far away to park. We forgot to do our best tracting approach which is to not look for the address and just knock on the doors of the other homes until they lead us to our referral. That way we are able to talk to more people because other people there might be prepared to hear the gospel as well. So while we were walking over to the home, we saw a neighbor that had the door open and decided to talk to them to see if they knew their neighbor. They were so nice and invited us to come in. The mom had a really good spirit about her. A few years ago she rode with some friends to California and on the way back they had passed through Salt Lake and went over to the temple. She thought the temple was so beautiful and told us that she had never seen anything like it. We were able to go back and teach her entire family (husband, three teenage children, and her son's girlfriend). We shared with them about the Book of Mormon and they were all very receptive. We will teach them again this week.
We are going to be visited by a general authority, member of the seventy in October, Elder Ringwood. President Larkin challenged all of us to read the whole Book of Mormon before he comes. I know the Book of Mormon is a true book that testifies of Jesus Christ. I hope that we all find time to read it, even for just a moment, every day. I love you all!
Con mucho amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
We were able to have another great week here in Federal Way.
We found a great family this week. The elders had given us a referral in a neighborhood that we didn't even know existed. When we got there we found the home but had to drive far away to park. We forgot to do our best tracting approach which is to not look for the address and just knock on the doors of the other homes until they lead us to our referral. That way we are able to talk to more people because other people there might be prepared to hear the gospel as well. So while we were walking over to the home, we saw a neighbor that had the door open and decided to talk to them to see if they knew their neighbor. They were so nice and invited us to come in. The mom had a really good spirit about her. A few years ago she rode with some friends to California and on the way back they had passed through Salt Lake and went over to the temple. She thought the temple was so beautiful and told us that she had never seen anything like it. We were able to go back and teach her entire family (husband, three teenage children, and her son's girlfriend). We shared with them about the Book of Mormon and they were all very receptive. We will teach them again this week.
We are going to be visited by a general authority, member of the seventy in October, Elder Ringwood. President Larkin challenged all of us to read the whole Book of Mormon before he comes. I know the Book of Mormon is a true book that testifies of Jesus Christ. I hope that we all find time to read it, even for just a moment, every day. I love you all!
Con mucho amor,
Hermana Kinghorn
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)