Hey :)
So I got to church and sister Leamy came up to me and gave me "your" jacket and a little Barbie with notes... thanks Kierra and Kaden. You are so right, I was very happy to have a Barbie stick thing. haha it was funny. Kolton where is my email? Kory is so good. he writes me every week.
We had four investigators at church on Sunday. The only thing is that... it didn't count number wise, but we got them there! Michael, Katee, Jesse and Aley. It was awesome. It was fast and testimony meeting and Michael was sitting by the Snow's and so after the meeting I asked how he liked it. He said he was super confused...oops We forgot to tell him what fast and testimony meeting was like. Me and Sister Coontz both bore our testimonies in sacrament meeting.
Ha Ha! Funniest thing ever happened last night... I am still laughing about it right now while thinking about it. We were at the Hale's home eating last night and we were just talking away when all of a sudden I hear a big boom and Sister Coontz is laying on the ground with her leg up in the air. I said, "Sister, what are you doing on the ground?" ha ha then I realized what happened and her chair broke randomly and the leg of the chair went flying. She didn't think it was very funny. Her face was bright red... as she is trying to get up and fixing her skirt and she said "well at least I had a graceful fall" but it definitely wasn't graceful. so I felt terrible for laughing so hard... I was in tears. I guess you just had to be there, but don't worry, she thinks it's funny now :)
OH! I was also at sites twosih days ago and I was talking to a lady and we were helping her set up the Navtivites for this Christmas (which by the way is BEAUTIFUL). She said she lives in the Perry ward, but she is originally Phoenix...and then she changed it to Mesa and I told her I lived there as well. She asked what my parents names were. I told her...and she freaked out and said, "ARE YOU KELSI? then before I could answer she said can I hug you! and then she just hugged me anyways. I was confused haha. She said she was way good friends with you guys...and that she loves grandpa and grandma Johnson. She said grandpa was her bishop and she was telling all the sisters that she has a picture of me and her son. She is also telling all of them that I was bald and had a little piece of fountain hair coming out of my head. Soooo the secret is out. ;) Jk
A sister i'm serving with was also in our Sanoma Ranch ward...her parents are Jill and Gordon Smith (lived right next door to Sorensens) know them?
We have been trying to find so much this week. Michael is getting baptized and Lisa and Jim are moving and everyone else ...we can't really get in touch with or are willing to be our friends and aren't willing to let us teach. SO we went and did service for this cute couple we met. They are like our new grandparents. For service, we made home made apple cider. Just like they did in the olden days. We were telling them that this was not service! Just fun. And they said...wait, there is more! So we go inside after we were done and they had plates and cups out with donuts and fed us. They are so sweet!! We hope their hearts are softening. They said, are we going to see you again and we said of course we are coming back! So we want to teach them :) The grandpa (Al) took pictures of us to send to our families haha.
Sorry, this is turning long. We saw Theresa. I don't know if you remember her... I had a random number in my scriptures that I don't remember writing down and then we called and over a series of events, we found out that she used to be a relief society president and was sealed in the temple. She has a 20,000 square foot home with 40ish people all around! She has a ton of foster kids and she also has her own children. Then I had a dream one night on what we needed to teach them and how we needed to teach them. So we went over and all the kids were in a circle while we taught. There were four kids and as time went on...there was about 12 people listening and asking questions. One girl started to cry...she said "I'm sorry, it's just so hard for me to believe because my husband died". I went and gave her a hug... They are all so sweet and said they can't wait until we come back :) It was not a coincidence that we met them.
One last thing, I was reading a story this week (you might've heard) and it was something I could relate too. It was about a piano student. Mom and dad provided piano lessons for me. They paid it all in full, so then they could turn to me and ask me something. They asked me to PRACTICE. Did I? Not so much.... :) ( I have to play every week out here) Not as much as I could. I couldn't see it the way my parents saw it or in the eyes of a mother or a father. The parents can see that if you practice, you can become something amazing. You can become an expert at piano. Sometimes I would complain and say, "I don't want to practice, I mess up all the time, I can never be good enough". Practicing is what makes your parents happy. I could gather up all the money to repay you, but it's already been payed for. Your joy would have come from seeing what I could become if I practiced more.
This is all so similar to what the Savior did. He payed everything for us. Not just a couple coins, but everything. He too has asked us to similarly practice. He has asked us to "follow him and keep His commandments". When we do this, he finds great joy and satisfaction :) He can see the big picture and see's what we can become. Just like our parents can see. "The Atonement is not just so we can live after we die, but so that we can live more abundantly. It is not so we can be cleansed and consoled, but that we can be transformed". "If Jesus Christ never required practice then we would never become Saints". I love this. In the scripture (Alma 40:26 where it says no unclean thing can dwell with God... it is so true. BUT no unchanged thing will even want to. Life is hard, we can hit the wrong notes and fail to be perfect, but it we don't keep trying, or if we ever become content to where we are at, then we will cease to become like Him.
Learning how to play the piano takes time... so does becoming like our Savior. Growth and development take time.
D&C 67:13- Continue in patience until we are perfected.
I am soooo grateful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He loves us and knows we will make mistakes, but we can always keep practicing to become better.
Love you lots.
Sister Johnson
"You've had an eternity to prepare for your mission, and you'll have an eternity to reflect on it, but you only have 18 months to live it."
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