Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Heather Wilson is a Member!

This week was eventful a Baptism and a Funeral, both starting a new kind of life. Heather was Baptized on the Sunday the 14th of October before church, so she was able to receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost in Church that day.

Oh man we pretty much stressed the entire week even until the very end. We had good reason to be on our toes. Well to start of Heather didn’t have a phone and she lives in the Elders area so we drove to keep in contact to her home like everyday cause you never know what is going to happen. She wanted her husband to baptize her but we didn’t know if he was worthy to do so. He was not really supporting her at all. He actually tried to keep her from meting with us. He was a big bum. But at we came closer and closer to Sunday he started to change. We wanted to involve him in the program but again didn’t know if he could do anything, Luckily we had his dad willing to help out and Heather was ok with her Father-in-law Baptizing her. But Richie found out and wanted to met with the Bishop so he could baptize his wife. He kept putting it on. Heather just stayed calm, knowing that her husband might not be able to baptize her. Sunday morning rolled around and Richie had an interview right before the Baptism. WE took some pictures while we were waiting.

The Baptism started at 8:45 and Richie came out of his interview at 8:50. He was so happy he was running around repeating the baptism prayer because this was going to be his first one. We hurried him in to get his jumper on and then started. We were late as Mormons usually are but Heather was Baptized by her Husband, a dream come true for her. The programs had to say on them Brother Wilson cause we didn’t know who was going to baptize her, her Father-in law or her Husband. But it all worked out just great and we were so happy for the two.

Now we get to take heather with us to teaching appointments!It was different having a Funeral downstairs, but neat to see the love that was shared. Sister Larsen and I were in charge of bringing all the pictures and stands over to the place where they would all eat. Of course the Relief Society put on a excellent meal. To bad Tammy wasn’t even there, she was having a really hard time with the lost of her husband. The saddest part was we brought up how she can be sealed and she was not interested in giving up word of wisdom issues to be sealed with Bill. So sad when they are so closed. You wouldn’t believe how closed some people are out here, well I’m sure it’s the same there.

I’m Happy for the Baptism the happened there. And we looking forward to Jake’s Baptism probably next week, when his wife is out of the hospital. Oh we had family home evening with Jake and it was the best. We even got to sing to his Wife in the hospital over the phone. Jake says the best prayers cause they are from his heart. He keeps telling us that he is going to miss us girls. After we finished the lesson with the ice cream sundaes he said. “Aw you can’t leave now I was just having fun.”I absolutely love how the gospel can bring soooooo much happiness into someone’s life. Jake has yet to comprehend how happy we can be when we do what is right. Man this is good stuff. I’ll tell you the truth though when your companion has only 7 weeks left, it’s hard not to think of life after a mission, but it basically all about how we are going to lose weight and hold babies. I’m lucky enough that all of you have them and I don’t have to worry about that for a long time.
Love you all
Sister Barrand

Monday, October 15, 2007

PICTURES !!!!

This members home is like right off the highway...but for reals that is their driveway.
The sisters @ Zone Conference. The sister in Red next to me is from Colorado and guess what...
we just found out we went in the same group to prom. That means she is in all my pictures. This prom was @ her high school where Tyson Wyatt went. And my date was Chris Taylor.
Our Zone Clarksburg & Morgantown. Clarksburg is mine.
A wild less active puffing up my hair like her own
Our crazy Bishop Haws. He is the Best. He even came up with this look one day when he was board.
From ugly orange paneling to...
Beautiful Beige
Another hair cut- Jake Kroll. And this is a hot pink towel
Another hair cut. This time for Elder Riddle.
A hair cut for Elder Wray
Well well well, just because they have a baptism date doesn’t mean Satan is trying to drag them down. He has both hit Heather and Jake at the same time. The funny thing is it is not their faith that is stopping them it’s their Spouses . Both want their husband and wife there and we are coming up on some rough hills. I had to say hill cause there ain’t no mountains out here. With Heather her husband Richie is making up a lie saying that he can’t come but to go ahead and have it cause he is not worthy to baptize her. For Jake is going strong but he know how important families are and want his wife to be there and she just went into the hospital last night and might not be back for three week. Satan is mean and cunning, But the Lord is way more powerful and will streach forth his hand after all we can do.We taught Jake the Word of Wisdom and he and his wife poored out all their Alchol.

They were having fun at it as well. We couldn’t fin any more bottles to drain and he was upset. I loved that, getting rid of sin feels GOOD. Oh you could see how much better they felt after that mess was no longer in there home. We had dinner at there home and we talked about the Temple. They were loving it. Then Sue (Jake’s Wife) said they most heart filled prayed before we left. My Comp, Sister Poe and I all cried during the pray because she was progressing. Seriously I have been praying about a family to teach and they are an answer to my prayers. The change that that family is making is huge. Sister Larsen and I could not stop talking about how wonderful it is to see the Change of heart that accurse.Hey for the first time in my life I got to wear that Orange vest and pick up trash on the side of the highway, like the convicts do. I kinda felt like one. It was a nasty job with all the cigarettes and bear cans but hey it was fun with that portable hand squeezer thing!! We had fun yelling “CAR” to everyone; I think that also the first time we had an excuse to yell on our missions! There was some nasty stuff though and of course the spider webs in the gully near by freaked out my companion.

I just wanted to tell you I loved Conference and I know the new men called are of God and they will lead and guide us not astray. I notice that the Saturday Conference was a lot about Death and Families. And this past week 2 people that we knew past away. One of them was a FiancĂ© of and mentally unstable member and was predicted. But Bill Rhodes was a 60 year old Less Active Member of two married Children, whose wife adopted us. Truly an incredibly sad situation, they have been visited by missionaries for years and never let them in. But Sister Tammy Rhodes took us under her wing and has placed upon her the name of our “Heathen Mama” Along with friends, co-workers, members and Family we comforted Tammy at the hospital while her husbands was suffering. Some Elders were able to give Bill a Blessing and his seizering had stop. Tammy asked for a blessing and was comforted by the love arms of our Heavenly Father. The funeral will actual be done in our Apartment. On the Bright side I feel this will lead Tammy back to church

Sister Larsen and I will have served 18 weeks and we don’t want it to end there we love serving together and form the sound of it from interview it seems like we won’t serve her last transfer here together. I’m telling you we make a great team and everyone can tell, that why we have been together for three transfers, Our land lord, members and strangers are trying to get a hold of President Cowley and persuade him to keep us here for one more, but we will see if that works. What probably works the best is to get on you knees and communicate with your Father in Heaven.I just wanted to tell you I loved Conference and I know the new men called are of God and they will lead and guide us not astray. I notice that the Saturday Conference was a lot about Death and Families. And this past week 2 people that we knew past away.

One of them was a FiancĂ© of and mentally unstable member and was predicted. But Bill Rhodes was a 60 year old Less Active Member of two married Children, whose wife adopted us. Truly an incredibly sad situation, they have been visited by missionaries for years and never let them in. But Sister Tammy Rhodes took us under her wing and has placed upon her the name of our “Heathen Mama” Along with friends, co-workers, members and Family we comforted Tammy at the hospital while her husbands was suffering. Some Elders were able to give Bill a Blessing and his seizering had stop. Tammy asked for a blessing and was comforted by the love arms of our Heavenly Father. The funeral will actual be done in our Apartment. On the Bright side I feel this will lead Tammy back to church
LoveSister B

General Conference is coming

Its been a great week. I love hearing how my wonderful family is doing. I’m so glad you all help the missionaries out and help them teach . It means a lot when it comes from the members, just don’t get into too deep and go off on Kolob or Heavenly Mother. He He. Mom I will be praying really hard for you and this job if it be right for you at this time in your life. Speaking of praying for specific things. After knowing that Jake wanted a quad for himself after he gets Baptized on the 21, we were over at a member home and Sister Wilson was looking through her stuff to find me a newer purse cause mine is trashed she found a Quad, brand new never been used before and asked us if we could find someone that would cherish these scriptures. Both sister Larsen looked at each other and knew that it was an answer to our pray for Jake. We will give them to him after he get Baptized. It’s good to hear that One of Kizzy’s nurses is getting baptized. That is way neat that you got to help out there. Heather and Jake are both doing really well and are excited for General Conference.
As am I, I think General Conference should happen all the time I absolutely love it. So we have been working with a 35 year old less active member Jeff Cropp he moved here about 8 years ago and hasn’t been to church in over 15 years, well we have taught him like he was an investigator with bring about 8 different families over trying him to come out to church. This past Saturday there was a Buckwheat & Sausages Feed and he was helping out there. So we made it over there and partook of the Feed. I actually liked them better then pancakes, they kind of tasted like multied grained flat pancakes. I was told after wards that that not even what real buckwheat pancakes taste like. But there we met his mom and his less active dad who were visiting. It was perfect timing that we got to remind Jeff about coming to church in front of his Family. He came!!!!!!
All the families that we have been taking over to his house over the 4 and ½ months we have been here. Came up to him and welcomed him and his two year old boy. It was a sight to see. You could tell Jeff mom was so happy to see her son at church. We love working with Jeff Cropp he such an nest guy, he actually was the only person that said I did a good job on my solo in church besides my comp. P.s. I kinda feel bad for this ward cause they have no one to do anything in this ward so they always call on the missionaries, that’s how I’ve been roped in to singing for sacrament. I guess it’s good for me. Oh I’ almost forgot we had a neat experience with a new investigator we found her while tracking. Her name is Pam and her step mom is a member that lives in Greece. Pam goes to a nondenominational church.
We gave her a pass along card for a BOM, the times of General Conference and made an appointment. When we came for the Apartment she had already prayed to know if this is true and if we were to come back then it means it good. Also she ordered the BOM and Is planning with her husband to go to a session of General Conference on Sat with her kids and one of their friends. It was like another prayer answered. The lesson went really well with her and she Prayed about Joseph Smith in the Closing Pray. I’m telling you that this does not happen. She already has pray as a family every night. It Amazing!!!
Love you all
Sister Barrand
P.S. we are almost done painting our apartment for service. It looks sooooo much better. Some much easier not to study in a orange room
P.S. I’m sure you two will have fun up in Park City with the family. It would be fun to see some pictures of YOU!

This is the best

Well to believe or not this week has been even better than last. Sister Larsen and I have both been here for a little longer than 3 months and no baptisms. We have been working hard and were wondering when it was going got pay off. As you know Heather had a baptism date set as of Nov 25, well just the other day in the same week we were teacher her and asked her what would be the difference if you got baptized in three weeks instead of Nov 25.

She said “ well actually I’ve been thinking about moving it up” This mean she will get baptized on Oct 14 a week after Conference. Not to mention that there will be a much and mingle after church, and she loves to eat, so she all excided that she will be baptized, confirmed, take the sacrament, and eat after it all done. Now she was not easy to commit but something just triggered her all of the sudden and she just loves to read and do what is right. She is building that foundation in Jesus Christ and baring her testimony to us, even when her husband is a rebellious member. She has committed and she is putting the effort in to what is takes and it only been 2 year since she started the lessons with the Missionaries. We are so happy for her cause it’s been a struggle seeing her not commit, ditch us, not read over and over again, and she is on fire now. Now she wants us over everyday to teach her and asking us when we can come back.

You can see the Change of heart.Speaking of Change of heart, Jake Kroll has been meeting with the missionaries for over a year now. When we got there he told us over and over again that he doesn’t even want to talk about Baptism. He was a stubborn Jehovah Witness for years and wanted us to show and prove everything to him. Up until a couple of days ago, he fought us on everything we said. Jake liked our Church but thought once was enough. After reciveing and answer to write down his testimony, our testimony, where his testimony should be, and how to get there it was a little chaotic. We actually had a big blow out and Sister Larsen had enough of his crap a cried. You see we wanted him to feel the spirit at a baptism one night and he said he would think about it. We were really upset that he didn’t want to take that opportunity to feel the spirit. The lesson was way unproductive (we thought). Well this got Jake thinking about his salvation. He came to the Baptism as you know and felt the spirit strongly, he kept saying how good he felt. He talked to President Cowley and could feel his charitable Spirit.

President Cowley gave Jake a hug. This meant more to Jake then you would believe. Jake was taken back to an inspired man wanting to hug him. Jake could not stop talking about how impressed he was. Jake started telling us he had been kneeling down while his been praying at night. We were blow away. If you can imagine a 65 year old, Jehovah Witness, hard knock, New Jersey kind of a guy that hates talking about his feelings going on about his spiritual experience talking with God on his knees. That was the best feeling. The lesson totally changed and they were all centered on his Family. He claims that the Witnesses broke up his Family and wanted to repair the damage. We started teaching him and his Family. You know I’ve been praying my whole mission to teach a family and I have been blessed to do so now, it’s an answer to my prayers.

Now Jake came to church and loved it, one of the talks was just what he needed. I’m grateful for the speakers listening to the spirit on what to teach, the talk was perfect and Jake recognized it. He had some great question about having to get married again if he wanted to be sealed in the temple. Our last lesson was so peaceful, we watched General Conference while I gave him a hair cut and after wards we asked him if he had is own bible. He said he wanted to get a quad after he get baptized. We very anxiously said when will you be baptized. He said “Soon” we said how about the 21 of Oct he said “ok” My heart filled up with joy for this man’s salvation and righteous desires. That was a change of heart. You wouldn’t believe what he said after that.

Well we asked him about what he had been reading and he was like “well we can talk about that later lets talk about baptism.” Man I can’t even begin to tell you how much these mean to our Heavenly Father, another lost sheep will be found. Sister Larsen and I could not believe that Changes that has occurred here. It can pretty much go along with Helaman 11. you should read it if you get a Chance. I have to tell you that this feeling that I’m experiencing is why I am out here. This is the Best work ever. I love my Heavenly Father and his Prefect Plan for us. I know my Savoir and Redeemer lives and I will do all I do to follow him.
I love you all
Sister Barrand