13 months and Modesto

Well another month has come and gone...how does it happen so quickly?? 

Anyway, as I said last week I got transferred to Modesto.  My companion and I are  both new in the area so we have spent the whole week running around meeting people and trying to learn where everything is.  Modesto is great but it is a city so there is more traffic and more area to cover.  It has been good though and we have already gotten to know a lot of people and had some wonderful lessons.  

This week I have been thinking a lot about what things keep me from giving my all as a missionary.  The list is longer than I would like it to be.  After thinking about it all pretty much all of it was either selfishness or pride in some way or another.  Things like being too tired, being scared of what someone might say or do, forgetfulness, not having my mind focused on the work.  Anyway I have had my mind turn back to D&C 4:2 which says:

"Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day."
As I have reflected about the time I have left on my mission I have been thinking a lot about what more I can do to serve with all of my "heart, might, mind, and strength".  I know that as I set goals to accomplish this I am going to be seeing more changes in the way I work, live, and even think. One thing I have learned about missionary work and about life in general is that if we are not constantly looking for ways to change and improve and to align our will with the vision of the Lord's then we are doing what Satan wants us to do which is to be complacent and content with where we are at.  This however does not show faith and a true desire to serve.  I know that this work can not be accomplished without those two things but more importantly without the Lord.  I know that it is through serving him within the parameters that he has set that we will have him by our side as we do his work, all of us.

I'm grateful for the Atonement and how it helps me each and every day to be able to do that.  I hope that we can all reflect often on what more we can do to better serve the Lord and do all we can to do it and then watch to see  how the Lord is working with us.  It is amazing.

I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week!!!

Love,

Hermana Carpenter

p.s. I know I have been bad at sending pictures...Here is one of me and Hermana Arevalo with our car and all of the planners I have had since being in the mission field.  They are all custom made by yours truly.  Do you notice a theme?

Transfers

Well it is transfer time again, duh duh duh.  

We got the calls last night and I am being transferred to Modesto! I will be finishing up training Hermana Arevalo as well as training her as a Sister Training Leader. Oh and we are opening up a new area! These next couple of weeks are going to be busy.  I am sad to be leaving Manteca again but I am excited for the work ahead.  President Palmer said that the branch we will be in is close to becoming a ward.  Hopefully we will be able to help that to move forward through our efforts!

This week was good though.  We were instructed to stay in and find a way to "fulfill our missionary purpose" without leaving the apartment.  We took that to heart and went through our area books and cleaned them up a bit more and figured out what more we could do to help use them as a tool to find people.  We then cleaned a little bit and ate some Halloween candy.

Recently we have been putting a lot of our focuses on part-member and less-active family.  Many of the families in our ward have both of these so we have been trying to figure out what we can do to reach these members that are not participating in the gospel.  We decided with one of the families we would start holding a weekly Book of Mormon study.  Hermana L. who is the only active member of her family was delighted at the idea and so we commenced.  Last week was our first session and it was really good. Her non-member daughter-in-law joined us and her less-active husband who usually hides out while we are there came out and sat in for the closing prayer. This week the daughter-in-law was there again and hermano sat in for almost the entire reading session!  Hermana was all a glow.  I know it may not be anything huge but I just loved the feeling of sitting with the family reading from the scriptures and feeling the spirit. Hermana Sheffer and her new companion are going to keep working with them and hopefully there will be more from that.

Well that is about all I can think of for this week! Love you all!

Hermana Carpenter

God knows all his Children

Hello, hello!!

Minus the fact that I have had a cold this week has been a pretty good one.  The biggest thing I got from this week in both my studies and from experiences is that God knows all of his children and he has a plan for each one of them.  Don't get me wrong, I already knew this, but I love having moments that just re-confirm that.

The biggest thing that confirmed that to me is an experience we had that all started a long time ago.  I came into the picture a couple of weeks ago when I was on exchanges in Turlock. While I was there we ate dinner with the Branch President. While there he mentioned that he had a less active brother that lived in Manteca.  I know all the names and most of the faces of everyone on that list and I did not know his brother.  I asked if I could get his address so that Hermana Sheffer and I could go visit him.  They didn't have his address though on hand but said that they would get it to me. I left with only his name and the street he lived on, which is a pretty long street.  Fast forward a couple of weeks...still haven't received the address.  On Wednesday we went with Eliseo, a recent convert in our ward, to visit some of his family that are not members.  We decided to stop by his aunts house who we had met before and with whom we had also had a lesson.  When we got there an unfamiliar face answered the door, her son-in-law whom we had not met yet.  He greeted us though like, "Hello sisters, how are you? How long have you been on your missions for?" Things that only members or people very familiar with the missionaries ask us.  (Also to our knowledge, Eliseo had no family that were members).  Anyway, we quickly find out that he is a member and return missionary. He then mentioned that he had a brother that was the Branch President in Manteca. It then clicked! We had found the less active brother...and he is related to our recent convert! Out of all of the houses on that street we had been lead to his house.  He gave a beautiful testimony about the church and shared some stories about his mission.  It was wonderful.  We are planning on returning to have a family home evening with them tonight. 

This whole experience was a testimony to me that God does not forget his children.  He knows where they are and he knows what they need.  I don't know what is going to happen with this family but I do know that God is preparing them.  I know that he works with all of His children and when the time is right he gives us what we need to make those changes that will help us to draw closer to our Savior Jesus Christ.  I hope that we can all recognize the hand of God in our own lives and how he works with us to help us better live and accept the gospel in our own lives.

I hope everyone has a great week!

Love,

Hermana Carpenter

The Simplicity of the Gospel (Oct 19, 2015)

Hey everyone!

So this week has been good. Busy again, but good.  We had zone conference this week which was great.  We talked a lot about simplicity which was something I think I needed as I enter these last 6 months. I just want to take things back to the basics of missionary work.  I was studying in 2 Nephi 33:6 where Nephi says: "I glory in plainness; I glory in truth; I glory in my Jesus,for he hath redeemed my soul from hell." 

Truth and plainness, that is what I want in missionary work. I want to teach the gospel with simplicity because that is the gospel!  

I also had the chance yesterday to speak with my companion and President and Sister Palmer at a Single Adult Fireside.  The topic was how can members help missionaries to fulfill their purpose.  We talked a lot about the examples we can be as we live the gospel.  I talked about how as we let the gospel and the Atonement become a part of who we are and everything we do then sharing the gospel can become a natural part of what we say and do.  I have thought a lot about this and how I want to be a different member missionary after my mission than I was before.  There are so many more opportunities to do missionary work than I realized.  It makes me excited for the rest of my life because even though my "Full-time" missionary service will end, the missionary work I will have to do as a member will be endless.  

Sorry this is a short one this week!  I hope you will all think about ways that you can simplify the gospel in your own lives and then share that with someone you know!

Have a great week!

Love,

Hermana Carpenter

Good ending to a crazy week!

Hello Everybody!

Wow, can I just say that I think that this week has been my most exhausting week as a missionary.  I feel like I have been running all over with hardly a minute to spare! 

So Monday night we started out with a back to back exchange, Thursday morning we were in our area and then had another exchange. Friday afternoon we were in our area and then had another exchange which finished just before the baptism of our investigator Carlos Jr.  So basically I spent only half of my week working in my area.  By last night Hermana Sheffer and I just wanted to drop.  Today has been a much needed break and then we are back to week two of exchanges, whoo!

Even though it was exhausting it really was a good week.  All of the exchanges went well.  I love being able to see how the Sisters are growing and applying what they are learning.  I love the fire that they all have.  It inspires me to work harder and be a better missionary so they can learn all that I have learned but faster and better.  The work is hastening in Modesto.  I felt that so much this week, especially with one of the miracles I experienced while I was on exchanges.  I will just call this my one year miracle, since it happened on Thursday, my one year mark!

So the miracle happened near the end of the day with the exchange I had with Sister Neeley. So we were working in her area and were on bike, which was so much fun.  We were able to talk to so many different people that day.  Near the end of the day we had an appointment set with a member. We were on our way and had stopped to talk to this nice girl. After that we hopped on our bikes and started towards our appointment.  As we had been talking to said girl this family had walked past us but since we were already in conversation we didn't talk to them.  Anyway, so back to the bikes.  We didn't want to be late to our appointment and so as we approached this couple I rationed in my head "We need to talk to everyone, buuut we don't want to be late, so don't have time to stop." As soon as we passed them my concience, or the spirit, started kicking in saying, no you need to talk to everybody.  So I was feeling guilty.  About 200 ft. ahead we spotted the family that had passed us earlier.  They had stopped and were taking pictures of the sunset.  Once again a rationalization popped into my head "Wow they look busy and we are going to be late if we stop and talk to them".  However I also heard the "Stop and talk to everybody".  So we stopped.  We started this nice little conversation with them and before we knew it they were asking US where and when church was because they wanted to come. It gets better though. When we asked if we could come by and teach them the mom, Sue, said "Our house is right up the way, why don't you come over now." Sister Neeley and I exchanged looks and said, OK. On the way we texted the member and told her that we would be late.  During the next 45 min I had one of the best first lessons I have ever had. This family of 5, (Mom and 4 boys), listened intently, asked questions, and felt the spirit.  As we showed a picture of Jesus Christ with a lamb and asked them how they felt to see it, the 10 yr old boy said "I could trust that guy".  When we offered them the Book of Mormon they immediately started talking as a family as to how and when and how much they would read of the Book of Mormon, each day. We invited them to be baptized if they came to know that it was true and they agreed.  We scheduled another appointment for the next day, the 9 yr old offered the closing prayer, and then left. The next morning we practiced extending a baptismal date because we had not done that.  When I followed up with the Sisters on Saturday they said that the whole family had excepted to be baptized on October 31...in just 3 weeks! Then to make it even better I was able to see the whole family at church on Sunday for their first time (our wards meet in the same building).  You could just tell they were so happy to be there. Needless to say I am thrilled and bummed at the same time.  I am thrilled because all my mission I have been praying to find a family like this however I am bummed because I won't be able to teach them. These last couple of days though I have just been thinking about what would have happened if I hadn't have followed the spirit and stopped to talk to them.  I feel bad about missing the couple but at least I and Sister Neeley learned an important lesson about talking to every person you see.  You never know who is going to be ready to accept the gospel until you have actually talked to them. It just makes me want to go and talk to everyone!

The baptism of Carlos Jr. on Saturday and his confirmation on Sunday.  He is so tall his dad had to try three times before he finally got him all under.  My favorite part was his testimony, especially when he testified that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet.  I know that is true with all of my heart.  I am so excited for him and this journey he is beginning.  I am so grateful for the gospel in my life.  I just can't wait to see all of the blessings he and his family will experience from this.  He has a 6 year old brother who looks up to him and I know who will want to follow in his footsteps.  

I'm just so grateful to be here and to be able to be a part of these peoples conversions. I know that it has nothing to do with me and everything to do with the Lord and the work He is doing to prepare them.  I am just lucky to get to be the instrument he uses to help them discover the gospel.  I feel more than ever that the clock is ticking.  I just want to work hard and do all that I need to with the time I have been given.

Well I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Love,

Hermana Carpenter

Pictures: Me and Hermana Alcaraz on exchanges, delicious Pumkin Curry I had to celebrate my 1 year, and the last from left to right is: Hermana Sheffer, Carlos Jr., Carlos Sr., and Me!

Conference & 1 year! (October 5, 2015)

Hey Everybody!

I hope that everyone enjoyed conference as much as I did.  As always, by the end I felt like it had all gone by way to quickly and was left wanting more.  I know though that we truly did hear the word's of the Lord this week through his servants.  I am so excited to get to work and start applying all that I learned. 

I can't say that I had a favorite talk. I felt like so many of them spoke to me in many different ways.  I walked away with so many of my questions being answered and feeling as if the Lord was talking directly to me.  I walked away from conference pondering in my heart, as a daughter of God, who it is I really want to become.  Even more so I have been pondering about who it is God wants me to be.  I feel like so many of the talks spoke to me about that and then also gave me the tools I need to get to work!  As I am entering into my last six months of service I was also pondering a lot about what more I can do to lose myself and do the work that the Lord wants/needs done in this area.  This week I will be setting goals based off of what I learned so that I can do that. I don't want to waste a minute of the time I have here, however I know that because I am human it happens all to often.  Fatigue, mean people, laziness, and more are always there knocking at the door.  It is hard not to succumb to them, but I loved what was said about self control and how the more we exercise it the easier it gets.  I know that this is true and I am going to keep working hard to overcome those natural man tendencies so that I can become the servant the Lord needs in His vineyard.

As far as the rest of this week goes it all seems like a blur.  We had the Mission Leadership Council which was great. It is amazing to me to be a part of those councils and to be able to see where it is that the Lord want's this mission to go. The spirit is always so strong there. We then took what we learned there and also had a zone training. This is one of the best zone training's I have been in. You could tell from the start that everyone had come prepared. The spirit true spoke what needed to be said to the hearts of each missionary.  Saturday morning we watched conference with Carlos, our investigator and his family.  We were so happy to see them together as a family listening and learning.  I hope that they were able to take something from it and will see great things.

Well I love you all. I cannot believe it has been a year!

Hope you have a wonderful week!

Love,

Hermana Carpenter

Stressed but Good!

Hey there everybody!

So this week has felt so long.  We are really really busy.  We got our assignment and we are covering 14 Sisters all over the mission.  Other than that nothing too exciting going on.  I loved the womens conference.  It was definitely what I was needing after the long day we had Saturday.  We were driving all over the mission trying to fulfill needs for our sisters and didn't spend any time in our area.  After that I was just feeling overwhelmed about how in the world we were going to be able to fulfill our roles as Sister Training Leaders and take care of our area.  After the conference I felt renewed and just had a sense of peace about everything.  I know that as we lose ourselves in the Lord's service he will take care of us and our area, all I need to do is work hard and follow the spirit.

As a Sister Training Leader though I have become much more aware of my work as a missionary and just who I am in general.  I know I need to be an example to the rest of the sisters.  I have learned so many things already from the newer sisters as well as things I need to change so that I can be the best example I can be to them.  It is hard, especially because things don't just change overnight.  In companion study today we were studying Christ-Like attributes from Preach My Gospel.  One of the first things it mentions is that without the Atonement we cannot change.  I know that in order to change what I need to and become more like the Savior it is going to take humility and repentance every single day. I know that by doing that I can magnify my calling both as a leader and as a missionary.  

Yes I am stressed but I am grateful. I'm so grateful for the trust the Lord has in me as well as for the opportunity He is giving me to grow.  I know I am here for a reason and I hope I can do all I can to fulfill that purpose.

I'm looking forward to conference this weekend! I hope all of you will take a chance to ponder the words in Mosiah 2 and D &C 21 4-6 and then seek to apply those words by watching all the sessions of conference! I know that as we do we will be blessed by the inspired words we will hear.  

I love you all! Have a wonderful week.

Love,

Hermana Carpenter

p.s. We made lunch for all the new and leaving missionaries this week. We washed a lot of potatoes...it was fun though!