Tuesday, July 26, 2016

July 25, 2016 - Transfers

Alright everyone!
This week was awesome!

First of all we witnessed a small but awesome miracle just this morning. Our lock on our door is broken and our key is too, so we can't really turn it to lock or unlock it. This morning when we were trying to leave it wouldn't budge! Like at all! The key wouldn't turn. And we
were running late! So Sis. Jackson said a quick prayer that it would turn so we could leave. After a few more tries with no luck she looked at me and then turned it, and it turned so smoothly I didn't even know she had locked it! Usually she has to wrestle with it to lock it! But it turned so smoothly! It was awesome! The Lord answers prayers! Even little ones such as a broken lock!

So this week we have been doing lots of service! I chopped wood for the first time in my life with an ax! And can I just tell you how satisfying it is?!?! Such a great stress reliever! And I got pretty good at it too! I chopped logs and stuff in half in like one..... Or 2..... Or 20 chops! But it's super fun!

We have 2 new investigators this week!  One of them is so prepared it is truly amazing how awesome she is! We helped her family move in at the beginning of the transfer and she invited us over for lunch and asked if we could talk about churches with her. We were like, ok, cool that's awesome (we were planning to anyways lol). So during lunch before we
were even done eating, she eagerly was like, ok tell me everything! So we started with the restoration and she wanted to make sure she understood everything we were talking about. She asked so many questions and committed to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it. It was crazy! By the end we looked at the time and it had been like 3ish hours, shortest but longest lesson ever! She invited us back every week!

And finally, we got our transfer calls! Sis. Jackson is training a new missionary up here in Fairbanks, and I will be pink washing Wasilla in the memory lake Ward with Sis. McGraw (Sis. Jackson's trainer, I'm killing her off muwahaha (it's her last transfer)) Pink washing is a
lot like white washing, except we are taking over  the elder's Ward. They had to open 3 new areas for sister, cuz 8 new sisters are coming out this transfer! That is the most sisters we have ever gotten in probably all of the Alaska mission history! It's crazy! But ya, those are the highlights of my week! I love you all, and hope you are all doing well!

Love you!
Sis. Johnson :)

😊

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

July 18, 2016 - Fun Times

Hey guys!

So this week was excitingish..... Ok, not really. I got sick again :P So far I have gotten sick every transfer, well except my first one. Don't worry it hasn't been anything to horrible, more just like obnoxious uncomfortable  horrible.




Anyways so it's been very bipolar up here! The weather gets up to 100 degrees one day, then it's raining
the next, but it's not like normal rain, it's more like mist, it's been misting the past few days, if that makes any sense. It's almost like we are inside the cloud itself. Haha it's very interesting.

We get transfer calls this next week! Crazy! I feel like the transfer just started! But it's going to be a crazy transfer call cuz we are getting 7 new sister to the mission! Which means there will be some new areas opening up and we will all be transferred. And if we aren't training this transfer we will be next transfer cuz we will be getting
5-6 new sisters after that, so within these next two  transfers all of the sisters in the mission will be training! It is quite the exciting buzz going throughout the mission!

On Friday we did this huge service project! It was us, 1st Ward elders and 6th Ward elders. We helped a cute little family clean up their back yard. And it was a HUGE backyard. The yard ended into the Chena river and it had t been mowed or taken care of in a very long time. The grass was almost taller then me! And there were trees popping up in random places throughout the yard from the forest around the house. So we clipped and mowed those suckers down! Basically we did that all day and smelled like grass and gasoline the rest of the night. But I
am now a professional lawn mower tree trimmer! Their yard looked fantastic by the end of I do say so self!
While we were doing this a river boat with oodles and gobbs of people floated by on the river so that was cool, sadly I did t have my camera to take a pic but it was exciting! (We took this pic at the very beginning when we started working on the yard. We cut down trees and in the back elder Ryan is mowing it down. We forgot to get an after pic so just imagine the perfect yard that looks amazing! And that would be it! ;)



Anyways hope all is well in Zion! I love you all! Make good choices!
The lord loves you!
Sis. Johnson

July 11, 2016 - Mission Miracles

Hello everyone!

So this week was insane! It was like a roller coaster of emotions! We saw so many miracles and yet it was one of the roughest weeks yet! Unfortunately I am running a tad bit short on time, so I won't be able to tell you everything that happened, I'll just share 3 of my favorite miracles!

Miracle 1: We almost had a normal Sunday! Almost. For once we hadn't been asked to speak or teach any classes. And then at around 9:51 am we get a call from our bishop that he had forgotten to ask people to speak in sacrament meeting and he was in Arizona, so he asked us to do it.... What!?!? So in 30 min we put something together. I was scared out of my mind but as sacrament meeting went on I felt peace and calmness. I don't even remember what I said in my talk but I felt calm the entire time! I didn't say a single "um!"

Miracle 2: One of our investigators drove 6 hours from where they had been fishing, just to come to church!

Miracle 3: Sis. Jackson has been going on this random phase of wanting to play the guitar. We asked some elders of we could borrow theirs, but after church we went to visit a less active and she is letting her borrow her guitar. And it was really random too! Cuz we were talking about something else and then she was like, do either of you play the guitar? And we were like sorta, and she was like cuz I have one that is gathering dust and would love it if you could play it and stuff. So that was awesome! We don't need to borrow the elders anymore.

Anyways, I love you all! Prayer is real! Even the simplest things, if you have faith, the lord will provide! The lord would not ask us to pray if he did not intend to answer them.

I love you all!
Sis. Johnson

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

July 4, 2016 - Happy Independence Day!

This week was super duper exciting! We saw so many blessings it was crazy! I will be forever grateful!

 
 
So first of all on Friday July 1, 2016 at 7:00pm at the stake center our investigator was baptized by her husband. Their story is truly amazing! They grew up together. They met in high school and got married. Her husband is in the army which is what brought them to Alaska. While he was out for training away from his family he met some Mormons and started going to church and got baptized. When he told his wife, she was very concerned. But after a year or so she agreed to take the lessons and learn more about it. The sisters who were here before us taught her and she agreed to be baptized. And that my dear friends is where Sis. Jackson and I popped in. And she was baptized and is so excited to go to the temple to have her husband and her three sons sealed together for time and all eternity! It was amazing! And I am forever grateful the Lord blessed me enough to be a part of
it! There was even a rainbow that night! It was cool!



Another cool experience I had this week was the next day. On Saturday we were out tracting (which is terrifying btw. When people knock on your door, missionaries, Jehovah witnesses, sales men, or anyone, you all had better be nice to them! Cuz it is the scariest thing I will ever have to do on my mission!) and we were going door to door. No one was really interested. Door after door we went. Then we come across a no soliciting sign in one of the windows. In Anchorage I always avoided those houses, cuz they usually don't want any visitors. So we went to the next house. But they didn't answer and we felt like we needed to go back to this house. So hesitantly we went back. And this older man answered. He came out on the porch and talked with us awhile. His family is all Mormon, he is not..... (Yet 😉) We had a great discussion and he accepted a Book of Mormon! Super cool!


Then on the way back to the car (we were going to be late for an appointment) we passed one of houses we had knocked on but no one had been home. Well they were home now and outside unpacking their car. It was an older couple. We stopped and had a nice  casual conversation with them. Then we left without fulfilling our purpose with them.... About halfway back to the car we felt we needed to turn back  around. So we did and awkwardly walked up to the open door of their
house and knocked. Sis. Jackson apologized for not fulfilling our purpose to them and explained as missionaries we teach and bring people closer to Christ. That started an awesome discussion about
their beliefs and our beliefs and things. They also accepted a Book of Mormon! This was definitely a learning experience! Cuz it was the two houses we were just going to avoid that happened to be the ones who were ready at the time. It's amazing to me how hard Satan was working on us to not go to those house, but  the Lord truly prepares people and he will send to those whom he has prepared!


What do you do? It had to be plugged!
I love you all and hope you have a great 4th of July!!! (These photos are from a hike we went on)









Xoxoxoxoxo
Sis. Johnson

P.s. Shout out to all of my Canadian friends! It was Canada day this
past week or something as well! Go team! 🇨🇦

She said she saw this at a member's house. How cool is that? ( For Tia Torrie;)

June 27, 2016 - Strangers and things