I hope they call me on a mission!

February 16, 2015

  Claudine came out with us 2 days this week to feel what it's like to be a real missionary- she is so fired up about serving one day! Whenever we're at Godelive's house teaching or having a meal i feels like home. Godelive is one of those people that is everyone's mom and puts more food on your plate before you're done with the first serving. Despite how little they have it's in their nature to just give and give and give. We started teaching Claudine the primary song "I hope they call me on A Mission" as we walked from appointment to appointment and she carried my bag and planner so she could feel like a missionary too. We had stake conference on sunday and sat with her and her mom. Claudine wrote on a diary entry ap she had on her phone and showed it to me. It said something like "I am at church with Sister Pearson and my mom and Sister Aguilar and I am sad because my sisters aren't here but happy because the missionaries and my mom are always by my side and they men so much to me" She has such a pure heart and I'm so grateful that I get to be a stand-in sister for a little while:)

  This transfer is flying by- It's already halfway over! The beautiful weather makes time go faster. We have been contacting up a storm and though we haven't had a lot of success this week through that we've found some amazing potential people for the spanish sisters to teach and I've learned a lot more phrases to say in spanish:) Something I noticed yesterday after being tempted to bible bash with a contentious 21 yr old man is that among the hundreds of people I've talked to on my mission out on the street, probably only 1 or 2 people have ever tried to lovingly invite me to learn more about what they believe. It's interesting because our message is simply for others to bring all the good they have and come see if we can add to it; no one has ever been able to offer something more. I know that all religions have truth and I know that the fulness of truth exists in this church. Dallin H. Oaks gave a talk in a conference a while back called "Have You Been Saved?" that helped me understand the different views on what being "saved" is. When it comes down to it, our saving is conditional on our obedience to God and his commandments. Christ will make up what we lack after we do everything we can to live and serve as he did. there is no required amount of service hours or time put in at church or scripture studying we have to do to enter heaven, but there are precious covenants we have the privilege of making with the very being who created us. Heavenly Father wants to bless us with all he has and through modern day revelation combined with scriptures from past prophets we know everything he requires of us! So don't give up, stay diligent, and never ever feel like you have all the truth because as soon as we think we have enough, God simply can't bless us with more.

Love,

Sister Pearson

 

2 Nephi 11 :)

 

P.S. Marta and Raydeen are well on their way for baptism this week, please keep praying for them!

"And they straightway left their nets"

February 9, 2015

Just like the 12 apostle's show us in the new testament, this gospel has always been and will always be a gospel of sacrifice. And you know what I've discovered on my mission more than ever before? The more we sacrifice for God, the happier we are. And God knows that. So when people are astonished by the standards we live as missionaries or the fact that we have so little contact with our families, never go on vacation, and even have a bedtime set for us, I just smile and say "I love my job". The gospel has always made me happy but trying to put my whole heart and soul into helping others becoming happy through it has given me indescribable joy. The only reason we can accomplish the Lord's work in the way we do is because of sacrifice and so I'm grateful for the opportunity to give up so much. I love the quote by Joseph Smith once said that "a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has the power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation." this is now part of my testimony as well.

  Claudine's baptism and confirmation this weekend was beautiful. She is only 15 but already wants to serve a mission. In fact, she told us that she will be a missionary her whole life. She has one of the most calm and peaceful countenances I've ever come in contact with. I met her the first week I came to this area and am so grateful for the chance to see her growth and her testimony. Sadly, her 2 younger teenage sisters decided not to come to the baptism or the confirmation and though they're nice to us, they're not super interested in learning more about the gospel one day. Claudine is such a great example to them; she had to search the scriptures and pray really hard before she received her confirmation that this gospel is true.

​

​sister Johnson came back!

 Marta and Raydeen are scheduled to be baptized on the 21st and they are beyond excited. They have the cutest mother and daughter relationship ever. they read the Book of Mormon every day and the spirit is always strong in their lessons. We've been teaching them since november and I'm glad they've waited this long to be baptized because they've been able to really witness how other church members live their lives and the people that they want to be. The ward is a great support/ Listening to Marta and Raydeen talk about all the little things they've changed from simply coming to church and reading the Book of Mormon really strengthened my testimony in the power of daily scripture study. they said that in situations where they would have gotten upset or frustrated easily they are able to stay calm and collected. It's those little day to day reactions that we all struggle with that are hard to change but I know Christ's atonement isn't just for big sins but small character flaws as well. Our Father in Heaven is in the details of the details of the details of our lives. Though he is not here with us physically on the Earth, when we exercise faith in Him we can see how real He is!

Love,

Sister Pearson

P.S.

Did I mention I love my great mission president? I am going to miss this wise leader! But we found out our new mission president is coming at the end of the transfer and anyone who can drop everything to serve that quickly for a calling this big has to be an amazing servant of the Lord!

P.p.s we're getting ipads soon too! And by soon I mean in like a month. So many changes happening at once!

Recognizing the spirit

  February 2, 2015

This week has been busy busy as sister Aguilar, my new companion has come in and i've been helping her get to know the area and all of the people we're working with not to mention preparing Claudine for baptism this saturday! She feels a little bit nervous because she got baptized catholic 2 years ago and has a fear that she is breaking a promise with God. What made her change her mind in the first place was learning about doing baptisms and other temple work for the dead. I guess she had a twin sister who died when she was 4 and so thinking of doing temple work for her really touched her. She already wanted to be a missionary for the catholic church and said now she'll just be a missionary for the mormon church:) She and Godelive are so faithful and  won't be surprised if Confiance and Emmerance at least start coming to church more after this.

  Claudine loves sister Aguilar along with everyone else. She is like another Sister Tranchina- she has a lot of fire and love for this work and the savior! she is from Lima Peru and her family joined the church 10 years ago (she was 11) when the missionaries rented a room in their home and taught them the gospel. I love hearing her conversion story and it's powerful in this area where there are a lot of catholics. She knows her scriptures like nobody's business and inspires me to memorize more references. Everyday feels so blissful and we laugh more than I've ever laughed with a companion before. missionary work really is missionary fun:) We love taking the youth out with us to help them decide if they want to serve missions.

  I learned something unexpected this week after an unsettling encounter with an ex-mormon who was a convert from Ireland, got married in the temple, had 5 kids, and after 29 years of faithful service, woke up one morning and decided he no longer needed religion or politics or anything because "the kingdom of heaven was within [him]" He is the boyfriend of a german woman who has a 10 year old son we were trying to teach but he didn't give us a chance to teach the 10 yr old. He says the book of mormon is an inspired work yet doesn't believe it is from an actual record and he doesn't believe Joseph Smith was instructed to restore the church. By then end of his ranting and bible bashing and tearing down our religion I just felt sick to my stomach. the meeting was a stark contrast from the lesson we had just come from at Temple Square with Brandon and Brother Jones where the spirit was nearly tangible. As I prayed  for understanding, I realized that I needed to learn what the spirit didn't feel like. No matter how sound the man's intellect one, I just didn't feel good talking to him, and as he sat there sipping his glass of wine claiming he found real happiness, it was clear that he simply did not want to keep the Lord's commandments. God sets the terms for repentance and salvation and if we follow them and stay true we will find joy in the end. It's our choice if we want this peace and happiness or if we want to be subject to the misery of the devil. Strong words, but they're true. Truth is eternal, not relative. Just because you don't believe in gravity doesn't mean you won't fall when you step off the edge of a cliff. I'm babbling at this point but I'm just grateful to know by the fruits of living the gospel that it is true and that this church is everything we claim it to be. The Savior stands at the head and his authority is in His church. The fruit of the spirit as found in Galatians 5:22-23 is love joy peace..etc. and when you feel these things you know you're feeling the spirit, when you don't you can know you're not! It is God's main source of communication with us. I invite you all to look at your lives and pick one thing you can eliminate so that you can feel God's spirit more in your daily life! It is well worth any sacrifice:)

Love,

Sister Pearson

Pictures!

​Temple square with Claudine! She told me on the way home that when I first came she thought "why is this little teenager coming to teach me, I'my older than her!" Sometime I forget that I look really young... remember when people used to ask us if we were twins all the time Jane?

​In the words of Godelive "this is african food!"

Go and Do Thou Likewise

January 26, 2015

Go and do thou likewise is the instruction we've received from Dallin H. Oaks one of the 12 apostles, who was the concluding speaker at the funeral of our beloved mission president's wife, Sister Hansen. Her life is a legacy of love, spirit, missionary work, enthusiasm, virtue, and hard work. I have learned so much from this incredible woman. Among those things are: 

-making my bed before I pray in the morning so I can start thinking about what to pray for

-Always being a "busy missionary" and being diligent

-Praying to be the answer to someone's prayer everyday

-Singing every hymn with gusto

-A great love for the scriptures

-A fearless attitude towards being obedient and being an example to others in that with love.

The list goes on and I feel so honored to have been in close association with Sister Hansen. She always brought us fruit snacks (for vitamin c;), gave us huge hugs, and instructed us with great eloquence and spirit. she will not be forgotten. And you know what? Her death was not a goodbye but a "see ya soon!". Death is simply a graduation from this life to the next. As soon as we heard the news, our entire apartment of sisters dissolved into tears but through our grief there has been an immense sense of peace in knowing that Sister Hansen's mission wasn't cut short, she has simply been transferred to a new area to continue her work among the lost and searching spirits of the spirit world. I know 100% that she lives on. I don't worry about her because she has done everything in this life she needed to do and more in order to return to the Father and hear the words "well done thou good and faithful servant". Seeing her entire family together, 8 children all sealed in the temple with beautiful grandchildren who are active in the gospel and full of light, reaffirmed my conviction and desire to one day be married in the temple with someone who can fight the good fight in this life and raise children in the glorious light of the restored gospel. Family is what makes us happy, and eternal families are our goal! President and Sister Hansen will reunite sooner than they know it as we all will one day with our loved ones. This week has been full of big changes and despite our sadness in losing our mission president, the Lord knew this would happen and he has a grander plan. My trust in him grows daily as I continue to labor in his vineyard.

  This week has been full of lessons and excitement in our area. Work is the best antidote for sadness. I have put all of my energy into the people we work with and there are miracles happening daily. Maombi was baptized saturday night and I was able to attend 2 other baptisms from past areas in the same day. I am a spoiled missionary! I love my savior, I love this work, and I'm excited for a new transfer! Sister Johnson is moving on to North Salt Lake and my new companion is an amazing sister from Peru! How great is my calling.

Mosiah 5:15- this scripture will always make me think of Sister Hansen!

Love,

SIster Pearson

Maombi's baptism. Brother Deyoung, our new ward mission leader baptized her. She's not smiley in pictures but she was so happy!

​

​Irvin's baptism up at the U!

​Dylan's baptism in Centerville- it has been almost a year since I was there!

​

​2nd ward's youth saying goodbye to sister Johnson! They will miss her and so will I!

​"the originals"

Check out the Sister Missionaries!

January 19, 2015

Exchange we had with Rhyan (the recent convert with autism) in the church bathroom yesterday:

Rhyan: Yo two look incredible! Can I take pictures of your cute outifits?

Us: Maybe another time Rhyan, you have to go to class!

Rhyan: (turning to another woman in the bathroom) Have you seen these two?? Check out these missionaries!

Our confidence and self esteem will never be low around her.

THIS WEEK....

Was a dream! Maombi texted the woman who translates for us (Sister Mukamisha in the ward) on tuesday morning asking her for forgiveness and telling us to come back over. She decided she still wants to be baptized this saturday, the 24th! When we went back over she was back to her normal happy self and the spirit was strong. Prayers work, and thank you to anyone who contributed to this miracle! She wasn't feeling well on Sunday morning and so she received a priesthood blessing of health and was able to make it- she even stayed all 3 hours! The dedication of the african refugees is incredible- thye learn completely through the spirit and are faithful to the feelings they receive because they really can't understand much english! In the meantime I'm trying to learn as much of their language as possible and it's my favorite thing:) 

 

I was blessed to be able to go to the baptism of Christian from one of my YSA wards who I taught with Sisetr tranchina. I don't know if I wrote about him before but a spanish elder found him and sent him to us- by the end of the first lesson he really wanted to be baptized. He's only 19 and comes from a rough background but has made so many great friends as he's learned the gospel these past 4 months. He ended up moving into the assistants area before his baptism so there were a lot of missionaries there and we sang "We'll Bring the World His Truth". I felt the power of being part of the Lord's army and saw the beauty of what can happen when many sets of missionaries follow the spirit in order to be the Lord's instruments and bring people to real repentance! Christian really wants to serve a mission and though he was never very religious before, he jsut knows all of this is right. He grew up in California and moved here a year ago- I know the Lord led him here for this and hopefully his family will be inspired by his example!

​Elder Carrillo on the left is the spanish elder who forst invited Christian to learn about the gospel:) I feel so blessed to have been a part of his journey!

After the baptism I just felt so clean and pure. I think that's what it means when the scriptures speak of the Holy Spirits sanctifying power.

I forgot to mention that Marta came to the baptism and is going to be baptized on February 7th! Keep her in your prayers because she keeps getting sick on sunday or having back problems which makes coming to chruch really hard for her. But she knows through the spirit that this is what she wants to do! He is the true teacher. When we invited her to be baptized on February 7th, she said it felt like she got a hot flahs and when she prayed again, the same thing happened. I know that we could not accomplish this work without God's divine aid! It is His work afterall.

My invitation this week is for all of you to reflect on the blessing the Lor has given you in your life and simply say a prayer of gratitude. We ask for a lot of things from our Heavenly Father when He has already given us so much, and it will strengthen your spirit to remember what you already have!

Love,

Sister Pearson