Sister Neel 9/27/21

 

Surprised our favorite Henderson family w/ sister Hansen's AMAZING balloon skills!! 

Hello family and friends!!

I think it's safe to say this is the happiest on my mission I've ever been :)) Training comes with so many responsibilities but man I am LOVING IT!! My trainees name is Sister Hansen and she flew in from serving at the Historic Sites in Palmyra, New York for four months! She's AMAZING and I absolutely ADORE her!! 

Here's five things you should know about her:

1) She's from Bonnie Lake, Washington

2) She's one of four girls and is the second oldest but the first to go on a mission!

3) She loves buffalo franks hot sauce (she'll drink that bad boy plain)

4) She's a balloon artist 

5) She has the biggest Disney heart like me and we quote Disney movies all day lol

Our first day together was spent in a 5 hour meeting with the other 64 trainers and trainees and then that's when the fun began haha! We loaded the car up with Sister Hansen's luggage and were about to drive away when two sisters from our district informed us that three companionships in our area were now going to share two cars between all of us and they needed a ride to their area. We had no room to add both of their luggage to our car and most people were gone at this point so the AP's had to call some nearby elders to pick up their luggage and follow us over to their apartment complex. While we were waiting for the elders, Sister Hansen and I stayed outside with the AP's to help load all three bikes onto the back of our car when a massive thunderstorm hit. We got SOAKED! The bikes became pretty slippery and we couldn't stop laughing over the fact we could barley see each other let alone put the bike on the back of the car haha!

The elders showed up, we helped load all the suitcases in and then headed out for Falls Lake. Because our car was so full of people and their belongings, Sister Hansen would have to roll down the window to check my blind spots for me since all windows were covered. It made for quite the fun trip! When we got to their apartment complex, it began down pouring and we were soaked and freezing once again. When we got into the car to go home I turned to Sister Hansen and said, "What a great first day for you! Welcome to the South." XD XD

All in all it's been a great week! Sister Hansen has such a drive for missionary work and picks up on things very quickly. Her first lesson was with Sam and she taught 50% of it! ON HER FIRST LESSON!!!! I was so proud of her!! She is already an area book wizard and has adjusted to the missionary schedule pretty quick. I introduced her to a few members throughout the week and we've taught some great lessons! Most of which she's sat and watched me teach to get a grip of what it's like but she sucks in knowledge so quick. We met with Joyce and she expressed not being interested anymore after telling us the Book of Mormon was too confusing to her and she didn't agree with our temple worship. It was pretty discouraging, especially since we were planning on putting her on date. I felt prompted to call her one evening and address her concerns....all of which she needed to hear! We talked for almost an hour and finally she was like, "All right sweetheart the spirit is strong with you and I want some more of it. Can we meet Tuesday so I can learn more about yo mormon bible?" Hallelujah! God truly does work through us as missionaries to bring to pass His great work! I am amazed as I now look back at our conversation and realize none of the words coming out of my mouth were my own. God is so good!

Lastly we had zone conference on Thursday and one of the highlights was obedience. President Maurer talked a lot about our will to God and how all He needs is our trust, that's all we should want. He talked a lot about the obedience difference between Laman and Lemuel and Nephi. Laman and Lemuel would obey but question, be negative, not perform the task with 100% effort or be asked multiple times until done right. But Nephi was always known to say, "I will go and do." His perspective was clear and he loved the Lord enough to do exactly what was asked of him. President Maurer asked us to raise the bar and become more like Nephi in our missionary work. He quoted President Packer by saying, "True doctrine understood changes behavior." Once we grasp the importance of what we teach, our opportunities are endless. Many of this can be obtained through obedience. And President Nelson says it perfectly, "Obedience brings blessings but exact obedience brings miracles." I know as we all raise the bar to be more diligent as covenant keepers of the Lord, we will see miracles take place in our lives. All it takes is faith and persistence and you WILL notice a difference ;)) Its amazing.

I love you all!!

♡♡♡

Sister Neel