Sister Calianne Skinner: 8/12/24

 ☀️you are my sunshine☀️

This week as we headed to interviews (which have I ever told you that my mission president is an inspired servant of God!? Because he is!!) But anyway across the street from us was this man! He starts talking to us so I stop but I'm not sure what he is staying until he stops shimmies a little and screams/sings/bellows/growls "you are my sunshine" paused for a breath "my only sunshine" paused because I think he forgot the lyrics "you'll never know dear how much I love you" paused for dramatic effect "please dont take my susnhine away" and I didnt even get it on video 太可惜 

On another note 劉姐 （our 75 year old friend prayed!!) This is monumental!! Because we have been meeting with her for two months and everytime we have asked her to pray she has said somthing more like the Zormaite peoples prayer or at least she just recites what is on our flier that teaches how to pray! Recites after what we say! Or interrupts herself or our prayer to add her own commentary!! Or a grunt of approval!! But we had a lesson just about prayer outlined every step and at the end invited her to pray!! And SHE DID!! My smile could have lit up the Americas in their three days of total darkness I was that excited!! 

On Saturday this week though the happiness from that was fading! I was stressed, fell asleep in the middle of confirming a text with my comp, none of our lessons showed up, and our most progressing friend stopped responding to us!! But in the midst of all of that God is still good!! My companion helped me laugh my way through it and then at the end of the day we got TWO SELF REFERRALS!! God is aware!!

Other highlights:

🌅chasing sunsets with Sister McCullough!!

🧘‍♀️childs pose is good for the soul

👩‍🔬no sugar lemonade with papaya ice cream (would not recommend)

👣my goal this transfer was to be able to touch my toes and I am already getting so close!!!!

🌇 Our own Jerusalem 🌇

In the beginning of the Book of Mormon Lehi warns that the city of Jerusalem will be destroyed unless they repent! But nobody believes that this great city Jerusalem could be destroyed! Laman and Lemuel murmur for years about how their father was wrong and that such a place could not be destroyed!! And I have never truly thought about how this could relate to me! But as I have been thinking about it I realize we all have our own Jerusalems! We have habits, actions, thoughts, feeling, desires, and so much more that we think there is no way for this to change about me! And sometimes I think we do not want it to! We are content and happy with our Jerusalems and dont believe we have the power to change it! And truthfully we do not! And Lehi also could not have!! He could not have preached that Jerusalem was going to be destroyed and then gone and taken it down brick by brick! No the only was these habits and attitudes can change is through God! And He gave us the Atonement of Jesus Christ so that when we give our whole souls to Him we will become better and go to our own land of promise!!

He loves you and so do I!!!

Sister Skinner!! 阮書涵姐妹

PS: pray for Jim and Stephanie!!