12/27/10- Letter to the Word

Hello World!

I hope ya’ll had a MERRY CHRISTMAS!

We had a very busy week!

Monday, we went to the airport and dropped Sis. Owens off to fly her to Brazil!  Then Sis. Gibson moved in.  We’ve been covering both areas all week and have been in the car for at least 60 miles every day.  Crazy!!  Most days were even more than that!  We got to watch The Restoration with a less-active family at the end of the day.

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Tuesday we volunteered at the Lancaster County Council of Churches.  It’s a food bank.  That was fun.  Then an older Sister in our ward took us out for lunch at Bob Evan’s.  SUPER good!  Then we went and did service in the Lititz area (the other sister).  We went to a Lutheran Retirement Center and got to talk to residents at a Christmas Party.  It was really cool.  Next we went to the Jones’ for dinner.  They were baptized just over a year ago.  We then taught the first half of the Plan of Salvation.  ‘Twas awesome!  Then we went to the SMITH’S (I love them!) and watched Mr. Krueger’s Christmas.  They gave us more of their extra Kellog’s food (he works for them) as well as some other food.  Then we went to the Karchner’s, but only the mom was home.  Right as we were about to teach the lesson, her foster kids (non-members) and less-active husband came home, so we got to teach them!  Awesome!

Wednesday we tried to go sing at an old folk’s home after district meeting with the elders, but the place was booked (we went back Friday).  We had an appointment in Lititz, dinner in Mount Joy, and an appointment in Mount Joy with an AWESOME less-active couple.  They are SO cute!  They were married like 7 months ago, and are working towards the temple.  The thing is they need to come to church…we don’t know why they don’t come yet.  We taught an awesome L2 and the Spirit was definitely there as the wife talked about her brother who died who she wanted to invite to church and how she wants the work done now.  It was so cute, though…they had the fireplace DVD in on the TV w/ Christmas music, hot bread and candies ready, and cookies in the oven.  LOL.  Such awesome homemakers!

Thursday we had part of P-Day since the last P-Day was spent helping Sis. Owens get off to Brazil.  We went and got our hair cut at the Jones'.  Next we went to teach Brittney—an investigator in the Lititz area.  She is a 7^th Day Adventist.  She’d been looking for truth for a long time and finally found that church.  They have many of the same beliefs, so she doesn’t really understand why we would ask her to try our church.  We taught her L2 and asked her to continue praying about it and reading the Book of Mormon.  She had a pseudo-grandson come home and it was cool to hear her tell him about Joseph Smith.  She believes he’s a prophet, she just doesn’t understand what that means.  We had to go on splits to cover dinner appointments and then we met back up to teach Tyson.  He’s AWESOME!!!  He’s been asking about the temple, so we watched Between Heaven and Earth (phenomenal).  Afterward, we asked if he had any questions.  The only one he had was “How do I get in?”  Ahh!  Sweet :D  He got the Priesthood Sunday and will get a temple recommend next week!

Christmas Eve we got to go caroling with a couple of Elders at an Old Folk’s home.  We did it for an hour or two and it was SO fun!  We stopped by a few houses on the way to our dinner appointment at the Bishops.  He had two non-member neighbors over, so that was cool.  After dinner, his kids each played a song for us on the piano and then we had a little Christmas program—reading passages from the Bible and Book of Mormon and singing.  Afterward, bishop asked me to play something and then one of the non-member women played something, too.  We had a request to carol at a specific house and did that before driving home.

Christmas was awesome.  We opened our presents in the morning (thank you!) and then went to one family for breakfast, another for lunch, and another for dinner!  ‘Twas fun.  We also contacted a referral who seems to have TONS of potential.  She was SO happy we came.  The best part was calling home :D  I got to talk to my bros, too, which was AWESOME! 

Sunday we got snow—just an inch or two.  We were in the Litiz area after church and contacted another referral who wants to meet with us again.  We also got to teach Tyson again!  We watched Joseph:  Prophet of the Restoration (the one that’s been playing at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building).  It’s AMAZING and really brings the Spirit and you can now buy it on DVD!  Woot!

 

Well, that's it!  Today we're going to Harrisburg again to pick up Sis. Green--the new Sister!  We'll be back to just our area :D

 

Love ya'll!

 

Sister Denton

12/20/10- Letter to the World

Hello World!

I REALLY don't have much time today.

We have a new companion!  Here's how:

We're in the Lancaster 2nd Ward and Sister Villa and Sister Bleazard were in the 3rd Ward.
Sister Villa got transferred and Sister Rogers came.
Sister Bleazard got sick and Sister Gibson came.
Sister Rogers went home at the end of an awesome mission.
Sister Owens came out from the MTC while waiting for her visa to Brazil...should be 3 or 4 months.
This morning we dropped Sister Owens off at the airport!
We are now a tripanionship!  Woot!

We have a less-active part-member family--the Richards and we did a soft baptismal commitment to the dad--he said yes!  We're going to keep working with him.

The Millers told us that our church was one of the worst they'd ever been to because of irreverence.  We had a really good lesson and they MIGHT come back, but it's not too likely.  More on that lesson next week (someone remind me please :D)

Well, I love you all!  MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Sister Denton

12/13/10- Letter to the World

So...this was an AWESOME week!

Really Spiritual
Really Cool
Really Funny

Monday--I received music for the musical number for Wednesday at the Mission Tour.  It was What Child is This  and Carol of the Bells.  Elder Duron had rewritten Carol of the Bells to be in the same key as What Child is This and we worked for 30 minutes or so to try and make an arrangement of the two over the phone.  It actually turned out REALLY cool!  I'll hopefully send the video so people can see it :D  It was SO fun to work with music like that again--arranging it and changing it and having to use my music theory knowledge.  I LOVED and while thinking about it after definitely felt like the Spirit was leading me to enlarge my mind to be able to do that to make an awesome musical number.

Wednesday--MISSION TOUR!!  Elder Gavarett of the 70 came (see this month's Ensign in Christmas Traditions).  He was AMAZING!  Right from the get-go, he started making changes to the program and kept quoting D&C 46:2 which says the Elders should conduct meetings by the Spirit.  It was so cool.  I was in the second row and he kept teaching from in front of the podium, so I was WAY close!  I got to talk to him a few times and Sister Longmore got interviewed by him!  Crazy!  The meeting was WONDERFUL :D

Thursday--We taught Mandy for the first time since her baptism and it was amazing to see how much more in tune with the scriptures and the Spirit she was!

Friday--We had a meeting planned with the Millers, but they canceled right before.  Bro. Jacobson had come with us, so we ended up going to a PM/LA family.  We teach to the children to avoid offending the father, but the lesson was GREAT and ended up with a discussion with him and what his reservations toward the church are.  He doesn't think there IS a true church, and as such doesn't believe our claim that we are that church.  Sister Longmore gave him a copy of the 17 Points of the True Church.

Saturday--The CHRISTMAS PARTY!!!!!  It was AWESOME!  I had a blast and we had lots of NM and LA there!  One of the coolest parts was the 12 Days of Christmas.  They'd laid the parts around the room and those near the sign had to sing their part.  It left us all in peals of laughter.

Sunday--THE MILLERS CAME TO CHURCH!!!!!!!  We were just a little excited about that :D  AND they asked if they could sit closer next time.  NEXT TIME!  They were fellowshipped really well and our ward really stepped up to the plate.  We also had a phenomenal lesson on the Restoration with a family in the ward that evening.  The Spirit was strong as we testified of the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Cool Message from Paul for the day--1 Cor 1:  12-13

"Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

Is Christ divided?  was Paul crucifed for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?"

Read that last verse with the emphasis I included.  Was PAUL crucified for you?  Was Mary?  Was Job?  I don't think so!  So why are there so few churches with Christ's name?

I love Paul.  Just sayin'.

Love ya'll!

Sister Denton

O ya--Sister Longmore and I are staying in the Millersville area until at least Jan 26!

12/6/10- Letter to the World

Well world, you're lucky.  I forgot my fabulous things calendar and my journal, so I don't know much of what happened this week lol.

The most amazing things is.......drumroll please...........MANDY GOT BAPTIZED!!!!  After over a year of study, she entered the waters of baptism and made the first step along the path to return to live with our Father in Heaven!  It was a BEAUTIFUL baptism.  There was a mini-miracle that happened, too!  Brother Johnson, a former ward member, was really close to Mandy and agreed to fly out from WASHINGTON to baptize her!  He had a layover in Chicago where he was delayed for 1 1/2 hours.  One hundred flights were canceled.  His, to an airport that isn't even that big, was not and he arrived at the baptism about 20 minutes before it started. You could really feel the love the people and Heavenly Father had for Mandy at this baptism.

Last week we had our first lesson with the Miller family and they agreed to come to church.  They didn't, and we were pretty bummed and worried they'd been antied, but we called and they're still good to meet with us tonight AND go to church next week!  The dad is a cage fighter who used to be a Jehovah's Witness and the mom used to go to Church of the Brethren.  The children are super amazing--especially Anna.  She had read the introduction by the time we got there (she's 8) and no one else had.  She was also very excited about going to church.  I have this feeling of excitement about this family.  They are going to be amazing and it will bring about great things.

I'm reading the New Testament right now and let me tell you, Paul is a stud!  (lol..Mandy always thinks it's funny when I call prophets studs haha)  Today I was reading in Romans 6 and he had just told the people that it is through the grace of Christ's Atonement that we are saved.  SO many people tell us that we are wrong for thinking we need to do good works and try our best to go to heaven, they think it's ONLY by grace while the Book of Mormon adds "after all we can do."  We KNOW the grace is necessary and we'd be nowhere without it, but these people think you only need to claim Christ's name to be saved.  Well...check out what Paul says after he talks about the importance of Grace.

"What shall we say then?  Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  God forbid."  haha...isn't that awesome!  And again in verse 15, "What then?  shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace?  God forbid."

This gospel is amazing.  Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God who truly saw Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father in a grove of trees on a spring morning.  I know it and I know that God knows it and I cannot deny it, neither dare I do it.  The scriptures have so much to teach us if we but take the time to truly study them.  President Monson leads this church today under the direction of Jesus Christ.  What a miracle!  So many people know there's a pope, know about Jesus Christ, and even know about the intricate details of celebrities' lives, but they don't know that there is a modern-day Moses who speaks for Jesus Christ!  What a miracle.  The church is true, the book is blue!

Well, I guess I'll leave it at that for the week!  I'll try to send some pictures :D

Love you all!

Sister Denton