What a Week

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Kristen Owens <kristen.owens@myldsmail.net>
Date: Mon, Aug 20, 2012 at 10:47 AM
Subject: What a week
To: carolyn owens <carolyndowens@gmail.com>

Hello my lovely family,
I hope all is well in Utah. It sounds like it was a crazy week, but as long as it ended well we are all happy right? :) Well, my poor trainee is Sister Mansfield from Idaho! She is FANTASTIC! :) She has a lot of energy and faith and I am so excited to serve with her.  She was a dental assistant and has amazingly beautiful teeth! haha seriously though I ask for tips all the time.  We are surely learning A LOT together.... This past weekend was great! The baptism was excellent and they were confirmed on Sunday.  They were both so happy! :) I love them so much.  They love the gospel and are so excited to be a part of the church.  We are basically finding a lot now and trying to stay balanced in our efforts, but hopefully this week we will be able to see miracles happen and make strides with the work here in Medicine Lake.  The people here are great and we are trying to build those relationships with the members more now.  There have been a lot of recent converts in the ward between us and the elders this past month so the ward has been doing great with helping them feel more comfortable.  The ward is growing for sure! :)
Sometimes I wonder really why I have been given the opportunity to train because I still feel like I have no clue what is going on.  It's ridiculous.  Please continue to pray for us.... Your prayers help so so much! It's an overwhelming opportunity. Mom--THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE PACKAGE! I loved it! The quote especially about our abilities.  It was such a tender mercy to receive that when I did.  It came the night of transfers and it brought hope to my life! So the work is still going... we are going to be finding some golden people this week and I know the Lord has prepared people for us as long as we are diligent, obedient, and striving to become better, He will always fulfill His promises.  My heart is softening a lot I think...Charity is something I have struggled with and now more than ever I really feel like it's going to become a part of me. I need so much refining! Bah!
I miss and love you family. A LOT.  Sometimes the task at hand seems too hard to bare, then I think, wait, "I'M A MISSIONARY FOR THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS. I have been called to preach this Gospel to all those who will listen." This is the greatest calling ever! Seeing the gospel change the lives of people everywhere is amazing.  I love it! I am learning so much about myself, the gospel, my Savior, and our purpose.  The Doctrine of Christ is so essential. I love applying it every day.  Faith, repentance, renewing that covenant of baptism, and listening to the Holy Ghost every day for the rest of our lives! We are so lucky to have a prophet on the earth today! We are so lucky to have the Book of Mormon which teaches us truth about who we are as Sons and Daughters of God.  I love this gospel! Families can be together forever! I love the priesthood authority and the temple.  I can't express the joy I feel when we share this message with those around us.  So many people don't know where to find the truth and are truly seeking sincerely for it.  We are praying and fasting for miracles this week! Our week is looking pretty exciting! I'll keep you posted :)
Nathan, Shea, Colton, Nicole=please write me a letter :) in the mail if possible :) you have no idea (well okay you probably do) how much getting letters lifts our spirits on missions.  Also, if Sister Randall calls you at all tell her hello for me, mom.  We are making progress out here in this area.  I am learning so much and half of me thinks I need to be training because I need more training myself right now haha AH!
Well, I know this church is true. I know Christ is the center of everything. I know following Him is the only way we can gain salvation and never-ending happiness.  I know God has a plan for us and part of that plan is having a family.  Families are ordained of God.  We get to live with our families FOREVER AND EVER! How amazing is that!!! There is no place I would rather be than right here in Minnesota serving with Sister Mansfield as a full-time missionary for the true church-The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  THE GOSPEL HAS BEEN RESTORED! What an amazing truth!
Tell the family hullo and I love them all! And tell Megs and Kim I love them!!! They will be amazing missionaries!
Love,
   Sister Owens
P.S. kinda a cool story. So as we are writing our emails, a man who we have been teaching, but did not get to see last week comes and sits down right across from us! He said he had to work yesterday but him and his wife will be there next week! Tender mercy? yes. coincidence? no. The Church is true? Y-E-S. No doubt in my mind it is.  I LOVE THE GOSPEL!

Every end has a beginning......

August 13, 2012


Every end has a beginning.....


Hullo My Dearest Family,
So start off mom to answer your questions we live in Plymouth, but our ward is the Medicine Lake ward :) And Saturday was incredible! Mom, the spirit was so strong at the baptism! Brother E and Brother and Sister H all entered into a covenant with their Heavenly Father and on Sunday were confirmed... it was a stressful Sunday btw because there was a complication with their ride to church and so they got there late... ah! we were VERY nervous to say the least... Anyway, President and Sister Clements came to the baptism and everything went so well.  We sang "I know that my Redeemer Lives" as the closing hymn and OH MAN I was in tears it was such an incredible feeling to witness the spirit so strong.  We had a great turn out and the ward was very supportive.  Two recent converts gave the talks and they did such a great job.  Afterwards we went to a member of the bishoprics for an African/American BBQ! It was so fun! The Africans are amazing in our ward. They really are incredible.  And the food was SPIC-AY!  But, Saturday was probably hands down the best day on my mission thus far--and definitely the best baptism I've been to ;) I love them all so much and am so happy that they entered into that covenant with Heavenly Father. 
SO.......kinda got some big news to tell you all......Sister Randall is leaving to go home tomorrow!!!! And President called Sunday afternoon with some jaw dropping, heart stopping, tear jerking news....I'M TRAINING this next transfer!!!!! Can you say WWWWWHHHHAAAATTTT?!?! Um, hi..... I don't know what I'm doing as a missionary!!!! How am I suppose to teach someone else how to be a missionary???? So many, many, many, many prayers would be much appreciated--mostly for the sister who I will be serving with because I already feel so bad for her... ha.  It was kinda a funny story because when you train President calls on Sunday's but transfer calls are on monday. And if you train you don't get a call monday. So this morning (Monday) we get a call and my first thought was "YES! He changed his mind!" and then come to find out it was an accidental phone call.............. funny joke huh? I've been praying for more confidence and faith in my heart because I feel like Satan really drags me down with negative thoughts about myself and it drives me crazy.  I want nothing more than to be confident in who I am as a Daughter of God and as a Disciple of Christ.  This will be such a learning experience and He will definitely be stretching me as far as I can go, but I do have a calm feeling right now as I am typing this.  Everything will be okay (I think). This really is His work, and He is in charge, and I will give it my all and do my best to help Sister _____ become a diligent, hardworking, obedient, loving missionary.  I am so far from being perfect--IT DRIVES ME CRAZY--but, I do know that I am going to learn to rely on my Savior and my Heavenly Father and the Spirit these next few months.  If you could just really keep us in your prayers that would be great.  There are so many things I am still learning and I feel like I have no idea how to do, but I know we are not alone in this and I really know angels will be our guides to find those whom He has prepared.  It's not just about doing missionary work, but becoming a missionary or disciple of Jesus Christ.  I have a lot of refining to do....hence, why I probably get to train....ahhhhhh. ahhhhhh. ahhhhhh. those are my thoughts right now.... AAAAHHHHHH!
On a brighter note, we have two more baptisms this weekend! And Sister ___ and her son are more ready than ever! They are the cutest and really were very prepared for the gospel.  We are trying to prepare him for a mission actually :) So the new sister that comes gets to witness the baptism of some pretty incredible people and they are my favorite people ever.  Sister Randall is already finished with her letters and waiting for me to finish because she leaves tomorrow!!!! I'm not gonna lie, if I wasn't gonna be training I would probably be a little trunky.....
But, I love you so much family. You are incredible examples to me.  Keep being who you are meant to be. Never forget your purpose for being here.  Stay focused and endure to the end.  God is always there for us.  He sent His Son out of love for YOU. And Christ came willingly out of love for YOU as well.  He has walked in your shoes.  For that I am so humbled and grateful to know..... I would be nowhere without this gospel and without my Savior.  Once again, just please pray for me...I'm going to need all the faith and prayers I can get.... 1 ne 17:50 I'll work to have the faith like NEPHI and expect miracles! Heavenly Father is in charge now.... I have the choice to be diligent and obedient in this work and that is what I'll do. 
Tell everyone else hello and I love them. Please continue to write, even if it's just a short paragraph in the mail...I think I'll really need the support these next few weeks.... I LOVE YOU! Thanks for being such a great family!
Love,
 Sister Owens

Alma 37:33-35

From: Kristen Owens <kristen.owens@myldsmail.net>
Date: Mon, Aug 6, 2012 at 10:51 AM
Subject: Alma 37:33-35
To: carolyn owens <carolyndowens@gmail.com>

Hiiiii Family,
How is everything in Utah/Washington treating you? Thank you so much for the letters and pictures Cherise! Tell the boys I love them a lot! They made my week! I loved them :) I miss you all so so much! Would you mind sending me your address by chance so I can send a lil' something your way? Any exciting news happening this month to any of you? Do you remember that you have a little sister who loves you thousands of miles away? k good. Cuz you do, and she misses each one of you like craaaazy.  Glad we got that established.
So I hope everything is going well there.  The summer is almost over which is so weird--we are now entering the fall! Well, actually it's still hot here but things have definitely cooled down.  I'm not melting like a Popsicle anymore :) But, the work is going good.  We taught quite a few new people this week and things are great.  I have come to find out I have many weaknesses in teaching...but I do appreciate your thoughts mom on never suppress a generous thought--if it invites to do good, it is usually from the Spirit.  Sometimes I feel like I am not improving one bit at anything...then I realize that is false. And it's funny because I think right when we start to feel comfortable is when God decides to give us something to stretch and refine and polish us a little bit more... I kinda feel like that's how next transfer is going to be.  I'm excited, but nervous.  Sister Randall gets to see her family in 8 days--yes, I am very much jealous (I'll repent later for that..just kidding.) I'm so excited for her. It's been really neat to see how much her mission has changed her and all that she has learned.  She is a great missionary and the Lord has been able to use her as an instrument to bring many souls unto Christ.  She has such a deep understanding of doctrine and the Atonement. I'm amazed at how much she knows.  When I come home I want to be able to say my understanding and love for the Atonement has increased ten fold if not more.  Christ really is the center of everything.  As we put Him and our Father first in our lives, everything else seems to fall into place.  We come to understand why we are here and the importance of living the Gospel.  We come to know, feel, and see the love of God in our lives.  Every time we exercise our faith, He blesses us for it, even if we have to be patient and diligent and endure. 
We have three amazing people getting baptized this week! They are doing great and we hope all goes well.  That means the opposition is about to kick up so we have been trying to get our members involved as much as possible here--every day! Daily contact.  And the members have been so good--they invite them over for dinner and FHE and come with us to teach them and boy do they make a difference.  You should all go joint teaching with the missionaries more often.  Trust me, they need your help :) I know nothing and the members thoughts really make a difference.  To see the influence of the gospel in their lives has really impacted me.  They are really amazing people.  They know the things they need to do to make a difference in their lives.  They have a desire to serve God the rest of their lives and build up the Church and such.  It's so amazing to watch.  We had a less active member of the ward recently come back and he actually received the Melchezidek Priesthood on Sunday.  How awesome is that?! The Atonement is real.  God has given us so many tools to come closer to Him and so many ways to partake of the Spirit.  Thank you dad for always being there when I needed a blessing.  Thank you for being worthy to give me those blessings of healing and comfort.  I have seen so many blessings come from the priesthood in our home and am so grateful for a righteous family.  Mom, I was reminded this week of your amazing example of strength and faith when you were going through treatments a few years ago.  I often reflect on that experience and was reminded of the sweet memory of when we were sitting on the couch and you said something about death and dying.  I remember it so clearly because when you mentioned it, the spirit hit me so strongly and I KNEW everything would be okay. I KNEW I would see my family again in the next life because of the blessings of the temple.  I can never forget that witness.  The Plan of Happiness is real.  Heavenly Father loves us and so He sent His Son, the ultimate example of love and joy.  Even though Christ suffered and descended below all things, I know He still found joy in serving and loving the people. I was reading in 3 Ne about when He visits the people and teaches them and tells them to pray while He goes to pray on His own.  When He comes back, they did continue to pray without ceasing and His "countenance did smile upon them..." I love that imagery.  Seeing Christ smile :) Smiling because you are obeying His counsel and He loves YOU.  We have a boy with down syndrome in our ward who is the sweetest boy in the world.  He bore His testimony yesterday and repeated many times, "Jesus Christ loves YOU." and "Joseph Smith loves YOU." Those phrases almost made me cry. He was so sweet as he bore his firm witness of the love of Christ.  But, I loved how he emphasized YOU. you could just tell He knew.  It was a very tender sweet moment. 
K so now that I have drone on and on....This week is going to be great--difficult--but great! Thanks for your prayers and love I really do appreciate all the letters and support.  Missionary work is AMAZING! I am learning a lot and sometimes it gets hard to keep an eternal perspective, but the Lord never ceases to be there for me and lift me up through the Atonement.  I also have a firm belief that we have help on the other side of the veil.  It's incredible to feel and know that so many people we meet on the streets have family and friends who are waiting to accept the gospel in the Spirit world and you can just see them working on the people here on earth.  (That sounds weird, but I know we have help from both sides of the veil).  Thanks again for all you do.  I am excited to write to you next week and tell you all about this amazingly awesome fantastic fabulous week coming up! I love you once again more than words can say :)
Love, Sister Owens
P.S. I received half of a letter in the mail this week from my dear sweet cousin Kenzie... I only got the front of the envelope though.. the rest was lost in mail! haha isn't that funny??? So tell her thank you, I'm sure the words of the letter will lift and inspire someone else that reads it. I'm sad I didn't have the chance to! :( But I love you Kenz! Thanks for thinking of me and I will write you back asap :)
P.S.S. tell your sister KELSEY SUE to write me a stinkin letter so I have her address!!! please :) LOVE YOU!

Sister Randall and Sister Owens

                                                    

These dresses were given to them by a Sweet Liberian Lady.

                                                                              

Sister Randall is getting "trunky" and Sister Owens is getting "chunky"!

Kristen Owens kristen.owens@myldsmail.net	10:49 AM (1 hour ago)
to me

Dear Mi Familia,

Sister Randall said, "I'M NOT TRUNKY!" :) She really isn't though. I just thought it was a clever title :) the part about me getting chunky is true though...I think I am a stress eater...oops.

The battle is great here.  The summer heat is always...lovely. Time is really flying by so quickly.  Sister Randall leaves in two weeks and I will be getting a new companion and leading the area which stresses me clear out of my mind. But, President says the new companion will be great so it all works out! :) Minnesota has been such a neat experience.  The Lord really is blessing us with people to teach and lessons and many blessings.  For the first time since being here in Minnesota Sister Randall and I reached our goals and the standard of excellence for our mission. It was such a sweet feeling! Looking back on when we first arrived in the area and had no one to teach and absolutely nothing to now, it's so crazy! The Lord has provided so many things for us as we have striven to be obedient and diligent and consecrated.  We are teaching a lot more, and we have people interested and set for baptisms.  They are progressing and it is so great to see the change the gospel has and the effects of it on their lives.   I love testifying of blessings that come from living the gospel.  The Lord is so willing to bless us for our obedience and love.  And I love living more like my Savior every day.  I know it is only by living like Him that we truly come to know Him.  I have found a lot more weaknesses and shortcomings in myself than I ever imagined possible.  I would be helpless if I didn't have a Savior who knows what and who I am and how to help me.  He has literally walked in every single one of our shoes to know how He can help us overcome the effects of sin, mistakes, pains, illnesses, trials, you name it.  He is my elder brother, my Savior, my friend. 

Satan is working over time on our investigators as they get nearer to baptism.  We just have to work extra as well. Pray a little harder, listen a little harder, be a little more obedient and diligent.  There are always people spreading anti about our church and it drives me crazy.  So many people say "Oh, I know all about your church" and "you believe this and this.." and it's never true but they won't let you even say two words back.  However, the Lord is preparing hearts everywhere for us to teach and we have come into contact with the sweetest people.  The West Africans here are amazing.  They are very spiritual people and have a love for the Lord and a desire to serve Him.  They are so fun to teach and I love listening to them talk! They have many spiritual experiences.  They have lived so many hard lives with war and despair, but yet they know in whom they trust who is God.  We've had to warn all of our investigators about anti-mormon stuff because it's everywhere and people are vicious.  But, it just proves to me how true this work is.  All we want to do is help people come closer to Christ and help them receive all the blessings He has in store for them including living with your family forever.  I love this work.  You all motivate me to be a better person and missionary.  And mom and dad, I am so far from being perfect it's insane. It's almost overwhelming how far we still have to go.  But, He doesn't expect perfection, He expects immediate progress.

We had a zone meeting last week and it was neat to hear President Clements train us on how to love.  He shared experiences from His mission and how he used to be very inverted and shy, but the Lord helped him overcome that shyness and he said he learned to love. Love really is what it is all about.  Having charity is something I've been trying to work on.  It's so hard sometimes! There are so many things to think about as a missionary yet it really comes down to your love for the Savior, Heavenly Father, and others.  These people here need what we have.  Everyone needs the gospel.  I just want everyone to understand the love He has for them!

We taught the mom and her son this week and it was so cool.  The spirit was very strong in the lesson and the son even cried for the first time! He was so cute! We moved their baptism date up to the 18th of August right after Sister Randall heads out which they are sad about.  We just love them so much! The members of the ward are great and have helped a lot with the people we are teaching.  This week was hard but so rewarding! The area is blossoming and it's fun to witness it! we are working on replenishing our teaching pool because pretty much by August 18th our investigators will be baptized! Keep praying for me, I really do feel your prayers.  I'm humbled at being a representative of the Lord, but as I am striving to do my best and really work and look outward, He has blessed me with a greater peace of mind and love for the people here.  There is so much work to do!

Sometimes I can't believe I'm actually on a mission. I really wake up sometimes and think "I'm a missionary???" And it's going by so fast. But, in answer to your question mom, I think the greatest change I have seen is the softening of my heart and my ability to look outward.  I've learned I'm pretty selfish and prideful.  Leaning on the Savior and His Atonement to help change my heart and striving consistently to live what I know to be true has increased my faith and love for those around me.  I still have a loooonnnnggg way to go, but oh how grateful I am for the Atonement and the opportunity to be refined and polished a little bit more.  I love you so much and miss you like crazy! Seriously though.  But, thanks for all your support and prayers--they make a big difference. I can't imagine living life without you family.  It's one of the greatest blessings He has given us to help us along this path.  Keep up the good work! :) I'm doing my best and I will try a little harder to be a little better this week! The people here are great! And always so nice! You meet such different people from all over the world! We started teaching a couple from Sierra Leone and they are awesome! we had a baptism in our ward for a sister the Elders were teaching and it was neat to experience the feelings of the spirit as she was baptized and confirmed a member.  I can't wait for the 11th because three of the people we are teaching will be baptized! :) whoo!

I hope all is well at home :) and thanks for emailing britt's and em's letters they sound like they are doing great! :) I miss them! I even cried a little reading them haha don't judge.  Tell the family to write me letters whether it's emails or hand written please! I want updates!

I LOVE YOU FAMILY!

Love,
   Sister Owens

Texas Heat

Hello Family!

It's another week of talking, teaching, testifying, driving, biking, heat, sweat, wetness, and the best time of my life.  This week was pretty good.  I seem to forget what happened every time I sit down to write a letter.  Tell Nadine I'll be coming home with a little accent like hers though--sometimes I find myself saying "bag" and "flag" like a Canadian or Minnesotan and I think of her every time.  A few weeks ago it even slipped out as we were having a conversation with someone.  I said "Ooh Yeah" except I said it like a Minnesotan. My companion just looked at me and I even surprised myself! yikes!

The weather has been very moist and hot! We have been riding our bikes more this week because we are running low on miles for our car. It has been hot. You are just wet--I've seriously never sweat this bad in my life and partly because it's not all my sweat, it's mostly just the wet air (or at least that's what I like to tell myself).  But, it's been a good week as a missionary.  More awkward moments. More awesome miracles. More growing and learning how to work, be a leader, and love.  Charity is something I've been striving to focus on this week because it really is the center of the gospel.  It's a motivator.

We now have 5 people preparing for baptism in August! It's crazy! And they are all pretty solid.  We love teaching them! We stopped by the woman we had been teaching and her son was there so we talked with him and he now wants to be baptized as well with his mom on the 25th! They are both doing great and progressing.  I never knew how stressful missionary work would be with planning lessons and knowing what to teach people, but I have realized as you truly learn to love them you won't ever wonder what to say.  You talk with and teach and testify of truths you know will help them and bless their lives.  And the members play a huge role in helping investigators progress.  Be a good involved member of the church!

Time is flying by! Ah! By myself, I am the weakest of the weak, but with the Atonement of Jesus Christ, He makes me strong.  Putting in every effort, your whole heart, might, mind, and strength every day is hard to do, but as we strive to give it all we have, the Lord blesses us--even if it's just having the strength to make it through the day.  I love it here. I am so nervous to have Sister Randall leave, but once again, He knows me best, He knows what I need and I know that with Him we can accomplish this work.  It would be so much easier if we were perfect thought! ;) jk

So it sounds like the family is happy, growing, and enjoying the summer! Mom, I hope you didn't get heat stroke in Texas! It's way too hot there I think! I can't believe summer is almost over--where'd it go?! That means winter is just around the corner which also means I'll be looking like an oompa loompa real soon--attractive right? yup. 

Anyway, I don't have a ton of time, but the work is going great! The elders and sisters here are really amazing people.  I love seeing how much they trust in the Lord to accomplish this work.  It takes action on our part if we have faith and faith precedes miracles.  Being proactive as a missionary is a necessity and that is something I am working on improving. 

I just want to bear my testimony to you that I know this gospel is true.  I know it with every fiber of my being.  I know God watches over us and is very aware of us and answers our prayers if we are faithful, diligent, and patient (Alma 32).  He loves us very much and needs us to do and become.  Jesus Christ lives.  He chose to come to this earth to suffer for us so we could have a chance of returning back to our Heavenly Father and living with Him and our families for eternity in complete neverending happiness.  He is my rock and my foundation.  It is only through Him that I can amount to anything.  The Atonement is real and encompasses every single person perfectly.  It's universal, yet so personal.  Angels are watching over us and preparing hearts everywhere for the good news of the gospel.  We have help from both sides of the veil.  I have felt that so many times while being out here.  Joseph Smith was a true prophet.  The Book of Mormon is the world of God--no matter what anyone says, I know it and I can not deny it.  God loves us so much He has given us a prophet to guide us and lead us back to Christ.  He tells us truth.  I know prayer is real and powerful and I know the only way we can gain salvation is through faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end.  We must access the Atonement daily.  This gospel is true!!! All Christ asks is that we come unto Him and He will heal us.  I bear my testimony of all these truths in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

I love you family.  Keep enduring to the end.  We can do it together :) I'm praying for you and love you more than words can say.

Love,
  Sister Owens


P.S. Tell Craig good luck on His tests! We have an actuary in our ward here and he loves it. YOU CAN DO IT!
 

Many Mighty Miracles

MMM--Many Might Miracles (aka Minnesota Minneapolis Mission)

Inbox

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Kristen Owens	11:25 AM (1 hour ago)
to me

Hulllo Family!

Monday Monday Monday-I can't believe it's Monday again! What a week it has been! How are you all doing?? Are the fires out over there yet? That was a crazy few days I bet. I miss you a lot and hope you know how much I pray for you. I have a pic in my scriptures with the whole clan and everytime I look at it it brings a smile to my face and a surge of energy to work a little harder, be a little more diligent, and become a consecrated missionary.  I love you! A lot!

Tell Makena to expect a letter in the mail this week for her--that first paragraph of your letter made me laugh so hard.  I love and miss those two girls.  They are going to be so grown up when I get back! Ah! Crazy. 

Well this last week we saw many mighty miracles again! The Lord never ceases to bless us for our diligence and obedience.  We now officially have 4 date sets :) (i jumped the gun last week and told you we did, but really it's now official this week) Three for August 11th and one for August 25th.  I have to use code names for these people so we will call the couple Rodger and Kathy and the woman Suzie and her Son will be Brad.  cool.  Rodger and Kathy are doing great! Kathy had swollen feet still from having her baby so we had been praying really hard that her feet would be okay enough for her to come to church on Sunday (she has to come at least 3 more times before her baptism and there are only 4 weeks left).  And.....SHE CAME! Kathy and Rodger both came with their sweet baby girl.  They are such amazing people! They are from Liberia and have been taught for quite some time so we are so excited that they finally get to be baptized in a few short weeks.  They have amazing faith and have faced a lot of opposition, but the ward has been involved with them are were so welcoming at church.  It's an amazing process to watch the gospel change people's lives.  It is a sweet experience and I feel blessed to see it happening right before my eyes. 

Suzie finally came as well with her Son Brad! We haven't taught Brad yet but he went to young men's mutual night and also came to church and is planning on going on wednesday again! So excited.  Suzie is amazing.  Her heart is totally prepared. She soaks up everything we teach and everything she heard at church.  She always responds by saying, "that makes so much sense!" or "I've always wondered about that."  She is the sweetest lady and loved church! Her son Brad is the sweetest soft spoken kid in the world.  he is 18 and we are so excited to teach him. 

We also had met this Russian couple a few weeks back (I don't know if I told you about it).  but they didn't speak very good english so it was hard to communicate.  I guess I have time so I will tell you the story.  We will call them Dimitri and Anastasia for dramatic effect.  Sister Randall and I ran into Dimitri a few weeks back and talked with him simply and got his contact info, which happened to be wrong.... that never happens! (thats a joke).  anyway, we were teaching a man named....Kaladja.... and we had a member with us named Mary (?).  Mary's daughter was a week away from getting home from her mission from Russia and we had talked with her before about Dimitri and such so we were excited to meet Mary's daughter and have her come with us to teach Dimitri.  Well after the wrong contact info and such we thought we had lost contact.  When Mary, Sister Randall, and I went to teach Kaladja who happened to live in the same complex as Dimitri--we ran into Dimitri again! And Mary was talking with him and telling him her daughter wants to meet him and such and he was kinda confused I think because he can't speak very well...but a minute later, his wife pulls up in her car and she can speak english a little better and we communicated with her that Mary's daughter would love to speak with them and so she gave us the correct contact info and such.  Well, long story short. Mary's daughter got home and was speaking in church yesterday.  She asked for their number, called them, invited them to church, and they came!!! :) After the meeting, Sister Randall went back to talk with them briefly and Dimitri was crying....it was so cool.  So we had 6 investigators to church on sunday! MIRACLES!!!! And we hopefully will be teaching Dimitri and Anastasia this week with Mary's daughter to translate :) whooo whoo.  The Lord knows what He is doing.  I can't believe I've been out here already for two months and I've already witnessed so many miracles. 

I know when we are obedient, He uses us as an instrument in His hands.  It's so easy to feel inadequate, but the best part is we don't have to rely on our own abilities--we get to rely on the Spirit, who, as it says in Alma 7:13 "The Spirit knoweth all things." Luckily, as we put our trust in Him, it will all work out--we still have to work and give it all we have, but as we are diligent and obedient and constantly striving to improve, He blesses and guides us.  I'm glad you talked about the power of the Holy Ghost in your letter mom, because I've also been thinking a lot about that this week.  I take for granted the good feelings of the spirit sometimes and don't recognize the gift and power we have been given.  It's hard to recognize promptings and know whether it's from the Spirit or not, but it all starts with our faith.  Faith is the key and first principle of the Gospel.  If you have the faith and you are trying all you can to keep the Spirit in your life, God promises to give us guidance and revelation.  I tried and experimented upon the word this morning as I opened my scriptures to read about revelation and the Holy Ghost.  In the BD it quotes Joseph Smith and says "no man can receive the Holy Ghost without receiving revelation" but once again it starts with faith.  Studying this morning brought many answers to my questions and I know it's because I put my faith in God and his promises and He is so willing to answer our questions.  He loves each one of so much! :)

I love you and hope all is well....tell the sibs to write me a letter will ya??? :) I never realized how much letters in the mail meant until I came on a mission.  It's so much fun to get letters! :) Anyway,  keep me posted on all the family news and such. 

Talk to you next week,

Love, Sister Owens