Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Her Last Week!
Steph is in her last week, we are all having a hard time believing it. We are all very excited to see her. Her last week will be a great one! The rest of her Sweet Family will be baptized on the 26th. We are all very excited for the Beaudion family. I know they read this. So from our family to yours. We are so blessed to have the Gospel in our lives. We can't imagine what our lives would be like without it. We know that you too will not know how you ever lived without it. We all look forward to the day we get to meet you. Thank you for sharing your sweet spirits with our Stephanie!
Week 72
December 22, 2009
Well I can hardly believe that this is my last email from California. It has been a crazy week. A lot of things have happened. It was Sister Taulanga's birthday on Saturday. I had asked someone if they had ever had asphalt pie awhile ago and Sister T has wanted it for her birthday ever since. I didn't know what to get her for her birthday and I wanted to make it special. The Beaudoin's were having us over for dinner so I decided to have them make it and have it be a surprise. It is pretty difficult to pull off a surprise when you are with a person 24/7. However I decided to try. I wrote a note for Brandi and gave her instructions and money to get the groceries. The only cash I had was a 50 dollar bill. Sister T was mad that I had written a note not on Pday. I didn't care if she was mad because I knew that it was different than she thought. She asked if it was for the Beaudoin's and I said yes. She was less mad. It set me up perfectly to go over there and give it to them without question. Kenady was a little shocked that I was giving them $50. I told her to trust me and read the note. She did and all was well. That end was covered. Then I had to figure out how to deal with Sister T. She kept asking and asking and I would say "We'll see". Our dinner appointment cancelled friday night which meant that we would be at home with plenty of time to make it. She was excited I however didn't know what to do. Then the next morning while exercising I tripped and fell. I fell on the asphalt and cut up my knee and hand pretty good. There was still a lot of dirt in it after cleaning it and I didn't want to scrub it myself. So I called Sister Sexton to see what I should do and if there was anything else I could do. I didn't want it to get infected. They instructed that I should go to the doctor. So we went to Long Beach and went to the doctor. L&L, an amazing restaurant, and one of our favorites was across the street. I decided to tell Sister T that that was her birthday from me and that we weren't going to make asphalt pie. She was super sad but I told her I would make it for her for Christmas. That satisfied her. I sighed a breath of relief. I just prayed that it would all work out. It was all good and then Kenady called in the afternoon and asked a question. My answer made Sister T a little suspicious but we ended up pulling it off and she was surprised. Man it was a headache. To add to the stress of my falling we left our cell phone at the doctor's office and then had to go back and get it. Luckily we discovered it before they closed for the weekend. I know that our Heavenly Father helped us out. Our plans fell through and if I hadn't looked in my planner and saw that we needed to call someone we wouldn't have discovered it until it was too late. God is in all of the details. We just have to listen. So anyway it was a crazy time. We went to the ghetto on Saturday. It freaked me out a little but we were fine. The elders gave us a referral for someone they are teaching. They could never find a priesthood holder to go with them so they turned her over to us. She was so funny. Half the time I couldn't understand her. She is very intelligent and she kept referring to all of these famous people that I didn't know and I just smiled and knodded my head. She doesn't have time for us to come back until after I come home but she is a nice lady. I think that she will be baptized. I am so excited for the Beaudoin's baptism this weekend! I can hardly believe that it is here. We have been talking about it for months and it is finally here. Satan is working hard but they are holding on. Brandi tells me that Saturday can't come soon enough. They are amazing! This will be the best Christmas ever! At dinner the other night President Hale told them that this was the best gift that they could give their kids this year. I believe it. This is what Christmas is about. Remembering the Savior and the reason that we exist. Their baptism enters them on the road to an eternal family. What is better than that? Funny story. So the Hale's(an amazing family in the ward) came as surprise guests to Sister T's birthday dinner. They were telling us how they met and then Jeff and Brandi told some stories. At the end President Hale said "Now we will be waiting to hear how you met your husband in February". Everyone laughed and I said I don't think so. I will take that road when I get there. Last night I had dinner with President Sexton and his family and elders Hodson, Orr and Neilsen. We ate homemade chicken noodle soup with mashed potatoes. One of my favorite meals of all time! It was so good. I wanted seconds but I was full so I didn't eat anymore. I wouldn't have enjoyed the rest of the evening. Afterwards we had a testimony meeting. We sang a missionary hymn that only exists in the spanish hymnbook. One of my favorites "Placentero nos es Trabajar" and then I offered the prayer. I was in tears before I even began. President gave us some words of counsel. One of the things that liked best was about obedience. He told us that the reason that we have the spirit is because we are obedient not because of the schedule that we live. We don't have to maintain that same exact schedule that we live now in order to remain as we are now. All we have to do is continue to be obedient to the laws that are given to us. I really liked that insight. He counseled us to always act and look like a returned missionary so that we will be ready to serve in any capacity. If we do that then we won't have to make changes to be ready to accept the call, we will already be ready. I really am going to miss them. They are so good. Well I hope that you all have a wonderful week! Merry Christmas to all! I love you and look forward to seeing all of you again! Thank you for all of your love and support that you have given me while serving. I couldn't have done it without all of your love and prayers. They will get me through these last days as a missionary. I have grown so much over the last 17 months and I owe all to my Heavenly Father and my Savior Jesus Christ. I know that this church is true with all my heart. I know that God lives and that He is mindful of all of us. He stands with open arms waiting for us to embrace Him. I am grateful for Jesus Christ and His atonement. We would be nothing without him and we are everything because of Him . I know that we can be together forever if we live faithfully and do the best that we can. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. I love you!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Well I can hardly believe that this is my last email from California. It has been a crazy week. A lot of things have happened. It was Sister Taulanga's birthday on Saturday. I had asked someone if they had ever had asphalt pie awhile ago and Sister T has wanted it for her birthday ever since. I didn't know what to get her for her birthday and I wanted to make it special. The Beaudoin's were having us over for dinner so I decided to have them make it and have it be a surprise. It is pretty difficult to pull off a surprise when you are with a person 24/7. However I decided to try. I wrote a note for Brandi and gave her instructions and money to get the groceries. The only cash I had was a 50 dollar bill. Sister T was mad that I had written a note not on Pday. I didn't care if she was mad because I knew that it was different than she thought. She asked if it was for the Beaudoin's and I said yes. She was less mad. It set me up perfectly to go over there and give it to them without question. Kenady was a little shocked that I was giving them $50. I told her to trust me and read the note. She did and all was well. That end was covered. Then I had to figure out how to deal with Sister T. She kept asking and asking and I would say "We'll see". Our dinner appointment cancelled friday night which meant that we would be at home with plenty of time to make it. She was excited I however didn't know what to do. Then the next morning while exercising I tripped and fell. I fell on the asphalt and cut up my knee and hand pretty good. There was still a lot of dirt in it after cleaning it and I didn't want to scrub it myself. So I called Sister Sexton to see what I should do and if there was anything else I could do. I didn't want it to get infected. They instructed that I should go to the doctor. So we went to Long Beach and went to the doctor. L&L, an amazing restaurant, and one of our favorites was across the street. I decided to tell Sister T that that was her birthday from me and that we weren't going to make asphalt pie. She was super sad but I told her I would make it for her for Christmas. That satisfied her. I sighed a breath of relief. I just prayed that it would all work out. It was all good and then Kenady called in the afternoon and asked a question. My answer made Sister T a little suspicious but we ended up pulling it off and she was surprised. Man it was a headache. To add to the stress of my falling we left our cell phone at the doctor's office and then had to go back and get it. Luckily we discovered it before they closed for the weekend. I know that our Heavenly Father helped us out. Our plans fell through and if I hadn't looked in my planner and saw that we needed to call someone we wouldn't have discovered it until it was too late. God is in all of the details. We just have to listen. So anyway it was a crazy time. We went to the ghetto on Saturday. It freaked me out a little but we were fine. The elders gave us a referral for someone they are teaching. They could never find a priesthood holder to go with them so they turned her over to us. She was so funny. Half the time I couldn't understand her. She is very intelligent and she kept referring to all of these famous people that I didn't know and I just smiled and knodded my head. She doesn't have time for us to come back until after I come home but she is a nice lady. I think that she will be baptized. I am so excited for the Beaudoin's baptism this weekend! I can hardly believe that it is here. We have been talking about it for months and it is finally here. Satan is working hard but they are holding on. Brandi tells me that Saturday can't come soon enough. They are amazing! This will be the best Christmas ever! At dinner the other night President Hale told them that this was the best gift that they could give their kids this year. I believe it. This is what Christmas is about. Remembering the Savior and the reason that we exist. Their baptism enters them on the road to an eternal family. What is better than that? Funny story. So the Hale's(an amazing family in the ward) came as surprise guests to Sister T's birthday dinner. They were telling us how they met and then Jeff and Brandi told some stories. At the end President Hale said "Now we will be waiting to hear how you met your husband in February". Everyone laughed and I said I don't think so. I will take that road when I get there. Last night I had dinner with President Sexton and his family and elders Hodson, Orr and Neilsen. We ate homemade chicken noodle soup with mashed potatoes. One of my favorite meals of all time! It was so good. I wanted seconds but I was full so I didn't eat anymore. I wouldn't have enjoyed the rest of the evening. Afterwards we had a testimony meeting. We sang a missionary hymn that only exists in the spanish hymnbook. One of my favorites "Placentero nos es Trabajar" and then I offered the prayer. I was in tears before I even began. President gave us some words of counsel. One of the things that liked best was about obedience. He told us that the reason that we have the spirit is because we are obedient not because of the schedule that we live. We don't have to maintain that same exact schedule that we live now in order to remain as we are now. All we have to do is continue to be obedient to the laws that are given to us. I really liked that insight. He counseled us to always act and look like a returned missionary so that we will be ready to serve in any capacity. If we do that then we won't have to make changes to be ready to accept the call, we will already be ready. I really am going to miss them. They are so good. Well I hope that you all have a wonderful week! Merry Christmas to all! I love you and look forward to seeing all of you again! Thank you for all of your love and support that you have given me while serving. I couldn't have done it without all of your love and prayers. They will get me through these last days as a missionary. I have grown so much over the last 17 months and I owe all to my Heavenly Father and my Savior Jesus Christ. I know that this church is true with all my heart. I know that God lives and that He is mindful of all of us. He stands with open arms waiting for us to embrace Him. I am grateful for Jesus Christ and His atonement. We would be nothing without him and we are everything because of Him . I know that we can be together forever if we live faithfully and do the best that we can. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. I love you!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Monday, December 21, 2009
Week 71
December 15, 2009
Hello Everyone!I hope that you are all doing well. It has been a pretty good week. It was colder than normal. I guess it is preparing me a little for the return, although I know that it will be much colder in Utah. It has warmed back up though. It was in the 70's today. I am trying to soak up all the sunshine that I can. Monday and Saturday it rained all day. Saturday it stopped when we came home for lunch. Of course we didn't have anything scheduled so we were walking and driving around trying to get find people to let us in but there weren't too many home. It was a rough day for me. I came home and shed some tears and read some pick me up letters. It was exactly what I needed. Sunday brought peace as well. It is so hard to leave. Some days are harder than others but I just keep going. Today has been a beautiful long day. We went to the mission home so that I could attend the temple with the Sexton's and the elders who are returning home with me. We went to the Newport Beach Temple! I was excited! I have been to both the LA and the Newport temple twice. It was perfect. It is so beautiful! They had a wonderful nativity scene displayed out in front. It was wonderful to be in the temple. I cried when I got to the celestial room. I had so many feelings and thoughts and it was a bit overwhelming. But I just prayed and felt the love of my Heavenly Father. When we left I was at complete peace. I know there is an unknown road ahead but I know that it will be ok. President took time to talk to each of us individually. He truly is a remarkable man. He told me that it wouldn't be long and I could come and visit them in Idaho. I told him that I would be up there a lot. He has had an amazing impact and influence on my life. I will never forget him or my mission. I thought about all of the people that we have taught and baptized and the wonderful families that I have met. My heart is full. I wouldn't trade this experience for anything. We had a bunch of activities that we went to this week. We attended activity days and helped them collect food. We also were with the Young Women and made gingerbread houses. I think that was my first time ever. We made the MTC. It was pretty awesome. We always make everything missionary. I guess it is good that we think about missionary work in all we do. I am so excited for the Beaudoin's! I can't believe that their baptism is almost here! I love them all so much! This area truly is amazing! I am humbled to finish my mission here. The members are amazing and they love us so much! We have been bombarded with food and gifts and love! It will be hard to leave all of them. I hope that you all have a wonderful week! I am sorry that this is so short! It has been a crazy busy day! We were able to spend some time with Sisters Lauchner and Vea. We went to the beach so that I could see it one more time. I am going to miss my dear friends that I have made here in California. The elders wish that they could stay one more week with me. I am grateful and excited for these last 2 weeks. I look forward to the miracles that await. God loves us and wants us to be happy! Until next week!
Love Hermana Mickelsen
Hello Everyone!I hope that you are all doing well. It has been a pretty good week. It was colder than normal. I guess it is preparing me a little for the return, although I know that it will be much colder in Utah. It has warmed back up though. It was in the 70's today. I am trying to soak up all the sunshine that I can. Monday and Saturday it rained all day. Saturday it stopped when we came home for lunch. Of course we didn't have anything scheduled so we were walking and driving around trying to get find people to let us in but there weren't too many home. It was a rough day for me. I came home and shed some tears and read some pick me up letters. It was exactly what I needed. Sunday brought peace as well. It is so hard to leave. Some days are harder than others but I just keep going. Today has been a beautiful long day. We went to the mission home so that I could attend the temple with the Sexton's and the elders who are returning home with me. We went to the Newport Beach Temple! I was excited! I have been to both the LA and the Newport temple twice. It was perfect. It is so beautiful! They had a wonderful nativity scene displayed out in front. It was wonderful to be in the temple. I cried when I got to the celestial room. I had so many feelings and thoughts and it was a bit overwhelming. But I just prayed and felt the love of my Heavenly Father. When we left I was at complete peace. I know there is an unknown road ahead but I know that it will be ok. President took time to talk to each of us individually. He truly is a remarkable man. He told me that it wouldn't be long and I could come and visit them in Idaho. I told him that I would be up there a lot. He has had an amazing impact and influence on my life. I will never forget him or my mission. I thought about all of the people that we have taught and baptized and the wonderful families that I have met. My heart is full. I wouldn't trade this experience for anything. We had a bunch of activities that we went to this week. We attended activity days and helped them collect food. We also were with the Young Women and made gingerbread houses. I think that was my first time ever. We made the MTC. It was pretty awesome. We always make everything missionary. I guess it is good that we think about missionary work in all we do. I am so excited for the Beaudoin's! I can't believe that their baptism is almost here! I love them all so much! This area truly is amazing! I am humbled to finish my mission here. The members are amazing and they love us so much! We have been bombarded with food and gifts and love! It will be hard to leave all of them. I hope that you all have a wonderful week! I am sorry that this is so short! It has been a crazy busy day! We were able to spend some time with Sisters Lauchner and Vea. We went to the beach so that I could see it one more time. I am going to miss my dear friends that I have made here in California. The elders wish that they could stay one more week with me. I am grateful and excited for these last 2 weeks. I look forward to the miracles that await. God loves us and wants us to be happy! Until next week!
Love Hermana Mickelsen
Week 70
December 8, 2009
Well another week has come and gone. It just keeps ticking! We are doing good here in Los Alamitos. I am still sick but now I have some medicine. The doctor says I have a sinus infection, hooray! Hopefully I will get better soon. Saturday we had a baptism and it was beautiful! Annie was baptized. She has been preparing since I got here in August. Her husband baptized her; he has had a long journey. The spirit was very special as always. It ran very smoothly which I was grateful for. I was worried that there would be a lot of chaos. It was the ward Christmas party that night and there was a primary activity. We needed the primary room and that was also the room they were using for Santa and it was going to be decorated. We got there and it was all good. The font was being filled and the chairs were all set up. She wanted it quiet, not too many people so there were almost more missionaries than members. It was funny. I love baptisms. I just love seeing the gospel change someone's life. The ward Christmas party was fun. We ate a good dinner and were sent home with a bunch of leftovers. We will be eating them for the entire week. We had fun doing service at We Care. They too sent us home with a bunch of food. They had gotten a lot of bakery items so they sent some with us because it would go bad too fast. Yeah for free food! I really enjoyed Sunday. It was a little emotional for me but all was well. I debated about sharing my testimony but the spirit helped me decide. I don't think I could have forgiven myself if I didn't bear witness publicly for the last time as a missionary in fast and testimony meeting. Just the thought brought tears to my eyes. It was very brief because I was going to cry hard if I said anything more. We were able to attend the Christmas Devotional. It was so good! I just loved it. Every time they pull up SLC I get a little sad but this time it was different. There was excitement to see home but a heart breaking feeling to realize how close it was. It just hurts inside to think of it ending. Monday brought rain and cold. Boy did it turn cold. Probably not cold like where all of you are but it was cold! My shoes have holes in them so my feet were soaked. I had to switch them when we came home for lunch. We helped Sister Fannin. She is such a sweet lady! I am going to miss her! We helped her take down wallpaper in her bathroom. It only took us an hour or so. Sister T said it was the missionary power that we have. I thought that was funny. I think it was listening to Doris Day Christmas. We helped at young womens this week. They played the amazing race: Virtue. It was a really cool activity. They would be able to pass off all of their personal progress for virtue except the project. This ward is doing a 24 activity the day I come home. They are going to read the Book of Mormon the entire time. They asked us to come and talk for a little. I am sad that I won't be there. I love the youth! We are having a Christmas party/lunch with the Sexton's today. I am super excited! It will be fun. Some of the other hermana's are going to be there. I don't remember all of the elders who are serving in the zones that are coming but I am sure that I will know some of them. I love being a missionary. I am soaking up every last ounce! I love all of you and hope that you have a wonderful week! Keep smiling and remember to give all that you can to those around you!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Well another week has come and gone. It just keeps ticking! We are doing good here in Los Alamitos. I am still sick but now I have some medicine. The doctor says I have a sinus infection, hooray! Hopefully I will get better soon. Saturday we had a baptism and it was beautiful! Annie was baptized. She has been preparing since I got here in August. Her husband baptized her; he has had a long journey. The spirit was very special as always. It ran very smoothly which I was grateful for. I was worried that there would be a lot of chaos. It was the ward Christmas party that night and there was a primary activity. We needed the primary room and that was also the room they were using for Santa and it was going to be decorated. We got there and it was all good. The font was being filled and the chairs were all set up. She wanted it quiet, not too many people so there were almost more missionaries than members. It was funny. I love baptisms. I just love seeing the gospel change someone's life. The ward Christmas party was fun. We ate a good dinner and were sent home with a bunch of leftovers. We will be eating them for the entire week. We had fun doing service at We Care. They too sent us home with a bunch of food. They had gotten a lot of bakery items so they sent some with us because it would go bad too fast. Yeah for free food! I really enjoyed Sunday. It was a little emotional for me but all was well. I debated about sharing my testimony but the spirit helped me decide. I don't think I could have forgiven myself if I didn't bear witness publicly for the last time as a missionary in fast and testimony meeting. Just the thought brought tears to my eyes. It was very brief because I was going to cry hard if I said anything more. We were able to attend the Christmas Devotional. It was so good! I just loved it. Every time they pull up SLC I get a little sad but this time it was different. There was excitement to see home but a heart breaking feeling to realize how close it was. It just hurts inside to think of it ending. Monday brought rain and cold. Boy did it turn cold. Probably not cold like where all of you are but it was cold! My shoes have holes in them so my feet were soaked. I had to switch them when we came home for lunch. We helped Sister Fannin. She is such a sweet lady! I am going to miss her! We helped her take down wallpaper in her bathroom. It only took us an hour or so. Sister T said it was the missionary power that we have. I thought that was funny. I think it was listening to Doris Day Christmas. We helped at young womens this week. They played the amazing race: Virtue. It was a really cool activity. They would be able to pass off all of their personal progress for virtue except the project. This ward is doing a 24 activity the day I come home. They are going to read the Book of Mormon the entire time. They asked us to come and talk for a little. I am sad that I won't be there. I love the youth! We are having a Christmas party/lunch with the Sexton's today. I am super excited! It will be fun. Some of the other hermana's are going to be there. I don't remember all of the elders who are serving in the zones that are coming but I am sure that I will know some of them. I love being a missionary. I am soaking up every last ounce! I love all of you and hope that you have a wonderful week! Keep smiling and remember to give all that you can to those around you!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
...
It's really happening, we got her flight plans yesterday!!! YAY! She is very excited to be able to spend Christmas in Long Beach. We are excited to be able to have two Christmases! Thanks for all your love and support!
Week 69
December 1, 2009
I hope that you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had an enjoyable Thanksgiving. We went district meeting and then did our weekly planning. Afterwards we went to a member's home, the Tate's. I was a little nervous because I don't know them that well. We loved it though! We laughed and really enjoyed ourselves. We were talking about names or something and it reminded me of Sister Na'a and our visit to the ER. So I was telling them the story and I told them that she had an anxiety attack. They asked what had caused it. Side note, everyone at the Tate's including Sister Taulanga are all Utah fans. In response to the question Sister Taulanga said. "It was because she was too close to BYU". Everyone just started laughing. We laughed and laughed for a good ten minutes. I myself was laughing and had to admit that that was a pretty good one. It was a great memory. Good times! We didn't have any pie because the kids don't like pie but we did have the most amazing carrot cake that I have ever eaten. It was so good and moist! It usually isn't my favorite but this one was way good! Afterwards we went over the Pierson's. I love the Pierson's. They are from Canada and they made a minced nog pie. It was mix between a minced meat pie that had an egg nog custard on top. It was very different but it was good. We had some more laughs there. Sister Pierson had a ball that was attached to a string. She was sitting on the couch and decided to try and see if she could hit the wall with the ball. So she did and she hit her daughter right on the head. We all just laughed. She tried again and did the same thing. It was so funny. Sister Pierson was laughing so hard that she was crying. It reminded me of mom when she laughs hard. Good good times. I am excited to spend Christmas with them. Friday night we had a repeat of Thanksgiving dinner. It was good. I always love turkey and cranberry sauce. Saturday I woke up and wasn't feeling too well. I rested for a little and then woke up even more sick. I couldn't breathe. We stayed in until we had an appointment. I felt bad because my nose was just dripping. I didn't shake hands with anybody and just kept wiping my nose. I just felt miserable. Sunday was more of the same. My nose wasn't running but I felt disgusting. Several people told me to go home but I didn't. I wasn't going to skip out on church. Sister Hale brought over a whole bag of good things, some vitamin C, bananas, otter pops, crackers, soup and a box of Kleenex. It made feel better just knowing that someone cared. Jeff Beaudoin made me some homemade chicken soup. I didn't eat any that night because I couldn't taste and I didn't have an appetite but I enjoyed it the next day. It is great to have people that love us all around us. I am feeling much better today than I was then. I still don't feel 100% but I am definitely better than before. I want to be better so that I can finish strong. But I am trying to take it as easy as I can so that I don't get worse. We are having a baptism this weekend! I am super excited! Annie is going to be baptized by her husband. She is a sweetheart and has been coming to church for a long time. She is ready and excited! We are excited as well. We have been teaching some recent converts of Elder Anderson. They moved into our area a couple of months ago. They are so fun. We really love them and are grateful that we can teach them. Sister Fannin went out of town for the holiday. It is always so quiet without her here. We love her! She is so funny and takes good care of us. Oh I think I forgot to tell you! Last week Sister Taulanga's little sister got her mission call and is headed to Atlanta Georgia. She enters the MTC on jan 27th. They will have 3 missionaries out until June! Crazy! We had our interviews with President on Wednesday. I didn't want to be first but he always takes the sisters first and sister T didn't want to go first so I did. It was good to visit with him. He had us share our testimonies with him. He told me that I was going home by myself. The elders that are going home with me are going home a week before me. Someone had told me that they were going to send us home for Christmas but I didn't want to go home for christmas. No offense! I know that you will all be there when I come home and I only get to finish my mission once. I didn't want to end it a week early. President can't send me home for Christmas because it would be too early. The reason that the elders are going home before Christmas is because they entered the MTC before Christmas and so they are going home on their actual release date. That will be a little weird to be all alone but luckily it is a short flight. A guy came up to me on Sunday and started talking to me. Sister T was in the bathroom and I was waiting outside the door. Lucky for me Brandi was standing by the door warming in the sun. It is always freezing in the church. It is colder inside that it gets outside. Anyway, he asked me how I was and I told him that I was sick. He then stepped a little too close and said that he wanted me to get him sick. It was so AWKWARD! Brandi felt the awkwardness for me. I played it pretty coold but man it was not fun. Last week he gave me a bunch of candy and came to find me and ask a random question. That is why we are never alone. I am sure he means no harm but man it sure makes for some awkward moments. Well I hope that you all have a wonderful week this week! I can hardly believe that it is Decemeber again! The Christmas season is upon us. At church on Sunday we talked about things that we can do to bring Christ at the center of our homes for this CHRISTmas season. I hope that we all take time to ponder what we can do each day to make this season what it is about. To love a little more, to give a little more and to think of others more than ourselves. That is what Christ would do if he were here today. That is He what tries to help us do. That is why we have the spirit. To help us feel His love and have a desire to share it with others! I love all of you and look forward to writing again next week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
I hope that you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had an enjoyable Thanksgiving. We went district meeting and then did our weekly planning. Afterwards we went to a member's home, the Tate's. I was a little nervous because I don't know them that well. We loved it though! We laughed and really enjoyed ourselves. We were talking about names or something and it reminded me of Sister Na'a and our visit to the ER. So I was telling them the story and I told them that she had an anxiety attack. They asked what had caused it. Side note, everyone at the Tate's including Sister Taulanga are all Utah fans. In response to the question Sister Taulanga said. "It was because she was too close to BYU". Everyone just started laughing. We laughed and laughed for a good ten minutes. I myself was laughing and had to admit that that was a pretty good one. It was a great memory. Good times! We didn't have any pie because the kids don't like pie but we did have the most amazing carrot cake that I have ever eaten. It was so good and moist! It usually isn't my favorite but this one was way good! Afterwards we went over the Pierson's. I love the Pierson's. They are from Canada and they made a minced nog pie. It was mix between a minced meat pie that had an egg nog custard on top. It was very different but it was good. We had some more laughs there. Sister Pierson had a ball that was attached to a string. She was sitting on the couch and decided to try and see if she could hit the wall with the ball. So she did and she hit her daughter right on the head. We all just laughed. She tried again and did the same thing. It was so funny. Sister Pierson was laughing so hard that she was crying. It reminded me of mom when she laughs hard. Good good times. I am excited to spend Christmas with them. Friday night we had a repeat of Thanksgiving dinner. It was good. I always love turkey and cranberry sauce. Saturday I woke up and wasn't feeling too well. I rested for a little and then woke up even more sick. I couldn't breathe. We stayed in until we had an appointment. I felt bad because my nose was just dripping. I didn't shake hands with anybody and just kept wiping my nose. I just felt miserable. Sunday was more of the same. My nose wasn't running but I felt disgusting. Several people told me to go home but I didn't. I wasn't going to skip out on church. Sister Hale brought over a whole bag of good things, some vitamin C, bananas, otter pops, crackers, soup and a box of Kleenex. It made feel better just knowing that someone cared. Jeff Beaudoin made me some homemade chicken soup. I didn't eat any that night because I couldn't taste and I didn't have an appetite but I enjoyed it the next day. It is great to have people that love us all around us. I am feeling much better today than I was then. I still don't feel 100% but I am definitely better than before. I want to be better so that I can finish strong. But I am trying to take it as easy as I can so that I don't get worse. We are having a baptism this weekend! I am super excited! Annie is going to be baptized by her husband. She is a sweetheart and has been coming to church for a long time. She is ready and excited! We are excited as well. We have been teaching some recent converts of Elder Anderson. They moved into our area a couple of months ago. They are so fun. We really love them and are grateful that we can teach them. Sister Fannin went out of town for the holiday. It is always so quiet without her here. We love her! She is so funny and takes good care of us. Oh I think I forgot to tell you! Last week Sister Taulanga's little sister got her mission call and is headed to Atlanta Georgia. She enters the MTC on jan 27th. They will have 3 missionaries out until June! Crazy! We had our interviews with President on Wednesday. I didn't want to be first but he always takes the sisters first and sister T didn't want to go first so I did. It was good to visit with him. He had us share our testimonies with him. He told me that I was going home by myself. The elders that are going home with me are going home a week before me. Someone had told me that they were going to send us home for Christmas but I didn't want to go home for christmas. No offense! I know that you will all be there when I come home and I only get to finish my mission once. I didn't want to end it a week early. President can't send me home for Christmas because it would be too early. The reason that the elders are going home before Christmas is because they entered the MTC before Christmas and so they are going home on their actual release date. That will be a little weird to be all alone but luckily it is a short flight. A guy came up to me on Sunday and started talking to me. Sister T was in the bathroom and I was waiting outside the door. Lucky for me Brandi was standing by the door warming in the sun. It is always freezing in the church. It is colder inside that it gets outside. Anyway, he asked me how I was and I told him that I was sick. He then stepped a little too close and said that he wanted me to get him sick. It was so AWKWARD! Brandi felt the awkwardness for me. I played it pretty coold but man it was not fun. Last week he gave me a bunch of candy and came to find me and ask a random question. That is why we are never alone. I am sure he means no harm but man it sure makes for some awkward moments. Well I hope that you all have a wonderful week this week! I can hardly believe that it is Decemeber again! The Christmas season is upon us. At church on Sunday we talked about things that we can do to bring Christ at the center of our homes for this CHRISTmas season. I hope that we all take time to ponder what we can do each day to make this season what it is about. To love a little more, to give a little more and to think of others more than ourselves. That is what Christ would do if he were here today. That is He what tries to help us do. That is why we have the spirit. To help us feel His love and have a desire to share it with others! I love all of you and look forward to writing again next week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 68
November 24, 2009
Hello everyone! I hope that this letter finds everyone doing well. I am doing great! It has been a wonderful week! We had zone conference on Friday. It was fun to be with the other sisters. We had a combined mission conference so there were 8 sisters there. There was a very sweet spirit there. I didn't want it to end. We took a mission picture which was fun. President talked for the majority of the meeting. Usually we have some trainings and such but he just talked to us. Sister Sexton and President Bradsfield also spoke. It is tradition for the departing missionaries to bear their testimony. I knew that it was coming but I had no idea what to say. I had no idea who was coming home with me. President told us at the beginning that I was going home with 3 other elders. I was surprised to find out that there was a small number returning home. One of the elders was there with me but he didn't bear his testimony. President had me and the assistants bear our testimonies. It went well. I teared up a little but I didn't lose control. For that I was grateful. I didn't want to cry my way through it. I didn't do it alone. My Heavenly Father helped me out as always. It is hard to believe that I won't have another zone conference. President said that Sister Choi won't be leaving until March. We thought from the beginning that we would be companions and that we would go home together in February. We were wrong but we are still friends even though we never served together. Some of the elders there realized that I came in after them and that I am going home. They realized that their time is short too. It was pretty funny. We had a yummy thanksgiving dinner complete with pumpkin pie. It was a good preview. We sang 'Called to Serve'. There was a sweet spirit. It was a really great day. I didn't want it to end. All good things have to come to an end. We have had some great lessons with the Beaudoins this week. I really just love them with all my heart. Satan is working hard as always but they are so strong. Everyday they amaze more and more. It is a beautiful experience to see the gospel take hold on someone's life. Kenady got her first calling! They all have incredible testimonies that continue to grow everyday. The Lord truly does prepare each of us and He works miracles. We went to a baptism for the elders on Sunday. It was someone in the singles ward. I'm not going to lie, I felt super awkward. In my head I said, I am going to stay in the family ward for a good long time. I felt so out of place, granted I am a missionary still but it still felt weird. Anyway, life is good here in California. It is starting to get a little cold in the mornings and at night. I'm not complaining. Everyone tells me I need to wear a coat but I much like my dad. If I was out walking then I would wear one but I'm not going to carry it from house to house. I am going to enjoy this California weather while I can. We had dinner the other night with some sweet old ladies. There are 3 sisters that have never been married and they live together. They are a riot! I just love them. It was a very pleasant evening with lots of good food. Funny story! So we were at the Larsen's for dinner on Wednesday. They have 6 kids and it is always chaos. We were eating our dessert and Ryan who is four was just chillin. He decided that he was done. He still had some ice cream and cake on his plate. He went to get up but lost his balance. We were all watching him and he started to fall but he made sure to push the plate up on the table. The plate landed on the table and he landed on the floor. We all started laughing. His mom was grateful that she didn't have to clean up a mess since he had already dropped his first plate of cake. When we left he was still saying "save the ice cream!" It was the highlight of the day. Well I hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! The holiday season is here! I hope that we all take time to really thank our Heavenly Father for all of our countless blessings. We are truly so blessed to have the knowledge of the gospel and the peace of returning with our loved ones. I know with all my heart that this gospel is true. I know that Joseph Smith was the instrument in bringing the gospel back to the earth so that we could all enjoy the blessings of the priesthood and of eternal salvation. God lives. He loves us and is watching over us. I love each and everyone of you! You are always in my prayers! Have a wonderful week! Thank you for all of your love and support! I could never do it without all of you love and prayers! I will be forever grateful for my wonderful family and friends! There are not words enough to express that truest feelings of gratitude in my heart! It was not until I left on my mission that I truly realized how blessed I truly am.
Love Sister Mickelsen
Hello everyone! I hope that this letter finds everyone doing well. I am doing great! It has been a wonderful week! We had zone conference on Friday. It was fun to be with the other sisters. We had a combined mission conference so there were 8 sisters there. There was a very sweet spirit there. I didn't want it to end. We took a mission picture which was fun. President talked for the majority of the meeting. Usually we have some trainings and such but he just talked to us. Sister Sexton and President Bradsfield also spoke. It is tradition for the departing missionaries to bear their testimony. I knew that it was coming but I had no idea what to say. I had no idea who was coming home with me. President told us at the beginning that I was going home with 3 other elders. I was surprised to find out that there was a small number returning home. One of the elders was there with me but he didn't bear his testimony. President had me and the assistants bear our testimonies. It went well. I teared up a little but I didn't lose control. For that I was grateful. I didn't want to cry my way through it. I didn't do it alone. My Heavenly Father helped me out as always. It is hard to believe that I won't have another zone conference. President said that Sister Choi won't be leaving until March. We thought from the beginning that we would be companions and that we would go home together in February. We were wrong but we are still friends even though we never served together. Some of the elders there realized that I came in after them and that I am going home. They realized that their time is short too. It was pretty funny. We had a yummy thanksgiving dinner complete with pumpkin pie. It was a good preview. We sang 'Called to Serve'. There was a sweet spirit. It was a really great day. I didn't want it to end. All good things have to come to an end. We have had some great lessons with the Beaudoins this week. I really just love them with all my heart. Satan is working hard as always but they are so strong. Everyday they amaze more and more. It is a beautiful experience to see the gospel take hold on someone's life. Kenady got her first calling! They all have incredible testimonies that continue to grow everyday. The Lord truly does prepare each of us and He works miracles. We went to a baptism for the elders on Sunday. It was someone in the singles ward. I'm not going to lie, I felt super awkward. In my head I said, I am going to stay in the family ward for a good long time. I felt so out of place, granted I am a missionary still but it still felt weird. Anyway, life is good here in California. It is starting to get a little cold in the mornings and at night. I'm not complaining. Everyone tells me I need to wear a coat but I much like my dad. If I was out walking then I would wear one but I'm not going to carry it from house to house. I am going to enjoy this California weather while I can. We had dinner the other night with some sweet old ladies. There are 3 sisters that have never been married and they live together. They are a riot! I just love them. It was a very pleasant evening with lots of good food. Funny story! So we were at the Larsen's for dinner on Wednesday. They have 6 kids and it is always chaos. We were eating our dessert and Ryan who is four was just chillin. He decided that he was done. He still had some ice cream and cake on his plate. He went to get up but lost his balance. We were all watching him and he started to fall but he made sure to push the plate up on the table. The plate landed on the table and he landed on the floor. We all started laughing. His mom was grateful that she didn't have to clean up a mess since he had already dropped his first plate of cake. When we left he was still saying "save the ice cream!" It was the highlight of the day. Well I hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! The holiday season is here! I hope that we all take time to really thank our Heavenly Father for all of our countless blessings. We are truly so blessed to have the knowledge of the gospel and the peace of returning with our loved ones. I know with all my heart that this gospel is true. I know that Joseph Smith was the instrument in bringing the gospel back to the earth so that we could all enjoy the blessings of the priesthood and of eternal salvation. God lives. He loves us and is watching over us. I love each and everyone of you! You are always in my prayers! Have a wonderful week! Thank you for all of your love and support! I could never do it without all of you love and prayers! I will be forever grateful for my wonderful family and friends! There are not words enough to express that truest feelings of gratitude in my heart! It was not until I left on my mission that I truly realized how blessed I truly am.
Love Sister Mickelsen
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Week 67
November 16, 2009
Well I am staying here in Los Alamitos for my last transfer! I am so relieved and excited! When the district leader called he played a mean trick. He made it seem like one of us was leaving. He told Sister Taulanga that she was staying and then he made it sound like I was leaving. It killed me but he told me you are going to Los Alamitos. We were both excited! Yeah! I truly love this area and there is no other place I would rather end my mission. This week has been a pretty good week. I didn't cry! We had a great time with the sisters last week. We played volleyball and ate some good food and just enjoyed everyone's company. I was super sore afterwards though. It was so good to see my old friends! I love all of these girls so much! There were only two that I hadn't met yet but now I know them all. Except for the 2 that flew in this morning. I hope that we have an activity together once more before I leave. We had a great first lesson with the Beaudoin's. It is always a challenge to teach a lesson that you know they have already had in the past. We tried to change it up a little. It went very well but as always the first vision was interupted. Someone knocked on the door right as I was bearing testimony of it. I told them after she left that that always happens. They thought it was pretty funny. Thursday we met some interesting people at the park. I tried to get their address so that we could go and visit them and teach them some more but they didn't want to hear it. They left real quick after that. We helped Kelly make some goodie bags for Mikey and Maddie's birthday party. They were pretty intense. We sewed them and embroidered them. It was no small task. Mikey and Maddie turned 5. They are so funny. Kelly and I sang in church on Sunday. I was super nervous because I didn't have a whole lot of time to practice. It went very well though. Someone came up to me and said "What's next? The Violin?" I replied actually I do play the violin but that is a musical talent that I have not practiced and keep hidden. It was pretty funny, I thought, that she would choose an instrument that I actually played. When we were at dinner Sunday the members we were eating with asked Sister T what her hidden talent was and when she was going to share it. She said I don't have musical talent. We had a good laugh. Brandi was sitting in front of me and Kelly and told us that we could sing anytime that we wanted. I am grateful that I could share my testimony in the ways that I love. The song that Kelly and I sang was about missionary work and feeding His sheep. One member, Sister Hale, made the comment to me that it was a beautiful sight to see me as a missionary singing with a recent convert about sharing the gospel. It truly was beautiful. I love this gospel and I love my mission. Sister Fannin came back home. It was getting lonely without her here. She is leaving again in a couple of weeks and is coming back the day that I fly home so I won't get to see her. funny that we will be in Utah at the same time. I am trying to think of what else happened this week but I am drawing a blank right now. We are having a combined zone conference this week and I am super excited! Both Sister Lauchner and Sister Haycock will be there with us! I love being with other missionaries, especially the other sisters! I am always excited to see President Sexton as well. He is a great man. I know that I was sent here to serve with him. I needed his love and counsel to help me prepare to return to my Father in Heaven. So I just remembered something big that happened this last week. Kenady and Brandy( two young women who were baptized in oct and sept) went to the temple and did baptisms for the dead! I was so so so excited for them and wished that I could have gone with them! The young women's president said that they were in awe when they saw the font. It is a special experience to be in the temple and to feel the spirit there. They both told us all about it when we saw them again. I know that this gospel is true with all my heart! There is nothing more important than living the gospel and preparing ourselves to live with our Heavenly Father again. My heart aches more everyday as I talk to people who don't understand and don't want to understand. This is the message the world needs and they don't even know it. How grateful I am for my testimony and the knowledge of a loving Heavenly Father. I hope that you all have a wonderful week! I love you all so much! Thank you for all of your love and support! I could never do it alone!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Well I am staying here in Los Alamitos for my last transfer! I am so relieved and excited! When the district leader called he played a mean trick. He made it seem like one of us was leaving. He told Sister Taulanga that she was staying and then he made it sound like I was leaving. It killed me but he told me you are going to Los Alamitos. We were both excited! Yeah! I truly love this area and there is no other place I would rather end my mission. This week has been a pretty good week. I didn't cry! We had a great time with the sisters last week. We played volleyball and ate some good food and just enjoyed everyone's company. I was super sore afterwards though. It was so good to see my old friends! I love all of these girls so much! There were only two that I hadn't met yet but now I know them all. Except for the 2 that flew in this morning. I hope that we have an activity together once more before I leave. We had a great first lesson with the Beaudoin's. It is always a challenge to teach a lesson that you know they have already had in the past. We tried to change it up a little. It went very well but as always the first vision was interupted. Someone knocked on the door right as I was bearing testimony of it. I told them after she left that that always happens. They thought it was pretty funny. Thursday we met some interesting people at the park. I tried to get their address so that we could go and visit them and teach them some more but they didn't want to hear it. They left real quick after that. We helped Kelly make some goodie bags for Mikey and Maddie's birthday party. They were pretty intense. We sewed them and embroidered them. It was no small task. Mikey and Maddie turned 5. They are so funny. Kelly and I sang in church on Sunday. I was super nervous because I didn't have a whole lot of time to practice. It went very well though. Someone came up to me and said "What's next? The Violin?" I replied actually I do play the violin but that is a musical talent that I have not practiced and keep hidden. It was pretty funny, I thought, that she would choose an instrument that I actually played. When we were at dinner Sunday the members we were eating with asked Sister T what her hidden talent was and when she was going to share it. She said I don't have musical talent. We had a good laugh. Brandi was sitting in front of me and Kelly and told us that we could sing anytime that we wanted. I am grateful that I could share my testimony in the ways that I love. The song that Kelly and I sang was about missionary work and feeding His sheep. One member, Sister Hale, made the comment to me that it was a beautiful sight to see me as a missionary singing with a recent convert about sharing the gospel. It truly was beautiful. I love this gospel and I love my mission. Sister Fannin came back home. It was getting lonely without her here. She is leaving again in a couple of weeks and is coming back the day that I fly home so I won't get to see her. funny that we will be in Utah at the same time. I am trying to think of what else happened this week but I am drawing a blank right now. We are having a combined zone conference this week and I am super excited! Both Sister Lauchner and Sister Haycock will be there with us! I love being with other missionaries, especially the other sisters! I am always excited to see President Sexton as well. He is a great man. I know that I was sent here to serve with him. I needed his love and counsel to help me prepare to return to my Father in Heaven. So I just remembered something big that happened this last week. Kenady and Brandy( two young women who were baptized in oct and sept) went to the temple and did baptisms for the dead! I was so so so excited for them and wished that I could have gone with them! The young women's president said that they were in awe when they saw the font. It is a special experience to be in the temple and to feel the spirit there. They both told us all about it when we saw them again. I know that this gospel is true with all my heart! There is nothing more important than living the gospel and preparing ourselves to live with our Heavenly Father again. My heart aches more everyday as I talk to people who don't understand and don't want to understand. This is the message the world needs and they don't even know it. How grateful I am for my testimony and the knowledge of a loving Heavenly Father. I hope that you all have a wonderful week! I love you all so much! Thank you for all of your love and support! I could never do it alone!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 66
November 10, 2009
Hello! Well another week has come and gone. It has been a pretty good week with adventures as always. Wednesday we were told to go and get swine flu shots and then told not to go and then told again to go. So in short we got swine flu shots. I got the "mist" which was pretty disgusting. I felt all congested and nasty in my sinuses for the remainder of the day. The good part about was that we saw Sisters Lauchner and Vea! It was so fun to see them. They were coming to stand in line just as we were walking out. We talked with them and gave big hugs. The elders told Sister Lauchner she was too loud. We just laughed. It was pretty funny. Sister Taulanga was super excited to see Sister Vea. She went to East High School and played basketball. It looks like the Salt Lake City School district is invading the Long Beach California Mission. Sister T was grateful to hear how long Sister Vea has. It made her mission not seem so long. While we were standing in line there was a lady that got super mad behind us. She was yelling at this poor girl who was just trying to do her job. She was swearing and telling her that she had no right to be treated that way. All I could think was that she sounded ridiculous and that the other girl didn't deserve to be yelled at either. I didn't dare say anything but I just felt bad. It is so sad how mean we can be to each other. We need more love in this world. Wednesday night Sister T woke up with an enormous headache. I heard her get up and use the bathroom and looked at the clock. It was 4, so I just closed my eyes and went back to sleep. Not too much later she turned on the light. I immediately went to my knees to say my morning prayers and then felt too tired so I looked at the clock again and it was 430. So I tried to help Sister T but there wasn't much I could do. I felt bad. I just tried to comfort her the best I could. I mostly prayed. At 630 I called president and he told me to let her rest. She didn't have a temperature or anything so he just said to play it by ear. We talked to the doctor and he was worried it was more than a migraine so he told us to stay in for the day. That is always the worst news. It was a long day. We missed district meeting which was way weird. The rest of the week felt off. She is all well now. Whatever it was it didn't last long. She may have just had a reaction to the shot. Saturday night we had a lesson with Brandi. It was good to just sit one on one with her and talk about her needs and what we can do as missionaries to help her prepare for her baptism. She is great person. I just love her and her family with all my heart. She is making great progress. I love seeing the gospel change peoples lives. There is nothing more rewarding. I played the piano in church on Sunday. I was shaking so bad. I have no idea why I was so nervous but I was! My leg was shaking and it was throwing off everything. Luckily I hid it pretty well and I was able to fake it. Everyone loved it. I was grateful I didn't mess up to horriblely. I think part of it was because the spirit was strong. The speaker right before me was a recently returned missionary. She came home Thursday from Leeds England. She basically taught the first lesson. She also talked a lot about Jesus Christ. I felt like the song that I played echoed her testimony as I played mine. It was an instense experience. Kelly is supposed to do the musical number next week. She was going to play the flute while I played the piano. She discovered that she was so sharp at her flute skills anymore. She hadn't played it in like 4 years. So yesterday we decided that we are going to sing a duet. I haven't sang in church for awhile either. It will be fun. The Los Alamitos ward is going to get sick of seeing my face:), j/k. We had a lesson with a less active family on Sunday. I was super nervous about it because of the situation. I won't go into the details of the situation but it definitely made me want to stay active in the church when I return from my mission. I was worried about how it would go but it went very well. The spirit was very strong and I got all emotional. Especially as I bore testimony of the restoration. It is a powerful message. I know I have taught it over and over and over again. It never loses the power because of its truthfulness. I am so grateful for the restoration of the gospel. For the power of the Priesthood, and the knowledge that we have that we can talk with our Heavenly Father. It breaks my heart to see and hear that people don't believe in God. They just don't understand. He truly does live and His Son lives. Because of Them we are here and because of Them we can be together forever. Nothing else matters. I pray that you all can feel the love of your Heavenly Father. If you don't pray and listen and you will feel it. It is truly remarkable to know that we are not alone in a failing world. I love each and everyone of you with all my heart! You are always in my prayers. Thank you for all of your love, support and prayers. I would have never been able to be where I am today without it. It is just another witness that this gospel is true. Have a wonderful week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Hello! Well another week has come and gone. It has been a pretty good week with adventures as always. Wednesday we were told to go and get swine flu shots and then told not to go and then told again to go. So in short we got swine flu shots. I got the "mist" which was pretty disgusting. I felt all congested and nasty in my sinuses for the remainder of the day. The good part about was that we saw Sisters Lauchner and Vea! It was so fun to see them. They were coming to stand in line just as we were walking out. We talked with them and gave big hugs. The elders told Sister Lauchner she was too loud. We just laughed. It was pretty funny. Sister Taulanga was super excited to see Sister Vea. She went to East High School and played basketball. It looks like the Salt Lake City School district is invading the Long Beach California Mission. Sister T was grateful to hear how long Sister Vea has. It made her mission not seem so long. While we were standing in line there was a lady that got super mad behind us. She was yelling at this poor girl who was just trying to do her job. She was swearing and telling her that she had no right to be treated that way. All I could think was that she sounded ridiculous and that the other girl didn't deserve to be yelled at either. I didn't dare say anything but I just felt bad. It is so sad how mean we can be to each other. We need more love in this world. Wednesday night Sister T woke up with an enormous headache. I heard her get up and use the bathroom and looked at the clock. It was 4, so I just closed my eyes and went back to sleep. Not too much later she turned on the light. I immediately went to my knees to say my morning prayers and then felt too tired so I looked at the clock again and it was 430. So I tried to help Sister T but there wasn't much I could do. I felt bad. I just tried to comfort her the best I could. I mostly prayed. At 630 I called president and he told me to let her rest. She didn't have a temperature or anything so he just said to play it by ear. We talked to the doctor and he was worried it was more than a migraine so he told us to stay in for the day. That is always the worst news. It was a long day. We missed district meeting which was way weird. The rest of the week felt off. She is all well now. Whatever it was it didn't last long. She may have just had a reaction to the shot. Saturday night we had a lesson with Brandi. It was good to just sit one on one with her and talk about her needs and what we can do as missionaries to help her prepare for her baptism. She is great person. I just love her and her family with all my heart. She is making great progress. I love seeing the gospel change peoples lives. There is nothing more rewarding. I played the piano in church on Sunday. I was shaking so bad. I have no idea why I was so nervous but I was! My leg was shaking and it was throwing off everything. Luckily I hid it pretty well and I was able to fake it. Everyone loved it. I was grateful I didn't mess up to horriblely. I think part of it was because the spirit was strong. The speaker right before me was a recently returned missionary. She came home Thursday from Leeds England. She basically taught the first lesson. She also talked a lot about Jesus Christ. I felt like the song that I played echoed her testimony as I played mine. It was an instense experience. Kelly is supposed to do the musical number next week. She was going to play the flute while I played the piano. She discovered that she was so sharp at her flute skills anymore. She hadn't played it in like 4 years. So yesterday we decided that we are going to sing a duet. I haven't sang in church for awhile either. It will be fun. The Los Alamitos ward is going to get sick of seeing my face:), j/k. We had a lesson with a less active family on Sunday. I was super nervous about it because of the situation. I won't go into the details of the situation but it definitely made me want to stay active in the church when I return from my mission. I was worried about how it would go but it went very well. The spirit was very strong and I got all emotional. Especially as I bore testimony of the restoration. It is a powerful message. I know I have taught it over and over and over again. It never loses the power because of its truthfulness. I am so grateful for the restoration of the gospel. For the power of the Priesthood, and the knowledge that we have that we can talk with our Heavenly Father. It breaks my heart to see and hear that people don't believe in God. They just don't understand. He truly does live and His Son lives. Because of Them we are here and because of Them we can be together forever. Nothing else matters. I pray that you all can feel the love of your Heavenly Father. If you don't pray and listen and you will feel it. It is truly remarkable to know that we are not alone in a failing world. I love each and everyone of you with all my heart! You are always in my prayers. Thank you for all of your love, support and prayers. I would have never been able to be where I am today without it. It is just another witness that this gospel is true. Have a wonderful week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
....
Steph will be home in 55 days!!! We are all very excited and can hardly stand ourselves.
Here is her address if you want to get her something before she is home.
Sister Stephanie Mickelsen
3421 Lama Ave
Long Beach, Ca 90808
She would love to hear from you.
Here is her address if you want to get her something before she is home.
Sister Stephanie Mickelsen
3421 Lama Ave
Long Beach, Ca 90808
She would love to hear from you.
Week 65
November 3, 2009
Hello everyone! I hope this letter finds everyone doing well! I am doing good! I just love being here! Sorry if this is short my time is short today. I will try to tell you as much as I can. Wednesday we took a little trip to Compton. That was a little scary for me. We were going to a college to receive a swine flu shot. We had to go to a certain place because it was free. So we drove out there and the address was wrong. I pulled over and called the zone leaders. They said they were almost there. Sister T said that we should get out and walk and I said no I am not walking out here. It was a little shady over there. We decided to just drive up the street a little ways and we found the school. We pulled in and it was the right place. We got out of the car and started walking and following the signs. Then I couldn't see them anymore. I felt so out of place. It was a really weird feeling. We asked a nurse and we were headed in the right direction. Elder Anderson called and asked if we had seen the line. I told him we hadn't made it that far. He told us that it was a 3 hour wait! Holy cow! So president told us that we could wait if we wanted but that it would be happening again another day soon. I didn't want to stay there so we left. On our drive home we went through Long Beach. It was a little weird to be driving through the area I was a year ago. Sister T wants to serve there so bad. She was so funny. She was snapping pictures right and left. She was like a little kid at Disneyland. It was so so funny. She was excited to get out and explore a part of the mission that she hadn't seen. I so wanted to pull over and say hi to all my friends in long beach but I couldn't. We had some good experiences this week. We found 2 new investigators. One of them we found the same day that he was referred to us and he was surprised that we showed up the same day. We committed him to be baptized. We were supposed to go back to him today but he called this morning and said that he couldn't. We are making great progress with the Beaudoin's. I just love this family so much. We ate dinner with them yesterday and it was so good! We had some fresh salmon. MMMM.... Well I am doing good. I am tired but I only feel it when I stop. We had a great experience with a member this week as well. We took her with us but the people weren't home. We ended up visiting with her and left her with a thought. I think she needed the visit. It wasn't what we had planned but it was the reason she was in our plans. I hope that you all have a great week! I love you all so much! The church is true! Until next week!
Love Hermana Mickelsen
Hello everyone! I hope this letter finds everyone doing well! I am doing good! I just love being here! Sorry if this is short my time is short today. I will try to tell you as much as I can. Wednesday we took a little trip to Compton. That was a little scary for me. We were going to a college to receive a swine flu shot. We had to go to a certain place because it was free. So we drove out there and the address was wrong. I pulled over and called the zone leaders. They said they were almost there. Sister T said that we should get out and walk and I said no I am not walking out here. It was a little shady over there. We decided to just drive up the street a little ways and we found the school. We pulled in and it was the right place. We got out of the car and started walking and following the signs. Then I couldn't see them anymore. I felt so out of place. It was a really weird feeling. We asked a nurse and we were headed in the right direction. Elder Anderson called and asked if we had seen the line. I told him we hadn't made it that far. He told us that it was a 3 hour wait! Holy cow! So president told us that we could wait if we wanted but that it would be happening again another day soon. I didn't want to stay there so we left. On our drive home we went through Long Beach. It was a little weird to be driving through the area I was a year ago. Sister T wants to serve there so bad. She was so funny. She was snapping pictures right and left. She was like a little kid at Disneyland. It was so so funny. She was excited to get out and explore a part of the mission that she hadn't seen. I so wanted to pull over and say hi to all my friends in long beach but I couldn't. We had some good experiences this week. We found 2 new investigators. One of them we found the same day that he was referred to us and he was surprised that we showed up the same day. We committed him to be baptized. We were supposed to go back to him today but he called this morning and said that he couldn't. We are making great progress with the Beaudoin's. I just love this family so much. We ate dinner with them yesterday and it was so good! We had some fresh salmon. MMMM.... Well I am doing good. I am tired but I only feel it when I stop. We had a great experience with a member this week as well. We took her with us but the people weren't home. We ended up visiting with her and left her with a thought. I think she needed the visit. It wasn't what we had planned but it was the reason she was in our plans. I hope that you all have a great week! I love you all so much! The church is true! Until next week!
Love Hermana Mickelsen
Week 64
October 27, 2009
I hope that you are all doing well. It has been a pretty good week here in the Long Beach Mission. We have had some challenges but those are expected. One of our investigators left us a message telling us that she didn't think the church was the right fit for her. It always breaks my heart to see people turn the gospel away. They don't understand. It hurt but I know that I did all that I could. I can't make the decision for her. I shared my testimony and I followed the spirit in teaching her and that is all I can do. She doesn't have any hard feelings which is good. I hope that one day she will accept the gospel. We all have our agency. We went to the Halloween party on Saturday. I can hardly believe that it is Halloween on Saturday. Where has October gone? There were so many cute little kids in costume. They had a booth set up for us to hand out pamphlets and such. All of the other booths had games. The kids would come by and see that we had nothing and turn around and leave. It was pretty funny. Sometimes they would stand at a distance to see if there was anything and pretend like we didn't notice that they were looking. We took pictures with a bunch of people which was fun. The Beaudoin's came and they even all dressed up. Brandi was my favorite. We took some great pictures. I couldn't help but laugh. When we took one of the pictures we were trying hard to look tough and not laugh but we both just started laughing. It makes me laugh just writing about it. Mikey and Maddie came all dressed up as well. It was the first time that anyone in the ward met them. They are so funny. Mikey was a red power ranger and Maddie was a kitty. They loved it. They are good kids. When we were at Kelly's last night she wanted me to say the prayer and at the end she said, "Please bless that Sister Mickelsen and Sister T won't get transferred." It was funny. Transfers are still a little ways away but she wants to put her petition in now. I hope that I can stay. I don't think my heart can take another move, but of course Heavenly Father will help me if that is what needs to be done. We started teaching little Ronni. She is so funny. She gave a talk in primary on Sunday. She volunteered herself to give a talk. She thought it would be in Sacrament. She was disappointed that not everyone would get to hear it. It was cute. I didn't get to hear it at church but she did it for me after church. Sister T and I taught the Gospel Essentials class on Sunday. I was so nervous. I'm not quite sure why because I teach everyday in much crazier situations. The topic was the atonement. Sister T said that she rushed through her part because she didn't want to get emotional. I was proud that I didn't lose control myself. The atonement means so much to me. The more you study it and apply it in your life the more real it becomes. You begin to realize just how much love your Savior and Heavenly Father have for you personally. I love this gospel and know that it is true with all my heart. My heart has never been happier. Today we are carving pumpkins with the elders. It should be fun. I don't know the last time that I carved a pumpkin. I am trying to think about what else has happened this week. It all seems like a blur. One long day. We did deep cleaning this week. We do it every 6 months. I love living with members though because it's not as intense. You only have your bathroom and your bedroom to clean as opposed to an entire apartment. And it doesn't take much because you clean those every week anyway. The weather has been beautiful here. I will be sad to leave sunny California. I will enjoy it while I can. I am so grateful for this opportunity to serve. I have learned so much and continue to learn everyday. My testimony grows stronger as I study every morning. I know that my Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. It is a blessing to have that knowledge. I hope that all of you are doing well. I love all of you and pray for you always. Have a great week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
I hope that you are all doing well. It has been a pretty good week here in the Long Beach Mission. We have had some challenges but those are expected. One of our investigators left us a message telling us that she didn't think the church was the right fit for her. It always breaks my heart to see people turn the gospel away. They don't understand. It hurt but I know that I did all that I could. I can't make the decision for her. I shared my testimony and I followed the spirit in teaching her and that is all I can do. She doesn't have any hard feelings which is good. I hope that one day she will accept the gospel. We all have our agency. We went to the Halloween party on Saturday. I can hardly believe that it is Halloween on Saturday. Where has October gone? There were so many cute little kids in costume. They had a booth set up for us to hand out pamphlets and such. All of the other booths had games. The kids would come by and see that we had nothing and turn around and leave. It was pretty funny. Sometimes they would stand at a distance to see if there was anything and pretend like we didn't notice that they were looking. We took pictures with a bunch of people which was fun. The Beaudoin's came and they even all dressed up. Brandi was my favorite. We took some great pictures. I couldn't help but laugh. When we took one of the pictures we were trying hard to look tough and not laugh but we both just started laughing. It makes me laugh just writing about it. Mikey and Maddie came all dressed up as well. It was the first time that anyone in the ward met them. They are so funny. Mikey was a red power ranger and Maddie was a kitty. They loved it. They are good kids. When we were at Kelly's last night she wanted me to say the prayer and at the end she said, "Please bless that Sister Mickelsen and Sister T won't get transferred." It was funny. Transfers are still a little ways away but she wants to put her petition in now. I hope that I can stay. I don't think my heart can take another move, but of course Heavenly Father will help me if that is what needs to be done. We started teaching little Ronni. She is so funny. She gave a talk in primary on Sunday. She volunteered herself to give a talk. She thought it would be in Sacrament. She was disappointed that not everyone would get to hear it. It was cute. I didn't get to hear it at church but she did it for me after church. Sister T and I taught the Gospel Essentials class on Sunday. I was so nervous. I'm not quite sure why because I teach everyday in much crazier situations. The topic was the atonement. Sister T said that she rushed through her part because she didn't want to get emotional. I was proud that I didn't lose control myself. The atonement means so much to me. The more you study it and apply it in your life the more real it becomes. You begin to realize just how much love your Savior and Heavenly Father have for you personally. I love this gospel and know that it is true with all my heart. My heart has never been happier. Today we are carving pumpkins with the elders. It should be fun. I don't know the last time that I carved a pumpkin. I am trying to think about what else has happened this week. It all seems like a blur. One long day. We did deep cleaning this week. We do it every 6 months. I love living with members though because it's not as intense. You only have your bathroom and your bedroom to clean as opposed to an entire apartment. And it doesn't take much because you clean those every week anyway. The weather has been beautiful here. I will be sad to leave sunny California. I will enjoy it while I can. I am so grateful for this opportunity to serve. I have learned so much and continue to learn everyday. My testimony grows stronger as I study every morning. I know that my Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. It is a blessing to have that knowledge. I hope that all of you are doing well. I love all of you and pray for you always. Have a great week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 63
October 20, 2009
Well it has been an incredible week! I can't even express how much I have felt the love of my Heavenly Father this week. We had 3 baptisms on Saturday. It was so beautiful! Kenady, Sydney and Sara were all baptized by their uncle. I have never felt the spirit quite like I did at this baptism. You could just feel that Heavenly Father had been waiting for this day for a long time. I couldn't look at Brandi the whole day because I had to play the piano. I would have been crying the entire time if I looked at her. I needed to be able to read the music. It was a beautiful day. The confirmations were equally as beautiful. Each one was so personal and exactly what they needed. I can't wait to see the future begin to unfold for this family. This is only the beginning. There was a lot of hard work to get us to the weekend though. It was a long week. I was on my knees many times and there was a constant prayer in my heart. There was a lot of opposition but it made them stronger. Their family from Utah came into town on Friday. It was a joy to meet all of them. I felt like I was waiting for my own cousins to come into town. We were all so grateful that this event was happening. When they left on Sunday morning there were a lot of tears shed. It was one of the best weekends of all our lives. There were several non members there who made comments and were touched by the spirit. 2 of them live in our ward boundaries and we hope to teach them and bring them into the fold. We got another referral from them as well. God is working miracles. Friday night we gave them a little house for Family Home Evening so that they could plan and have FHE. We came over Sunday for dinner and they had it all planned out. Kenady had prepared a lesson about the responsibilities of family members and even left a commitment at the end. I was completely overwhelmed. Sara prepared an activity that would help them draw closer together and bring the love of Christ more abundantly in their home. Ronni picked out a hymn. The parents prayed and Syd made a treat. It was incredible. It truly was a glimpse of heaven. It was a beautiful sight to see 3 newly baptized members teaching by example. The entire family was in the scriptures and participating. I was completely in awe at the sight. Life just doesn't get much better. To top it all off we went to the LA temple this morning. It was so beautiful. I can't believe that my first trip there was 1 year ago. Where has the time gone? This truly has been one of the best weeks of my life. It is so rewarding to see people struggle and stay strong and become stronger. I do not know why I was allowed to be part of this great experience but I am so grateful. Heavenly Father truly loves each and every one of us. He knows us personally and what we need. It is my prayer that I can continue to help this family become an eternal family. These girls that were baptized have the biggest smiles I have ever seen. They always told Sister Lauchner and I that they wanted to glow like us. I told them on Sunday that they all were glowing and that they could continue if they did what was right. We are truly blessed. There is nothing more important in this world than discovering our Savior Jesus Christ and embracing his Atonement. He truly lives and we can change and become like Him. This gospel is true. I am more sure of it than ever before. Sunday there was a missionary who reported his mission. He served in Guatemala. He gave an amazing talk. It was a little touchy for me to think that would be me soon. One thing that I loved was that he said he left thinking that he would pay his Heavenly Father back. But he didn't realize how much more he would be blessed in his mission. I feel the same. Leaving on my mission I didn't realize how much I would be blessed. There is no way we could ever repay for all that we have been blessed with. The only thing we can do is to continue living our lives in harmony with the gospel. I pray that each of you know how much your Heavenly Father loves you. Trust him and follow him and you find greater happiness and peace. I know that is true because I have experienced it for myself. I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you all and pray for you always! Until next week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Well it has been an incredible week! I can't even express how much I have felt the love of my Heavenly Father this week. We had 3 baptisms on Saturday. It was so beautiful! Kenady, Sydney and Sara were all baptized by their uncle. I have never felt the spirit quite like I did at this baptism. You could just feel that Heavenly Father had been waiting for this day for a long time. I couldn't look at Brandi the whole day because I had to play the piano. I would have been crying the entire time if I looked at her. I needed to be able to read the music. It was a beautiful day. The confirmations were equally as beautiful. Each one was so personal and exactly what they needed. I can't wait to see the future begin to unfold for this family. This is only the beginning. There was a lot of hard work to get us to the weekend though. It was a long week. I was on my knees many times and there was a constant prayer in my heart. There was a lot of opposition but it made them stronger. Their family from Utah came into town on Friday. It was a joy to meet all of them. I felt like I was waiting for my own cousins to come into town. We were all so grateful that this event was happening. When they left on Sunday morning there were a lot of tears shed. It was one of the best weekends of all our lives. There were several non members there who made comments and were touched by the spirit. 2 of them live in our ward boundaries and we hope to teach them and bring them into the fold. We got another referral from them as well. God is working miracles. Friday night we gave them a little house for Family Home Evening so that they could plan and have FHE. We came over Sunday for dinner and they had it all planned out. Kenady had prepared a lesson about the responsibilities of family members and even left a commitment at the end. I was completely overwhelmed. Sara prepared an activity that would help them draw closer together and bring the love of Christ more abundantly in their home. Ronni picked out a hymn. The parents prayed and Syd made a treat. It was incredible. It truly was a glimpse of heaven. It was a beautiful sight to see 3 newly baptized members teaching by example. The entire family was in the scriptures and participating. I was completely in awe at the sight. Life just doesn't get much better. To top it all off we went to the LA temple this morning. It was so beautiful. I can't believe that my first trip there was 1 year ago. Where has the time gone? This truly has been one of the best weeks of my life. It is so rewarding to see people struggle and stay strong and become stronger. I do not know why I was allowed to be part of this great experience but I am so grateful. Heavenly Father truly loves each and every one of us. He knows us personally and what we need. It is my prayer that I can continue to help this family become an eternal family. These girls that were baptized have the biggest smiles I have ever seen. They always told Sister Lauchner and I that they wanted to glow like us. I told them on Sunday that they all were glowing and that they could continue if they did what was right. We are truly blessed. There is nothing more important in this world than discovering our Savior Jesus Christ and embracing his Atonement. He truly lives and we can change and become like Him. This gospel is true. I am more sure of it than ever before. Sunday there was a missionary who reported his mission. He served in Guatemala. He gave an amazing talk. It was a little touchy for me to think that would be me soon. One thing that I loved was that he said he left thinking that he would pay his Heavenly Father back. But he didn't realize how much more he would be blessed in his mission. I feel the same. Leaving on my mission I didn't realize how much I would be blessed. There is no way we could ever repay for all that we have been blessed with. The only thing we can do is to continue living our lives in harmony with the gospel. I pray that each of you know how much your Heavenly Father loves you. Trust him and follow him and you find greater happiness and peace. I know that is true because I have experienced it for myself. I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you all and pray for you always! Until next week!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 62
October 14, 2009
Hello everyone! I hope that this email finds everyone doing well. It has been a great week! As I mentioned last week there was lots of emotions with transfers but all is well. The Beaudoin's are AMAZING!!! My heart just feels like it is going to explode. It is so full of love. I can't even begin to express how amazing it feels to be a part of this family. It has been such a journey for them and to see the happiness that is in their lives because of the gospel is incredible. This is what it is all about. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY! The whole family came to church again this week and they stayed the entire time and loved every minute. They have never stayed for the whole thing. One of the girls that is getting baptized stood up and bore her testimony in Sacrament Meeting! That was an incredible experience! This church is so true! How could it not be? I am super excited for the baptism and know that it will be such a blessing to all that are involved. Yesterday we had Zone Conference and it was wonderful! I learned a lot and have a lot that I want to do. There is always room for improvement. I was stressed about talking to president because we needed to talk about my mission ending. When I talked to him though I was at complete peace with the change that will come. He told me that it would be ok. I know that it will but it is always refreshing to hear loving words. I know that it will all be ok and that everything will work out. I don't need to worry about anything right now. He told me as always that the best is yet to come. I believe it. He has been saying that my entire mission and it has just been getting better and better. Sister Taulanga and I are doing great. We are working hard and loving it! She really likes it here. She thinks that I am a missionary genius. I keep telling her that I don't know anything. I am just as young and still have to work just as hard. I just have some experience under my belt. We have been finding out about people from Highland. Lolo is her cousin and he was my first date. Random things. We work well together and it is going to be a good transfer. She is excited about the baptism. It will be her first. The Beaudoin's are super excited for us to meet their family. I am super excited to meet them as well. I know that these last transfers are going to be the best transfers of my mission. I feel the spirit more than ever and I know that the Lord will provide. There have been miracles here in this area and there will continue to be miracles as long as we pray in faith and work hard. The gospel is true. I know it with all my heart. Just when I think that my heart is full something greater happens. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much. It is incredible all that He blesses us with. All He asks is that we keep the commandments. This weekend will be a great experience and I am excited to tell you all about it. You are all in my prayers and I pray that you are all successful and happy. God loves you, I love you! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for loving and supporting me on the greatest journey of my life! Have a great week and I will talk to you later!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Hello everyone! I hope that this email finds everyone doing well. It has been a great week! As I mentioned last week there was lots of emotions with transfers but all is well. The Beaudoin's are AMAZING!!! My heart just feels like it is going to explode. It is so full of love. I can't even begin to express how amazing it feels to be a part of this family. It has been such a journey for them and to see the happiness that is in their lives because of the gospel is incredible. This is what it is all about. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY! The whole family came to church again this week and they stayed the entire time and loved every minute. They have never stayed for the whole thing. One of the girls that is getting baptized stood up and bore her testimony in Sacrament Meeting! That was an incredible experience! This church is so true! How could it not be? I am super excited for the baptism and know that it will be such a blessing to all that are involved. Yesterday we had Zone Conference and it was wonderful! I learned a lot and have a lot that I want to do. There is always room for improvement. I was stressed about talking to president because we needed to talk about my mission ending. When I talked to him though I was at complete peace with the change that will come. He told me that it would be ok. I know that it will but it is always refreshing to hear loving words. I know that it will all be ok and that everything will work out. I don't need to worry about anything right now. He told me as always that the best is yet to come. I believe it. He has been saying that my entire mission and it has just been getting better and better. Sister Taulanga and I are doing great. We are working hard and loving it! She really likes it here. She thinks that I am a missionary genius. I keep telling her that I don't know anything. I am just as young and still have to work just as hard. I just have some experience under my belt. We have been finding out about people from Highland. Lolo is her cousin and he was my first date. Random things. We work well together and it is going to be a good transfer. She is excited about the baptism. It will be her first. The Beaudoin's are super excited for us to meet their family. I am super excited to meet them as well. I know that these last transfers are going to be the best transfers of my mission. I feel the spirit more than ever and I know that the Lord will provide. There have been miracles here in this area and there will continue to be miracles as long as we pray in faith and work hard. The gospel is true. I know it with all my heart. Just when I think that my heart is full something greater happens. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much. It is incredible all that He blesses us with. All He asks is that we keep the commandments. This weekend will be a great experience and I am excited to tell you all about it. You are all in my prayers and I pray that you are all successful and happy. God loves you, I love you! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for loving and supporting me on the greatest journey of my life! Have a great week and I will talk to you later!
Love Sister Mickelsen
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
She's almost home!
We have heard word that she is coming home on the 29th of December! We can hardly stand ourselves. My Mom is making all kinds of plans. We are trying to figure Christmas out, and all our holiday adventures. We are SO excited to have her home. She can't think about it too much, she can't believe how fast the time has gone.
This last week 3 of her investigators were baptized. There Aunt attended the baptism's, she is from Mantua. She called us Monday morning to tell us how sweet our Stephanie is. One comment " I didn't know you could love someone so quickly" Both her family and the family that was baptized love Steph and her sweet spirit. We are so blessed to have her in our family.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Week 61
October 6, 2009
Well I am staying here in Los Alamitos! I am really excited and surprised. We received a call Wednesday night telling us that Sister Lauchner would be training. I kept telling myself that I was the one leaving because it would make it easier. I didn't want to leave but I knew it was a high possibility. When we received transfer calls I was shocked when the elders told me I was staying. Sister Lauchner is headed to Cypress and is opening two wards to sisters. She will do great. She has experience in opening a new area. I was secretly hoping that I would be going back to Long Beach where I started. Sister Haycock is training again so I am now companions with her greenie, "my grandbaby". It will be fun. We actually went to school together and graduated the same year. Small world in the church. It will be fun. This will be her second transfer. One of the Elders in my first district is now my zone leader. We haven't served in the same area since last year. I am super excited! He is a good elder. We were both greenies together. So Sister Lauchner is super sad to leave because this is her greenie area and it is all she knows. We have a family that is getting ready to be baptized in 2 weeks! They have been meeting with the missionaries for like 6 years! It would have been hard for either one of us to leave. The mom and 2 of the girls that are being baptized wrote a letter to President asking him to give permission for sister Lauchner to come. They gave them to him on Sunday at general conference. I forgot that they live in our stake and that they would be at the stake center to watch conference. It was fun to be there with them. They are so good! So we were talking to Sara and teaching her and had planned to set a date for her to be baptized in November. We didn't want to rush her. It is always good to set it when they feel they will be ready. Then essentially they are making the choice and not us. Less pushy. So at first she was like I don't think that I could do that and then out of the blue she asked how long it was until the other girls were being baptized. We told her it was 2 weeks and she asked if she could be ready by then. We told her that she could be if she wanted and she said lets do that. We were taken back. So crazy! So now all 3 of them will be baptized in 2 Saturdays! Their parents told us Sunday that they want to be baptized as well. They have some bigger obstacles to overcome but I have complete faith that it will happen. The spirit was amazing on Sunday. They talked about having a get together in Utah for a family sealing. WE WERE SO EXCITED!!! I just love this family so much. I know that we were called here to help them see that they can be members of the church. The mom's twin sister is a member and they are coming down for the event. It is all very exciting. There wasn't a dry eye in the house. We were all touched by the spirit and I know without a shadow of a doubt that this is God's work. Everytime that I leave their house I am just in awe that I am so priveleged to be a part of this family and their conversion. So other than this big change the highlight of the the week was conference. It was so amazing! I have been praying and praying to have some questions answered and how I can finish my mission strong. I was overwhelmed at how each talk answered my questions in one way or another over and over again. I learned so much! If we prepare ourselves we will be uplifted and edified. The speakers all did a wonderful job. Elder Holland was very powerful. I was so moved that I couldn't take notes. He had my complete attention. I was hoping that our investigators wouldn't be scared by his intensity. One of my favorite talks about the ulimate operation. Our spiritual conversion is much like a heart transplant. If we don't care for our spirit it will be rejected and it will bring us farther from God. I loved President Monson and his desire for us to do service. We went over to our recent converts house yesterday to say goodbye and she had a jar of "Warm Fuzzies". I asked her if that was what it was and she told me yes and that she planned to use it with her 4 year old twins to help them do nice things for each other. It was amazing. It is so great to see your converts following the prophet and making changes in their lives. We get great parenting counsel. It will be interesting to see how this transfer plays out. I hope that I know enough. It is always a little intimidating to take over an area in such a short time. You always worry that you are going to forget someone. I know that Heavenly Father won't let me mess up but it will take effort on my part. Yesterday we were running around all over to say goodbye to people. Everyone is sad that Sister Lauchner is leaving. I am too. We have had some good times. We didn't always agree but we all know that we are different people. I have learned a lot this transfer. God is always helping us to remember to be humble. We asked an old man when he was going to give up his beer and he just looked at us and took a second to think and then said ".....NOPE!" It was the funniest thing ever. Sister Fannin's daughter came for the weekend to help her mom. It was great to meet her. She doesn't live too far from SLC. She actually flew home today with all of the departing missionaries. Life is good! I love my mission and I love being able to serve here in Los Alamitos. Sidenote, there is a sister serving in the Philipines from this ward. She just arrived there and this week she has seen 2 pythons and found a rat in her kitchen! Her mom says that in some areas she walks in chest high water because of the flooding. She is wearing mostly her service clothes and helping people who have lost their homes. Mom are you glad that I am in America? I love you all so much and hope that you have a great week! Thanks for all of your love and support! Love Sister Mickelsen
Well I am staying here in Los Alamitos! I am really excited and surprised. We received a call Wednesday night telling us that Sister Lauchner would be training. I kept telling myself that I was the one leaving because it would make it easier. I didn't want to leave but I knew it was a high possibility. When we received transfer calls I was shocked when the elders told me I was staying. Sister Lauchner is headed to Cypress and is opening two wards to sisters. She will do great. She has experience in opening a new area. I was secretly hoping that I would be going back to Long Beach where I started. Sister Haycock is training again so I am now companions with her greenie, "my grandbaby". It will be fun. We actually went to school together and graduated the same year. Small world in the church. It will be fun. This will be her second transfer. One of the Elders in my first district is now my zone leader. We haven't served in the same area since last year. I am super excited! He is a good elder. We were both greenies together. So Sister Lauchner is super sad to leave because this is her greenie area and it is all she knows. We have a family that is getting ready to be baptized in 2 weeks! They have been meeting with the missionaries for like 6 years! It would have been hard for either one of us to leave. The mom and 2 of the girls that are being baptized wrote a letter to President asking him to give permission for sister Lauchner to come. They gave them to him on Sunday at general conference. I forgot that they live in our stake and that they would be at the stake center to watch conference. It was fun to be there with them. They are so good! So we were talking to Sara and teaching her and had planned to set a date for her to be baptized in November. We didn't want to rush her. It is always good to set it when they feel they will be ready. Then essentially they are making the choice and not us. Less pushy. So at first she was like I don't think that I could do that and then out of the blue she asked how long it was until the other girls were being baptized. We told her it was 2 weeks and she asked if she could be ready by then. We told her that she could be if she wanted and she said lets do that. We were taken back. So crazy! So now all 3 of them will be baptized in 2 Saturdays! Their parents told us Sunday that they want to be baptized as well. They have some bigger obstacles to overcome but I have complete faith that it will happen. The spirit was amazing on Sunday. They talked about having a get together in Utah for a family sealing. WE WERE SO EXCITED!!! I just love this family so much. I know that we were called here to help them see that they can be members of the church. The mom's twin sister is a member and they are coming down for the event. It is all very exciting. There wasn't a dry eye in the house. We were all touched by the spirit and I know without a shadow of a doubt that this is God's work. Everytime that I leave their house I am just in awe that I am so priveleged to be a part of this family and their conversion. So other than this big change the highlight of the the week was conference. It was so amazing! I have been praying and praying to have some questions answered and how I can finish my mission strong. I was overwhelmed at how each talk answered my questions in one way or another over and over again. I learned so much! If we prepare ourselves we will be uplifted and edified. The speakers all did a wonderful job. Elder Holland was very powerful. I was so moved that I couldn't take notes. He had my complete attention. I was hoping that our investigators wouldn't be scared by his intensity. One of my favorite talks about the ulimate operation. Our spiritual conversion is much like a heart transplant. If we don't care for our spirit it will be rejected and it will bring us farther from God. I loved President Monson and his desire for us to do service. We went over to our recent converts house yesterday to say goodbye and she had a jar of "Warm Fuzzies". I asked her if that was what it was and she told me yes and that she planned to use it with her 4 year old twins to help them do nice things for each other. It was amazing. It is so great to see your converts following the prophet and making changes in their lives. We get great parenting counsel. It will be interesting to see how this transfer plays out. I hope that I know enough. It is always a little intimidating to take over an area in such a short time. You always worry that you are going to forget someone. I know that Heavenly Father won't let me mess up but it will take effort on my part. Yesterday we were running around all over to say goodbye to people. Everyone is sad that Sister Lauchner is leaving. I am too. We have had some good times. We didn't always agree but we all know that we are different people. I have learned a lot this transfer. God is always helping us to remember to be humble. We asked an old man when he was going to give up his beer and he just looked at us and took a second to think and then said ".....NOPE!" It was the funniest thing ever. Sister Fannin's daughter came for the weekend to help her mom. It was great to meet her. She doesn't live too far from SLC. She actually flew home today with all of the departing missionaries. Life is good! I love my mission and I love being able to serve here in Los Alamitos. Sidenote, there is a sister serving in the Philipines from this ward. She just arrived there and this week she has seen 2 pythons and found a rat in her kitchen! Her mom says that in some areas she walks in chest high water because of the flooding. She is wearing mostly her service clothes and helping people who have lost their homes. Mom are you glad that I am in America? I love you all so much and hope that you have a great week! Thanks for all of your love and support! Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 60
September 29, 2009
Hello everyone! I can hardly believe that another week has come and gone! It seems to speed up everyday. This week has been great! We have had some great success as well as some funny memories to go along with it. So I will start with a funny story. So we live with a sweet widow and every Friday morning after studies we do some service for her. This week we helped her clean and vaccum in preparation for her daughter who is coming tomorrow. After we finished Sister Lauchner asked if she could fix the shower. It did not turn to cold at all when we had taken showers. Sister Fannin was glad to show us how to fix the problem. So we gathered up the tools and all huddled in the bathroom to watch how it was done. We began by taking apart the handle to get to the shower valve. We got a thorough description of how a shower valve works. I had never seen one or knew how it worked. So we were about the the valve and we were removing the last part. Can anyone see where this is going? We took out the part that keeps it intact and the shower valve started to come out by itself. Then all of a sudden it shoots out and water is spraying everywhere! Sister Fannin's face was priceless! She was very startled and she lifted her finger and said quickly " I need to turn off the water!" She ran outside soaking wet to do the job. Sister Lauchner and I just started laughing so hard! It was one of the greatest moments ever! We couldn't stop laughing. When Sister Fannin came back in she said. "Rule number one when doing plumbing is to turn off the water." We all started laughing again. Oh it was so funny! I was reading some directions and the first thing is said was to shut off the water supply, I read it out loud and we laughed some more. Sister Lauchner is excited to watch that one in heaven. We are still laughing about it today. Wednesday we had a great lesson with Jesse. He is a 17 year old that we met last Sunday at the Bakker's. We taught him outside because no one else was home. It happened to be 104 that day. It was hot! But we survived. We came to church on Sunday. We also taught him Sunday night and we will be teaching him again tonight. He is making great progress. I pray that the spirit will continue to touch his heart and guide him in this precious time of his life. We had a good lesson as well with Janet. Austin(her son) didn't come home for the lesson but that is ok. We finished teaching the plan of Salvation. Janet is so great. She always tells us that she wants to be as happy as we are. The gospel truly does make a huge difference in our happiness. It is the only way to have happiness in this troubled world. I loved the Relief Society Broadcast! It was so great! I am super excited for general conference this weekend. I know that we are so blessed because we have these great men who lead us and love us just as the Savior does. We had 2 investigators come to the broadcast! Woohoo! They both enjoyed it. One of them was Jackie the mother of Brandy. Brandy was baptized a couple of weeks ago. Jackie has been very busy and stressed and so we were excited that she was able to come and feel the spirit. She was taking notes and just loving it. I am grateful for the joy and peace the gospel can bring. The other person that came was Sara. She is a sweetheart. I was glad that she came. She enjoyed it and was asking a lot of questions. We ate some dinner afterwards. Sister Sexton was there because we are in their stake. I also saw Sister Gallik. That was a nice surprise. She was more surprised to see me because she didn't know that I had been transferred. She is busy in school and doing well. I am so grateful for the short 2 weeks I had with her as my companion. The Beaudoin girls and their mom were all at church on Sunday. It was a great meeting and the spirit was there. I think that all who came enjoyed it. The chorister asked me last week if I could play a musical number in November. I told him that I would I was still here. I told him that transfers were coming and that I might be moved. He saw me on Sunday and his wife said that she had reported to him that I was staying. They were disappointed when I told them that we still hadn't had transfers. It is hard to believe that another transfer has passed. I don't like to think about how many I have left. I just keep enjoying every minute and do the best that I can. Sister Lauchner and I have tried to predict this next transfer. Two sisters will be training. She seems to think that it will be me because I am the oldest. I know that age in the mission has nothing to do with it. President will match them perfectly with the sister that they need. It would be a great privilege to train again but I also know that I will be happy to do whatever the Lord wants. I have felt over and over again with each change that I am where the Lord needs and my companion is exactly who I need to help me grow and be better. Each transfer has been filled with challenges but I have also grown and changed so much because of those challenges. The gospel is true. This is the Lord's work and we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father. That will never change. He will always love us and guide us as we seek His help. We can't do His work alone no matter who we are. God lives. I know it with all my heart! I hope you all enjoy this great conference weekend! It will be evidence that God loves you and is aware of you and your life if you take the time to prepare yourself to receive that witness. I love you all and pray for you daily! Have a great week! Until next time!Love Sister Mickelsen
Hello everyone! I can hardly believe that another week has come and gone! It seems to speed up everyday. This week has been great! We have had some great success as well as some funny memories to go along with it. So I will start with a funny story. So we live with a sweet widow and every Friday morning after studies we do some service for her. This week we helped her clean and vaccum in preparation for her daughter who is coming tomorrow. After we finished Sister Lauchner asked if she could fix the shower. It did not turn to cold at all when we had taken showers. Sister Fannin was glad to show us how to fix the problem. So we gathered up the tools and all huddled in the bathroom to watch how it was done. We began by taking apart the handle to get to the shower valve. We got a thorough description of how a shower valve works. I had never seen one or knew how it worked. So we were about the the valve and we were removing the last part. Can anyone see where this is going? We took out the part that keeps it intact and the shower valve started to come out by itself. Then all of a sudden it shoots out and water is spraying everywhere! Sister Fannin's face was priceless! She was very startled and she lifted her finger and said quickly " I need to turn off the water!" She ran outside soaking wet to do the job. Sister Lauchner and I just started laughing so hard! It was one of the greatest moments ever! We couldn't stop laughing. When Sister Fannin came back in she said. "Rule number one when doing plumbing is to turn off the water." We all started laughing again. Oh it was so funny! I was reading some directions and the first thing is said was to shut off the water supply, I read it out loud and we laughed some more. Sister Lauchner is excited to watch that one in heaven. We are still laughing about it today. Wednesday we had a great lesson with Jesse. He is a 17 year old that we met last Sunday at the Bakker's. We taught him outside because no one else was home. It happened to be 104 that day. It was hot! But we survived. We came to church on Sunday. We also taught him Sunday night and we will be teaching him again tonight. He is making great progress. I pray that the spirit will continue to touch his heart and guide him in this precious time of his life. We had a good lesson as well with Janet. Austin(her son) didn't come home for the lesson but that is ok. We finished teaching the plan of Salvation. Janet is so great. She always tells us that she wants to be as happy as we are. The gospel truly does make a huge difference in our happiness. It is the only way to have happiness in this troubled world. I loved the Relief Society Broadcast! It was so great! I am super excited for general conference this weekend. I know that we are so blessed because we have these great men who lead us and love us just as the Savior does. We had 2 investigators come to the broadcast! Woohoo! They both enjoyed it. One of them was Jackie the mother of Brandy. Brandy was baptized a couple of weeks ago. Jackie has been very busy and stressed and so we were excited that she was able to come and feel the spirit. She was taking notes and just loving it. I am grateful for the joy and peace the gospel can bring. The other person that came was Sara. She is a sweetheart. I was glad that she came. She enjoyed it and was asking a lot of questions. We ate some dinner afterwards. Sister Sexton was there because we are in their stake. I also saw Sister Gallik. That was a nice surprise. She was more surprised to see me because she didn't know that I had been transferred. She is busy in school and doing well. I am so grateful for the short 2 weeks I had with her as my companion. The Beaudoin girls and their mom were all at church on Sunday. It was a great meeting and the spirit was there. I think that all who came enjoyed it. The chorister asked me last week if I could play a musical number in November. I told him that I would I was still here. I told him that transfers were coming and that I might be moved. He saw me on Sunday and his wife said that she had reported to him that I was staying. They were disappointed when I told them that we still hadn't had transfers. It is hard to believe that another transfer has passed. I don't like to think about how many I have left. I just keep enjoying every minute and do the best that I can. Sister Lauchner and I have tried to predict this next transfer. Two sisters will be training. She seems to think that it will be me because I am the oldest. I know that age in the mission has nothing to do with it. President will match them perfectly with the sister that they need. It would be a great privilege to train again but I also know that I will be happy to do whatever the Lord wants. I have felt over and over again with each change that I am where the Lord needs and my companion is exactly who I need to help me grow and be better. Each transfer has been filled with challenges but I have also grown and changed so much because of those challenges. The gospel is true. This is the Lord's work and we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father. That will never change. He will always love us and guide us as we seek His help. We can't do His work alone no matter who we are. God lives. I know it with all my heart! I hope you all enjoy this great conference weekend! It will be evidence that God loves you and is aware of you and your life if you take the time to prepare yourself to receive that witness. I love you all and pray for you daily! Have a great week! Until next time!Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 59
September 22, 2009
Well this week has been amazing! I have definitely seen and felt the love of a Heavenly Father. He is always there helping us along the way. At church we had 9 investigators at church. The entire Beaudoin family came! It was so wonderful to see them there! They are progressing well and we continue to teach and prepare them. We reset their baptismal date for after transfers. I am hoping that we will both still be here. I know that they want us both here but we told them that there is chance we won't. They asked if we could come back and we told them that we couldn't. I told them that I could come back after my mission though and spend as much time as I wanted. I promised them a sleepover and they were jumping up and down. It was pretty funny. It made me feel good. The highlight of the week though was yesterday. We had a mission tour and it was AMAZING! It was exactly what I needed to boost me up! It came straight from heaven. Elder Craig C. Christensen of the seventy came to speak to us. We met with half of the mission in Westminster. 6 of the 8 sisters were there. It was fun to see them! Such sweet spirits! Before the meeting started we all lined up in zones in the gym. We sang some hymns while we waited. President and his wife came and greeted us and asked how we all were individually and then Elder Christensen and his wife did the same. Sister Christensen gave us big hugs and thanked us for doing this hard work. She held our hands and just told us how much she loved us. Tears filled my eyes and I felt such a genuine love for and from this great woman! Elder Christensen asked where we were from and how long we had been out. He also asked me if it was what I expected. I told him no, that it was much better than I expected. It is the truth. We waited in the chapel until he was done greeting all of the other missionaries. We heard from a member of our mission presidency and then from Sister Sexton. Then Elder Christensen talked to us. He is an incredible man. He is so full of the spirit. One thing that I really loved was he talked about our calling. He told us that we had been called and prepared from before the foundation of the world. He told us that Heavenly Father knew where we would serve. Someone asked him how the timing worked if a young man didn't go when he was 19. He said that timing doesn't matter to God. We have time in this world to help us have structure and to learn. God doesn't need that. He adjusts when we mess up. His plan is still perfect for each one of us and He has it all planned to succeed. Even if and when we mess up He is right there to help us back and to bless us. I thought that was incredible. How blessed we are to have someone in control who is merciful and loving and always waiting to bless us. He told a story about when he was first called to be a mission president in Mexico City. He told us that he got several phone calls about missionaries that had been assaulted or injured in some degree. He finally told Heavenly Father that he couldn't do it. It was too much. He said the answer came like this, "I am doing the work, all you have to do is listen." It is true. I have seen it in my own mission. Any baptism you can see that God placed that person in your path and you were just the mouthpiece of the message. It is incredible. I love this gospel. He told us that we all have to do the same thing to know the Lord's will for us. He said "President Monson doesn't wake up with a to do list on his pillow in the morning from the Lord." He has to study it and ponder it and ask just like the rest of us. It is always reassuring to know that we are all the same and the God takes time to talk to me just as much as anyone else. It is all dependent on us. We talked about being sanctified and how we get the glow in our eyes when we walk off that plane. He told us that its not by studying deep doctrine but by living by the spirit. The more we trust in the spirit the more we have the spirit upon us. We receive Christ in our countenance. One thing that struck home was he said that you can't apply the world to a mission. The way we succeed in the world isn't the way to be a good missionary. I have always known that but when he said it I felt the truth of that statement. The greatest calling in the world is to be a missionary. He is a true servant of God. I felt the love of my Heavenly Father as He spoke. I know that he was answering my prayers in the words he said. He was speaking by the spirit. His wife talked about the Articles of Faith. She told us to teach them because they came from a man that was closest to God. They explain the doctrines of the gospel more than I could. They are things that the world doesn't know but are what they need to know to make it in the next life. President expressed his love for each one of us. He said that he didn't have us shine our shoes and get haircuts because he wanted to impress Elder Christensen. He wanted us to look as good as we are. He wanted to inside to show on the outside. Every time I hear him speak I know that this is the mission I am supposed to serve in. I sang in a quartet. It felt good to sing. I am amazed that we could meet together in the morning and practice for 5-10 min and be able to sing. The Lord helped us because he knew that we wouldn't be able to take the time to practice because we had a more important work to do. After we finished we ate lunch. One of the stakes had prepared a Thanksgiving meal for us. It was really good. They brought out pie and I wasn't going to get any. President saw that none of sisters were going to get pie so he came over to tell us it was there. We said we know and he said do you want me to bring the cart over? We told him no. He was worried that the elders would eat all of it and that we wouldn't get any. So we got some and ate it. I couldn't eat it all. I didn't even eat my whole plate of food. Elder and Sister Christensen sat with us. It was very enjoyable to sit and eat with them. They are great people. They told us about their schedules and how busy they are. He said that Mondays are their "P days". She said, "He is spending his 'p day' with you". It was a lovely experience. When they got up and left, Sister Haycock said" We just ate lunch with a general authority! That is so cool!" I just laughed inside. It was an incredible experience! I love all you and hope that you have a wonderful week. I know that this gospel is true with all my heart. I have seen evidence of it everyday of my life. Until next week...Love Sister Mickelsen
Well this week has been amazing! I have definitely seen and felt the love of a Heavenly Father. He is always there helping us along the way. At church we had 9 investigators at church. The entire Beaudoin family came! It was so wonderful to see them there! They are progressing well and we continue to teach and prepare them. We reset their baptismal date for after transfers. I am hoping that we will both still be here. I know that they want us both here but we told them that there is chance we won't. They asked if we could come back and we told them that we couldn't. I told them that I could come back after my mission though and spend as much time as I wanted. I promised them a sleepover and they were jumping up and down. It was pretty funny. It made me feel good. The highlight of the week though was yesterday. We had a mission tour and it was AMAZING! It was exactly what I needed to boost me up! It came straight from heaven. Elder Craig C. Christensen of the seventy came to speak to us. We met with half of the mission in Westminster. 6 of the 8 sisters were there. It was fun to see them! Such sweet spirits! Before the meeting started we all lined up in zones in the gym. We sang some hymns while we waited. President and his wife came and greeted us and asked how we all were individually and then Elder Christensen and his wife did the same. Sister Christensen gave us big hugs and thanked us for doing this hard work. She held our hands and just told us how much she loved us. Tears filled my eyes and I felt such a genuine love for and from this great woman! Elder Christensen asked where we were from and how long we had been out. He also asked me if it was what I expected. I told him no, that it was much better than I expected. It is the truth. We waited in the chapel until he was done greeting all of the other missionaries. We heard from a member of our mission presidency and then from Sister Sexton. Then Elder Christensen talked to us. He is an incredible man. He is so full of the spirit. One thing that I really loved was he talked about our calling. He told us that we had been called and prepared from before the foundation of the world. He told us that Heavenly Father knew where we would serve. Someone asked him how the timing worked if a young man didn't go when he was 19. He said that timing doesn't matter to God. We have time in this world to help us have structure and to learn. God doesn't need that. He adjusts when we mess up. His plan is still perfect for each one of us and He has it all planned to succeed. Even if and when we mess up He is right there to help us back and to bless us. I thought that was incredible. How blessed we are to have someone in control who is merciful and loving and always waiting to bless us. He told a story about when he was first called to be a mission president in Mexico City. He told us that he got several phone calls about missionaries that had been assaulted or injured in some degree. He finally told Heavenly Father that he couldn't do it. It was too much. He said the answer came like this, "I am doing the work, all you have to do is listen." It is true. I have seen it in my own mission. Any baptism you can see that God placed that person in your path and you were just the mouthpiece of the message. It is incredible. I love this gospel. He told us that we all have to do the same thing to know the Lord's will for us. He said "President Monson doesn't wake up with a to do list on his pillow in the morning from the Lord." He has to study it and ponder it and ask just like the rest of us. It is always reassuring to know that we are all the same and the God takes time to talk to me just as much as anyone else. It is all dependent on us. We talked about being sanctified and how we get the glow in our eyes when we walk off that plane. He told us that its not by studying deep doctrine but by living by the spirit. The more we trust in the spirit the more we have the spirit upon us. We receive Christ in our countenance. One thing that struck home was he said that you can't apply the world to a mission. The way we succeed in the world isn't the way to be a good missionary. I have always known that but when he said it I felt the truth of that statement. The greatest calling in the world is to be a missionary. He is a true servant of God. I felt the love of my Heavenly Father as He spoke. I know that he was answering my prayers in the words he said. He was speaking by the spirit. His wife talked about the Articles of Faith. She told us to teach them because they came from a man that was closest to God. They explain the doctrines of the gospel more than I could. They are things that the world doesn't know but are what they need to know to make it in the next life. President expressed his love for each one of us. He said that he didn't have us shine our shoes and get haircuts because he wanted to impress Elder Christensen. He wanted us to look as good as we are. He wanted to inside to show on the outside. Every time I hear him speak I know that this is the mission I am supposed to serve in. I sang in a quartet. It felt good to sing. I am amazed that we could meet together in the morning and practice for 5-10 min and be able to sing. The Lord helped us because he knew that we wouldn't be able to take the time to practice because we had a more important work to do. After we finished we ate lunch. One of the stakes had prepared a Thanksgiving meal for us. It was really good. They brought out pie and I wasn't going to get any. President saw that none of sisters were going to get pie so he came over to tell us it was there. We said we know and he said do you want me to bring the cart over? We told him no. He was worried that the elders would eat all of it and that we wouldn't get any. So we got some and ate it. I couldn't eat it all. I didn't even eat my whole plate of food. Elder and Sister Christensen sat with us. It was very enjoyable to sit and eat with them. They are great people. They told us about their schedules and how busy they are. He said that Mondays are their "P days". She said, "He is spending his 'p day' with you". It was a lovely experience. When they got up and left, Sister Haycock said" We just ate lunch with a general authority! That is so cool!" I just laughed inside. It was an incredible experience! I love all you and hope that you have a wonderful week. I know that this gospel is true with all my heart. I have seen evidence of it everyday of my life. Until next week...Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 58
September 15, 2009
Hello everyone! I hope this letter finds you all doing well. As I am sure you can guess I am doing great! There have been some bumps in the road this last week but it has only strengthened my testimony. Heavenly Father is amazing! He is so aware of us and is always blessing us even if we think it is too much for us. This last week I have really tried to be obedient in committing people to baptism as instructed by president. We were successful and had 3 baptismal dates. I am super excited about it all. However we got a phone call from one of them on Saturday night and they told us that they had been very anxious ever since the last time we had come over. They weren't dropping us but they were telling us that they weren't ready and that they were going to attend another church on Sunday just to try their options. My heart sank. Not because they told me no but because I love them so much. It hurts so bad when you know what they need in their lives but they can't see it. Satan works so hard and it just breaks my heart. Sister Lauchner and I pulled over and said a prayer. We sat there in silence for a little bit and then just talked about what we needed to do. We had an appointment with them the next day and I had no idea what to say or teach them. We decided that we would fast as a companionship until after their lesson. The whole night I was thinking about them. I love these families like my own. It is an amazing experience to have such love for people that I haven't known for a long period of time. In my prayers I was just pleading with my Father to know what to say. The talks in church were exactly what I needed. They were about the Book of Mormon, Prayer and Friendship. All three of those things were what I felt these girls needed in order to know that this was the correct path to follow. When we got to their house I had a better idea of what I was going to say but I was completely relying on the spirit. The spirit there was amazing. We asked them about church and they said that it was bad. They didn't like it at all. The mom told us that it was the first service she had attended where they bashed the mormons. She said she stopped listening after that. The dad told us that he couldn't feel the spirit there at all but that he could feel it strongly right then at their house. That was the first sigh of relief. We talked and cried and I don't even remember all that I said. Needless to say that it went better than I could have imagined. They are still getting baptized we just pushed back a couple of weeks. No biggie. I just love this family so much! Their oldest was there for the first time and she asked some questions at the end. She is going to be there for the next lesson as well. I am so grateful for a loving heavenly Father. If I had to do this alone I would have failed already. Heavenly Father truly makes everything in our lives so much better! So ward choir started on Sunday and Sister Lauchner was pretty stoked to participate. So I willingly went. It is the typical ward choir. Our recent convert who is a music teacher was pretty excited about it as well. She wouldn't let us forget whenever we saw her. So she went and we visited her last night and that was the first thing we talked about. She was very disappointed. I told her that the ward choir is not a normal choir and that everyone who wants to sing in it is there. Bless her heart. I just had to laugh. So we'll see what happens. We had a great lesson with some new investigators. It is a mother and son and we have been trying them forever! The referral came when Sister Hart was still here. The lesson went so well and the spirit was very strong. We asked them to be baptized and they said they would if they found it to be true. I hope that they will! I think that we shocked her a little but I'm not worried. Obviously not everyone is going to be baptized in the same time frame but this helps us to see how serious they really are. A lot of people just give you fluff and then you waste a lot of time and energy on someone that is not going to budge and just isn't ready to try their faith. I was thinking about it and I realized that all of the baptisms we had in Fountain Valley were because we committed on the first lesson. I didn't realize that before. I have felt like I haven't had much success with it but then on the other hand I have been very blessed. I love this gospel. So Sister Lauchner and I did something fun. Sister Lauchner has crazy curly hair and we told someone that if they came to church 2 weeks in a row than she would straighten her hair. Well we did it saturday night and then they didn't come to church. I decided that I would make my hair curly. It was pretty fun to switch hairdos. We got a lot of compliments. We are so easily entertained as missionaries. We have a mission tour on Monday which I am super excited about! Elder Craig C. Christiansen is coming with his wife and will be speaking to us. I just love any spiritual knowledge and experience that I can get! I was asked to sing in a quartet which I am excited about but also a little nervous. This is the first time that I have done any musical numbers on my mission. It feels a little nerve racking but it will be just fine. I am lucky to have someone that will help overcome all my fears. Well all is well here in California! I love my mission and love all that I learn even when it is hard. God lives and is very aware of our situations. I know that we are guided by someone who loves us and wants us to be successful. If we talk to Him and listen He will guide us to true happiness and success. Love Sister Mickelsen
Hello everyone! I hope this letter finds you all doing well. As I am sure you can guess I am doing great! There have been some bumps in the road this last week but it has only strengthened my testimony. Heavenly Father is amazing! He is so aware of us and is always blessing us even if we think it is too much for us. This last week I have really tried to be obedient in committing people to baptism as instructed by president. We were successful and had 3 baptismal dates. I am super excited about it all. However we got a phone call from one of them on Saturday night and they told us that they had been very anxious ever since the last time we had come over. They weren't dropping us but they were telling us that they weren't ready and that they were going to attend another church on Sunday just to try their options. My heart sank. Not because they told me no but because I love them so much. It hurts so bad when you know what they need in their lives but they can't see it. Satan works so hard and it just breaks my heart. Sister Lauchner and I pulled over and said a prayer. We sat there in silence for a little bit and then just talked about what we needed to do. We had an appointment with them the next day and I had no idea what to say or teach them. We decided that we would fast as a companionship until after their lesson. The whole night I was thinking about them. I love these families like my own. It is an amazing experience to have such love for people that I haven't known for a long period of time. In my prayers I was just pleading with my Father to know what to say. The talks in church were exactly what I needed. They were about the Book of Mormon, Prayer and Friendship. All three of those things were what I felt these girls needed in order to know that this was the correct path to follow. When we got to their house I had a better idea of what I was going to say but I was completely relying on the spirit. The spirit there was amazing. We asked them about church and they said that it was bad. They didn't like it at all. The mom told us that it was the first service she had attended where they bashed the mormons. She said she stopped listening after that. The dad told us that he couldn't feel the spirit there at all but that he could feel it strongly right then at their house. That was the first sigh of relief. We talked and cried and I don't even remember all that I said. Needless to say that it went better than I could have imagined. They are still getting baptized we just pushed back a couple of weeks. No biggie. I just love this family so much! Their oldest was there for the first time and she asked some questions at the end. She is going to be there for the next lesson as well. I am so grateful for a loving heavenly Father. If I had to do this alone I would have failed already. Heavenly Father truly makes everything in our lives so much better! So ward choir started on Sunday and Sister Lauchner was pretty stoked to participate. So I willingly went. It is the typical ward choir. Our recent convert who is a music teacher was pretty excited about it as well. She wouldn't let us forget whenever we saw her. So she went and we visited her last night and that was the first thing we talked about. She was very disappointed. I told her that the ward choir is not a normal choir and that everyone who wants to sing in it is there. Bless her heart. I just had to laugh. So we'll see what happens. We had a great lesson with some new investigators. It is a mother and son and we have been trying them forever! The referral came when Sister Hart was still here. The lesson went so well and the spirit was very strong. We asked them to be baptized and they said they would if they found it to be true. I hope that they will! I think that we shocked her a little but I'm not worried. Obviously not everyone is going to be baptized in the same time frame but this helps us to see how serious they really are. A lot of people just give you fluff and then you waste a lot of time and energy on someone that is not going to budge and just isn't ready to try their faith. I was thinking about it and I realized that all of the baptisms we had in Fountain Valley were because we committed on the first lesson. I didn't realize that before. I have felt like I haven't had much success with it but then on the other hand I have been very blessed. I love this gospel. So Sister Lauchner and I did something fun. Sister Lauchner has crazy curly hair and we told someone that if they came to church 2 weeks in a row than she would straighten her hair. Well we did it saturday night and then they didn't come to church. I decided that I would make my hair curly. It was pretty fun to switch hairdos. We got a lot of compliments. We are so easily entertained as missionaries. We have a mission tour on Monday which I am super excited about! Elder Craig C. Christiansen is coming with his wife and will be speaking to us. I just love any spiritual knowledge and experience that I can get! I was asked to sing in a quartet which I am excited about but also a little nervous. This is the first time that I have done any musical numbers on my mission. It feels a little nerve racking but it will be just fine. I am lucky to have someone that will help overcome all my fears. Well all is well here in California! I love my mission and love all that I learn even when it is hard. God lives and is very aware of our situations. I know that we are guided by someone who loves us and wants us to be successful. If we talk to Him and listen He will guide us to true happiness and success. Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 57
September 8, 2009
Hello Family! How are you all doing? I hope that you had a wonderful holiday weekend! We have had a wonderful week. When I talked with President he told me that he feels so strongly that this is where I need to be. I told him that I feel it too. I have never felt so strongly that I am where I need to be so quickly. It ususally takes a week or so to transition but I felt it the very day I transferred. Anyway I love Los Alamitos! We had a baptism on Sunday! It was wonderful! The spirit was so strong. We had some opposition as always. We almost rescheduled but I just kept praying. It all worked out and Brandy was baptized on Sunday. There were many tears and it just felt so good. I love the spirit! Brandy was a member referral and the family participated a lot. The oldest boy baptized her and the dad confirmed her. The mom told us with tear filled eyes that we had been prayed here and sent here so that this miracle could happen. We weren't the first set of missionaries. Our Heavenly Father has so much love for each and every one of us. Sometimes it overwhelms me to know just how much love our Heavenly Father has for everyone. He is so involved in each of our lives and is always placing people in our path to bless us and help us be better people. It is truly amazing. We had a good labor day. We were able to visit a member family who gave us a huge list of referrals. This ward is awesome with referrals! Everyone is so excited about sharing the gospel. It definitely helps us immensely! We went to lunch over at member's home. They were having a huge pool party and a BBQ. We can't swim but we can eat. It was fun to visit with different members and there were even some non members. It was a lot better lunch than I could fix myself. We went over to Kelly's to do some service. She didn't want us to help but I suggested that we clean her car for her. We took her keys and went outside. It always feels good to have a clean car. We didn't have time to wash the outside but we deep cleaned the inside. She has 4 year old twins. She said, "I don't think that it has been this clean since I bought it." I love doing service! We had dinner with some great families this week. I love member meals. It is especially helpful when you are trying to get to know the members. One family was having family come in from out of town so they said come on over. They had the BYU game on. I put myself to work helping prepare the meal so that I wouldn't watch the game. I heard yesterday that they had won. Their family that was coming in had a recently returned missionary. She had been home about a week and was returning from Italy. She was such a sweetheart. The entire family was very nice and welcoming. They even came to our baptism on Sunday and tried to bring some investigators of ours with them. We also ate with a young couple. They are so awesome! They both are returned missionaries and understand what it is like to be a missionary. We could talk for hours but we can't. They gave us some referrals as well. We had an awesome lesson with a family we are teaching last night. The 3 girls were at church on Sunday. We were nervous about setting a date for baptism but I knew that we had to do it. I talked with President twice last week and in both our conversations we talked in depth about committing to baptism. My companion was hesitant but I didn't say anything. I knew that we needed to do it before we left that house. We were teaching about baptism and we read a scripture in 2 Nephi 31:17. I asked what it meant. This was the response from the 11 year old. She said "So basically the way to go is get baptized and become Mormon." It was so funny. We were all laughing and it really lightened the mood. They understand what they need to do but they are just hesitant because they want to understand everything! We did and we set a date for 2 of the girls. The youngest one was tuckered out and fell asleep before we were done. I know that Heavenly Father helps us in this work and allows to do His will if we test our faith in Him. If we don't do anything He can't help us. Yesterday we were visiting some people in the ward and trying to visit less actives or people we hadn't met yet. We got to a house and Sister Lauchner had remembered knocking it. A not very nice man and answered and in a nutshell said we don't want you here. She was hesitant to try back but I said let's go. We went and the person we were trying to talk to answered the door and we invited her to enrichment. It was so scary. 6 months ago I would have got back in the car. There was more than one experience like that this week. I guess I really have gotten over some of my fears. God has helped me to realize that this is really important and that I can handle it. A Bishop in the area once said in regards to visiting less active/in active members" What are you doing to do? Make them inactive?" It is really true. Maybe they won't listen but maybe they will. We won't know until we do our part as members and continue to love them no matter what. We had 8 investigators at church on Sunday! The Lord is truly blessing us! Bishop Shaw asked me to bear my testimony on Sunday. I tried to follow the spirit in what I should say to touch the hearts of our investigators. I felt it strongly and hope that they felt it as well. I hope you are all doing well! I love each and everyone of you so much! I know this church is true with all my heart! We are truly blessed that we can live with our families forever. You are all in my prayers! Have a wonderful week!Love Sister Mickelsen
Hello Family! How are you all doing? I hope that you had a wonderful holiday weekend! We have had a wonderful week. When I talked with President he told me that he feels so strongly that this is where I need to be. I told him that I feel it too. I have never felt so strongly that I am where I need to be so quickly. It ususally takes a week or so to transition but I felt it the very day I transferred. Anyway I love Los Alamitos! We had a baptism on Sunday! It was wonderful! The spirit was so strong. We had some opposition as always. We almost rescheduled but I just kept praying. It all worked out and Brandy was baptized on Sunday. There were many tears and it just felt so good. I love the spirit! Brandy was a member referral and the family participated a lot. The oldest boy baptized her and the dad confirmed her. The mom told us with tear filled eyes that we had been prayed here and sent here so that this miracle could happen. We weren't the first set of missionaries. Our Heavenly Father has so much love for each and every one of us. Sometimes it overwhelms me to know just how much love our Heavenly Father has for everyone. He is so involved in each of our lives and is always placing people in our path to bless us and help us be better people. It is truly amazing. We had a good labor day. We were able to visit a member family who gave us a huge list of referrals. This ward is awesome with referrals! Everyone is so excited about sharing the gospel. It definitely helps us immensely! We went to lunch over at member's home. They were having a huge pool party and a BBQ. We can't swim but we can eat. It was fun to visit with different members and there were even some non members. It was a lot better lunch than I could fix myself. We went over to Kelly's to do some service. She didn't want us to help but I suggested that we clean her car for her. We took her keys and went outside. It always feels good to have a clean car. We didn't have time to wash the outside but we deep cleaned the inside. She has 4 year old twins. She said, "I don't think that it has been this clean since I bought it." I love doing service! We had dinner with some great families this week. I love member meals. It is especially helpful when you are trying to get to know the members. One family was having family come in from out of town so they said come on over. They had the BYU game on. I put myself to work helping prepare the meal so that I wouldn't watch the game. I heard yesterday that they had won. Their family that was coming in had a recently returned missionary. She had been home about a week and was returning from Italy. She was such a sweetheart. The entire family was very nice and welcoming. They even came to our baptism on Sunday and tried to bring some investigators of ours with them. We also ate with a young couple. They are so awesome! They both are returned missionaries and understand what it is like to be a missionary. We could talk for hours but we can't. They gave us some referrals as well. We had an awesome lesson with a family we are teaching last night. The 3 girls were at church on Sunday. We were nervous about setting a date for baptism but I knew that we had to do it. I talked with President twice last week and in both our conversations we talked in depth about committing to baptism. My companion was hesitant but I didn't say anything. I knew that we needed to do it before we left that house. We were teaching about baptism and we read a scripture in 2 Nephi 31:17. I asked what it meant. This was the response from the 11 year old. She said "So basically the way to go is get baptized and become Mormon." It was so funny. We were all laughing and it really lightened the mood. They understand what they need to do but they are just hesitant because they want to understand everything! We did and we set a date for 2 of the girls. The youngest one was tuckered out and fell asleep before we were done. I know that Heavenly Father helps us in this work and allows to do His will if we test our faith in Him. If we don't do anything He can't help us. Yesterday we were visiting some people in the ward and trying to visit less actives or people we hadn't met yet. We got to a house and Sister Lauchner had remembered knocking it. A not very nice man and answered and in a nutshell said we don't want you here. She was hesitant to try back but I said let's go. We went and the person we were trying to talk to answered the door and we invited her to enrichment. It was so scary. 6 months ago I would have got back in the car. There was more than one experience like that this week. I guess I really have gotten over some of my fears. God has helped me to realize that this is really important and that I can handle it. A Bishop in the area once said in regards to visiting less active/in active members" What are you doing to do? Make them inactive?" It is really true. Maybe they won't listen but maybe they will. We won't know until we do our part as members and continue to love them no matter what. We had 8 investigators at church on Sunday! The Lord is truly blessing us! Bishop Shaw asked me to bear my testimony on Sunday. I tried to follow the spirit in what I should say to touch the hearts of our investigators. I felt it strongly and hope that they felt it as well. I hope you are all doing well! I love each and everyone of you so much! I know this church is true with all my heart! We are truly blessed that we can live with our families forever. You are all in my prayers! Have a wonderful week!Love Sister Mickelsen
week 56
September 2, 2009
I hope you are all doing well. It has been a great week for me. There are some challenges that I can already see but I have complete faith that Heavenly Father will help me through it. Sister Lauchner is so great! She is very outgoing and isn't scared of anything but bugs. It's pretty entertaining to be quite honest. She is from Virginia and is the 2nd of 4 girls. She is great at spanish and we are both excited that we can practice speaking together. I know that one of the reasons that we were put together was to help each other in our spanish. When I was with someone that could speak spanish I was too scared to talk out of fear. Now I know I can do more than I give myself credit for. It's not perfect but it is sure better than my gringa accent a year ago. We are teaching some great families. We have a baptism on Sunday! I am super excited! Brandy is so great! She is a young woman and has a great desire to live the gospel. She has a strong testimony and knows that the gospel will help her and her family. We are also teaching another family of 5. There are 3 daughters and they all ask great questions. I am always amazed at how deep their thoughts are. Even the youngest asks big questions. Some of them are things that I have never asked myself. We have taught them twice this week and they will be at church on Sunday. They have had the missionaries before but they say that this time it feels different. I feel good about it. We are also teaching some part member families. There is a lot of potential here in this ward and I am very excited. There is a very good spirit here and I love it! I am not too lost and I am remembering where people live. We have 4 different cities and 2 different counties here in Los Alamitos. It is fun. We are also teaching a recent convert. Kelly was baptized a few weeks before Sister Hart left. She is amazing! She has twin 4 year olds. Little Mikey has curly red hair. I haven't met them yet but I have heard a lot about them. I am just amazed by the spirit in recent converts. They truly have a glow and they just love the gospel. I am in awe that my loving Heavenly Father has allowed me to witness the changes that occur in the hearts of His children. There are times when I am sitting in home teaching someone and I am just amazed that I am a part of it. Are you ready for a funny story? Dad you will be so proud! So Saturday night we pulled into the driveway and started to do our mileage. Lucky for me the new car has tire pressure sensors. I had a warning light and it said one of the tires was really low. I thought it was a little weird because the car is only a couple of months old. And no I didn't run into any curbs. I looked and it didn't look super low but I told Sister Lauchner that we needed to go and put air in it because the next day was Sunday. So we filled it up and then went back home. The next morning we woke up and it was low again. We had somewhere we needed to be so we just left. When we got to our destination we discovered that we had a huge nail/screw in the tread. So we got a ride to church and then had to find a ride back to our car. Kelly took us to our car after church and we changed the tire. We were by a member but he wasn't there because he is in the stake presidency. So Sister Lauchner and I changed the tire ourselves and didn't have any problems. We were so proud! Sister Hiatt said that we were awesome and that any other sister missionary wouldn't have done it. So anyway it was a little unexpected but we did it and now I can say that I have changed a tire with no problems. The hardest part was figuring out the jack and how to get it to work. We went and got it fixed and all is well. President came over to our house yesterday for interviews. It was weird to see him in a home besides his own. We have a mission tour in a couple of weeks so he did our interviews at home instead of at zone conference. We are having our mission tour with Craig C. Christiansen and it will be combined with some of the other zones. I will get to see Sister Haycock! I am super excited! Last week when we did transfers I didn't get to say goodbye and I was so sad! We had to leave and they were in a meeting. It broke my heart. She called to ask a question and I got tears in my eyes. President told me that there would be a lot of change going on with the sisters. I am super excited that there are so many new sisters coming! It will be so great for the mission! I love my mission with all my heart! I can never thank my Heavenly Father enough for the great blessings He has given me. I don't even remember what my life was like before my mission and I know that it will be a part of me for the rest of my life! I love you all and hope that you have an amazing week! Have fun at the wedding! Krissy Jo I am so excited for you! Love Sister Mickelsen
I hope you are all doing well. It has been a great week for me. There are some challenges that I can already see but I have complete faith that Heavenly Father will help me through it. Sister Lauchner is so great! She is very outgoing and isn't scared of anything but bugs. It's pretty entertaining to be quite honest. She is from Virginia and is the 2nd of 4 girls. She is great at spanish and we are both excited that we can practice speaking together. I know that one of the reasons that we were put together was to help each other in our spanish. When I was with someone that could speak spanish I was too scared to talk out of fear. Now I know I can do more than I give myself credit for. It's not perfect but it is sure better than my gringa accent a year ago. We are teaching some great families. We have a baptism on Sunday! I am super excited! Brandy is so great! She is a young woman and has a great desire to live the gospel. She has a strong testimony and knows that the gospel will help her and her family. We are also teaching another family of 5. There are 3 daughters and they all ask great questions. I am always amazed at how deep their thoughts are. Even the youngest asks big questions. Some of them are things that I have never asked myself. We have taught them twice this week and they will be at church on Sunday. They have had the missionaries before but they say that this time it feels different. I feel good about it. We are also teaching some part member families. There is a lot of potential here in this ward and I am very excited. There is a very good spirit here and I love it! I am not too lost and I am remembering where people live. We have 4 different cities and 2 different counties here in Los Alamitos. It is fun. We are also teaching a recent convert. Kelly was baptized a few weeks before Sister Hart left. She is amazing! She has twin 4 year olds. Little Mikey has curly red hair. I haven't met them yet but I have heard a lot about them. I am just amazed by the spirit in recent converts. They truly have a glow and they just love the gospel. I am in awe that my loving Heavenly Father has allowed me to witness the changes that occur in the hearts of His children. There are times when I am sitting in home teaching someone and I am just amazed that I am a part of it. Are you ready for a funny story? Dad you will be so proud! So Saturday night we pulled into the driveway and started to do our mileage. Lucky for me the new car has tire pressure sensors. I had a warning light and it said one of the tires was really low. I thought it was a little weird because the car is only a couple of months old. And no I didn't run into any curbs. I looked and it didn't look super low but I told Sister Lauchner that we needed to go and put air in it because the next day was Sunday. So we filled it up and then went back home. The next morning we woke up and it was low again. We had somewhere we needed to be so we just left. When we got to our destination we discovered that we had a huge nail/screw in the tread. So we got a ride to church and then had to find a ride back to our car. Kelly took us to our car after church and we changed the tire. We were by a member but he wasn't there because he is in the stake presidency. So Sister Lauchner and I changed the tire ourselves and didn't have any problems. We were so proud! Sister Hiatt said that we were awesome and that any other sister missionary wouldn't have done it. So anyway it was a little unexpected but we did it and now I can say that I have changed a tire with no problems. The hardest part was figuring out the jack and how to get it to work. We went and got it fixed and all is well. President came over to our house yesterday for interviews. It was weird to see him in a home besides his own. We have a mission tour in a couple of weeks so he did our interviews at home instead of at zone conference. We are having our mission tour with Craig C. Christiansen and it will be combined with some of the other zones. I will get to see Sister Haycock! I am super excited! Last week when we did transfers I didn't get to say goodbye and I was so sad! We had to leave and they were in a meeting. It broke my heart. She called to ask a question and I got tears in my eyes. President told me that there would be a lot of change going on with the sisters. I am super excited that there are so many new sisters coming! It will be so great for the mission! I love my mission with all my heart! I can never thank my Heavenly Father enough for the great blessings He has given me. I don't even remember what my life was like before my mission and I know that it will be a part of me for the rest of my life! I love you all and hope that you have an amazing week! Have fun at the wedding! Krissy Jo I am so excited for you! Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 55
August 25, 2009
Well the biggest news of the week is that I am being transferred! I am so sad to leave Fountain Valley and my dear Sister Haycock. We had a short eight weeks together but I guess Heavenly Father thinks it is sufficient. Sister Haycock will be training this transfer. She is very nervous but I told her just be obedient and God will do the rest. I am going back to the Long Beach area and will be in the Los Alamitos ward. I will be in the same stake as the mission home. I am excited. It is always bitter sweet to leave an area. I know that this is where I am needed. Sister Hart went home this morning making me the oldest sister missionary. As I was driving to the airport I realized that the next time I go to the airport it will be for me. That was really weird. President told us some exciting news! He told us that we have 7 sisters coming! 2 in October, 2 in November and 3 in December! We will double in size by the end of the year! We are so excited! The drought has ended. We will all be busy training and opening new areas. Never a dull moment. This week has been pretty good. Sister Haycock and I have been busy. We received a call from the assistants on Wednesday so we knew all week that I would be leaving. It made all of our appointments bitter sweet. I am sad to leave but I will be coming back to visit. It is amazing how much love you can have for people in such a short time. We went to a training meeting on Friday morning. President had me come in so that Sister Haycock wouldn't be alone. It was weird to sit there and listen to her be trained on how to train. I was just praying that she wasn't checking off the things that I didn't do well. She told me that she wasn't but it was a weird realization. I was able to see Elder Anderson and Elder Salmon. Elder Salmon was my first district leader and he flew home today. When I first got here I didn't think he would ever go home. It was a long ways a way. We had a great lesson with Eva on Sunday. We went over to the Johnson's and had Sunday dinner with them. It was so fun! We had some great food and the spirit was so great. We sang primary songs and watched the restoration. I love the Johnson family. I am so sad to leave them. Bishop Johnson is pretty excited that my replacement is a Highland Ram. I really have been touched as I have said goodbye for now to these families. I really have been blessed. I have some wonderful friends here and memories that will never be forgotten. The gospel is amazing! I love it with all my heart. I was reading a talk today by President Uchtdorf and he talked about how the more we understand the gospel and the more we live it the happier we will be. I can testify that this has been one of the happiest years of my life. I know it is because I have been living the gospel the fullest that I ever have. I love you all and will talk to you next week! Love Sister Mickelsen
Well the biggest news of the week is that I am being transferred! I am so sad to leave Fountain Valley and my dear Sister Haycock. We had a short eight weeks together but I guess Heavenly Father thinks it is sufficient. Sister Haycock will be training this transfer. She is very nervous but I told her just be obedient and God will do the rest. I am going back to the Long Beach area and will be in the Los Alamitos ward. I will be in the same stake as the mission home. I am excited. It is always bitter sweet to leave an area. I know that this is where I am needed. Sister Hart went home this morning making me the oldest sister missionary. As I was driving to the airport I realized that the next time I go to the airport it will be for me. That was really weird. President told us some exciting news! He told us that we have 7 sisters coming! 2 in October, 2 in November and 3 in December! We will double in size by the end of the year! We are so excited! The drought has ended. We will all be busy training and opening new areas. Never a dull moment. This week has been pretty good. Sister Haycock and I have been busy. We received a call from the assistants on Wednesday so we knew all week that I would be leaving. It made all of our appointments bitter sweet. I am sad to leave but I will be coming back to visit. It is amazing how much love you can have for people in such a short time. We went to a training meeting on Friday morning. President had me come in so that Sister Haycock wouldn't be alone. It was weird to sit there and listen to her be trained on how to train. I was just praying that she wasn't checking off the things that I didn't do well. She told me that she wasn't but it was a weird realization. I was able to see Elder Anderson and Elder Salmon. Elder Salmon was my first district leader and he flew home today. When I first got here I didn't think he would ever go home. It was a long ways a way. We had a great lesson with Eva on Sunday. We went over to the Johnson's and had Sunday dinner with them. It was so fun! We had some great food and the spirit was so great. We sang primary songs and watched the restoration. I love the Johnson family. I am so sad to leave them. Bishop Johnson is pretty excited that my replacement is a Highland Ram. I really have been touched as I have said goodbye for now to these families. I really have been blessed. I have some wonderful friends here and memories that will never be forgotten. The gospel is amazing! I love it with all my heart. I was reading a talk today by President Uchtdorf and he talked about how the more we understand the gospel and the more we live it the happier we will be. I can testify that this has been one of the happiest years of my life. I know it is because I have been living the gospel the fullest that I ever have. I love you all and will talk to you next week! Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 54
August 18, 2009
Sorry that last week was so short. I couldn't remember anything when I was writing. This week has been pretty good. We have been working hard. Sister Haycock was sick on Tuesday. Bless her heart. She is much better now. She got a good night sleep. She was determined to go out so we did but she only made it one house before I brought her home. There is nothing worse than being sick as a missionary. Wednesday we had dinner with Tony and his girls. I just love that family. Tony made us lasagna. It was 3rd time we had lasagna in one week. Luckily I love lasagna. I would rather have too much of something I love instead of something I can't stomach. Thankfully that has happened to me yet on the mission. Knock on wood. On Thursday we had a great district meeting. We talked about the key indicators and how we can be better at meeting our goals. I have really tried to master this the last little bit. I hope to continue to get better. It is more than just writing numbers. We had an interesting appointment. It stressed me out and I didn't like it at all. I felt like I was being told what I believe and I couldn't a word in to testify. She wants to continue to learn and has a bunch of questions but wants to talk deep stuff. I tried to blunty but lovingly tell her that we needed to stick to the basics and that she needed to let us teach. It is frustrating. We will see what happens. This one definitely takes patience. We had a good lesson with Lenny and Summer. They were out of town last week so it seems like forever since we have seen them. I think that Lenny is being polite. I don't think he is ready. We don't have anything else to teach him. He isn't keeping commitments so there isn't much that we can do. Agency is a toughy. Friday was an amazing day! It was after our district meeting and I was all fired up from our planning session. We decided to set our goals one number higher and exercise more faith. We haven't changed our goals in a long time because we haven't been meeting them. We are both excited about this week. On Friday we set our goals high for teaching because we had some ground to make up. So we set specific goals that we wanted to meet in 3 blocks of time. We prayed and then went to work. We found a new family to teach! We were so excited! They were young boys, 12 and 10. We are going to teach them with their other brother and their parents on Wednesday. I have a really good feeling about it. We found Kristine again as well. She wasn't there at the beginning but then we knocked for a while and she was home. We haven't talked to her in almost a month. We committed her to be baptized and then never talked to her again. She isn't ready right now but she is reading the Book of Mormon. She is going through a lot and she said she will call when she is ready. We told her we would continue to stop by and check on her. We had made a goal for a member lesson but didn't have any plans for one. Well because we were being diligent and praying we were fortunate to have a lesson with a member. We had gone to a members home to use the restroom and in the meantime found out that Eva wasn't at the hospital as scheduled. Sister Johnson came with us. The rest of the night was successful as well. We ate with the Rowe's. They are the best ever! I just love them! The day was so great! I was really dreading it because we had a lot of knocking to do but the time went by quickly and we were successful. I love being a missionary! I love all of you and hope you have a great week!Love Sister Mickelsen
Sorry that last week was so short. I couldn't remember anything when I was writing. This week has been pretty good. We have been working hard. Sister Haycock was sick on Tuesday. Bless her heart. She is much better now. She got a good night sleep. She was determined to go out so we did but she only made it one house before I brought her home. There is nothing worse than being sick as a missionary. Wednesday we had dinner with Tony and his girls. I just love that family. Tony made us lasagna. It was 3rd time we had lasagna in one week. Luckily I love lasagna. I would rather have too much of something I love instead of something I can't stomach. Thankfully that has happened to me yet on the mission. Knock on wood. On Thursday we had a great district meeting. We talked about the key indicators and how we can be better at meeting our goals. I have really tried to master this the last little bit. I hope to continue to get better. It is more than just writing numbers. We had an interesting appointment. It stressed me out and I didn't like it at all. I felt like I was being told what I believe and I couldn't a word in to testify. She wants to continue to learn and has a bunch of questions but wants to talk deep stuff. I tried to blunty but lovingly tell her that we needed to stick to the basics and that she needed to let us teach. It is frustrating. We will see what happens. This one definitely takes patience. We had a good lesson with Lenny and Summer. They were out of town last week so it seems like forever since we have seen them. I think that Lenny is being polite. I don't think he is ready. We don't have anything else to teach him. He isn't keeping commitments so there isn't much that we can do. Agency is a toughy. Friday was an amazing day! It was after our district meeting and I was all fired up from our planning session. We decided to set our goals one number higher and exercise more faith. We haven't changed our goals in a long time because we haven't been meeting them. We are both excited about this week. On Friday we set our goals high for teaching because we had some ground to make up. So we set specific goals that we wanted to meet in 3 blocks of time. We prayed and then went to work. We found a new family to teach! We were so excited! They were young boys, 12 and 10. We are going to teach them with their other brother and their parents on Wednesday. I have a really good feeling about it. We found Kristine again as well. She wasn't there at the beginning but then we knocked for a while and she was home. We haven't talked to her in almost a month. We committed her to be baptized and then never talked to her again. She isn't ready right now but she is reading the Book of Mormon. She is going through a lot and she said she will call when she is ready. We told her we would continue to stop by and check on her. We had made a goal for a member lesson but didn't have any plans for one. Well because we were being diligent and praying we were fortunate to have a lesson with a member. We had gone to a members home to use the restroom and in the meantime found out that Eva wasn't at the hospital as scheduled. Sister Johnson came with us. The rest of the night was successful as well. We ate with the Rowe's. They are the best ever! I just love them! The day was so great! I was really dreading it because we had a lot of knocking to do but the time went by quickly and we were successful. I love being a missionary! I love all of you and hope you have a great week!Love Sister Mickelsen
Monday, August 17, 2009
Week 53
August 11,2009
Hello dear family and friends! I hope you are all doing well. I am doing great! At the beginning of last week I didn't know how we were going to make it through the week. As the week progressed the few appointments we had fell through. Needless to say we did a lot of praying and looking. We were able to find a family. We didn't find any new investigators the previous week and we have been trying to find people but haven't been very successful. I was praying hard that we would be able to find someone and that we would know what to say. We had gone through the area books to find some potential people to try. We stopped by one of them and I prayed before we went to the door that if he didn't answer and someone else did that they would be receptive and that I would have the courage to ask them to learn as well. Juan answered the door; he wasn't the man we were looking for. He didn't have time then to listen but said we could come back and teach his family. The Lord really does answer prayers. Our district meeting this last week was on our accountability to the Lord through our prayers. I have seen a difference as I have truly given an accounting of my day and help for meeting our goals. Prayer can always be improved. We should evaluate often because we can get in a routine very easily. We had an amazing sacrament meeting on Sunday. The speakers talked about the importance of family home evening. I just had tears in my eyes. The blessings that come from holding family home evening are amazing. We are promised protection from the world and strength as a family. I made it a goal and promised Heavenly Father that I would always have family home evening. Sister Haycock and I are doing great! I had a dream the other night that she was going to train next transfer. I hope it doesn't come true. I still want to be with her. We will see what happens. Well time is short and I gotta run but I love all of you so much! Thanks for your prayers and love and support! Have a great week and I will write soon! Love, Sister Mickelsen
Hello dear family and friends! I hope you are all doing well. I am doing great! At the beginning of last week I didn't know how we were going to make it through the week. As the week progressed the few appointments we had fell through. Needless to say we did a lot of praying and looking. We were able to find a family. We didn't find any new investigators the previous week and we have been trying to find people but haven't been very successful. I was praying hard that we would be able to find someone and that we would know what to say. We had gone through the area books to find some potential people to try. We stopped by one of them and I prayed before we went to the door that if he didn't answer and someone else did that they would be receptive and that I would have the courage to ask them to learn as well. Juan answered the door; he wasn't the man we were looking for. He didn't have time then to listen but said we could come back and teach his family. The Lord really does answer prayers. Our district meeting this last week was on our accountability to the Lord through our prayers. I have seen a difference as I have truly given an accounting of my day and help for meeting our goals. Prayer can always be improved. We should evaluate often because we can get in a routine very easily. We had an amazing sacrament meeting on Sunday. The speakers talked about the importance of family home evening. I just had tears in my eyes. The blessings that come from holding family home evening are amazing. We are promised protection from the world and strength as a family. I made it a goal and promised Heavenly Father that I would always have family home evening. Sister Haycock and I are doing great! I had a dream the other night that she was going to train next transfer. I hope it doesn't come true. I still want to be with her. We will see what happens. Well time is short and I gotta run but I love all of you so much! Thanks for your prayers and love and support! Have a great week and I will write soon! Love, Sister Mickelsen
Week 52
August 4, 2009
Hello! Well it has been a marvelous week! We have been teaching a lot! We had several lessons with Natalie to prepare her for her baptism. She is absolutely amazing! She told us Saturday that her family was supportive but even if they weren't she would have been baptized. She said that when she knows that something is that true she would do anything. She is going to be a great addition to the church. She has amazing faith and has had remarkable experiences that have been preparing her for her baptism. She was baptized by Barry on Saturday. IT was so wonderful! I was a little worried because she was late. She called us and told us that she was on her way. Four o'clock came and she still wasn't there. The baptism was scheduled for 4. Turns out that she was so excited that she didn't pay attention as she was driving and drove right past the church and didn't realize it for awhile. It was pretty funny. I was just grateful that Satan didn't win. We had some trouble with her interview too. She got stuck in LA but it all worked out. I love going to baptisms because the spirit is so strong. It helps me remember the joy of being a member and the sweetness that the spirit brings to each of our lives. We haven't had any success in finding new investigators. I am running out of ideas. I just pray and pray and pray. I know that they are out there. We are still teaching a lot. It feels good to teach in every situation. It has been a little warm here. I have started to just pull my hair back. There is no sense in straightening it because it ends up in a ponytail anyway. There are more important things. I love being a missionary. I know I say that all the time but it is the truth. Sister Haycock and I are doing great. We just keep working and doing our best. We are finishing each others thoughts and sentences. I love that! The church is true! God is in control. He is very aware of our individual situations and is always looking for a way to bless us. I love all of you and I am so grateful for the plan of salvation and that we can live together forever! Have a wonderful week! Sister Mickelsen
Hello! Well it has been a marvelous week! We have been teaching a lot! We had several lessons with Natalie to prepare her for her baptism. She is absolutely amazing! She told us Saturday that her family was supportive but even if they weren't she would have been baptized. She said that when she knows that something is that true she would do anything. She is going to be a great addition to the church. She has amazing faith and has had remarkable experiences that have been preparing her for her baptism. She was baptized by Barry on Saturday. IT was so wonderful! I was a little worried because she was late. She called us and told us that she was on her way. Four o'clock came and she still wasn't there. The baptism was scheduled for 4. Turns out that she was so excited that she didn't pay attention as she was driving and drove right past the church and didn't realize it for awhile. It was pretty funny. I was just grateful that Satan didn't win. We had some trouble with her interview too. She got stuck in LA but it all worked out. I love going to baptisms because the spirit is so strong. It helps me remember the joy of being a member and the sweetness that the spirit brings to each of our lives. We haven't had any success in finding new investigators. I am running out of ideas. I just pray and pray and pray. I know that they are out there. We are still teaching a lot. It feels good to teach in every situation. It has been a little warm here. I have started to just pull my hair back. There is no sense in straightening it because it ends up in a ponytail anyway. There are more important things. I love being a missionary. I know I say that all the time but it is the truth. Sister Haycock and I are doing great. We just keep working and doing our best. We are finishing each others thoughts and sentences. I love that! The church is true! God is in control. He is very aware of our individual situations and is always looking for a way to bless us. I love all of you and I am so grateful for the plan of salvation and that we can live together forever! Have a wonderful week! Sister Mickelsen
Week 51
July 28, 2009
Hello everyone!I hope this letter finds everyone happy and well. This week has been incredible! I have started reading my journal over and it is fun to see what it was like the first few days of my mission. That first week was pretty rough but I made it and here I am today. I have truly felt a difference within myself and know that it is the gospel that has changed my life. Well let me tell you about this week. We had a marvelous zone conference on Wednesday. I love zone conference! We talked about sanctification and conversion. It was amazing! I will tell you one thing that impressed me. President talked about how our Heavenly Father called us to our missions not only for the people but for us. He said that we were sent to this mission because this was the best chance we had to become truly sanctified and converted. It really hit me. I know that I needed to be here with President Sexton. He is a remarkable man with such a big heart. I know I needed him in my life to help me make it back to my Heavenly Father. He told us that he doesn't care how many baptisms we have as much as he cares about our personal salvation. He placed us next to his family. It was very touching. I love my mission and my mission president! The stake president in the Huntington Beach North stake talked to us. He told us that we need to seek the spirit and then go. We only receive inspiration and revelation when we are on the go. It's true. We can't pray for the spirit and then expect him to do all the work. We have to do our part and exercise faith before miracles happen. We received permission from President to teach Natalie. Natalie and Barry are planning on getting married and moving into the 1st ward. We are so excited! She is amazing! We have taught her every other day so that she can have enough time to study in between. She reads the Book of Mormon everyday and even takes it in the car and everywhere she goes! She wishes it was Saturday. She is absolutely remarkable! We have gone to several members homes so that we can teach them. Sometimes I'm not quite sure who and where but then a family will pop into my head. I ask them and they are available and excited and then they are a perfect match for the lesson and Natalie. We have a wonderful ward! I love being a missionary! Sister Haycock and I are doing great! We come home exhausted. I don't think I have ever been so tired in my life. The Matthews made it home on Saturday. It was sure good to see them! I didn't realize how much I missed them until I saw them. They are so good. The elders came over the other night to teach the Matthews and didn't realize that we lived there. It was pretty funny. I hope that you all have a wonderful time at the reunion! You will all be in my prayers! I can't believe it has already been a year! I have the best family and friends in the whole world! Thanks for all of your love and support and prayers! You are the best! Love Sister Mickelsen
Hello everyone!I hope this letter finds everyone happy and well. This week has been incredible! I have started reading my journal over and it is fun to see what it was like the first few days of my mission. That first week was pretty rough but I made it and here I am today. I have truly felt a difference within myself and know that it is the gospel that has changed my life. Well let me tell you about this week. We had a marvelous zone conference on Wednesday. I love zone conference! We talked about sanctification and conversion. It was amazing! I will tell you one thing that impressed me. President talked about how our Heavenly Father called us to our missions not only for the people but for us. He said that we were sent to this mission because this was the best chance we had to become truly sanctified and converted. It really hit me. I know that I needed to be here with President Sexton. He is a remarkable man with such a big heart. I know I needed him in my life to help me make it back to my Heavenly Father. He told us that he doesn't care how many baptisms we have as much as he cares about our personal salvation. He placed us next to his family. It was very touching. I love my mission and my mission president! The stake president in the Huntington Beach North stake talked to us. He told us that we need to seek the spirit and then go. We only receive inspiration and revelation when we are on the go. It's true. We can't pray for the spirit and then expect him to do all the work. We have to do our part and exercise faith before miracles happen. We received permission from President to teach Natalie. Natalie and Barry are planning on getting married and moving into the 1st ward. We are so excited! She is amazing! We have taught her every other day so that she can have enough time to study in between. She reads the Book of Mormon everyday and even takes it in the car and everywhere she goes! She wishes it was Saturday. She is absolutely remarkable! We have gone to several members homes so that we can teach them. Sometimes I'm not quite sure who and where but then a family will pop into my head. I ask them and they are available and excited and then they are a perfect match for the lesson and Natalie. We have a wonderful ward! I love being a missionary! Sister Haycock and I are doing great! We come home exhausted. I don't think I have ever been so tired in my life. The Matthews made it home on Saturday. It was sure good to see them! I didn't realize how much I missed them until I saw them. They are so good. The elders came over the other night to teach the Matthews and didn't realize that we lived there. It was pretty funny. I hope that you all have a wonderful time at the reunion! You will all be in my prayers! I can't believe it has already been a year! I have the best family and friends in the whole world! Thanks for all of your love and support and prayers! You are the best! Love Sister Mickelsen
Week 50
July 21, 2009
Well it has been a very great week here in Fountain Valley. Thursday we had a district meeting about accountability to our president. We wrote our weekly letters to president which was perfect for me. I hadn't been able to get it done. As I was writing my mind was just spinning and I was feeling like I was not doing enough. I wasn't sure if it was the area or me or what but I just felt like I was failing. Anyway after that meeting I changed my attitude. I began praying harder than ever to be successful and to meet our goals. I was setting goals but I wasn't really doing all that I could to accomplish them. As I prayed that we would have member lessons and find news and find people to baptize things started to happen. Friday we were knocking and we were coming to the end and we still hadn't had any success. We had talked to several people, some nice and others not so nice. We went to a back house and I knocked and this lady answered. Initially she wasn't interested in what we had to say. We asked her if there was anyone she knew that we could talk to. She told us about her neighbor and then told us that she knew someone who had just been baptized. We asked her about it and then she asked us a question about what the difference was between all of the churches. We gave her a pamphlet and asked if we could come back the next day. She told us we could. So Saturday we went back and took a member with us. All night and all morning I was praying that Sister Kennedy could come with us. She is the member that popped into my head when we were planning. She answered and said she could come. I then prayed earnestly that Kristine would be home. And she was. We had a great lesson and she accepted the invitation to be baptized. We were hopeful that she would make it to church but she didn't. She wasn't at her appointment last night either. I felt a little uneasy about going over there without a member so I told Heavenly Father if it wasn't safe to make it fall through. It fell through. It was Monday night so we couldn't bring a member but I have faith that it will work out. Sunday was an amazing day though. Sister Haycock's jaw is still touching the floor after what happened. I am still in shock to tell you the truth. So we went to the first ward and looked for the people we were expecting. We had about 4 or 5 investigators and less active that we were looking for. None of them were there. However we were told by a member that a less active and his non member girlfriend had come. We went and introduced ourselves and they asked to speak to us after church. We talked to them, Natalie and Barry, after sacrament. We went into the overflow to visit for a few minutes. We asked what had brought them to church and then asked them about the service. Natalie loved it! She thought that it was so great that the youth gave talks and that the Bishop was so moved by the spirit. I pulled out the Book of Mormon in my bag( which I had almost taken out of my bag before church) and taught her about it. I read Moroni 10 and she was amazed. She took the book from me and started rereading and stopped listening to me. I have never seen anyone react to the Book of Mormon like that. She started to listen again and Sister Haycock taught about the Restoration. I invited her to a baptism and then she asked me how one became baptized. So I committed her earlier than I planned and she accepted before I even said the word baptism. It was insane! She is being baptized on the 1st. Barry had tears in his eyes and the spirit was amazing. Everyone got the chills. We talked and exchanged information. We took her to Relief Society and she just loved every minute of it. She has truly been prepared. She told us that she had prayed at the beginning of the summer to be led to the one true church. She has been attending different churches and it just never felt completely right. She told us that she felt like she had come home. We gave her a lot of stuff to read but she told us " I might over read if that's ok". Who does that? Someone who is ready and yearning to know the truth. The Bishop walked in when I was asking her to be baptized and he was shocked. He thought we would be exchanging information because we had just met. It was truly a remarkable experience. This is what it is all about! Finding someone who already knows in their heart where the truth is. After church we went to a baptism for the sisters in the Beach ward. I always love going back there. I miss it. It was good to see some old faces. There is a great spirit there. Andrew Wheeler asked me when I was coming back. I said when God needs me back here. We had a great lesson with Rodrigo. We asked him to keep the Sabbath day and he said that he would try. He gave the closing prayer and prayed that they could join one day eventually. I am amazed at the progress they are making. I didn't think we would get anywhere in the beginning but it's happening. Well I hope you all have a great week! I love you all and pray for your success. Bairs I hope all goes well this week as you prepare for this remarkable journey. You are in my prayers! Les quiero mucho! Love Hermana Mickelsen
Well it has been a very great week here in Fountain Valley. Thursday we had a district meeting about accountability to our president. We wrote our weekly letters to president which was perfect for me. I hadn't been able to get it done. As I was writing my mind was just spinning and I was feeling like I was not doing enough. I wasn't sure if it was the area or me or what but I just felt like I was failing. Anyway after that meeting I changed my attitude. I began praying harder than ever to be successful and to meet our goals. I was setting goals but I wasn't really doing all that I could to accomplish them. As I prayed that we would have member lessons and find news and find people to baptize things started to happen. Friday we were knocking and we were coming to the end and we still hadn't had any success. We had talked to several people, some nice and others not so nice. We went to a back house and I knocked and this lady answered. Initially she wasn't interested in what we had to say. We asked her if there was anyone she knew that we could talk to. She told us about her neighbor and then told us that she knew someone who had just been baptized. We asked her about it and then she asked us a question about what the difference was between all of the churches. We gave her a pamphlet and asked if we could come back the next day. She told us we could. So Saturday we went back and took a member with us. All night and all morning I was praying that Sister Kennedy could come with us. She is the member that popped into my head when we were planning. She answered and said she could come. I then prayed earnestly that Kristine would be home. And she was. We had a great lesson and she accepted the invitation to be baptized. We were hopeful that she would make it to church but she didn't. She wasn't at her appointment last night either. I felt a little uneasy about going over there without a member so I told Heavenly Father if it wasn't safe to make it fall through. It fell through. It was Monday night so we couldn't bring a member but I have faith that it will work out. Sunday was an amazing day though. Sister Haycock's jaw is still touching the floor after what happened. I am still in shock to tell you the truth. So we went to the first ward and looked for the people we were expecting. We had about 4 or 5 investigators and less active that we were looking for. None of them were there. However we were told by a member that a less active and his non member girlfriend had come. We went and introduced ourselves and they asked to speak to us after church. We talked to them, Natalie and Barry, after sacrament. We went into the overflow to visit for a few minutes. We asked what had brought them to church and then asked them about the service. Natalie loved it! She thought that it was so great that the youth gave talks and that the Bishop was so moved by the spirit. I pulled out the Book of Mormon in my bag( which I had almost taken out of my bag before church) and taught her about it. I read Moroni 10 and she was amazed. She took the book from me and started rereading and stopped listening to me. I have never seen anyone react to the Book of Mormon like that. She started to listen again and Sister Haycock taught about the Restoration. I invited her to a baptism and then she asked me how one became baptized. So I committed her earlier than I planned and she accepted before I even said the word baptism. It was insane! She is being baptized on the 1st. Barry had tears in his eyes and the spirit was amazing. Everyone got the chills. We talked and exchanged information. We took her to Relief Society and she just loved every minute of it. She has truly been prepared. She told us that she had prayed at the beginning of the summer to be led to the one true church. She has been attending different churches and it just never felt completely right. She told us that she felt like she had come home. We gave her a lot of stuff to read but she told us " I might over read if that's ok". Who does that? Someone who is ready and yearning to know the truth. The Bishop walked in when I was asking her to be baptized and he was shocked. He thought we would be exchanging information because we had just met. It was truly a remarkable experience. This is what it is all about! Finding someone who already knows in their heart where the truth is. After church we went to a baptism for the sisters in the Beach ward. I always love going back there. I miss it. It was good to see some old faces. There is a great spirit there. Andrew Wheeler asked me when I was coming back. I said when God needs me back here. We had a great lesson with Rodrigo. We asked him to keep the Sabbath day and he said that he would try. He gave the closing prayer and prayed that they could join one day eventually. I am amazed at the progress they are making. I didn't think we would get anywhere in the beginning but it's happening. Well I hope you all have a great week! I love you all and pray for your success. Bairs I hope all goes well this week as you prepare for this remarkable journey. You are in my prayers! Les quiero mucho! Love Hermana Mickelsen
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