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
Monday, August 17, 2009
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
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Week 49
July 14, 2009
Well the good news is I get to keep Sister Haycock for a transfer! I am so excited! I don't think I could have switched up again. We are staying here in Fountain Valley but we are no longer serving in the Second Ward. However we are living in the second ward. I was so sad to say goodbye on Sunday. We went to our meetings there and Bishop was praising us and telling us how great we were. It killed me. I gave our report and then said that we were leaving. He said that he didn't get a vote and I said neither did we. There were people in every ward that I didn't want to leave. I am grateful that we have 2 wards and that I only had to leave one. We are working hard here. We taught 31 lessons last week! It keeps getting higher every week. I love it. I come home exhausted. We have had a great week teaching Angela. She is a great lady. This is the first week that we have truly been able to teach her a full lesson. She is progressing and I hope that the elders will take good care of her. I pleaded with the 2nd ward to keep on working with her. We taught her in Spanish. We had planned to teach her a first lesson but ended up teaching a second because she had questions about it. Sister Haycock hadn't prepared for it so I taught the whole lesson and then she testified every once and awhile. It was great. The next time we went over Sister Haycock taught more. She did so good! It reminded me of my first lesson in spanish. It is a scary thing. The gift of tongues is amazing. I would be so lost without the spirit. There is no way that I could do any of this without the spirit. We were walking the other day around the park and we met a lady named Amanda. We got her address and set up an appointment to teach her a lesson. We gave her our number but she didn't have a number. As we left and continued on I realized that she lived in apartments and we didn't have an apartment number. The only number she gave us was 102. Well the day of the appointment came and I didn't know what to do. I just prayed all day that we would be able to find her. We went to the street and there was a building numbered 10200. I said we will just knock this apartment until we find her. We knocked every door. We found maybe 3 people at home. On the last door I pleaded that we would find her. Someone answered the door but it wasn't her. I told the lady who we were and that we were looking for a lady named Amanda. She said she lived downstairs and gave us the apartment. I was completely in awe. We went down and left her a note. We didn't have time to meet up with her again before we got transferred but I know that the Lord guided us to find her. All I had was a good guess, logic to lead me. The spirit is the one that truly guided us to her door. It was definitely an answer to fervent prayer and a strength to my testimony. I haven't ever really felt guided in knocking. Now I know for certain and not just from stories that God does lead us to those who need us. Sunday was a teary day for me. I realized that it was one year ago that I had my farewell. There just happened to be a farewell in the first ward. As they were speaking and talking about the different feelings they had experienced and experiencing it brought to the surface all that I felt in that moment. They sang Called to Serve and I just cried. Luckily it wasn't too obvious. I felt it more than anything. I can't believe how far I have come in this short year. It was humbling to recognize that it is closing quickly. If I had planned my own way I would have missed out on this remarkable experience. Well we had another surprise in transfers. We thought that Sister Choi and Sister Hart would be training. Sister Choi is but her greenie Sister Riches is the other trainer. Sister Choi is going to Whittier and Sister Riches is staying but picking up another ward as well. I am sad I won't see Sister Choi all of the time. I have really enjoyed being around her. Now we will just have to write. Maybe one day we will get to be companions. So I was talking to Elder Murphy and getting some last minute transfer questions answered. He is no longer our district leader which I am super sad about. I commented that I have had a lot district leaders and he said" You have had a lot of everything". I said ya I guess that is true. Someone has to do it. It was pretty funny. I wouldn't have it any other way. Every change that has happened has had purpose and I have learned every time. I am grateful that God is in charge. He knows how to make my mission the best mission. I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you all so much! Thanks for all that you do! Love you!Love Hermana Mickelsen
Well the good news is I get to keep Sister Haycock for a transfer! I am so excited! I don't think I could have switched up again. We are staying here in Fountain Valley but we are no longer serving in the Second Ward. However we are living in the second ward. I was so sad to say goodbye on Sunday. We went to our meetings there and Bishop was praising us and telling us how great we were. It killed me. I gave our report and then said that we were leaving. He said that he didn't get a vote and I said neither did we. There were people in every ward that I didn't want to leave. I am grateful that we have 2 wards and that I only had to leave one. We are working hard here. We taught 31 lessons last week! It keeps getting higher every week. I love it. I come home exhausted. We have had a great week teaching Angela. She is a great lady. This is the first week that we have truly been able to teach her a full lesson. She is progressing and I hope that the elders will take good care of her. I pleaded with the 2nd ward to keep on working with her. We taught her in Spanish. We had planned to teach her a first lesson but ended up teaching a second because she had questions about it. Sister Haycock hadn't prepared for it so I taught the whole lesson and then she testified every once and awhile. It was great. The next time we went over Sister Haycock taught more. She did so good! It reminded me of my first lesson in spanish. It is a scary thing. The gift of tongues is amazing. I would be so lost without the spirit. There is no way that I could do any of this without the spirit. We were walking the other day around the park and we met a lady named Amanda. We got her address and set up an appointment to teach her a lesson. We gave her our number but she didn't have a number. As we left and continued on I realized that she lived in apartments and we didn't have an apartment number. The only number she gave us was 102. Well the day of the appointment came and I didn't know what to do. I just prayed all day that we would be able to find her. We went to the street and there was a building numbered 10200. I said we will just knock this apartment until we find her. We knocked every door. We found maybe 3 people at home. On the last door I pleaded that we would find her. Someone answered the door but it wasn't her. I told the lady who we were and that we were looking for a lady named Amanda. She said she lived downstairs and gave us the apartment. I was completely in awe. We went down and left her a note. We didn't have time to meet up with her again before we got transferred but I know that the Lord guided us to find her. All I had was a good guess, logic to lead me. The spirit is the one that truly guided us to her door. It was definitely an answer to fervent prayer and a strength to my testimony. I haven't ever really felt guided in knocking. Now I know for certain and not just from stories that God does lead us to those who need us. Sunday was a teary day for me. I realized that it was one year ago that I had my farewell. There just happened to be a farewell in the first ward. As they were speaking and talking about the different feelings they had experienced and experiencing it brought to the surface all that I felt in that moment. They sang Called to Serve and I just cried. Luckily it wasn't too obvious. I felt it more than anything. I can't believe how far I have come in this short year. It was humbling to recognize that it is closing quickly. If I had planned my own way I would have missed out on this remarkable experience. Well we had another surprise in transfers. We thought that Sister Choi and Sister Hart would be training. Sister Choi is but her greenie Sister Riches is the other trainer. Sister Choi is going to Whittier and Sister Riches is staying but picking up another ward as well. I am sad I won't see Sister Choi all of the time. I have really enjoyed being around her. Now we will just have to write. Maybe one day we will get to be companions. So I was talking to Elder Murphy and getting some last minute transfer questions answered. He is no longer our district leader which I am super sad about. I commented that I have had a lot district leaders and he said" You have had a lot of everything". I said ya I guess that is true. Someone has to do it. It was pretty funny. I wouldn't have it any other way. Every change that has happened has had purpose and I have learned every time. I am grateful that God is in charge. He knows how to make my mission the best mission. I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you all so much! Thanks for all that you do! Love you!Love Hermana Mickelsen
Week 48
July 7, 2009
Well it has been another week! I got my new companion on Wednesday afternoon. I was very sad to say goodbye to my dear sister Gallik but my new companion is great! Her name is Sister Haycock. She is from Colorado. She lives in a little town south of Denver near Castlerock. She is so great! California is very different from her 70 acre land in Colorado. She is the oldest of 6 kids and is such a fireball. I love her! We have had a great week and it can only get better! She has a great testimony and I feel like she is training me. She is a great example to me. We have been working hard this week. We had a great lesson with Astrid and Rodrigo. I think that we are making progress. They opened up a lot and we had a good discussion. Brother Muelleck usually comes with us but this time he couldn't so Brother Kennedy came. It was a tender mercy because Brother Kennedy is a convert and was able to relate in a different way than Brother Muelleck could have. We will see what happens. We kneeled down in prayer after the lesson. It was the first time that I have felt like doing that. It was a sweet spirit. I hope that they recognized it and have a desire to continue to seek.We had a lesson with a lady named Ava. She is a great lady. She is having some terrible health problems. We are trying our best to bring her happiness. We had a difficult time helping her to understand that God has a body. I am hoping that the lesson this week with the Restoration will help her. We had a little surprise visit on Sunday. Sister Haycock and I were talking to some members and President walked in. It was a shock to me. It was funny because the Bishop wanted to talk to him and tell him that he wanted the sisters to stay in his ward. He didn't have to call him because he was right there in Sacrament meeting. It was great to see him. I always love being in his presence. I know that I was sent to this mission to serve with him. He has been such a blessing in my life and has helped me grow so much. I know he is inspired and leads this work by the spirit. I have become more aware of that this last transfer. I have needed each of my companions and he promised me that the work would continue no matter what. It has and I am grateful for his great love and counsel. Sister Haycock and I bore our testimonies in both the wards we attended. She is the one that turned to me and said let's go. I was a little nervous with President there but the spirit confirmed the truths of my testimony. I love this gospel and know that it is true with all my heart. The only way to know that anything is true is to test it out and pray about it. It is amazing how quickly your life can change as you live the gospel more fully. Thanks for all of your love and support! I have the best family in the world! I hope you all have a wonderful week! Love Hermana Mickelsen
Well it has been another week! I got my new companion on Wednesday afternoon. I was very sad to say goodbye to my dear sister Gallik but my new companion is great! Her name is Sister Haycock. She is from Colorado. She lives in a little town south of Denver near Castlerock. She is so great! California is very different from her 70 acre land in Colorado. She is the oldest of 6 kids and is such a fireball. I love her! We have had a great week and it can only get better! She has a great testimony and I feel like she is training me. She is a great example to me. We have been working hard this week. We had a great lesson with Astrid and Rodrigo. I think that we are making progress. They opened up a lot and we had a good discussion. Brother Muelleck usually comes with us but this time he couldn't so Brother Kennedy came. It was a tender mercy because Brother Kennedy is a convert and was able to relate in a different way than Brother Muelleck could have. We will see what happens. We kneeled down in prayer after the lesson. It was the first time that I have felt like doing that. It was a sweet spirit. I hope that they recognized it and have a desire to continue to seek.We had a lesson with a lady named Ava. She is a great lady. She is having some terrible health problems. We are trying our best to bring her happiness. We had a difficult time helping her to understand that God has a body. I am hoping that the lesson this week with the Restoration will help her. We had a little surprise visit on Sunday. Sister Haycock and I were talking to some members and President walked in. It was a shock to me. It was funny because the Bishop wanted to talk to him and tell him that he wanted the sisters to stay in his ward. He didn't have to call him because he was right there in Sacrament meeting. It was great to see him. I always love being in his presence. I know that I was sent to this mission to serve with him. He has been such a blessing in my life and has helped me grow so much. I know he is inspired and leads this work by the spirit. I have become more aware of that this last transfer. I have needed each of my companions and he promised me that the work would continue no matter what. It has and I am grateful for his great love and counsel. Sister Haycock and I bore our testimonies in both the wards we attended. She is the one that turned to me and said let's go. I was a little nervous with President there but the spirit confirmed the truths of my testimony. I love this gospel and know that it is true with all my heart. The only way to know that anything is true is to test it out and pray about it. It is amazing how quickly your life can change as you live the gospel more fully. Thanks for all of your love and support! I have the best family in the world! I hope you all have a wonderful week! Love Hermana Mickelsen
Week 47
June 30, 2009
This week has been such a great week! We had 2 baptisms this week! It was a beautiful experience! Edgardo and Jorge were baptized Tuesday night. We had the baptism for Young Men’s. Two of the Priests baptized and the other young men did the prayers and the talks. It was so great! It was a great bonding experience for the boys. Their mom was there and she also came to church for their confirmation. She is acting more interested. In one of the blessings they were told that they would be a tool in bringing more of their family to the gospel. The change in these boys is amazing! I just love seeing the progression. Each week they have more light in their eyes and you can just see their testimony grow. The gospel is amazing. We challenged the boys to read the Book of Mormon from cover to cover. We are doing it with them. Jorge commented about how he had never read a 500 page book. We agreed on a chapter a day. I am so excited for them! I know that this is only the beginning for the rest of their lives. One of them commented that it was a fresh start. It really is. Here is an update on the constant change for me. My companion Sister Gallik is leaving me tomorrow. I am so sad. She is so great! She has truly prepared me and helped me change my attitude about my mission. I love it more now. The assistants called me Sunday morning to tell me who my new companion would be. They are sending one of the sisters scheduled to come on the 14th of July tomorrow. In other words I will be an official trainer tomorrow! I can hardly believe it! It makes me a little nervous but I am sure that she is more nervous than me! I needed these last few weeks to help me see that no matter what happens the work continues. A couple transfers ago I asked President for a blessing. He told me in my blessing that nothing would stop the work that God has for me here, not my foot or my companions. When he gave it to me I thought that I wasn't going to get along with someone but now I can see that my Heavenly Father was preparing me for some crazy weeks. I know this is the work of God! I love all of His children. I love being a missionary and know that I can do whatever is asked of me! Have a great week! Love you! Love Hermana Mickelsen
This week has been such a great week! We had 2 baptisms this week! It was a beautiful experience! Edgardo and Jorge were baptized Tuesday night. We had the baptism for Young Men’s. Two of the Priests baptized and the other young men did the prayers and the talks. It was so great! It was a great bonding experience for the boys. Their mom was there and she also came to church for their confirmation. She is acting more interested. In one of the blessings they were told that they would be a tool in bringing more of their family to the gospel. The change in these boys is amazing! I just love seeing the progression. Each week they have more light in their eyes and you can just see their testimony grow. The gospel is amazing. We challenged the boys to read the Book of Mormon from cover to cover. We are doing it with them. Jorge commented about how he had never read a 500 page book. We agreed on a chapter a day. I am so excited for them! I know that this is only the beginning for the rest of their lives. One of them commented that it was a fresh start. It really is. Here is an update on the constant change for me. My companion Sister Gallik is leaving me tomorrow. I am so sad. She is so great! She has truly prepared me and helped me change my attitude about my mission. I love it more now. The assistants called me Sunday morning to tell me who my new companion would be. They are sending one of the sisters scheduled to come on the 14th of July tomorrow. In other words I will be an official trainer tomorrow! I can hardly believe it! It makes me a little nervous but I am sure that she is more nervous than me! I needed these last few weeks to help me see that no matter what happens the work continues. A couple transfers ago I asked President for a blessing. He told me in my blessing that nothing would stop the work that God has for me here, not my foot or my companions. When he gave it to me I thought that I wasn't going to get along with someone but now I can see that my Heavenly Father was preparing me for some crazy weeks. I know this is the work of God! I love all of His children. I love being a missionary and know that I can do whatever is asked of me! Have a great week! Love you! Love Hermana Mickelsen
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