"For The Last Time, Hermana Stevens"

August 8, 2016

"2 John 12"

"Haha I'm just kidding:

     Wow. what is a sister to say? I'm going to do my best to make
this a decent readable size but who knows. It has been a fantastic
week here. I am amazed daily at the blessings the Lord pours out to us
each and every day. More people to teach, more members to help, more
everything. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY. (Have I mentioned that before?)

     As I was reflecting on my mission today, I was brought back to
the very beginning I remember so clearly the moment I decided to serve
a mission. The months preparing, the mission call, the setting apart,
waking up that first morning and getting on a plane to Mexico. Little
did I understand where that journey was going to take me. I am and
will forever be grateful for my mission. I have met so many people,
learned so many lessons and grown so much! I set out on a mission
because I knew that is what God wanted me to do and I owed him big
time. It's interesting though because I've come out even more
indebted. It has come so fast and I am so thankful for every moment. I
have learned some of life's greatest lessons here. I have more fully
learned the gospel principles and have been able to strengthen my own
testimony.

     I know that this church is true how else could someone like me
teach the gospel. How else could I learn to speak Spanish almost
fluently in 18 months? How else could I have learned all I've learned
and felt all I've felt. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. If I
didn't, I wouldn't have spent so much time saying it every day. I know
that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that we have a living prophet
today. I know the power of prayer and personal revelation. I've seen
the miracles of fasting. I have seen lives changed by keeping the
commandments. I know that Jesus Christ died for our sins and felt our
pains and sadness and is there to rejoice with us through the good. He
did it so that we could change everyday. I know that Gods plan of
salvation is perfect and that he wants us back. I know that when we
are worthy of it, the Holy Ghost can guide us to go, do, and say what
God would have us go, go, and say. He uses us to bless the lives of
others. I know this church I true. I have been so deeply changed by
living it and I know it can change anyone who sincerely kneels and
asks. God loves his children.

     Thank you everyone who has helped me though my mission. Through
the good and the not as good your thoughts, advice, testimonies, love
and prayers helped. I will be eternally grateful for my mission. I
know it's true.

For the last time,
              Hermana Stevens"

Thank you everyone for keeping up with Liv's mission! We are all so proud of her accomplishments and spiritual growths! She is amazing and we are so excited to see her this Saturday!!

-Mia :)

"I LOVE MY MISSIONARIES?"

July 18, 2016
:Things are looking uuuup! Things are looking up here in East Sac! We have been so blessed! I have never had such success in finding on my misison! Its not that we are finding a crazy amount of new investigators but we are constantly finding and the people that we are finding have so much potential! They are people that we have found or that have been referred to us that ACTUALLY want to learn about the gospel! so many miracles that we have found this week let me share a few;

     

     WE FOUND A FAMILY!! For those of you who are not familiar with missionary work, finding a family that is interested is the missionary dream. Quite honestly, finding a functional family here is a dream but we are really really excited about this one! The mom was a referral that we had in our area book when we arrived but when we went by nobody was home. The very next day, some other missionaries made contact with her and referred her to us so we went by right away. When we got there, her son answered the door and when we asked to speak with his mother, he brought his father. The father asked who we were and we explained that we were missionaries and that she had said we could come and visit. He let us in and went to get her. When she came in she said "I didn't want you to come over today because I was busy." she seemed annoyed so we apologized and asked when a better time to come by would be. We shared the first part of the restoration and set a return appointment and then asked if we could leave them with a prayer. She offered to say it and when she prayed, She prayed to god in the name of Jesus Christ and asked for "forgiveness for not wanting to receive us at first". We went back with a member for our appointment and it went so well! Her and her 8 year old daughter and her 6 year old son sat in with us (the father was at work) and she said that she has been thinking about getting baptized but she wants to learn more and be ready to commit to the covenant. They couldn't come to church yesterday because they were out of town but we have another appointment with them tomorrow. 

     We were able to participate in two blitz's this week (When all of the missionaries in a zone work in one specific area for a short period of time trying to contact former and potential investigators). One was in our sisters area in North Sacramento and the other was in our zone. When we went in our zone, we found a couple of potentials for the elders who we were helping and also in return, we got a referral for a man from some other sisters. Both times we were out of our area focusing on someone elses area, We were blessed with a referral! Yesterday we went to visit the referral that the sisters gave us and we met the man and had a long conversation about how "If there is only one God, there should only be one religion." He has a lot of really great questions that we have a lot of great answers to! We have a return with him tomorrow. 

     We met a man from Spain this week as well! He was in our areabook and just got really busy when the missionaries first tried to teach him so they moved on. We met him at a park and talked about his expectations and his desire. Turns out, he has a brother who is a member of the church! He was so interested and sincere! He said last time the missionaries met with him he stopped smoking and he has cut down on coffee. We are really excited to be teaching him! He is super cool.

     As you can tell, things are going really well here in East Sacramento! We are working with a lot of people right now and they are doing really well! Hermama Vergaray and I have a lot of fun here! I love mission life! We are working hard here in the boiling sun I have a nice sunburn to prove it ;) Thanks for the love and support! I love hearing from each of you and your daily endeavors!:) Hope you are all doing well out there! have a very happy week!! :)

--Hermana Stevens"

July 25, 2016

"HELLO! 

     Things are always good here in East Sacramento but they were quite slow this week. We had a really hard time finding this week but we were able to find. We are still trying to work with out members a lot to strengthen them and find through them at the same time. It seems to be working so we are still in a good spot. I got in my very first bike accident! Not exactly it is pretty funny. We were biking home for the night and I was on an elders bike because mine was broken so the bike was too tall for me and the bar in between the seat and the handle bars was too high. I was biking really really fast on the sidewalk and then a little ways down a car was pulling out of a parking lot blocking the sidewalk so as I went to brake, I realized all of my brakes we out. so I swung my leg over the bar and dove into the grass and landed in a graceful little summersault. :) walked away with a scratch on my knee and most of my dignity. it was pretty funny and I got my bike fixed because I don't trust others now. Hermana Vergaray also got in a bike accident. Her handle bars hit a power pole and she landed on all fours :( pobrecita! she got it worse than I did.

     On Thursday, I started feeling sick and it full blown hit both of us on Friday so we stayed home on Friday which was quite boring but needed I think. We were going to have such a great day too! But we had to reschedule everything so that was a huge bummer. I lot 8 pounds though so its not all bad ;) we are back and good though ready for this week!

     Our investigators are doing really well. The family that we found is doing well. The mom and the sister both read from The Book of Mormon and they said they were going to pray about it. They were one of the appointments we had to cancel though so we will be visiting them again this week. They are so sweet though out of the blue the mom texted us on Thursday and said "Hola Hermanas! Have a beautiful day! May God bless you!" definitely made my day. 

     We were also supposed to have exchanges on Friday so now for this week we have 1 team up and 2 exchanges! we are going to be busy busy but I like busy! We are looking for a week of miracles. We are very excited to be able to be with our sisters all week because they are fantastic missionaries and we love them. Also I get to go to the temple tomorrow and what would be a better way to start the week?!

     All in all things are good, we are happy and now healthy. The work is moving forward greatly and I love it here! :)

-Hermana Stevens"

August 1, 2016

"Good day! It has been a super busy week! We went on a team up and two exchanges. We were able to see all of our sisters this week and so it has been so fun! I went on a team up with Hermana Paredes and we were able to find a couple of good potentials that they can start working with. On Thursday, I went on an exchange with Hermana Scott in my old area in Rancho Cordova! On Friday, I went on an exchange with Hermana Leon and we worked in my area. She too is a really great missionary. She is from Peru! She told me a little bit about Peru because I told her porter is going there. I want to go there.

     This week when we were on exchanges, Hermana Leon and I were walking to a potential and a man poked his head over a fence and said "hola!" so we went over and started talking to him. He said "are you selling something?" and we said "no. We are missionaries and we are sharing a message about Jesus Christ!" and then he said "oh! Well, is there another time you can come by and we can talk more about it?" and I kind of laughed in my head and though "hey! thats my line!" so we left him with a pamphlet and we set up a return appointment for tomorrow. I love when people contact me!

     We have been trying to get our investigators progressing quicker but they have been leaving town and working a lot this week so we have a lot of appointments this week! We are really excited for the lessons that we have set up!

     Not a whole lot more to say. We have another week full of appointments and meetings. I went on a temple trip with my departing group on Tuesday. I am SO thankful for the relationships I have made here on my mission! I LOVE MY MISSIONARIES! I have MLC on Tuesday, departing missionary interview on Wednesday, Zone training on Friday and exchanges on Friday! So crazy! time is flying! I love this work!

Hermana Stevens"

"I have a friend who wants to learn about the gospel"

July 11, 2016  

 Well hello! First off I just wanted to re-advise my dear friends
that for my sacrifice, I am not writing personal emails or letters to
anyone but my fam so just know I cherish you all dearly and will talk
to you in August. It's not that I hate you, it's that I love the Lord
more ;) I only send out this group email. thanks for all of the love
and prayers and messages though!

     So I am so excited to tell you about this week because it has
been so miracle filled! The fire is going strong here in East
Sacramento! People have been falling into our laps! We are working
with a couple that have been investigating for years. Hermana V was
here last year and was working with them. They have a couple of
challenges to get through but they are on the up we think. They also
have 4 kids. One of which could also be baptized! They were extended a
date for July 30 by the previous missionaries in the area and when we
followed up on it, the mom hadn't prayed about it and the father
wasn't home so we are going to try to do a more solid lesson with the
whole family to set up a plan to get them baptized.

     Miracle #2: we were trying to get to know the members in our ward
so we called and made appointments. When we asked one hermana, she
said "I have a friend who wants to learn about the gospel can we do it
tomorrow instead?" Probably the best way to cancel an appointment ;)
we went and taught her friend and it went SO WELL! We got to know her
pretty well even though she is pretty shy and we shared the
restoration and then we set up a return. Can't wait for this week!

     Miracle #3: There is a recent convert in our ward who was
baptized a month ago and his girlfriend is interested! We went and
taught her and she said she was going to come to churches AND SHE DID!
The ward was so good to her and when the relief society went to sing
in sacrament, she went up with them! (She had time to practice because
sacrament meeting is last in this ward). And another miracle, they are
planning on getting married on the 20 of July! We are so excited!

     The zone is doing really really well and we are seeing so many
miracles. There is so much good urgent energy here and I am so excited
to be here! I LOVE mission life! Thanks again for your love and
support! :))
-Hermana Stevens

Abide With Me

June 13 2016

"Wow This week..what to tell you about this week. It has actually been kind of difficult to be honest. I mean thats just how it is I guess. Hermana McCloud and I serve 6 sisters and 3 out of the 6 this week were super duper sick so a good part of our week consisted of team ups, exchanges and running quick errands. We hope the Lord has been working in our area because we havent... haha jokes but really, Hermana McCloud have only taught area for about 10 hours together the whole week.. We miss each other sometimes. I am, however so thankful to be serving while I am serving! I love the sisters that we serve and I have grown to love them even more as we have had more opportunities to serve them! It is definitely a blessing and even though we didn't get to teach a lot of lessons this week, the Lord has taught me a lot of lessons this week! Sorry if this one turns into a journal entry!

     Patience and charity. Two very important (and VERY hard sometimes) attributes to develop to become more like our Savior. This week I have been given a lot of opportunities to develop a little more these two attributes. It wasnt because I couldnt stand being around these people or they were oh so hard to have charity towards or anything because that is not the case because I already loved them but it is from serving them that I was able to increase my charity. Okay I really dont know if that made any sense but I just have noticed that my charity has increased some hah thats what I am trying to say. Basically I prayed for Charity and the Lord helped me out.. sorry that was kind of painful to read.. I just know that through serving Gods children whether they be members, investigators, or even missionaries God blesses us :) 

     So this week I got some pretty hard news from home. I was really thankful for the timing though. When I got my moms email about Ali passing, I was in the chapel about to practice a song I was going to sing in sacrament meeting the next day. I read the email and I was really having a hard time with the news. I told my companion she could go a head and practice the piano part because I needed a minute. I sat down and listened to her play "Abide With Me". I was singing along in my head. "Abide with me" is my favorite Hymn in spanish and the words just helped me so much. In that moment I knew that the plan of salvation is true. Jesus died for us so that we can live with our loved ones again and i KNOW that is true. and the second thing, He is always with us. I felt it so strongly. I hope that her family feels that comfort and love too. I love Ali and I am thankful for the role she played in my life.

     It is such a blessing to be a missionary. Everyday gets better and better. I just feel so full I cant even explain it. It is just so much! I truly love it and I know that this is where I am supposed to be right now. Hermana McCloud and I were asked to share some of our misison experiences in young womens yesterday. It was so fun to talk to them about it. They asked "what were you most afraid of and how did you overcome that?" "have you ever been afraid to talk to someone on the street?" and "have you had a turning point in your mission?" and "have  you ever seen a group of people and known which one you needed to talk to?" It was really fun to think back on my mission thus far and think of the moments that answer these questions. Honestly I dont know if some of the things get easier though. It is still usually totally awkward to approach someone on the street and weave the conversation around to God. It still hurts when someone says something really rude or slams a door really hard in our faces. I still have personal struggles and it still is hard when goals are not met but I do it. Why? because I have seen it bless that stranger behind that door. I have seen it change the life of that person on the street and I have seen the possibility of shaping the lives of those kids who have it hard. I know that it is true. Every single hard, awkward, painfully uncomfortable moment is SO worth it. I LOVE DOING THIS! :) 

     Hermana Stevens"

June 21, 2016

"This week has been another great one. There are just a lot of things going on in the mission right now! Elder Larry R Lawerence of the seventy came and gave a mission leadership training as well as a zone conference. At the MLC, we talked about the weaknesses of the mission. He praised our mission so much because of our obedience. side note, I am soooo thankful that I am in a mission where we have a culture of obedience. There is nothing that brings blessings like obedience and the fact that most are obedient and have good attitudes about it makes for a happy successful mission. We talked about our mission goals and what we can do to overcome our mission weaknesses and achieve our goals. What we came up with was sacrifice. We talked about the eternal sacrifice of Jesus Christ and what we are willing to do to achieve our goals. We were all asked to choose something to sacrifice. Elder Lawerence shared his experience with this from when he was a mission president and how sometimes we have to prove ourselves to God and sometimes, if our desire is righteous, we can negotiate. President asked us to choose Something that the Lord has asked and then to sacrifice it. President also asked that we strengthen our testimony of the atonement. I am going to start off with sharing my testimony of the atonement of Jesus Christ. 

     I know that Jesus Christ died for me. I have felt it. His whole purpose was to come and sacrifice himself so that we could all return to our father in heaven one day. One of my favorite scriptures is Alma 7:11-13. It explains why he came and why the atonement is important. He has felt every pain, sorrow and temptation that I have felt so that I wouldn't have to alone. He has also helped me overcome a lot of things. It amazes me to think about how much he suffered. When I think about all the pain that I have felt in my life and all of my temptations and imagine feeling all of those things at one time. Then to think that he did that to every person that has ever lived. Every single thing. I literally cannot comprehend it but I know that he did it. I know that every person, no matter what they're going through can be healed through the atonement because he has already felt it. It was the greatest act of love by a Father and a brother and I will eternally be thankful for it.

     Along with that, I would like to tell you about my personal sacrifice. When we first talked about  it with  the MLC, I thought of our car. We live 10 miles out of our area so I thought that maybe we could sacrifice our car for a week. On Saturday, we biked the whole day and found that it was probably less effective because our area is very far and it took us two hours to get there and upon arriving we found that our appointment wasn't home. After that, we knew that our dinner appointment was another 10 miles away so we headed off on another 2 hour journey and again, upon arriving, found that she canceled without telling us as well... it was kind of a series of unfortunate events. we had a little bike chain incident and some really nice sunburns. It was a good experience but we decided that we are going to drive to our area and then bike for the day so that we can be more productive and talk with more people. I thought that this was going to be a pretty good sacrifice but then when I thought about it more, it didn't seem as lasting. Being without a car could only last as long as my companion was on board anyway. We had a meeting as zone leadership and we started talking about the sacrifice. One of the Elders said "this sacrifice should be something big and something that is going to be hard. We all have something that we hold on to even though we should let it go." I thought about the things that I might be holding on to and I thought "the only thing that I really have at home for me is my family and my friends." and then it struck me. I knew what I had to do; stop communicating casually with my friends. We started driving home and I was debating this sacrifice in my head. My friends are the thing most dear to me. I love them all sooo much and I am so proud of them and what they are accomplishing in life and in their missions. They are something that I treasure very most! so many thoughts went through my head like "you're not even distracted by them!" or "maybe you can just sacrifice it until the end of this transfer" my next thought was "I don't even know if that is what God actually wants me to sacrifice yet. I will wait and see what he really says." Without skipping a beat, my companion said "Just do what God wants you to do!" I was completely shocked because it was like she heard my thought. I hadn't told her a thing. "Huh?" I said. Then she said "everyone just needs to do what God asks. If God asked you to wear a green shirt everyday for the rest of your life to get into heaven you would do it so We just all need to choose something that God has asked." She thought that she was just speaking in general but it hit me very very strong. I knew what I had to do. so my sacrifice is I will not communicate with my friends from home except through my weekly email. It seems really silly and small but it was something that I loved. I usually have other threads or we write letters back and forth but I know what the Lord wants me to do. It doesn't matter if that is or isn't distracting me or not. I am going to do it because I love the Lord even more than I love my friends. It was a really cool experience and I cannot wait to see the blessings that it brings!

     It is going to be a super crazy week. We have two exchanges this week and MLC which I cannot wait for! sorry this was super long but you dont really have to read it if you dont want to. Sister Lawerence gave us a really long talk about gathering Israel and the house of Israel and it was really cool and I would tell you more about it if I could but time does not permit and also I am still trying to wrap my head around everything she said haha. I will share later after I have prayed and studied and organized everything she taught us. I do feel a lot wiser though! :) Thanks for everything everyone! love you all a lot!!

Hermana Stevens"

June 27, 2016

"This week was crazy busy. We had a zone conference that I told

you about on Monday, pday on Tuesday, Wednesday we went on an
exchange, on Thursday, we ended that exchange and started another one
so I finally got back in my area on Friday evening. Saturday morning,
President and Sister Jardine had Mission Leadership Council at their
home and it was so great! Like I told you all last week, my mission is
focusing on sacrifice right now and it has been super cool. There is a
whole lot is excitement and fire in the mission. It is crazy because I
feel like we are really getting somewhere. President always says
"turning a mission around is like turning an aircraft around. It's
possible but it takes a lot of time." I don't think our mission has
ever been a bad mission or a disobedient mission but we started off
pretty good and we have improved so much! Our status of "people on
date" to "people baptized weekly" is one of the highest in the
country! I am so thankful to be a part of this mission! I just love
it! For those of you who knew me before, I don't cry a lot because I'm
heartless or something.. But I have cried 3 times in the past week
because I just love everything here so much! I'm not like having huge
breakdowns okay? I'm still sane.. I just sometimes cannot explain to
you how I feel. It's purely joy. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY. I love
Sacramento, I love my mission friends, I love my branch. Wow. I just
can't tell you. But I guess that was me trying.

     This week, we had two sisters who were planning on a young boy
getting baptized. The mission goal could not feasibly achieved if he
did not get baptized this month. Now we know, it's not about numbers.
But every number has a name and it is the Lords goal that he has for
us. The boy's mother told them a few day before the baptism that he
could not be baptized on that day because she had work and could not
attend. The sisters came to us with a role play that they were going
to use on the mother basically telling her  that they knew that if
they all had enough faith, her boss would give her a time off for the
baptism that week. They talked to the mother on the phone and she said
they could come over that night at 9:00pm. The zone leaders had told
the sisters that it doesn't matter when the baptism is like time of
day or day. They told us their plan and I said "well if the mom is
going to be home today, why don't you just baptize him tonight at
9:00?" We talked and kind of joked about it for a second of how they
would fill the font before and then go talk to her and tell her that
if they wanted, the font was filled and they could go right then. I
left on exchanges but the sister I was on exchanges with also taught
the boy so we heard all about it. The sisters took off and set up a
baptism. They got permission from president Jardine and the branch
president. They got the ward mission leader and the missionaries all
on board. The only people left there was to talk to was the actual
baptismal candidate and his mother. We went over at 9:00 pm to wait
and see the out come. When we pulled up, there was the most glorious
sight of  20 missionaries from a couple zones and the assistants
supporting these sisters waiting to see if the boy would show. We all
went in and prayed. Now I would love to end this story by telling you
that the little boy got baptized that night but that's not the case.
His mom was too tired to bring him over and she promised that it would
happen in July. Honestly it felt like we lost a big game but we didn't
loose by that much. He is still going to get baptized. It was a huge
motivation for me. We had 3 zones praying for this boy by name
throughout the day and the faith of the area was increasing. The next
day, everyone had they same sense of "if they can, we can." Everyone
was so excited about the work.

     Honestly this week, on paper seems like it has been one of the
most disappointing weeks of my mission but it has been one of the most
tiring, happiest, faith building, joy filled weeks of my mission.
Whenever Hermana McCloud and I leave our area to be out with our
sisters, we make a joke that "we hope God has been working in our area
because we haven't" but it is so true. When we are doing what God has
asked of us, he takes care of us. We were able to add a new small
family. We taught them the restoration and they just grasped
everything we taught. We are SO excited to work with them. We have
also received a bunch of Referrals. The Lord always provides a way to
do that which he has asked of us. Life is seriously so so good right
now. I wish you could all feel what I feel out here. Thanks for all
your constant love and support! :)
Hermana Stevens"

July 5, 2016

"Well transfers have come and I have been transferred! I have a lot of mixed feelings about it but the over-riding feeling is "I AM SO EXCITED". I absolutely love the Sacramento 7 branch and the missionaries there so I was sad to leave but I know that East Sacramento is where I need to be right now. The other exciting news is my companion is Hermana Vergaray! We are companions again!

     This past week, we had zone training and it went really well. We talked about sacrifice, urgency and the importance of choosing our covenants over the sometimes more "convenient" option. The training went really well. It is really cool to be able to do these training because we set up the outline and discuss what needs to be taught but when the actual training comes, everything goes so much smoother than expected! One Elder gave us a breakdown of your average english Elder mission and after sleeping, preparing, studying, meetings, eating and p-days, a missionary has about 8 months to be out on the streets or in peoples homes. Of course everything we do as missionaries is necessary and when we are at dinner appointments it is also an finding opportunity but those 8 months of pure proselyting is so valuable and we should recognize that! It makes me want to work harder. 

     Also this past week, Hermana McCloud and I felt that we needed to release most of our investigators. They were not progressing how they should and we could only do so much. We released all but a small family and a man. I really hope that things start going well out there and that those people progress how they need. We were out on our bikes all week finding because we didn't have very many appointments to attend but that is all a part of the work! 

     So like I said before, now I am serving in the East Sacramento zone with Hermana Vergaray! We met with our new zone last night and every companionship in the zone except one has changed so it is a whole new zone and we have 3 new missionaries! We discussed what our zone vision should be and what we were expecting out of this transfer and I am really so excited to be here! There is so much good energy and excitement to do the work. It is going to be rough because even in the past two days, I have no idea where we are going or which way is up but We will figure it out. This whole day we have been cleaning out our new house (Yes we actually live in a cute little house. I will send pictures when it is all cleaned) because elders have been living in it for a year. I think that is my sub-calling; house cleaner. It's not as bad as others I have cleaned out it is just the details you know like the mold on the grout in the shower and the measurable layer of dust on the baseboards and fans. I will be nice soon though! :)

     This morning we were able to go to the temple. I love the temple and I feel so blessed to have a temple in our mission! Just a short drive! It always amazes me the peace that is possible to feel in there. I know that this is where I need to be. I know that the Lord called me to serve here in the California Sacramento Mission and I will forever be grateful for it!  We don't just call it the greatest mission on earth just because that sounds nice but because it really is! I love being a missionary!! so much! It is just like a feeling like something that doesn't quite fit. I feel so blessed for all of the people I have met and for the experiences I have had. Thanks for all you do! Wish us luck this week so we don't get too lost!

Hermana Stevens"

I LOVE MY CALLING

May 2, 2016

"Well hello my dear friends and family!! Hermana Stevens here. So sorry
about last week I haven't had a week of not emailing everyone yet and
decided everyone deserves one right? So here we are another week by
and I ant believe that it is May! This week we went on exchanges and
we were with two English sisters and I left into their area. I am so
thankful for my call because English finding is hard... We woke up and
did the usual morning routine, went out and biked, came home and ate
lunch and went back out to bike for 6 more hours. Our efforts proved
somewhat successful we were able to find a couple of potentials for
the sisters to go back to but it was a lot of knocking and street
contacting. The sister that I went with is a fairly new sister and is
really shy when it comes to contacting. I realized after a while that
I was the only one talking. Talk about hogging the contact! so I
decided to, you know, give her time to speak. The next contact we did,
I went up and introduced ourselves and turned the time over to her and
she didn't say anything! Haha I encouraged her and told her "just open
your mouth and if you don't know what to say, bear your testimony". We
had a LOT of awkward moments of silence but the amazing thing to me is
that no matter how afraid we might be, the Lords promise always
stands. "Open your mouth and it shall be filled" (D&C 33:8) everytime
I don't know what to say, I open my mouth, and the words some how come
out. I love being a missionary.

     During our exchange, we had to also help out some other sisters
from another zone because one of them was sick so all three of us went
on separate exchanges. I love my sisters but It was nice to get back
to my companions. I love my companions.

     This Sunday, was one of the sweetest fast and testimony meetings
I have been in. We were sitting on the stand because Hermana Paredes
was translating and as soon as they announced that people could come
and bear their testimonies and all at once, every one of the young men
got up to bear their testimonies! EVERY SINGLE ONE! The young men's
president is moving to Puerto Rico and last week, they had been
talking about opening your mouth to share what you know. Some of the
boys were really nervous so they would stand at the pulpit with one or
two of their buddies but they all bore their testimonies and the
spirit was so strong. Every single person in the congregation was
teared up. I LOVE this branch.


We were talking the other day with a sister who has been struggling
and having thoughts of going home. I had just received an email from
my trainer so I shared a couple words of it with her. I love my
trainer still :) she told me about how so often when you are in a
mission, you think about what life off the mission is like and who you
want to become but as soon as you get home, the mission is always on
your mind and you miss it! How we need to be here because this is the
only time we get to be here doing what we are doing right now. We
talked with her a long time and it really reminded me how true that
is. I love being here there is nowhere else I would rather be than
here right now. I love my calling.

Over all it has bee another successful week. We had a lot more success
with our investigators and things are moving a long greatly! Thanks
for everything you do for me! :) I love you all!
Hermana Stevens"


May 9, 2016

 "Hello! Another beautiful day in the big Sacramento city! but really, today is beautiful because it has been really gloomy the past couple days. It has been another good week with a lot of finding. The people we are teaching are moving along for the most part just quite slowly. We had not seen Edwin for a long time because of family problems but we have been able to get back over there this week and things seem promising. We will have another lesson with him today. Guillermo has been kind of M.I.A. we have been calling and setting appointments but he cancels or doesn't show but we called him yesterday and he is in 2 Nephi so there is progression and we were able to set another appointment so I think we are on the "up" with him too! We are teaching a couple other people too who are keeping some commitments but struggle with others but we are doing our best to address their concerns. 

     This week we also had MLC and it was wonderful! It was really a spiritually uplifting experience. I was able to feel the confirmation of the goal of 33 baptisms for the month of May and also I was able to be a part of a role play. I really liked all of the roleplays and that is something that we took back to our zone training. I thought it was really interesting how 75% of our baptisms come from member referrals but like 90%? of our finding efforts are on our own right? That is crazy! I mean honestly, member work is not easy either. The finding appears thinner and so I think it can be a little discouraging but when we need quality we find more ready people through the members than through our own efforts and so we really should be working on how we can better coordinate our missionary efforts with our members.

     We were able to blitz our area on Thursday with the help of the Spanish missionaries in our zone and it proved somewhat successful. We were able to make contact with a former investigator named Maria. She is someone that Hermana Bowen and I found but she was "released" after I left the area. I always felt something about her and when we went by to make an appointment with her, she seems really willing to meet with us. I really hope that she is ready and willing to make the necessary changes to be baptized! She is really nice and has 3 girls. 

     We also went on exchanges. I was in my area with another Sister and she really is a great missionary! It is always sad to be with missionaries who struggle with things that could be easily fixed if they would just turn themselves over to the Lord. I understand it though it isn't easy and i still struggle sometimes I mean, we all do but once we just humble ourselves and tell the Lord to take us and make us what he needs us to be, we become way more than we could ever imagine and it makes success in our areas and successful area means happy missionary! I am just continually grateful for the time that I have to be a missionary. I am still trying to become what he needs but that is an almost never ending process right? It doesn't seem that easy when you are applying it but it always is better. Thanks for everything!

Hermana Stevens"

May 16

"DISCLAIMER: this email is too long. I know. I tried to shorten it and

cut things out but I just can't. Sorrrry.
     Hello! It has been a really good week here. Like usually it is a
good week but things picked up a little bit more this week. We started
out with Presidents Interviews. I always love sitting down with
president because even though I usually don't have a lot to say, I
know that if I did, he would listen. He is such a great man and I have
no doubt in my mind that he and Sister Jardine are called of God to do
this. I think God picked the perfect pair for the job! I love them. We
were asked to study 3 Nephi 19:24 which says; 24 And it came to pass
that when Jesus had thus prayed unto the Father, he came unto his
disciples, and behold, they did still continue, without ceasing, to
pray unto him; and they did not multiply many words, for it was given
unto them what they should pray, and they were filled with desire.
     President asked us about our thoughts on this scripture. He
explained that even though Heavenly Father knows what we want and
need, he is always bound by the law so we have to ask. Usually what we
ask for doesn't come how we would like it or expect it to but it comes
in an even better more beautiful way because he knows all and what is
going to bless us most. He is a very inspired man. I am thankful to
serve with him.
     We have been visiting E more again. He had a lot going on for
sometime and so it was hard to find him but we found him at home again
and have been visiting him again. He is doing well he just needs to
recognize that in the end, these things that we are teaching are going
to be the things at matter and the things that will bring him he most
happiness! But he is good and will start progressing better soon now
that we are back on track.
    We have been visiting with his guy, F, for a week or two now. I
actually met him when I was here last time because he came to church
with a less active member but he had never given us his address but
then one day, we were at E's house and F was there! We taught the
lesson and then F asked if we had an extra Book of Mormon for him so
we got him one and got his address and we have been teaching him. We
had a really great lesson with him and he spirit was very strong. We
invited him to be baptized on June 7 and he said he would! He really
seems to have real intentions because he asks a lot of really sincere
questions and has been readin the Book of Mormon.
     Our investigator, M, is doing really well! We taught her a quick
lesson in the middle of the week and asked for referrals. She said her
neighbors down the street spoke Spanish so we went and knocked. There
was a man who answered the door and was basically doing anything he
could to not talk to us and actually walked away at one point but the
door was open and we had seen more people walk by so we kept with it.
A little boy came by and so we asked if he would go and get his mom.
She came to the door with a little girl and another man. We talked for
a second and then Hermana Torres asked if we could go in and sing a
song for them. She let us in and we sang he sent his son. They loved
it! They were so sweet and invited us back and we have our appointment
with them tonight! We will call them CJ&N. I am so excited! We taught
M a little later in the week and brought a member with us. We were
planning on teaching gospel of Jesus Christ which consists of cleansed
from sin, faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy
Ghost and enduring to the end. Earlier in the month, we made a goal to
help this specific investigator be baptized in May and we hadn't even
offered her a date in May so we prayed and we made a goal of inviting
her to be baptized on May 28. So we went into this lesson with that
date in mind. We taught up until just before baptism. I asked her
"have you prayed about baptism yet?" And she said " yes. I just really
need more time." We went on with the lesson and our member helped a
ton! At one point, M actually said "I just don't know which church is
Jesus' church." And I said " do you know how many churches there are?
Too many right? Well if you pray about the Book of Mormon and it is
true, you don't have to keep searching because we are the only church
that uses this book. Hermana Paredes showed her Moronis promise in the
back and explained that her answer will come from the Holy Ghost. All
of us bore testimony of the Holy Ghost and the spirit was so strong.
After she said the first time that she was not ready to accept a
baptismal date I thought that was it and that we were not going to be
able to invite her to the 28 of May that time but after the spirit
flooded in, Hermana Paredes asked "when you know that these things are
true, will y be baptized by someone who holds the priesthood authority
of God?" There was a  long pause of silence and then she started
nodding her head yes. Then she said "when I feel it, yes." Then it
opened the opportunity to say " we will be holding a baptismal service
on May 28. Will you prepare yourself to be baptized on this day?" She
nodded a little and laughed a little and then said "I don't know. I
need to know." It was a REALLY powerful moment and even though she
didn't say yes, she felt the spirit and I know she can tell a
difference.
     Holy this email is so long I am SO sorry but a couple more
stories. We went by to visit someone that I taught for a little while
last year. We will call her MO. We dropped by and she was home with
her family. She lives with her three girls and their dad and they were
all home. She had been taught a lot by an Elder a couple of years ago.
We sat down and asked a couple of questions to get a feel of how much
she knew. She went and got her Book of Mormon and I asked if she had
been reading it and she said yes. Then I asked how much fishes knew
about Joseph Smith and she said " well we watch the movie!" She said
they sometimes watch it as a family! So we went on and she said "I
don't know I just know that God is always there and you guys are
always there. I knew you were coming over today. I told my daughter
even. I just knew. It your are always there even when I start running
or whatever you always come back." I testified and said " it is
because we are representatives of Jesus Christ and each day, we pray
about where we should go and who we should see and I know that God is
your Heavenly Father and he loves you and he wants you back. We are
here because we know what we share is true and we know it can change
your life because it has changed ours." Then she said " how? How has
it changed yours?" And I said " well first of all I know who I am. I
know I am a daughter of God. I know why I am here and I know that
after this life, I will be with my family forever." She said "because
you are doing this you will be with your family forever?" And I said
"if we keep Gods commandments and do what he asks, we can be with our
families for time and eternity and we can tell you all about that" it
was a really cool moment because even from the first time I met MO,
from the moment I saw her door last year, I knew I needed to knock it
and something about her makes it so easy for me to testify to her of
these things clearly and simply. She is really cool and we have a
lesson with her family this week.
     Through some of these lessons, we were with an English sister. I
would invite her to bare her testimony whenever she wanted and I would
translate. Everything she said was perfect. Right exactly what we were
talking about. Exactly want the person needed to hear. I know that the
spirit is so important. The spirit is the teacher and we are just the
mouth piece. The spirit will be the difference of someone getting
baptized or not. I love this opportunity I have to be a missionary and
utilize the gift of the Holy Ghost every single minute. I will leave
it at that. To those who made it this far, thanks. You're a real
homie.
Hermana Stevens"

May 24

" Well this was an exciting week watching Hermana Torres get ready to go home! I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to be companions with her. She was such an amazing example of what a missionary should be til the end. I Have learned that there is always something to learn from your companion no matter how long you have been out/in an area/together. The three of us had a lot of fun together and a lot of hard moments too but that is how you grow so close to someone so fast! We had a really good week with a good amount of lessons. We were especially blessed with new investigators this week and I am excited to help them start progressing. I love finding people who will listen and WANT to listen because I know that this message is for everyone!

     This morning we went to the temple. I LOVE THE TEMPLE. I just kept thinking about how big of a blessing it is to have a temple so close to me still. My whole life I think i just took it for granted but after all of the people I have talked to, I know that it is truly a blessing to be able to go as often as I do as a missionary. There is just an amazing amount of peace. I cant even describe it. Every time that I go, I just feel my Gods love for me and peace. I love the gospel.

     This past couple of weeks, I have been going deeper into The Book of Mormon. I have been really studying it instead of just reading it. I love how applicable it is to everyone. It is really cool because often I find a scripture that I just didnt really notice before and it happens to fit perfectly into a lesson. "treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man." D&C 84:85. I am really gaining a testimony of this scripture. That and I am eternally grateful for our ipads because I have never been really good at remembering scripture references but I can always remember a phrase. 

     As my friend have started to return to their homes from their missions, it makes me remember how grateful I am for my mission. I have learned and grown so much and I just feel more motivated than ever to push harder. I really want to be able to leave it all here and give it all I've got daily. I love the mission! 

     As you know, it is transfer week and guess what. IM STAYING!! hahaha SAC X 8! :) Thats okay because I love it here. I just feel like there is something I am missing. There is someone here that I am not getting to or something.. I don't know but I just really want to be diligent to what the spirit is telling me because that is how I am going to figure it out :) Also surprise round two; my new companion is my old companion Hermana McCloud!! I am very happy! Thanks for everything! Peace n Blessings

     Hermana Stevens"

May 30

"Hello! It has been a really great week! We have been blessed to find 5 new investigators! Let me tell you a little about each. The first ones are A and his daughter E. When I was with Hermana Paredes, we went to visit one of our investigators and when we got there, we had a little bit of updating to do so that kind of stalled us getting out of the car for a second. While we were sitting there, we saw a man walking outside so we said our prayer and started to get out of our car. When we got out, he looked at us and said "HOLA!" (which I thought was funny because ususally people dont approach us in spanish). We talked to him for a little bit and found out that he was pretty religious but invited us to come by sometime. When we went for our return appointment, his daughter, E, answered the door and we chatted with her for a bit. A came outside and we sat on a bench in his front yard to share our lesson. His daughter came out before we had actually started the lesson so we invited her to sit in and she said she didnt want to. A couple of minutes later, she came out and said "what are you going to talk about?" "Jesus Christ!" I said. She grabbed a chair and joined us. They really like to talk which made our getting to know them easy. We taught them the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and they really liked it and really seemed to understand it! When his daughter asked "how did you guys meet?" I told her "on the street over there." and A said "I was working on that house down the street and I saw them pull up in their car and so I waited for them to get out so we could talk about God!" The lesson went really well. they told us that they used to go to church but hadnt in a long time. E said that she really liked going to church because it made her a better person and now she "talks back and is mean" (we dont believe her entirely) They seem to have a desire to learn and to know. We were supposed to have a lesson with them on thursday but he got called into work and we had to reschedule but we will see them tomorrow and hopefully his wife will be there this time! 

     Our other news come from a family that we started teaching. They are a family that the elders were teaching a while back and that we just picked up. They are really sweet and we are going to see them again tomorrow. 

     We decided that we are going to get a member present to every planned lesson that we have. We are pretty determined and so far things are going well. We are just really struggling getting people to church so we think as the fellow shipping goes up, so will church attendance! 

     I have thought a lot about my mission this week. I mean I usually think about my mission because it is literally my life right now but I just thought about how big of an impact that it has had on my life thus far. I just truly love my mission. Each time a new transfer starts I think about my growth that transfer and the things that I have learned and bettered and it is amazing that every companion, every area, every person that we meet we can learn something from. I have learned and grown so much already! I am seriously thankful for every happy moment that I have been given I am even thankful for the hard moments and the sad ones because I learn from them. I know what to do differently or how to better who I am. I just know that God is very aware of every need that I have. It really has been another great week and we have been blessed with a great group of investigators and members. Thanks for the constant love and support! :)

Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuvvvs

Hermana Stevens"

June 6

"Well I just love being a missionary! Seriously. I just love being able to talk with everyone I see all day long and share the good word with them. This gospel is so true! I have always known that it is all true but it is really cool when I get a moment when I am testifying of a specific principle and the Holy Ghost testifies to me that what I am saying is true. The spirit is so powerful. 

     This week we went on a couple of team ups. I really like going out with the other sisters. I like getting to know them and how they work. I got to go with Hermana Paredes my former companion and we found a couple of potentials. She is doing really well she is a really great, driven missionary! I love her. I also went with Hermana Nokes who is from the same parts as I am so we know a lot of mutual people. She is also really a great missionary. She is not afraid to speak and teach. I feel blessed to be able to work with such amazing sisters!

     This week was also Mission Leadership Council and it was really great! We talked about Member missionary work mostly. It was a short one because we are going to have 3 this month THREE! what a good time to be a missionary. In a couple of weeks, Elder Larry Lawerence is coming to the mission so we will have an MLC, a zone conference and personal interviews with him! I am really excited! I think that it will really get a fire going in the mission! I really learned a lot that we can really apply to our areas and especially about working with our members and getting faith. I think honestly I just need to really act like the kind of missionary I want to be right? Something that struck me a lot was when we talked about "faith". Faith has always kind of been a hard thing for me to grasp. Not because I don't have any but because I feel like sometimes even when I feel like I have the most faith, things don't go the way that I planned it to. However, faith is SO important and honestly those times happen to everyone! Some things just become a trial of our faith!  We did a little segment in our Zone Training on faith because it is something that we can continually increase in. I think that the more we act in faith and act on the promptings of the spirit, our faith will grow and the Lord will trust us more ultimately aligning our will more with his. It is something I am working on and I know the Lord will provide.

     

     Sadly, I had to leave early from MLC because I had a doctors appointment for my dumb asthma-not-asthma. I just need a new inhaler because I almost died 2 weeks ago. Not really but I did get a little nervous for a second! haha. Anyway because we missed the MLC lunch, President and Sister Jardine took Hermana McCloud and I out to lunch. Sister Jardine chose my favorite place (Chilis). I just love them! They are really some of the greatest people ever and sometimes president reminds me of my own dad. They have the same sense of humor it is hilarious! I am so thankful for the up close time I get to spend with them. I dont know how they do it but they make every single missionary feel 100% loved. What great people!

     I am just really trying to get lost in the work because as time picks up, my love for being a missionary increases!! AH! I really just want to work so hard because I love it here and I love these people and I love doing what I am doing! We are really working hard and crazy busy which is a good thing! I love the work and I know that the California Sacramento Mission is truly the greatest mission on earth.

     Sorry for no pictures last week I just forgot.. I am really bad at this weekly email thing.. I will do my best this time. Have a happy week!

-Hermana Stevens"