Wednesday, October 8, 2014

October 6, 2014 - Last email!!! Home in a week!

It is so weird to think that this is my last preparation day... well actually next Monday I will be travelling home and it will be a Monday and I will still be a missionary so technically that will be my last preparation day. 
I feel being a travelling missionary has really prepared me to be ready to come home, to be travelling from area to area, not having my companion Sister Sandberg with me as she is in Nova Scotia, not having an area, no investigators in a sense the missionaries and their area is my focus, so it is kind of like in a way "weaning" me out of the field... wow that sounds depressing haha. 
But is it really is different. 
General Conference was exactly what I needed, all my questions I had coming in from how to seek a balanced life to career were answered. It was amazing!! I know that the prophet and the apostles are inspired men because everything they say are just right on the mark of what I needed to hear, and its not just that way for me it is for all of us! Throughout conference I was making a list of goals I want to do when I am home, I have a list of about 19 goals. I really liked the idea that was expressed about sustaining and supporting our leaders following the prophet and apostles and church leaders, about the importance of studying the essential daily fundamental points of the gospel, about sincere and meaningful prayer. I loved M Russell Ballard's talk a lot, as well I loved the man who was talking about good better best and careers and what not, I loved the over all theme about motherhood and families. I feel I have learned so much from my mission, now is the real test it is the time to apply all these skills and lessons I have learned.
I really desire to be a better family member, to be a peace maker, to encourage and use kind words of love and respect to you all. I want to be a temple worker, I want to volunteer somewhere once a week, I want to set a curfew :), I want to get up at the same time everyday, I want to continue to improve in being a kind, loving, patient disciple of Jesus Christ, I want to do family history every Sunday start preparing names to bring to the temple, there are many goals and thoughts that I can talk to you all next week.
 
So this week I was in CBS till Thursday afternoon, that was a  great visit in that area with those sisters, then I was in St. Johns with Sister Lambert.. it is really actually quite hard to remember to call her that. Randomly I will just accidentally call her Emily... haha awkward. I actually accidentally did that talking about her to President Leavitt about her over the phone. I was in St. Johns for 24 hrs, I wish I was there longer but I had a appointment with the Whalen's Friday night and then they ended up cancelling when I arrived there which was too bad because if I would of known I would of stayed in St. Johns to help Sister M and Sister L.  It was a great visit with them though and I was able to really help them. It was quite a special experience serving with Sister Lambert. She will be a great missionary.
 
I have been in Bay Roberts since Friday night, I will be leaving here shortly as the sisters here are the STL for NFLD and they are great. I really feel I don't have much training to do for them, it has been nice serving with them and seeing great miracles here. I am guessing I will be taking the bus to Cornerbrook tomorrow then serving and training the sisters there.
 
To be quite honest I just feel really grateful to be out here, I love you all and I can't wait to see you all in  a week.  It is quite surreal, I feel like a completely different person from the time you last saw me, I thank you all for your support. I look forward to sharing with you all my mission stories.  I truly know that daily decisions determine destiny. It is a decision to make joy and happy moments, I look forward to serving you all and being a better daughter, friend and sister.
 
This is a peace of my letter to PL
" It is certainly interesting writing my last letter to you... I have a lot of mixed feelings! General Conference was certainly amazing it was the perfect thing for me to hear that helped me receive answers to many questions I came in with and as well a greater perspective as I am preparing to return home next week. I am just so beyond grateful for this experience to have served here in this mission, it is sad to me to be seeing this amazing 18 well 19 months of my life come to a close. My mission has truly changed me, has allowed me to come to know my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in a way that I don't think I could have without these many amazing experiences. I thank you for all you have done, you and Sister Leavitt have changed my life and I will always remember you both throughout my whole life; as you once said before, these truly are the days never to be forgotten! I have loved being able to train the sisters out here in NFLD I look forward to serving with all my heart might mind and strength this last week and training the sisters in Cornerbrook. It is hard to put into words the blessing my mission has been.  It is something I expected coming into the mission field, but I know the best is yet to come ... my mission has helped me just begin my lifelong path of discipleship! I am grateful that the Lord has given me this opportunity to assist and take part in His great and marvellous Latter-day work- how great is our calling!"
 
 
I know this is the Gods Church here on this earth my mission has taught me valuable life lessons and I have met some valuable life long eternal friends.  I have learned about forgetting myself and going to work, I have learned about obedience, discipline and the heavenly virtue of patience. I love the Book of Mormon with all my heart, and I desire to continue to grow, step out of my comfort zone, reach out to others, forget myself not to be selfish and just serving the Lord and Heavenly Father and His children. It is hard to put into words.
 
I feel like how I felt before I left on my mission; excited for the obstacles ahead, for the lessons to learn, the people to meet, excited to follow the Lord with all my heart, might , mind and strength but at the same time just as I was fearful entering the mission field in regards to fears of being able to teach someone or not, knowing the right scriptures to use or being able to use my scriptures at all and know them I feel that exact same with the unknown that lies ahead! But I am going to do as I did at the start of the 19 month journey here; just set my fears aside, recognize that I have many weaknesses but as I trust in the Lord with all my heart, look to serve others things will unfold in their right way and timing. As I exercise my faith, and grow and act in confidence I will be happy just as I have here. I am looking forward to what lies ahead and I am ready to put into action all the many things that I have learnt from my mission and continue in being a valiant daughter of God, one who is a light to others and leads others to glorify God, quite simply for His glory not my own. 
 
I love this gospel, I love being a missionary and these days on my mission I feel have felt like a dream, I just want to be pinched sometimes because all these experiences have been too good to be true, but the real catch is that THEY ARE TRUE!
 
I am sorry for the lack of details... but HEY I will fill ya'll in on EVERYTHING in a week!!
I LOVE YOU!
thanks for your support.
Love,
Sister Pizzey

 

Thursday, October 2, 2014

September 29, 2014

HELLO!
Ahhh mom and dad, FAMILY I am just so happy to be HERE still serving on my mission my heart is just so full of warmth! And I am just so happy! Seriously signing up to serve a mission was the best decision I have ever made for like an eternity!  
Ok ok ok so let me just describe this week quickly though because I don't have much time, but I will be seeing ya'll in like two weeks so I can just talk to ya'll about this all then ;)
 
So I am in CBS which is 20 minutes outside of St. John's which is where Sister Lambert is serving!! Too be honest.... it was really weird to see Sister Lambert, mixing family and mission life is just kind of a awkward feeling! I took Sister L out Wednesday evening for an hour or two just the two of us finding, and it was weird, just to be around someone where you are so close and all you have talked about before in the past is family, it was kind of like an elephant in the room, like normally we would talk and catch up about family like and so on and so forth but as a missionary that is just not okay, and well I feel quite passionately about the work and I am pretty sure I just came off as a really intense way different person to her, haha. that sounds really bad! but it's not like a bad things its just reality. It was really nice and special to see her but yea.
So Thursday we had the departing dinner and farewell testimony meeting, that was powerful, it was like the sons of Mosiah reuniting again! I could not help but when sister Keeler pulled up outside the temple in the transfer van I just screamed and ran towards the van we were both extactic to see one another! that was a rejoicing moment!! I started crying when I saw her hahaha wow I know. But we all attended the temple session that was special in the celestial room there was 40+ missionaries, it will be just like it will be in the eternal world all us reuniting with one another!
So after the temple the departing missionaries went to the mission home for a wonderful dinner, we had a great testimony meeting, i was crying, I am starting to cry a lot lately, like I will be studying the scriptures and just start tearing up, you think I was dad or something ;). But It was a powerful meeting and then President Leavitt spoke to us after about the 3 most significant things we should walk away with from our missions:
1) Our PURPOSE as members and missionaries to invite others to come unto Christ
2) our commission "to be a personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ by word and in deed of the divinity of His great and marvellous latter-day work"
3) that the atonement of Jesus Christ will make bad things good.
These experiences I had and felt during that night are really so hard to describe or even type it is something sacred that I would like to talk about in person when I am home.
Then afterwards we all sat down and President Leavitt gave us some wicked marriage advice... my mission has truly changed the man I will marry. Like my life just would of been so different without my mission just absolutely EVERYTHING would be different from who I marry to my children priorities, just absolutely EVERYTHING!! Then we all just kind of socialized afterwards sharing and laughing about certain mission stories! Then President said we had to go down stairs sisters, elders up stairs but he said we could talk for however long we wanted to in our bedrooms.  So Sister Keeler and just were talking all the way to 3 AM hahaha, and we had to leave at 4:30 AM. We actually both just slept on either end of the couch in the basement then we woke up at 3:45 AM and we all headed out to the airport to say goodbye to the departing missionaries! So I had an hour of sleep on Sunday and was dying but I just love Sister Keeler so much and we just were talking about everything under the sun, about all the gratitude we have from our missions! 
Then Sister Sandberg, Elder Prince and I headed back to the mission home where we sat down with Elder Clark as us 4 are the travelling trainers, and we planned our travelling plans.
So I am currently in CBS, I attended St John's branch yesterday and Blake and Lindsay everyone loves you here! They said you and Jordan and Jenni are one of the only security couples who made a difference in the branch and that they actually miss! But it was so nice to attend, being a travelling trainer you really have to learn how to develop relationships quickly and get things done quickly. 
So I arrived Friday afternoon in ST. Johns, Sis L and I flew with one another! Sister Spencer flew out who is opening CBS and her comp S Sharp was on the other end of island and had to take a bus over here for 9 hrs.  Friday Sister Spencer and I came in here and opened the area and begun getting the ball rolling, then at 10 PM sat night sister Sharp came in here and now we are in a trio, i am helping the sisters with their visions, and basic essential points of the work, it  has been a blast! At first it was a little weird to go from departing testimony night to BOOM back in the work full force opening a area/training sisters that is completely different than any area I had ever served in.  It was easy at first for me to doubt and question and for a second think... what did I get myself into? BUT I just stopped and sat back and realized that YES this is the Lords work and he will use me to further it if I allow myself to come to know His will and to do all things for God's glory not my own glory! It has been amazing to see how incapable I am in this work but yet how much the atonement of Christ will lift me and guide me to do these things that are far beyond my own abilities and capacities. 
"And I soon go to the place of my rest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest. And I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality , and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me: COME UNTO ME, YE BLESSED, there is a place prepared for you in the mansions of my Father, Amen" Enos 1 :27
I remember reading this scripture at the very start of my mission; and beside it I wrote "my goal to feel this way by Sept 2014" you know when I "die" on my mission.  I just read this today and as I did I stopped and reflected and realized how much my mission has allowed me to come to Know HIM to know Christ! To enter on the path of discipleship! In becoming more like HIM! My mission has allowed me to know the most glorious of person of all!! I have come to realize that This is the only way we can come to know the MASTER by serving His Children!

I think of the Saviors word to Peter in John 21:15-17, the Saviors love language is stated in John 14:5... if you love me keep my commandments. I love the savior Jesus Christ sooo much and I desire to keep his commandments exactly to follow Him to the best of my ability and to most importantly FEED HIS SHEEP!
What a blessing it is to be training some remarkable sisters, this mission is full of outstanding obedient dedicated missionaries! I love them all! I will be serving with Sis Lambert and her trainer Sister Mangleson for 24hrs this week I just love Sister L's trainer,she is very great and a mission will be great for Sister Lambert it will really be awakening for her but she is going to LOVE IT!!
Then I will be going to Bay Roberts this Friday where I will see the Whalen's and serve with the STL's there from Friday till next Tuesday, then I will take the bus for 9 hrs to Cornerbrook for my last stop to serve with Sister ASLETT and her trainee from Weds to Oct 11th then on Oct 12th have thanksgiving dinner at the Leavitts!!
 
Our calling is so great as members and missionaries it is above that of the kings of the earth! We have been selected as a personal representative of Lord Jesus Christ, He is our master, and He has chosen us to represent Him, to stand in His place, to SAY and DO what HE HIMSELF would SAY and DO if He personally were ministering to the very people to whom he has sent us all to. Our voice and is His voice and our acts our His acts our COMMISSION is to do what he wants done to say what He wants said to be a LIVING MODERN WITNESS in word and in deed His great and marvellous latter-day work HOW GREAT IS OUR CALLING!
We are the Lords hands and oh what joy is found when we are found doing His will, & His work all for the glory of our Father in heaven.
I love you all very much,
I will see you soon.
Love,
Sister Pizzey