Monday, May 4, 2015

Roadtrips, Exchanges, New Friends, old Faces, and A NEW CAR! :D

Where do I even begin. There is so much to write about.

I'll start from the beginning. Pday last Monday was great. We got tons of stuff done, and we ended the night having a family home evening at the Shearers and learning how to play Chinese Checkers. I lost. 

Tuesday we went on an exchange with the sisters in Fairview. This is something that I have been looking forward to for WEEKS because there is a member there who is a chiropractor and he gives free adjustments to missionaries. I felt like a new person. I hope our investigators feel half as good as that when they enter into the waters of baptism. (joke).
But I got to stay in Fairview with sister Zaugg. It was so great. They were out of miles on their car so we walked around for 5 hours and I really felt like I got the full mission experience. Now I am stressing out because I worry that the Lord was secretly trying to prepare me to go into a walk area. Not okay! 
I guess that way I could get back in shape... 
Oh! Did I mention that I cut down my mile to 10 minutes? Anyone impressed yet? ;) 
Neither am I...
Ah well. 
Anyway. While I was on the exchange we went to a Relief Society activity and I won a cheesecake and it was awesome... hands down best activity of my life! Also Sis Zaugg got peanut butter fudge which was epic. (Anyone still wondering why my mile takes me 10 minutes? )
Then we exchanged back on Wednesday after district meeting and Sister Talbot and I headed to Chambersburg to go to MLC. The road trip was great. We have a new Zone Leader - Elder Stallings - and he's really awesome. So we spent the car ride asking deep soul searching questions and talking about life and how we can help improve the zone. It was grand. 
Wednesday was ALSO my favorite day because we got to see the Clarksons. I couldn't even wait to see them. I pounded and pounded on their door and they answered and I just hugged and hugged and hugged those wonderful people because I just miss them so much. 
Then they took us to the mission office and we got...

A NEW CAR!!!


it was... the single greatest moment... of... okay I couldn't figure out how to end this statement and keep it true. ;) It was a great moment. But I've definitely experienced greater.
It is a really nice car though. :) It makes a really nice vroooom noise. 
Well anyway we stayed Wednesday night with the Clarksons and had breaky with them the next morning before going to MLC. Guess who was there!? SISTER LANDA. And like a billion other people that I know and love. It was so great! So I got to sit by her and it was wonderful. And I decided once and for all that I'm going to USU and rooming with that wonderful woman. 

The next item of business is the fact that we had people visiting from the missionary department and it was the greatest training of my ENTIRE mission. No overstatement. It not only changed my mission, but changed my life. They answered SO MANY of my prayers, and straight up... just by applying the principles that they taught at that training over the last 3 days, we have already seen miracles and blessings from it. 
That's crazy. 
That. Is. Crazy. 
So yeah. To say the least, it was an incredible meeting. I feel bad for all of the people that didn't get to attend. But I still am happy that I got to be there with Sister Talbot and Sister Landa.
It was a really good time. 

Unfortunately, some good things have to come to their end... and so we headed back to Hanover with the Chambersburg Zone Leaders. On the way home, we were able to stop and help someone in the pouring rain. She was so awesome. She was stuck on the freeway and we said this prayer with her and this powerful spirit was there... It was a great experience. We gave her our phone number... but she never texted or called (at least not yet). We're still waiting!

Friday was really awesome. We got to do some weekly planning and teach a couple great lessons. Then Saturday was incredible. We picked up a family of new investigators and they accepted to be baptized. We didn't set them with a date yet, though, because we felt that the mom had a concern. We tried to ask questions, but it didn't seem like she trusted us enough yet to bring it up. So we're going to try and get to know them and serve them a little more. They are incredible and even came to church yesterday. The ward just loves them. 
That evening, we were able to meet with Lauryn and Brady (now Brother and Sister Hinton ) two of our other INCREDIBLE investigators. They're theee coolest people. We were able to give them a new baptismal date of May 30 and they seem really excited about it. We went to get Ritas afterward. It was my first time and I got Vanilla mixed with Horchata and I was on a sugar high for like 3 hours afterward and I think I woke up with a hangover the next day ;) hahaha
Sunday was also awesome. We got tons of referrals and we're excited to go contact them and hopefully pick up some new investigators and man alive this area is seriously just booming with people to teach lately. We never have enough time. It's so great! I'm exhausted! I love it! 
Sunday evening we were able to have dinner with an awesome family! Three of them are nonmembers and we watched meet the mormons and they had lots of great questions and we set a return appointment to come and teach them about the restoration, which we're really excited about!! 

Lastly bot not leastly... Today was the biggest blessing. There is an incredible couple living in the Gettysburg ward and they have been here for about 20 years. The Sister is so wonderful and she was a tour guide for Gettysburg for many years and she volunteered to take us and show us around the battlefields. So this morning we were able to go and the spirit was wonderful and she walked us through all 3 days of the battle of Gettysburg and told us a lot of historical facts about the civil war and then they took us out to get Mexican food and they are angels. 
But yeah, so basically I'm a civil war buff and I'm bringing every single one of you back to Gettysburg so I can show off my impressive knowledge. Or maybe I'll just call up this couple and rent a tour bus and they'll just take us around because she seriously knows EVERYTHING about the Civil War.
What. You think I'm joking?
You don't even know. 

Alrighty. Well that was my week. So many other wonderful things happened that I just don't have time to write about because we spent too long touring Gettysburg. But... #sorrynotsorry

I just want to thank you guys, seriously, all of you, for all of the love and support I get. For the cards, emails, packages, the help that I receive in funding for my mission, the prayers, the good vibes that are constantly being sent my way... Thank you. From the bottom of my heart. I know there are other missionaries out there that don't have the amazing support group that I have and I am grateful every day for each of you... 

I love you!! 

Happy Summer!! (Since it was 87 degrees today in Hanover... yikes!)

Love, 
Hermana Bills