Monday, September 30, 2013

35th Week, September 30, 2013

Surprise!

So I lost a child this last week... It was very sad..
Sister Diaz and I knew we were going to have to go down to McAllen for our 1 Companion Training. But we weren't sure if Sister Petersen was supposed to come too or we should leave her in corpus with another companionship of sisters... so I bugged the elders to find out. Well Tuesday the Assistants called(you'd think I'd figured out by now not to answer them!!!) and told us Sister Petersen would be transferred to Harlingen!
Sister Petersen cried sooo much... it was bad... and I don't know how to deal with crying! So that was an added interesting measure of fun... But we packed her up Tuesday night, left Wednesday morning for our training and she waited in the office, then her new companion came and picked her up. So its just been sister diaz and I since then! Here comes the funny story of the week...
We will call this one...

The Burning Hands Service....

So Sister Diaz and I asked a member in our ward if we could serve her in anyway because her husband had to fly to Idaho suddenly because of his mothers death... well she invited us over and we helped her make salsa!! That was fun. my compy and I chopped all the tomatoes and stuff and we got to mix it and over all it was a fun time! Well. Here is what they don't tell you about making salsa... you know those hot jalapenos and chile Serrano you put in salsa to give them that... yum factor? Well you see... when the juices get on your hands you need to not touch your face right? because it will burn. well we were good and didn't but because we had been handling them so long... the juices had seeped deep into our hands.... we went to our next appointment (which was dinner at the ward mission leaders house) and had pizza and I suddenly was very aware that my skin around my mouth was burning and my hands were burning a little... but I ignored it. That night when we got home I looked at sister diaz and could see she was in a little pain... then began the madness.
Our hands really felt like they were burning. So we tried putting lime on them... then milk.... then I tried toothpaste(don't ask why I thought toothpaste would work it just seemed like a good idea!) and everything we could think of... we called the elders... we called our Sister Training Leaders... No relief. That night we went to bed with our hands still burning and woke up a couple of times in the night in pain... Talk about embarrassing... No good deed goes unpunished my friends!! Our hands continued to burn until about... noon the next day... Then finally it was gone... but still if we wash our hands with hot water, they get the burning sensation back a little... I will never make salsa again. although I must say it was very delicious...

So that was our service excitement of the week!

Next fun story is with the relief society broadcast!! and my birthday!!! I am 20! holy cow!!! I don't feel like I should be able to say I am that old.. but after all these crazy mission experiences, I do feel that old haha. Sooo I woke up Saturday and felt pretty cool... my birthday right? We had studies and what not... Sister Garry got to call me from McAllen to wish me a happy birthday! (being in the APs ward for a while definitely gets you some special privileges haha!) Then that night we went to the broadcast!! I met a friend of Aunt Barb's and she told me about going on a date with my dad! (awkward.... ? haha we had a good laugh about it though!) She bought me a little birthday present and it was a sweet little tender mercy to have someone there that knows my family(: Sister Kreis made me a big candy gram on the back of their whiteboard and we got some pictures with it and then the elders made me a cake! It was delicious too. I am very impressed with the cooking skills of my cute little elders we drive around everywhere! However, they don't have an oven. so I bugged them for the next day about how in the world they made me a cake... finally they confessed. They made a deal with a member that they would come do some yard work if they could use his oven to make a cake(: My elders love me!

I loved the Relief Society Broadcast!! It truly was amazing and soo inspiring. It kind of shocked me at first to have them talking so much about keeping our covenants but the more they did the more I realized something... We are so excited to get people baptized and teach them, but they need to understand the seriousness of these covenants they are making with our Heavenly Father... It isn't something to be taken lightly. It is a seriously matter.

Sunday! I spoke in church!! about missionary work! My favorite thing in the world! I was really nervous about this talk. Not because of the speaking in front of people, but I wanted to tell the ward exactly what they needed to hear. Elder Dance(one of my cute little short elders I drive everyone because they don't have a car) and I spoke. We joked before hand that I would show the ward the love and then he would get after them and "jack them" for not doing missionary work. That kind of is how it turned out!

I tried to follow the spirit and what the spirit wanted them to know is that missionary work is a work of love. If we love our friends, family, neighbors, we will share the gospel with them. We need to love them enough to say something and help them come closer to their father in heaven. God loved us enough to send His son to us stop our suffering and help us find the way, do we love our friends enough to help stop their suffering? Do we love them enough to show them the way they can have their family for eternity and feel the peace and joy the gospel brings? If I didn't love my brothers and sisters I would have gone home along time ago(: Its by pushing ourselves outside of our bubble and bringing others to Him that we find really happiness and others do too. I love you all! I hope you know your Savior loves you too. He is there for us. I realized this last week more than ever that he truly is there. When we find ourselves on our knees and all we can do is cry and plead for help, He is doing all he can to comfort us and provide a way through others to help us find the light. We must be that light ourselves for those people that are suffering. Someone is on their knees crying out for your help right now. Be prepared to help them! I know that God lives and loves us and providing ways through us to bring back his lost sheep. I testify to you that He is working miracles right now in our lifes without us even realizing it. Let those miracles work through you and be a blessing to other person! I leave this testimony with you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, amen!

This week is conference! Don't forget to write down your questions of the soul and seek out the answer in the words of God's mouthpiece on the earth! I love conference! The church is true and there are people who need you!!

Sister Courtenae Nielson

 


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