The Days Go By Like Weeks and The Weeks Go By Like Days 3/17/2014

Monday again?

Well, hello friends!

This week has been a good one. Lots of tender mercies! Excepttttttt  both Sister Lybbert and I received a whopping total of 0 letters this week. I am now going to do the missionary thing and invite you to commit to send at least one missionary a nice little note this week. It doesn't even have to be me. Anyone. So, will you write a missionary this week? I can promise that if you do this, you will receive an increased measure of joy and peace in your week and an increased excitement about hearing from that missionary next time.

(If you didn't catch it, that was the most missionary thing I think I've ever said in an email. We invite people to repent by inviting them to keep commitments. We extend the commitment in a specific yes or no format and then promise blessings that they will receive for being obedient. ie; "Will you live the Word of Wisdom? I can promise you that you will feel an increased measure of the Spirit and will be able to be more receptive to the spiritual truths you are seeking.", ect)

Anyway. (:

Monday was awesome! We went ICE FISHING and I caught TWO fish!(: I caught a little bitty perch and a bluegill. We made nice friends who showed us the ropes and had a blast. Hopefully that will open the door for them receiving the missionary's next time we knock on their door.

Tuesday was awesome because I love Derald and Anita. We had dinner and a lesson with them and they are just so precious<3 I have been looking and looking for sourdough bread here in Wisconsin and so Anita made me homemade sourdough bread and Derald made us ribs and it was just so good. Derald let us borrow some ice fishing poles too! We read 2 Nephi 31 and had a great discussion about the Doctrine of Christ. It was awesome(:

On the way over to their house, we were driving alongside the Wisconsin river and it was raining lightly and I saw two swans and I just couldn't help but cry happy tears. Something about this place has just stolen my heart forever. It is so beautiful and full of life!

Wednesday was a good day. We did service at a local thrift store and had a ton of fun there and talked to a lot of people. A lot of our appointments cancelled on us because of strep throat, but we still had a great day. Sister Lybbert and I both got an easter package! Her sister sent us both easter candy and it was soooooo nice! We also were walking down the street and heard a bald eagle right after we were talking about it. That was such a tender mercy.

Thursday was kind of a crazy day. But we got to serve a less active sister and that was good.

Friday was awesome because we got to see our friends at the nursing home for service. I just love them<3 We saw that God always provides for us. Theres one apartment where we cant ever get in because the sister's doorbell thing doesn't work. EVERYTIME we go, the Lord provides some way for us to get in. We've made lots of other friends and had lots of good conversations in that building because of it. We saw 76072356826 bald eagles. The river is opening up and the birds all migrate over here to get fish. So. There are dozens of eagles in our back yard. <3 We invited our friend Tina to a relief society activity and she was really excited about it. Yay!

Oh! And we went to a reception at the Villa Louis (a Victorian mansion on St. Feriole Island) for Matt Antione. He got a bronze medal in the Olympics and is a local of PDC. We had a LOT of REALLY awesome conversations with a lot of people about missionary work and what we do and what we believe. It was an awesome opportunity to be seen in the public.

Saturday was a busy busy day. We went to the St. Patrick's Day parade which was soooooo fun and soooo good. We had a lot of opportunities to street contact and talked to totally prepared people. We went and helped out at the primary activity (which the Steiber kids came to!!!). Right after that, we helped the Richland Center Elders set up for a baptism. It was so fun(:

The Steibers came to church again on Sunday! We have really good feelings about them. I looked over at Marc during Sacrament meeting and I just knew that he was loving it. SO EXCITING.
We were prompted to invite Jonathan Morris's mom to the Relief Society activity, and that was....eventful. Of all the people I had met on my mission, she is the most anti and mean of them all. haha. She looked at me and asked me, "I thought you left the country?!" I was like "Ohhhh snaaaaap!" in my mind because I knew that she was basically telling me "I thought I told you to never come back here?", but obviously I answered very politely and Christlike that nope, I was still in the country. haha. She hates me, but that's okay.

Dalton shared the scripture during opening exercises in primary and my heart just melted. I love that kid. Cant wait for him to get baptized.

Oh boy. Lots of good things. Lots of funny little stories. Lots of potential. This next week is going to rock. (:

Onward, ever onward! <3

I'm Not Getting Transferred 3/10/2014

Dear friends,

 

I was stressin' hardcore about transfers this week. I thought for sure that I was leaving. Thankfully, certain things worked out and I get to stay for 6 more weeks. I am stoked about it. I get to continue helping the Lafave and Steiber families progress toward baptism!

 

Both the Lafaves and the Steibers came to church this week!!! The Lafaves already feel like a part of the branch so that's still awesome! We were worried about the Steibers feeling included and welcomed, but they fit in PREFECTLY too! They stayed for the Potluck after church and helped set up tables and then chatted with a couple of different families and then helped clean up and were one of the last people to leave! Good signs all around!

 

We had a great lesson with the Steibers this week. We talked about the Word of Wisdom. They are pretty solid. They don't have any real hesitations and they are still working toward baptism! Their kids LOVE us. I've never been loved by kids more than the Steiber kids love us. haha. It's so cute. They fit right in with the Branch too. So awesome to see(:

 

We had Zone Training in Madison this week. It was an awesome meeting. We received a lot of really powerful revelation on how to help our area. I went in with questions and all of my question were answered very specifically. It was a great meeting! I know that reading the Book of Mormon is the most powerful resource for true happiness and strength.

 

After ZTM, we all went to Applebee's as a district. CIVILAZATON! hahaha. Going to Madison is always so weird because its an ACTUAL city with ACTUAL restaurants and stores. I forget how small of a town Prairie and the outlying towns are until we go into Mad-town. Applebees was good! It was Elder Campbells birthday, so we made the waitresses sing to him. That was funny(:

 

I went to the doctor on Wednesday and got some blood work done and am getting some answers as the results come in. I know that part of the reason I get to stay in Prairie Du Chien is because Dr. Oates is a great doctor AND a member, so we're gonna figure me out. Or try to, at least. haha

 

We did something really odd this week. hahahaha. I was afraid that I was getting transferred, and the weather is warming up, and I REALLY want a picture of me standing on the frozen Mississippi River, so we walked over to the island and onto the river. There were 3 guys ice fishing, so we decided to talk to them. Cause that's a normal thing to do. Two girls in skirts, walking on a frozen river to talk to some fishermen about the gospel. hahaha. We got to hold a Blue Gill! And then I kissed it. Because that's also a normal thing to do. hahaha. I also learned that Blue Gill's have pokey fins and that they are actually really sharp. The things you learn...(:

 

We took our revelation and had a really bold lesson with the Lafaves. We told them that if they don't start reading the Book of Mormon every day, they will never stop smoking and never reach baptism. It was powerful and I think that they really understood it.

 

Oh. I've seen a million deer this week. Now that it's not deer season anymore, they have all come out from hiding. (:

 

Sister Lybbert and I are going to start playing a new game. It's called, "How Many People Can You Spot Wearing Camo In A Day?" So far we haven't been able to keep count. But this week we have made it a goal to do better.

 

Oh. My goal for this week is to find a kitten. Because that is the kind of goal I set...(: hahaha.

 

Basically I am just stoked to be staying here another transfer! I'll spend a THIRD of my mission in Prairie Du Chien and I am so happy about it. #favoriteplace. And I WILL see my family friends get baptized before I leave.

 

Stay happy!

Oh. Its also 46 degrees today and I think I'm going to melt. #shortsleeves #nojacket

7 months this week 3/3/2014

Time flies when you are serving the Lord.

Seriously though.

 

How in the world is it March????

I asked someone that the other day and they said, "Well. March USUALLY comes after February...?" Yes. I know this, thank you, kind sir.

 

This week was pretty good. It's been a hard couple of weeks, but I will spare the boring details.

 

I WILL tell you, however, how much I LOVE Prairie Du Chien!

 

First off. I would like to inform you all that I am a professional animal spotter. #mydaddytrainedmewell.

 

 In ONE DAY I spotted:

2 swans

6 wild turkey

8 deer

3 bald eagles

and

7 red tail hawks

 

Reason number 9246348 why I love Prairie Du Chien.

 

Reason number 1 of why I love Prairie Du Chien is that I am madly in love with the people that live here. The branch members here are the best people in the world! The families that I am working with are sooo strong and so powerful that I could just cry telling you about it.

 

The Lafaves AND the Steibers came to church this Sunday!!!! Little 8 year old Dalton Lafave got up and bore his testimony for the first time! (He's not even baptized yet!) His testimony went something like this, "I know this church is true from the experiences I've had this year. I know this is the kingdom of God. I know Heavenly Father is real even though He lives in Heaven. I know that He loves us. And I love Him. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen." Are you crying yet? No? Well. Try this. After Dalton bore his testimony, his dad, John got up. He bore powerful testimony of the truthfullness of the gospel. He said that the Book of Mormon has helped him so much, that it has helped him become closer to his wife and his children. And EVERYONE in the room was in tears. Even his brother-in-law who was at church for the very first time ever. Powerful stuff. Can't wait for them to get baptized!!! Please pray for them by name, friends. They are strong, but Satan does not want to let them join the fold.

 

On Monday, we went to the Wisconsin Dells as a District. Took forever and half to get there. Our district is ginormous geographically. We went to a place called Wizard Quest. It was fun. Its a super good idea. We failed and didnt free all the wizards, but we had fun. Then we all went and ate chinese food and laughed. Great Pday indeed.

 

Tuesday we had district meeting and then had dinner and a lesson with Derald and Anita and Elder and Sister Parkinson. I love those humans. We decided to help Derald back to the temple by talking about the priesthood. We peaked his interest and his awesome hometeachers taught him about it on Thursday. We focussed our lesson on Anita though. We went over the baptism interview questions and she is so ready. We just need to increase Derald's faith so that he will marry her before she can get baptized. She wants it so much. I think he's starting to realize that he's holding her back. Elder Parkinson literally told him that he needed to "Man up!". It was awesome. hahaha

 

We've tracted a lot this week. We went to some of the smaller towns around Prairie to see what the harvest is like over there since previous sisters didnt really venture outside of PDC much. We found a lot of potential. The people in Seneca werent too interested, but it was also -6 degrees and 7pm. The people in Eastman are sooooo nice. They are all very strong in their own faiths, but were very nice to us and no doors were slammed in our faces. The people in Bloomington are probably my favorite because they were all just SO nice to us and we got 2 legit potential investigators who are going to let us go back next weekend. Yay for families that are looking for a church to raise their family in!

 

Oh! We also moved 2 and a half TON of wood pellets into Brother Braudt's basement. We moved one ton in just over 4 minutes. We are pro. It's crazy to think that 2 1/2 ton of anything was moved by me. But. We did it. In a small little dirt floor cellar with millions of spiderwebs and spiders. All in the name of service. It was so fun.

Just after, we were going to tract in Bloomington, so we changed from our sweats and spiderweb filled clothes to prosyelting clothes in teeny little gas station restroom.I felt like a homeless person, but it was fun. The gas station people thought we were weird, but oh well. Yes, we wear skirts in this weather. Every. Single. Day.

Ciarra Butler	Mar 3 (7 days ago)
to Ruth, Shane, me, Cecelia, Rachel, Christa, Taylor, Christine, micahrolfe, Kory, Stace, Jessy, Quinn, armyvethermes, devyn, Jude, Logan, austinb25, Preston, Raichl, Brittany

Oh! We went to Richland Center for a luau with the branch out there! The Elders invited us to go! It was fun! There was a good number of people there and we even got to have some good chats with nonmembers! The Elders were happy that we were there and that we had a good talk with them. Hoping for some potential there! We played trivia about Hawaii and I got 11 right! We played Bingo and ate Hawaiian Haystacks and had tons of fun. Elder Smith challenged me to a hula hoop competition, which was HILARIOUS. I wish I could send you the video. It was a terrible set-up. Elder Smith ROCKS at hula-hooping and I apparently SUCK. So funny.

Alooooooha 2/10/2014

As I was JUST emailing my twin cousin who is serving in Chile about going to BYU Provo with me instead of BYU Hawaii, I remembered that I am living in the opposite of tropical paradise. BUT. I love it.

(and really Tay...BYU can be fun toooooooooooo)

There are miracles happening in the PDC! 

SEVEN BAPTISM DATES!

<3

The Lafave family has had a date since December, and so those 3 have carried over, but we got 4 more this week. The Steiber family is so prepared for the gospel and is working toward a baptism date of March 29! God is providing families for us to teach!

Tuesday we had District Meeting in Richland Center as usual and it was great. The district meeting right after transfers is always weird cause your friends leave and then the meeting is full of strangers and there is a shift in the dynamic of the district. So, that happened. I think it was even weirder because it was the first transfer than any changed happened since I got here. But it was a great meeting. Elder Rudarmel was sick, so it was pretty chill and there were no throw downs. We talked about prayer and we set goals for the district. Sister Lybbert and I accounted for like...half of all the numbers we set. So we have our work cut out for us. haha. Each of the numbers we set had a name behind them, so it was good. 

We had a really great lesson with Robert that evening! We taught the Plan of Salvation with the Parkinsons and it was so good! The Spirit was strong and Robert understood everything. We tried to set a baptism date, but he wouldn't go for it. We threw down with the Spirit and read from Mosiah 18. He said that he knows its true but he wants to make the decision on his own and on his own time. Which, I can understand...so we are being patient.

On Wednesday we had the bright idea to go out and walk and tract and contact people ALL day. So we did. We walked to the thrift store that we volunteer at. And then we walked some more. And then we started getting really cold. And so we walked some more. And then when we couldnt feel our knees or fingers anymore, we started frantically knocking on doors, praying that someone would please have a female at home and would love to hear about the Restoration or Plan of Salvation or how the Book of Mormon can bless their lives. We got a new investigator, but he was home alone and so we said ciao and braced the cold again. We texted the Parkinsons to ask how cold it was to find out it was -3. That explained a lot. For some reason I was dumb that morning and thought that I'd be fine with only one pair of thinner tights, no sweater, and no handwarmers. HA. Funny, Ciarra. Nice try. So we went to the Parkinsons and they made us hot chocolate and drove us home, where we had dinner and then went out again. (We drove that time). 

We did have a lot of fun though. We bought Matt Antione buttons from the City Hall. We wish we could watch the Olympics and support Prairie Du Chien while supporting America., but we will support the Lord instead. But you can do both! Feb 13-15. Skeleton race. Cheer for Matt Antione. It's my goal to teach his family. 

Thursday we weekly planned and it was great. hhaha. We also had a really awesome lesson with the Stiebers and talked about the gospel of Jesus Christ (faith, repentance, baptism, gift of holy ghost, and enduring to the end). They are solid. Sister Lybbert and I are so excited and cannot wait for them to be baptized and then sealed and it'll be the happiest day of rejoicing! But I'm jumping the gun a little bit...(: Their little boy Tyler, loves the Book of Mormon and thought that it was the greatest day ever when we told him we could keep the copy we gave him. We used the "Elder Q" approach and explained to him that the Book of Mormon is literally buried treasure using the picture of Moroni and he thought it was the best thing ever! So cute(:

Oh. We also got a text from the zone leaders of the zone goals for this month and we laughed our faces off because they are the same as the DISTRICT goals we had set on tuesday. hahahaha. We also realized that missions ruin your sense of humor because thats probably not funny to any of you at all. But we laughed till we cried. #weAREthezone

Friday we volunteered at the nursing home and had Happy Hour with all our friends. I love those people<3  

We had a lesson with the Lafaves and Sister Oates and it was really good! They had started smoking again and they have to quit for 2 weeks before their baptism, so we set ways to help them quit. We wrote out a calendar of how many cigarettes they could have each day, cutting out 3 or 4 a day. We talked about what else could help them. Sister Lybbert and I decorated their porch where they smoke with crepe paper and scriptures and quotes and gave them DumDum suckers and cinnamon gum and a CD of hymns to play in their kitchen and an addiction recovery book and info about call in meetings and a list of 10 things to do before they smoke. So far they are right back on track! PRAY for them, friends! They really want to be baptized and they know Satan is doing all he can to stop them. Pray. pray. pray. 

We spent Saturday in Fennimore and Boscobel and had some great adventures there. We had a great lesson on faith with Derald and Anita and had dinner with the Johnston family and found a new investigator and a less active sister. It was great. 

OH!

And Sister Lybbert taught me how to play the best game ever. It's called, "Hello Cow!". Heres how to play. 1) You look out the window while you are driving until you spot a cow. 2) you slow down. 3) roll down the window. 4) stick your head as far out as you can.  5) yell HELLLLLOOOO COW! as loud as you can. 6) watch as all the cows look at you in acknowledgement because cows are very polite animals and will always use their manners and look at you when you are speaking to them.

True story.

She's really good at Hello Cow. I'm really terrible because I laugh too hard. But I'm practicing. There are a lot of cows to greet here, so I should get good soon.

Oh. We also are pro at catching snowflakes in our mouths. oh. And running down a street we are tracting with full force and then throwing yourself into a nice slide. Thats my favorite game. If there is ice, then i WILL find it and I WILL slide on it. (usually on purpose).

Sunday was great because PDC branch rocks! We visited Kevin and told him to read his scriptures because he recently broke his ankle and is sad. Then we had a lesson at the Oates home with the Steiber family! We watched the CES Devotional by Tad Callister.http://www.lds.org/broadcasts/article/ces-devotionals/2014/01/what-is-the-blueprint-of-christs-church?lang=eng&media=video#watch=videoWatch it right now! It is bold and true and so good and it will fill up your tank and you will cry with joy because you will remember how thankful you are for the knowledge of the restored truth of jesus christ. Do it. now. 

Anyway. It was a great lesson and the Steibers loved the video and I was afraid that they'd think it was too bold, but they didnt because its the truth and they know it. 

Tonight we have Family Home Evening with the Lafaves and the Branch President and his awesome family and we are stoked!

I love this work and I love my friends here and I love Wisconsin and I love Jesus. The end.