Nuggets of Wisdom

Oct. 26th, 2015

Hello Everyone! and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!! :) :) :)

What a happy time of year. The leaves are changing colors, the air is crisp and cool, everything is flavored Pumpkin. we get to carve pumpkins and dress up! I love the fall!

This was a nice week.

On Saturday we had Zone Conference. It was motivating! But the best was at the end when President Griffin spoke. That's always the best part :) He wasn't originally going to talk, but we were all glad he did. He talked about 8 points to become a better missionary/person. 

1. Cynicism creates numbness toward life.

2. Instant gratification is counterfeit happiness.

3. Commandments/Laws/Rules help you learn.

4. Your not the exception to the rule.

5. It’s the daily little decisions in life that determine our 

destiny.

6. Surprise! Every person or missionary is not yet perfect.

7. You get as much out of something as you put in it.

8. Working in the Lord’s vineyard is AWSOME!!! 

He then gave us a promise that if we would each say a companionship prayer to be led to those who were ready for the gospel, but needed our individual personalities/strengths, fasted for it and then worked diligently for it, that a baptismal date would come. The spirit was strong and you could see the whole zone committed to it. We took his promise to heart and have begun to put it into action! We'll update you on the success :)

We had an experience where we again were able to see how God aligns our days perfectly so that we can be where we need to be at the time we need to be there. We had an investigator who we had taught once - a really good lesson! He asked all the right questions. But we hadn't been able to get in contact with him since. It has been about a month. We decided we would stop by one more time, but if he wasn't there, we would drop him. Beforehand we had felt directed to take time to contact a group of referrals we had received from an investigator. It was out of our way, but we did it. No results. All of them were not happy to see us and slammed the door in our face. That was when we went up to see Jay. If we had come 5 minutes earlier he would have been our working or in the shower. If we had come later, he likely would have been in bed! Good thing God knew that and led us there in the perfect window of time. We had an excellent lesson with him! He had thought a lot about our last lesson and had been reading the pamphlet that we left. He has had many experiences that have prepared him for the gospel and I believe he will happily embrace it.

Happy fall and halloween to everyone! Keep on moving forward :) "His Work, His Way by His Power" - Our mission motto from Preach My Gospel :)

Love, Sister Trommlitz

The Parable of the Lost Keys

Oct. 19th, 2015

Big fish there in North Carolina???

What a week!
We created FHE games for all the families in the branch (there aren't too many of them) and have been sharing it with them this week. They involve getting to know each family member better and encourage them to be a happy family :) We have been able to see the power of FHE this week as we have been in their homes. It unites families- even if the childrens' ages are spread apart! It brings in the spirit and helps them to have it more throughout the week. FHE is a way to work miracles in the family. 

They made a "Barbie" cake (sort of :)) for Sister Newton's birthday.  Ha! 

Nathan is really looking forward to his baptism! And his wife is simply giddy with excitement. She has waited for years for this day to come. As we have been teaching him she has begun to come to church more regularly.

 
The spirit has been really strong this week. I think it is because we have tried to listen better - listen to our investigators, the spirit, and each other! Empathetic listening. It has helped us more ways than one! We have greater love towards everyone, we are better led to do the will of Heavenly Father, our lessons have more power to them, etc. What a difference a little thing makes. 

Some fun pday stories for y'all: Last week we wanted to take pictures to put on little cards for everyone! So we drove out to a place with the beautiful fall colors and started our little "photoshoot" :) We ended and began to walk back to the car, but couldn't get in! I didn't have the keys.... I looked through the window at my bag sitting on the backseat. It had to have my keys in it! I must've left them in there when we made a split-second decision to leave our bags in the car!
Ugh.... Luckily, we were within a 5 minute walk to a member's home, so we walked over there and they called the locksmith. The locksmith came, unlocked the car, and I reached in to grab my bag. The keys weren't in there!! Where could they be?! So we retraced our steps, and there they were. On the ground where we were taking pictures... So we just rolled our eyes and laughed. What else could we do?!

Sister "Utah" and the internal spiritual battle

One of the members made chocolate e'clair cake!  A family favorite!  Made her feel right at home! 

From Oct. 12th, 2015

Fun Story: Hermana Kivett and I subbed for the music during sacrament Meeting yesterday and right after church ended, one of the returning members raced up to me and said, "so..... me and the spirit were having a little battle. He told me to go up and bear my testimony and I said no, but then the spirit asked, "what's it going to take to get you up there?!" and I responded, "if 'sister Utah' goes up, I will." He said it wasn't 2 seconds later that I (Sister Utah) stood up to bear my testimony. ha! He said he had to apologize cause it was his fault that I had to get up and speak. :)

I love you all! Have a great week!

We were driving back from Robbinsville and sister Newton lets out a little squeal. "I just saw a black and yellow turtle climbing a telephone pole!!" we didn't believe her. No way! But she insisted! So we turned around to see what this was all about. To our surprise there WAS a turtle on the telephone pole! but it wasn't climbing. in fact, it wasn't even moving! It was just a wooden turtle! hahaha! but when you're driving 55 miles/hour and get a brief glance at it, it sure does look real! :) 

And the Rains Came Down and Floods Came Up...

This is from her Oct. 5th email.  I'm a little behind...hoping to get caught up!  

The morning run that ended in rain! A good drying mechanism!

There was some worry, due to the hurricane hitting the east coast, that, here in Murphy, there would be terrible flash floods as well as trees falling over due to saturated soil combining with heavy winds, but all is well. We sure did get a good amount of rain which did cause a little bit to find its way into our apartment! But no severe flash floods. We were told that we were not allowed to drive over rivers, gorges, canyons, or standing water. Let me describe Murphy to you: Rivers, gorges canyons, dirt roads.... I think you get the picture. We were stuck inside for a good while :)

For only getting 4 days to work (one of them being pday...) we still got a lot done and saw many great things.

In conference, President Monson told a story about building the BYU Jerusalem Center and an Israeli Official making a comment about the light that is in the eyes of the students that would be attending there. That light comes as we embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ and we saw that in Ashley and Eve this week. They are currently less-active members, and we have been working on helping them to start reading the Book of Mormon and now doing it on a more regular basis. Right when we walked into their home, we saw it. We saw the light in their eyes because they had been reading the Book of Mormon. We didn't even have to ask, we knew that they had been reading! And sure enough, they were happy to report that they had been in the Book of Mormon several times this week and they too noticed a difference in themselves.

Any step we make towards God, he blesses us for. He blesses us way beyond what we sacrificed to get there. What a blessing it is to have commandments.

Julie and Jack are soooo happy. As they have fully jumped back into the church we have seen them completely change. We brought a member to our last lesson with them who asked if they had felt any change in their life after being baptized and returning to the church. They both delivered beautiful testimonies about how Jesus Christ and his gospel had changed their lives. One of the most powerful things that I have ever heard. The atonement is real. It is there to help us and I can testify that it does. It allows us to overcome things and is also the thing that gives us the strength to do so!

There is a family that is coming back to church after 7 years - a strong family. They had forgotten that it was General Conference and had woken up late, but the young 6 yr. old was devastated that she was going to be missing church! so She convinced her parents that, even late, they should still go to church. It worked out great because they got there right in time for General Conference! They were surprised, but also very thankful. As I thought about that, I recognized how much God will help people come back to church. He wants them back. He NEEDS them back. And he will orchestrate events in their life so they can grow closer to Him, if they choose. It was a small act that many could call a mistake or coincidence, but I truly felt that God had led them to the church to watch General Conference because He knew how much it would strengthen them. God is continually working with all of us. God will help those that we love to return to full activity (aka full joy) in the church. He will also direct us, his servants, on how we can help those that we love. 

It's so fluffy I could die!!

 

 

 

General Conference is the Same Everywhere!

I absolutely love it here in Murphy however, with it being so tiny and spread out here, sometimes I forget how big the church is everywhere else!  But on Saturday at the women's conference I was reminded that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints really is a worldwide church. I felt so unified with all of the different Sisters around the world and also with my Savior. So much direction from our leaders during that session of general conference.

This week was great! We starting teaching many new investigators who all seem to be interested and have a lot of potential. Nathan is still doing great! Because of past religious background, he didn't know what baptism was or the importance of it. The pure doctrine of baptism really is so hopeful and exciting! It was fun to teach it to someone who has a fresh sheet of paper.

Exhausted hard-working sisters

I know, this picture is rotated weird, but we can't fix it for some reason and I had to include it!  It captures the missionary life so perfectly! 

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is my favorite lesson to teach. I love them all, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the core of this life. By living His Gospel we can find joy during times of trial, hope in times of despair and the satisfaction of continually being able to improve and progress. It applies to everyone at all times of their lives, in all aspects of their lives. I forever, through eternity, am grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ.

I know, it's groce!  But I had to at least do a small picture of their sewer backing up!  Memories of mission life...

A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition!

A highlight: Julie was baptized. It was a wonderful baptismal service with the spirit very strong throughout. The best part was after the service she said, "I just feel good and happy. I feel clean." She has the temple in her sight! This was not only a great experience for her, but also for her husband who, after a little journey, was able to baptize her. Everyone in the branch is thrilled to see him coming back to church, this time with his beloved wife.

Nathan is the husband of a member and as we teach him, he is making great progress. This past week we extended a baptismal date and accidentally said the wrong month, which just so happened to be the weekend he was planning a surprise trip with his wife. So he had to spoil the surprise just for us to tell him we were talking about the month before! whoops...... But he still accepted! ha! He has begun to notice all the blessings God is giving him. When we asked why he thought God was blessing him, he said well, "my wife would say that it's because I am reading the Book of Mormon and meeting with you." We laughed a little and said, "no no...,. why do YOU think he is blessing you?" He got quiet and then said, "the same reasons. Because I am reading the Book of Mormon and going to church and meeting with you." He has recognized a very important principle of the gospel. God gives us commandments to bless us. It's a blessing to have commandments!

This week was also monumental because I completed a bucket-list item that I have had for several years! I washed my hair in the rain! I just doesn't rain in Utah like it does here. You can truthfully say, "when it rains, it pours!" One night this week was one of those occasions. As soon as we noticed that it was raining that hard, we changed as fast as we could into clothes that could get wet, grabbed the shampoo and out we went! We changed so fast I forgot to take out my earrings! (as you can see in the picture :))

Change...the name of the game

One of the best parts about serving a mission is seeing change, especially in people. You see change in the people you work with, in the branch/ward, and yourself. But another change we have seen is the change in this area! From the time sister Cameron and I got here, we have seen it grow from a unstable near nothing teaching pool to now a strong teaching pool that continues to grow! It is so exciting to see that change. Yes, at first it was discouraging. I can't lie about that. But now it is so fulfilling. After hard work we are seeing great miracles in Murphy, North Carolina! 
This week sister Cameron was transferred. She is an amazing missionary and friend and a loved serving with her. Hermana Kivett is the newest missionary in Murphy and I am looking forward to spending the next several months with her. She is incredible! She is from Rexburg, ID (continuing my streak of only Utah and Idaho companions 😀) and I love her!

This week was the first week using our area book and planner on our iPad which was quite the adjustment, but SOOO convenient.

Julie is still working towards being baptized in the next couple weeks! She is so receptive to the spirit which makes our discussions wonderful. In so many ways she motivates her less-active husband to come back to church and get his life where it needs to be. She sees the difference that it makes in him and enjoys the blessings it brings into their lives.

We also saw a change in heart of a less-active member who happily welcomed us into her home. When we have met her at her mother's house, she was normally very closed and not willing to listen to us and if she had the choice she wouldn't have let us in. But we stopped by her home this week and were shocked when she smiled and welcomed us in! We had a quick lesson with her and said a prayer with her and her children who also were interested in the lesson. We are excited to continue working with her and strengthening her family.

Change can happen to anyone at anytime; for good or for bad. Never become content with where you are. Continually strive to improve. make a vision for yourself, set a goal, make a plan, then go achieve it!
Through the Savior we can always change and that's the good news of the gospel.

I love you all! Have a great week!