August 12, 2013

Thank you to everyone who sent me birthday love! Its been a really great day! This morning I was awoken by my roommates coming into my room singing "You've Had a Birthday!" They are so great, and all over the apartment are little sticky notes that say cute things about being 22! Also I have had 2 people now tell me... "I don't know about you, but I'm feeling 22" apparently its a song and I will understand it more later... I feel so out of the loop! haha! We went to the mission home this morning and my companion and I picked up Sister Cleveland ( the mission presidents wife) and the three of us went to get pedicures! It was probably the best birthday present I could have ever gotten myself! Then Sister Cleveland took us out to lunch, and we had a fun time talking with her about how crazy the life of a mission presidents wife is! Lets just say it didn't make me want to marry a mission president ANY time soon!!! haha!

This week was amazing! It started out long, we were going to have 3 exchanges, but we ended up moving one becasue of a baptism, so we only had 2. And on one of the exchanges I had a little surprise visator. During companionship study there is a knock at the door, and because we are missinoaries and the only people that come see us are other missionares, I just expected it to be the APs or one of the office missionaries... but I open it and there is only 1 person there instead of two, and he starts laughing, and I realize its Ty. My first thought was.... YOU CANT BE HERE!!! And then I thought.... hey.... why are you here?! He had a trip and was staying in Carmel only a mile or so away, so he thought he could just knock on my door! When he left I called President Cleveland to see if we could get lunch together and he told me we could. So he took us to Bubs (an amazing and famous burger place behind our apartment) and we had a fun time together! It was such a surprise to see him!

Then we had some of the best lessons of my mission this week! One was super intesne actually... and all the concerns still haven't been resolved yet, but Sister Moore is still working on praying and receiving an answer. She just had a bit of a blow up last week with a member telling her she shouldn't take the sacrament and now she thinks, "Why would I want to join a church that condemns me." We have reassured her that she is not condemned for taking the sacrament and that it is okay that she does, but now she doesn't want to come to church because she might see that guy who told her that there. Oh the drama. Today a member of the 70 is coming, and he will be staying all week, and we are going to have a lesson with President Cleveland in his home, and Elder Switzer of the 70 will join us, hopefully everything will get resolved there...

But we had another lesson with Sister Kelly and SIster Steigler this Friday night that was so amazing. It was in the mission home and oh man, President Cleveland is the man! I love both of my mission presidents so much! We haven't been able to finish the entire Restoration with them, so we had this lesson and we taught the whole 1st lesson, and President Cleveland jumped in when Sister Kelly was having concerns and he just laid it out for her. He told her how pray. And when I mean told her, I really mean coached her! Coach Cleveland! He's so great! And we invited both of them to be baptized in September and they said yes! The next day they came with us to a baptism in our ward and Sister Kelly said she prayed last night... and she just smiled from ear to ear! OH THE CHURCH IS TRUE! Its was so great! Her daughter Sister Steigler told us in the lesson how she felt it. She joined the Catholic church a few years back, and she said that she went to school and hours of learning to becomne Catholic, and how after she was done she felt like she knew it. She read the first part of the Book of Mormon like we asked her to, and she read it again, and again, she said she just kept going back and reading it, and she said she FELT it was true! Unlike anything she has ever felt in the Catholic church!!! Oh man what a sweet lesson! They are the greatest family, and I have loved teaching them so much!!!

We have a lesson with them tonight in the Bishops home! We will be teaching the Plan of Salvation, and I AM SO EXCITED!!! Its going to be the best! I love being a missionary so much! It hit me yesterday that I only have 6 more months... worst realization ever! I am going to work so hard the next 6 months its insane! I can't wait!!! I love being out here more than anything in the whole world! I love doing missionary work, and I love being a missionary!

Thanks again for all the birthday love! Being 22 feels so cool, but kinda old next to the 18 year old elders and 19 year old sisters. (This one sister told me she graduated high school in 2012 and I told her that was when I graduated college... to that she responded, "HOW OLD ARE YOU!?!?!" Hahahahaha!)

Have a great week,

Sister Cordner