Monday, December 26, 2016

Letter #23 - Happy New Years

December 26, 2016



Dear Friends and Family,

This week was exciting. So many of you reached out to me and made me
feel loved, so thank you! On Tuesday we had a mission fireside for
Christmas. It was more of a party though. We got to watch a movie (One
Dollar Christmas) and had lunch, and then a pipe broke in the church.
So we all had to evacuate and we watched a ceiling come down and the
fire department came. It was all very exciting. Needless to say, the
festivities were cut short.

Christmas Eve was spent with the Checketts family. For dinner we had
Swedish meatballs. We read Luke 2 and opened stockings! They are so
good to us. For Christmas we had dinner with the Andersons and then
the Penningtons. They were all so kind and made us feel welcome,
loved, and included us in all their festivities.

It wasn't a big teaching week. Most people were busy and with family,
which is good and bad. It's an iPad week, so this is it haha. Have a
great week and a Happy New Years!

Love,
Sister Prue

Christmas Skype

December 25, 2016


So happy to get to talk to Sister Prue on Christmas!!

Monday, December 19, 2016

Letter #22 - Merry Christmas

December 19, 2016





Dear Friends and Family,

This past week was awesome. We were able to do so much service and a lot of it was pretty fun. On Tuesday we went tracting and on Wednesday we went to the same area to do more tracting. We passed by someone we had talked to the day before while she was raking her leaves and we offered to help. She accepted our offer and so we ran off to get our service clothes, changed in her bathroom and raked leaves for about an hour before she had to pick up her grandkids. I think it helped soften her heart. We were able to learn a little bit more about her and her difficult circumstances and then bear testimony of God's love for her. 
Another service we did this week was to sing to some people at an assisted care center. We sang with about four other companionships of sister missionaries. The pastor there even let us sing in the church where the acoustics were amazing. It was a blessing and gift to us to be able to hear ourselves bear testimony of the Savior through song and it really brought the Spirit. It was a neat experience. 
We were also able to ring bells for Salvation Army this year. We rang bells for two hours and opened doors for the people coming in and out of the mall. Sometimes you don't know what muscles you have until you make them sore, haha! 
On Saturday we had an entire day of tracting ahead of us, but it was getting cold and quickly dropped from the 50s to the 20s. There was also a wind advisory out. We had planned on 70 degree weather since that was what was in the forecast and that is what we had dressed for. We live too far away from home to return once we have left for the day. Heavenly Father was merciful however, and after a prayer we were able to schedule four or five appointments to visit people for that day. It was a miracle and sign to me of my Father's awareness of me and love for me. We were able to stay out of the wind and Sister Wallace even gave us some fantastic hot chocolate.

I hope that you have been able to see Heavenly Father's hand in your life as you have reached out to others - to serve and love and care for your brothers and sisters. I am so grateful for each and every one of you. Thank you for your love and support. I am so blessed. 

John 3:16-17
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his onlybegotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 
Merry Christmas!
Love, 
Sister Prue

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Letter #21 - Transfer #4

December 12, 2016



Dear Friends and Family,

I am staying a fourth transfer here in Denton, so my address will
remain the same:

I'm fairly content with this. Yesterday we had an awesome fireside
called 'An evening of Christmas Joys' which had all the instruments
and choir caroling and musical wonders that accompany this time of
year. It was good and up to the standards set for me at BYU.
I had a great exchange with my STL, Sister Foster. We taught a bunch
of lessons and the Lord blessed us abundantly on a day that looked
like it would be full of tracting. AND we got to decorate Sister
Wallace's Christmas tree. So all my dreams came true. It did get cold
this week. I got to tract for several hours in 34 degree weather. I'm
going to have to learn what tights are...

Sorry this letter is so short. I'm on the iPad and am sick, so my
stamina is nonexistent.

Love, Sister Prue

Monday, December 5, 2016

Letter #20 - #LIGHTtheWORLD

December 5, 2016


Dear Friends and Family, 

Thanks for sharing your #LIGHTtheWORLD experiences with me! Last Monday we had two appointments set up with a different member going with us to each one. Neither one of them worked out, so we took the members out tracting with us (lucky them ;))! I think each had a good experience as we went around at night sharing the #LIGHTtheWORLD video with others. We even made a return appointment with a couple of people. Missionary work really does accelerate when the members and missionaries work together, even if it is just out pounding the pavement! I am grateful for all of the ways that our members have served us. Sister Hovenier's birthday was yesterday and our dinner appointment cancelled. Another member stepped up though and made us dinner and even whipped up a special birthday treat for my companion. 

This week we also had the ward Christmas party which consisted of a waffle breakfast followed by a nativity put on by the primary and then a service project. We made blankets, hygiene kits, busy bags, and block toys for the children who are taken by CPS (child protective services) in the Denton area. The blankets took the longest to tie and so everyone ended up working on those together at the end. It was such a Christmas sight to see everyone happily talking, laughing, and working together to make the blankets. It truly warmed my heart. Also there was a surprise visit by the three wise men at the end :)

Here is some of the service that I was involved in this week: 
Dog walking for an older woman
Visited a lonely widow on her birthday
Cleaned the church bathroom
Helped work on mailings for the local soup kitchen
Helped set up and take down for the ward Christmas party

I hope you continue to look for ways to serve one another as the busy Christmas season comes to engulf us. If you aren't feeling the Spirit of Christmas, then you are doing it wrong! ;)

Love, 

Sister Prue
    

Thursday, December 1, 2016

Letter #19 - Fall is finally here

November 28, 2016



Dear Friends and Family,

Did you see the #LIGHTtheWORLD video? Great, huh? We started using it yesterday in our tracting. We went to a trailer park for an hour and a half, and people didn't even open their doors that whole time, just maybe four or five. It was actually pretty unnerving. After over an hour, we finally said a prayer asking for direction to someone who we could talk to. We ended up finding a high schooler and talking to him and his friend. We showed them the video and we were able to make a return appointment with one of them after having a short conversation about how he has seen God's hand in his life. It was pretty cool, and I don't think we would have been able to have that conversation or make that return appointment if we hadn't had that video to show him. It really brought the Spirit and made an environment conducive to the conversation we had with him. 

It's finally looking like fall here. The leaves are falling and changing colors. The weather has been in the 50s-60s. I'm wearing my winter coat. We had our Thanksgiving meal with about 15 other people at the church and it was fun. We played Apples to Apples with a few others. Not sure if that's allowed, but it happened. Also, I've had a question or two about the Peppermint Soap. It's good. Not as strong as I would have liked, but when I really think about it, it's probably the right strength for hand soap. It makes me happy. ALSO. Sugar Cookie Pringles. You can get them from Wal-Mart. It is a bizarre experience, but one that I think is worth having. Especially if you like sugary/salty things together. 

Things I'm Looking Foward To: 
Decorating Sister Wallace's Christmas Tree
ALL THE MAIL DELIVERY TRUCKS

Love, 
Sister Prue