emails for these cute sisters.

If you want to email the Powell sisters, you can at sydney.powell@myldsmail.net and alexis.powell@myldsmail.net. They may not respond through email, but I'm sure they will be glad to send you an email through the old fashioned way :)

Another Week in New York- From Alex

Hey Everyone!!! How are you all :) I love you so much! This week was a good week :) I am loving being here with my companions!

 

We have seen a lot of miracles this week. It started last Monday at a blitz. We knocked on a muslim ladies door named raina. We ended up going back to teach her and it really didnt go so well. lol BUT we had another appt. later taht week with someone else in her building and we saw her with tons of groceries and helped her carry them in where we met her husband who invited us back later. How cool is that?? We thought he was going to be scary but he was so nice! We also knocked on an old ladies door who

has been looking for the church for 18 years!! She has been praying and prayig to find it and knocked on her door :)

 

We taught carmelle again this week 2 times. She speaks creole and we invied a creole member to our appt. and she ended up bringing five of her friends! Which is good for us! Now carmelle has 5 member friends :) Our next lesson with her we decided to go back and make sure she understood everything bc her engilsh is not very good. Im glad we did! We ended up just teaching her about the BOM.

 

Yesterday was really good. I love Jamaica 1st :) Their spirits are so amazing. I am so glad I came here. The members want me to stay forever which is a huge compliment. I love them.

 

THis week I have been studying about patience. I love PMG's definition. "Patience is the capacity to endure delay, trouble opposition, or suffering without becoming angry, fustrated or anxious." I think one of the reasons the Lord sent me here was to learn patience. Sometimes I just want to go to brazil or have this ward be perfect right away. But everything happens on the Lords timing. Elder Scott says we must have trust in the Lord "This Life is an experience in profound trust--- trust in Jesus Christ, trust in His teachings, trust in our capacity as led by the Holy Spirit to obey those teachings for happiness how and for a purposefully supremely happy eternal existance. To trust means to obey willingly, without knowing the end from the beginning." I am working on that. I love this gospel. This gospel gives us more freedom then we can even imagine. Trust in the Lord. Have patience in His timing and with others. We are not perfect but the only perfect person God has ever had to deal with is the our Savior. Remembe Heaven is filled with those who have to be forgiven and those that have to forgive :) LOVE YOU!

 

Sister Powell

My Bishop Knows the Harkers- From Sydney

That was the best email title I could think of. By the way Harker family, thank you very much for the cookies in the MTC and your letters! I loved them. I still have your letter in reply in my backpack:) Just like everyone elses. Haha.

 

How's everyones life going? Mine is going swell. It's been really slow. Getting investigators in Livermore is super hard. I feel like everyone is curious about the church, but doesn't want to be seen talking to the missionaries.

 

I think the only interesting thing that really has happened is going to the hospital this week. Sister Fui and I are being forced into a different eating lifestyle, so we decided to go on our last horray and eat some Cold Stone. And Cold Stone has this new Lava Cake thing, which was super good. But as I was eating eat, I started feeling my throat close up, and I just kept eating it. Haha. And then I started to get hives on my hands, and Sister Fui was all like: "You better not die Sister Powell!" So she made me call the Mission Nurse and then the Mission Nurse made me go to the hospital. I was super upset about it. And then I get there and everyone is walking really slow and really not concerned whatsoever. The doctor I had had long hair, kept asking the same question over and over, and had a teddy bear sweater hoody on. But I got a shot and some benedryl. I was lucky I didn't die it took that long.

 

Since we are supporting the Elders and just teaching the Widowers, women, and Old Ladies in Livermore, we teach a lot of Part Member familes. We are teaching these two girls named Miranda and Delany. Their dad isn't a member and wanted them to wait until they were 18 to get baptized, but they aren't. They are super nice. It's cool to see two sides. Sister Zidek was like that. Her dad wasn't a member and he wanted them to wait until they were eighteen to get baptized. But Sister Zidek just knew the church is true and now she is on a mission. Miranda I feel like believe it's true, but is just scared. All I hear about constantly from every member is how great her talks are at Sacrament.

 

The other Part Member family is the Lloyds. Sister Lloyd is the only one that isn't a member in her family. Her husband is amazing adn I was super proud of seeing her sons, who were just recently baptized, passing the sacrament. She goes to church, does everything, but isn't baptized. She is amazing too. And that is pretty much our investigators. We don't got lots, but I love them. I know how important they are to the Savior. And you can tell how much their families want them to be baptized.

 

It's cool though, becoming aquainted with people on the streets and creating friends, even if they aren't interested right now. We were contacting one day, and we met this guy named Darryl. He is super awesome. I was just walking and I saw him and started talking to him. He was really mean at first: "I know all about your religion" and I was like cool. So do I.

 

Darryl: What Bible do you read?

 

Me: The New Testament and the Old Testament and we have this Book called the Book of Mormon which is another Testament of Jesus Christ.

 

Darryl: I know about that Book, but what do you think of the Bible

 

Me: Oh I love the Bible.

 

Darryl: I bet you know nothin' about the Bible

 

Me: Well, actually, This Morning I read in John 13 where Jesus washes Peter's feet. Here, let me quote it for you."Then cometh he to Simon Peter and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.

 

(I am memorizing scriptures in Portuguese)

 

Darryl: I love that message. Not only should we love people, and preach the word, but we should serve people. Here y'all are just preaching the word, what about serving and doing good for others?

 

Me: We actually just helped some people move in their home. Part of our mission is doing service. We are here to follow the example of Chirst in everything.

 

Darryl: Well, y'all do know you can't be saved by any way but through Jesus Christ.

 

Me: Jesus Christ is my savior and you are right, we can only be saved through and only through Jesus Christ.

 

Darryl: Well, it seems like you are doing everything just right. Y'all are some good people.

 

Me: Where are you from. you just said y'all.

 

Darryl: I am from Louisiana.

 

Me: ME TOOO!!!

 

And ever since then, me and Darryl have been best friends. Haha. I love that guy.

 

Other than Darryl and some Part Member familes, I haven't really talked to much nonmembers, but I have talked to a lot of lonely women who do need to talk to someone.

 

There is this woman in our ward whose husband is dying. He is supposed to die any minute. She had to make the hard descion to take him off life support. It was super hard for her. We didn't know who to visit, but as Sister Fui was driving, I told her to pull over so we could pray. I prayed, and then I opened the binder and the first thing we I saw was her name. And I felt like we really needed to go. We drove to her home, and she just started crying when she saw us. It was the 4th of July and she didn't want to go out with her family, but she did want someone to talk to. And she had been begging the Lord to send her someone and then we knocked. It was a really cool experience. I might never baptize someone in Livermore, California. But I will plant seeds in everyones mind, members and nonmembers. I think that is equally as rewarding.

 

I love y'all. I just want y'all to know that i love my mission. I love my Savior, and I know this gospel is true.

 

By the way, if anyone wants to email me (don't expect a reply) you can at sydney.powell@myldsmailnet.

 

Love,

 

Sister Powell

Its July??? Ummm... Como? hahaha- From Alex

Ummm... How is it July? Missions go by so fast! I feel like I just left! Yet I feel like I have been here forever. Sister Gonzalez and I were joined by another visa waiter named Sister Hererra. She is going to Peru and is from California. SHE IS WAY AWESOME! I love her so much! She is way motivated. She was reactived in the church when she was 17 so its cool because Im with two converts :)

 

My week was good. We had an opportunity to meet with the Bishop on tuesday. He is an amazing man and really wants us to work with the members. He knows that if you strengthen the families/ward that everything will work out and missionary work will BOOM. Families are the central unit to everything. If a family is strong they can make it through anything.

 

We had an amazing experience this week. A lady walked in and the elders gave her to us and said she wanted a church tour. She had a friend that lives in florida who is a member of the Church and she said she wanted to change her life. So what better way then becoming a mormon? haha A walking miracle! Her name is Carmelle and she is from Haiti and will be baptized in 3 weeks!!!!!!! She forgot to come to one of her lessons but made it church nontheless :)

 

We taught Sister Mohammed again. She is really depressed but I told her that because we are in a fallen state we will feel alone because we are not in the prescense of God. But as we pray, go to church, and read the scriptures we get a glimpse of the happiness we will one day have all the time :) We will one day live with God again. She told me I always make her cry. hahaha I love to teach and testify :)

 

Yesterday we met with a member named Susie. She is way awesome! She has a disability but she goes to church every week and served a mission. She is such an example to me. This week was really good. I feel so honored to be a missionary. I know as I am her I am learning from God. How cool is that? Its cool that as you give your will up you find yourself in ways you cant even imaging. Start really studying the scriptures. Study everyday. As you do it you will realize things that you already know and God will begin to teach you. Also trust God. He knows all things. Carry a penny with you. It says "In God we trust." Remember that we dont understand why things happen. But He does. I know as we trust Him and do our part by being obedient He will not abandon us. He loves us :) I know he lives and guides us. I love you so much! Pray always.

 

Sister Powell

from Sydney

Oi! Familia e Amigos e Animigas (no idea how to spell that but it means enemies;)),

 

This is going to be a short letter! So, I am on my third area! When I went to transfers, I was super sad. And then we sang Till We Meet Again, and I was just like 'meh'. My life!! But President Watkins was joking about the airline service here, applied I will probably be moved a couple more times (but it is a learning experience and will prepare me for my future), and gave me an awesome companion named Sister Fuimaono. She is from Samoa. We are speaking English. Meh. But it is awesome. We are in charge of the Livermore Stake. We are basically pink washing. I am in Livermore California, the land of wine and the super rich.

 

Everyone here either goes to Cornerstone, Trinity, or Saint Micheals. And they really hate Mormons. It's super funny and awkward. We have only one investigator, and we are here to work with all the women. The Elders are supposed to give us all their women investigators, but that would mean giving up ALL their investigators, so we are just supporting them.

 

Sister Fui is super nice. She is so funny. She has been here for 8 months. She was in the Poly Program here, so we always make fun of the white people and their lack of feeding us.

 

We have visited a lot of Widows, part member families, and less actives. There was this one woman who is 95, who was super sad. She couldn't here anything. She kicked us out after we sang to her. Ha.

 

Our only investigator is Judy. She hates the Mormon church. She has a daughter who is a member, and all of her family is too.

 

Not much happened this week. We are going to teach Judy about the Book of Mormon. Sister Fui and I are going to work so hard. We have crazy awesome leaders who are so pumped for missionary work.

We taught this lady named Sister Tuia. We were talking about her family, when I felt like I needed to tell her to bear her testimony to her children. She is a recent convert, and her children are struggling. Sister Fui felt the same too. It was awesome to feel the spirit and be united with my companion.

 

 There is so many people here waiting for the gospel. Everyone has welcomed us. So many people in this City have let us into their homes because they have never seen Sisters. The wards (and yes I say wards. CHURCH IS SO LONG!!!!) haven't seen Sisters in 20 years. All the members are so excited. We are supposed to go on splits with the Laurells and Relief Society. This Ward is going to grow. I came here not having so much faith. But it has been the focus all week. I didn't have faith in this area. People are way prideful here, and super rich. They have classes here that bash the church, it's basically the south. I didn't believe that anyone could come to the church. I just super wanted to get to Brazil. But then the Stake President turned to me and told me there was someone here just for me. I am going to find that person. There are so many good people here. And I know with the Lord's help, we can find people who are ready.

 

There is a quote that says "In the Gospel of Jesus Christ, fear is the opposite of faith. If you have fear, faith diminishes, but if you have faith, fear diminishes. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we need have no fear. We need not fear death, because we have Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ & His gift of the Resurrection. We need not fear what man can do to us, because we know that if God is with us & we have faith in Jesus Christ, we can accomplish whatsoever thing is expedient to His work...Paul teaches "For God hath not given us the Spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and sound of mind"- Brent H. Nielson.

 

I realized that the member here have the same fear I had. They thought it was enough to just be an example and to send the missionaries to do the work. Nope. They have to open their mouths (GOOD JOB BRADYN). The Lord is hastening his work, and He needs help. Missionaries need ALOT of help. My goal for everyone at home, invite nonmembers to your house and invite the missionaries too. Go out with the missionaries. Become the missionaries best friends. Invite the missionaries over to train you to do missionary work. Give them people to teach at your home. It's good to be an example, but it's even better to speak. They won't hate you for it, in the end they will love you for it!

 

I love y'all so  much. Next weeks letter will be better:)

 

Love,

 

Sister Powell