Monday, February 23, 2015

Shalom,

This week was good with much anticipation about out bound but alas I am not going. Oh well! All is well because I get to be here for conference. Unreal that it is almost conference time again. I am happy for Sister Yunda because she is going out bound to the Texas Houston South mission. It is the same mission that S. Cardus went to so I guess they send all the Latinas there. So, since she is leaving that means another new companion! Maybe another Spanish speaker, I hope.

Remember my rant about Anthony? The one that called in because somebody gave him a pass along card? Well, I lost contact with him for about a month and then this Friday I got a hold of him and he did indeed get baptized and confirmed on Feb 8th! That was the highlight of the week for sure.

Teaching my African friends is so fun. Allen (the one in Cameroon) is a really huge inspiration. He lives about 3 hours away from his church but he is so faithful that he does what it takes in order to get to church every Sunday. I will admit that sometimes it is difficult for me not to teach these people face to face. I am grateful that we will be getting ipads soon and that we will be able to teach them over skype. We have been receiving training on how to further the work through technology and it is amazing the results they have seen so far in other missions. It also gives me a reason to travel the world and visit all these people so that's a bonus.

That's true mom! It is funny how your perspective on things changes so quickly when you are placed in a new situation. For example, I thought 9am church was rough but now I am happy when I go to church at 7:30am. "Oh how the turn tables"-Michael Scott

I know this church is true and I am grateful to be apart of this work and to spend another transfer in this wonderful mission. Pray for me because I am nervous for the assignment I might receive!

Love always and forevers,

Sister Leavitt ♥

Proverbs 3

 5 ¶Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
 

My baby Ecuadorian is going out bound!

 

Monday, February 16, 2015

Hi Fam,

Thanks so much for the package I really loved it! Those packages really make my day so thank you. Its funny, I thought you sent me some healthy food then I looked inside the fruit box and found cookies! Also, I went to my eye exam last Monday and turns out I am a little bit nearsighted. He said glasses are not completely necessary but if I want them I can get them. I think I will get them just to wear sometimes. I am going to set up an appointment this week and order some if that's okay?

Things are going really well here on the square. I can not believe that it is week 5 of this transfer and my time with S. Yunda could possibly be coming to an end :( Just so you know if I am going out bound next transfer I would find out next Monday and they want us to call and let you know where I am going! So be watching out for that potential call :) Don't get your hopes up too high though because I am not positive that I am going. Either way I would be happy because I have a lot of people I am teaching now who will be more prepared for baptism next transfer. So basically "Ill go where you want me to go Dear Lord." Except maybe not Las Vegas Nevada out bound...please no.

Yvon got baptized on Saturday! I did not even try to ask her if we could skype cause I know she does not know what that is (She's in her late 70s and I have been teaching her for 3 months and I have to tell her my name every time) but I did get to talk to her shortly after the baptism and she said she felt "lifted." Her fiancé Richard baptized her and they were both so excited about that. They are so sweet together and I am so glad they found each other. I am grateful that the Lord prepares the hearts of his children long before the missionaries come into the picture. I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is for all ages, colors, shapes, and sizes. It is truly a plan of happiness created for every person. Jose Luna's baptismal date got moved to this weekend so his wife who is a member could attend. We are very excited for him and his wife this has been a much anticipated day for both of them. I love working with Spanish people so much it has really been a blessing having such a big part of my mission dedicated to teaching and learning from them.

Guys, my dream came true this week. I got a referral from Africa! I can't remember if I told you about Kevin but I met him a couple weeks ago on chat. Kevin got sent here to the U.S from Cameroon Africa because it is not safe there in his Country. I am not so certain about the whole story because it is kind of hard for me to understand him, but you know all of that craziness that is going on there? Yeah he got sent here to avoid that. He has been here for maybe a month and he remembered going to a LDS church service in Africa and he knew it was true so he got on chat to try and find out more. Kevin is just the homie he is so cool and prepared and he asked if we could teach his family in Africa. We are now teaching his cousin Allen who is still in Cameroon. The phone lines are a little sketch but we were able to send him to the nearest church and he says he knows it is true as well. Like I said the Lord is preparing the hearts of his children all over the world. I can not wait for the day when the gospel "has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done." For now the work is not done so I will continue working :) I love and miss you all! Thanks for the support and prayers.

much love always,

Sister Leavitt ♥

 

 

Cookies!

Sister Yunda-"Hey lets take a selfish!"
Me-"Uhhh...you mean a selfie?"
Sister Yunda-"Yeah that one."

 

​Galentines Date!

​My home ♥

Monday, February 9, 2015

TALOFA,

Happy Birthday on Wednesday, Jibberton! I love you mucho!!

This week was really great! We have been teaching Anthony like crazy but he will not be getting baptized for a couple weeks because he needs to go to church 3 times. He is jumping the gun on a lot of things and he can not wait to get into that baptismal fount...founte?...font?...fant? Not sure. This coming week we have 2 baptisms! One is Jose Luna he is Sister Yunda's eternal investigator who is not so eternal anymore! His wife is a member and has been waiting for him to get baptized for years. He has gone through many many sets of missionaries but Sister Yunda has been able to teach him and touch his heart in ways that no other missionary was able to. Shes awesome! We are very excited for her! This is her first Hispanic baptism. He is originally from Mexico but is currently living in New Jersey (yeah dad!) So we are looking forward to skyping that on Sunday. Can I just say that my understanding of Spanish is like perfecto now! I can sincerely follow conversations. I just can't speak it but I am working on it :) 

The second baptism this week is Yvons! Okay, Yvon is like 73 years old and she is the cutest thing on the planet. She lives in a retirement home and she met the love of her life Richard there (they are getting married in June, so precious.) Richard is a member of the church and wanted Yvon to learn about the gospel. The retirement home that they were in a lock down because there was some kind of virus going around so nobody could go in or out. Richard called in and asked if I could give her the lessons on the phone. The first time I taught her she committed to baptism. I have been teaching her for about 2 months now and it was just 3 weeks ago that she was able to go to church and meet with the local missionaries. She is such a sweet spirit and she can not wait for Richard to baptize her :,). It has truly been a blessing getting to teach her!

One of my absolute favorite people I have been teaching lately is Thong. No, that is not a typo that is his actual name. It is still difficult for me not to giggle every time I say it. Haha, anyway, he is one of the Vietnamese Monks that Sister Garcia and I took on a tour last transfer. He is so hilarious he says he wants to date me when I get home. I say, "Thong you can't date me you are a Monk" and he says, "I told you many time I am man too." He wants to get married so bad and he says he does not even really like being a Monk. It cracks me up. It is so humbling teaching him because he is a super religious person but does not know who God is. It has been a difficult concept for me to understand. I am teaching him very slowly and yesterday he prayed for the first time over the phone. I explained to him very simply how to do it and he said the sweetest most simple prayer from his heart. He is progressing, but very slowly. I know that God is aware of all of his children regardless of their current religion or background. 

Thats all for this week folks. Happy Valentines day xXOOoXOXxxO kiss kiss....little kiss

LOVES,

Sister Leavitt ♥

 

Sisters from the MTC that are going to visitors centers on their missions come here right before they leave to receive training. I was privileged to train this beaut, Sister Cuenca from Las Vegas. She is going to Portland, Oregon visitors center. VC's rock. 

 

Monday, February 2, 2015

Dear Fambam,

Happy Groundhogs day! What is it... if the groundhog sees his shadow then there is another month of Winter but if he doesn't then its Summer already? Since when does a groundhog control nature? What a ridiculous holiday. I will never understand.

Anyways, things are great here! It has been another amazing week here on T2. Sister Yunda and I are doing really well. We have been teaching a lot. I can not believe that we are already on week three of this transfer. I think I will be going outbound soon which I am excited for because the square is getting a little bit dead. It has been nice though because we really have been able to focus a lot on our investigators and their needs. We have 5 baptismal dates this transfer. One is getting baptized this Saturday. Before I tell the story of Anthony, I just want to restate my testimony of pass along cards and member missionary work. I know that a lot of people do not get to see a result of their actions in briefly sharing their testimony and handing them a card. I have been blessed to see the results of these actions and it is powerful! Anthony called in because he received a Temple Pass along card. He called in on Friday and I answered the phone and shared my testimony of the Book of Mormon with him and I gave him the address to the nearest church. He went to church, felt a spiritual confirmation that the church is true, and met with the missionaries to tell them he wants to be baptized this Saturday. We are teaching him every day and sometimes even twice a day with the local missionaries to make sure he completely understands the Gospel. If all goes well, he will be baptized this Saturday. The Lord is preparing the hearts of his children all over the world. I invite you to pray for missionary opportunities every day and I promise the Lord will give them to you. The work is hastening and although 88 thousand missionaries worldwide is a lot, it is not enough! Share your testimonies! Give out pass along cards! Embark in the service of God! It makes a difference I promise. One of Gods children is entering the waters of baptism because somebody in Kentucky decided to give Anthony a pass along card. 

Okay, I am done. For now :)

I am glad the family is doing good. I will be praying for Grandpa Leav.  I hope his treatments go well just keep me updated. The Kitchen looks great! Good luck with phase 3-10. I think I will go have my eye exam today. I'm kind of nervous for some reason.

The church is true. Thank you for your prayers. I love you all!

-Sister Leavitt ♥

My companion really likes selfies as you can tell......:) 

 

 

Monday, January 26, 2015

Hi Fam!

     It has been too long! 11 days without a P-day is too long! A lot has happened since the last time I talked to you! A large amount of the mission left on Wednesday and one of those dear Sisters that left is my BFF Sister Tan. We have grown really close from living together my first 3 transfers and it was hard to watch her go but it is okay cause she already invited herself to be in my wedding so I will see her if/when that happens :)The Lord blessed Sister Garcia and I with the opportunity to teach and baptize 2 of our investigators before the transfer ended. Ryan got baptized on the 17th of January and German got baptized on the 18th. We met Ryan on Temple Square and the Elders in the SLC mission were able to work with us in teaching him and baptizing him within a couple of weeks. He is 16 years old and had a tough past but the Elders were really able to relate to him and help him quickly. He actually had a court case a couple days before the baptismal date and there was a large chance that he would go to Juvy but after much prayer and fasting the judge allowed him to community service instead. It was an incredible blessing to see his conversion and how the atonement can change every aspect of a person including their physical appearance and domineer. He is just such a great kid and it was incredible being able to teach him. I have such a strong testimony of the atonement and I have been able to see it working through people right before my eyes. I have also been able to apply it to my life every single day. This is something that I did not even really know was possible but it is something that my trainer taught me and it has made a huge difference in my life and within my mission. We were so blessed to be able to attend Ryans baptism it was a really great experience. German was baptized in Mexico! We tried to skype it but the connection was really bad so we only heard bits and pieces. It is so fun seeing these people that I teach for the first time cause a lot of the time they look a lot different than how I imagined! 
     It has been a really great transition though I am really happy! Sister Yunda is the bomb. She is the cutest little Ecuadorian we have a good time together. This transfer so far has just been really nice we are both fairly new in the mission and have a lot of learning to do together so we have just been taking it day by day and have been blessed with finding a lot of new investigators. We found 8 just in this past week and we put 3 of them on date yesterday. I have been lucky because I haven't had to move apartments at all so that is way nice. I am not at Guest Services anymore but I do have a new assignment as Supply Coordinator. So naturally I coordinate the Supplies that come in to Temple Square like all the pass along cards and maps and what not. Pretty exciting huh? No its fun we get to be gangsters and roll around a little wagon full of supplies for every one so its cool :)

      Austin is turning into a stud every Sister that sees the Christmas card says "Who is that?!" Sister Tan and Sister Cardus pretend to fight over him in front of me because I get really mad and they think its funny so Aust you should feel cool!!! Also, I have come the the conclusion that you got a dog to replace me. It is the only logical explanation. You have gone like 25 years without a dog and the moment that I leave you get one to try and fill my presence in the house? Did it work? Anyways I am really hungry so I am going to go now but I love you all so much! Peace and blessins.

 -Sister Leavitt ♥

A little piece of my heart went back to Thailand on Wednesday :( I love my sister Tan sooo much!!!

Sister Yunda and I :)

Ryan's Baptism!

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Hi Mom! This letter will be short because my pday got changed back to Monday but they said I could take a couple minutes today to let you know that I am alive! I have a new companion! Her name is Sister Yunda and she is from Ecuador! Another Spanish companion can you believe it? I think I will be fluent in Espanol by the end of my mission. She is a transfer behind me and she is really sweet and funny. I can tell it is going to be a good transfer. Anyways, I love you and I will talk to you soon.

love, Sister Leavitt ♥

Thursday, January 15, 2015

HI!
     I can't believe this is the last week of the transfer! Transfer conference is on Monday and I am kind of nervous because I know for sure that I am getting a new companion. We found out yesterday that Sister Garcia is going to be a Zone Leader! So cool, I am basically just a Zone Leader trainer. All my companions becomes ZLs :) She is going to be great though. I just wish we didn't find out so early cause now I'll be nervous all week. We also found out who is going outbound next transfer and all of the Sisters in the class above me except maybe 5 are going outbound so that means I might be next! I am excited to see what will happen but I know that it will be either next transfer or the one after that.
      I had a lot of great experiences this week as usual! When I said that we have no idea who we will take on a tour I was not kidding. A couple days ago we took three cute little Monks on a tour and it was a really cool experience. Monks are hard core in what they believe. They dedicate their entire lives to Buddhism and just travel and teach people all the time. It was really interesting teaching them because they are really religious people and yet they don't believe in Jesus Christ. It was hard for me to understand. One of my favorite things to do is take people to the Temple Model and testify that families can be together forever. When I was explaining this to these three little monks they had the biggest smiles on their faces and the spirit was so strong. All three of them accepted copies of the Book of Mormon. One of them said "thank you for sharing that Sister" and then he actually gave us his number and told us to call him in a couple days. Well we called him yesterday and he said "No, I can not, I am Buddhism," but it was a cool experience anyways.
   Update on Charles: I talked to John again on Wednesday and he fed me some malarkey about him finding out that Charles got stabbed. I believed him but then I called Charles yesterday and found out that was NOT TRUE. More importantly though, he answered! He is going to come back to Temple Square on Saturday and I can not wait to see him again. He is one of my most favorite people in the world. When we talked yesterday he said he missed me and Sister Cardus and that he knows he is going to get baptized someday.
    Some other good news is that we have a baptism on Saturday! His name is German and he is from Mexico. We found him on chat at the beginning of the transfer and he committed to baptism about a week later. He is really great we are excited to skype him this Saturday.

     One last item of business. My eyesight! I think I need reading glasses :( I talked to Sister Poulsen about it and she told me to go to Costo and get an eye test and maybe buy some glasses but I need monies for that. If you could help me out with that it would be much appreciated!

      Please tell the Shyface family thank you for me! They sent me a super nice package with some delicious cookies. I have the best support system back home. I love you all! Thanks for the Christmas card too. Sister Tan was looking at it and she says she wants to marry Austin so she can be a part of our family. Is that okay, Aust? She is only like 10 years older than you, hahaha!

      Anyways next week I have no idea what is going to happen or when my Pday is going to be because we find out all the changes on Monday and then we start the new transfer on Wednesday so if my Pday is changed to like Tuesday or something I have to wait a week and a half.....bummer. But it will be good! Great things are ahead! This transfer went by super fast and I have learned so much from Sister Garcia. She has more compassion than anyone I know. I love the Lord and I love my mission. I will talk to you all eventually :) Bye now.

Loves, Sister Leavitt ♥

This is really ugly but I got an eye infection so my dear, kind companion was putting drops in and I was being a complete baby & spazzing out!