Week 24 - You Can't Convert Someone Past Your Own Conversion

Well my dear family and long lost loved ones, here we are, it's monday once again:]

So this past week has been another one filled to the brim with frustrating, learning, and thoroughly enjoyable moments!

 

We had Interviews with Pres on Tuesday and we typically have 5-7 minutes where he asks us 3 questions.

1: Are you following the morning schedule?

2: Are you following the White Handbook?

and 3: How are you doing?

I passed the first 2 questions on with a breeze and when he asked me the third one i said Pres i'm doing so great! things are just plugging along, he then asked me again Sister Bowden really, how are you doing? I insisted yet again that i was doing good he had nothing to worry about. We sat there in silence for what seemed like ages and then i said Ok ok, honestly this past transfer has been really hard but it's good! I don't wanna be a burden to you i know you have SO much going on i just want you to know i'm doing good i'm not giving in. He just looked at me and then said ok tell me what's been happening? I went on to tell him how the past weeks have just been trying, Sister Possin slowly but surely sucks the life out of me and i just feel pretty overwhelmed all the time. I'm doing all that i can but i just feel like nothing is coming together this time like it has in the past, He then gave me a little assignment. He gave me certain chapters in the book of mormon to read and said I want you each day to think how the atonement affects you. Everyday i want you to pray to know how the atonement comes into play and then i want you to tell me about it in your letter this coming week. So that's what i've been doing this past week, pondering on how the sacrifices our Savior made for each of us can affect me on a daily basis. Which to be 100% honest i've never really thought of before, typically when we think of the atonement i think we all jump to repentance and if we haven't committed some huge sin we kinda just toss it to the side. THAT KILLS ME. Christ suffered for every pain, affliction and heartache we would have, He did it so that he could succor us. By thursday i was starting to realize just how big the atonement really is. I couldn't help but think man, my farewell talk was the pits! haha i missed the whole point of it! So i sincerely apologize for my complete obliviousness to the sacred act of the atonement. President also made the comment earlier that we need to be beacons of light and draw people to us. I told i feel like i got the drawing people to me thing down, it's just then it's hard to bring in the Christ thing. So he gave me a couple pointers told me he was proud of me and that he loved me and wa-la after 30 or so minutes my interview was finished:]

 

This past week during our training the focus was on integrity and there was a saying that really stuck to me,

�If someone only changes his behavior while a missionary, then, when he goes home, he will be the very same person he was when he left, subject to the same problems that plagued him before."

 

ah, can i just say that i oh so badly do NOT want to go back to the person i was before the mission. i don't, i don't, i don't. Not that i hated what i was or wasn't happy, i just can see certain things now that i wish i had done a little differently. We as human beings i believe are creatures of habit, we like feeling comfortable and we like things to be convenient. When something comes along that disrupts our patterns of life we tend to get a little freaked out. I have seen that in myself as i've been learning how to be a better servant of the Lord. I am a creature of habit, i like getting to know people but don't necessarily feel the need to let them know me. haha i can serve you, but i don't necessarily have to let you in. isn't it just easier that way?? but regardless, i want to just say i sincerely feel my heart changing and i hope and pray that the person that you guys see in about a year will be Macall on steroids! haha not like ew gross manly and hairy Macall, but just wow that girl really did have a change in her life because of her mission.

 

oh exchanges! exchanges were hahah ah stressful. Possin stayed in Fairfield with our sister training leader and i got a little break in Spring Branch. BUT the whole dang time Possin was texting/calling us asking me what she should do, when literally the night before i went over EVERYTHING that she was going to do and go and say. haha i felt like all hell and chaos broke loose as soon as i was gone. Saturday night at the relief society broadcast Sister Allred came and gave me a hug and whispered in my ear you're a saint. welp, at least now i know that it's not just me! I hope that maybe when i finish serving with Possin she will know how to be more social or at least know how to communicate with people well. Transfers are once again right around the corner and i've just gotten over the whole trying to guess what will happen thing. I could either A: stay one more and finish training the cracken from the sea. or B: be sent off to a new area. I would say there are pros and cons to both of these things. I feel though that i am ready to move on. I love fairfield and there is without a doubt people that i would miss but i think it's time they get a new missionary to kinda get them fired up again, i think they've all gotten comfortable with me so a new little spark might do the trick!

 

I'll just finish this bad boy up with a little bit of my testimony. I truly am so grateful for our Savior and Redeemer Jesus Christ. While my knowledge is no where close to others, i do know with my whole heart that the atonement is there for us all. It is there for not only our huge mistakes and sins, but it is also there for the small and simple things that we tend to think we can handle on our own. I would invite everyone to just put it on Him. He loves us simply and constantly whether we accept that love or not it is there. I hope that in some way or another i can be a beacon of light to anybody that reads this. Like Holland says, if your faith is faltering please lean on mine. Mine is there for you, take what ya need:] While i'm not always in the best of moods i am still learning. I love this gospel and the changes that it has brought not only into my life but also into my heart. I love you guys OH SO MUCH! Time is just a tickin and i look forward to the things that lie ahead!

Pea mahalo teuha fotunga tafau atu pe ka oku ou ilo pea oku afioi e heku tamia hevani pea mo kalaisi oku liliu hoka loto.:]

loves.

Sister Bowden

Week 23 - I Believe in God, Just not His Crazy Fan Club

Well here i am once again sitting in the library writing my long lost family and friends haha. Turns out i've had another roller coaster of a week and a lot more coming my way! We spent a lot of time street contacting and doing whatever we could to find some new investigators and i can honestly say it's probably the most frustrating thing trying to find people to teach. Trust me i try to get creative but people these days are hard to crack:] i just keep hoping and praying that one time someone's just gonna start listening and say "Oh wow, this actually sounds really nice i'd love to hear more!"  

I wanna talk about the really good moments of this week though, so there is an elder in our district that is hilarious, he's the newest one out here and i asked him if he could give me a blessing this past week just because i had a lot going on and i felt like getting a blessing could clear some things up for me. Honestly, i'm so glad that i did.  Elder Rios was SO nervous and as he placed his hands on my head i could feel him shaking, but i have never had an experience like that with the priesthood. I just sincerely felt the spirit take over and i knew the things he said were directly from Heavenly Father. 

 Every Friday we have a district or zone meeting and this past week's was the one of the best ones for our district so far. Sister Daniel shared her thoughts out of the little white handbook and she felt the need to talk about companionship. She discussed how the relationship between you and your companion not only affects you but it affects your ward, your investigators, and the other missionaries as well. "If you treat a man as he is he will remain as he is but if you treat him as if he were what he ought and could be, he will become what he ought and could be." I feel that that is seriously so true. She also went on to say that sometimes Prez puts companions together and in certain places not necessarily for the ward, but for us, so that we can learn. I know that this has been a HUGE learning phase for me. While i know i probably haven't handled it with love and sensitivity i really have been trying to put forth the effort and make things work. When we got home later that afternoon we were out and about biking and it started down pouring on us! Side note: Texas rainstorms are basically the greatest thing ever:]. We biked home and took some time cleaning and what not when all of a sudden Possin said "Bowden can i ask you something?" I say of course! And secretly you know when a girl asks that question it can't be good. She then says "Do i annoy you?" Time froze i swear and i was debating ok do i tell her the truth or do i just say oh no you're so great! Well.. i chose to be honest. i said yep yeah at times you do tend to get on my nerves. and then came the tears... The conversation that followed though, was really, really good. I got to understand possin a little bit better, and i think she's starting to understand me as well. Now will we be the best of friends and wanna hang out after this is over? I'm not 100% sure on that one, but i do appreciate her and the big heart she does have.

My golden child David got baptized this Saturday!!!! It was probably one of the greatest things i have yet to be a part of.  He asked me to speak at it the night before and i felt truly humbled to have been given that opportunity.  I hope that everyone gets to have at least 1 investigator like David. Someone who is just so ready and so committed. I appreciate his example to me and after the baptism me and him were discussing how he's gonna go on a mission in about a year! haha he's so solid, i'm just so proud of who he is and everything he stands for. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That night we went over to the day girls to make sure there were set to come to church! The mom told us that she had shaved her legs and everything so i felt that ya know... that's a pretty big commitment! But... once again they didn't come. It was the primary program as well so instead of being able to just enjoy the program and love the kids all i could think the whole time was Keep it Together Macall, just keep it together. But come on let's be honest! What parent is so gosh dang lazy that they can't bring their daughters to church? What parent is so selfish that they are standing in the way of their children getting baptized?? I seriously do not understand it. at all. I'm not really sure what will happen now because of general conference and everything it's gonna be like another 3 weeks til they can even have that opportunity.. woof. parents these days! 

Craziest thing happened at church though! so i'm not sure if i ever mentioned Rob Speranza, but he's this referral that we got from church headquarters in July haha and he's kinda crazy but we love him anyways! He has a couple hold ups the biggest one being he firmly believes incest is wrong, therefore he does not believe in Adam and Eve.... haha i have no answers for that so if anyone is having some divine revelation on what to say.. please let me know asap! but anyways as we were finishing up in relief society low and behold Rob shows up! haha he walks in with our ward mission leader and says i was driving by today and i just felt like i needed to stop by and see what things were like annnnd he basically loved it.  He loved how things were so organized and the sense of community that he felt there. We're gonna go over to his house this coming tuesday and start up the discussions again! So let's all pray that Mr. Rob, my ex-New York police man will have an open heart and mind!
I really am so grateful for all the miracles that happen each week, the small moments when i feel the spirit as i teach and the frustrating moments when i just wanna throw in the towel. If i'm learning anything it's that change is a good thing. Not necessarily easy, but it is good and it is required. All my stubborness must be left at the door or i'm never gonna make it through. I'm grateful for Sister Possin and all the things that i am learning from her. We are definitely on opposite ends of the spectrum. hahaha oh so very opposite, but we're both trying and learning and growing together.  The other set of sisters in our district had to spend the night with us last night because there is black mold in their apartment. When they came over they were super excited because they had set their first baptism. Sister Daniel was stoked because she has been out 8 months and this is going to be her first one. When she told me that i was shocked. It made me realize just how different everybody's mission is. She's been in the same mission as me and this is going to be her first one.  I came out and i was able to experience one within my first 3 weeks. Crazy. I'm just really proud of her for not getting discouraged and for sticking to the reasons that she came out here, but then you go on to think in some missions they are lucky if they even get to see one of their investigators enter the waters of baptism. Ah. I think i would cry, while we're not in Mexico or Brazil where basically you baptize 5 a week i'm grateful that i have at least gotten to experience a few. The work is moving forward and i hope that i can do as much as i can to help it progress. 

This coming week should be pretty crazy we have interviews with Prez tomorrow and then exchanges and yada yada! But we're just gonna keep on going:] It's crazy to think i've been out for just about 6 months! How did that happen? I'm excited to see how much more i will learn and grow in the coming year:] 

I love ya and miss you all the days!

Love, Sister Bowden

Week 22 - Aiming to Please

Hey Familia!

Well it's crazy to think that another week has come and gone! A lot has happened so i'm trying to do a little recap so everyone is up to date! But first i wanna thank everyone that keeps me posted on their lives. It's good that for 2 hours every monday i get to hear about what's going on back home, and i can't help but think man, life really does go on without me! haha

 

We spent a lot of time this past week working with the Day girls. And once again it's been such a neat experience to see how things were when we first started going over there to how things are now. We'll knock on the door and you can hear them scream "they're here they're here!"  I used to have to basically pull teeth to get someone to say the prayer and now they're arguing over who gets to say it.  I can see this little light in their eyes that hasn't always been there. They were set to be baptized this Saturday but it's looking like that isn't gonna happen. My Day girls are in a very less active family, their parents and older brothers haven't been to church since they moved here and that was about 6 years ago.  The bishop expressed to us that for them to get baptized he really wanted to see the whole family come to church with them, instead of us getting a ride for them. Well this past Sunday was THEE Sunday for them to come with their parents, and once again they didn't get up in time. I was SO bummed. Especially because now tonight when we go over there I'm gonna have to be the "bad guy" and say "sorry girls you can't get baptized this Saturday..." again.  Ahhh I'm so frustrated with the whole situation, I'm trying my best to be this good, reliable missionary. I want to keep us on good terms with the bishop but man, now I'm gonna have to go disappoint these girls that I love so very much. The other night when we got home after being at their house I was sitting there thinking and this overcoming feeling of love just entered my heart. I thought to myself, wow I didn't know that I could love someone this much.  It was kinda like the whole Grinch thing haha at the end when he grabs at his chest and says "What is this.... are these feelings??"  Haha that was seriously me.  And then my next thought was I wonder what it will be like when I'm a mom. HAHAHA what? since when do I think about my own children? It was just funny to me. But yeah I was feeling pretty frustrated with the whole bishop thing and he came into Relief Society because he was asked to speak about the priesthood la la la. Well for some reason or another he wanted to tell a story about when he was on his mission (and might I add it was completely off topic) but I felt like he was inspired to share it for me. He told how on his mish he really, really wanted to train, so low and behold he was called to be a trainer.  He was working so hard trying to be exactly obedient and just work this new missionary into the ground when one day his trainee said "Thank you elder stiffneckedness."  He said that while it kinda upset him, he realized that he was going about things in the wrong way, that he was being pretty self righteous and it wasn't helping this new missionary at all. I took a moment to think about myself, and how I've been handling things as of lately.  I'm gonna be honest this transfer has been pretty.. rough. But I guess that's no excuse, I should have tried a little harder to work with Possin and make her feel loved.  I think actually the past weekend things have gotten decent.  Not great, but better. So let's just all hope and pray that things may continue like this.

 

Do you remember the lady that i was talking about the other week named Amber Westbrook? The one that said she prayed that I would stay in Fairfield? Well this past week we were over there teaching her daughter Kiley and as we were teaching, I asked her if she had felt that her prayers had been answered. She paused and then looked at me and said you guys know how I was inactive for a really long time.. I said "Yeah you've mentioned that before."  Well the night before you and that other sister missionary came over for the first time I was praying and asking Heavenly Father if I should come back to church, I've thought about it for a long time and I just said "if I need to come back, please let me know."  Wa-la.. me and Tau knocked on her door the very next day! How sweet is that??? But, in all honesty I don't really know if we were "directed" to go over there, we had gotten a call from our ward mission leader saying that he would like it if we dropped by all the new people moving in. I do believe though that Heavenly Father is watching out for us. He does put us in places for a reason and I know that things will come together when we reach out and ask for His help.

 

Todd Henke is planning to be baptized October 26, 2013! Yesterday they walked into church and I was keeping my eye out for them because I hadn't seen them since the last lesson where we had invited him to be baptized and la la la. Well I walk up and Michelle says he's still praying about it. And I looked at him and said, "Ah come on! you're killing me!"  Haha he just started laughing and kinda shook his head at me, but later when they were leaving church I guess that his son Cameron turned to him and said Dad, "When are you gonna get baptized?"  Whammo, he said at the end of October I'm going to. VICTORY DANCE:]  I'm just so happy to know that he is committed and excited about this big day! 

 

I'm constantly learning. I really am just learning to let go, almost everything is basically out of my hands these days. I love being in Fairfield.  It shall be a sad day when I am sent on my way but hey, ya know, I guess that's part of the deal. I hope that everything back home is just kicking away. I love you all and pray for you daily! Let's all just keep on keeping on.

Love, Sista Bowden

Week 21 - The Challenges of Discipleship

Whell.. hello there:]

So here i am writing ya and i wish more than anything i could give this awesome story of how i baptized the nation and became best friends with my companion in the past week. hahaha but well that didn't quite happen. This past week was... trying. and that's ok! Before i dive into how i'm slowly suffocating with this glorious new comp of mine, i want to talk about last tuesday night. So in our ward we have this venezualan family and one of their brothers isn't a member and they've been trying to get him interested in the church for years. Well they invited us over to come give a lesson on the book of mormon and yada yada yada. Well we get there after dinner and they are all in the kitchen cooking and laughing.. and i had no idea what anyone was saying but hey, i loved the vibe they were putting out! So then we ate dinner for the second time and got everybody in the living room for the lesson. The cool thing was though only a couple members of the family understand english, so as we would teach we would have to pause and the brother (nonmember) would translate. It ended up working perfectly because everything we shared he would then have to translate for the rest of the family to understand, making it so that he really had to pay attention and take in the things we were saying. I'm not sure if i have ever felt the spirit work so strongly through me, my teaching skills i feel like have gone through the roof since i first got out here. I love love loved it, and i loved being able to almost feel like a part of their family!

So, like i said earlier, this past week was trying. haha my new comp is... full of excitement. sometimes i feel like she's a little puppy that just constantly is stuck to my side. When we were doing service on wednesday at the ranch i would purposely walk in circles just to see if she would follow me... and she did. haha by saturday i was literally about to lose it. As we were biking out to see the day girls Possin's back wheel broke and we ended up being stranded. As she asked what we should do about a bike and la la la i asked well do you know your bank back home so we can get ya some money. She said she had no idea what bank she used and i just lost it. It wasn't the nicest thing ever but i asked her how old are you? I lost my cool and when we got home that night i literally just sat outside with our dog for an hour. When we were at church we had this little lesson on being one, the teacher drew a triangle between you, your spouse, and the lord, and talked about how if you're both directing your actions towards God you should be united. I couldn't help but almost laugh because ummm as we are both missionaries our directions are completely going in different ways. so your little triangle thing is bull crap.. but it did open my heart up a little bit, when we got home i was going to take out the garbage and possin said let me take it. I typically would have said no it's fine i got it but for some reason i just let her do it. Later that night she said today for the first time you let me serve you. And i had to do like a triple take. I said what do you mean? and she said all the time your constantly serving me and doing everything, but you never let me serve you. i feel like i don't do anything. oooohh man. i think i understand what's been going on, me being typical macall i just like doing everything, i got this, i can handle it, i never want to feel like i'm a burden to someone especially my companion. BUT i guess sometimes you need to ask them for help, you need to show them that you rely on them. So.... my bad:]

I also had another realization. So me being out here on a mission sometimes i feel is a battle, haha at times i feel like i could just pack up my little bags and ride off into the sunset. easy. And with all the drama going on in our zone/district i have felt even more like my life is a joke. I was asked to speak at zone meeting and i talked all about ya know just quit dragging your feet and get to work. It was awesome the spirit was really strong and i felt like the message was received pretty well. afterwards i would be talking to one elder or sister and before ya know it there would be a crowd of people around us, then i would move to somebody else and low and behold another crowd of missionaries would start forming. As we were leaving the meeting a thought popped into my head that's from my patriarchal blessing it says something like i bless you with the capacity to gather around you righteous and uplifting individuals and that you will be able to magnify their righteousness and they magnify yours. at times i have felt a little overwhelmed when people have swarmed around to see what's going on but i want to strive to find ways to use this to my/Heavenly Father's advantage. I'm trying to be a better example to all the missionaries in our zone and try to just get them back on track, not by being mean and calling them out on all the junk they do, but just helping them out in whatever way possible. Later that night as i was walking into the Grovers house they had some talk playing and the line "To whom much is given much is required" basically slapped me upside the head. I just feel very humbled about this past week. I don't think i ever realized just how very blessed i was in almost every aspect of my life. and i'm not in any way meaning this in a cocky i'm super cool kinda way. Sincerely i know that heavenly father blessed me with thee best parents that encouraged me to do my best, but they also let me fall on my face from time to time. They didn't shelter me, but they always protected me. i'm not sure if they infused this into my brain or i just came out thinking this but i'm so grateful for the confidence that i have in myself, that while other girls may really struggle with who they are and all that garbage, i've never had that negativity in me. I'm grateful for the fact that he puts people in my life that have faced that challenge, so that i can better understand how most girls generally think. I'm grateful that at some point or another i somehow got the skill of talking to people or more importantly listening to people. I'm so so glad i understood how to do that before i came out on my mission because 87% of the time people just want someone who will listen to them. I know the Heavenly Father has given me SO much, and now is the time for me to open my heart and give it all back.

When we promise to follow the Savior, to walk in His footsteps, and be His disciples we are promising to go wherever that divine path leads us. And the path to salvation has always led one way or another through Gethsemane. If there is anyone who thinks their experiences are not easy, welcome to the Church. Welcome to the Gospel. Welcome to the life of apostles and prophets. Welcome to the life of the Savior, who knows quite a bit about cups from which one does not want to drink. I know that everything that comes into our lives comes for a reason. I know that as we accept those different challenges and try to rise above them we will be once again blessed. Thank you guys for everything. I love you all so much and am grateful for the parts you have played in my life:] Have a great week, be sure to break a world record or something:]

Love, Sister Bowden

Week 20 - #@!$ Transfers

Well Ohlo family!

Soo.. welp i'm just gonna say this week has seriously made me wanna punch a baby or something. I was honestly hoping to be the one transferred, i LOVE fairfield and i love the people here but, the district and zone that i'm serving with are well... not so obedient. And it can make it really hard to be just stuck with some really dumb missionaries. I was hoping to get out of cypress and start a new transfer with new faces, clearly that was not God's plan for me. I no longer have a tongan companion and it has been actually really difficult with my new comp. I'm training Sister Possin (po-seen) and man... oh man. Possin is from Minnesota, comes from a family of 9 kids, and has been home schooled all her life.  I feel that these next 6 weeks are gonna be full of a lot of learning, especially for me. I'm striving to find ways to serve her but everytime i go to do something she starts asking what i'm doing so then i don't really feel like doing it anymore. Sunday was fast and testimony meeting of course and after i bore my testimony Michelle Stanton got up to bear hers. In her testimony she started talking about how me and tau have left such an impression on her. She also said that she didn't want to embarrass me but then she talked about how i used to be a dancer and made some sacrifices to come out on a mission. She said that that was a huge unselfish act that she could never do. Afterwards a couple ward members came up and said why haven't you told us that you dance? You're a ballerina? i didn't even know! Just a lot of talking and whatnot, this ward has seriously become like a home ward to me. It's crazy to think i've been here for only 3 months but i feel like i know almost everyone so well. But anyways when we got home after church my comp just flopped onto her bed and started crying. She said everyone just loves you and they don't even pay attention to me. I don't even know how they can like you so much if they didn't know you were a dancer.  I wasn't really sure how to respond but i just told her, ya know they love me because i've worked really hard to be the missionary that they need. When we go into their homes i rarely rarely talk about myself or what i used to do. i talk about them. They are the important ones, they are the ones that my focus is on. If i went into a house and just talked about myself the entire time, i'm pretty sure they wouldn't be so keen as to inviting us back over. As a missionary we are no longer the stars of the show, whatever our story or our background might be that doesn't matter. I'm not trying to tell you that you don't matter cuz you do, but it's time to forget that. This isn't about Possin, this is about the people here in fairfield.

 

I think though that that conversation went in 1 ear and out the other cuz i have yet to see some change. I also realize though that this is going to most definitely help me learn some patience, patience with others and also with myself. Here's to a long coming 6 weeks! haha i'm just hanging in there for sure!

 

ON A GOOD NOTE!

Thursday after transfers we had a lesson with our new investigator Kiley Westbrook, she is part of a less active, part member family and will be turning 9 soon! As we went over there and gave the lesson at the very end her mom amber said I'm really glad you weren't transferred, after you and the other girl left i said a prayer and asked Heavenly Father to keep you here cuz i needed you. As she said that i just thought to myself wow, welp i guess that's why i'm still trapped in fairfield hahaha. but It was relieving to hear that.

I ALSO HAVE THE BEST NEWS IN THE WORLD!

So last night as we were out at dinner with one of our investigators i checked our phone and the Henke's had called us. When we got home i called them up and michelle answers and says hey is this sister bowden? I say yeah sister henke! how are you? and she says i'm really really good, todd wants to talk to you really fast. All of the sudden todd's voice comes on and he says Is this my favorite missionary? (in a really cheesy way) haha i start laughing and said well of course it is. and he says Hey so me and michelle were talking (ps we had a way awesome lesson with them sunday night about missionary work and at the end of it i stated what our purpose is as missionaries, and no it's not we invite others to come unto christ yada yada yada. My purpose as a missionary is a lot more than that. I want people to have faith. I want them to have faith in Christ, their families, and themselves. I want them to know that Christ suffered for them, he felt every single pain and temptation that they have felt and will still feel in the future. Once they have this foundation of faith, i want them to change. I want to see that person make those changes necessary so that they truly can come closer to Christ. Once they have gone through this process then and only then do i want them to get baptized. And i don't want someone to get baptized just so that they can be a name on our roles, or a number in my planner. I want them to be baptized so that they can be forgiven of their sins, so that they can start a new life. With this new life they will have the companionship of the Holy Ghost. I want all of these things because i love them. I care for them. And i want them to be better.) and we've done some calculating. I was kinda confused so i just say well alright?? And he says you go home in October of 2014 right? And i say oh yeah! that's when my mission ends yep. He then says and for us to be sealed in the temple i have to be baptized for year right? and I say Yep that's typically what happens, you'll get baptized and then a year later you can go to the temple. He then asks well if me and michelle decided we wanted to be sealed in the Salt Lake temple, would you be able to come to it? It finally all starts clicking in my brain what is happening here and i say Oh my gosh! Yes i would love that more than anything to be at the temple! He then says, well then i think i'm gonna get baptized in October!  OH MY HECK! Todd Henke, like the man who i was kinda scared of 3 months ago is getting baptized next month!! I'm dying, i'm dying, i'm dying:] I told him that he basically just made my whole mission, and that i couldn't be more excited for him. He said he's gonna pray about the day but that he's gonna get back to us!

 

It's just so neat to me. This family means so much to me, and i just will forever be grateful for the opportunity that i had to be a part of it:] My heart is just happy.

So if anything this is what i've learned. Opposition in all things, haha unfortunately that's part of the deal. uhmm i'm not 100% sure what will happen this week, but i am hopeful. I'm trying my very best and i know that the Lord is gonna be right there with me. We don't always necessarily get what we want, but I know that we always get what we need. i'm grateful for refining moments, those moments where Heavenly Father says yeah well you're doing pretty good... but it's time for you to move up a notch. woof i'm not sure how many more notches he has in store for me, but hey, i'll do it:] I know that He's the guy in charge and i'm just trying to make him happy. Haha well i love ya familia! Thanks for raising me in a normal environment! hahahaha ok that was mean. but really i love you guys and i appreciate all the support. Let me know if there is anything that i could possibly do for you while being out here! Have a great week!

Love, Sister Bowden