Laurel's Missionary Journey

Hello All! The adventures continue, and so does the work of the Lord! This week we were given a list of names of people to go visit from the branch. People who had just recently moved in, or people who haven't come to church in a while. When we went to try to go see one of them, we went to the address we were given... and it was another jail. Sister Hulstine and I looked around, looked at each other, and then laughed until we couldn't breathe. We decided not to go in this time. We have seen so much progression and love this week, particularly from our investigators. David Stanford is beyond excited for his baptism this coming Saturday, and we are excited with him! He has actually been trying to get his family interested in learning about the truth of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because, as he says, he wants to be with his family forever, and now that he knows how to do that, he wants to do everything he can to make th...

Howdy Y'all! This week has been a crazy and I wonderful one. I have now embarked on the wonderful adventure of my second transfer- not that I have gone anywhere. I am still here in Madison Florida with Sister Hulstine, and I could not be more excited about that. :) This week has been very hot and very humid, which has resulted in some pretty hilarious tans. I have a pretty bad watch tan, which basically means I am a real missionary now! We biked this past week and we have been doing our best to talk to as many people as possible. God has blessed our efforts, and because of his grace and love we have been able to pick up six new investigators this week, including a beautiful family from the Dominican Republic. They speak mostly Spanish. So my gradual learning of a few Spanish words is increasing. I'd like to teleport my brother here to teach them, but because that is impossible, I'll just have to rely on the Lord to help me understand. We have been so blessed in this are...

All, This week all I have seen are miracles. On Tuesday we had a booth at a Fourth of July Festival. There were 12 missionaries there who came out to help us, and because of that almost every person from Madison talked to us at some point. Our investigator David (who is being baptized on July 29th) came and helped out as well, and he was right there with us, sharing his testimony and bringing others unto Christ. Our little army of soldiers made it so that all those at the event could feel the love of their Savior. I am so blessed to have been a part of it. Every week we do service at a thrift store in town run by the Methodist church. The people there are amazing and so wonderful, and they are very happy to have us help! One of the men who works there, Bob, always refers to us as "The Smith Girls" because of Joseph Smith. He then gives us nicknames that relate to where we are from. Mine is "Sister Rodeo" because I am from Texas, and Sister Hulstine's is ...

Everyone!!! This week has been beyond amazing. There are so many experiences I wish I could write about and so much I want to say, but I don't have much time today so I'll keep this brief: In Florida, sometimes it rains while it is sunny outside. In every direction all you can see is beautiful blue sky, but there is a torrential rainstorm right above your head. When you focus on the rain, it makes the day look so dreary and sad. You can soaked for no reason and your spirit is heavy. But remember that RIGHT past that cloud, there is more blue than you could ever imagine. More happiness and sunshine than you could even picture. That is what focusing on the Savior is like. Stop looking at the clouds and thinking about how wet you are getting! Look up and see the Savior's blue sky. See how he is helping and blessing you. It is right there, and it is so much better than the rainstorm you think that you are stuck in. Our investigators are doing so well! I'll update more on...

All, This week has been a long one! We continue to be blessed beyond measure here in Madison Florida. We have had so many opportunities to share the Gospel, and there have been so many times that I have seen the Hand of the Lord leading and guiding us in his work. We recently started teaching a man named Shaun Davis, who has had a very difficult past. He wants to change his life for the better and find eternal happiness, and we were so excited to be able to share with him the hope that the Savior brings. He is in his 40s, and has had multiple strokes. It is sometimes very hard to understand what he is saying, but the Spirit doesn't need any translating. Speaking of being hard to understand, our lessons with Mario continue to be a source of great joy. This past week we decided to do a lesson focused entirely on the Atoning Sacrifice of our Savior Jesus Christ. We talked about how the Savior gave us the blessings of being cleaned, being strengthened, and being comforted. That is th...

Hello all! This week has been a difficult one. I have felt very discouraged. But the Lord is my Salvation always, and I know in whom I have trusted. The Savior truly is the center of this great work, and the only reason that we can make it through. Without him we would all be lost, but in his love we are all found. We have a new investigator, David, who saw us at the library about a week ago, felt something stir within him, and he looked up the church online. He requested that the missionaries contact him, and when we called him that night to invite him to church, he told us he was already planning on coming. We have taught him twice, and he accepted the invitation to be baptized already. His baptismal date is set for July 29th, and we are very excited to be able to help him on his journey to come unto Christ. I appreciate all of your prayers on my behalf. With the help of the Lord I will be able to do all things. Sorry I don't have any pictures this week, I accidentally le...

I have now been a missionary for a whole month, which is beyond strange. I cannot comprehend in my mind how quickly time is passing, and yet how slowly it goes at the same time. This week has been the busiest week of my entire life. I want you all to know that it rains more in one day here than it did in months back home. Just on Monday it rained so much that our entire trash can was completely full. We were so wet that we decided the only solution was to dance in the rain, which I am sure surprises none of you. Oh Thursday we had a half-mission conference. I met so many amazing missionaries, and we were honored to hear Elder Useda of the Seventy Speak to us about the importance of our work. It was such a spiritually uplifting experience, and I can barely describe the joy that I felt listening to his words. After the conference was over, he had interviews with a few of the missionaries, and I was lucky enough to get to meet with him. (Because I am one of the new missionaries.) He asked...