September 30, 2013

hellooooo!!!!

---'s baptism on saturday was SO AMAZING. seriously like couldnt have been better. We had a lot happen starting a few days before his baptism that made it beyond stressful. Satan has a way of creating problems before someone gets baptized and something happens every time! This time was just wayyyyy worse than any of the others. I actually got sick a couple days ago and still am trying to get better, and a member said that it has to be because of all of the stress that we were under hahaha. It was bad. BUUUUT the truth always prevails and everything always works out when the Lord is on your side! :) 

We had training/president interviews this week. we easily have the best mission president in the entire world. not even kidding he and sister pingree are probably the most amazing people ever. We had some training on 'a powerful first lesson'. All on how to make the restoration lesson way super great. President said that if we do our first lesson using that outline, our baptisms will double. Its gonna happen!!! 

We taught --- with sister ---, the RS president on thursday. That went reallyyyy well! She is coming to conference this weekend as well! This lady seriously like blows me away. She read the BOM in 2 WEEKS. yeah. insane. She always says "oh I know its true. I know Joseph smith is a prophet." she has all of the lds apps on her phone and ipad and everything! its crazy! like why is she not baptized?! It was the first time we have had to try and explain to an investigator why their previous baptism doesnt exactly count and they need to be baptized again under the priesthood authority. I was so nervous that we were going to offend her or something but the spirit knows how to do things like that and it couldnt have gone better! she said that she feels good about it and that she was going to pray about getting baptized. We feel really good about it :) 

We had 3 non members come with us to the RS broadcast on saturday!!! Hopefully we will start teaching them soon. They are these crazy funny black girls. One of them is in HS, and one of them is in her first year of college. The other is like 28? Anyways they are the ---'s neighbors and she said she is going to invite them and the parents to take the discussions! 

We got with the ward council yesterday and created a whole new ward mission plan and we are SO EXCITED ABOUT IT!! It is going to be so amazing and things are going to just keep happening! So basically if I get transferred out of this ward I am going to cry. hahaha. I love it so much. 

anywayyysss i love you all! Never forget the lord in every thing that you do!!!!

xoxo sister huber

Here is another email she sent me today as well.... good insight that was forwarded on to her from her trainer.

I want y'all to know that this struggle is real!!!! when people ask what the hardest part about a mission is, I honestly say it is feeling ugly ALL the time hahahaha. so when you see the pics of us sisters and how unattractive we look, just remember this great explanation to it all :) 

The Sparkle

Congratulations Sister. You have reached the memorable time in the mission of every cute sister when she experiences "the change." It typically happens around your first transfer, which can be pretty quick in the life of a fluent speaking missionary. The change can be seen in a number of ways - most often in the form of weight gain - but also in an indistinctive way that most sisters cannot pinpoint.

"I remember getting the first set of pictures back from being developed at the store and noticing a major difference in my looks. I couldn't quite put my finger on what was wrong with my face. I just looked different...."

"My companion described it as a loss of the feminine sparkle. That light in your eyes that attracts men to you. She said Heavenly Father took it away from me."

This is the best explanation I've heard yet. Sister, the Lord has taken from you your sparkle. That light in your eyers that attracts men to you. It's a very sad change. It causes depression in many sisters, because no amount of exercise, diet change or makeup can make it come back. But the sisters involved in developing this theory have thus far agreed that Heavenly Father must use this as a protection mechanism on your behalf. It keeps evil people from noticing you and normal people from being distracted.

"A seminary teacher once explained to me that feelings of love and feelings of the Spirit are very similar. They are often confused with one another. He taught us that the only way we can discern between them is to become proficient in understanding how the Spirit communicates to us individually. The more proficient we become, the less likely we are to confuse it with feeling of love."

Investigators are at the point in their spirituality where they are just beginning to understand how the Spirit speaks to them. They can confuse these warm fuzzy feelings with falling in love with an attractive sister. Talking away your feminine sparkle helps to eliminate this confusion.

As the change takes effect throughout your mission you may be alarmed to find yourself age. No, this is not the aging that is seen in visible wrinkles or sagging body parts, but again, the indistinctive way that you can just sense. It is a result of the months and months spent worrying an agonizing over those you have come to love through your service.

There is hope sisters!! Just as suddenly as the change develops, it disappears. Sometime, close to the end of your mission, with no conscious effort on our part, the sparkle is regained, the weight begins to drop and you feel like yourself again - only happier and wiser for the mission that you have chosen to fulfill. So, the choice is yours: fight it or forget it. Take it from those who've lived and learned. Fighting it is useless and ends up being more of a distraction than a help. Forget yourself and work. The Lord works in mysterious ways to bless us. Remember, "More happiness awaits you than you have ever experienced as you labor among His children."