Camarillo and Conference!

FAMILY!

As always, it's been a wonderful week! :) We had interviews which were so great (Mom, did I ever tell you that sister Felix is your twin? She sounds exactly like you and it freaks me out... but at the same time, it's a blessing) Haha any way, we had the opportunity to watch "Meet the Mormons!" It's so good. Every one, go see it and invite your friends! It's a perfect tool to use for missionary work.  The members here are so AWESOME. Sister Brown and I have been thinking about ways we can get member-missionary work rolling here because the members really are so great and have that desire. We have been setting up appointments with them (Starting with ward council) to teach them and extend an invitation to invite a friend to see "Meet the Mormons." We're hoping and praying that this will open up a lot of opportunities! We met with the Gomez family this week and Sister Gomez truly is softening her heart! We helped them prepare for conference and talked about how we can make it a revelatory experience. Brother Gomez bore a powerful testimony on how he wants his girls to be involved in the church and wants this for his family. The spirit was so strong and I know Sister Gomez felt that. She has taken the lessons before... but, felt very pushed and pressured, so we hope that we can help her feel loved, rather than pushed. We're meeting with them again on Saturday and we are going to invite her to take the lessons!

Enrique is doing well! We invited him to be baptized on a specific date, but he expressed to us that he didn't feel quite ready. We went over the interview questions and found out that he struggles with coffee and that he's had a hard time giving it up. We testified of the blessings that will come with living this commandment and he committed to quit completely!! He's receiving a blessing this week from our ward mission leader and he came to conference yesterday and really enjoyed it. Judy also came to conference... she took notes and everything! It was such a blessing and they both had a great experience.

General conference was INCREDIBLE and I learned so much. I didn't have a specific talk that touched me more than others, but each of them had something that really touched me! I learned three things especially..

1. How important it is to nourish our testimony of the restored gospel and the atonement of Jesus Christ... center our lives on Christ, use the atonement and repent daily. I especially realized that I need to be repenting daily and using the atonement as a missionary. And as Elder Ballard said, "Study, live, and love the doctrine of Christ." Once we have that firm testimony, we then can help others along the path. We also must pattern our lives after our savior.. Christ-like love will change the world!

2. We have the ability to have confirming, personal revelation. We can receive TRUTH and light... we can receive truth if we ask in sincerity and act. The lord will always answer if we are seeking.

3. This is the restored church of Jesus Christ. We have a living prophet.. Thomas S. Monson. We must sustain him and our leaders.. The church will never be led astray! There is so much power and comfort in that.

 

I look forward to applying what I learned this weekend to the work and improving myself as a representative of Jesus Christ.  This is the Lord's church and this is his work. God loves us.. no matter where we are on the path...no matter the depth of our testimony, but he has provided us with the guidance and the tools to strengthen our personal testimonies. We can always become more converted and he will help us as we turn to him, I'm so grateful for this gospel... I love my savior. HE LIVES.

 

I love you alll!! Thanks for the prayers!!

 Sister James

 

 

I love Camarillo!

Family and friends!

 

I LOVE CAMARILLO! I absolutely love this area and the people. Sister Brown and I have already seen a lot of miracles in our short time together.. There are so many members here and they are so willing to share their testimonies of the gospel and willing to fellowship! The area is so different from Santa Barbara.. it's very family oriented, there are a lot of young families and people aren't, .. insane haha!  It's crazy going from a district of 16 missionaries to 8 missionaries.. we are the only sisters in our zone, and oh Elder Mckinley is one of my zone leaders! Pretty funny! We've met a lot of great families and potential investigators also people are very receptive and willing to listen.. it's a blessing! A member in our ward gave us 7 referrals and one of them is a young family that is actually searching for a church! Another one of the referrals (a guy named John) gave us ideas for service opportunities, which was something we had been praying for. We had the opportunity to do service for a less-active member of our ward this week, a sister Ashcraft. She's been really busy with her work and everything else going on, but she made it to church yesterday and the general women's meeting with her twin girls!

 

We're also teaching Enrique.. he's been taking the lessons for about six months and is preparing to be baptized! We had a lesson with him on temples and eternal families! He is so pure in heart and so prepared. We invited him to pray about baptism and a specific date and will continue to help him prepare. It was neat to hear how important his family is to him and to testify that he will be with his children for eternity and that these covenants he is making are so important. This week he will be teaching us a lesson, so we're really excited to see where he's at with everything and hear his perspective of the gospel. We've also been working with a lot of part-member families, one of them being the Gomez family. Sister Brown and I were able to catch sister Gomez this week and sit down and just talk with her about her concerns and where she's it with the gospel.. it was really good. She told us that she needs time and she wants to "REALLY feel it deep within her heart." She came to the women's meeting with her three daughter's and the members of our ward were so great at inviting and fellowshipping her!

 

This week we have interviews and we get to watch "Meet the Mormons" Which I'm super excited for!! I'm really looking forward to General conference! The general women's meeting was so amazing! I was reminded of how important my covenants are, and that I should always remember them and that being a covenant keeper will affect my posterity and my family. President Ucthdorf's talk reminded me my value as a daughter of God and that I am loved "Today and always." I loved how he focused on the joy that comes when keeping the commandments of the Lord and that he really does know what is best for us.. he knows us better than we know ourselves! I've been praying and thinking of questions that I have as we approach conference this weekend and I'm really focusing on how I can allow the spirit to fill my mouth and trust in the spirit more fully. I know that the Lord will provide me with the answers and counsel that I need to be a better servant of His. It is such a blessing to have the opportunity to hear the words of our dear prophet.. I know that if we prepare spiritually, we will receive personal revelation that is perfectly tailored to our needs. I love this work and I love my savior! This is the work of the Lord and he loves us today and ALWAYS :)

 

Sister James

Diving on the 101

Sister Brown and Sister James

Camarillo district


 

Leaving Santa Barbara!

Family and Friends!

 Well, I'm going to CAMARILLO!!! :) (Member missionary work territory!) I'm super excited!! I'm going to be serving in the 5th ward with Sister Brown. Sister Brown  and I served together in Santa Barbara ward my first 2 transfers here and I know that we'll work super well together! It's bitter-sweet because I have fallen in love with Santa Barbara and the people here, but I can't wait to take all that I've learned here and serve in a new area. I know without a doubt that I was called here for a reason.. It's where I've grown and learned the most. It's broken me out of my shell and refined my testimony of this work and the gospel. Man, I'll miss it, but I'm really looking forward to a new experience!

 These past couple weeks have been super busy and so GREAT! We've been going from appointment to appointment and had a lot of service opportunities. I don't have a lot of time, but good news.. Ben and Natalie are getting baptized on Oct. 17th! :) I'm so happy for them and the progression that they're making.

 

We had a zone conference with Elder Malm (of the 70) this weekend! It was amazing.. I received a lot of much needed personal revelation. He focused on how THIS is the time of that the Lord truly is hastening his work and that we were saved for this time to assist him. He talked about how every one that we come in contact with has already said yes to the Lord's plan and we need to see them as yes-sayers and see their divine potential. He also said this, "There are NO limits as his servants, regardless of other's agency." I'm learning that I shouldn't be as hard on myself and that at the end of the day.. if I've done my very best, I can be proud of my work and that It's about losing myself in the joy if it. This is the most glorious, joyful work and I love it with all my heart! Thank you for all your support and love :)

Sister James

 

 

Awkward hugger

"Selfies!"

Going to miss Santa Barbara!

 

 

Training and Teaching

It's been an amazing week! We had zone conference.. that was SO great! I adore President and sister Felix.. they truly are called of God to do all they do. President Felix focused on establishing Zion in our hearts and becoming of one mind, and one purpose. They introduced our new Christ-like attribute, which is CHARITY. The whole conference was centered on how Christ-like service and forgetting ourselves in blessing others, is the key in missionary work. We're really excited to begin the justserve program and do 10 hrs. a week! We'll be helping out with projects in the community.. This will change the work completely. We also watched a talk given by President Ucthdorf about fearing no man.. so good. I know that in the Lord we can find all strength and he can carry our worries and any fears that we may have. His atonement enables us to do things we don't think we're capable of! "Doubt not, fear not" (D&C 6:36). We had a neat experience the day after Zone Conference! We were tracting in the morning and we came across a woman named Therese. She told us that she wasn't interested at all, wouldn't even let us give her a mormon.org card or anything, but she offered us water! We allowed her to serve us and we got talking a little bit. We explained to her that we're really looking for service and she goes, "I prayed this morning that I would find someone to help me with all the things I have going on!" And any time we offer service.. the majority of the time, people say they don't want help. So cool! We went to her house on Friday and helped her organize and do some other things. She has a personal assistant and everything. They were both super respectful and genuine and we're hoping that through this, her heart may be softened to the church. We'll be doing 4 hrs. of service for her a week! We met with Paul again! Man, he's DEEP haha. He's been reading and praying and says that if any thing contradicts with the bible than it's not true and that a "burning in the bosom" isn't enough to receive his answer. We've been focusing on helping him recognize his answer and recognize the spirit. He also wants to receive his answer before he comes to church. We explained that he can receive personal revelation and his answer at church! Also.. we found out he's in the elders area :( Bummer! But I'm sure they'll be great for him. We met with Ben & Natalie and had a lesson on Charity and service! It went well :) Well, I'm out of time, but I'm so grateful for this work! I know that through love and giving of ourselves to others, we can find the most joy. We can be his hands on the earth. I love being a missionary :) Love you all.

Sister Ashworth knows I love cats!

 

I love being a missionary!

Hey every one! :)

Being a missionary is the best thing ever! Gosh, I love it so much. This week was another great one! ) Training has been great! It's been nice having the three of us, so now we can go into our investigators houses without another member! It's been a blast.. it's so important to find joy in this work. We are in the finding phase and focusing on building up our area.. we met a lot of great people and did a whole lot of seed planting. We had some fun experiences.. We spent some time on Haley ST. which is where all the homeless people hang out. I love them. I love them more than wealthy people ;) Humility is everything haha!

Our investigators are doing well! Jim came to church yesterday and the ward is really reaching out to him. We also figured that the best way to help Ben and Natalie at this point is through the ward. Our relief society president (who's awesome and does a lot for us) is really reaching out to her. We met with Paul again! We taught him the Plan of Salvation and he had a lot of questions about the pre-earth.. he's so intelligent, but he does have a lot of faith. We're really focusing on helping our investigators have personal, spiritual experiences. We can try to convince and persuade people all day.. but it comes down to them feeling the spirit manifest to them the truth! .. We had a lot of opportunities to testify of the truth this week.. It's amazing how much my testimony of the restored gospel has grown being in this specific area! There are so many different interpretations of the nature of God and his plan for us.. I've learned how to diligently study here and refine my testimony and to stand firm in what I know to be true.

We had zone meeting this week and we found out that we'll really be focusing on service as a mission and do 10 hours a week. We'll be using an online service called justserve.org.. they're going to talk more about it in zone conference this week, but we're pretty excited about it! Service leads to so many opportunities.

Jimbo only did 8 days! He gave us a call right away! He's making some serious changes in his life and he has come sooo far. It's incredible to see his heart soften by the love of the ward members and the missionaries in this area. He knows he feels the spirit.. he knows this is right, we just have to continue to help him recognize that. He actually said something that touched me in our gospel principles class. We were talking about repentance and he talked about the word "TRY." God doesn't expect perfection.. but he expects that we continually try and do all we can to follow him and utilize the atonement in our lives. He loves us so perfectly and I know we matter to him. I know that if we cleave unto the covenants we have made and remember that we have taken upon ourselves his name.. we will have the desire to make changes and come closer to him. Thanks for the support and prayers! Love you all!

Sister James

Sister Ashworth and Sister James

Temple trip!
 

New companion and training!

Sister James and Jimbo
(holding each other's favorite books)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two companions!

Maddie with "Mr Fredrickson form "UP" ;)

 

 

Family!

 This past week was great!! I love having two companions.. makes the work EVEN better :) Sister Barnes is sooo sweet and loving. Probably the sweetest person I have ever met! She's helping me learn the importance of teaching simply and with love. Sometimes I get caught up in the details and make sharing the gospel more complicated than it needs to be haha. It's important to remember the basics. Teaching is definitely different! Sister Ashworth and I are so used to teaching together already, so it is a conscious effort to let every one have a word (I like to talk a lot haha) and balance how much we each contribute. It has been super fun though and we've seen many miracles already! We've also been using singing to share the gospel.. gotta love" I am a child of God" :)

 Update on our investigators: We are doing a lot of finding, because most of our investigators are either out of town, dropped, or in jail (Jimbo ha!). Jimbo will be in jail for a couple week for some past tickets (he turned himself in), so there is that! He's actually been progressing well. He's softening to the Book of Mormon.. we read Alma's conversion in Alma 36 and he really enjoyed it. We are definitely seeing the change in him and he WANTS to change. I wish you all could meet him.. he's one of a kind! We've been meeting with our investigator, Carlos. He stopped us about two weeks ago on the street and we taught the plan of salvation. He's AWESOME.. I can't remember if I have mentioned him yet? Any way, we know that he would do a lot better with the Elders because of the language barrier, but he wants to meet with us to improve his English. We've tried to explain that the Elders can help him with his english as well, but he's just tooo stubborn haha. He agreed to meet with us AND the elders this week to help him see that he will better be able to understand the Book of Mormon and the message that we share. He's so genuine and has such a desire to change, but we can't help him because we can't even understand him! So hopefully he changes his mind :)

MIRACLE: A lot of the potentials in our area book only have phone numbers because we meet so many people on the street. Well, towards the beginning of my first transfer in Santa Barbara, Sister Xayadeth and I text/ called all the potentials that had phone numbers. We received a reply just last week and met with this man named Paul. He hasn't met with missionaries for over two years.. (planting seeds) and he is soo great! He's read the Book of Mormon and knows so much already. He's very Intellectual and knows the bible extremely well but, he's sincere and has sincere questions. We taught him the restoration and asked, "What would it mean to you to know that this was true?" He goes.. "Well it means I would become a Mormon?!" Haha! He's great.. We really want to get his family involved as well. He has 3 children ages 8,10, and 12!

 

This transfer I'm focusing on the Christ-like attribute of faith IN Jesus Christ. I've been centering my studies on the life of Christ (the new testament)  and studying his atonement.. I've already seen how much it's changed the way I feel about this work and how I feel about those that we meet. It's so important to have the faith that people can change through the atonement and having the faith, that there are people being prepared to receive the gospel! Christ's mission was US.. He is our advocate and I know that his atonement is so personal. He's felt everything that we have felt.. I know that this work is true and I love it more and more every day! I know that If we align our will with his and follow him because we WANT to.. not because we are supposed to, we will see the hand of the Lord in our lives! Thanks for all the support & prayers. Love you all!

 

Sister James

August 18, 2014

 

 

 

Staying in Santa Barbara

Fam and Friends!

Hey everyone! Well, I'm staying in Santa Barbara!! I'm staying with Sister Ashworth.. BUT we're getting a new companion. We're Tri-Pan training.. I'm super excited! It's definitely going to be a different experience.. teaching with TWO companions and doing everything with one more missionary. It will be fun :) I don't know if she's going to be able to handle both Sister Ashworth and I .. we're hooligans.

Anyway, this week was great!! Sister Ashworth's birthday is on Friday, So we had the opportunity to go to the LA temple…it was incredible. (I will attach photos) I missed it so much.. It was really refreshing and especially helped me remember the importance of my covenants. It was definitely different because I feel more in tune spiritually as a missionary and my relationship with God is so much deeper now… It was an unforgettable experience.

We met with Ben and Natalie yesterday... Unfortunately, it didn't go so well. Because of some cultural differences and some other issues they are having, we will be postponing their baptism, but please, please keep them in your prayers! They are so special to us.

I've been thinking a lot about all that I have learned this transfer... I think I've grown the most these past seven weeks. I'm learning what it really means to put these investigators before myself and fulfill my purpose as a missionary in doing all that I can to help them come unto Christ. I have a sure testimony that Heavenly Father hears and answers our prayers. He blesses us in times of confusion and in those times when we need direction. He knows his children so perfectly and truly wants us to have joy in this life. I've also been thinking about TIME and how fast it flies!! .. :) It just shows how short our life is here on this earth.. we have to make the most of it and realize what matters most in the eternal perspective. I love this work and I love my savior Jesus Christ!!

Love
Sister James

Sister Ashworth's birthday

 

Sister James and one of her many gentlemen friends!