What a WONDERFUL Life I Have!

WELL! I have LOTS of things to say but no time to say it. well...I have a little bit of time, but super jumpity right now so that doesn´t really help. 

This week was great. We had transfers......guess where I went?? NO WHERE. I´m still in the same ward...but got A DIFFERENT companion! Hermana Latorre. She´s waiting for her visa....she´s from Chile. But she really is AWESOME. We´re a LOT alike...in too many ways haha. 

This week we were on fire...yet again. And without 2 days of working!!! .....yea baby. This week we AGAIN found 11 new investigators. We´ve seen so many great blessing from the Lord. My new companion is a hard worker and with lots of energy....and it´s great.  We hit the road running....and we´re in a marathon, going, going, GOING. And I´m loving it. I´m a HAPPY camper. Like for reals. 

G* is doing great. After district class this week we found him in the street with his pamphlets talking to the other elders......he read the pamphlet like 10 times. When the elders left he insisted in buying us lunch. We taught him lots this week, and are planning a FHE with a great family who lives close. He loved church. ..his baptism is comin up QUICK! He´s a sweetheart by ALL means. 

I gave a talk in sacrament meeting. Seems to me it went well, but it was my first time all the same....pretty neat to do it in spanish. But lots of people told me it made an impact on them so I at least did SOMETHING good. 

We found a total of 4 new investigators from Haiti. .....and they don´t speak spanish very well. SO I´m learning French. We had to talk a little extra time to teach them but they´re super great and super excited to learn....now I just gotta get my mind going again. I was able to teach about the Book of Mormon and share my testimony already so that was pretty cool haha! Just hard work..

We had AN AMMMAAAZING door contact that lead into a lesson. I´d knocked on this door before but no one every answered us. This time a teen come out to see us. He went and got his dad and we started talking to him. He told us initially that it didn´t interest him.....and I asked WHY!?! ...he didn´t say much but then I gave an example of a bag of cookies... That he had a bag of cookies and that I was willing to give him the exact bag, for free....so that he could have 2! No matter that it´s a little funny, I know it came from the spirit...and I don´t even really remember how I related it, but I DID....and he said "okay, lets see how good your cookies are" or something along that line and it was so cool haha....we were able to enter and I had a feeling we should teach the plan of salvation. Let me just tell you, it was probably the most spirit guided lesson I´ve ever been in....as we asked questions, shared experiences, and explained by examples he understood more, he asked questions, and we were able to understand more. We found out that he doesn't believe in God...or in the next life, but I was able to testify that if there was no life none of this would matter...and the Spirit made me say it in such a way that it really hit him. Long story short, he absolutely was NOT going to pray. His son prayed at the end of the lesson...but his son also said he wanted his Dad to pray, and with a little bit of encouragement on the part of the spirit...he DID. It was absolutely amazing the experience. AMAZING. I know that if we work through the spirit we will be trusted with His children and he will prepare them and help us to help them!!! We have a baptism coming up, we are initiating a new plan for our ward and working more with members, and my companion is great. I love being a part of His work! There is not a greater JOY! 

Is it weird that I´m thinking I want to serve another mission......like for reals. Us girls can do that right? 

Hermana Alex Johnson

Here Come´s the Sun ...."do do do do!"

This letter came while I was on my cruise...so it's up a week late.

Well to start off, I want to wish Hannah HAPPY BIRTHDAY. Formally. I honestly can´t believe she´s 19 years old...but hey. She has to grow up SOME day. Also enjoy the cruise.....thanks for inviting me ;)

As for my week, it started out rough. Not gonna lie...but we sure pulled through STRONG. 

And I´m sick of bad news and struggles so here we go with the GOOD stuff! 

This week we had a total of 11 new investigators. For this sector....it´s record breaking. We started working with the area binder more. I took notes and names and made lists of who we could visit and everything....that´s the short story. Well. We started visiting all these houses and BOOM. SUCCESS. 

Thursday: Before lunch, we visited one of the old investigators I´d written down and she happened to be a contact we did in the street 3 days earlier. 

After lunch we visited a reference from another elder. He was receptive and just happened to give us a reference of two professional basketball players of Chile...and show us where they live. Not too bad haha....

Next, we went straight down a street pretty close to visit some of the other people on the list. We knocked on a door and asked for a M*. The number matched up and everything....but they said that there was no M* that lived there. He pointed us to another house and said that there WAS a M* that THERE....okay. Not the house, but why not? We asked for M*....talked about the family, and were able to enter and teach her the first lesson. As we were finishing the lesson with her and her daughter, the daughter´s friend arrived. She asked if we could visit her mom who is waiting an operation and is pretty stressed out.......well OKAY. Don´t mind if I do! So as we left the lesson, the daughter went with us and introduced us to her mom and BOOM.....what. the. heck. 

A total of 6 new investigators in one day...I couldn´t believe it.

Friday we continued to have success as we continued with the lists of old investigators and contacts. We found four new investigators.....B*....and we didn´t even find the DAD that we were looking for! And all day Friday we were teaching....10 lessons in one day....I couldn´t believe it...but I´m holding ON to it. 

Saturday was a bit of a down day....till the end. We visited one of our investigators, José. We´ve worked with the kids a bit, and the mom is a member, but for the longest time has been inactive. Until recently, she didn´t even participate in the lessons...I didn´t even KNOW her! And now....now we´re teaching her and her husband. Her husband was in jail for a lot of years, so we´re teaching with caution CLEARLY. But I am so amazed at the small changes I see every. single. day. I know that THIS GOSPEL changes lives. Changes people...literally changes who we are, into what God wants us to be. Well we were able to talk to him and he confided a LOT in us. A LOT. 

Well. Sunday started out rough too. I sang in sacrament with my companion. hymn 208 in spanish....like 345 in english...I don´t remember. And Hermana Dodds gave a talk...it was a meeting about missionary work. Cool huh! ...during the whole meeting I was just praying to God that he could help us have SOMEONE in Church with us.....that if ANYONE could help us, He could. So why wasn´t he? And I received such a calm sensation.....such peace....even though we didn´t have anyone in church with us. I know that we had to go through this trial....I had to go through it. So that I could rely on HIM...and not ME. I didn´t know how he was going to bless me ...but I knew it was going to happen. 

....and it did. 

After a successful ward council meeting, and a new plan for the ward we made (it´s actually super cool and the Bishop is super excited....getting everything into ACTION..) we headed out to work. ...and then one of the lists I made got lost...It was for that day. So I had to write a quick one down really fast on the new one. Then we received a bunch of phone calls and I was freaking out because we were super behind! ....but right as we went to knock on a door an elderly man opened it immediately. We asked him how his day was and immediately started pouring out his life to us....we were able to enter to the back patio and teach him about the plan of salvation.....I asked him what he was willing to do to live with his family, and his wife (who passed away...) for all of eternity. He told us that he would listen to what we had to say. He said that he knew we were servants sent from God and that he would take all the advice we could give him. I felt strongly we needed to extend a date to him....and we did. He accepted the date immediately and thanked us for bringing him peace. I know that God brought us to him...that he was waiting, and that through God ALL things are possible. There are people WAITING for us and THIS gospel, His Gospel is the ONLY thing that will bring the world real peace and happiness. 

God works through miracles EVERY DAY. 

I love you guys and thank you for your constant prayers and support. 

Hermana Alex Johnson

Here are some fun p-day bowling photos...

8 months out!

Well. I´ve now completed 8 months in my mission. Right? It´s really and TRULY hard to believe. Time is going by so very fast.....we already have transfers this next week and I really am wondering what´s goin on haha. ...especially since the area presidency changed the day, for this transfer only, from a monday to a weeednesssdaaaayy...weeeiiiirrrdddd... 

I´m trying to find some answers. I feel like I´m DOING what I need to do...but lack something, besides success in this moment. Where am I failing? Why don´t we have investigators with us in Church? SOMETHING IS MISSING. And whatEVER I do, I´m gonna find it. I am going to keep looking, and keep IMPROVING....and he will have to give me an answer. After all, this is HIS work and HIS glory.  I¨m not doing this for me.....so that´s where I´m at with THAT haha. 

This past week president wrote the letter to all of my mission and put my experience about seeing the angels in his letter. It was cool to see that everyone was reading it....not cause he put that it was mine, or that everyone could acknowledge it....but it was almost like a confirmation that it really did happen. After all....President was THERE in that Stake Conference..

Speaking of conference, I´m reading all the conference talks I can get my hands on....all from the last conference in April, but they´re really impacted me. We also had zone conference this past Thursday and I learned lots. We´re focusing all of our mission in .....CONTACTS! 150 people a week.....at least. We´re focusing on finding new investigators...and it´s KILLING me a bit....we had to let go of lots of investigators, or with other people we can enter into their house once and then CHAO. never again...it´s KIIILLLIIINNNNGGGG me. I don´t get it...that´s where the whole lack of success situation comes in. I really don´t get it....but I WILL. I´m looking. 

Today we´re gonna go bowling...so that´s fun. 

Two day´s ago we were talking to some people in the street and as we left I had a feeling to look behind me. There was a group of 6 men from Haiti. We´d recently talked about trying to talk to more GROUPS than individuals...and I had a prompting. A prompting that was a little weird, but I went with it. I had a prompting to ask about a street that I "couldn´t find". So we stopped on the corner of the side walk and pulled out the map....they started to walk past, I said hi, they said hi, and then I hurriedly crossed the street after them waving my map in the air and asking for help. We then were able to begin talking about the gospel, the blessings that it can bring and the HELP. I was able to say something like "thanks for helping us with our map. As servants of God, we want to help YOU now...." and lead into our message. We were able to exchange information, and who knows??!?! Only God. 

Yesterday we ate lunch as planned with the members, we arrived at a lesson with new investigators at 3:00 pm, RIGHT after lunch, and as we entered into the house, they had the table ready for...LUNCH. I don´t know how I even ate what I ate...but somehow I did it haha. 

Thanks to a ward family yesterday, we were able to gather up a little bit more encouragement to find what...well what we´re looking for....that thing I don´t know ...but I WILL FIND haha.  I´m so blessed to have been a part of this ward for such a long time because they are really a great support. 

That´s all folks! Talk to you next weeekkkkk! 

Love always,

Hermana Alex Johnson

Silly Hermanas!

Heart, smilie´s, and star attack haha! with bonus SCRIPTURES. For Familia Legit.

Today´s Another Day

To start off, I´m FINE. I´m seriously doing great. Weeks just happen in the mission, and everyone has to face some trials is all. 

I have little time and lots of things to write, so I´m gonna give you the summaries!! 

A Jehovah's Witness knocked on our door while we were studying. You should have seen her eyes when she saw my nametag...but there wasn´t any contention. I just made sure to agree to what she said that was right and be quiet to what wasn´t....and then I testified at the end. Cool right?

E*, our investigator of gold, but of a different TYPE of gold, is doing great. He´s reading all of the book of mormon....in it´s entirety. But at this point he´s thinking that someone took the information from the bible and blah blah blah....I´m having to keep control of my companion in lessons a little bit cause she gets super frustrated with him that he doesn´t GET it. He doesn´t believe in men....or that there is someone that can talk/see God....but I feel so much love for him. Of all people that we´re teaching, he deserves this. He deserves to know this gospel and have his salvation.

I drank a mountain dew this week that A* and R* bought for me...the same people that bought me Dr. Pepper....they´re great. Just trying to help them get ACTIVE in the CHUUURRCH. 

We´re helping a less active family, R* and J* L*** (J* her son who´s 28 years old) well. We visited their house right before the priesthood session of conference and I could tell something was up with J*....so, using the spirit of course, we told him he needed to go to the priesthood session.....we talked him into it and he went. He called me afterwards and thanked me so profoundly....he went to all the other sessions on Sunday. He told me that he made lots of life decisions and I was so happy to see the change of LIGHT he had. He didn´t serve a mission...and regrets it. And now it´s too late...but he´s doing everything he can to move on and be better. And it´s great to see those changes. 

M*, one of our investigators came to the conference. She´s progressing little by little but it was a BIG step for her to go to conference. I was soooo happy! 

And speaking of conference, I loved it. Took lots of notes....AND I UNDERSTOOOOOOD THINGS this time haha!!! ...But it´s really not the same in English. I UNDERSTAND it...but it doesn´t hit me the same.,...don´t know why. Oh well. I´m gonna read it in English soon! 

I´m doing better and my companion and I are working great together. We´re happy campers.....cause we choose to be haha. It´s weird being senior companion, but she tells me that she´s happy and that she´s really learning lots and that I´m a great mom...even though I´m technically not her trainer (her mom) but hey! whatever works!!! 

Love you all to death and...oh and glad dad got the package. Pretty sure that really was all so don´t stress.

LOVE YOU!! 

Hermanana Alex Johnson

M* and E*....and a school bus haha

when Hermana Ceccon had to say goodbye

I´m gonna have to protect myself from the sun(not)....my marry poppins umbrella!! 

My new companion!!! Hermana Diaz from Honduras! 

J*! One of the greatest guys I´ll ever know:)

saying goodbye to Hermana Ceccon.... MWAH!