I TOUCHED HIS HAND

Nachoma bwanji?! (Good Afternoon)

I hope that everyone is alive and well. So announcement of the entire week, I TOUCHED HIS HAND. Now many may be wondering who's hand I touched? Yes. For those brave enough to continue reading, the mysteries of the heavens will be opened unto you :)

Haha but seriously guys this week was probably one the greatest miracles weeks that I have experienced so far. So this week was full of teaching and more teaching! So for those who know we ( me and my companion) have had a total of about 4 baptisms so far in this area! It has been great and very fruitful. So we currently are working on preparing two more of our investigators for baptisms on the 26th of this month and also the 16th of November. So we have Emma Shonga on the 26th and also the sweet Meriam Nasilele. So this week we were able to teach Emma and she is doing so great. You know those people that pretty much know everything already and you just need to brush over a few edges? Yeah that is her. She is 16 and the sweet girl ever. She reminds me alot of myself she just laughs all of the time and she is very honest and adorable and smart! She even likes gospel rapping so we are super good friends! So the Shonga family is definitely a tender mercy from the Lord. When we came Sister Shonga the mother was less active but her three kids always came to church every week, so we figured that by teaching them we could reactivate her. So her sweet angels were the ones we baptized last Sunday and now she comes every week! So she also has two other daughters and one son and her husband who we have been seeing when we visit but we never really got to share with them so this week was our miracle week since we got the chance to teach not only her daughter. but her husband and son as well! They actually wanted us to teach without asking and so I know that will a little more faith and determination that God will be there and we will help this family to reach their goal: the temple. 

So this week we have just been focusing on them alot but I know that it will all pay off and so we have been working very hard and trying to improve each week. Personally I have been reading the Book of Mormon daily and right now I am in 2 Nephi. I feel  though as I study the Book of Mormon I read so many things that inspire me to do better and that teach me so much. One thing that really opened my eyes was my study of 2 Nephi chapter that explained the strategies that Satan uses against us today. In 2 Nephi 28:20-22 its tells us three ways that he deceives us. Verse 20 says that he ''stirs us up to anger against that which is good.'' One way that he does this is by making us insult one another and to gossip and mistreat one another. We become angry and contentious and that is exactly what he wants. He doesn't want us to be happy with one another and love one another. Verse 21 says that he will ''pacify and lull us into carnal secruity.'' Sins are comfortable. I have thought about it like winter time and being under a nice warm blanket and having a nice warm cup of cocoa beside you. We never want to get out from under the blanket because its not comfortable and it is the same with our sins! Satan makes us comfortable sining until the point where we are beyond the point of feeling bad. We become in a way numb. The third way is in verse 22 and Satan deceives us by '' flattering us away and telling us there is no hell and there is no devil.'' So that is something I feel many people in today's world feel that its okay to just do whatever they want and that this life is the time for us to enjoy and they simply forget who they are and why we are here. So theses are things I thought about this week and it made me really see that the Book of Mormon prophecies for us in our day. The prophets werent writing for no reason just to take up time, but it was for us, our benefit. We all should beware of these things and try our best to stay on the side of the Lord.

Sooooo I guess I wont keep you waiting for long. So today was a very great day! This morning we had the priviledge and opportunity to meet with Elder Quentin L. Cook and Elder Carl B. Cook for a special member meeting with all of the members here in Zambia. So it was the most powerful meeting ever! The meeting was going to start and then he wanted to go around and shake everyone's hand before he started. It was super great. I got to shake both of their hands. When he shook my hand he said God Bless you for your service. It was so powerful. I pretty much was very happy and i'm not sure if I will wash my hand again haha kidding! But it was a great powerful meeting with inspired thoughts. President Erickson spoke to us about being ''in the world but not of the world.'' He said that we need to remember that we are here wandering in this mortal life and underneath we are children of our Heavenly Father.'' Something that he said that really touched me was when he said that ''one day when we see his face we will remember how close we are to him and how much we love him. It will be interesting to us how familiar he is to us.'' It also inspired me when the Apostle Elder Cook spoke to us. He told us that we need to feel accountable to God. He also said that we need to increase our faith in the Savior and also to strengthen our families. As he left he gave us an apostolic blessing and testified that he knows he Saviors voice and he knows that the Savior knows. He said that we need to trust in the Savior and take all of our burdens to him and he will give us aid. 

So overall I really enjoyed the meeting and it was very powerful and a great experience. I really feel like Heavenly Father is giving us small miracles and as we open our eyes we can see how he blesses our lives each day. I love you all and I pray for you all and wish you the best! Hope you have a hope filled week with lots of fun!

Love

Sister Scott

                                            outfit sewed by an investigator for me

Children are precious to the Lord

HAPPY 14 MONTHS

:) Good Afternoon my dear family and friendssssssss (:

Well this week was a great one since I hit 14 months!!!!!! Yes it was pretty sweet! My companion said that usually missionaries are dying when they are ending. They start to get lazy and they aren't as energetic but with me she said I act like I just started my mission and i'm super excited all of the time! But its because I just love it!

So Monday we had the opportunity to gather together as sisters and we watched the General Womens Broadcast together at the mission with Sister Erickson. It was a pretty powerful meeting im sure you all know since you watched it before :) So I noticed the theme was clearly temples and how important they are and how we need to better prepare ourselves to go to th temple. I loved the quote that ''The temples are prepared for the people, but the people need to prepare themselves for the temples.'' It was so great and nice. It made me really excited to go home so that I can go to the temple as well. After we watched the conference we had the time for dinner together and it was super nice. The best part was the Sister Lyon came down for a meeting so I got to see her and stay with her at our house! Man, can you say excited?!?!?! I love her so much and we got to spend time which made me oh so happy!

So this week was spent just preparing the kids for their baptism and so we were pretty busy doing that! They did great though. We taught them everyday and then they passed the interviews and they were so happy! They were dancing and so so happy like i've never seen before! It was so sweet! It has been such a wonderful experience teaching them. It really makes me think about having kids one day and how important it is to teach our children the gospel. I know that if my mom didn't teach me as a child that I wouldn't have made it this far!

So this week we also had the chance to visit with our great investigator Meriam Nasilele. So of course she is super powerful and smart so we decide to just review the Restoration again and it was so sweet! She told us that she knew that the church she was going to, The Roman Catholic church was not the right one and she said that she was taken out of darkness into the light when she found The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Man, it was so great. She pretty much said she was just waiting to get baptized and she doesn't care about the traditions or anything anymore. So I invited her to baptized and we had planned for a date and I couldn't even remember it so I invited her for the 16th of November. So of course she said she would and she said that specific day was her birthday. Me and Sister Makunye were both shocked because we had no idea! We definitely knew that it was the spirit and we told her she would have two births to celebrate then. She was so happy and at that moment I also felt the love for her that i'm sure God allowed me to feel. That is one thing that I feel Heavenly Father allows us to feel as missionaries sometimes, he pulls back the veil and we can see peoples true potential and feel the love that God has. Its so amazing. 

So of course the baptism was amazing and spectacular and I loved it so much! I love those kids to death and they even have the most powerful testimonies. They said that they feel like new people and they feel changed! I just know that they will do great!

So of course im still working on my reading of the Book of Mormon before I go home. This week I came across a scripture that gave me new light and really was something that I needed to hear. In Alma 37:37 it states, ''Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good.'' So interestingly enough the word counsel stood out to me. When you think counsel you think of sitting down and discussing different issues or problems and you come up with solutions and talk with one another. I thought it was very interesting that Alma says that we should counsel with the Lord. So we should have a relationship with God in which we can share and discuss things with him and express our hearts desires. But more importantly counsel does not mean that we simply talk at the Lord and tell him what we want, but we also LISTEN. That is something that I feel we all need to do as children of God. We need to pour out our hearts to him and then take heed to the counsel that he gives. As the scripture says he will only direct us for ''good.'' I know that it is true. I have a goal to improve my prayers to Heavenly Father and not merely talk, but counsel.

So another great week and another great time that I had to learn. I love serving Heavenly Father and I enjoy the refiners fire. Even though sometimes its hard I know that I can't see the end, but I have faith and trust that he can. If I am obedient and follow him he will lead me for good! Well I love you all and I pray for you all! Next Monday we actually get the opportunity to hear from Quinton L. Cook the twelve apostle when he visits us next week so I am excited for that and will share the thoughts that he gives to us. I know that this church is true and that it has restored for us, today. I love you all! Have a great week!

Love

Sister Scott

SWEET

More baptism pics

Baptism 10/12/14

Officially 21

Greetings my dear family and friends!!

So yes its official im TWENTY ONE!

Words definitely cant express how great it is to be another year older and wiser too :) 

So this week was a very great week and so sweet! So since we have a baptism coming up on the 12th for our three kids we have been teaching we have been spending everyday with them helping them to prepare and to get ready. Honestly I realized that mission teaches you patience to a greater level. I love teaching them and seeing them grow. Each time we go I see them improve in their English and in their praying and its so great! I am super excited! They have such sweet spirits and im super excited!

So That is what we have spent most of our time doing and also we are focusing on another investigator that we have. We found her a few weeks ago and her name is Merian Nasilele. She is an older woman who is a recent widow. Her husband was a teacher and he passed just a few months ago. She was taught by missionaries before but when her husband died she had to stop coming to church since she was mourning and in their culture they have to wear all black all of the time and stay home most of the time. So she stopped coming to church but we have been visiting her and I can honestly say that she is the most prepared woman that I have met. She has such a passion and devotion to the church even if she has nothing. When her husband died the family took everything they had. The mattresses, tv, and everything that she had. She doesn't have anything, but the only thing that she says every time is that God will take care of them. She doesn't worry about not having food or money because her faith shows. You know something that I have seen in the African people that I have never seen back home is gratitude. People here barely have anything. Sometimes they don't even have a roof over there heads but they praise God. They never turn away from Him. I have been thinking a lot about myself back home and before mission. I definitely see the difference in me then and now. I understand more of my purpose in life and about the important things. I am so glad that I have the chance to meet some amazing people who teach me so many things. I pray that God will continue to open my heart and to change and mold me. We are planning to give Sister Nasilele a baptism date and so im excited for that.

So this week I also had an awesome birthday party! It was great! We went to dinner with all of the sisters and its was great! We got to also spend the day with a sweet family the Shonga family (the kids we are preparing for baptism.) Its amazing that even though they barely have much they still took time to buy food and to cook and to even buy me gifts for my birthday. They got me lovely earrings and an outfits too. All of the kids wrote me notes and then they sprayed me with silly string which was pretty adorable! Haha. It was great. Mosiah 2:17 is so very true and so real. That day I felt true joy.

So this week was also great because we had interviews with Mission President. They were very nice and successful. He told me that I have 4 months left so its that time where I can decide what kind of impression I will leave for the other missionaries and what kind of example they will follow. He also told me alot about spiritual self reliance. He said that now im a seasoned and mature missionary so sometimes Heavenly Father isn't there anymore to guide every decision that I make but he will leave me to do the work because he trusts me. It was very great and inspiring. 

So this week was by far a great week! I learned alot and I realize that im not getting any younger! Its time to start making big decisions! Welllllll I have to run but love you all very much! I know that this truly is the work of our Heavenly Father and that we are his hands! He loves us and he is there for us! I pray for you all and I hope that you continue to lean on the Lord for strength and for peace. He is the rock. He should be our foundation!


Love
Sister Scott

Best Cake Ever

Celebrating My Birthday With Friends

                                              Happy Bday to me

                                              The Witch Doctor

                                          Chocolate