Third Times The Charm

Mulibwanji

My dear family and friends!

How are you? I hope that your week was well . Well guess what??? Its that time again. Transfer time. So we just found out Thursday that we are both getting transferred me and Sister Mbele. So we are flying out tommorow and I am going to serve in Lusaka, Zambia and I will be opening an area for sisters (going to area that has never has sisters) and I will be with my new companion Sister Makunye who I have yet to go and meet. My companion is going to Zambia too but she will be going to Kitwe in the Copperbelt in Zambia and she will be companions with one of my old companions Sister Two. So the time has come and the hour is at hand. So we are flying out tommorow morning at 7am bright and early.

This past week though was actually a fairly great one for me. We did not teach a ton of people but we did have good lessons this week. This week we learned alot about the role of the Holy Ghost in conversion and teaching. One thing that I realize is that missionary work and even teaching in any aspect of the church requires our heed to the spirit and our desire to be led in all things. As a missionary we need to listen to the spirit to be able to teach the investigators but also in order to find and even teach. In the D&C its says that if we do not teach by the spirit then we are not teaching by God so it is by some other way. So one thing I have been working on is teaching by the spirit and even recognizing the spirit on my life. It has definitely help me alot and I can feel it in the work.

One of the lessons we taught this week was definitely a powerful one. One of our investigators Mkagula is an older guy about 71 who is a widower. He comes to church and he knows that it is true but he has really been struggling with accepting to get baptized. So this week we decided to start teaching him the gospel of Jesus Christ so we can emphasize baptism. We started with faith and repentance and it was so great! We went into repentance and I felt the spirit teaching him in a way that I hadn't felt before. As we taught him alot of things came up that he didn't know and had never realized about repentance. I realized then that sometimes as we follow the spirit then it will ultimately help us. If he hadn't really learned about repentance or really understood he would not have been ready to take the next step but because we listened to the spirit we addressed a need of his. The spirit is key!

This week was great and we got to say goodbye to our branch and I am oh so grateful to have had this time to serve here in Malawi. I can honestly say that I will never forget it. Honestly I have went through a trail of my faith being here and I can say that I have not been defeated but I have definitely learned things that I know will be able to help me someday in my life. I know that the things we learn on mission will bless our lives.

I love you all and miss you all and will keep you updated next week! Well have a good week!!! This week is my 11 months!!! :))

Love

Sister Scott

Howdy Y'all ;

Long time no see!

Howdy yall :) (I just thought I should get a taste of my past southern life)

How is everyone doing? I hope that everyone had a great week and all is well! So my apologies for my abscence! Things have been pretty up and down! So this week was a fairly normal week but one of our more challenging ones! We finally set appointments foe everyday and we have appointments for almost every hour and sadly our plans fall through consistently almost daily. So this week although we had challenges we still were able to teach a few lessons and even have some spiritual moments.

One highlight of the week was Tuesday when I was actually invited to a training meeting by the mission president. The Assistants to the President actually held a meeting for all of the trainers in the mission and they gave us words of encouragement and even talked to us about our role in the mission. He told us that as trainers we are the leaders in the mission and that being a trainer the most important job in the mission because we are molding the people that will come into the mission and so we are affecting the mission forever. If we train someone they can train someone who will train someone else and the cycle continues. One person can affect an entire generation.  It really was a wonderful meetingand I learned alot. I really feel like it helped me to want to try my best to become better and to strive to be a better example because I feel like Im going to train again before I go home!

Otherwise our week was pretty good. One thing I have been thinking alot about is my progress as a missionary. Lately I have been feeling like i'm so used to teaching and now I just teaching by habit and I haven't really been focusing on the spirit and teaching the things that Heavenly Father wants. So this week that was my goal and I decided to just follow the spirit and to only teach the impressions that I have. So we have an investigator named Memory she is about 23 and she is young and just living life but she has a desire to follow God. So lately she has been a problem. Not really keeping commitments and do other things that she shouldn't and so we were getting frustrated and we decided to teach her about repentance. Honestly that was one of the best lessons ever. We taught her about repentance and the importance of us repenting. Its so important that we recognize our weakness and our sins and that we repent. That Atonement is real. It is a gift. We need to use it. I feel the spirit in that lesson not only teaching her but also teaching me. That was an amazing moment. It was the first lesson that I felt like she really felt it in her heart and she decided that she wanted to change.

If I have learned anything at all on mission, I think I have come to more fully understand the suffering and death of the Savior Jesus Christ. Not that I can understand in the least degree, but mission for me has been an experience that has helped me to gain more of an idea. Repentance is free. It can relieve us of our guilt and the burdens that we carry. It can give us peace in our hearts. I hope that everyone uses the Atonement in their lives and understands the love that God has for each of us. Infinitely.

I hope that you all have a blessed week and I love you all! I love the emails and letters that you send. They definitely help me through the week!

Love

Sister Scott

Jiggy June

Hello everyone!!!

So first off I have to say that I miss you and love you all SO much.

So this week was pretty crazy. Lots of contacting and finding but we also have been teaching some sweet people! One thing that I didn't expect was the freezing COLD! It has been so terribly cold here that I feel like i'm in Utah. Seriously its like cold and foggy and rainy. Its like the worst combination. Ever. But its nicer than the heat!! :)

So this week was pretty great. I guess the life of a missionary becomes more routine as the days go on but when we take the time to find those true miracles then I think we see the way that Heavenly Father blesses us. So one lucky miracle we had was finding a new investigator named Aziz. He is an 18 year guy we contacted and he seemed very interested and so we visited him and taught him the Restoration. Man this was the first time I got to teach the whole Restoration at once since I have been in Malawi. Usually we just teach a little part at a time and so this was quite an experience. It was so amazing! I can say that I have never felt the spirit guide me more in a lesson. We taught him and at the end of it we just sat and let them take it in. He said that he felt kind of confused. He told us that he wanted to believe it and part of him does, but he feels torn. So we both bore our testimonies about how we came to know its true and he said that he would pray and he would read the Book of Mormon. So that was my highlight of the week! It was so great! I feel like he has true potential and these are the people we are trying to find!

Other than that me and my companion are doing good! Transfers have come and gone and we are still together! I love her alot so its all good!

So life here has had its ups and downs but im grateful for everything i'm learning and everything i've done! I dont have much time this week but i want to testify that I know that the Savior lives and that he loves us. I'm so grateful for his sacrifice and for his love and mercy even with my imperfections. I pray that we all  recognize daily how the atonement helps us in our lives!

So i love you!

And I would love emails from everyone :) Have a great week!

Love Sister Scott

IF IT WAS EASY. IT WOULDN'T BE WORTH IT.

Hello my dear family and friends!

How are you? I hope that all is well. Things are pretty crazy here but I can officially say that the Malawi elections are over and so the work can go on as usual! Today was the inauguration and the new president is a man that has been in America for 25 years and he taught at Yale so bright things in the future of Malawi!

So things are good as far as the work goes. Things have been pretty slow, but me and Sister Mbele are still doing great and still working hard. This past week I can say was one of the better weeks that we have had. Honestly missionary work is HARD.I  can say that hands down and I can also see that Satan is real. This week we did alot of contacting and finding. So we have been focusing alot on following up. As missionaries we have the tendency to go out and meet 30 people a day and write all of their numbers down and then we forget to actually call and make appointments. So that was our goal this week, we went back and contacted many people that we met in the past. To our surprise we actually found families! Yay for families! We even got to teach two of them this past week which was pretty amazing! So that was my highlight of the week!

Among other things, since we got to stay in these past weeks more than usual I have had alot more time to study. So I have been studying the talk by Elder Holland "Missioanry Work and the Atonement." For all of you out there it is pretty amazing! I feel like mission has taught me a greater appreciation for the atonement and what it means to me. Something that I loved and really related to is how he talked about how the atonement not only carries investigators but also the missionaries. Yes the atonement cleanses us from our sins but it is also something that is there to give us comfort and to help us through our trials. He said that Missionary work isn't easy because salvation is not a cheap experience. How true is that? Sometimes he said, missionaries have to experience a little bit of Gethsemane.

Powerful right? That Atonement is an enabling power. It gives comfort, strength and hope. It gives life. I really feel like I have been having trail after trial after trial. I realize that the atonement is and  should be our source of strength when we are down, discouraged and defeated. How can it be easy for us when it wasn't easy for Jesus Christ. That is what I realized. It can't be easy. Then it wouldn't be worth it. I now that Jesus Christ lives and he is my Savior. He is there for all of us no matter what we are going through, he can perfectly understand. As we use the atonement and pray to our Heavenly Father he will be able to help us.

Well sorry that this is short but those are my thoughts for the week. I love you all and I pray that you all use the Atonement and I pray that you all know who you can rely on. Alma 17:5,10,11. Know who we can look to for strength! I love you all!

Love
Sister Scott

Sister Scott and some of the Sister Missionaries

Agents of God

Mulibwanji!

Im sorry guys my Chichewa skills are not progressing as fast as Setswana but just know that I am putting forth the effort :) I know greetings and how to say I love you, but thats about it.

So this week was one great week! We had the opportunity to have our Zone Conference. Can I say that I just love Zone Conference? Its the opportunity for all of the missionaries to gather together and learn the skills and tools that will help us to become better servants of the Father and its was so amazing!

So we had the opportunity to have the Lilongwe Zone come and join us so it was a combined Zone Conference. So of course that was great because I got to see Sister Rawlins my love again! It was so great. So the sisters came down and stayed the night so of course we got together and caught up on everything which was sweet. So Thursday we all went to the chapel and got to hear from Elder Hamilton who is the 2nd Counselor in the Africa Southeast presidency and also in the Quorum of the Seventy. It was so powerful. We had a four hour conference. The first hour was a meeting for the leaders and since im a trainer I was able to attend it as well. It was so great. He taught about leadership and how we should be as leaders. He said that the world and the church are different in their views of leadership. In the world when someone is in charge they look at others as if they are below them. In the church however he said leadership should be the mentality of chief vs servant. Those that are leaders should lead by being servants to everyone around them. The best leaders tell how and show how. Our greatest example of this is the Savior Jesus Christ who served everyone around him, even his own apostles. The best leaders are servants. It was really powerful and definitely influenced me. I want to strive myself to be an example of Christ and be the leader that he himself would be.

The last few hours were also accompanied by teaching and instruction from both President and Sister Erickson and also Elder and Sister Hamilton. They discussed more about out spiritual preparation and tools and things that will help us in the work. It was so great and I learned alot. He said that we are Agents of God and that we are like the Fathers hands. People need to recognize that we are his servants and we are here to serve him and his children. All I can say is that it was really powerful and I definitely learned alot. I can definitely say that I know that the church is true. I know that the Savior lives and that he loves us. No matter what we do our Savior is always there to hold us up. I know that I am here to serve him and that he is here with us. I pray for you. I pray that you will hold on to the pearl, the gospel, as tight as you can. No matter what happens remember why we are here and what the Lord expects us to do. 

I love you all. Thanks for the letters and emails they are inspiring and uplifting. :)

Ndimakukonda (I love you)

Best wishes!

Sister Scott

Half Way There

Mulibwanji!

Hey family and friends of the far far away land! I hope that all is well with you on the other side! Man, sorry I couldn’t email yesterday. The internet was out all over so it just came on today so we have a few minutes to send something short and sweet! First off I have to say thanks to all my lovely family that talked to me on Mother’ Day. It is always great to hear from you guys! I love you lots and can’t wait to see you again! These past few weeks have been pretty hectic and hard between being sick and hitting 9 months and training it all has been alot, but it has at the same time been a wonderful blessing! I honestly can’t even begin to describe the things that I have learned and realized about myself these past few weeks. My area is honestly one of the hardest and even though I have been here about 4 months we still have not found the success that others have. I often times wonder why and I have really been hard on myself. We spend alot of time contacting and tracting and we just find that many people have been born in their church and it’s their family church and It’s hard for them to leave or they have only heard bad things about the church. Either way it makes it somewhat difficult and trying at times.

But last week was officially my 9 month mark! Yes half way there. I think that since then I have been really doing some self evaluating. The branch that I am in has been slowly going down hill to the point where we are lucky if we have 20 people at church. Most of our members have stopped coming and we struggle to get people to come to church and stay because there aren’t any people there with them. So honestly I had the question of why these things were happening. Why the area is struggling, why the branch is struggling, and why even when we try our best we seem to not be doing as well as the other missionaries. I however had the opportunity to read the talk that President Monson gave at his last conference in November 2013 "I Will Not Fail Thee, or Forsake Thee." In this talk he really talked about trials and how Heavenly Father never leaves us alone. He talked about trials and even said something that hit me to the core. He said that, "if the gospel is the center of our lives it will pull us through and we will become refined and grow." He even went on that God blesses us with so many things and he allows those trials so that we can learn and grown.

Often times I think that I forget that trials are a part of the plan. Trials help us to grow and they make us stronger. Life is about become better and stronger. More like the Savior and our Heavenly Father. It brings to my mind the poem "Good timber does not grow with ease, the stronger the wind, the stronger the trees." It is true for us too. The winds of life are often times hard. Sometimes we may think they are too strong and that we might break. When I read the account of Joseph Smith in the grove it talks about Joseph being overcome by this dark power. He said they he used all of his strength to fight and just when he was about to give up he saw a pillar of light exactly above his head. He didn't just go to the grove and God appeared right then and there. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ waited until Joseph was about to give up. When he was at his breaking point. I realized that sometimes this is what God does. Not because he doesn't love us, but to help us. He never leaves us. He loves us. We just have to find the lesson that we have to learn.

Honestly my mission has been the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. I have been pushed to the edge, even when I thought I couldn't make it, God's hand was always there and I have grown so much. I just hope that as I continue on my journey that I continue to grown and stretch.

I want to become the person that Heavenly Father knows that I can be. I hope that we all remember this and remember that he will never leave us and that he is always there. He knows us perfectly. He knew us before we were born and he knows what we are capable of, but we have to have FAITH. I love being a missionary. I love the good and the bad. I know that this is something that I will never forget. I have gained so much more than I have lost.

I love you all and I hope that you continue to be strong. I pray for you all and I hope that you have a wonderful week!!!

Love

Sister Scott