A Hope For Things Which Are Not Seen

Hey Family and Friends!

Hope y'all had a great Christmas! I definitely did:) We had so much fun at our ward mission leaders house! Kevin, the fourteen year old son, told me at the end of the night that this was the best Christmas he's ever had. I asked him why, and he said that it was because the missionaries were there and we actually got down on the floor and played with him. It was so sweet! I love that kid:)

This week was pretty slow though, for some reason people would rather be with their families than sit around with us and learn about the Gospel... weird :p But that's okay things will pick back up this week. We did have a baptism on Saturday though! It was so great. This girl is the sweetest. She has been meeting with the missionaries for like a year now, but she had to get married first. She was married in October and now she is baptized! She bore her testimony at her baptism and it was so sweet. She is going to be such a great example to her husband and her family! It was a very spiritual service.

Hmm, I feel like there really isn't all that much to share from this week...

So this morning in studies, I learned something very neat and very significant about FAITH.

The Bible Dictionary says: Faith is a principle of action and of power, and by it one can command the elements, heal the sick, and influence any number of circumstances when occasion warrants.

I don't know about you, but to me those sound like some pretty incredible miracles! When you think of miracles, what do you think of?

Obviously their are really huge miracles like parting the Red Sea, raising the dead, healing the blind, moving mountains and so on. I'm sure that we would all agree that there are small daily miracles too, sometimes known as tender mercies. But what would you consider the greatest miracle of all, that we still see happening today?

Maybe healing the sick... the Hastening of the work is a miracle! But none of those are the GREATEST or MOST IMPORTANT miracles.

The BD goes on to say: Even more important, by faith one obtains a remission of sins...

Even more important than commanding the elements, even more important that healing the sick or raising the dead... How incredible is it that we get to witness, probably daily, the most important miracle of all?

Some of us may not have faith to move mountains, but most of us have faith enough in Christ to repent, be baptized, and partake of the sacrament weekly. THAT'S EVEN BETTER.

Faith is a hope for things which are not seen, which are true. And who can see a changing heart? Who can see a repentant soul? Who can see one coming unto Christ? Who can see those things within themselves? These things aren't always the most easy to recognize or see, but holy cow are they true. And they happen every day.

With that in mind, think about how awesome the sacrament is! Do we treat the sacrament like the incredible miracle it is? 

I hope you all see the most important miracle this week in yourself, and in others. Love you all!

Love always, Sister Rowland

Where's Waldo? I mean Sister Rowland...

Sister Schaumkel and Sister Rowland 

Transfer Day 

Hey Family!

So I guess you are probably all wondering where in the world I ended
up! Well I'm literally in the middle of nowhere. Like literally. All
that's here is farmland and orange groves. On the drive out here we
got to stop at Florida's Natural factory visitors center. We got to
taste test orange juice. One of the members in my ward here works
there.

By the way, I absolutely love it here. The first day I knew that I was
home. I felt like I was with family, with people that I had just
barely met. Everyone is super old. Our area is HUGE! And we are on car
share with the Elders, so two weeks out of the month we won't have a
car, at all! And there are no sidewalks here. So that means unless you
have a death wish, you don't bike. And almost all of our investigators
are in the neighboring town about 9 miles away. It's a bit of a
challenge. But the members here are incredible and they are willing to
drive us anywhere that we need to go. I love the members. They
welcomed me in as if I had been here my whole life. My ward mission
leader is especially incredible. He does so much for us! For us as
people, and as missionaries. He wants us to be happy and taken care of
and he will literally do anything for us, no matter when or what. He
told us that someday his boys will be out on a mission and he hopes
that someone will do the same for them.

My companion is Sister Shaumkel. She is from Cali originally but she
has been living in American Fork for two years and that is where her
family is at currently. She is awesome! She came out on her mission
the transfer after me, so we both are pretty much on the same page. We
also had similar struggles with our last companions, so we are able to
be totally unified. We are able to teach with the spirit, work hard,
and have a blast while doing it. I haven't laughed this hard or this
much my whole mission. Honestly I am so happy right now in this place
that compared to this, I've been miserable my whole mission. I
wouldn't mind finishing my mission here in this place with Sister
Shaumkel. I'll cry if I'm ever transferred.

It's the perfect mix of small town and not so small town here. It's
enough to be quaint and adorable, and the people know all about
southern hospitality, but it's still big enough that there are people
to teach:) Speaking of teaching, it's so nice to have investigators
again! We have a baptism on Saturday. This girl is 21 and she has been
meeting with missionaries for over a year and she finally feels ready
to be baptized! She is so sweet and has such a strong testimony. I'm
so excited for her. We also have a ton of member referrals that we are
working with. Yep, you read that correctly, member referrals that are
actually interested in taking the discussions and coming to church!
It's so exciting!

It's also really different. Without all the challenges that I have
faced in my other areas, I also don't feel like I'm growing very much.
So it's interesting.

So funny story about the package you guys sent. It was actually a
blessing in disguise that they needed a signature. Because if they
hadn't it would have been left in the front office of our apartment
complex. If it had been there, I would have had absolutely no way of
getting it because it doesn't open until 10am. Transfer meeting
started at 10am, an hour and ten minutes drive away. BUT the post
office opens at 830. Heavenly Father is so nice.

It was still really stressful because transfer meeting was an hour and
ten minutes away, plus we had to be there ten minutes early, plus the
traffic on the bridge from St Pete to Tampa is horrendous. So how on
earth was I going to have enough time?! We got to the post office late
because of some struggles with getting our Toyota Corolla packed with
four suitcases, two carry-ons, two emergency backpacks and a bunch of
extra stuff, plus two bikes. It was an ordeal... So we got to the post
office ten minutes after we should have already left to Tampa, we walk
in to see ten people in line in front of us and only two workers. Come
on, it's only going to take two seconds for you to run to the back and
grab my package! So we wait, and wait, and wait. I didn't know whether
to wait in line longer or just forget about it and leave. But I
decided to wait. Finally I get to the front of the line, they get my
package and blah blah. But now we only have an hour for an hour and 10
minute long drive plus traffic. President is going to kill us...
Heavenly Father, please provide a way.

Now, believe it or not I can be a little speed demon when I want to
be, but we have a nazi in our car who is "affectionately" named Tiwi.
Tiwi yells at us if we go more than seven over the speed limit. And if
we don't "check our speed" as he says, we will get yellow dotted.
After a certain number of yellow dots, you lose your privilege to
drive. So speeding wasn't an option. I kept praying, please provide a
way, please. I decided not to stress, and to just leave it to God. It
was beyond my control at this point.

Less than 45 minutes later we pull into the parking lot where the
meeting was held, fifteen minutes early.

Heavenly Father loves us so much, and if it's important to us, it is
important to him. And miracles do happen.

So anyways, anyone curious where I am at? :) I'm in the middle of
nowhere, also known as Sebring, FL. We are as far east as our mission
goes. If we go outside of our area east, we will be in the Orlando
Mission. So I'm not by the beaches anymore, but there are plenty of
lakes around, like PLENTY.

I love it here so much, and I am so happy. Merry Christmas everyone! I
love you!

Love always, Sister Rowland

So this is my companion, Sister Shum-kul. The creepers in the back are

Elder Dardon, and Kevin (my adopted brother/Ward mission leaders son.
In the later pictures you can see the top of Elder Whaley's head and
Matt-Matt in the doorway, my ward mission leaders other son :) we have
fun.

By the way, my new address is:

409 Manor Cir
Sebring, FL 33872

Apparently this picture was supposed to come last week and the send failed :) 

Proved By My Trials, I'll Be Nearer, Yet Nearer to Thee

Hey Family!!

This week was good. We had yet another super prepared person drop off the face of the earth:/ Its crazy how often that happens to us. But we did get a message on facebook from a lady that we taught when we very first got to this area. She told us how she was pretty skeptical when we were teaching her, but that she is so thankful that we taught her how to pray because prayer has helped her through the terrible trials she has faced these past months. She said that she knew we came into her life right at the right time and for a reason, and she wants to meet with us again!

We also had interviews with President Cusick this week. It was just what I needed. We sat down, and he brought up the topic that he knew I needed to talk about but would never bring up on my own. We had a very good chat, and he gave me some great advice. I definitely came out of that uplifted, and a little less scared of him :p

So transfers are this week, and yes, I am gone! Kicked out. Sister Johnson is kicked out with me. So is Sister Rhodes! I wont know where I am going until Thursday though. So probably hold off on letters... oh wait no one writes me letters ;) ...LOVE YOU ALL!!

When Sister Johnson and I read the email that said we are getting transferred, it only confirmed what I already knew :) I had a feeling that I would be. She and I talked about how we are ready for a new start. Our journey here in Seminole has not been an easy one. But yesterday in church, my last Sunday with this ward, I realized how sacred this place is to me. I loved Tampa 4 because the members were wonderful, and we saw so many miracles and a lot of success. But Tampa 4 doesn't compare to here.

I'll explain... Here in Seminole I have faced some of the most difficult heartaches, disappointments, and discouragement. I have had my patience tried and tested to the breaking point. I have seen very, very few fruits. And there were many times that I felt that I wasn't doing any good. I wasn't making a difference for anyone. But this place is so sacred to me because I have learned to trust God. Totally and completely. Whatever He asks, I know that I can do, and I will do it willingly. In the midst of my trials and tests, I have come nearer to God and Christ than I ever could have teaching 40 lessons a week, and baptizing nations.

I was reading a scripture today that explains that a little more. Its in John 15:2. Christ is speaking to his disciples and teaching them that He is the vine, they are the branches, and God is the husbandman. In verse 2 he says:

Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

In the footnote for "purgeth" it says purifies or test.

So when we are fruitful, God tests us, He refines us, because He knows that we can bring forth even more fruit!

It makes me think of a washcloth. You wring out a soaking wet washcloth and you get lots of water. But we all know that if we wring it out again we can get more water. No matter how many times you wring the cloth, there is always more water in there.

When we are doing good things, God allows a trial to come our way. Not to make things hard, but to make us more fruitful. He knows that we are capable of so much more! He knows there is more water in the cloth. God is wringing us out! And he has certainly done so for me in this area.

Seminole is always going to hold a very special place in my heart because of the person that I have become. In preparation for interviews, President had us answer a few questions that we could discuss with him. One of them was "What kind of missionary do you want to be by the end of your mission?" And the follow up question, "What are you willing to give up or change to get there?" That hit me so hard! I was trying to really answer these truthfully and prayerfully.

And I knew that I would be able to give up anything that God asked me to.

That's big, guys. This coming from the girl who is always right, even when she is wrong! This coming from the girl knows best, always, even when I don't. I am so prideful, you guys! So prideful. My way, or the highway! All the time. I've always been that way. I've always been the type that is obedient because I have to be. I've always been a good girl, because I didn't feel like there was another option. I get that there was, but to me there wasn't. I was never obedient just because I loved God.

But the atonement of Jesus Christ has truly changed me. I will do anything that God asks me to because I love Him and I trust Him. Heck, I gave up peanut butter and yoga pants!! I love peanut butter and yoga pants! But I love God more.

Now I'm not saying this because I'm so awesome and great, but because I know that the enabling power of the atonement is real. I already knew that the redeeming power was real. I knew that I could be cleansed from my sins. But now I know that I can be made better through Christ.

I realized this week that eight months isn't enough. I don't want to go home in eight months. That's too soon. I love being a missionary! For the past ten months, all I have wanted to do is just finish this already so I can move on with my life! But I don't want to go home... That's big too.

I know that the Atonement makes us better. I know that trials make us better. I know that God knows best. I know that He loves us. I know that He listens when we pray to Him. I know that this is Christ's church. And we are so blessed to be a part of it. And I know that everyone on earth needs to know this.

I love you all:) I'm so excited and ready for this new adventure. I'm so excited to see how God is going to make me into GOLD this next transfer.

Love always, Sister Rowland

These are some pictures from their Mission Christmas party last week :) 

Trainings, Changes, and Yoga Pants

 Hey Family!

This week was wonderful!! And thanks for all of the birthday wishes:)

This week we got to go to Tampa for a special training that has been called the Metro Training Center or MTC. It covered EVERYTHING that we need to know as missionaries, and as disciples of Christ. This training really changed me in a lot of ways, and I hope that I can share some of those things with you in a way that will inspire you to make some changes too.

The first thing that we were trained on is nutrition. Obviously nutrition is super important for missionaries, because we need to stay healthy! They made a big deal about how the things discussed in the MTC training are things that apply to our whole lives. So why is nutrition so important? Well for obvious reasons! Our body is a gift, we need to take care of it. And that is definitely true. But my eyes were also opened to the other side of it: Satan wants us to be fat and unhealthy. We talk all the time about how he is jealous of our bodies so he tempts us to misuse them, but how often do we apply that to nutrition and exercise? Not very often. Satan wants you to eat that second piece of chocolate cake. Why? Because the more unhealthy you are, the less effective you are as a servant of the Lord. Maybe you guys already knew this, but I had never thought about it that way!! Satan tries anything he can to make us less effective tools for good, and that includes tempting us to overeat and to eat things that aren't good for us.

So I have made some significant changes in my diet. What can you do to change?

The next thing that we were trained on is budgeting. I hate budgeting. My budget includes just not spending money. But that doesn't work, right? We have to buy things and we are counseled to live within our means.

So I have created a budget and I know exactly how much I can spend. How can you be more wise in how your money is spent?

Next was apartment cleanliness. How would you feel if Christ walked into your home right now? Would you feel comfortable having him sit on your couch or at your kitchen table? We had some repenting to do here. I know that keeping things clean is hard. Especially with little kids. But helping them learn to keep things clean at a young age is going to bless their lives! And the spirit can be felt so much stronger when the house is clean. Homes are sacred places where we can be safe from the filth of the world. We need them to be clean and clutter free so that when we are there we can feel that safety and we can soak in the spirit. I am no angel when it comes to this! Any of you that have ever been in my room at home know this! But I'm really trying to change my habits. And I promise you that it makes a difference.

We were also trained on how to study. And the only part that I really feel like I need to mention is that we were taught that most of our study should be pondering and writing. Very little of it should be spent reading. That is how we get personal revelation.

Next: Personal appearance. This was another one that really called me to repentance. Lets be honest guys, I would love to just chill out in sweat pants with my hair up and no make up on ALL THE TIME! And I knew that when I came on a mission I wouldn't be able to do that anymore. But I planned on going right back to it the second I came home. But just because I wont have a black name tag on doesn't mean that I still wont represent Jesus Christ. We covenanted when we were baptized to take His name upon us. And that means that the way we dress, act, and talk all reflect our Savior. For the Strength of Youth counsels us to not be overly casual in dress and appearance. This was a hard one for me to swallow, but its not vain to always try and look your best. It is a reflection of the love you have for your Savior, and how you want to represent him. Along with personal appearance, they spent a good long time talking about spandex yoga pants. Guys, I LOVE SPANDEX YOGA PANTS. But lets be honest, just because they cover you doesn't mean that they really cover you. We are a peculiar people, and we are going to have to be different from the world. Gods standards don't change.

I bought a pair of men's exercise pants that are nice and loose and I can still work out just as well without having to show anything off. I take a little extra time in the morning to put on a little extra make up to make sure I look my best. Whether we are a full time missionary or not we carry a message to the world, and the way we look must reflect that.

FYI take all of this as you will, but I encourage you to take these things to the Lord and ask him how you can improve. I know that it will change your life!

We spent most of our time learning about how to more effectively work with members. People, we as missionaries in the Florida Tampa Mission DO NOT TRACT and now we do not go street contacting either. We still talk to anyone and everyone that we can, but we do not wander empty streets for hours on end. Why? Because it doesn't work. In this day and age it doesn't work.

Our purpose as missionaries is to help strengthen the members faith to do missionary work.

We no longer have "our investigators". These are the members investigators. The members need to do the finding and inviting, we are called and set apart to teach. This is a very different concept to some people, but prophets and apostles have been trying to tell us this for years! And its going to take some time to help people truly grasp this. But all of our efforts are focused on this, on helping the members become missionaries. We are trying to change the culture, and its not easy. But once it happens, just imagine! The Hastening doesn't mean more missionaries going out to serve. I used to think it did! But it doesn't. The Hastening means everyone. And the only reason there is an increase of full time missionaries is so that we can get a head start on becoming effective member missionaries.

We also learned about presenting ourselves with confidence. And we focused a lot on all of the gifts and abilities that we have in order to do this work.

I really sincerely hope that the spirit will touch you, and that you will set some goals and make some changes. We MUST be different from the world if we want to make a difference in the world. We are called to live a higher law, and a higher standard. There is no such thing as being "too good". If the thought "well, everyone else is doing it" enters your mind, its probably a pretty good indicator that you shouldn't do it. We are God's "peculiar treasure". And we are pretty darn peculiar, and that is so wonderful! :)

I know that God loves us so much! And I know that He is so proud of the progress we are all making! I know that through Christ's atonement we can all be made better.

Mosiah 3:19 teaches us that we become a saint only through the atonement of Christ.

 Our weaknesses can be made strong. And we can be made into GOLD. Don't get discouraged if you aren't where you would like to be. Just keep moving forward, rely on Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Remember that baby steps in His direction are exactly what God asks from us.

I read something really interesting today in Luke 2 verse 40. Speaking of Christ, the one who is perfect, our savior and redeemer it says," And the child grew, and waxed strong in the spirit, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him."

Even Christ learned line upon line, precept upon precept. He will help us to become all that we can be but we need to be humble and allow him to do so!

I've also learned some pretty incredible lessons of humility, from Christ and also from his precious mother. I have been captivated by Mary and her courage and her humility to be able to say, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word."

She understood that the hard times that she would soon face because of her divine mission would make her into more than she and anyone else thought she could be:

Luke 1:46-49 And Mary said, my soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden, for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things: and holy is his name.

 God will shape us if we let him. But we have to have a soft heart.

This time of year is the perfect time to change:) I would love to hear about some of the changes that you are making! I love you all so much! And I hope you have an amazing week!

Love always, Sister Rowland

Seven Loaves and a Few Little Fishes

Kaitlin's District on Thanksgiving 

Hey Family!

Happy Late Thanksgiving!!!

Things here have been going awesome. K is doing super fantastic. She hasn't smoked since Wednesday, she is plugging forward in the Book of Mormon, she loves church, and she is soaking it all in. She wrote Sister Johnson and I the sweetest notes this week.

Also at church, we had a fun surprise yesterday! Remember that super prepared man that I told you about awhile ago. The one who said, "Thanks for finding me." And then disappeared again. We had finally just dropped him from our area book because we couldn't get a hold of him. Well he showed up at church yesterday!!! All jolly and friendly like usual! And he still wants to meet with us and be baptized!

We had an awesome district meeting on Thursday. We all knelt and prayed for a district baptism goal. We have set the goal as a district to have 8 baptisms. And I feel in my heart that we will exceed that goal, easily. It was a precious moment as we all put our faith together, and set goals and made plans to move mountains this month. We were able to move them last month too!

Street Contacting in 100% Humidity

Cool story: last month our zone had a goal of 9 baptisms, we had a week left and we were 4 short of that goal. We as a district prayed to know how many of those 4 we could get as  a district and we felt that we could get three. So we made a list on the board of all the possible people that could be baptized that week and as a district we prayed for each name every day. The next day, some sisters set a baptism date with a man and his three sons that they hadn't seen in weeks. And he and his sons were baptized, meeting our goal of 9 baptisms as a zone. It was incredible. The power of prayer is real! It is so real, you guys.

As a mission, we have really put a focus on prayer. Planning takes forever because we pray for every name and every goal. Sometimes multiple times for each! We pray in the morning, before we study, after we study, before we leave the house, before every lesson, after every lesson, every time we see someone walking towards us on the street, twice with people during lessons, etc etc. Its amazing what happens when we involve God in every decision.

When we set a goal, we discuss what goal we feel is reasonable. Then we pray and ask if that is His will, then we sit and wait. More often than not, he lets us know that we are and He is capable of much more. And when we set the goals that Heavenly Father tells us to, we can be assured that with His help we can reach them. This is His work. Its absolutely silly to think that we can do it without him.

There is a recently returned missionary in our ward who is on fire. He loved his mission. And hates every day that he's not on a mission. He feels like something is missing from him. The other day, he went out with the elders all day long and prayed with them all day long and he told us that that's what his was missing from his life was that frequent and constant prayer.

I love prayer. My favorite part of the day is when I can kneel and talk to my Father. And I love the unending dialogue that I have with Him throughout the day. The relationship that I have gained with my Father in Heaven is so precious to me! In district meeting, we committed to devote one prayer per day to pure thanks. He share the story of Christ and the loaves and fishes. When Christ prayed, he only gave a prayer of thanks...

Matthew 15: 36-37  And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude... and they did all eat and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets full.

All he did was give thanks, and the miracle happened. Without him even asking for it.

I want to extend the same invitation to you, to devote one prayer a day to only giving thanks.

I remember in primary when one of my teachers gave us the challenge to put a penny in our shoe, and every time we feel that penny to say a little prayer of thanks in our minds. I triple dog dare you to try that for a full day:) I'd love to hear how it goes!

I know that God hears and answers prayers. He loves talking to us. And talking to Him will bring us more light and joy than we can imagine.

I love you all and hope you have an amazing week!

Love always, Sister Rowland