Weekly Email May 23, 2016

Hey hey hey! 

this week was a fabulous one. you know how you are just so happy and just for no good reason?!? i feel like that all the time, but i know the reason and it JESUS! (: 

 This week was full of great moments such as...

• doing service on many occasions! cleaning up an old house for a member and then helping another one move! 
• eating at stevi b's with sister dorberth and desiha! WE threw down! 
• we were able to go out with many members this week to teach with them! i love how they add and fill in the gaps and make it a beautiful spiritual experience! all those that we bring get along so well with the investigators! 
• EMILY IS FABULOUS. SHE IS OUR PROGRESSING AND THRIVING INVESTIGATOR! SHE LOOOOOVES THE GOSPEL. we are super excited for her. she is planning on being baptized june 25th, keep her in prayer! 
• sister nau is a fabulous companion...she serves me ALL THE TIME. she made me chocolate chip pancakes, brings me food when im too lazy to get up and she makes me dinner. i love her so much. we are a really good companionship, we never get down on each other and we know were on the same team! (: 

I have been reading 1 nephi 15 & the verses that really stuck out to me were 23 & 24. nephi is explaining to his brothers the importance of scripture study. I am so incredibly grateful for the desire i have to read the scriptures each day. I love it! its one of my favorite parts of my day, the lord is able to communicate with me! I love that the spirit testifies to me of the truthfulness of what i read. we had a member come home from his mission this week and he tesitfied of the improtance of using the book of mormon correctly. its not about the stories, they are good and powerful experiences but its more so how the spirit work with you as you read them! what is the lord trying to tell you? i testify that the scriptures are important, they build that bridge of communication with our father in heaven. i love this work, there is nothing greater than serving others. 

I'd invite you all to read your scriptures daily and apply them in your life. dont read them just as something to check off, pray for that desire to read them! i promise you when you do you will never be lead astray and the temptations of the world will never be so great to overpower you!

-sister russell

Weekly Email May 16, 2016

Hey y'all!

so this week was overall good. honestly the days all run together..i don't know if thats a good or a bad thing. we went finding a lot this week! we are just trying to find people who are prepared and i feel at times were looking in all the wrong places but i know that we are planting seeds. sister nau and i got uber hungry after emailing so we went to ihop and i got the cupcake pancakes. I LOVE BREAKFAST. it is the BEST. 

 we were able to do service for a less active member this week and that was super awesome. she really just helped us out more than we did her! its nice to get to know the members better and to be able to do work for them! its also really hard for me not to hurt when the members are going through really hard things. There are a few people in the wards that are just struggling big time and i cant help but cry out to heavenly father for them and ask that i can know what to do for them. 

okay on to my favorite part of my month!!! I WENT TO THE TEMPLE!!! It was such an incredible experience. I was able to take my family names and i had a few sisters and elders do them too. What really stuck out to me was that Christ sacrificed so much for each of us and we too are going to have to make some heavy sacrifices. whether that be our time, comfort, materialistic things , family etc. i am very grateful for the sacrifices i made to come out on a mission... and the definition of a sacrifice is to give something up of value for something of greater worth or goal. we are going to have to sacrifice a lot to become like the savior but we must remember that he did it so he can succor us. sister Austin at the temple told us a scripture in Malachi 3:2-3

"..for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers’ soap:

 3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." she said that they talked to a blacksmith and he said that you cannot just leave silver to refine it you must watch it while the heat purifies. They also asked him well how do you know that it is ready? The blacksmith said...when i can see myself in it. The savior is our blacksmith he is refining us and is watching over us. he loves us! he wants us to become more like him, that is the goal!

HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION

When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,

My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply.

The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design

Thy dross to consume, thy dross to consume,

Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine.

The lord sees past all of our dross and he will allow us to access his grace because it is sufficient for all. I testify that the things that we go through are for our benefit, they are so that we can better see the savior in ourselves, and along the way we help other recognize as well. I love this work. I know the gospel is true. This is Jesus Christ church restored back onto the earth in these latter days. I testify that Joseph Smith saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. They live and because they live i know we can too! Have a great week and i'd invite you all to draw closer to becoming more like the Savior in whatever way you worship him! 

Love,

Sister Russell

Weekly Email May 9, 2016

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO THE BEAUTIFUL WOMEN IN MY LIFE THAT HAVE HELPED ME BE THE WOMAN I AM TODAY! As i was sitting in sacrament meeting listening to all the talks about mothers and how important they are i really cannot wait to be a mother!! I think the thing i am most looking forward to is better understanding heavenly father better, loving someone unconditionally that is a mini me and knowing of what they can become. I think its a beautiful thing that god allows us to become more like him and create life! its fabulous that this life is like our mtc for eternity! 

This week was eventful. we have that lovely tiwi thing in our car and i was invited to drive better and not speed. it was kind of embarassing but i got over it and humbled myself and my driving has improved. REPENTANCE IS REAL YALL.          

 If you ever feel like you dont know why you are going through hard things the way you are or why are bad things happening to others? find comfort in knowing that the savior suffered all things....so that he could succor us. Alma 7:11-12  We are able to better understand the Savior because we go through hard things and were able to turn to him to find peace and refuge from the storm. 

Sisters Meeting! It was really awesome! we talked about our worth as children of god and that we are made in his image. I sing i am a child of god everyday to remind myself that i am his! I have never felt more beautiful on my mission and not just this week but overall. I am accepted for who i am and where i am. i love it! I am so grateful for that simple but POWERFUL concept that i am a daughter of god. It makes sense that i will be able to become like my father, and to become like him i will have to undergo some experiences to shape and mold me. I got to see my friends and that was so fabulous. also sister barron told me that we have 24 pdays left...CRAZY. 

we have talked to a lot of people that have said that they are " SAVED"...here is my response to that. oh you are saved!? ME TOO! i am saved from physical death and thats about it! we do not decide that, we can decide to am for the glory to be with our father again where he dwells and act the part! we must realize that we cannot be saved in our sins...because the savior said no unclean thing can enter into the kingdom of heaven. its just really sad that when people say that they are damning themselves...as in stopping their own progression. we must realize that we have to exercise faith each day, find ways to improve, repent daily and strive to become like him. 

I know that the gospel is true. I dont know how else to put it. Jesus Christ is the savior of the world, he created the heavens and the earth and because of him we are able to overcome physical death and have the opportunity to overcome sin! 

I testify that he lives, he loves you and is aware of you. I know that sounds cliche but its not. He suffered for your sins, weaknesses and you name it he went through it for YOU. trust in him. Believe that the father would continue to call prophets, continue to give us more scripture. If that is hard for you to fathom then have hope and let that hope work in you and become faith! I love the lord, he has helped me so much. My favorite hymn is PRAISE TO THE LORD THE ALMIGHTY. " Praise to the Lord! Oh, let all that is in me adore him!" I pray that we will not take for granted the majesty of the gospel before us and if you are not a member of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints i say to you there is more. (: 

LOVE YOU ALL. HAVE A BLESSED WEEK! GO OUT WITH THE MISSIONARIES, AND ACCEPT THE MISSIONARIES IF THEY'RE AT YOUR DOOR. 

-SISTER RUSSELL

Weekly Email May 2, 2016

I love sister wood! she is so stellar. she really just loves on me like my own mom. i love how much heavenly father loves me because i know that he puts people in my path that remind me of family members when i am not around them, that is just a tender mercy! we went to a froyo place with her and then we wrote letters and everything and then we went outside and jumped on the trampoline. then bishop kelly drove by and he was like hey! what are you doing? do a backflip!! and i was like no way i cant do that and then he ran up to the trampoline with dress shoes on his headset and sunglasses and did it!!! he is so awesome!!! also sister nau and i caught some sun rays...well i did more of that than sister nau did. she doesn't brown like i do. ( hahahaha) 

district meeting was super stellar! we talked about the importance of the scriptures and how we can obtain more knowledge by reading them daily. which i 100% believe! i am so grateful for more scripture and living prophets because i always feel like i can have more direction!  it was super hot today! we embraced it though! 

 we were very fortunate to teach a lady that has met with missionaries previously like 15 years ago. she said that she is catholic and she was very set in her ways when we first contacted her. we brought a member sister embry and she was catholic and then converted. she was an incredible asset to our meeting with her. She( the investigator) asked sister embry about her conversion and after sister embry bore testimony she said...." i want that! i want to change." in part of sister embry's testimony she talked about the word of wisdom and the investigator said well i need to get rid of my coffee and cut down. thats what i can work on! also she wants us to bring sister embry back to help her convert to Mormon! lol it was such an incredible testimony builder for me that members really make the meetings with people complete!!! The spirit is so strong!  I did family history this week at the public library...yeah you heard me not at the center and i didn't even need help! i found my great grandmas siblings and i found a picture of my great gpa russell!! he was a stud! i love doing family history! I cannot wait to get home and talk to my grandparents about their family! 

I am so grateful for my hard strenuous week two week ago because this past week was so rewarding! i loved it! we have been working really hard to improve the areas we are serving in! 

I really want to grow closer to my savior! like even more so than what i am now. i finished reading the book of mormon this past week and it was awesome. i know that that is the word of god. it will help you and strengthen your testimony of gods love and the importance of his son! YOU GOTTA CHOOSE TO ALLOW IT TO CHANGE YOU AND HELP YOU! I love this work. Heavenly fathers love is real, it is for you whether you believe you are deserving or not. you can obtain it! so do it!

Love Sister Russell