Importance of Sharing Your Talents

WELL - WELL – WELL - LOOK AT ALL THE FUN THAT IS HAPPENING IN BRIGHAM!!!!!!!!!!!!  I FEEL LIKE EVERYTHING HAS BEEN ON PAUSE, BUT I THINK IT IS GOING TO BE A PUNCH IN THE FACE WHEN I SEE THAT EVERYTHING IS CHANGING... OR CHANGED!!! (hahahahahaha)  But congrats to all the weddings and all the fun adventures at the dinosaur park and I am super excited to go to Oregon!  You guys really are the best; I feel so blessed to have such a great family that not only loves this crazy nut head missionary, but lives life to the fullest!  THAT IS WHAT IT IS ALL ABOUT!

As for us, it was another successful and wonderful week in Juarez!  And the best thing about the whole week is that we saw the results at church yesterday!  YES!!!!!!!!!!!  WE LITERRALLY WERE CRYING WE WERE SO HAPPY!!!!!!!!! :):):):)  Let me explain a little bit.... so the Adventistas (remember them?)  Well Eric, the dad, is a super musician; he plays about every instrument and he is super good!  He told us he was doubting a few things of his church, and one of them was that they never let him play the piano, (they use a CD instead).  And I know it is something really simple, but he was upset and commented to us that he wants to use his talents.  WELL... and I being the ward pianist thought, with pleasure I will hand over the piano to him!  AND THAT WAS JUST THE KEY!!!  So we told him that we needed him to play at our church.  He thought we were joking and told us that we had to call the bishop.  So we did and he said, “OF COURSE!”  So we told him to come early so that we could practice, and he came like 5 minutes before the classes started because he was so nervous!!! hahaha  BUT HE CAME!!!!!  We quickly played a few and I sat by him so he would know how the hymns sounded. (To be honest, we were a little bit scared, because it was ward conference and the entire presidency for the stake were there and lots of people.)  BUT HE DID GREAT AND LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :):):):):):):):):):)  After sacrament meeting the bishop came up to him and thanked him and asked if he could play next week also!  He said yes and was super excited!  We stayed after all the meetings with him to play and sing and show him the church!  He is super excited, and told us he felt in his home there!!! 

NEXT ROSITA CAME TO CHURCH!!!!!!!!  We were super surprised, because this week we went to visit her and she told us that she would come when she felt like it, and she didn’t want us to keep asking.... YIKES!!!!!!  But I turned back to look at something in the middle of the meeting....  AND SHE WAS THERE AND HER HUSBAND AND HER LITTLE GIRL WITH THE PATLAN FAMILY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  WE WERE SO HAPPY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  AND the lessons and the messages were so perfect for her!  The stake president and his counselors and the bishop all talked about receiving answers to our prayers and how we can PERSONALLY know the truth of the gospel!  I know they were listening to the spirit, and I am so grateful because I think it really was a turning point for our investigators.  All together our ward conference was a success and filled with the spirit!  What more could you ask??  We feel blessed to have seen miracles at church, and soooo excited to have another great week and find more investigators who are searching for this wonderful happiness!!!!!!!!!!!!!

..1..      What is your choice for your first meal when you get back?

HMMMMMMMMMMMM - I´m not quite sure!!!!!  CHEESY POTATOES, TURKEY STEAKS, BREADSTICKS, AND MACARONI AND CHEESE!!!!!!!! ;) hahahahahahahaha

..2..      When was the last time you drove a car?

October 15, 2013

..3..      What’s your new favorite scripture?

OH MY THERE ARE WAY TOO MANY GOOD ONES!!!!!!!!  MORONI 10: 32 - 33!!!

It is just incredible to me that Our Father in Heaven has prepared a way that we can literally become perfect.  He has sent His Son to the earth so that we KNOW exactly what we need to do and who we need to be!! 

I love you all so much!  Keep staying strong and living with all of your heart, the blessings of the Lord are so much bigger than any other sacrifice that we have to make!  In the words of mom!  REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE AND WHO YOU STAND FOR!!!!!!!!!!!  Have a great week!

Hermana Sutton

Miracles - Not Coincidences

MONDAY ALREADY?????  WHAT IS GOING ON!!!!!!!!!!!

Just another great week here in Ciudad Juarez Mexico!  Hermana Hernandez and I are loving life and finding some really awesome people who are excited to learn about the gospel!!  I quite possibly say that this week was one of the best I have had in all of my mission!!  To be honest, nothing HUGE happened, but the small and simple miracles are good enough to make this sister happy! :)  Well let’s start off with your questions and then I will ramble about our investigators!

1.                Do you expect a transfer or new companion before you come home?

NAH!!!!!!!!!!! We dont think so, well we are hoping not!! I really hope I finish here in this area, I LOVE NINOS HEROES!!!!

2.                Taken any new trips to Bible Mountain?

Sadly we have not returned... hahaha  It was really cool when we went there but we have been taking our journeys more to El Centro, and exploring!

3.                What is the most exciting thing that happened to you this week?

HMMMMMMMM - THE MOST EXCITING????  I think... well I can’t choose, so I will name some cool things that happened this week!! 

We handed out valentine’s candy to all the kids in the street and on the bus!   We played basketball this morning with the other hermanas.  We found a really cool familia, who are Adventista, trying to find a less active member.  We made a heart shaped cake with an awesome hermana that lives alone for valentine’s day.  We had divisions (exchanges) again with a few other hermanas.  We are now teaching the daughter of the family Patlan!!!  My companion and I are super happy together!   And I made some homemade granola that is to die for!!!  IT WAS A GREAT WEEK!  :):):):)

4.                Do you have top ramen in Mexico?

Yes, of course!! hahaha :)  But usually it has chile in it! ;) - MEXICO STYLE!

 

Okay so let me explain some really incredible things that are happening here in good old Juarez!  So one day we were searching for a family less active that we found in the ward list; we went to the house and no one lived there with that name... so well we did what missionaries do and asked if we could share something with them!  (They are a familiy Adventista - to be honest I have no idea what religion that is in English!) hahaha  But we went in and got to know them a little bit better; it is a mom and dad and their little daughter!  They have always been members of their church, but to be honest they don’t love it or live it.   But they had a lot of questions for us just like everyone does about our church - if we have lots of  wives and pray to Joseph Smith and so on....!!!  (COME ON PEOPLE!) hahaha  But they are a really great family!  But what really connected us is that he is a music teacher and plays a lot of instruments, so we got talking and then singing and then well, we are best friends now! ;) hahaha  The dad commented to us that he doesn’t believe in coincidences and it was a miracle that we were searching for his house!  He said he thought we were there to try and make him a member!!  We just smiled, and he said, I’m not against it!!!!!!!!! :):):):)  The next day we went by and they were waiting for us with sweet rolls and milk and lots more questions!! :)  We are really excited and hope they keep progressing!!! :)

Also, like I said above, we are now teaching the daughter, Rosita, of the Patlan family!  Her husband is also with us, he is a less active but he is super awesome, and is coming back to church!!  He just needed a little push I think! ;)  But Rosita is really awesome too; she has studied with the Jehovah’s Witness a little so she knows a lot of the bible, so she keeps us on our toes to answer all of her questions!  She is a really special daughter of God, and has a lot of desires to improve her relationship with Him, but she likes to be absolutely sure of things before she acts! haha  They have a little daughter who is the cutest thing I have ever seen, every time we walk in the door she yells our names “SUTTON Y NANDEZ”!!!!!!! ;)  She is almost 2 and she talks and repeats about everything that we say; she is really the reason I think that Rosita wants to learn about the church!!

BUT IT WAS A REALLY GREAT WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)  THE LORD IS BLESSING US FOR OUR OBEDIENCE AND LOVE FOR THE WORK!!!  IT IS TOUGH, I’M NOT GOING TO LIE, BUT IT IS SO WORTH IT!!!  I KNOW THAT I SAY IT EVERY WEEK, BUT I RECIEVE A BIGGER AND BIGGER TESTIMONY EVERYDAY...  I NOW THIS IS THE TRUE CHURCH!!!!!!!!  I KNOW THAT WE HAVE THE POWER OF THE PREISTHOOD TO SAVE THE CHILDREN OF MEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  THIS IS THE GOSPEL OF HAPPINESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!  AND I AM LIVING PROOF OF THAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):)

I love you all, have a great week!!!

HERMANA SUTTON!!!!!!!! (la guerita!)

9 months out

El Centro

Socks from Valynn

Some old photos from earlier on her mission

Elder Pieper from the Area Presidency Came to Juarez!!!!

Hay rumores que mi blog todavía sigue, y hay algunos miembros que practican su ingles cuando lo leen.  ENTONCES para darles (los miembros)  un poco de alivio y felicidad tenia que escribir algo en español.  Y también para que sepan que hablo de vez en cuando español. :):):)  BUENAS SUERTE!

BEFORE I FORGET!!!!!!!!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEREK!!!!!!!!!!!  AND ALSO GRANDMA CARLENE LAST WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  YOU KNOW ME, I’M STILL FORGETTING THINGS!!!!!!! :):):)  But I hope you all had lots and cake and ice cream and enjoyed the great big day!!!!

IT’S SUMMER TIME HERE IN JUAREZ!!!!  AND WE ARE LOVING IT!!!!  SHORT SLEEVED SHIRTS, NO BOOTS, AND RED FACES!!!!!!!!!  NOTHING IS BETTER!!!!!!!!  We had a really busy week; we started it all out with a nice little trip to El Centro to look for vanilla and little fun things!  We found a little cute store that has a lot of ancient Spanish things and we became friends with the owner, so we are hoping she will give us a great deal when we head back next week!  I wanted to ask you mom exactly how is the vanilla.  I know I have bought it, but is it extract or about how much did it cost??  So that I can make sure to buy the kind that you are looking for!  (oh and how many?)

This week the counselor of the area presidency (Elder Pieper) came to visit JUAREZ!  (THE BEST MISSION EVER!)  And we had a lot of conferences that were so powerful!!!!  IT WAS AWESOME!!!  We started on Tuesday with the leadership counsel and we actually got to talk to him on a more personal level.  He is really great and I felt like I was talking to the profet!!  (I think it counts for something right??)  Right now he and his wife are living in Mexico City, but they are originally from Idaho - I think!!  He focused a lot of attention on the power of fasting and the miracles that he has seen in his life, as well as the benefit we have to teach the members and investigators the law of fast.  I really related a lot to what he was telling us because I personally have seen SOOOO many miracles in my mission thanks to fasting!  (To be honest, before I came here I thought fasting was a punishment or something super hard!)  But I have learned that IT IS SO WORTH IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  My companion and I were talking and we think we are going to start fasting every other day cuz it is so awesome ;) hahahaha  But Elder Pieper really helped us remember how powerful our spirits can be when we give them the right amount of nourishment and live in the Lord’s way!  

On Wednesday we had another meeting with our zone and 2 others.  It also was AWESOME!!!  We focused more on the proselyting side of the mission and the ways we can use “Preach My Gospel” better and work with the members!

All in all it was such a spiritually filled week!  I know that the priesthood is here on the earth today.  I know that God calls men who are willing to serve Him and help his children; I could feel the power of the words that Elder Pieper shared!  There isn’t a doubt in my mind that the Lord told him what he needed to share with us. IT’S AMAZING!  And I feel so blessed to have been able to have heard it. 

Also this week we had the most amazing experience!!  SO we have a reference that we have been trying to contact but we never seemed to find her in her house, so we were almost at the point of calling it a contact!  But one morning we stopped by this cute lady in our wards house and she happened to mention the name of our reference.  We both stopped and said, hermana do you know who she is!??  And she said, “Well of course, she is my family!!!”  WE WERE SO HAPPY!!!!!!  She told us a little about her and the situation.  Her husband had just passed away about 3 weeks ago and she was having a hard time.  We knew that it was an answer to our prayers to hear about her, so that same day we stopped by to see her.  And well, we finally got to meet her and in that moment she opened up completely to us.  She told us about her husband and about her parents-in-law.  To find out her mother-in-law was an active member....  Well to make the story short, she has special dreams in where her mother-in-law comes and talks to her!  She says it is just normal but that she feels so great when she sees her.  She dreamed also that her father-in-law accepted something that her mother-in-law had (OF COURSE WE KNOW IT IS THE GOSPEL!!!) and she was really interested in what she needed to do to accept it also and to be as happy as her parents-in-law!!  We really feel that she is prepared by the Lord!!!!

How are your teeth?

GREAT!!!  MY NEIGHBOR IS A DENTIST IF THERE ARE ANY PROBLEMS!!!!!!!!! :) 

Did you ever receive our package? Valynn sent you one also.

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  WE ARE GOING TO MAKE COOKIES TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!  AND THE HERMANAS LOVED THEIR SURPRISES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :):):):):):):):):):):)  THANK YOU - THANK YOU - THANK YOU - THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Can you see the end of your mission yet?

Around 10 weeks left………. NO!  THANKS FOR ASKING!  I AM NOT READY YET!

What’s the first American food you want to eat? 

HMMMMM - LES AVISO LA OTRA SEMANA!!!  QUIEN SABE!!!!!! ;) hahahaha

Well I hope that a little bit of this letter made sense; I am losing my skills for writing!!  YIKES!!!!!!!  BUT it was a great week!!!!  I love my life, I am exhausted ever night, and I am HAPPY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :):):):):):)  I know the Lord is our Savior, I know that this is His work, and I thank Him every day for this amazing opportunity to be here!!!!

WITH LOTS OF LOVE!!!!!!!!!!

Hermana Sutton

Hermana Sears

This week also we had interchanges!!!!!!!! AND I GOT THE WONDERFUL PRIVILEGE TO BE WITH HERMANA SEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She really is such an example to me, I am not sure if you remember but at the beginning of her mission we also did interchanges and wow she is growing and progressing so much!!! :):):):) I LOVE HER TO DEATH AND WE HAD SO MUCH FUN TOGETHER!!!!!!!!!

Competition of "TAZAS DE TE" - Tea Set? Her English is Slipping

HELLO FROM THE JUAREZ HOOD!!!!!!!!!

Once a Sutton always a Sutton!!!  (We are running around like crazies, talking to everyone and not having a moment to spare!!)  BUT WE ARE LOVING IT!!!!!!!!!!!!  This week was a super super super quick one!!  We have no idea what happened; I think that maybe Heavenly Father put on the fast forward button!!  WHAT IS HE THINKING???? ;) hahaha  I wish it would slow down a bit!!  But we are doing great and enjoying the wonderful weather of winter without a coat!!! (knock on wood....)  As for the happenings of this week...

We started out with an amazing experience with Carlos; we went to teach him about Jesus Christ and Father in Heaven.  (The basics are the key!)  We went through the lesson and he was loving it all, he was sharing some amazing experiences and wow, it really was great!  To end the lesson he said the prayer and it honestly was one of the most powerful prayers I have ever heard.  He was literally talking to our Father in Heaven.  He said, "I know that you know me, I have seen your miracles in my life..... but I want to know you.  Help me to be more worthy to know you personally so that we can work together as a team."  ISN'T THAT THE SWEETEST!!!!!!!  He really is such a great guy!!  We are working lots and lots with him and we are seeing progress!!! :)

We also are starting to teach all of the members the missionary lessons!  (I am not sure if I already mentioned that....) but this week we went and taught the bishop and his wife!!  WOW - WHAT A POWERFUL EXPERIENCE!!!  They are both amazing, ex-missionaries, and leaders for the ward!  But it really was something special to be there with them and know how they gained their testimonies.  They are examples to us; the bishop is a convert of about 5 years and couldn’t be stronger!!!  We are blessed to be in their ward!

On Friday it rained.... A LOT!!!!!!!!!  We had planned to have a ward activity at the church, but sadly all the rain came about 30 minutes before the activity!  (SAD DAY!!!)  We still had the activity, but just with the few members and investigators there!  It was fun!!  We had a competition of TAZAS DE TE....Oh dang I forgot the word... like little mugs for tea! hahahahaha - maybe a tea set??? hahahah  BUT IT WAS FUN AND EVERYONE HERE HAS OLD TAZAS SO IT WAS FUN TO SEE THEM ALL AND GET TO KNOW EVERYONE BETTER!!!

Yesterday we had an amazing meeting with the President!!  Wow it is true that God answers our prayers; my companion and I have been praying to know how to help our ward better and to become the best missionaries that we can, and we both felt the whole time that he was talking to us!!  We got back to our house at night and we both were pretty much in tears because we saw the hand of the Lord in our lives so literally!!  I know I am not even beginning to explain the whole experience BUT IT WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!  Here are a few scriptures that the President shared with us!!!  (I know how much you love to read scriptures ;)  DYC 93:1, ISAIAH 40: 29-31 , JEREMIA 1:5

But there you go for my ramble ramble of the week!!!  We are doing great as always and learning more and more every day!!  I can testify to all of you that we truly have a

Father in Heaven that loves us and He ANSWERS OUR PRAYERS!!!!!!  I know I am a daughter of God, and even though I am crazy and so imperfect and sleep talk at night HE LOVES ME FOR BEING ME!!  AND YOU GUYS FOR BEING YOU!  REMEMBER HIM ALWAYS!!!

WITH LOTS AND LOTS OF JUAREZ LOVE!!

Hermana Sutton

The fridge of our Missionary

Our White Girl!!!