December 16, 2013 & December 23, 2013

“The reality of loving God is loving him like he's a Superhero who actually saved you from stuff rather than a Santa Claus who merely gave you some stuff.” 

Criss Jami

December 16, 2013

Erin with the Whitted kids doing service at the Bishop's Storehouse

This week was one for the books! Not only did it hit the lowest of 10 degrees during the middle of the day, but it snowed, it's icy, and the hot chocolate does not heat up the bones. The cold here freezes you to the bone. Not even a hot shower will warm you up. I just sit in the apartment at night and shiver. It's great ... 

We have continued teaching Emily Walker. She was able to come to church yesterday, and she brought two friends with her. She is learning a lot and has a lot of questions. We love all the questions, but the late night phone calls are really starting to show! We are learning a lot of sign language and hopefully on Tuesday we can bear our testimony to her in sign language. I don’t know how well it will turn out, but it’s a work in progress.

We are still teaching Theresa. She loves the gospel! We had the opportunity to call her son just to make sure he brings the slip that authorizes him to baptize his mom. He was grateful for all that we have done, and he is looking forward to meeting with us! I am so excited to meet him. He sounds like a great person! Her baptism is scheduled for the 28th this month. 

Erin with Sis. Ure at their apartment with their little Christmas tree that a member bought for them

I felt like we had a slow week. Although, we had a lot of appointments, there were some that fell through. Its always heart breaking when you prepare a great lesson and the anxiety/adrenaline is pumping, and then they don’t answer the door or they don’t come to church... It was so sad! But we keep pressing forward!

I had a couple of really cool experiences this week! 

1) Our car: Whenever we were driving around (from the day I got here in Ohio) the car was making a thunking noise. I didn’t know what it was, and when we talked to our vehicle coordinator, he just said to not worry about it. So we didn’t. Well, one day this week the car was really sliding around, and I didn’t know why the traction was so bad. One of the Elders in our ward is from Utah and understands the snow and everything, so he said to leave the car at the church for one of our appointments so that they would come and check it out. So we did. He felt the traction was off... duh! And, he said that the rack and pinion in the steering consul was making the thunking noise. I know what that is... so, we set up an appointment to go to the Ford dealership, because the car is still under warranty. We drop it off at 7 in the morning on Friday, and a member in the ward allowed us to come to their house to do weekly planning and to be out of the cold. We were told that the car would be finished at 2 which was perfect timing because weekly planning ends at 2. We were waiting, and no call came. We called them, and they said that they still hadn’t looked at it. We were able to do some service, so we said that we would call back in a couple of hours. We did, and they still hadn’t looked at it. I told them that I needed the car because we have no way of getting home or doing our job. Come to find out that the pinion was broken, and the mechanic was surprised that we were able to drive it and that the steering wheel was working at all. The car is still in the shop, and the vehicle coordinator gave us a car to work with in the meantime. I’m just so grateful that the steering wheel didn’t give out on us! 

Erin with Elder Kelton Barr (her friend from Maplewood Ward who is serving the same mission)

2) We were driving with Sis. Erikson to pick up an investigator for the Christmas party. Here in Ohio, there is a bunch of open fields, and it was late at night. I am very cautious of the surrounding places because I have seen one too many deer. Well, just our luck, on the way to our investigators home, there was one deer that crossed the road right in front of us. Something I have noticed is that the deer here seem to travel in twos, so I started looking for the other one. Sister Erikson didn’t see it, but it started running across the road. It stopped in the other lane right beside us while we passed it. The deer stopped running on the road! Who has ever seen a deer stop when a car drives by?! That's not all! On our way back from the ward Christmas party, I was being very alert and attentive looking out for deer. I saw something moving in the distance far in front of us. I told Sis. Erikson that I thought a deer was ahead and then nothing moved, so I though I was just crazy... I continued to drive, still feeling like I needed to drive very cautiously, and the deer started moving quickly towards us (now this is in a brief 10 seconds). Then, all at once, this deer also stopped as we passed by on the road. Oh my gosh, twice in a row!!... Both instances were crazy, overwhelming, scary, yet peaceful experiences. It was amazing to see that the Lord is truly watching over us and protecting us from danger. 

I just want to bear testimony that this is the Lord's work. God, our Father, is truly at the head of this church. There is not a doubt in my mind that The Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know it because I have read it, and I have studied it diligently. We are asked to "search the scriptures" countless times in the Book of Mormon. Why would a false book tell us to search the scriptures to find out for ourselves? Why would a false book testify that Christ taught the people how to live in the presence of our Father again? Why would Joseph Smith leave his family and lose child after child for a false book? IT’S NOT FALSE!!! I could preach until I'm blue in the face, but instead I will just say that we need do what the scriptures say, "search diligently", "ask, seek, knock", "cry unto the Lord", and lastly, "ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith". We can become even more converted to the Savior and learn how important the Atonement is by learning more about the Book of Mormon and abiding by its precepts.

I love you so much! 

I hope we can all remember the real reason for the Christmas season. Many people have decided that Christmas is a time to receive. Remember, Christ was born for us so we could be forgiven of our sins and return to our Father in Heaven. I love this gospel! Thank you for all that you do, and don’t forget to give to others... What gift will you give Christ this year? Think about it. I love you again, and I love my job!

Sister Gale

December 23, 2013

Well this letter is going to be very short because we only have 30 minutes to email this week. We got the most exciting news that this mission has ever heard... WE GET TO SKYPE HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! At first it was only a phone call but now we get to see our family and hear their voices... Oh I couldn't contain my excitement when I first heard the news!




Other then that... this week we had exchanges in Mt. Vernon where I was 
able to learn a lot from the sister training leaders. We had a ton of fun, and it helped make the week great! Because of exchanges and also the meetings that we had everyday, I felt like the rest of the week we were just trying to catch up. Our days were filled with appointments and people to see... And we still weren't able to get to everybody. But those we weren't able to get to, we called and will be seeing them this week. 




Erin and Sis. Ure enjoying the snow in Ohio



We were able to put Emily Walker (the deaf girl) on date for January 11th. She is a wonderful lady, and we actually taught her a whole lesson in sign language because we couldn't get any interpreters out one night. That was fun but I will say very stressful! We came home,planned, and then went right to sleep.




THERESA IS GETTING BAPTIZED THIS WEEKEND!!!!!!!! My, oh my! She is a 
wonderful lady, and I love her to pieces. We are going over her program 
tomorrow and are going to be able to meet her son! I have been so excited for this, and he called us last week to say Thank you! For Christmas she gave me the copy of The Book of Mormon that we gave her with her testimony in it. It was the sweetest thing to receive! (Her son bought her a quad).









I am loving the mission, and I am so grateful for the time that I get to
spend here. There are so many stories that I could share and also so many experiences that have shaped me to who I am now, but time is short. I want to say that I know this church is true. I know this gospel changes lives, for the better. And I know that Jesus Christ atoned for our sins. Let us all remember His birth this Christmas season and know why we celebrate this special day. I love you all so so much, and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers. Keep up the wonderful missionary work.




Merry CHRISTmas!




-- Sister Gale

December 09, 2013

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” 

- Mahatma Gandhi

Sis. Gale with the Whitted Family

This has been a great and interesting week! Starting off, Theresa is SOLID!!! She is getting baptized December 28th and has not smoked for a whole 9 DAYS!!! Man, I am so proud of her. She is holding out strong and making every ounce of effort to come unto her Savior. She said the sweetest thing yesterday that showed me why I am out on a mission. We were sitting in church, and she leaned over to me and said "I am so happy to be here". What sweet words to hear. She even said in Relief Society that this is her time to follow the Lord. It was great to hear those words. I wish I had a tape recorder just so that I could replay that over and over! 

Emerald, I don’t know what to do with her. We had a really spiritual lesson with her, but we just don’t know what to do... She knows that the church is true but won’t come to church. Why? In her words "because I am lazy and am not able to break this bad habit". We have called and showed up to her house, but on Sunday she just doesn’t want to come... it’s too cold. I’m from Arizona, and I still go!!! Well, I love going... I guess what she is missing is the love of going. But anyways, we talked to the zone leaders about her, and we are trying to figure out what to do with her so that we can help her.

We met a great little couple and were able to teach them yesterday. Their names are Matthew and Madison. They told us yesterday that they were praying to know what the truth was and that they wanted to follow the Savior and whatever He wanted them to do, and then we came knocking on their door. We taught them the Restoration, and although they said they "aren’t totally convinced," they are willing to come to church and read to know what it is they need to do in their life at the moment. The spirit was so strong during the lesson last night!

Oh! We are teaching a deaf girl!!! Her name is Emily, and she is so sweet. She grew up Catholic, but she doesn’t know if that is the truth. She is searching, and she met another deaf couple in our ward. They talked to her about the gospel, and she wants to learn. So, we had a lesson with her the other night. How? We are one of the 2 deaf wards in the nation. We have some interpreters and what is even better is that one of the interpreters is a ward missionary, and she likes to come out teaching with us. This is very difficult though because we have to talk slower and remember where we left off when we pause to let her finish signing. Hard but rewarding. We also gave her a chapel tour, and she loved the pictures and what everything meant. She is not able to come for the next couple of Sundays because of work, but she is going to be making it a point to come in the next couple of weeks. We teach her again this Tuesday!

Amish Horse Cart Crossing

I love the members in our ward. They are starting to get more involved by allowing us to bring investigators into their home to teach and also by bringing their friends to church. Isha, a single lady, brought a friend to church, and we will be teaching him this week! How cool is that???!!! I love our ward members!

While Sis. Gale is in Ohio being taken care of by Sis. Whitted, Elder Jakob Whitted is in Arizona being taken care of by Mama Gale

So we had some exciting news this morning, but first I need to give some background. As a mission, we had a goal of having 500+ baptisms for this year. Well, we have 446 to date with 48 on date. We only needed a couple more, so our whole mission fasted. Our zone alone has 11 on date for this month. (More than any other zone!) We met and exceeded our goal, so we are rewarded with another FUN DAY!!! I love fun days because they are fun! ;) Ha-ha More details to come!

Well, there is the summary for this week, and I want to close with my testimony. Being a trainer and all is great, but there is so much that I have learned with this responsibility. My trainee is way ahead of me and is training me and helping me become a better person. I love every moment that we talk to people about the gospel because we complement each other so well and help each other out! It has been great to feel the presence of My Savior in my life more prominently, and I can testify that He lives and this is His work. I know that I could not be teaching the way I am without His help and without the Spirit. I know that this is the way, and there is no other way! I pray for each and every one of you each night. I know that He can help us because He knows us. If you have ANY doubt, turn to Him, and He will lift your burden because "His burden is easy, and His yoke is light". I have relied on Him, and He has strengthened me; He can do the same for you. Read the scriptures; they are His holy word. I know this, and I love the stories found within the pages of the scriptures. They truly relate to all of us no matter what we are going through. I love you all so much, and I love this work. I love my job!

-- Sister Gale

December 02, 2013

"For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors. And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed. Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world."

Alma 34: 32-34

Sis. Gale and Sis. Ure Helping Sis. Whitted decorate for Christmas service

Well the news is out, I am training!!! It has been so fun! Sister Ure is her name, and sharing the gospel is our game! ;) She is awesome and is a lot like me, so we get work done! She is fresh off the plane; in fact, she reminds me of myself because she asks the same questions that I asked when I was first out here. We have worked really hard with her memorizing the appropriate scriptures. We study them in the car, as we're walking, and then every morning and night. She has already passed off 3 of the 5 things. I told her that I am going to make sure that she is ahead because it will pay off in the end. She works really hard! She got really sick on Thanksgiving, so we had to call it an early day. Then we went out later on Friday because she still wasn’t feeling all that well. But she is doing a lot better now. She is from Saint George, Utah. She actually lived there with her sister most of the time. She is the youngest of 11 kids and the 9th to go on a mission. Her mother died when she was 10, so she moved to her sister's. 

Sis. Gale and Sis. Hyer the night before transfers. Sis. Gale is the new Senior companion and trainer, Sis. Hyer will be a trainer.

The baptism service for Sherri’s daughter this past Saturday was great! It was awesome to see Elder Merkley and Elder Peterson again. I miss them... isn’t that sad?! Elder Merkley pulled me aside and said that that baptism only happened because of me. I thought that was the sweetest compliment. I love seeing people enter into covenants with the Savior. The light of Christ begins to shine through their eyes. It’s a cool transformation to witness.

Sis. Hyer and Elder Peterson are being transferred; the other two are staying.

This week was actually pretty slow. As much as I love the holidays, it puts a damper on things. People are so tired and not really wanting to meet or even talk. Almost all of our appointments fell through, and a lot of the member’s weren’t able to go out with us. I don’t blame them, but it just made missionary work this week that much harder. 

Sis. Gale and Sis. Hyer with the Whitted children the night before transfers.

We were able to teach Theresa this week. She is enjoying everything that she is learning and reading about. She is almost done with Alma and is working super hard to finish the Book of Mormon before she is baptized. I told her that that was a great goal to strive for! We got her on the no smoking plan, but unfortunately she wasn’t able to complete it. She smoked on Thanksgiving... we started the program over on Saturday, and we meet with her tomorrow to help cheer her on. Hopefully, she can put her mind to it and put off the bad habit. She wasn’t able to come to church yesterday because she got really sick... I really hope that Satan doesn’t get to her since she wasn’t able to partake of the sacrament and be spiritually fed... But we plan on meeting with her 3 times this week to help her out.

Sis. Gale with her new companion, Sis. Ure from Utah. They are getting along great!

We also taught Emerald. She didn’t come to church yesterday because she was just feeling lazy... It’s sad to see someone who knows the truth but doesn’t put it into action. We brought a recent convert over with us, and she helped out with explaining the feelings that Emerald has felt and explained the importance of coming to church. We read Alma 32:16-22 with her and also Alma 34:32-34. You could tell that she was really thinking about what it said. Hopefully, when we meet with her again she will have felt her answer regarding baptism and obeying the commandments (keeping the Sabbath day holy). 

Sherri's daughter got baptized!

OH!!!! There was this couple that we have been trying so hard to teach. Every time we went over there, we just knew that there was something about them, and we needed to keep asking them if we could teach them. Well, Sis. Ure's second day here I told her about them, and we went over. WE GOT IN THE HOUSE!!! WE TAUGHT THE FIRST LESSON!!! WE GOT A RETURN APPOINTMENT!!! I told Sis. Ure that is was her mad skills and that it was because she was here that we finally got to teach the wife. We actually teach her this evening, and I hope that goes great!

Unfortunately, Tia dropped us...for now. She said that with her cancer treatments and everything that is going on she just can’t meet with us. The treatment is breaking her body down, and in her words "she is getting worse and worse every week". I didn’t know what to say except for "you'll be in our prayers". I hope, when the treatment is over, she knows that we will always be here to continue to teach her so that she can come closer to her Savior. Sis. Whitted (a lady in our ward who is her friend) will be staying in contact with her in case anything changes.

Other than that, I have just been working hard and trying to take over the role of training. It’s a whole new experience, but I love knowing that the Savior and my mission president have faith in me to know that I can do this and help someone learn the ropes so that they can be successful also! ...We decided to be the first sister assistants to the president!

We taught gospel principles yesterday (Sunday) regarding the spirit world, and it was a blessing to know that this time on earth is a learning time. I already knew that but I love to know that every piece of knowledge we gain in this life will be used to help those in the next life. I know that we are here and have this gospel to learn and to grow so that we can help those who are on the other side of the veil learn and come closer to their Savior. Jesus Christ made this whole plan possible. He made it possible for us to be with loved ones for eternity. He made it possible for us to help gather Israel. I know that we need to always turn to the Lord because He is just waiting on us to call upon Him. He will lift us through the trials and hard times and will forgive us. This I know and testify of.

Because it was just Thanksgiving not too long ago, I want to thank my family for all that they do and for making it possible for me to come out on my mission. I would never have known the scriptures this much, nor would I know how much My Savior truly loves me if I had not been out on my mission. I am thankful for my friends that are or have served missions. The work they have done is truly inspiring, and I know that this is the Lord's work! I love my job!

Love,

Sister Gale