The Weeks Go On

Dear family,

 

It was such a great week this week!  Florida never ceases to surprise me.  One of the things I can't believe this week is how poor people are.  In Olympia, we were eating dinner in multi-million dollar houses with painted ceilings, columns, and chandeliers.  Here, we are trying to find less-active members in trailer parks.  I think of them living in such a tiny place and I can't believe it!  We have been visiting a less-active family named the S's - which consists of Hermana S and her three kids.  They don't have a kitchen table, or any table at all.  We came over for Valerie's (one of the children) birthday, and her little brother Joseph was so excited about the great surprise they had for her.  He tugged at our sleeves and whispered excitedly, "Don't tell her but we have a cake for her!!"  I couldn't believe it.  They hadn't had money for her to ever have a cake on her birthday.  She was very happy about the cake.  They had been living in a shelter before because their dad left them.  It is such an eye-opener.  Our biggest problems with the members close to our house is that they don't have rides to church or they work all the time to support their families.  It is tough!  Anyway, just different problems in different areas.  Fascinating.

 

My favorite experience of the week was on Sunday.  We were at church a little early, and who should walk out of the Bishop's office but "S" himself!  We were so happy to see each other.  I haven't seen him since I left Olympia, and he was absolutely glowing - he looked so good!  I never realized how much of a difference really happens in the countenance of a person when they take that sacred ordinance of baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost.  There was so much love and excitement as we talked about his priesthood ordination and he showed me his temple recommend.  I imagine that that will be what heaven is like - reuniting joyfully with all of the people we get to meet.  I smiled about that experience all day - it makes all of the hard things in missionary work worth it!

 

I had an interesting revelation of sorts this week that I want to share.  It is in regards to how we view life and repentance.  There are two ways to view them - one is right, and one is wrong.  The first way is to view life as a big, beautiful mountain.  The scenery is great, the weather is fair, and the mountain is tall.  We climb up and up and up.  Sometimes, we hit a patch of loose rocks or find a roadblock in the way, but we dust ourselves off and keep going - always higher, always happy.  The other way is a deep hole.  We hang on by our fingertips to the sides and try to inch our way up.  Sometimes we reach out and slip only to plummet 20 feet down before we can hold on again.  It is a constant battle to stay up, and it seems like we are always losing.  I think this is one of Satan's greatest tools - to get us to view life in this second way.  God knows that our eternal progression is a beautiful, wonderful, happy thing.  When we mess up, we simply repent and learn and keep growing.  Satan wants us to feel like we have slipped down the hole every time we make a mistake.  That if we have loosened our grip even a little, we have fallen and can't get back up without much pain and shame.  As missionaries, they stress worthiness so much.  Unfortunately, sometimes Satan uses this to get us to think the way he wants us too - that we can't do anything wrong or else we are done for.  I think this was a big struggle for me before my mission that I am still trying to get over - to not let Satan win by getting me down.  It is important to know that God always loves for us to change and repent.  Our path is an uphill one - not a slippery slope destined to failure.  That was an important lesson I learned this week.

 

I don't really know what to challenge everyone to do.... hmmm...... Oh! Last week, a lady in the complex gave us these key cards for free.  We were very grateful, and wrote a note to her to give when we stopped by.  I think it made her very happy.  Write a note this week to express gratitude or love for someone.  I think it can be the saving thing in someone's week if they are very down.

 

Well, I love you all!! Thanks for your letters, prayers, etc.  I know this work is true.  We have two new families to teach because of referrals - the A family and M and her family.  Please pray for them!  I hope they get baptized. :)

 

Love love love, Hna. Allred

 

Another Week in Paradise!

All my family,

What a great week!  Here are some highlights:

-There is a little Latino kid in the ward named Jonathin.  He looks exactly like a Latino Eto.  Same mannerisms, voice, facial expressions, clothes, everything.  It made me smile and I like to talk to him because it is like having Eto here.

-I failed to mention in my last email that included in our area is Disneyworld, Universal Studios, SeaWorld, and International Boulevard.  Haha PARTY IN WINDY RIDGE!!! ...Except we don't actually go to any of those places, except International.  It is fun to say though!  I am going to know exactly how to get to those places when we all go to Florida. :)

-Thank you for the package, mom. We loved it.  It was a little taste of Fall in Autumn-less Florida. :)

-People think my Spanish is a riot.  Haha the members love to listen to me try to talk.  Sometimes, it drives me nuts, but we all laugh.  Also, I was talking to someone and they asked if I was from Brazil.  We laughed about that for a while.  I am glad that if I have a foreigner accent, at least it isn't Gringo. :)  People also think I am from Argentina, which is funny.  

-My country list is well into the thirties.  Some highlights: Uzbekistan, Malaysia, and Iraq.

-Again, I would like to reemphasize that I love giving referrals.  Spanish work is a little different from regular work.  We give referrals to all the English missionaries covering our area as well as any YSA aged investigators to the YSA sisters and Haitian/Portuguese people to their assigned missionaries.  Since we don't know where all of these people are, we all work together to find them and get them where they need to be.  Mom, you mentioned that you read Sister Good's blog.  I love her!  She is one of the English missionaries in our area.  One day, we had a very successful day and gave 5 referrals to Sister Good and her companion.  During our district meeting, we were all asked to share a miracle that happened that week.  Sister Good said that they had tracted all day with no success for themselves, and it was a miracle that we called them with 5 referrals that night.  I love to be that blessing to other missionaries.  Honestly, it doesn't matter to me.  We are all just trying to help people.  I love telling the people we talk to that we can send other missionaries to them.  It is just fun to work together.

-I have been having a bit of an attitude problem lately.  Haha it has just been difficult to get through days, and I am always looking forward to the end of the day.  I decided that needed to change, and one morning I read a talk on gratitude.  I have thought about this before, but I decided to implement it this time!  I opened my notebook and started to write a gratitude list.  Now, when you get asked to write something like that, you always start with the things you feel obligated to be thankful for:  the Church, Jesus Christ, the Book of Mormon, family, etc.  This time, I decided that I wouldn't do that - I would just do whatever I was genuinely thankful for.  It started out with 'largatijas' (spanish for lizards).  I listed things like Magic Erasers, my watch, fluffy clouds, and my favorite black pen.  I kept going and going.  Eventually, of course, my list came to include Jesus Christ, the Atonement, my family, and the Book of Mormon.  But I wrote them when they came to me, and I sincerely felt gratitude for each when I wrote them.  In one of the Mormon Messages we share, Elder Uchtdorf says something along the lines of, "Diligently doing the things that matter most will lead us to the Savior of the world."  I think this is true in gratitude as well!  Writing the things that I was truly grateful for, even the very small things, eventually led me to the Savior.  My challenge this week is to write a real gratitude list, with things you really feel, not the things that you should be grateful for.  They might end up being the same in the long run. :)  Anyway, my list ended up being 131 items long (and I have added more since!).  The rest of that day was awesome.  I felt so much happier, and we taught two people contacting, which doesn't happen often.  It was such a miracle to see the change that happened from something so simple.  It was my favorite part of the week.

-I know that Christ lives, and that it is His life and His love that changes souls.  I like to do my best to feel that love and have it show when I talk to people.  That is what gets them to open up and accept Him.  I love you all too - have a great week!

-Hna. Allred

The best week EVER!

Family.  It was the best week ever!!!!!!!!

I love Spanish work.  I was very scared and nervous to be thrown into new everything, but it has turned out great.  I am now going to crank out some awesome stories/facts so you can know what's going down here in Windy Ridge:

-They have never had Sisters.  Everyone is excited for us.  Turns out I was only the 4th Spanish sister in the mission anyway, so it is all very new and exciting.

-We have an apartment that has been inhabited by Elders for EVER.  It is so weird.  We find like pairs of shoes and weird notes and things that are so... elder-ish.  Haha we are working on cleaning and feminizing the apartment.  :) it is fun.

-I am obtaining the gift of tongues!!  Friday I started to be able to follow all the conversations.  I am learning how to understand people, and it is so exciting.  I even understand a bit of Portuguese!

-My companions is Hermana Campos.  I LOVE HER.  She is so happy and such a good missionary.  She teaches me Spanish.  She was born in Puebla, Mexico but was raised in Ogden.  I am excited for the miracles that we will continue to see.

-All the ward members like to encourage me with my Spanish.  Haha I think they like to teach me and they think it is nice that I am trying to learn.

-All siblings: KEEP TAKING PIANO LESSONS!!!!!  I have only been in the ward for one Sunday, and I played the organ in Sacrament meeting and am now accompanying for the Primary Program in November.  I seriously play all the time.  So it is worth it!

OK, now for the cool stuff.  We are re-opening this area, so we have been doing a lot of finding and trying to contact people and stuff like that.  Friday we tracted almost all the day.  It was really tiring, and we had just about no success.  After dinner, we went out again to an apartment complex because we couldn't find the road we were looking for.  It was gold!!  Definitely inspired.  In a few short hours, we found five referrals for the English Sisters and two Spanish-speaking potential investigators!!  One of the English referrals was a man named K-Ron (yes, that is his name) who even told us that he has been thinking about baptism.  I am excited to hear how that goes.  I love giving referrals.  In Spanish work here, you do that a lot because you rarely tract in all-spanish areas.  It is so fun to be on the same team with so many awesome missionaries.  We all have the same goal, and it is fun to bless the other companionships with more people to teach.  Awesome!

It also is fun because we went through a stack of like 200 former investigators and chose ten that we want to contact.  It was so interesting to see the ones that the Spirit guided us to choose. Some were very close to baptism, and some had only been taught one lesson.  Some had families, some were single.  Some were old, some were young.  I am excited to get into contact with all of them! We have contacted one of them, who has been reading the Book of Mormon and we are meeting with her again this week.  Her name is" M" It is cool to find these people and see if they are ready now for the gospel.

So Sunday was the best day EVER.  Here is why.  First off, I talked to the Olympia West Sisters (my old area). "S" IS GETTING BAPTIZED THIS SATURDAY!!!!!  He resolved his tithing conflict and is as gung-ho as ever.  Hopefully we will have an investigator to take on Saturday so I can see that baptism, but if not that is ok.  It is just good to know that he will be able to receive those blessings.  Thank you for your prayers on behalf of him.

I have learned so much this week about personal revelation.  The other things that made Sunday awesome were revelations I received.  In the afternoon, I was thinking about my mission while I was eating lunch.  I have been discouraged and tired, and really wanting to not be.  During this period of meditation, I saw my whole life.  I don't really want to say it was a vision because it wasn't, but it was kind of a perspective glimpse I guess.  I realized the years and decisions before now that have made it possible for me to be here.  I envisioned the rest of my life and what an important stepping stone this was for me.  But I also realized that that is what a mission is - a stepping stone.  A very important one, but a step nonetheless.  Anyway, this period of being able to see the big picture helped me realize my purpose as a missionary and how to find more joy, fulfillment, and work in every day.  It was an answer to an unspoken prayer of my heart.  Very cool.  I also want to encourage everyone reading this to lift where they stand now.  That was another revelation I received Sunday.  Now, it is most important for me to put my whole heart into my full-time mission.  Two years ago, it was most important for me to put my whole heart into loving people in American Fork High School.  In ten years, it will be most important for me to put my whole heart into raising a family.  Fulfill your mission right now, whatever that is. 

I know the Lord answers prayers.  I have gone to Him with very specific concerns, doubts, and questions this week before personal study, and He has answered every time.  He enlightens and quickens our minds to receive what He needs us too.  One of the vessels I saw this in was in a conference talk from the Ensign.  My challenge this week is to read one of those talks from the living prophets.  They provide answers, direction, comfort, and counsel.  Mom, you were always a great example to me of reading those and applying them, so thank you.  I love you all.  I loved getting letters from mom and dad and Brandon and Ash this week, they made me laugh. :)  Keep being great.  Thanks for reading this, the longest email of all time.  Don't worry about me, because this is going to be the BEST TRANSFER EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

All my love, Hermana Kara Allred

 

An Interesting Week and Day

It was such a great week.  A lot of things have changed for me in the last couple of hours, but I am going to try and be calm so this can be a good letter. :)

First off, it is transfer day!  And I am being transferred!  To the Windy Ridge ward, speaking Spanish.  My companion is a native speaker, which I am grateful for.  I am also nervous to be making such changes so fast!  The good news is, I am in the same zone as before so I am not moving too far.  Wish me suerte! (luck)

Second, I need to write about "S".  He has been such a miracle.  We have met with him every day this week.  His testimony is strong, and he has said many times that nothing can keep him from going to church.  It was amazing to work very hard and then be blessed with an investigator who was so ready for the gospel.  We have been working hard to plan his baptism for Saturday also.  He has told us how meeting with us and reading the "Mormon Book" make him so happy.  He has made changes in his life that bring him closer to the Savior, which is amazing to see.  Yesterday, we taught him the law of tithing.  Since "S" is on disability because of his voice, he gets limited money a month and his sister handles all of his finances.  He said he would talk to her about the whole ten percent thing.  We testified, prayed a lot, and handed it over to the Lord.  Unfortunately, this morning we got a text from "S" saying that he talked to his sisters about it and they don't think he should go through with any of it.  He asked us if we wanted our books back and that he couldn't meet with us anymore and wouldn't be getting baptized.  That was quite devastating, but we are trying to see him tonight to see what is up.  Please pray for him and us.  We will hope that he will get baptized still.  Either way, the Lord will provide and take care of him.  It is hard to see someone you care about make such a sudden drop.  

A cool experience about "S" though.  Since he talks through a machine, it can be difficult to understand him.  Every single lesson we teach with him, I can't understand the first sentence he says.  I then pray silently and quickly for the gift of tongues, after which I have no problem for the rest of the lesson.  He is so easy to understand after that that I forget I need the gift of tongues until our next lesson!  It is amazing.  I didn't think the gift of tongues would apply that way, but it does and I know that that is a real gift from God.

So, if you go to Korea on your mission, you teach Koreans.  If you go to Russia, you teach Russians.  If you go to Chile, you teach Chileans.  If you are Hna. Allred in Orlando, you teach Iranians and Guyanans.  Haha those are our two investigators.  "R" fed us Iranian food and gave me this huge, beautiful candle.  I loved that.

I am excited to start teaching in another area!!  I will let you know next week how the Spanish work is going.  My challenge this week is to memorize one of your favorite scriptures.  That is such a strength to have in a time of need.  

Thanks for your letters and I love you all!  The Lord is in charge of us here in Orlando and is in charge of you in American Fork!  He will lead us to the right paths and give us power to do what we need to do.  Love you!

Love, Hermana Allred

*An email we recieved from a couple living in Kara's area.  Kara refers to Sister S as her "missionary mom"  She says they take great care of the missionaries!  We are thankful for them.

Dear Brother and Sister Allred,

We just wanted to let you know how much we have loved having Sister Allred serving in our ward.  We are so sad to lose her already but know that she will be a huge blessing to whatever area gets her.  She is so sweet and though she likes to claim that she doesn't know anything because she's "new" she is an amazing teacher and has a deep and powerful testimony.

It has been a privilege to sit in with her teaching investigators because she brings a spirit that is stronger than any "textbook answer."  She is a hard worker and has gracefully adapted to Florida humidity.  She is so willing to serve and has worked diligently to get to know everyone in the ward and confidently spreads the gospel with everyone she meets.  She has been a joy to have here.

We know that she loves her family tremendously.  You should be so proud of the good example she is setting for her younger siblings.  I know that she told you that she met our daughter while in the MTC and that has made me feel extra connected to Sister Allred.  I love having a daughter out in the mission field but if I ever need a mother/daughter moment I can count on Sister Allred to cheer me up.

Thank you for sharing your daughter with us.  She is incredible and we love her dearly.

A Bible! A Bible!

It was THE BEST WEEK EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Let me tell you all about it.  

Monday, we played soccer with a ton of other missionaries - that is why I didn't have time to write at all (sorry!).  It was a classic moment that will be a memory forever.  We were all running around playing and it started pouring Florida rain.  Like, we were drenched in seconds.  It was awesome to look around with water pouring all around and dripping off my face at all of these other missionaries in Orlando.  They are so cool, and the mission is so cool.  I will always remember that.

Thursday, I went on exchange.  That means that I go out and basically trade places with a Sister Training Leader for a day.  I went to Buena Vista with Sister Dunford while Sister Ward stayed in Olympia.  Buena Vista is like a coveted area because it is the singles' ward with all the Disney workers in it.  We taught a lesson and committed their investigator to be baptized!  That was awesome.  But I also felt different, because I didn't have authority over that area.  It is cool to be able to be in charge of the people in your assigned area - what a responsibility to bring them the gospel!

Anyway, when we got back from exchanges, Sister Ward told us this awesome story.  They were biking around the area, and ran into a man.  They gave him a card and left on their way, only to pass by him again.  They kept going, and then Sister Higley's bike chain fell off, so they had to stop to fix it.  While they were fixing it, the same man came up to them again and said to Sister Ward, "Where is your church?  I want to go every week."  And that is how we found S.  They set an appointment up for the next day, and we were so stoked about it!

S is 57, from Guyana (a little country in South America), and sounds like a robot.  Haha let me explain:  S went through a pretty bad divorce in 2006 that left him devastated.  He tried to commit suicide, and, as a result, his vocal chords are wrecked.  He breathes out of hole in his throat, and speaks by holding a microphone up to his neck.  I hadn't met him yet when we first talked on the phone, and I kind of pictured him looking like a robot because he sounded exactly like one!  But he is really just a normal guy who has gone through some hard times.  When we taught him the first lesson, he was so ready to commit to everything, give service, and come to church.  He is getting baptized on September 14th!!  Me and Sister Ward are so amazed.  We have been working so hard with little results.  On Wednesday, we had no investigators.  And then on Friday, S was committed to baptism.  The Lord put His servants in the path of his son, S, who was searching.  He has been wanting God more in his life, and knew that he would be led to the right path to get closest to Him.  We have taught him a few times, took him to a baptism, and are excited to keep seeing him progress towards eternal salvation.  What a blessing to be able to witness such a miracle.  Also, S has Hindu roots.  I am glad that the Lord is letting me use the knowledge I gained from my world religions studies to help teach His many children the restored Truth.

I love love love this.  It is hard.  It is fun.  It is rewarding.  It is exhausting.  It is the best.  I now understand how so many of the Book of Mormon prophets have felt.  It is so sad to get so attached to a group of people - to love them as soon as they open the door - and to have them not partake of the fruits of joy and peace that is the gospel.  Missionary work is so hard because you are so invested in it.  Lives are on the line.  That makes it hard when people reject their own happiness.  But we only do what we can - our best.  The Lord of the harvest asks that we obey and work hard, so that we do!  We then can only pray for people to be softened and ready enough to hear Him through us.  It is great!  

I know this is His work and church.  I felt very strongly to bear my testimony  in our ward yesterday, and it was so powerful to feel my calling as His representative and witness come through as I stated His divinity and reality.  He picks us up and lifts us when we can't do it on our own.  I love Him and His children here in Florida.

  This week, I would like to challenge you all to make a family mission plan.  We have a ward one, and it is awesome.  Maybe plan some things you can do individually and as a family to help more people come to Christ - whether they are members or not! 

I love you all so much.  I hope you have the best day ever. :)  Miss you!!

Love, Hna. Kara Allred