Putting My Heart in Texas: (insert creative title here)

ASHLEY!

So... everyone is sick. Not fun. It is hard to be a missionary when you are sick! But this week has been amazing! Ashley got Baptized! It was an amazing day. She is so prepared it is just amazing. I love her to pieces and I know that we will be friends for life. She loves the church so much! Her family is so supportive as well which is not usually the case so its AWESOME. A supportive family makes so much of a difference!

Before her baptism we gave Ashley a framed picture of Christ, a picture of the temple and some scripture markers. She was so excited! We met with Ashley in the chapel before we went in to the room with everyone. We knelt down and Ashley offered SUCH a gorgeous prayer. She was so filled with the spirit and we were all crying. The spirit was so strong you could cut it with a knife. It was neat. Later that night our ward mission leader told us that he had walked by the chapel and felt something radiating from the room, he looked inside but didn't see anyone (because we were kneeling) and then he saw us and heard just a small portion of Ashley's prayer, he was blown away by her spirit and her light. When Ashley was baptized I felt as though I was watching it in slow motion. When she came back up, the spirit overcame her and she put her hands over her mouth and started to cry, she was pure, clean and as the scriptures say she is a "new creature in Christ."

We met her in the bathroom and Sister Loo and I gave her a huge hug, I didn't even care that I was soaking wet after. We braided her hair and Ashley just kept saying, "Wow... that was amazing..." "Oh my gosh... I can't believe I just did that! GAH!" Over and over again. So cute. Her famliy was really overwhelmed by the spirit too. They are just as prepared as Ashley! Her parents were both crying, especially after Ashley bore her testimony. Afterwards they said, "We have never heard her talk like that!" And her Grandma even accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon! We told Ashley to break something in her house this week so that the Elders can come fix it haha.

SO proud of her. Her whole family also came to church yesterday to see the confirmation! And they loved it. Bishop gave her a gorgeous blessing :)

CHURCH IS TRUE.

MIDNIGHT PHONE CALL

Well we got a text from Frank last week and it said, "Is it bad that I know that the church is true and I love the church, but I want to be myself 100%?" We texted him back and talked over text messages for a bit and realized that we needed to have this conversation face to face. Unfortunately he was unable to meet for another week and so we felt that we needed to call him even though it was close to curfew. We said a prayer asking for guidance and help in knowing what to say to him. Frank has earlier expressed concerns with the Word of Wisdom and so we guessed that this was the issue in being himself 100%.

But, we gave him a Word of Wisdom lesson because he didn't understand why we don't drink. He was raised through his culture with it and doesn't view it as a bad thing. We ended up talking to him a lot about obedience and the desire to follow God so he could receive 100% of the promised blessings and not just 99%. We promised him that if he would obey ALL, not only some, of the commandments that he would understand and feel a deepened sense of happiness that he has never experienced before.

We finally got him to commit (an hour later) to try to stop drinking. At the end of the conversation he says,

"Can I ask you one question?"

"Yes Frank. What is it?"

"Am I stubborn?"

"YES FRANK YOU ARE!"

And we all started laughing together.

We went to bed at 12am and committed him to live it. Frank is so funny. We just love him. He is a character, he gives us such a hard time! #lilbrotheriheverhad

ASL MOMENT

We found out that is American Sign Language you have a name sign so you don't have to finger spell everyone's names out, mine is the letter "K" and then you move your hand across your chest like a sash. Kinda boring. Guess what Sister Loo's sign is? It is TOILET! HAHA. Get it, LOO? I DIED LAUGHING. Oh man... so great. ASL has a good sense of humor. The best part is that once a deaf person gives you a sign it is permanent.

STARVING FOR MUSIC

We had a meeting with the Elders at a Frozen Yogurt shop and "Sweet Disposition" by Temper Trap came on and I just about died I was so happy. I died inside.

PEARL OF GREAT PRICE MYSTERY

Our District Leader was explaining to us the Pearl of GP facsimiles and they were SO cool. We started reading them and we were so intrigued! Sister Loo said, "OH MY GOSH!!! I FEEL LIKE I AM ON NATIONAL TREASURE!" I died. #nicholascage

CHURCH IS TRUE.

xoxoxox

-Sister King

ASHLEYS BAPTISM!