A Testimony of Missionary Work

Hey everyone!

Wow! This is the last time that I will email you, since by this time next week I either should already be at the temple or be on my way there. It still doesn't feel quite real yet that I'm coming home so soon! Just think of it-next week I'll see you guys in the flesh! It's crazy! I am still trying to stay as focused as possible and work hard! My talk at the wedding wasn't very long, as it was on a topic that I don't know anything about! I used you and Daddy as an example in it though. :) I won't need the wheelchair at the airport I don't think. The zone leaders only brought it for me because I can't walk as far or as much on the crutches so it was hindering our missionary work. I can walk with crutches though, and I can also walk without them, but I limp (it looks really pathetic, haha!) Anyway, I don't think I'll need the wheelchair at home. I can use crutches. :) We did go back to the doctor and he ordered an MRI, which was taken last Thursday, and I have a follow up appointment with the doctor about it tomorrow who will tell me what's on it. I also have a copy of the disc to take back to the States with me.

Fun stories from this week though. Someone else was pushing me in the wheelchair, but they started to go before I got my feet up, and my good foot got ran over! It now has a lovely, scabbed bit on it (it was bleeding), and it's a bit swollen. I'm just an accident waiting to happen! Sister Erasmus and I also ended up getting ill this weekend. For two days we were sick enough that we couldn't even leave our flat, but we're doing so much better now! I know that you probably don't like hearing about all these not-so-fun things that keep happening to me, but that's life, and I'm doing fine, so it's okay! :)

On more positive notes, my mission truly has been a huge blessing in my life! Heavenly Father has definitely prepared the way for me to be able to come. I have a firm testimony of that! This is where I am supposed to be and what I am supposed to experience. On your mission you go through a lot of tough times, but the amazing miracles that you see happen far outweigh the tough times, and you don't even notice them anymore. I have really come to realise what it means to be "in the world, but not of the world" (see John 17:14). That's really how it is as a missionary! I've never seen so many worldly things as I have on my mission, but we have a "bubble" around us of the Spirit that helps us to be IN the world, but not OF the world, just as the Saviour was. It means living on a higher plane of thought and action, and as we are obedient to the commandments and the mission rules we are entitled to have the Spirit with us, which gives us the spiritual power to do what we do. Our purpose is to "Invite others to come unto Christ..." That is the whole point and purpose of why we do missionary work! It is the most amazing experience, and I am so grateful to have had this opportunity to take part in the great work of salvation!

I want to thank you guys so much for all of your love and support! I know that I couldn't do any of this without your help, and I so appreciate all of it! You are such an amazing family and I am so grateful that you are my family! I'm excited to see you all, and to be able to share more of my mission experiences with you guys! I hope and pray that you have a good week, and that everything will go well! I love you guys so much!!! :D See you next week!

Love,
Sister Connery

Two Weeks To Work

Hey guys!

Foot update first: I really think that once I get home and rest it like I'm supposed to then everything will be okay. I think it really just needs the rest that I haven't been able to give it. Oh well. I will see the doctor tomorrow and see what he says. You wanna hear a funny story? So, I have been using crutches, but this past week, our zone leaders came round and brought me a wheelchair! Oh my gosh it was so funny and really sweet of them! I actually quite like it because it's really easy to get around in (unless we're using the buses, going uphill, etc (which is basically all the time, but it's fun anyway), it's just a bit embarrassing sometimes. Oh well! I'll keep you guys updated on how everything goes!

I'm sorry about the baptisms as well. It was a real bummer, but it happens to the best of us. Oh well, they will get there sometime in the future. We've had a pretty good week this last week! We got several referrals which seem like they're really cool! We've got several appointments set up this week as well, so this should be another good week for us! We just have to keep plodding along and doing everything that we can! We also had some interesting things happen this week. We attended a wedding at the chapel that we were asked to participate in (a member was getting married and her less-active daughter that we are working with was putting it together and asked us to help out.) Sister Erasmus was asked to sing, and I was asked to do a talk...on marriage...the single, sister missionary, talking about marriage. It was interesting. lol. I also gave a talk in Sacrament yesterday, and that was good I think. I shared an experience that highlighted just how great Sister Erasmus is, and she was so embarrassed! I felt bad for embarrassing her, but I also felt good because I was able to share my appreciation for her with others as well. :)

Soon enough I'll be back home but don't get trunky for me! I've still got two weeks to work, and I'm gonna work hard! :) I hope that you guys have another good week and that things keep going well! Miss you guys, and love you lots! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

Heavenly Father Will Prepare Them

Hey guys!

 

So, about those three baptisms...we've had a pretty bummer week with that. Two of our baptismal dates dropped us this week, and the third is moving out of our area, but he will at least continue to be taught. Unfortunately these things happen sometimes, but it's okay, because Heavenly Father will continue to prepare them to receive the gospel. Now we just have to find more people to teach! :) It sounds like your mission is really pushing the missionary work there! That's good though! The members need to have that inspiration, and encouragement. I have heard about the "Meet the Mormon's" film that they'll show in the cinemas! It looks like it should be really good! It would be really cool to get it playing in cinemas everywhere, not just Utah! You guys have connections for that, right? haha. 

 

To be honest, my foot is not healing very well. It's getting easier to walk, but it's still difficult. I haven't tried going outside without the crutches, but I don't think my foot will handle it well. My mission president called last night to check on me, and he said that he thinks the doctor missed something if I am still in so much pain and not able to walk yet. He wants me to see the doctor again, so he is going to call the Area Medical Advisor and talk to him about it. I should be able to bring the crutches home if need be, but I don't want to do that. I'm sure that Mitch wouldn't mind if I took them (he has several pairs), but I'm hoping that by the end of this week I will be well enough to get rid of them. We shall see, and I will keep you updated. 

 

I'm glad that you guys aren't giving up on the scripture study because it's so important! It's one of the hardest things for us to get people to do. We can teach them all about it and help them understand the blessings that come from it, but it's up to them to actually do it, which is hard for a lot of people. But I know that you guys can do it! :)

 

Well, only a few more weeks to go now and then you guys will see me again. But for now, I will just work as hard as I can while I'm still here! Hope you guys have a great week! Love you!!! :)

 

Love,

Sister Connery

Incentive To Work Hard

Hey guys!

So, we now have 3 people set for baptism in the next few weeks! One of them will be after I leave, but that's okay. What matters is that these people get baptised! That week was really hard, and I really had to push myself, but I managed it! I'm trying to do my best, but it's hard. But I will be blessed for it anyway. It's also really good at the same time because we get to spend more time with the members. We go on splits at least once a week, and I'll go sit with a member at their home, do family history, watch church dvds, etc., while my companion takes another member to our teaches and stuff. It really helps us to build up our relationship with them.

That's really cool about your scripture study! It's interesting that you all picked different things that you liked about it! That's the great thing about scriptures! Each of us could read the same thing, but pick out things that we like that are different. We're all different, but it all depends on us and our individual situations to see what sticks out to each of us. :)

It will be really weird coming home because I'll be all alone for a few days before the weekend while you guys are all at school and work. The thing that we don't realise as missionaries is that things at home change, and life moves on, but for us, we don't see it. To be honest, I don't even know how old Adam is, or what grade he and Grace are in now. Sorry guys! I'm glad that Mama Fry is loving it so much already! Everyone should serve a mission! It's the best!!!! :)

Well, that will be a fun birthday, huh? I never thought I would spend my 21st birthday on a plane and in airports. Oh well! Well, now you guys know more about my departure than I do. They try to keep everything back from us for as long as possible so that we can stay focused, even though we know it's coming. Just more incentive to work hard these last few weeks! :)

I hope you guys have another good week! I pray for you all daily, and I know Heavenly Father is keeping his eye on you for me! Love you, and miss you all! :)

Love,
Sister Connery :)

Standard of Excellence

Hey guys!

So, my foot is okay. It's not actually getting any better. The doctor said I need to stay off of it for two weeks completely, but I can't do that as a missionary. So since I'm still on my foot, it's not getting better. It's really annoying though. My comp and I both get really frustrated sometimes with it because we feel like we can't do all the things that we want to or should as missionaries. I can't physically do everything that a normal missionary can and should do, and that makes it hard for both of us, but we had an awesome week! Our mission president has set 20 lessons as a "Standard of Excellence", and we haven't gotten that many lessons since I came to this area, mostly because of my foot. But, this last week we worked really hard! I killed my foot, and it hurt a lot, but we reached 20 lessons and have a new baptismal date! We should be having two baptisms this month! We're pretty chuffed about it! I've got lots of people looking out for me though, so it's okay. Things are going well here!

Thanks for the scriptures! It's always nice to have inspiring passages from the scriptures to keep you going! I love being a missionary and being able to be on such a huge spiritual high! I don't want to lose it when I come home! That's why daily scripture study and daily prayers are a must! Missions give you so many good habits to keep!

I will do my best to take care of myself, and I know that as I do my best for Heavenly Father that He will bless me! I hope and pray that you guys have a good week! I love you all! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

Places To Go and People To See

Hey guys,

To be honest, I don't what else I can tell you about my foot. We were playing football a couple of P-Days ago, and I kicked the ball wrong. Now, we weren't being very safe as we were playing on the beach and none of us were wearing shoes so that wasn't a good idea. But I got advice from my mission president and he sent me to the doctor. They did some x-rays but said that there were no fractures. She did say that there was soft tissue damage in my foot, and it would take a few weeks to heal. She wanted me to stay off it completely for 2 weeks, but as a missionary, I can't do that. We have places to go and people to see! So, our ward mission leader let me borrow a set of crutches that he has. Our mission president calls us every few days to check on me, and also the AMA (area medical advisor) calls us as well to check up on me. I'm doing fine though. I get really tired really quickly from using the crutches but it's okay. We do rest, ice, etc for it. I am being well taken care of.

Everything else is fine. We have some really cool investigators, and one is preparing himself for baptism in a few weeks! We have investigators coming out to church, and we are working with lots of wonderful people! One of the less actives that we are working with even drove me to the hospital for the x-ray. Downend is a really great area! This week is actually transfers, but I'm obviously not moving since this is my last transfer, and my comp is staying we found out. So, things are going really well here! :)

That's about it! I've already received two blessings from the wonderful Elders in our district, so don't worry about me. I'm in good hands! My companion has been great with me, and she is a lot of help! I love her! :) Good job with the daily scripture study! It's so important! I don't even know how many times  I've read the Book of Mormon, and by the time I finish my mission I will have completed reading the Bible the whole way through! Anyway, I hope you guys have a great week! I miss you lots, and love you loads! :)

Love,
Sister Connery :)

This is my companion, Sister Erasmus (Calgary, Canada), and I!

Me and my crutches! These things take some getting used to

This is Elder Brinkerhoff (Utah) and I. We all got together on P-Day and it started raining. Since I couldn't hold an umbrella and crutch at the same time, he did it for me. lol

Every Member a Missionary

Hi guys!

There's not much to report on for my end this week. I don't have a picture to show you at this time, but I am on crutches now! I think I mentioned it last week in my email that I hurt my foot. I went to the doctor last week, and she said that I have soft tissue damage (which, as we know, takes about 6ish weeks to heal). She wanted me to stay off my foot completely for two weeks, but as a missionary that's pretty much impossible. So, I've got crutches now so that I can get around. It seems to be working as it keeps me off my feet for the most part. These crutches are difficult though! They're different from our crutches at home, and when I send a picture next week, you will understand why.

It's really cool that you guys are going out with the missionaries and stuff! We could use more of that! Members involved in the work really helps our investigators to be solid! We are working with some really great people right now, and we're trying to get as much member involvement as possible because it's so important to have that!

Well, I hope that you guys have another good week, and that all goes well! Miss you and love you all!!!

Love,
Sister Connery :)

Saved After All We Can Do

Hey everyone!

Daddy, what do you think you're doing getting hurt?! Both of us can't be hurt at the same time! (That sentence probably really confused you guys, so I guess I should explain). Last P-Day we were playing a light game of football on the beach and we were all barefoot, and I kicked the ball wrong, so I've had to make 2 trips to the hospital last week to get it looked at and get an x-ray. We don't know exactly what's wrong with it yet, but we will know this week. But don't worry about it! My comp is taking really good care of me, and I am resting and doing all the things that the GP (general practitioner) said to do. So, things are fine! :)

I'm really happy that Sam did such a good talk. Honestly you guys, I'm not that great. Missions are great though! I really am so happy that I chose to come on a mission! Anyone who does go, and sticks it out, will not be sorry! Thanks for all the love guys!

That's great that you are gonna change the negative effects from the Book of Mormon musical into a positive! To be honest, I have hardly met any people who have seen the musical, and those that I have met just thought it was funny, but it actually makes people more curious! :) Good for missionary work it is! Get ready Spokane....the REAL Mormons are coming!!! :D hahaha

Anyway, things here are going well. We have several progressing investigators and we have 4 baptismal dates right now, so the work is going well! We also had 6 investigators at sacrament meeting yesterday! It was amazing! We are being so blessed! The Lord knows that we are trying, and even though our lessons are lower in number than usual (due to the hospital trips, and the flat finding), we are still being blessed because we are doing everything that we can! We are saved after all we can do! (see 2 Nephi 25:23)

I hope you guys have another good week and that no more accidents happen! Please be careful guys! You know that I love you all and pray for you daily, and I hope that you have testimony-building experiences each day! (I know that I do!) I love you guys!

Love,
Sister Connery :)

In Harmony

Hey guys,

I hope that you are all doing well! I'm just out here working hard! Seriously, things are so crazy busy this week! Last week we were so focused on finding a flat for the new missionaries that will be coming into our area, and this week we won't even have time to eat because we will be so busy going from appointment to appointment! It's hard sometimes, but we also love it because it's really fun and it makes us feel good to know that we are so busy. Not much else to report on this week, oh except that we have been challenged to start using music in our teaches, so we have been, and it's been really fun! We sing for our investigators and others, and it's really cool! My comp, Sister Erasmus has a beautiful voice! She is so good! She has been in choir for years and had voice lessons and was even in Jazz Voices at BYU! I feel like it's a huge privilege for me to get to sing with her. We harmonize, and it's really cool! She likes it because I'm the only companion that she has had so far that can actually keep to my part while she sings a different part. Anyway, it's super fun! Life is great! I'm loving my mission, as always! :) I hope you guys have a good week! I love you and pray for you! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

Big News

Hey guys,

So, first of all, the word "chuffed". Yeah, it's a British thing. It basically means 'excited'. I don't have the British accent, but I do have the vocabulary! So, for my other news...I thought that they would have sent you the itinerary by now. I got the phone call nearly a month ago. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you but I wanted you guys to find out for yourselves. I guess they haven't sorted the flight details yet so they probably won't send you anything until they've got the flights booked and what not. Anyway, you guys better sit down for this one. I will go home....on....October 8, 2014!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT?!?! How crazy is that?! I nearly fell over when they told me! hahaha! So, there's the BIG news!

Now, on a more spiritual note. Thank you so much for that lovely scripture! I really like it! :) So, this morning in my personal study, I finished the Book of Mormon again (I don't know how many times I've read it now. I lost count). As a mission we were challenged to read it in 90 days. It comes out to roughly 6 pages per day, and I actually finished it a few days early! Once again, I was pretty chuffed about that!

Downend has been really great the past week and a bit! A lot is happening in this area! We are so busy, especially because the mission office called us the other day to tell us that they will be putting another set of missionaries into this ward next transfer so we have to find a flat! Our numbers have decreased a bit because we've spent a lot of time looking for flats, but it's not too bad. Also, a member, Joff, from Bracknell ward visited someone here in Downend yesterday and it was so cool to see him! He is awesome, and it's been so long but we still recognised each other. It was another thing to be chuffed about! lol. Anyway, that's it for this week. Fun stuff huh? Seriously though, please be safe guys! I do know that the Lord will keep His protecting hand over you. :)

I hope you guys have a great week! Stay safe! I miss you all and love you lots! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

Pretty Chuffed

Hey guys!

Downend is really great. It's also known as Bristol 1st Ward. Bristol is really great! It's a big city again, and I've really enjoyed being in the cities! This will most likely be my last area, since I only have 2 transfers left. But yeah, Bristol is great! I've only been here for like 4 days but it's been great so far! In the past four days that I've been here we've picked up two more baptismal dates, so we are pretty chuffed about that! We are the only missionaries in the ward, and it has been a long time (since the beginning of my mission) that I've had that, so it's interesting, but it means more DA's for us! :) haha! Yeah, so far everything is going really well! Just trying to work hard and be strong until the end!

My new companion is Sister Erasmus, and she is from Canada! She was born here in England, and her parents are English, but she has lived in Canada for most of her life. She is just one transfer behind me, and she is really funny. We get along really well already, and it has been a really good past four days. Anyway, life as a missionary is good! :)

It's good to know that you guys are all doing well and things are good. It sounds like you've all been having a lot of fun, and that's great! Summer break just got out for the kids in England. You guys are blessed that you get three months off school because in England they only get 6 weeks off! So, be grateful! Well, I hope you guys have another good, fun week! I miss you guys lots, and I love you all! :)

Love,
Sister Connery :)

Serve The Lord First

Hey guys,

Well, it's a sad day for us here in Eastbourne, as we have just received transfer calls and I am being moved again. This time I am being moved to Downend. Don't know where it is or anything, but I'm sure it will be great! I will really miss it here though, and miss Sister Smart. She is amazing, just like all of my companions have been! I am really bummed to have to leave Eastbourne though. It will be a very sad day. I'll miss the baptism, but that's okay. That will be a total of 4 baptisms that I have missed but have taught the people everything and then they get baptised after I leave. But hey, that's the life of a missionary. As long as the people get baptised, that is all that really matters. :) 200 investigators at sacrament meeting is a lot! For us anyway. Every mission is different, so 200 might not seem like a lot compared to missions in other parts of the world, but in Europe, that's A LOT! :)

Our weather has been really rubbish the past week. Today is the first day of sunshine that we have had in awhile. It's been raining for most of the week, which is annoying, but that's what you have to deal with sometimes. It is England, after all. The weather there sounds great, so soak up the sun for me! I wanted the lyrics for that song because we have some Elders in our district, Elder Cluff and Elder Reed and they both listen to country music and they asked me if I could remember the lyrics to it because as a missionary we have a "veil" that keeps us from remembering the worldly things. Anyway, so they couldn't remember it so they asked me and I couldn't remember either, so I asked you guys to help. Silly, but yeah. That's it. Oh, and thank you for telling Dr. Dredge that I would like to continue my course because I would really love that! I am so happy that they have started it up again! It was definitely right for me to serve a mission because if you remember, they cancelled it before I left, but now it is starting up again just before I come back! Heavenly Father really blesses us all, and I am very grateful for that blessing from Him. Serve the Lord first, and then things will work together for your good.

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/i-have-given-you-an-example?lang=eng&query=richard+g+scott

Anyway, things have been going well here in Eastbourne. The baptism is still going to go through this weekend so that will be great for the sisters. Last Monday we got to go visit the farm of one of the members here and that was so much fun! There were lots of little lambs and some giant pigs! My gosh! But it was loads of fun! We also got to attend a fireside up at the temple ( which was great!), and we are going back tomorrow with some investigators so that will be really nice! It's great to at least be on the grounds and feel the Spirit that is there. I miss the temple, but I will get to go soon again. :) 

 

So, last week was good, but I hope that this week will be good as well. It sounds like things have been good for you guys as well and I am happy for that. I hope that continues to be the case for this next week. And I will be sure to drink more water especially with the warm weather. Have a great week guys! I love you!!!

 

Love,

Sister Connery

The Power of the Priesthood

Hey!

You say that not much is going on at home, and there's not much going on here. We have another investigator with a baptismal date for the 19th of July, and that is going to go well, but we're a bit nervous because we have transfers again next week, so first of all, we don't know what will happen to us, if we stay or if one of us goes. We will have to wait and see, but that also means that you may not get an email from me on Monday, so just be aware of that. The mission is still attaining our goal of having over 200 investigators at sacrament meeting, and the Elders in our ward had a baptism on Saturday, so that was exciting.

Now, I don't want to worry you because everything is fine now, but I've been ill the past few days. I've had a bad headache and have nearly passed out at times, but I received a blessing yesterday and the power of the priesthood is an amazing, and I feel so much better now! :)

Not much else to report. All is going well, and things are good here in Eastbourne! :) I hope you guys have another good week and things continue to look positive. :) Love you and miss you all! Have a great week!

Love,
Sister Connery

Here's a picture of Elder Trowbridge, another American missionary, and I on July 4th!

 These pictures are all of Eastbourne

No Unhallowed Hand

Hey guys!

Yes, we did have fun in Brighton last week. I have several new bruises though, haha! It's fun though. I'm okay. :)

It does sound like you guys have had a busy week, but that is good! You guys are getting a bit of the missionary life, with all this moving around! Join the club! I do love the church and the way that they are handling the situations with the Book of Mormon Musical. We actually had a TV segment air here in the UK that followed around a missionary on his mission. I've heard that it makes us look really bad, but I'm not sure. Some people say it's brilliant and others said it was bad. Oh well. “The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.” (History of the Church, 4:540).

Nothing much new to report around here. We set a goal as a mission to have 200 investigators at sacrament meeting mission-wide a few months ago, and we keep getting close to our goal but it never actually happened. However, we all have fasted and prayed together, and this weekend we had 203 investigators at sacrament mission wide! :) It was great! So, that was our highlight of the week! :)

Anyway, I hope that you guys have another good and I hope and pray that the Lord will continue to bless you all! I love you all and pray for you all the time! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

Treking On The Pavement of Eastbourne

Hey guys,

So, not lots of time to write today cuz we're traveling to Brighton to play volleyball with the other members of our district. So, I will reply to the email more fully next week. However, nothing much new is happening around here. We're still really trying to find lots of people to teach. Last Monday though, Heavenly Father really blessed us! After P-Day is over (ends at 6pm) we have to go proselyte for three hours until 9pm. So, the blessing was that in three hours we managed to teach 6 lessons, have 2 potential investigators, and 1 new investigator! :D So, that was super cool! Heavenly Father was really blessing us! We were so happy and the rest of the week went alright.

Trek sounds like it was awesome! I will reply to each of you about your experiences next week when I have time to think about some really good things to say to you, and to let the Spirit really work through me. But I am so glad that you guys had fun! I loved it when I got to go, and I can't wait to be able to go again sometime! While you're out treking in the prairie, I'm treking on the pavement of Eastbourne, and also on the beaches. lol.

That's all for this week. Sorry it's so short. But I hope and pray that you guys have another good week! Love you guys so much! Have a great week! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

We'll Get There In The End

Hey everyone,

 

It does sound like you have been and are very busy there! I hope you guys love trek! How I wish I could go with you, but while you're treking around the prairie, I'll be on my own trek down the streets and on the beaches of Eastbourne!

 

Well, I honestly don't know what to tell you guys about this last week. Because we are opening an area, we are slowly getting off the ground. It takes some time because we have to do a lot of finding as we look for people to teach. We're getting there. It's just gonna take a lot of hard work but it's alright. We'll get there in the end! :)

 

What I can tell you is that we had a fun P-Day last week! As a district we went to the Seven Sisters. They are a set of seven cliffs, and it's really pretty! I'm attaching some pictures for you. We also got soaking wet! Just as we were leaving to walk the few miles back to the main road to catch the bus it started to chuck down rain! The heaven's opened! But it was fun anyway. We all enjoyed it. haha. :) I also found out today that a young boy I was teaching back in Croydon was baptised this weekend! Totally made my day! I love it! :) It's a great day when you know that someone you taught has made it to baptism, despite you not being there. You still feel the joy of it! It really creates such a joy in your heart to teach the gospel to people and see them accept it. That's the best part of missionary work. Seeing people change their lives completely to know the Saviour and His love. My hope and prayer is that you guys always remember that too! 

 

I hope you have an awesome week! Thanks so much for the email, and be safe on trek. Have fun! I love you and pray for you always! :) 

 

Love,

Sister Connery

 

Just some awesome pics of the cliffs! And Elder Reed got in the way of some of them. lol. :)

 

 

Amen

Hiya!

Well, I have been moved! I am now in Eastbourne! It's down on the coast, so that is really cool! I'm seeing the English Channel every single day! We can see it from our flat too. This flat is huge as well! It's really nice! The area is great as well! Lot's of people to talk to, and that's good because we need new people to teach. Because my companion and I are whitewashing again, we are starting with basically nothing. We had no investigators but we managed to get 2 in the last few days so that's not bad. One is just amazing! We love her already! She and the other new investigator came to church yesterday and that was so cool! She really enjoyed it and felt the Spirit for sure! Church was good, and there were 5 less actives that we work with there, and 2 investigators so that was really cool! :) I've also got a really cool story to tell you. I keep laughing about it every time. haha

So, the other day we taught this guy a lesson on the street in the town centre. Before he left I asked if we could pray with him (cuz we pray with people anywhere, including on the middle of the street). So I started saying the prayer and in the middle of it this lady less than 5 feet from us started freaking out for some reason. She was going a bit crazy and then the police showed up and arrested her right on the spot. And then I said, "Amen." I had said the prayer entirely while all that was happening next to us! I didn't even realize what was actually going on because I was focused on what I was saying in the prayer, and then come to find out, the lady had gotten arrested! The prayer was only between 30 seconds and 1 minute! It was crazy but so funny! Good story too! haha!

Well, that was my week. It was really good for our first one here. Looking forward to this next one! :) I hope and pray that you guys have a good week, and that all is well! Love you all! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

  This is my new companion and I! Her name is Sister Smart and she is from Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire (that's northern England)

These are the other Elders in our ward. Elder Fa'aoso, from Tonga, a brand new missionary, and Elder Trowbridge, from Ohio

Exciting and Scary

Hiya,

Okay, I will answer your questions first, before I say anything else. 1) I only hurt myself a little bit playing volleyball with the elders. I have small bruises running up the length of my forearms, some bloody scrapes on my hand, and bruises on my knees from diving for the ball. Other than that, I am okay! :D 2) Yes I am being transferred. I am going to open a new sisters area in a place called Eastbourne, down on the coast of the English Channel. I'm excited but that also means that I will miss baptisms and I will be close to water during the summertime! But it is exciting and scary to be opening a new area. I'll let you know how it goes! :) 

 

This last week was good. We obviously got the transfer call so that is exciting and scary. We also have been working on something for the Area Presidency (all the missionaries here have to do it), and part of the assignment requires us to knock about 20 doors in specific areas. We had to knock on the doors of these really posh homes! Like the houses that you find where Wendy's parents live, but these have lots of property and huge gates! We had to ring the buzzers instead of knock on the doors to get in the gates,and the second house that we buzzed just opened the gate before they even knew who we were and they actually let us come in and teach them! :O It was so cool! Such an awesome miracle! :)

 

Well, you'll hear from me next week from my new area, and I'll tell you what it's like! Hope you have another great week! I miss you guys, and love you lots!!! :D

 

Love,

Sister Connery

All Is Well

Hey guys,

It sounds like life is busy, as usual, in the Connery household. I hope the piggies do well for their weigh in! I haven't seen pigs in a long time, lol. School is almost out for you guys too! Be grateful that you don't live in England because their summer holiday is only 6 weeks long. However, they have more frequent and longer breaks during the school year. I hope everything with the house continues to go well. Moving really is a lot of fun. It's a new adventure! :)

We had a really good week! 11 people came to church yesterday! When I say people, I mean investigators, AND less-active members that we work with. Lots of them came yesterday! It was great! We may or may not be having a baptism this weekend. The investigator who is supposed to be getting baptised is having some housing issues and so until the social worker can find her a new place to live here in Staines, she has been moved to a temporary place over 1 hour drive away in East Sussex! So, we are not quite sure how we are going to make it work, but we got some advice from our mission president and we will see how it goes.

I have been feeling pretty good. The allergies have kicked in though, and I haven't had the time or the money to buy some allergy pills so for now I'm just roughing it. But it's all good. I'll sort it out today when we go shopping.

I'm excited because we are having a ward activity sponsored by the missionaries here at the chapel today, and we're gonna play some volleyball! I am so stoked! :) I'll be careful though! ;) lol.

Everything is good here. Things are going well! Moves are up next week, so P-Day won't be on Monday. I'll either email you on Wednesday or something, depending on if one of us is moving or not. So don't panic! All is well! :)

I love you guys, and hope you have a great week! Have fun! Love you lots!

Love,
Sister Connery :)

Sacrifice

Hiya!

Thanks for the pie recipe! We've got some Elders in our district that are going home at the end of this transfer and they have requested that I make them apple pie. So we will see how that goes. We did have a really good week. We taught a lot of lessons, and we still have 3 baptismal dates, and they are all really solid! We are working with really good people! Miracle story though! We are working with a part-member family. The family is less active, and their 11-year-old daughter was never baptised, but she has a baptismal date in June now, and her family is already preparing for her baptism! It's great! And, they all came to church with her yesterday! Her less-active parents and her younger brother all came dressed in their Sunday best, and we were floating on air! We were so happy! :) It's amazing to see the change that the gospel makes in people's lives. All for the better! :D

You have had a busy week but it sounds like it has been loads of fun! I am really excited for another move (it's about time!) I kinda like the change, and especially as a missionary you have to get used to change and adjust quickly, so I have been prepared for this for a long time! 

 

The weather has been sunny and warm for about a week now! I hope it continues, but I heard that they are forecasting rain tomorrow. :/ Hope it stays away! So, just to share something really quick. I have recently been studying 'Our Heritage' and it has been really good. I read today about the sacrifices made by the people to go on missions and to build the Nauvoo temple. No matter what we are asked to sacrifice, it won't be as hard or as great as the sacrifice made by our Saviour for us, so we should be willing to sacrifice anything to repay him for the kindness and love that He showed by His sacrifice. 

 

I hope you guys have another great week and I am looking forward to hearing what happens next week! Love and miss you all! :)

 

Love,

Sister Connery :) 

Best Decision I've Ever Made

Hey everyone!

It was so great to Skype with you all yesterday! You guys are so different! It's really weird, but in a good way. The changes when I get back will be very obvious. Thanks for the update on everything! One of the first things I want to do when I get home is go to the temple.  I miss it so much! I wanna go again and again! :) For now I will continue to focus on my calling and enjoy the last few months that I have here. 

I'm glad you guys think I look good. I am really happy! I love being here and doing this! Best decision I've ever made! :) No matter what happens while I'm here, the Spirit overpowers the bad experiences and chases them away. So it's all good! :)

We do have lots of baptisms coming up but not this week. Before the end of the transfer we should have 2 or 3. And then we have two young girls with dates for the end of June. I hope I'm still around to see it! Our area is doing really well! Sister Polidario is a really hard worker, and she has taught me a lot! I've been blessed with great companions whom I've learnt a lot from!

I really am excited to be able to help Sam prepare for his mission. He will be the most trained missionary, and he will be AP before you know it! Make sure he goes out with the missionaries. Not just on teaches, but knocking and street contacting as well. It will be really good for him.

There's not much to report on since I told you guys everything yesterday. I'm surprised that you don't have more questions though. I am in a foreign country ya know! It's all good though. :) It was so great to talk to you all yesterday, and not just talk to you, but see your faces! Next time it will be at the Spokane Airport. But for now, let's just keep working hard to bring about the great work of salvation where we are. :)

Have a great week, and I pray that the Lord will continue to bless you all! :) Love you and miss you lots! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

Tender Mercies, Tender Mercies!

HEY!!!

What a fantastic email you have sent this week! I am so happy for Chris and Wendy!!! I'm an auntie again!!! Hooray! :D Welcome to the world, Baby! Aunt Casey loves you already (just like I love the rest of my little nieces and nephews)! :) I am really excited to finally get to Skype you guys on Sunday! It might take a bit to figure it all out, so be patient with us and wait until we get it through. Okay? I'm so excited!!!

Anyway, let me tell you about my week! Oh it was so good! The tender mercies of the Lord have been upon us. We now have 5 people preparing for baptism! :O It's amazing! And I have to tell you that yesterday we saw so many miracles! My testimony, especially of prayer, has grown so much just from that one day! Yesterday morning we came to the chapel for church to wait for our investigators. We had arranged lifts for some, and some had just said that they would come on their own. We were waiting for several people. 5 minutes before the meeting started we were panicking because none of our investigators were there yet. One of the members we had asked to pick someone up arrived without our investigator with her! We didn't know what to do, and we were both getting really upset. Our Bishop saw our obvious distress, and very calmly told us that we just need to relax and put it all in the Lord's hands, and He would take care of it according to His will. (Our Bishop has gone through a lot in the past few months and has learnt this lesson well) We felt so bad because we had not even prayed up to that point. I immediately started to pray in my heart as we walked in to start sacrament meeting. I was pleading with Heavenly Father, and I hadn't even said "Amen" yet, and one of our investigators walked in! Shortly thereafter, another investigator walked in, and she had come on her own! I nearly started crying. Heavenly Father answered my prayers, and it was miraculous! Not only that, but after sacrament we went out into the foyer and another investigator was there with her less active mother, and they BOTH stayed for the rest of church! Tender mercies, tender mercies! The Lord hears and answers our prayers, but we have to turn to Him and put it all in His hands. Trust in Him, and He will take care of us. My testimony has grown so much in one single day of several principles. The Lord loves us. He hears and answers our prayers. It was an amazing experience! :D

I hope that you guys enjoyed that story because I will never get tired of telling it! I hope you guys have another great week until I talk to you again next Sunday!!! :) I love you guys and I will talk to you next week! :D

Love,
Sister Connery

P.S.-We went to the National Archives last week (the London Family History Centre is currently located there), and we learnt more about Family History and we were able to do some of our own! I've already found several generations on Daddy's side of the family! It was so cool! I have found the Spirit of Elijah in myself, and I can't wait to do more family history! 

Here is a picture of me outside of the Archives

Christ is the Reason

Hey!

Congrats everyone on the track and field stuff! Good job on the talk in sacrament Sam! It's great to hear that you have an increased desire to serve a mission! It really is the best! (Besides, girls like RM's! But do not use that as motivation. Love is the motive (for Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ), and Christ is the reason!) Convert retention is a problem everywhere! We as members have a responsibility to reach out to the new converts. It is a totally different world than what they are used to. We go about our daily stuff because it is what we have known, but to them it is new and they need help to integrate into our "society". It's not an easy task, but there is no point in finding new people if we can't keep the ones that we already have. Every convert is a special gift to be handled with great care.  

Well, we have had a fantastic week! The past few weeks we have gotten 4 baptismal dates, with 2 of them at church on Sunday, and both of them are progressing towards their baptisms really nicely! Unfortunately, Sister Polidario and I are almost positive that this will be our last transfer together. But all is well, because as missionaries our lives can be changed completely every 6 weeks, so you get used to the constant changes. It was such a good week! We are truly being blessed by Heavenly Father and are seeing miracles happen every single day! Always look for miracles each day, because there will always be one to find!

So, you guys haven't been saying much about Mother's Day. Next week I will tell you what time I can skype you. I hope that you guys know how to use it. If we can't get it figured out, I am going to call instead, but I would like to skype this time. I may have to do it during your church time though because of the time difference, but we will see.

Hope you guys have a great week, and I pray that the Lord will continue to bless you! Love you and miss you all lots! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

What Matters Most

Hi guys!

So, I don't know if I mentioned this, but neither one of us is getting transferred, so we're staying in Staines for another transfer, but we both feel like one of us will move at the end of this transfer. :/

Anyway, Happy Easter to you guys as well! I love this time of the year because we get to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord, and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Definitely a day to celebrate! We did have a great Easter dinner with a really cool family, The Russells. Their oldest son James, just got called on a mission to Colombia! So we got to share some insights with him. 

It's nice to hear how well you guys are! The rain here hasn't let up much. I'll send you a picture that I just took yesterday after we got home. We were outside for a max of ten minutes and...you'll see when you look at the picture. It's great that you have been studying the scriptures more. That same (or similar) phrase is used a lot in the scriptures, and like I always say, if something is repeated, it is definitely important! Keep up the great work!

Our week was really good as well. We have some baptismal dates and we're getting lots of lessons, so that is really good! It's not as important to me as it was in the beginning of my mission. Yes, our key indicators are still really important, but what matters more to us is that we are inviting people to come unto Christ. We can teach lots of lessons, and all of that, but if these people are not truly developing faith in Jesus Christ, then it is all a futile effort. The most important thing is to fulfill our purpose. The purpose of a missionary is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. That is the purpose of all missionaries. Not to force people to do anything, but to invite. :) And we are happy as long as we are doing all that we can to fulfill that purpose.

Well, I hope you guys have another great week! I am excited to Skype with you guys on Mother's Day. Have a great week! Love and miss you all! :)

Love,
Sister Connery

This week was Sister Polidario's birthday, and I made her a cake!

 Us and the Russell family on Easter!

Only 10 minutes outside and my skirt looks like this!

What a Miracle

Hey everyone!

Wow, it sounds like you guys have had a good week! We did as well! It was too bad that I wasn't able to see Chris, but in the Missionary Handbook it states, "Visits from family members, friends, and acquaintances are against Church." (Missionary Handbook, pg 37) Then it lists several reasons for why that rule was made, so I am trying to be obedient and follow all the rules. Obviously some mission presidents may adapt these kinds of rules, but it's okay. I will see you all in 6 months time anyway! :)

So, this week was good for us. We had to go to the hospital...again. Not for me though! Don't panic! We went to visit an investigator who is there for a few weeks, so that was fun. I've got a really cool miracle to tell you though! So, last week we got a referral for someone who really wanted to learn about the gospel but who is only visiting England and will be leaving in a few weeks. So we wanted to contact her ASAP. The phone number we were given didn't work, and there was no house number, only the street name. That was really hard because the street is about one mile long, but we needed to meet this girl. So we decided to spend an afternoon knocking on every single door on that street and ask for the girl, and if she didn't live there then we would try to teach that person and then go to the next door. That was our plan. So we set off, found the road, said a prayer, and knocked on the very first door. A young woman opened the door, and we asked for the person we were looking for, and she said, "That's me." What a miracle! We didn't end up needing to knock the entire street because we found her at the first door. It was amazing!!! :) Heavenly Father truly blessed us! So many miracles happen every single day, and I witnessed so many of them happen! It will be great to be able to share all of them with you guys! Looking for miracles every single day helps us to be grateful, even for the little things. I loved the talk by President Uchtdorf at conference about being grateful in any circumstance! Even if it's pouring rain, we need to be grateful for it because without it, there would be drought, and the Earth wouldn't be as beautiful as it is. I am grateful for the blessings that I have in my life. I will never be able to tell or show Heavenly Father just how grateful I really am, but I am most definitely grateful for all things!

And I am grateful for all of you! For all of my family and friends! I am grateful for all the love and support that I have from all of you! I pray for you all daily, and thank Heavenly Father that I have you all in my life. I love you all so much! I hope and pray that you have another great week! Love you!!!

Love,
Sister Connery

P.S.-I found out some interesting news last week. It turns out that on my mission I have become lactose intolerant. Another missionary explained the symptoms of it to me, and it turns out that I had all of them because the dairy products here are different. All I knew was that I wasn't feeling good after having anything with dairy in it. So there we go! Just gotta have less dairy. Just an interesting tidbit I thought I'd throw in there. 

Sowing

Hi guys!

It seems like you guys are doing pretty good from the sound of the email. Attending a convert baptism really is a great way to end the weekend. That is interesting that you guys did that because I did that as well. A companionship of the Elders in my ward had a baptism yesterday between conference sessions, and we all sang a song for the convert. It was great!

There really is nothing much new to report quite yet. Sister Polidario and I are currently sowing here in Staines, so we have to wait a short time before we can really start reaping what we've sown. But it's all good. We're having a lot of fun, and we already have two baptismal dates since we got here, so things are going pretty good. I actually don't know the ratio of Sisters and where they're all from. I would say that probably more than half are not from the U.S. Cool, huh? An interesting fact, I am the only American in our district (6 missionaries total). That's a first, but it's really cool. To be honest, it feels really weird to have been out for a year now. It's strange and really scary to think that I only have six months left. I love serving a mission and I know that I'm going to miss it a lot when I have to leave, but there are other things that I need to do at home. But, I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

I absolutely loved General Conference! I really don't know what else to say about it! It was just fantastic and I really enjoyed it all! There were so many good talks! We didn't get to see the last session, but we got to see all the other ones, including the General Women's Meeting and a little bit of the Priesthood session... ;) Honestly, if someone asked me what my favorite talk was, I wouldn't be able to pick one. Two big topics of the conference sessions, in my opinion, seemed to be a lot about keeping our covenants and loving others, especially Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. They are the perfect examples of love for us to follow. We have made covenants with Heavenly Father, and if we do our part then we receive the blessings for that. It is that simple. At times it may seem difficult, but like Elder Bednar said, happiness is not the absence of a load. The Atonement enables us to carry the load. I don't feel the need to say more.

Well, that's it for this week, but I hope you guys have a great one! Keep up the good work with everything! I love you all, and pray for you always!

Love,
Sister Connery

Book of Mormon Tower

Hi guys!

Things are pretty good here. Apparently Heavenly Father trusts us enough here to let us whitewash this area, so we have to do our best! Sister Polidario is wonderful! I love her so much already! :) I'm attaching a picture of us to this email. I am truly so excited about serving with her! I have actually been praying that I would have a companion from every continent (excluding Antarctica), and so far that prayer has been answered! I've had an American, Australian, European, now an Asian! All I need is a South American and I've got it all! It's so cool to see the different cultures and everything here, and to learn about it all from my companions. So, to answer your questions: 1) It depends on how the office elders arrange it. Sometimes you go by train, by bus, or car (either the zone leaders, office elders, or one of the senior couples drive us). This last transfer, Sister L and I were driven by the zone leaders. All the missionaries that will be transferred meet in one location, and then we go to our new areas. 2) I have ridden on MANY double-decker buses. That was basically the only travel that we had in Croydon was double deckers. So, yes I have. LOTS of them! 3) We pray a lot! The absolute minimum that we pray each day is around 12-14 times. At least! 4) Shoe size...ummm...at home I wear a size 8, and here I think that is a size 38 or something like that. I can't remember exactly.  

Wow, it really has been a whole year this week! It's crazy how fast the time goes! This time last year I was preparing to go to the MTC, and I spent conference weekend in the MTC. It was a really great experience! I absolutely love General Conference! And it is here again! This is one of those precious times of the year when we get to hear a prophet and apostles of the Lord speak to us! What a blessing! When Jesus Christ established His church, He set it up with prophets and apostles, and that is how it has worked since the beginning of time, starting with the prophet, Adam. How blessed we are to belong to the true church of Jesus Christ, complete with living prophets and apostles to lead and guide us. If you have any questions or doubts on your mind, be sure to watch and listen to General Conference carefully, and you will receive answers. I do that every time, and I have yet to not receive an answer. I have a challenge for all of you (either individually, or as a family) to invite one person to watch General Conference with you. I'm inviting 5+ people every day, so just invite one! Pray about whom you could invite, and do it! I know you guys can do this!

Thanks for the email! You are all so amazing! Thanks for everything, and I really hope you guys have another good week! You are always being prayed for! I love you all! :D

Love,
Sister Connery

 Sister Polidario and I

I decided to organize the Books of Mormon that we have in our flat (the non-english ones), and I kept piling them on top of one another, so now I made this tower of Books of Mormon. I even got Sister Polidario to stand next to it so you can see how tall it is (she is about 5'2"). 

Whitewashing

Hi guys!

Oh my goodness! I have so much to tell you! I am glad to hear that you are all doing well. I'm also extremely glad to hear about the temple trip! I love the temple so much! I really wish I could go again! I will never again take the temple for granted! Ever! It is such a blessing in our lives and a huge privilege for us to go to the house of the Lord! :D

Sometimes, Mama, we all need little nudges. Even missionaries. Sometimes we get too relaxed with everything, and we need to stop and keep working hard. We can rest in paradise after we die. But now is the time for us to perform our labours and prepare to meet Heavenly Father again (see Alma 34:32). So we need to work hard while we can! Take a good break and rest easy with Spring Break, and then you can be refreshed to start work and everything else again. I hope those kids are helping you out with everything, and if they're not then tell them to REPENT! ;) lol.

So, now for my news! Transfers came! I didn't mention it last week because when I emailed you on Monday morning I didn't know if I would be transferred or not. But transfer calls came on Monday evening, and I got transferred to a place called Staines (Google it). So that means a new companion, new place, new members, new everything! But not only that, my new companion and I are whitewashing! (Whitewashing=going to an area that both of you have never been to). So, we were both in previous areas, and then we got transferred here to Staines, so neither one of us know anything about this place, and we just have to figure it out. There were Sisters here before but both of them went home last week so President had to put two new missionaries here, and so he, through inspiration from Heavenly Father, chose us. It's really hard, but it can be really fun and it's a great opportunity for us to stretch and grow! My new companion is Sister Polidario, and she is from the Philippines! She has been on her mission for eight months, and she is just so sweet! She is the Sister Trainer Leader for our zone so we will be getting to go on a lot of exchanges! Fun stuff! But it has been so crazy this week! We have only been in the area since Wednesday evening, and we have no investigators at all. So we are finding, finding, and more finding! It's crazy! But so much fun! We are really excited! We have already found a few investigators so we are really chuffed about that! It's going to be great! Yes, I will miss the baptisms in Purley, but as long as they get baptized, then it doesn't matter if I am there. All is well! :)

So, yeah. Lot's of exciting and new things this week! But that is all for now! I hope that you all have a fantastic week and keeping going strong with everything! Pray for strength when you need it, and Heavenly Father will answer your prayers! Thank you all for everything! I couldn't do any of this without all of you! Love you all!!! :)

Love,

Sister Connery

A Precious Gift

Hello from beautiful, sunny England!

It's a bit weird saying that because of all the rain that we have had the past few months, but the last week-ish has been so beautiful here! There have been several times when we have gone out without coats on because the weather is so nice! So, I will start by answering the questions that you have. I already told you about the weather, so on to General Conference. Yes, we do get to watch General Conference but we usually only get to watch 3 sessions of it because of the timing. It makes it a bit harder because you guys are having a session at 1pm, and that session for us is at 10pm. So, we just have to wait for the Ensign to come out and read up some more. Sister Laineenkare has been trying to teach me some Finnish (that is her native language), but it is a hard one to learn. But her English is great! She doesn't always know how to pronounce some words or what some things mean, but they have to start learning English in school when they are seven, so she sounds proper American when she speaks English (seriously, everyone always thinks she's from the States, lol). Yes, I did have a good chat with President Millar about things. I won't be needing a sling or anything as my shoulder is doing much better now. (not lying) I followed his advice directly and I am doing much better with it. So no worries.

Congrats to Adam about the basketball game and the piglets! That is so exciting! Have fun! The Time Out sounds like it was a lot of fun. I look forward to being able to go in the future, and I'll have to listen to that new CD when I get back. Now, Sam, I'm sorry that you have been rejected so much about prom. The great thing is that you still have next year, but don't give up hope now! Chin up kid! I get my offers to people rejected every day! Maybe this is a way that the Lord is preparing you for your mission. lol. :) That's great that you guys are going out teaching with the missionaries! They really appreciate it! Trust me, you guys have no idea how much we appreciate when members come on teaches with us! Keep up the good work!

So, this week has been so good! We really feel like this has been a good week for us! We still have our four investigators with baptismal dates and two of those came to church yesterday! We had a total of three people at church that we are teaching, and as a district we had a total of six at church. It has been a really good week for that! We are so happy and excited when people get to come to church and feel the Spirit that is there! I love the opportunity that I have every week to go there, to feel the Spirit and partake of the Sacrament. We too have had a main topic for this month be the Atonement in our classes and such. I have actually been studying a lot about this topic, and as you said, "this precious gift". We meet people every day who ask us questions about sins and how could God forgive people of certain sins. We tell them that no matter how great or how small the sin may be, we all make mistakes-every single one of us. Missionaries are here to help others know how we can all be cleansed from our mistakes. Only through Jesus Christ can that happen. He came to the Earth and suffered incomprehensible amounts of pain on our behalf so that we can have the opportunity to return to live with Heavenly Father again. When we make mistakes we have to face the consequences for them. That is justice. However, when the Saviour, performed the Atonement, He satisfied the demands of justice. In Mosiah 15:9, it says, "Having ascended into heaven, having the bowels of mercy; being filled with compassion towards the children of men; standing betwixt them and justice; having broken the bands of death, taken upon himself their iniquity and their transgressions, having redeemed them, and satisfied the demands of justice." Because of what He did, Jesus Christ gives us the opportunity to receive mercy from them (Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ), and they can forgive us of our sins. We can only be forgiven if we accept Jesus Christ and what He has done for us, repent, obey the commandments, and live the gospel of Jesus Christ (which is: having faith in Him, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end). But mercy cannot rob justice (see Alma 42: 22-25), so we have to do our part by doing the things previously mentioned. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want to forgive us of our sins, and we can be forgiven. There are big sins and little sins, and Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ can forgive whomever they want (see D&C 64:10). We cannot get to the celestial kingdom alone. Only through the merits of Jesus Christ can we get there. Repentance is a process, and it isn't easy, but it is possible, and it is worth it in the end.

That was my sermon for this week. :) I hope that you guys have another good week, or that things go better for those who haven't had such a good week. Stay strong, and press on! (hey, that was almost like 'Keep Calm and Carry On' haha!) Anyway, have a great week guys! Love you!!!

Love,
Sister Connery 

Looking Through Windows

Hi guys!

Congratulations Sam on the Court of Honour! Good for you! That's really cool! In fact, today we are actually going to help one of the young men in our ward to do his Eagle project (He is American and they are living here so he is just doing it here). Maybe then I will feel somewhat part of this experience. It really does sound like you guys had a full house, but that is so cool! You all got together and I'm sure that you had a great time! I'm glad that everyone is doing so good, including Mudflap. I'm sure that she did enjoy her sleepover. And thanks for the sermon Mama. It's nice to be able to share the spiritual things that we are learning. :)

So, this week...I don't even know where to start. I guess I will just start at the beginning. Monday was the usual. Tuesday was just ridiculous! In the morning we had an appointment and we got flogged (person wasn't home/didn't show up,etc.), then my skirt ripped so we had to go home to change it, and on the bus on the way home, there was a bus on the opposite side of the road going the way we had just come, and a dog ran out into the street and it hit the dog! We watched the whole thing, and it was just awful! The windows of the bus were open so we could hear the poor dog just howling, and it was terrible! It was the saddest thing, and I cried (silently-no sobbing) for about the next two hours. We were on another bus ride later in the day, and this guy got on the bus and was just angry. He kept yelling and screaming and swearing, and it was awful as well! Unfortunately we were both not in such great spiritual moods by that point, and we went to the Orpington chapel for our interviews with our Mission President. He asked me how I was, and I nearly started crying again. I just told him everything, and after I finished it just left. It all left me, and I felt so much better. Telling other missionaries about it didn't help, but being able to let my feelings show to President helped so much. The interview was great, and the rest of the day was just fine. Missionaries have bad days too, but then the next few days are the best! That's why I'm telling you all this because we had such great miracles, and had a really good rest of the week! We went on exchanges with the Sisters in Hastings, and Sister Ross and I came back to Purley. It was a great exchange, and I learned a lot. We switched back the next day, and I spent a total of eight hours in the car in two days and I have to say that I loved it. I miss road trips, but I was so tired the rest of the week. It's the sitting and travelling that takes the most out of you. Anyway, so we also have a total of 4 baptismal dates now! We have this fantastic family that we are teaching, and they are so great! Heavenly Father is truly blessing us in this area! The week started off pretty rough, but the end result was amazing and completely worth it! :)

I'm sorry to hear about the lack of confidence in yourselves. I was in your shoes once, though. A few times I have stood before judges and sang for them. It is scary, but you do it, and afterwards you can at least say that you did it. But I understand. You will get used to it soon enough. I have been forced to get used to it on my mission with the many solos that I have had to sing. I'm mostly over being shy about it now because when we are riding on the bus, or at a bus stop, or on the street, or wherever, I am usually singing something. I've just come to get used it and not care what others think. I actually studied something similar to this topic this morning in my personal study. So, at the end of the Sermon on the Mount (in both the Bible and the Book of Mormon), Jesus commands: "Judge not..." (see Matt, 7:1; and 3 Nephi 14:1). He continues on to say, "And why beholdest thou the mot that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?" (see Matt. 7:3; and 3 Nephi 14:3). There is a Mormon Message based on a talk by President Monson, entitled "Looking Through Windows", and it talks about this subject. (the link is: http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=1472070326001) I love especially how he paraphrases it so that it applies to us today, and we can understand that same scripture (Matt. 7:3; 3 Nephi 14:3) in the language of our day. Jesus Christ was definitely right that we shouldn't judge others because we will be judged as well (see Matt. 7:2; 3 Nephi 14:2). I enjoy what President Monson says about how we don't know everything about the lives of other people, so it's best for us to follow the commandment of the Saviour, and "Judge not...".

Kind of a long email for you guys today, but this week has been one for learning and growing and I wanted to share all the new knowledge that I have with you guys. I hope you continue to stay safe, and that there will be no more mishaps to report next week! Have a great week you guys! Love you all!

Love,
Sister Connery :D

Thy Word Is a Lamp Unto My Feet

Hiya!

I'm so sorry to hear about the missionary experience that went downhill. Unfortunately there are always times like that, but we just have to keep trying! Heavenly Father will help us! He and the Saviour are always there for us, and the Holy Ghost is there as well when we speak the truth. Look at the story in the February Ensign in the "Latter-Day Saints Voices" section, particularly the story entitled, "I Defended My Faith". :)

I'm glad to hear that all is well otherwise. :) The musical sounds like it was loads of fun! It's the first one in a long time that I actually haven't been able to see. It's kinda weird. Anyway, I think that it could be possible for me to be transferred soon. I have been here for five months now, and I've spent two transfers with Sister Laineenkare, so usually it seems that President would probably move me pretty soon, but you never know! We'll have to wait and see! The church buildings here look pretty similar to the ones back home. Our current ward building doesn't look like a church at all. It's like a big box with a spire. But it kinda depends on the building. Some are new and built by the church and others were buildings that the church bought, so they're all different.

So we have had a really good week! We were able to find six new investigators, still have a baptismal date and taught a lot of lessons! It has been really good because we have really been struggling to find new investigators, but now we have some! We just have to keep it up and get them to progress! Another great thing this week was that we had fast and testimony meeting yesterday (since if was fast Sunday of course), and I really wanted to get up and bear my testimony (there wasn't enough time, but one of our investigators that was there got up and bore her testimony!). So I specifically wanted to bear my testimony of the scriptures. I LOVE the scriptures! The approved scriptures of the Church are: the Holy Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price. I am currently in the midst of reading the Bible, and I came across one of my favourite scriptures in the Old Testament. In Psalms 119:105, it says: "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." I love that scripture, and it is so true! Heavenly Father's word - the scriptures - light the way for us that we should go. In the Book of Mormon, in 2 Nephi 32:3, it says: "...feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do." The words written in the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price all contain the words of Christ. We should read them, treasure them, and live according to what they say. The scriptures are here for our profit and learning (see 1 Nephi 19:22-23), to testify of Christ that we might believe in Him, and then we can receive eternal life if we do the things that He says (see John 20:31). That is my testimony of the scriptures, that they are the word of God and through them we can learn the things that we need to know to be successful in this life.

That's it for me! Still doing good here, and I hope that all continues to go well at home. I pray that the blessings of Heavenly Father be upon all of you! Have a great week! I love you all!

Love,
Sister Connery

The Plan of Happiness

Hey guys!

How are you all? It seems like you guys are keeping busy which is good, and you're doing lots of cool stuff! Especially your missionary work! That's great that you took a friend to church Grace! Good job explaining that indeed we are Christians. I think it comes from being called 'Mormons' all the time instead of by the actual name of the Church. People have a lot of common misconceptions about the Church that we try our best to clear up, especially when people say that we aren't Christians. The name of the Church is The Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints! Oh well, they'll come to that knowledge eventually, and with the good missionary work you guys are doing, it will be great!

Those flooding pictures were really cool, I must admit. The water does look kinda gross, but the lighting wasn't that good either. The weather this past week has actually been really nice! The sun is out today and there are no clouds! I love it! The bus is really cool. I technically live in South London right now, and the missionary play hasn't really had that much of an effect. No one has really heard much about it. Very few people have actually paid attention to it, so it's not a big deal for us.

So, we have another investigator with a baptismal date in early April. I may not be here to see it but that is okay, as long as it happens! And we had a few people that we are teaching come to church yesterday and also a few who just saw the church and walked right in! It was actually really cool! I've never seen that happen where people just see the building from the outside and feel the Spirit enough that they just walk in! It's great! :)

That's really funny that you mention the Plan of Salvation because I studied that this morning in my personal study and I have some things to share with you guys. So, yesterday in Sacrament Meeting it was all about families! The talks were all about families, and we sang hymn #300- "Families Can Be Together Forever". I was just thinking this morning about how truly blessed I am to have that knowledge! Heavenly Father has given us our families to bring happiness to all of His children on the Earth. Because Heavenly Father loves each of us so much, He has provided a way for us to live with Him and also with our families forever. This is only possible through the Saviour, Jesus Christ. If we have faith in Him, repent, are baptized by the proper priesthood authority, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end, then we can have the opportunity to live with our families forever! Through the Prophet, Joseph Smith, the proper authority and power to bind families together was restored (see Matthew 16:19). When people get married, the person who marries them usually says something like, "...as long as you both shall live", or "...until death do you part". The Plan of Salvation and the priesthood authority allows family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave! How cool is that?! I love being able to share this knowledge with people! It helps them to know that Heavenly Father really does love every single one of us (regardless of what we do, He still loves us) and wants us to be happy. True happiness come from His plan - The Plan of Salvation, but also known as the Plan of Happiness! :D

I just love that and wanted to share it with you guys. So, that's it from this side of the world, and I hope that all is well over on your side. Have a great week, and continue to stay happy, healthy, and un-hurt! Love you guys!

Love,
Sister Connery

He Will Come

Hi everyone!

It's great to hear how good you are all doing! Well, this week for us was pretty good. It has rained an absolute ton though (apparently the English people think it has rained a lot. Sister Laineenkare and I actually expected it to rain this much, haha!) This has been the wettest January that England has seen since the 1700's! There is flooding all over the place! There actually isn't much flooding where we are, so it doesn't really have an affect on us. There is one road that is blocked off for a good portion due to the flooding, but it doesn't hinder us much. They had to flood our underpass (just a walkway under the road) to get it off of the road. The underpass leads to our local Tesco (kinda like Super-1) but there are other ways to get to it, so it's not a big deal. It's just interesting. I have attached some pics of the underpass to show you what I'm talking about.

So, it sounds like you were well fed from the mission president (spiritually, I mean). He is absolutely right about the temple work and missionary work being one. I have heard that a few times, and it is obviously important and needs to be remembered if it is repeated. How exciting it is to be part of the great work of salvation!! Member or full time missionary, it doesn't matter, because we should all be missionaries. I really do love being a missionary! My calling is great! I love this opportunity that I have to serve the Lord and to invite others to come unto Christ. Unfortunately, not all the time do people want to listen to you and heed the call to come unto Christ. We meet people every day who basically tell us that we are foolish to believe in God and Jesus Christ. They try to tell us that they don't exist- that Jesus Christ never did come, and He never will come. BUT, we know better! We know that Jesus Christ did come to the Earth, that He ministered among the people in Jerusalem, and also (after His resurrection) to the Nephites. He has provided each of us with a way to return to live with Heavenly Father again by His suffering for all of us. He has come...and He WILL come AGAIN! I have been reading in the Book of Mormon in 2 Nephi 6:7, 13 which says:

v.7- "And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their faces towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me."

v. 13- "Wherefore, they that fight against Zion and the covenant people of the Lord shall lick up the dust of their feet; and the people of the Lord shall not be ashamed. For the people of the Lord are they who wait for him; for they still wait for the coming of the Messiah."

The Messiah, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ will come, and we, the people of the Lord wait steadfastly for His return. We need not be ashamed of Him now, and we especially won't be ashamed of Him when He comes again.

That is my message for this week from my personal studies. I can feel my testimony of the gospel getting stronger and stronger every single day, and I know that I cannot deny the things that I know to be true. I LOVE the gospel, and my Saviour, Jesus Christ, and my Father in Heaven. :D

I hope you guys have another great week! May the Lord bless you! That is my prayer for each of you every day! I love you all!

Love,
Sister Connery

P.S.- Yes, because the driving is switched over here, so is the walking. We do walk on the left side of the footpath, just like the cars drive on the left side. :)

This is a Book of Mormon Musical bus! The BOM Musical has been in London for a bit now, and since I live in South London, we see and ride on the buses that are advertising the musical, so here is one for you!

Here is the underpass and also a pic of the sign when you leave the store so that should give you guys a good idea as to how high the water was