Doniphan Ward and other tender mercies :)

Happy Monday from Liberty!

We had transfers on Thursday and I got transferred to the Doniphan
Ward (which borders my last ward) with Sister Baggett! We are STLs
over the Liberty Jail and the sisters there. Sister Baggett and I met
before our missions at byu and served the first 6 months of our
missions together, so it is super fun to be able to be companions with
her now :)

But before I crossed the border into Doniphan, I had to say goodbyes
in Shoal Creek Valley. Goodbyes are easily the hardest part of a
mission. I put my whole heart into SCV and it was so sad to leave, but
I am excited for everyone that is going on in the area.

We said goodbye to Will and Mandy Wednesday night. I LOVE these two
people. I needed to meet them. I learned so much from them, so saying
goodbye was not the easiest. Will let us have some of his favorite
apple pie before I left that he only gets once every 4 months from
Mandy's grandma to show us his love. ☺️

We have a fun tradition at the jail where the nit before transfers we
all dress up in the old fashioned clothes they have downstairs and
take pictures in the jail and "kill" the sisters leaving in a few.

Thursday was transfers like I said. Sister Taylor came into the
mission this transfer! It was a happy little Church History Tour
reunion!! She is serving at the VC right now :)

Okay, cool thing I learned at the jail this week during a presentation
Sister Baggett and I took at the jail.... We were talking in the
history room about the importance of centering ourselves on Christ
because that is where a majority of the problems come from to the
members of the church in Missouri. Then in the rotunda, I was praying
to know what to share with this couple and the revelation about being
chosen stuck out to me from the sections that were revealed there. D&C
121:34-35
"34 Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are
they not chosen?
35 Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world,"
Then all of a sudden the words "tender mercies" came to mind. I was
talking to another sister this week and asked her why missionaries see
so many miracles and tender mercies. As you all are well aware that
there are miracles every week! Haha. The scripture in 1 Nephi 1:20
came to my mind.
"But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of
the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their
faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance."
As I was sharing this scripture with the couple we were taking through
the jail, I realized that this scripture says that tender mercies come
to those who are "chosen". We learn from that D&C scripture that this
means that if our hearts are not set too much upon the things of the
world, we are "chosen". Receiving the maximum amount of tender mercies
in our lives is completely dependent on our obedience to the
commandments, faithfulness, and consecration. In essence, how centered
we are on Christ. Anyways, the jail is awesome. The scriptures are
awesome. The gospel is awesome.

Saturday morning during our Saturday Morning Training Meeting that
Sister Baggett and I trained at, I shared that scripture and did a
training around it. If any of you all are looking for a super awesome
talk to read look up "Tender Mercies of the Lord" by Elder Bednar from
Oct 2005 conference. It's so good!!

Well, that's a whole lot for you all from my week, I have lots of
pictures to send though!

- Almost 18 months later! From volunteering at the Mtc together to now!
- last day in SCV!
- Will and Mandy <3
- Summer came to visit me at the jail which was so fun!
- cute Sis. Peterson during our dress up night
- jail hangout.
- I would definitely be too tall for this jail. Ha.
- first day of our companionship!
- transfer selfie! (With Elder Anderton, the AP, running to get in the
selfie while putting up the transfer roster. Lol)
- CHT reunion with Sister Taylor!
- all of the jail sisters after SMTM :)

I love you all so much! I hope you all have a great week!
Sister Morgan

Temple Tuesday is back!

Hello Family!!

Sorry about not telling you about the late pday today! but today, we
got to go to the TEMPLE!! It was so so so good. My love for the
temple just increases every time I have the opportunity to go. It
truly is the house of the Lord. The peace that we can feel in the
temple is worth every sacrifice of time to spend time there. ((I also
snuck a little moment in the sealing room to reminisce and remember
5.19.2016☺️)) Sister Jones and I also got to retake our MTC picture
when we happened to be at the temple the same day!

A little bit about our incredible week as usual:

We had a couple lessons with Will and Amanda this week. I absolutely
love them. I have learned the most valuable lessons from them and
their marriage. They love God so much. I just know that I was needed
to be in this area for Will. They have changed my life. We taught them
about the temple and about eternal marriage this week. The Spirit was
so strong during the lessons. I just love how much Heavenly Father
truly LOVES us! He gave us the HUGE blessing of temples and the
restored authority to seal in heaven what is sealed on earth. AND not
only for us in our baptism/marriage but for those who have passed on.
This gospel is almost too good to be real.

We also had a lesson with our sweet Mariella. My Spanish is... well
hopefully improving. (but sidenote, people from Puerto Rico speak a
different kind of Spanish ha... there is a less active couple who had
us over for breakfast and only spoke Spanish and I understood less
than a little of it. haha and then, I asked Hermana Guerrero what they
asked me and the husband responded with "No! Don't speak to her in
English. She has to learn Spanish" ha, but the bought us donuts to
take home afterwards:) Anyways, Mariella is so incredible. The
lesson we had with her was so Spirit led. There was one point in the
lesson where she was telling my companion a lot of the concerns that
she has and the fears that she has of the world today. I couldn't
understand most of it but there was one point where I felt strongly
prompted to bear my testimony to her in the simple way that I knew
how. I did and told her that we don't need to worry about the world
because we have a Savior. I know that He lives and that we can find
joy and peace in this life as we rely on His Atonement. The Spirit was
so strong and she started to tear up. I was so grateful that I was
given the words that I needed to say at that moment.

ZONE CONFERENCE was on Thursday. They asked me to train at zone
conference. I thought I had gotten out of training at one of those big
meetings because I wasn't an STL anymore.. ha nope, but it went well!
Zone Conference was so good though! There are so many miracles taking
place in our mission it is incredible! I realized that the next
mission conference that I go to will be my last and I will have to
give my departing testimony which makes me sick. Time goes by wayyyyy
too fast! One of the missionaries who gave their departing testimony
was sweet Sister Delange! I love getting to hear departing
testimonies. I truly believe that the biggest miracle that is taking
place in the mission is the conversion and change that is taking place
in all the missionaries from when they start their mission to when
they go home. It was so good to be able to see Sister Delange at zone
conference though! There are so many people in KC that I taught that
are getting baptized super soon!! So excited to go to those baptisms!

And wow, as you have heard before, I just love the Liberty Jail. I
have never felt the Spirit so strong in my life. My testimony of the
Atonement of Jesus Christ has grown so much. I know that our Savior
loves us and knows everything that we go through. He died for us so
that we can find new life. I love being a missionary and being able
to share this beautiful message with others. It fills my heart.

I love you all so much! Good luck to those who are starting school this week!!!
Sister Morgan

And now, time for pictures!!

- meet the new jailor of Liberty Jail!
- just kidding, the new prisoner :) (with the skirt my sis wore on
her mission ☺️)
- zone conference! This sister in the mission painted this mural for
President and Sister Vest. It's their family tree and all of the
missionaries that have served under them have a leaf on the tree. Ik,
precious.
- donut run! Yesterday, my comp and I ran 2 miles to get to Morning
Sports (MOSPO) at the church building and then all the sisters treated
ourselves to Lamar's donuts afterwards :)
- throwback to the Mtc with sister jones at the temple :)
- the Lovells who took us to the temple this morning :)
- lunch after the temple at Longboards!

Miracles and Milagros! :)

Hello!!

Another week gone! This week has been so incredible. Seriously,
miracles everyday.

The biggest miracle is MARIELLA! One day we were out in our area
walking and the thought came to me of an old investigator that I
taught way back in March that speaks Spanish and who moved up to the
Shoal Creek Ward. I kept thinking about her and realized that the
missionaries in that ward don't speak Spanish that my companion does
speak Spanish!! We were able to get permission to go into that area
and see her and to start teaching her!! Her phone didn't work, but we
decided to pray a lot and go to her house and just pray that she would
be there at the time that we said we would go, and SHE WAS! She let us
right in and was so happy to see us. She is the sweetest thing ever. I
can't remember if I told you all her story a while back when I was
teaching her. Shortened version (and simplified, because she speaks a
mile a minute and in Spanish): Her dad was a member back in Mexico
and she remembered that elders would come over and teach her mom when
she was like 6. Right before we knocked on her door, she had been
praying for like a week for God to tell her who she really was and
that she would come in contact with good people to help her. *knock
knock* she lets us right in immediately and tells us of her aunt who
is also a member in France and how she could feel the Spirit that we
had and wanted to talk about God with us. So we started teaching her,
she started reading the Book of Mormon and wanted to be baptized, and
then... she moved. And now, WE FOUND HER! She loved Hermana Guerrero
and her Spanish. haha. I am definitely having to work real hard to fix
my Spanish back up. Hermana Guerrero and I do every other day Spanish
only days, so hopefully, my Spanish will get better!

#findingthehumble started this week! haha we were allowed to start
proselyting in the trailer parks of our area!! woo! This part of area
had been closed for missionaries for like 2 years and I was so bummed
when I got here because I LOVE trailer parks, but we called President
Vest after talking to our ward mission leader about opening it and he
didn't know why it had ever been closed! We tracted a little bit there
this week and found some amazing people. The people in this area are
SO NICE! Such a culture shock haha.

We also went on exchanges this week! I was with Sister Baggett in her
area! throwback to the exchange we went on when we both had only been
out for 3 days lol. She is so incredible and I learned so much from
her. It was so fun! We talked a lot about improvement and progression
as a missionary and also a real person and it was just super
inspiring. My favorite part of this gospel is the knowledge that we
can change. We can improve and change our natures to become more like
the Savior because of His Atonement. I have felt that in my life. I
have grown so much as I have relied on His grace to help me. I know He
lives.

We also had a few lessons with Will and they were so awesome! We were
able to teach him a lot about the Plan of Salvation using the Book of
Mormon, which is what we had been praying to be able to do with him.
There is a scripture in 1 Nephi 15:34 that I was studying one morning
before going over to their house and we decided to read a chapter from
the Book of Mormon with us and THEY chose that very same chapter. We
were praying that Will would ask a question that we could teach
something from the lessons with and that is the only scripture he had
a question about! As I was studying that morning, I realized that it
is teaching about the kingdoms of glory in a way. Our Heavenly Father
loves us so much that He created 3 different kingdoms for us to live
in so that all of us would be happy. We taught this to Will (who
previously strongly believed in there only being a Heaven and a Hell)
and he sat there for a moment and just said, "that sounds so much more
like the loving God that I know". The Spirit was so strong and it was
just such a cool moment!

The jail is still as incredible as ever. My testimony of the Atonement
of Jesus Christ is being strengthened everyday. I know He loves us
more than we can imagine and comforts and refines us as we go through
our trials. I am so grateful for the trials I have had throughout my
life, big and small, because they are why I am the way that I am
today.

I hope you all have a great week this coming week! I hope everyone who
is going back to school has super awesome first days of school :)

Sister Morgan

Pictures:
- #findingthehumble project day 1 - also the day I got roasted. We
walked all day and it was SO HOT
- Will and Amanda's family. They had us over for sundaes and a Book of
Mormon read ☺️
- MARIELLA
- Exchange selfies :)

"all these things shall give thee experience"

Hello Family!

This week has been a blur! It has gone by so fast!! Sad news of the week is that Sister Montgomery finished her mission this week and went back home. It was so sad! We made sure to take plenty of pictures on her last day here. 

So a quick recap of this week:

First, I absolutely adore the jail. It is my favorite place. My testimony of the Savior and His Atonement has been strengthened so much. As I think of what these 5 men endured as they were imprisoned here and all the hardships that the Saints went through then, I am frequently brought to tears. I can't imagine going through the trials they went through. I think about that frequently for those around me too. I can't imagine going through other people's trials. Our Heavenly Father truly knows us all so personally that He knows what we are capable of and what will stretch us to help us grow. There is such a strength that we receive from our trials though. That is one of the biggest things that I have learned on my mission, and especially while serving at the Liberty Jail.  The scriptures that Joseph Smith received as revelation as he was imprisoned here and suffering such terrible things are absolutely incredible. This is one of my favorites. 

 Christ goes on telling Joseph Smith that no matter what happens to you - whether all of hell open's it's mouth to you, He says this:

"Know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.   The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?" (D&C 122:7-8)

Talk about humility check. I know that our trials truly do give us experience though. That is what we came to this Earth to get - (1) a physical body and (2) experience - and if you are reading this, you already got step 1 down! haha, now is the time to gain experience and to learn from our trials and to become better. Thank goodness we all have a loving Savior who is there to comfort and uplift and guide us when times get tough. 

Second, we are seeing so many incredible things happen in our area. I feel so blessed. I absolutely love this ward. We felt like we needed to go visit one of the two Spanish families in the ward that haven't been to church in a while one night. When we were there, she surprisingly let us right in and so many amazing things happened. 1. Tender mercy for me was that one of my favorite members from Independence 4th ward just randomly happened to be there helping her clean her house! Her daughter was there too who is adorable. It was so needed for me to be able to see them. I miss that ward with all my heart. and 2. This member, Sister Vega, had another person over at her apartment who is dating her son and agreed to take the lessons!! Sister Vega prepped it so perfectly too. hahah. She said, "Alexis is going to get married to my son as soon as his divorce goes through and then their baby is going to be blessed, Alexis is going to get baptized, and then next year, they are getting sealed". Alexis was totally down for all of it too! 

We are teaching a man named Will right now too. This guy has my heart. He has the cutest family. His wife got baptized 5-6 years ago before they met and he is just awesome. He has had so many near death experiences and has been into some pretty bad things during his life but has changed SO MUCH. He is now the biggest family guy around, such an amazing dad and husband, and just LOVES God and Jesus Christ. We went over for dinner Monday night and gave him the Addiction Recovery Manual (he is trying to quit smoking). We gave it to him and talked to him about it for a while and he said, "it's weird you are bringing this up right now. Just today, I came in from work and told my wife that I was done for good and didn't buy another pack this afternoon" SO AMAZING! This man is so motivated to follow God it is incredible. 

ALSO! An Emeritus Seventy came into the jail and I got to take him and his family through the jail. It was Elder Bruce C. Hafen - who is the nicest man ever. It was such a spiritual tour to be able to be on. 

Anyways, long story short: This work is amazing. I love being a missionary with all my heart, more importantly though is that I love this gospel with all my heart. It has provided me with more happiness that I could ever imagine. I don't know what I would do without it. I am constantly refreshed and fulfilled as I strive to live it more fully in my life. I know that is because it comes from God. He loves us and wants us to be as happy as we can as we are gaining these life experiences that are shaping us to become like our Savior Jesus Christ. 

I hope you all have another great week. Make it a great one! And don't forget, a verse a day keeps unhappiness away :)  (mormon.org/beliefs/book-of-mormon)

Sister Morgan

Pictures:

- last p-day at Zone Rosa!

- Sister Montgomery's last day :(

- We get to go to church right by the temple :)

- planning on the street because we were down a car this week. haha

- cookie logs are back!!! (saying goodbye to Sister Montgomery)

- Liberty Jail sisters :) after TMTM (Thursday Morning Training Meeting)