Finding

Hey y'all

So... this week has been kinda slow.  We have a grand total of 0 progressing investigators, and only 2 other investigators, we think. We finally decided to drop Ron and Maria, which was such a hard decision, because we know that Ron knows that what we teach is true, but he's gotten to the point where he won't get back with us no matter what we do, and we're pretty sure he's avoiding us when we knock on the door... so we'll just have to put our focus on other people, and hope that missionaries in the future find him in our area book and go back when he and Maria are fully prepared.  And dropping them wouldn't be so bad if we had other people to teach... but we don't.  We still haven't made contact with Brenda... I really hope that she's not avoiding us too... and Tish hasn't been able to meet with us recently either.  ... Sister Morris and I are kind of lost - we don't know what to do, because nothing happens in missionary work until you have someone to teach, and right now we don't.  So we've been tracting a LOT this week, and we found a few potential investigators that way - we're praying that they will start to make those steps to coming closer to Christ.  We're actually meeting with one of them, Tiffany, in about an hour... yes, on p-day... but that's the only day that works for her so we're making it work for us.  Hopefully  everything goes well!

Sister Morris and I also had a major planning/study session to figure out ways that we can get the members in the ward involved with our missionary work, because we don't get a lot of referrals... we came up with a few ideas, and we'll start using them within the week so hopefully we'll be able to find new people to teach that way too.

On a more positive note... Mark (one of the Elders' investigators) was baptized!! And his whole family was there!  Which is super exciting, because before last Sunday none of them had set foot in a church building in over 7 years.  Unfortunately, only his mom came to his confirmation yesterday... but Mark seems like he'll be a solid member, and hopefully he'll be a good example to the rest of his family.  And we did have a lot of support from the ward at the baptism - most of the priests showed up to support the newest member in their quorum, which was awesome. :)

Well, that's pretty much it for the week.  Sister Morris and I are doing well, despite our challenges.  We're staying busy and keeping a positive outlook.  I love this ward and this area, and I know there are so many people who are prepared to receive the gospel, the hard part is finding them.

I love you all so much!  Have a great week!

Sister Ririe

Moroni 10:32

Sick days...

Hey y'all!

So, as the subject line suggests, this week hasn't been the best. Fortunately for me, I wasn't the one who was sick.  Unfortunately for us, Sister Morris was, for about half the week.  Turns out she had strep, so she was super contagious until Saturday morning, when she had been taking the antibiotics for long enough.  It's a miracle that I didn't get sick too!  But anyway, we spent most of the week locked up in our apartment so she didn't get anyone else sick, so not much was done as far as missionary work goes... but as of yesterday she hasn't been feeling sick at all, so we're ready to jump back into things.  But while she was sick and sleeping, I got a lot of that extra study time that I had been wishing for!  Turns out... I can't study anything, not even the gospel, for 3 whole days straight.  So I mixed it up a bit with making decorations for my wall (yes, I've been living in Katy for 3 months now and I haven't even really put anything on the wall... but now it's all decorated!), watching various church DVDs, solving a Rubik's cube (well, trying to solve it, anyway), and doing a deep cleaning of the apartment.  I was so bored.  But all is well now, and we're ready to get back to work! :)

Details for mom about my companionship: Sister Morris is awesome!  She loves to get down and work, which is exactly what I need - someone to push me to be my best. (not that I'm not working... I am, it's just helpful to have a companion who has a fire for missionary work and loves everything about it, even the more unpleasant parts like tracting.)  Also, we have a lot in common, which makes it easy to work together.  We have great unity when we teach lessons - it seems like we know what the other person is going to say before we say it.  It's not like Sister Wahlen and I didn't have unity, but Sister Morris and I had an instant connection that made us really good friends right from the start.

As far as our investigators go... we're struggling.  Last we heard of Brenda she's really sick.  We're hoping that she's doing better now, because that was a week ago, but she's not responding to our texts or calls, so that's not a good sign.  I really hope we'll be able to meet with her again soon!  And Tish, and Ron and Maria, we haven't heard anything from them in about a week either, even though we're trying to stay in contact with them.  Sister Morris and I are trying to figure out how we can reach them, but we're also trying to figure out how to reach others as well, so we can continue to teach those we are teaching but also find others to teach as well.

Good news, though - the Elders in our ward have a baptism this weekend!  Mark - he's the son of one of the less active sisters that we've worked with in the past.  But as a result of Mark's baptism this week, the whole family has started to come back to church!  It's so exciting!  Westlake hasn't seen a baptism in about 8 months, so hopefully this will get the members excited about missionary work again.

Also... apparently I forgot to tell this story... I got my ears pierced!!  Here's the whole story:  I decided a while ago that I wanted to be able to wear earrings, but I didn't think I would get my ears pierced until after my mission.  But then we were talking to Sandra (who is dong well, by the way, we just had to transfer her over to the Spanish Sisters because she decided that she would understand better if she were taught in her native language) and she makes earrings, and she wanted to give Sister Wahlen and I each a pair, but I didn't have my ears pierced.  So that got Sister Wahlen and I talking about it later that night, and then the next day (p-day) we went to the mall, just for fun, and happened to walk into claire's... and yep, I got them pierced.  Sister Wahlen was so excited about it- it was kind of funny.  So yeah, that's the story of how Sister Ririe got her ears pierced on her mission.  Everyone's got to have those random stories, right? ;)

I love you all so much!  Thanks as always for the prayers and support! Have a great week! :)

Sister Ririe

Alma 48:17

Change is good!

Picture #1 - Sister Ririe with her cousin, Elder Ririe, serving in her same mission, on transfer day - the first time they have seen each other in the mission field

#2 - after running to their car in a Houston rainstorm - the picture doesn't do it justice, she says. ;)

#3 - Saying goodbye to Sister Wahlin on transfer day

#4 - Sister Ririe with her new companion, Sister Morris.

Hey y'all!

Happy birthday to my favorite Sister!! I can't believe you are 11... stop growing up! :)  Love you so much, and I hope you had a fantastic day!

So it's been a crazy week!  To answer dad's question, here's a brief explanation of how transfers happen in our mission:  We get a call a day and a half before transfer day from our zone leaders if one of us is being transferred, and then we'll get a call the night before either from President Pingree or the assistants if we're training. Either way, we go to the transfer meeting on Tuesday, look at the transfer list, and then leave to our new area or pick up our new companion and return to our area.  It's crazy, and there are so many missionaries running around.  But I managed to run into my MTC companion, Sister Laws, and Elder Ririe!  It was fun to see both of them.  My new companion is Sister Morris, and I love her so much!  She is exactly what I need right now - it's funny, we both consider each other as the answer to our prayers.  I wasn't exactly sure before transfers what I needed, but I prayed that Heavenly Father would give me who I needed, and as soon as I met Sister Morris I knew that she is exactly who I need right now.  It's crazy how similar we are... but it's great - because we understand each other and we work together SO well.  I love it, and I love her!  She's from Kearns Utah, and she's been out here in Houston for 10 months.  So I'm not training, which kind of surprised me because there are so many new sisters this transfer, but I'm so glad - I get another transfer to focus on learning and not have to worry about teaching my companion everything. :)  Both our zone and district split this transfer because there are so many missionaries!  I love being a part of this huge wave! :)

I've had to work hard this past week because I'm the one in our companionship who knows the area, and it's been kinda stressful making sure that no one falls in the cracks.  But I made it through the week, and Sister Morris catches on quickly.  Unfortunately, no one that we've been teaching came to church yesterday... including Brenda, so we'll have to push her baptism date back a few weeks... But we're meeting with her tomorrow to recommit her to baptism.  It's so hard when you know that they want to be baptized, but they aren't quite ready to make all the commitments... we're working with her, and hopefully she'll be ready soon! :)

We took an adventure up to College Station on Saturday - Sister Morris was just transferred from there, and one of the investigators she worked with was getting baptized.  So I went to my first baptism as a missionary!  It was a LONG drive, not quite as long as from home to Logan, (which reminds me, Sister Morris went to Utah State!  I told you we have a lot in common;)  Which also reminds me - the college football teams around here are the aggies and the cougars... it's kinda weird...) anyway... it's pretty far... It was fun, and for the first time since leaving Utah, I saw hills! It was so exciting – I hadn't realized just how much I missed hills and mountains!

I love y'all so much and hope you have an awesome week!

Sister Ririe

D&C 6:34, 36

General Conference

Hey y'all!

So... you know you've been living in a Texas summer when 75 degrees is considered a "brisk morning"... But it's finally starting to cool off here! :)  Anyway...

I love General Conference so much!  And General Conference while serving a mission is pretty much the best thing ever.  I learned so much, and felt the spirit so strong.  We are so blessed to have living prophets and apostles on the earth today, and that we can hear the word of God directly through them.  I love it!  We watched most of it at the stake center, but we went to a member's house for the Sunday morning session.  We were supposed to meet Brenda there, but she texted us last minute saying she was sick, unfortunately.  But she's still on track for her baptism on October 26th - Sister Wahlen and I are so excited for her!

Turns out Ron and Maria haven't dropped us... Sister Wahlen and I felt like we should try and stop by, just to find out why they didn't want to see us anymore, so we did, and Ron wasn't home but Maria welcomed us in and said that Ron has been really busy lately, that's why he hasn't been getting back with us.  But she said that he still reads the Book of Mormon every night.  So we'll have to keep stopping in and trying to teach them and open her heart to the gospel.  It may be a slow process, especially if Ron (for whatever reason) continues to not respond when we try and call or text him, but eventually they will open up to the idea of baptism.  It will happen, just in the Lord's time and in His way.

We had a good lesson with Tish last Monday, and we're going to visit her again tonight.  She always says that she feels peace and love when we come over - we just need to help her realize that she can feel that when we aren't there  too.  We're planning on inviting her to be baptized tonight - she is ready for it, we just need to encourage her and help her know that she is ready.

Jamie, one of the less actives that we've been working with, is really progressing.  She and her mom have been to church a few times now, and they both are working toward coming back to church fully.  I loved President Uchtdorf's talk in conference: "Come, join with us!"  We're continually reaching out to less actives and trying to help them remember the joy of the gospel.

Transfers are this week - we got a text yesterday saying that they would be on Tuesday instead of Thursday.  Which meant that we would get a call that evening if one of us was going to be transferred.  So both of us had a little mini freak-out session... we love each other, we love Westlake, and neither of us want to leave.  But we got a call last night and Sister Wahlen is leaving. :(  I'll still be here in Westlake, but with a new companion.  And I'm not sure if I'm training just yet... I'll know by tonight if I am.  I'll let you know next week!  Everything will work out, because the Lord is behind everything that we as missionaries do.  It will be interesting to see what the future holds for Sister Wahlen and I.

I love y'all so much and hope you have a fantastic week!

Sister Ririe

D&C 4:2

Adventures in Katy

Note from Megan's mom - We had a weird glitch happen with my email last week where it decided to block all incoming messages from myldsmail.net, which meant we didn't get Sister Ririe's email last week. :(  The good news is we found and fixed the glitch and we got TWO wonderful emails today - here's her email from last week...(back to Sister Ririe)

Okay, so here's last weeks email.  I'm sorry for all the confusion with mom's email... It's weird that dad was never able to find mine, because I did get a notification that it somehow didn't make it to you, so I sent it twice last week.  When I left, there wasn't anything saying it hadn't sent, but I got a letter from grandma this week and she mentioned how she missed reading my blog this week... darn Satan, getting in the way of everything! ;)  Love you both!  Hope this message makes it through!

Hey y'all!                                                                                               September 30, 2013

First of all: Happy birthday to my dearest dad! I hope you had a day full of happiness!  I love you so much!! :)

Also, congratulations to my brother Seth on earning his Eagle Scout Award!  I'm so proud of you - Keep up the good work!!

Back to Katy... It's been a fun week full of adventure.  Let's see... where to begin...

We went on exchanges this week with the sister training leader and her companion.  Pretty standard - we go on exchanges once a transfer. Just one slight problem... Our sister training leader a Hermana - she's in a Spanish area.  There is only one companionship in our whole zone that is Spanish speaking, because most of the Spanish speaking missionaries are usually in their own zone.  But Hermana Gibson and Hermana Fletcher are serving in Sealy Branch, and Sealy is kinda the bottom corner of our whole mission, and the area is so big that it would be nearly impossible for them to get to their zone meetings without using a ton of miles.  So they got put into the Katy zone with us English missionaries.  And then Hermana Gibson was assigned to be the sister training leader.  So I spent 24 hours in a Spanish area. It was actually a lot of fun.  I learned a bit of gospel vocabulary, and even said a prayer in Spanish (just with Hermana Gibson, not in public or anything.)  And after taking 3 years of Spanish in high school, I was able to follow most of the conversations, but I can't really speak the language.  But I got some practice in. :)  Also, Sealy is beautiful - it is the country, mostly farmland, and hardly any buildings.  We had to drive for 30 minutes at least to get from place to place.  Definitely very different from Katy.  But it was a lot of fun, and I learned a lot. :)

On Saturday we spent 5 hours at the stake center.  Our stake put together a dinner for all the relief society sisters in conjunction with the Relief Society Broadcast.  So all the sister missionaries in the stake gathered to help set up the cultural hall and prepare the food, and then we helped serve it when the sisters from the stake arrived.  Our stake relief society president was so happy that there are so many sister missionaries in the stake - right now there are 10 of us, but for a long time there weren't any.  It is so cool to hear about the changes that have happened just in the past year with missionary work, especially with more sisters going on missions.  I love being a part of this amazing wave!  We had one of the less actives that we've been working with come to the dinner and the broadcast, and she loved it.  We were hoping that more would be able to come, but one is better than none. :)  The relief society broadcast was wonderful - it really made me excited for general conference this weekend!

Unfortunately, we're pretty sure that Ron dropped us... We'll keep trying to get in contact with him, but apparently he's not ready for the gospel quite yet.  We're sad, because we know how much the gospel will bless his life and his family, but we just have to hope that one day the seed that has been planted will grow into a desire to be baptized.  We haven't given up on him yet, he just needs some time.

On the other hand, Brenda is doing awesome - she should be set for her baptism at the end of October.  She even worked it out with her work so she can come to church every Sunday.  She loves meeting with us, and she is learning and growing so much.  She says that the gospel has already blessed her life so much, and she can't wait to be baptized and have that fresh start.  Sister Wahlen and I are so excited for her!

We had 3 less actives come to church yesterday, and all 3 of them made the comment when they were introducing themselves to other members that they've lived here for a while but that they (the members) would be seeing a lot more of them. :)  We have such an awesome ward - everyone is so good about making sure that anyone new feels welcome. A lot of the less actives and investigators that have come to church have said that going to church feels like going home.  I love it!  I love how within the church we have instant friends, that we treat each other like family.  I love this gospel so much!  And I love that I get to help spread it throughout the world.

Oh, and just in case any of you were wondering, Jermaine (the guy we found but doesn't live in our area) hasn't been baptized yet.  He ran into a minor bump in the road... right now he's living with his kids and their mom, but they aren't married.  So he's trying to find a better paying job so he can save up the money to move out so he can be baptized.  He still has a strong testimony and really wants to be baptized.  And he'll get there, it will just take some time.  But he's already talked to us about receiving the priesthood and gong to the temple - he's so excited to be a part of the church!  If only everyone we met had the same fire as him!

All in all, everything is going well for us here in Katy.  Life as a missionary is one big adventure, and I'm loving every minute of it!

Have a fantastic week!! I love y'all so much!!

Sister Ririe

Alma 28:14