I'll Take it as Change

I'm starting to think that witnessing drug busts is just anther part of life in this area. We visited a less-active on Friday, and passed a group of guys hanging around their building. We cut through the crowd (and smoke), made our visit, and came out to find them still clustered together. We'd barely made it back to our car before a black sedan swerved into the parking lot, and we watched as two officers sprang from the car and started searching and handcuffing the guys one by one. 

Some things never change:)

Oh well....moving on.....

I translated for my first time an entire sacrament meeting in ASL! Yea....I'm pretty sure I was shaking like a leaf for the first 15 minutes and I won't say that everything said from that pulpit made it's way into my hands but....I tried:) One of the speakers mentioned that he served his mission in Japan, and I'm pretty sure I accidentally signed "moon" instead of Japan. No joke:) That's Brian Regan material right there...."I served on the moon..."

We also helped out at the food pantry again this week, but this time we were assigned to stock and organize the storage room. I don't think I've handled more boxes of Cheez-its in MY LIFE. But hey, in case your wondering, I now know how many boxes of Cheez-its come in a cardboard flat, and how to stack them just right so that they fit on a converted utility shelf. I can now go home. Learned what I needed to learn out here:) 

Finally, we had an amazing night with the Villegas family this week! Before our lesson, they sat us down to dinner and filled our glasses with juice and our plates with authentic mexican food (my fav). I was so thirsty, I gulped almost all of my "juice" (that's what he called it) before beginning to eat. They saw that my glass was almost empty and filled me up again, as I commented, "That juice is really good! What kind is it??" "Oh, it's not juice...it's from the container above you on the fridge." I looked up and expected to see koolaid or something of that nature.....but no. Nope. 

LIPTON ICED TEA. 

Snap.

I didn't have the heart to say anything, so Sis Green and I just looked at each other wide-eyed and went through the rest of (spicy mexican) dinner without drinking the rest:). THAT'S a feat, just saying:) hahaha! 

Our lesson went well, though:) We shared the Mormon message, "The Hope of God's Light" with them and then the story of Naaman's healing and talked about how receiving blessing from the Lord requires our action. It went SO well and the spirit was strong!! They're reading the scriptures now and said they're going to start praying more as well. 

(side note: right after we' finished our BOMB lesson with them, their daughter and her husband came over to drop their kids off before heading out to get TATTOOS. But not before meeting us and then showing us pictures of what they wanted to get and asking us our opinion of "this color rose, or this color of rose? Should the shield be over the vines, or kind of behind? I think I'd like it too start here on my shoulder....what do you think??" "Uhhhh.... ummmmm ....well...... ehhhhh....."......yea try wiggling out of that one:) it was an interesting conversation:) hahaha!)

Anyways...so the next day (Sunday) I was sitting at the front signing the whole meeting, and didn't get the chance to look for our investigators. But afterwards, I turned to see Ricardo making his way up to the front to meet us!!!! THAT is one of those moments when my hear just SOARED as a missionary! Here he was.....in church for the first time in "more years than he could count," smelling thick of smoke, and with multiple earrings and gages, wearing his black leather, and yet all of that just made that moment all the sweeter for me, because I knew....and I believe that he knew....that he was RIGHT where he needed to be. And NOTHING else mattered! 

I've found myself sitting in church on my mission, smelling the residue of smoke or even weed on others, seeing people covered in tattoos or piercings, hearing them disrupt the silence of the meeting with their questions about what's taking place, or wearing clothes that haven't been washed in weeks or that don't conform to the Mormon expectation of "Sunday best," and yet I LOVE it. I love it because I KNOW that if the Savior were there, THOSE are the ones that He would single out, wrap in a hug, and welcome back with tears of joy. I love it because THAT is what the gospel is about. It's about acceptance. It's about growth. And it's about change. I love it because it's an opportunity for me to love. 

While some might roll their eyes, cover their noses, avoid any contact, or scoff and scorn.....I love it because of what it means: it means that they are coming home. It means that they are finding hope. It means they are looking for love. It means they need help. And it means that I can play a part in that. It means that I can choose to look past the image, the smells, or the sounds and see them as He sees them. They are His, and my greatest joy comes in showing them that love through my love. 

The gospel is about change.....continual change.....and it's a path we all walk whether we're sitting on the stand at General Conference every year, or in a sacrament meeting for the first time after years of addictive habits and serious sin. THAT'S what the gospel does for each of us. Ah! This gospel is glorious!!! It just fills my WHOLE heart and these short 5 weeks left of my mission will NEVER be enough time for me to express that to everyone here! 

The gospel is hope. It's love. And it's HAPPINESS!!!

Onward and upward,

Sister Anna Parker 

(our video from the first snowstorm last week.....this was taken at the beginning of the snowstorm....by the end we gave up the idea of doing a before and after video....brrrrrrr;) haha

All You Need is LOVE

Thursday morning, our phone rang and we picked up the call from our zone leaders, "Hey sisters, how would you like to get a foster kid?"

*awkward silence and confused comp glances*

"......a mini missionary, sisters....a mini missionary." Oh that:) We hung up all jitters excitement because just two days before, I'd been telling Sis Green how much I'd love to host a mini missionary before the end of my mission. God answers prayers:)

The next day, we drove down to Chicago to pick her up and she spent the next two days with us! And it was AMAZING! We joked that it was like getting a new pet......we had to pick up her bed (an air mattress from a member), go shopping for her food, and we teased her about getting a new leash:).....I know...we're mean;). Elli, our mini, was a lot of fun, and we spent most of our time together sharing laughs and finding the fun in our work. 

And we WORKED! We had more teaching appointments in those two days, than the entire first half of the week combined! Our first night, we went over to a less-active's home to drop off some frozen meals, spent some time with the family, and then returned to our car. Right before we were about to drive away, a man came walking down the street, and the conversation in the car went as follows: 

"Whoa....that's a HUGE wad of cash he's carrying..."

"Oh gosh....I think that other guy saw it..."

"Wait....is he stopping to talk to him??"

"Oh my gosh...are those....??"

And then our mini yells,"Oh my gosh! It's a DRUG DEAL!!!! Drive! Drive! Drive! Oh gosh....don't make eye contact! Oh gosh...I just made eye contact! AH! He saw me!! Guys!!"

Sis Green and I couldn't stop laughing!! Man.....it was by far one of the BEST moments of that exchange:) We were half a block down the street before she stopped gripping the back of my seat and ended up laughing along with us!! hahaha! 

Welcome to Chicago.......

The actual highlight of our week, though, was our lesson with the Villegas family. The father and his brother are members, though the wife isn't and we decided to stop by to get to know them better and invite them to church. Our initial visit went well and they invited us to come back the next day to do a "refreshers course" on the gospel for them since they readily admitted that they've drifted far off the path. 

When we came back the next day, we shared the Plan of Salvation with them, and they asked a lot of questions (including REALLY deep questions like "is there progression or repentance within the three kingdoms of glory?"). We did our best to give them answers, and ultimately the spirit took over and they began opening up to us about their desire to return, to find relief from guilt, shame, and the results of sin, and to find peace--true and lasting peace--in their lives. It was one of those moments where my heart just ached for them.

Here we were, sitting a smoke and weed-stenched room, across from two men with multiple piercings and gages and a woman stamped with tattoos, with beer and alcohol bottles on the floor, and yet I LOVED it. I loved them. The look in their eyes as they asked, "Can God really take away my sin?" was a look I will NEVER forget! Everything in me just wanted to take away that pain, and the love that came into my heart from Him, I wished more than anything that I could somehow convey to them. 

I took the opportunity to look straight back into their eyes, and promise them that God had His hand outstretched to them still. I promised them that they could become clean again, find peace of mind, and return to Him and be welcomed back into His arms. Ricardo, the brother, sat there with his brows furrowed, but after I'd finished testifying to him, he sat there for a few moments and then responded, "I believe you."

We got back to the car after that lesson and just looked at each other, smiling. That was one of those lessons where you know that the spirit was there, and that they felt it. I knew that they were touched. The Spirit had witnessed to them, and though perhaps small, they'd taken a step to come closer to Him. AHHH!!! This gospel is SO true.....and it is SO badly needed in the lives of EVERY ONE of God's children!! I was filled with gratitude that night as I knelt to pray, for the opportunity to bring His message of peace, hope, and love to the Villegas family and ultimately to every person I meet!! It's just like the white handbook reads, 

"How great is [our] call!" 

The rest of our week consisted of NOT staying up until 12am on New Years Eve (I second what a zone leader once told me: "late nights are for losers...at least on the mission"......yep, that's our excuse:), painting a 78 year old woman's nails for service, being out-numbered in a game of teenage mutant ninja turtles with three little boys in the ward and coming home with multiple bruises (it's ok though... it was totally worth it;), challenging another investigator to baptism and her ACCEPTING our invitation(!!!), and dropping more cookies off at fire departments where the guys ask, "Yea, can we get a stack of your cards? We'll give them out to the whole house!" 

Well, I guess:)

(And then they gave us a tour of the entire station.....and accepted the invitation to visit mormon.org.......but that's another story:)

All in all, it's been a good week! The Lord is definitely blessing us and we're seeing His hand in our lives daily! Thanks for your prayers and love! Till next week!!

Onward and upward,

Sister Anna Parker

(and here's pictures as promised....you're welcome:)

(some of these are old....but better late than never, right??)

Christmas packages waiting to be opened!!

Santa socks from the Green family:)

Christmas selfies.....don't ask me what my companion's doing:) lolz

caroling at the Kris Kringle market......ok at this point we're actually NOT singing,.......we're taking selfies, but it's whatevs:)

photo break from singing

Christmas with Sis Silski!! We put together mini cardboard chapels......that's how we Christmas;)

Our FOSTER KID!!!! (a.k.a. Elli, our mini missionary:)

Yep....we made it a special occasion and made crepes, bacon, and eggs.......#domesticpride