Monday, October 26, 2015

Dear Mom

Dear Mom,

This week I wrote everyone their own emails and I didn't have time to write a weekly email. Sorry! I will be sure to send those pictures. The wifi at the library crashed last week so those emails didn't send. I will get them to you as soon as I have wifi.

I have definitely seen the Lord's hand in my life as I have been trying my best to train this new missionary. I sort of feel like I am failing the ward because after all of this time not a lot has gone on in the area. I have to keep reminding myself that all of that is out of my control. I did what I knew to do and I tried my best. I can't blame myself for other people's agency. I don't know how much longer I will be here or if Sister Erickson will be here longer than me, but I really hope that whoever the next missionaries are will see the fruits of all the work I did.

For the first time in my whole mission, not only one, but three potential investigators actually let us in to teach the Restoration! Usually people say no, or they set up a return appointment. But three times this week people that I had never previously met let us sit down and actually teach them. One of them set a return appointment, the other one accepted a Book of Mormon, but not a return appointment, and the third did not accept a Book of Mormon, but gave us a referral. I was so grateful because I really wanted Sister Erickson to be able to teach what we had been role playing, but we didn't have anyone to teach. Heavenly Father definitely answers prayers!

One of our investigators that was pretty close to baptism but then dropped the missionaries right before I got here, picked us back up and came to church this week! So that was pretty awesome!
I am so grateful for my companion. She is wonderful. She has not been discouraged at all. She is always laughing and smiling. Even though there isn't a ton of work right now, we are always laughing and having fun together.
I love my mission. I know that Heavenly Father answers prayers. I know that if anything that has come from serving in Fontana the past seven months, it has been my own conversion. I know where I want my life to go. I know what kind of mom I want to be and the kind of person I want to marry. I know that God lives. I know the Book of Mormon is the Word of God. I want to do everything I can to be constantly changing and repenting so someday I can face Christ and tell Him I did my very best. 

I am over time now, but I love you! I guess that you can post this on the blog if you want, but it is your letter so you can choose.
I am so grateful that Heavenly Father put me in such a great home and gave me such a great mom. Thank you for leading by example and inspiring me to do something with my life and be a missionary.

You're the best!

Love, 
Sister Olsen




 This is when Sister Shin went home.
This is my new companion Sister Erickson.

 A tarantula we saw the other day. I don't actually know if it is a tarantula.... But it was about the size of my hand.

Monday, October 19, 2015

Sister Erickson II

"Sister Olsen,

You are called to serve.....
In the Summit Ward in the Fontana Stake of Zion.
Again.
Oh and you are going to train.
Just thought we'd let you know."

Yes here I am in the Summit Ward! After this transfer is over I will have been here for 7 1/2 months! Crazy! I am training a new missionary. Her name is Sister Erickson and she is from Layton, Utah. She is 26. Basically, she's awesome! I really like her a lot. Training is super stressful, but it's much easier to train someone that has already adjusted to living away from home. So she just came to me as happy as can be! She wasn't planning on ever serving a mission, but after many jobs and stressful school situations, she prayed and realized Heavenly Father needed her to serve a mission. So that's awesome. She is excited to be here and to work hard and I am so grateful for that. I miss my little Asian sensation, but I am glad to be with Sister Erickson.

Being senior companion is very different from being junior companion. Now I understand why all my other companions were stressed! It's definitely a challenge, but I know that the Lord qualifies whom he calls. And I also know that I didn't receive this calling because of anything I did, but because of the potential Heavenly Father sees in me. So there is definitely going to be a lot of growth this transfer. Sister Erickson will probably be training me! Just kidding. Kind of.

We had some pretty awesome miracles this week. We are trying to find new investigators because our two main ones aren't really progressing right now. President Van Cott challenged all the companionships to have baptisms in November AND December. So I am definitely feeling the heat of that right now. "Wow" I feel like, definitely is the word of the day or something.

Anyway. So basically we are working our butts off trying to find new people. Nothing is coming from our own efforts, but there have definitely been miracles this week and I know it's the Lord blessing us because we are trying our hardest. 

A few weeks ago, Sister Shin and I met this cute little lady outside watering her lawn. We started talking to her and she said she wanted a Book of Mormon, but asked if she could get one in Mandarin. We got her one. I was just thinking about her this past week so Sister Erickson and I went and followed up with her. SHE TOTALLY READ IT! It was so cool because she was telling us how good she felt while reading it and basically described the Holy Ghost. She was interested in seeing what our church was all about so we set up a church tour next week with a member who is fluent in Mandarin also. So that was awesome.

Another story: This member called us on Saturday night and said they were bringing a friend to church and wanted us to come to their house after to teach them. The friend is from Taiwan and is going to school to get his PhD at USC. He loved church and we did some great How To Begin Teaching. He wants to learn more, but he lives in L.A. so the missionaries there will teach him. That was a really cool experience. I keep running into all these people that speak Mandarin Chinese. I feel like I need Uncle Jared to help me.
Well I'm about out of time. Love you all so much! I am so grateful that we get to be together forever.

Love, 

Sister Olsen

Monday, October 12, 2015

Sayonara Sister Shin!!

Hello my friends!

This week has literally been the craziest and most hectic week of my life. With Ron's baptism and helping Sister Shin prepare to leave, I was busy! The departing missionaries get to go to a temple trip and they have a departing devotional that their companions don't get to go to, so for two days I had to find members to be my companion. That was very crazy. 

Ron's baptism was probably the most spiritual experience I have ever had in my entire life. At Juan's baptism I mostly felt pure joy and was just super excited, but at this baptism the spirit seriously hit me like a boulder. Ron and Wanda are both loved so much by everyone in the Ward. They are really special people. They have really touched the whole Ward. I think this has been an experience that the Ward needed. Wanda's personal trainer, Sister Jorgensen, is in the Ward so that is how she got introduced to the gospel. She was baptized in February. She is the strongest convert I have ever seen in my life. Ron took a while to ease into it. But what helped him was brother Ron Hatch. He became his friend and as a result, Ron joined the church. I really think that shows how important it is to befriend everyone. You never know how your friendship could impact someone's life. So the talks at the baptism were really good. That really invited the spirit. Two people in the Ward that are good friends with Ron and Wanda spoke. After the ordinance while we were waiting for the Rons to get dressed, sister shin and I taught the message of the restoration. Holy cow. Everyone was crying. It was seriously so powerful and I knew that it wasn't anything that I was saying or what she was saying. We really just let the spirit take over and it was amazing. 

Sister Shin had her departing interview with President Van Cott. We showed up and he told me he was going to interview me to. That totally surprised me. My interview was really good. I know that President Van Cott is led by Heavenly Father and that's really comforting to me. I know that wherever I am at transfers is where Heavenly Father is putting me. I was really afraid because I have been in the same area for six months and I have been with my companion for almost five, so I haven't experienced change in a really long time. As you all know, I'm not too good with change. But he totally put me at complete ease. He is always telling me how much he trusts me. That is seriously so comforting. I really love my mission president. 

I will find out what happens with transfers tonight. The longer I am on my mission the weaker I feel. Apparently all the missionaries say that's a good thing. I guess the weaker you feel the closer you are to Heavenly Father. Well. I feel pretty dang weak. I have never relied on Christ and the Atonement so much in my whole life. I really feel so uncomfortable. I think that's good though because if we are comfortable then we aren't progressing. Good news is some how I still feel super happy and blessed and I still love representing Jesus Christ in all that I do.

Love you everyone! Have a great week :)

Love, sister Olsen 



That picture on the package of the camel in a pumpkin patch was hilarious. We all got a pretty good laugh out of that!



We were dropping something off at our relief society presidents house and there were just some baby deer chilling right across the street! Crazy!
 



 Our awesome pull through parking. Missionaries have to back each other out so we all try to just pull through so no one has to back. I thought it was pretty funny..but maybe you have to be a missionary to appreciate that.


This is our district. Sister shin and I were the only companionship not training. The majority of all those missionaries are brand new. This was seriously my favorite district so far. Those elders are hilarious!
Ron's baptism. It was so wonderful!
 A California sunset. I thought you would appreciate it.

Monday, October 5, 2015

PONDERIZE!!

Hello everyone!


Right now we are doing laundry at Sister McEwans aka my bff. This week was pretty great. I really loved general conference. I bet everyone is doing ponderize... But I really liked it. This week I am ponderizing 2nd Nephi 32:9. I need to be better at praying always. I know my life would be a lot easier if I did... But really everyone's would be.

This week was really busy because we are preparing for Ron's baptism. His wife Wanda, got baptized in February. They will be sealed next year! I am so excited for them! We are having another baptism October 25th. And president has challenged us to have baptisms in November and December. He called it "a November and December to remember." No idea who we are going to baptize, but I have been praying every day that it will happen. I know that I can pray all I want, but it will only happen if I act and work my hardest. 

In the middle of conference sessions on Sunday, the Tongans gave us a ton of food. They made some pretty interesting dishes. The best was this fruit yogurt salad. It had pomegranate seeds in it. 

Nothing really too exciting happened this week. We just talk to people all the time. Most of them aren't interested so I just try to make them feel really good about themselves. We had a really great lesson with Gayle this week! We brought the Relief Society President and it was great! She really wants to get baptized, but she is really struggling with her knee. She hasn't been able to have the surgery yet. She is so awesome. Please keep her in your prayers. 

Time just keeps going faster and faster. This is the last week of Sister Shin's mission. I can't believe we have been companions for almost 5 months. I'm really going to miss her and I know this week is just going to fly. I am really nervous about getting a new companion because I haven't had a new one in so long, but I know everything that happens is Heavenly Father's will. The longer I serve, the more confidence I feel in saying that. Everything happens for a reason. I know that He works in the details of our lives. Life is hard, but if we do it the Lord's way and really have faith and rely on Him, everything will work out just fine.


Love you all and have a good week!


Love, 
Sister Olsen


These are my ward mission leader's kids. AKA my bffs. 


Here are some wonderful pictures of my district. Someone sent us a bunch of food. There were some spaghettios in there that I was pretty excited about.