Week #9 - October 27th, 2014

Sister Sughroue & Sister Ye in the Beehive House

I can't believe I am done with my first transfer... time flies when you are doing the Lord's work. I was the youngest sister of the whole mission but not anymore... lol. 

Eman, Sister Ye & Sister Sughroue at the Church Office Building on the 26th floor lookout

My companion will finish training me this next transfer then she will go outbound. I am excited to learn more from her! We have become close and are having a good time! She always makes me laugh.. with something crazy she does or says.  This morning we had Transfer meeting... and said bye to all the Sisters leaving. We will be working in the Humanitarian Center next transfer on Tuesdays and Thursdays, giving tours and we will also be able to help with service there! I don't know a lot of the details but I can't wait to find out more. Our P-day is still Monday!

This week we used some more of our explore hours and toured the Conference Center, Beehive House ( Brigham Young's house, which is kind of creepy.... but still super interesting and cool), Humanitarian Center. We took our friend and recent convert Eman to  the Church Office Building Look out on the 26th floor, such a pretty view... I got sick from the elevator ride ahahaha. The new Sisters also got to go on tour of the Organs in the Conference Center and TAB. They had a specialist explain how the Organ works and we got to go behind in the Tabernacle to see all the 11,623 pipes. It was awesome.... I am still mind blown on how that thing even works.

Sister Sughroue "pretending" to play the Tabernacle organ

The Tabernacle Organ Pipes!

On Saturday we went for a Bagel run.... it's the best way to exercise. A group of us Sisters all run to get bagels in the morning for exercise, then we walk back while we eat. So yummy.... its such a good motivation to work out. lol. We had a baptism on Saturday night! He is Chinese and lives in California, we tried skyping him but it wouldn't work :/ We met him and his family on the square at the beginning of the transfer. His is a convert and he had been meeting with the missionaries for years. But when he came to Temple Square, he was prepared and ready to accept the Gospel.  We have been teaching him over the phone all transfer. The Lord sent this amazing family to us so we could help teach him and prepare him to enter the waters of Baptism! So amazing.... now the Temple is the next step for this family!

Sister Sughroue, future conductor of the Tabernacle choir (following in her great great cousin-- Gerald Ottley's Footsteps)

Sister Ye and I were in the Tabernacle one night and she told a some people that if they asked me, I would sing to on stage to show the acoustics of the building..... so these people kept bugging me and wouldn't take no for an answer soooo I made Sister Ye come with me and we went up and Sang I am a child of God for everyone.... so embarrassing...hahahaha.

This week we ran into a miracle.... yup. A young man named Jordan who is 20 years old and is so prepared to accept the Gospel and be baptized. We met him in the Visitor Center showed him around and he told us he wanted to baptized! He is so humble and has great faith in God, he wants to do what the Lord wants for him.  We will be staying in touch with him and teaching him to prepare him to enter the waters of baptism! So awesome! The amazing thing about a Visitor Center mission is that the Lord sends so many different people to you, that are prepared! And we have to be in tune with the spirit to find them. Learning to trust the spirit and let it direct your path may be hard, but when you humble yourself and just listen you will be blessed.

Sister Sughroue & Sister Ye on top of the Conference Center

This past week, I got to meet Sister Ponanski ( who served with Tyler for a little bit, but is now a Temple Square) and see Sister Thurber from Temecula Stake who came here for the MTC tour, but is heading to DC! I hope everyone is having a good week and enjoying the warm California weather... it is starting to get cold here :( I am getting whiter than ever before yes it's possible. hahaha.  This week for Halloween we are going as a whole mission to dinner in the Church Office Building then to the Temple! It should be an amazing experience!

Shout out to my cute little cousin Maddy on getting baptized this upcoming Saturday! I am so proud of you and excited for you (: Heavenly Father loves you and is so happy you are choosing the right! And Happy Birthday too <3

Much Love, 

Sister Sughroue

xoxo

Week #8 - October 20th, 2014

Sister Sughroue

This week the Lord has answered my prayers in so many different ways, some I can't even explain, but I know he loves me and hears me. He is has put people in my path this week that I have learned so much from. Whoever they are I am grateful for meeting them because I have become strengthened. It is amazing as a missionary you just instantly love the people you meet, you see them as a child of God. And all I want is to help them learn that, and that God has a plan for them! 

Sister Sughroue, Sister Ye, Sister Lucas & Sister Gee

Sister Ye & Sister Sughroue

Sister Sughroue giving tours of the Tabernacle

Sister Sughroue

I was kind of frustrated last week because I felt like an anti magnet.... these people are wolves dressed as sheep... they act all nice and then just want to argue. I simply am nice the whole time and I think it surprises them, if the spirit isn't there I don't teach. We as missionaries are not here to convince, but to teach and then invite others to come to know for themselves by praying and reading the Book of Mormon. That is the only way you can know of the truth.  I have reflected on a few of these experiences and am actually very grateful for running into these antis.. they have made me stronger. So sometimes I want to say thank you to them as they walk away, hahaha.  I am reminded how amazing this gospel is and how it is so simple, we live it because we love the Lord. As we humble ourselves and follow his plan exactly we will be blessed. 

Chicken Feet! Nope! Still haven't tried them!

I love my companion so much, we are different, but because of that we are able to learn so much from each other. I have recognized so many of my strengths and weaknesses that I need to work on. We both are completely dedicated to the work and her example of obedience and faith has been such a blessing. We should be together for one more transfer! 

Sister Ye is hilarious and we have had some funny moments this week. 

People keep telling me I look like Elizabeth Smart, and Sister Ye was asking me about her but instead of saying kidnapped she kept saying "napkinned"..... sooooo funny. I teach her new words everyday, most recently was "booger". Yup, now she knows. She thinks me eating cookie dough is weird, and I think her chicken feet our weird. She scared me the other day with a chicken foot and I seriously screamed soooo loud, that it scared her. hahaha I'll send a picture of it!  The best is when I say Hi to chinese people and introduce myself then they think I speak Chinese and start asking me questions and I just laugh, and point to my comp. Sometimes I accidently speak chinese to Japanese people and they laugh at me..... hahahah ooops. 

Future Relief Society President!

On Thursday Sister Bonhem of the General Relief Society board came and spoke to us! She shared some awesome history about Relief Society and also talked about our divine worth us women. We went to the Relief Society building to tour to use some of our explore hours. The new sisters get 12 explore hours to use the first transfer, to get familiar with the things on Temple Square! It was so awesome to see how the organization was formed and why. As women in the church we are able to strengthen one another spiritually. And Relief Society  and all church programs helps us stay on that covenant path back to God.

 Later we had lunch at the church office building and are with the Elder and Sister Pulsipher! They showed me pictures of Tyler coming home, so glad we ran into them!

Elder Jim Pulsipher (taking the picture-my mom's cousin) Sister Sue Pulsipher, Sister Ye & Sister Sughroue

On Saturday  as we were walking out from the Visitor Center we ran into Aunt Dana and the Kids! It was so good to see them and visit with them for a little bit (:  

Aunt Dana, Emily, Rebecka, Brian, & Spencer

Sunday we brought a friend of ours who is less active to church with us! He loved it and was really touched by the spirit that 200 sister missionaries carry with them.  On Sunday Sister Ye was sick during the morning so I was in a trio with my zone leaders. People answer there phones on Sunday so we were able to teach some really good lessons! We have some investigators progressing towards baptism, It is so amazing watching someones seed of  faith grow into such a strong testimony. I pray for them everyday, that they will come to know the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! 

Music & The Spoken Word

We went to the Temple this morning! And now we are off to get some foood! I hope everyone has a good week! Love you all!

Sister Sughroue

Week #7 - October 13th, 2014

So this past week has been pretty busy and eventful here on the square. Let's just say I am in the best mission ever.... I know everyone says that but really, after this week I am convinced. How did I get so lucky!

I'll start from the beginning.

We love taking Asian pictures!

Tues: We went to go open a movie in the Jospeh Smith building and they cancelled it because they were doing interviews for the whole "Meet the Mormons" cast. No one told us it was cancelled so we still went and ended up meeting some of the

cast and got a poster with all their signatures. The boxer girl (from Costa Rica) and her family are so cute we talked to them for a little bit! I also met the man from Nepal on the Square this week! 

Throughout the week we have been contacting and teaching as usual. We have been teaching a few less actives and helping them come back. We were able to contact some of our referrals from General Conference and there are a few that want to keep learning! Yes it works, when members and missionaries work as a team.  Our investigators are progressing towards baptism, some faster than others but we are gonna help them all get there. hahaha

Thursday we met a man named Brent. We walked past him at first but then felt we needed to walk back and talk to him. That feeling was the Spirit. We talked to him and after a good conversation, found out he is divorced and has been inactive for years.... has a testimony just doesn't go to church. I shared a scripture with him and testified the importance of going to church. We discussed some more and than we invited him to attend church with us on Sunday. He said yes. He was so grateful for us, he started to cry as he expressed himself. After Church on Sunday he committed to start coming back to church and make certain steps to get his life back on track. He said that we were an answer to his prayers.  The Spirit will guide us to the people that need us, if we listen carefully.

Eman and the sisters who taught her at her baptism!

Saturday we had 3 baptisms.... yes 3.  (Our mission had 100 baptisms last month) Hahaha they were all at the same time, so we weren't able to attend or skype all of them. My companion teaches them in Chinese and will translate what I say... we've got a good system down.  But we were able to go to Eman's baptism in Pleasant Grove! I drove... yes we got lost in Salt Lake City for like 20 min trying to get on the freeway... but in my defense, we had no GPS or siri. We made it on time! It was my first baptism as a missionary, there were so many people there we had to stand. She is a wonderful young lady and has great faith. Her family was not very supportive of her baptism but she knew it was the right thing to do. The Spirit was so strong, it was a truly a different experience as missionary. 

A picture Natalie Woll (my mom's cousin) found on the church's conference news site.

On Sunday we invited Brent and 2 less actives we met on the Square to come to church with us, and then we took them to "Music and the Spoken Word" after! Which was amazing!!!! They really felt the Spirit and told us they have a desire to go to church now. Missionaries are just the tools... the Spirit is the one that really teaches and converts. Sunday in sacrament they announced we would be having a special fireside for just our mission by DAVID ARCHULETA!!!! 

Park City Fun!

So we had a fireside for 2 hours with him! He sang 3 songs and did a Q and A type of thing. We took a zone picture with him ( I will send that next week) and then I got to  talk to him... I asked if he knew Adam... he said yes he loves him! lol. He talked alot about his mission and staying strong while being in the industry he is in. He is very humble and has an amazing testimony.

Sister Sughroue & Sister Ye

I work hard and am obedient not because it is the rules but because I love the Lord, I don't only work hard one day to see a miracle, when I work hard it is for Him. We work hard all the time because we love the Lord. When he knows we are working because we love Him and the people, He will then bless us, on His timing and in His way. I love the Lord, and am going to give Him everything I have on His mission. I want to become the kind of missionary He needs. I am here for Him. I love this gospel and love sharing it!

Thank you for the letters and packages! Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Daniel and the girls, my companion and I loved your pictures and all the treats thanks(:

Have an amazing week everyone!!!!

<3 Sister Sughroue

Week #6 - October 6th, 2014

Sister Sughroue ready for General Conference

This past week on Temple Square has been full of miracles. It got busier and busier leading up to conference this weekend.

We have 3 investigators with baptism dates coming up in the next few weeks! My companion has been teaching Eman for about 6 months now, She is a freshman and goes to college here in SLC and is getting baptized this Saturday, I think we get to go too! We met with her and went over the baptismal interview questions, she is so ready. We also have some new investigators that are progressing!

On Wednesday we had an investigator lesson, this is when the SLC missionaries will bring investigators to Temple Square and we take them on a tour to teach and help them progress. Two sisters from SLC brought Dez a young mother who is married to a less active man in the church. She has the cutest baby, has a great personality, she just has problems with the Word of Wisdom. The missionaries told us that she wants to move really slow and doesn't want to feel pressured. We took her to the Christus and talked to her about our Savior Jesus Christ. The spirit was so strong and you could tell she was truly touched when we discussed the atonement. We then discussed the word of wisdom and she was really closed off but then out of no where she looked up and said she was making the commitment right then to throw away all coffee, tea, alcohol at home and never touch it again. We all were shocked! Then we took her to the movie about God's plan for our family, and she went home with a baptismal date and a goal to get sealed in the Temple! She is amazing.

Dez & her family

Sister Sughroue & Sister Ye

Brad Hill (Linda Bevan Hill's son) & Sister Sughroue

Thursday we went to dinner at the Lion house with sister Orndal and Sister Rajah to use our free meal from passing off tours. Best meal I have had my entire mission..... so much food.... and a huge slice of chocolate cake.

We prepared all week as a mission for General Conference. We were on the square at 7:30 am and didn't leave until 9:45 pm.So we were working all day longgggg. Mom, your General conference Survival kit was perfect thank you!  We had 20 minutes for meals and they were all provided for us, by wards in the area. They are so nice!  We even had cafe rio for dinner last night(: I was in heaven. 

President Poulsen wanted us to focus on uplifting members, non-members and everyone we saw. We made it a goal to share an uplifting message with every person we contacted. It was packed and really chaotic but we met some of the most amazing people. Even though every one was mostly a member we still were able to share scriptures with them and uplift them! We received lots of referrals for non members! This conference I was just in awe of the unity of all the members in our church. We met people from all over the world to come here our beloved Prophet speak. I love how diverse the members of our church are but we are all yet the same, we are all children of God who have the light of Christ within us, we all are here on earth to follow God's plan.
  Just a tip of advice if you are a member and you come to Temple Square and the Sisters try talking to you don't be rude, missionaries are not just suppose to talk to non members but everyone! We all could use a little spiritual boost once in while!  I saw so many people I know I am not even going to list them.... because they all know who they are, and I'm sure all the pictures we took are on Facebook.

Johnna Franks & Sister Sughroue

At Saturday Morning session of Conference

I was able to attend the Saturday Morning Session session! We were in 6th row on the left side on the floor.... so amazing seats!!!! I got the chills when we sang the closing song and I looked around at 21,000 members all united in voice and singing praises to our loving God. I loved all the talks, but one of my  favorites was Elder Chi who spoke in cantanese. He talked about how we all need to work in harmony to help build up the Lord's Kingdom, missionaries and members. We must be a team in order to be successful.  He said that as we assist the Savior in the mission of saving souls we too will be rescued. This is so true, my testimony is strengthened everyday as I see this process going on around me. As members of the church we are all called to share what we know with our fellow brothers and sisters who have not yet found the truth. I also loved Uchtdorf's talk about how all our testimonies will grow at different rates but as we do our work and part it will come and it will be glorious. We should never compare ourselves to others and their testimonies. He said, church is a home for all sorts of testimonies, the church is not for perfect people but a place for people to become perfected through our Savior.
 O I was walking to the conference center and started talking to this Old couple and they were asking me about myself and my mission and I asked there names and it was Lynn G. Robbins of the seventy who spoke saturday morning. hahaha. I felt bad I didn't recognize him but they all look alike, right?
I can't wait to read and catch up on the rest of the talks in the Ensign, because the rest of the weekend we were contacting. Sunday night we had a wrap up meeting as a mission, some of the sisters were able to share some miracles they experienced during the weekend. President suprised us and let us watch "MEET THE MORMONS" before it comes out on Oct. 10th. It is so good! We all laughed and cried! It will be out in theaters so make sure you see it! We got to sleep in till 9 this morning and started at 10 because we lost sleep over the weekend, it was needed we were all exhausted. 

Today we are going to a zone activity in Park City at President Harmons house, he is our mission presidency! So excited we get to wear jeans and we are having a Luhua hawaiian party! 

Well I think that sums up the week! I hope everyone enjoyed conference and has a great next week!!!!! Love you all!

Love, 

Sister Sughroue