Hiya!

Hiya!

 

Well, a lot to catch you up on this week! I dont know where to even start. I will start with the Leaps family: The Leaps are great. The mom is less active and she has 3 kids and 2 that live at home. We have been visiting them very frequently on the account of her 15 year old daughter is not baptised (neither is the other but he is always gone) and the mom struggles with word of wisdom. They came to church last week, the mom is doing great with keeping the word of wisdom, and the daughter is taking the lessons and reading!! Now for the Gowan family. The Gowans are fantastic my goodness. There is a mom and dad, 12, 3, and 2 yr old. They have been less active for 2 yrs now. We have visited them quite a few times and the last visit with them the mom just poured out to us as soon as we got in the room about how badly she wants her family reactivated! She wants the gospel in her kids lives. They came to church yesterday! ALSO way cool story. A couple visits ago with them the dad mentioned his mother, Pam, (nonmember) and we felt promted to ask if she would appreciate a visit. He said that she is strong catholic and not open to mormons but a visit probably would be fine. So we visited her a few days later. She opened the door about one foot and stuck her head out. She was hesitant at first but we were able to gain her trust and make her feel comfortable. We were very gentle with her and let her know who we were and eventually she opened up. Her mom died just a few months ago and she is still very tender about it. We shared with her Alma 40:11-12 and, my goodness, the Spirit filled her and wound and wove in her! She was in tears and told us how comforting those verses were. Since she loved the verses so much we gave her a Book of Mormon and asked her to read all of ch. 40 and she complied. We said a prayer with her and you could just tell that she was absolutely touched. It is so rewarding to know that someone has felt the Spirit through your presence or what you have said or done. So, we decided to visit her again this week and give her a note this time. We were able to talk with her for about a half hr on her doorstep. At first her door was more closed than open but by the end it was completely open! She even said that she would invite us in but she had just gotten dinner ready. She told us that she would be willing and wanted to learn more and that what she had read is actually quite similar to what she knows. ALSO she told us how she just found out that some of her ancestors were Mormon and that most definitely got her more interested! AND it got her sister interested and is visiting Pam soon and wants to learn more! It is incredible what is happening to the whole Gowan family! We envision teaching the Gowans and Pam the lessons together and them learning and growing together! This Tuesday we have an apt to teach Pam and the Gowans at the Gowans home.

Ok next topic, David: So you do not know anything about David and thats only cuz we met him 2 weeks ago and have had 2 lessons with him. We met David on our way to 2 apts (none of which happened to go through/were home). He is a postman and he was on duty at the time! We smiled and said hello to him and he was very friendly and said that he knew who missionaries were! He is very familiar with what we do and knew some years ago. We got his information and he agreed to visit with us the following week (this past week). Long story short, David is an absolute miracle. In our first lesson with him he knew so much about our church already! He did a lot of homework before. I kid you not, there were 3 times in the lesson where I legitimately thought to myself: "this guy is pranking us. He is a member already and he is just having the time of his life right now inside his head, just humoring us! Am I being punked?!" Well, our first visit we committed him to read and pray. Flash forward to our next lesson: It's a bird! It's a plane! No its a baptismal date! Guess what!? We had our second lesson with David and we extended an invitation for him to be baptised (i got to say it, it was so fun)! We first started our lesson with going over what he read from the BofM. He read all of Moroni 10 and the intro. He really liked it! He said it was very powerful. He said that he prayed as well. He really likes what he is learning and even that that after he read he had a thought come to mind. 10 yrs ago David met with some missionaries and one of them left him with a BofM, D&C, Bible, and hymn book in french (he is french) with a case and told him that one day he would use them. Well, when David was reading he was reminded of this and after looking in his things for hours he was able to find them! he said how amazing htis experience was for him and his in not sure yet but maybe this is an answer! After i extended the invitation (as you come to know for yourself that these things are true will you follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptised by someone holding the priesthood authority of God) he said yes, if he comes to know these things are true then of course he would want to because it is one of the things we need to do to return to live with our Heavenly Father! So then sister Hymas said how we have been praying and feel that the 21st of September is right for him to be baptised on. Haha at first he was really shocked because it is so soon! But after talking with him about it he feels more comfortable with it. The next day was church and he came to church! It was fantastic! He said it was so powerful and that he felt like it was one big family and he was excited to be a part of it! It was a fantastic testimony meeting. David is a VERY friendly and smiley guy so he got along really well with everyone and made a lot of friends. Like i said before, it is all just coming too easily! I guess when you thing about ti in terms of all of the tough things and heartaches and trials we have had last transfer it has not come easily but davids journey had thus far! The Lord works in mysterious ways I guess...A lot of this just seems to good to be real. He is a perfect student/investigator. he reads and prays, he marks his scriptures, he comes with questions, HE calls US to cinfirm apts., and he knows something about everything we teach him! I am just soooo nervous that i will open my heart and get excited and then for some reason we will lose him. Gosh, I feel like I am dating! haha. Anyway, that is David. Please pray for him and Sept 21st!
Random thoughts:
Congrats to Dad on the primary elections! You smoked em dad well done. Show em who is boss. I am actually very sad that I cant be there for elections so dont rub it in too much. Ooh sooo sad. this week i did a load of wash and my john curtis t shirt got died an ugle blue colour!! eww. It makes me really sad cuz i wear it a lot actually.
I have decided what I want to do with my life!!! Drum roll please......a want to be a scriptorian! Ahh i LOOOOOVE the scriptures! So much. I wish that I could just read from them all day err day. So how do I go about being a scriptorian? Are there courses for that or is it something you just do?
Am I related to a Dan Curtis? Or a Tony Curtis? Dan served his mission here years ago and baptised someone in my ward. Tony is a famous singer. Err body keeps asking me so some answers for them would be swell.
I have a fantastic ward here. I love all of the members and will be really sad when i have to leave them. The bishop has been bishop for 11 yrs!! it is a small ward and an interesting ward but i love it.
One of the hardest things for me lately is seeing how wicked the world is. Also, how there are sooo many souls to save! I am just so concerned for the salvation of every soul! WHY do more people not accept the gospel?! I cannot help but ache inside every time that we get rejected because i just think to myself of how they need to be saved!
Here in Milton Keynes, they dont have intersections! Its all a round about system so there are soo many roundabouts!
Is Collin Galland ok!? That is such a sad thing I hope everything is ok.

Dad, Yes some money to my account would actually be much appreciated if you do not mind. How is China?
Mom, same as what i said to dad, money would be great. Also mom, a few emails ago you asked me about if what white washing is and white washing is when both of the companions in the companionship are new to the area. So yes, Sister Hymas and I white washed milton keynes last transfer (we are still here this transfer) BUT we also opened the area! This means that there has not been sisters here for a while (in our case 5 yrs) and so we had to start from scratch! So i am a white washing, opening up area missionary:)
Kirsten: I read a quote from the book every morning to my companion in our companion study:)
kirsten and josh: How is Denmark!?
Jett and Jane: HAPPY BIRTHDAY! You guys are so ooold.
Zane and mary, so cool youre having the missionaries over! and thanks mar for the workouts they should be great!

Jacob, well done on the GRE!! wow, you are so smart. I bet it all came from me helping you study for those few hours in the car that one time:)
Sarah, or anyone really, could you please find a way to put the pics up on fb cuz friends ask me for em but i dont have time to send them all again. thanks:)

Pokie, got your letter and should hopefully send one soon.

bandit, stay alive.

englandooo

Hiya! (thats how they say it here)

 

not a lot to say this week but i figured i said a lot last week so that makes up for it!

 

1.So I have not officially completed my first transfer! how exciting, right? I think I will have 12 transfers total so wahoo! So, drum roll please...I am staying in Milton Keynes! And I get to stay with Sister Hymas as well! We still have work to do with milton keynes. We could both feel it that we would stay. Many miracles waiting for us!

2.So last week we had a mission wide meeting and Elder Evans from the 70 spoke to us. LISTEN TO THIS. He told us that there is no finer mission president than President Jordan, my mission president. How cool is that?! Of all of the mission presidents he told us ours is the best! (he didnt say best but cmon we all know thats what he meant). President Jordan is amazing though, for sure.

3. Last week sister hymas and i knocked on a womans door who let us in and was super nice and we talked with her for a while. She is catholic and told us we could never convert her but she is really nice so we still like talking with her and who knows! anyway, she told us of how her husband died from MS years ago and i told her about Samantha Gramse and how she is fighting MS. Well that night we got a phone call from this lady and it was the cutest thing ever cuz she asked me what my cousins name was who has MS because she wanted to pray for her! So extra blessings coming Sams way!

4. How did soccer tryouts go for nokes?

5. One of the biggest things that I have learned on my mission (i guess two) is that I was immature and did not have my priorities straight before. I knew that family, and the gospel came first. But often times we get so caught up in silly things at home. I have had to do a lot of repenting for not reading my scriptures enough, not focusing on the Savior enough, and focusing too much on things of the world. I know its only been a little over a month but I feel like I have grown so much! Which is way cool cuz think about how much more I can grow with my time left! Missions are great. HARD. But great. I can't imagine not having this time to grow for myself and focus on the gospel. Myself personally, I needed this step in order to progress. There are plenty of people out there who are able to progress without the help of a mission but I know that it would have been hard for me. So PROPS to all you people out there who are able to skip this step. Point of rant: I like who I'm becoming.

6. Can i get some family history from ancestors from england? Or from other places? there is an elder curtis here and i want to see if we are related! Also, am i related to a ray curtis? He was a mission president here back in the day.

7. I am really grateful for you, Mom and Dad. You are the best parents out of all of the parents on the earth for sure. Thanks for being such great examples and for raising all of us the way you have. Dad, I hope that one day I can marry a man like you. Mom, I hope that one day I can be the Mom that you have been to me.

Love you all,

Sister Curtis