Friday, April 29, 2016

CALIFORNIA, HERE I COME! ! ! ! Apr 27, 2016


Yes you heard right! Transfer 8 is on it's way and I am leaving Temple Square!

In less than a week I will be on a plane to the lovely San Diego mission! I'm so excited for this opportunity to serve and learn and grow and have so many new and exciting experiences!

And for those of you that don't know, in my mission on Temple Square we get the opportunity to go "outbound" for 3 months and serve in a different mission. So yes. That's what I'm doing....I'm not running away. Just going outbound. (Also shout out to Sister K who will be going with me to San Diego!)

Not going to lie I was a little hesitant at first with so many of my investigators here preparing for baptism (right after I leave) but that is okay I know that the Lord is taking care of them and they aren't my investigators but they truly are the Lord's investigators. They are His children and He will take care of them. I'm very excited to hear about all of the miracles that they will see when I do come back.

So many people are progressing steadily towards their dates and I couldn't be happier as they are about to take this step that will bring them ultimate happiness.

Also something weird happened this week where twice in a row two people that I have never met walked up to us and asked how they could be baptized.....

WE CAN HELP YOU

It's been amazing to see how the Lord has prepared everyone to hear the message of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It then becomes our decision to accept that message.

I do want to speak a little bit about attitude as well. Because for a few days leading up to knowing if I was going Outbound or not and a couple of days afterwards (okay I found out on Monday so it's only been two days). I was a bit of a nervous wreck. (not too bad but you know the usual nervousness). Until I realized that it is our attitude that makes the entire difference. God has many callings and jobs that He wants us to do but, if we grudgingly do them then what's the point. When we serve, give, help, etc. with a willing heart we are laying up treasures in Heaven and setting our sights on much better things.

I love you all so much and next time you hear from me I will be in San Diego!!!!

LOVE

~Sister Eging~

Receiving my outbound call!

Advertising for doing family history work!

Zone Conference - Apr 13


Well this week just about flew by and I'm trying my best to remember everything that happened.

One of the highlights would have to be Zone Conference because we have started to have one every single transfer!!!! Woooooo!

I was able to learn so much about inviting and how important it is that we just invite! JUST DO IT! Sometimes it may seem scary but when you don't you are making the decision for them and taking away someone else' s agency, which is the plan of Satan. And we don't want to follow Satan.

I also learned that I have the coolest mission President ever! So he was sharing some experiences from his mission and explaining how no matter where you are, missions are difficult. They are. There's just a lot of different things that make them hard, rejection, fear, culture, language. etc. etc. and then he told his story.....

Street boarding.

This is when missionaries took a poster board with a diorama of the Restoration and went to public places where they had to preach to everyone passing by. When they started this in the mission that President served in, he was terrified. Sick to his stomach and even after a few weeks of great success, still terrified.

Well after a couple of weeks of doing this as they were "street boarding" one day all of a sudden there is silence and who other than the police show up and say they are arresting all of them.

They were held for a couple of hours and then released and threatened to be deported. So with this in mind our President thought good, no more streetboarding. And when he called his mission president in Holland he was told quite the opposite. The next day he was to go back out and start again.

This was a huge test of faith for him but still he did it. The next day they did it anyways and they never had another problem with the police.

We are all human and it's natural to have fear. But, the moment that fear stops us or rationalizes us out of opening our mouths and sharing the gospel it needs to be quickly removed. God is a God of love, not fear. And perfect love casteth away all fear.

Oh and also highlight..... OUR FARR'S STAMP CARDS ARE FULL! (not super exciting but it means free icecream so woo!)

I love you all o much and hope you can all find the opportunity to rid yourself of fear this week by sharing the gospel and your testimony with somebody. You never know who the Lord has prepared to receive the gospel and you never know how your actions can help others prepare to receive it as well.

Eu amo vocĂȘ!

~Sister Eging~

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Summer Begins – Apr 20


And things are starting to get really busy here on the Square which is always the best!

This week was the Burton's (a senior couple who serves here) last week so we had to say good bye today which was so sad but, it's okay we will all see each other again someday :)

This week we faced a lot of people who just did not want to hear it but, something I learned is that we as missionaries are not here to coerce, convince, or force someone to listen. We share the message of the Restoration and invite others to learn more. When they are ready and have a desire that is what we are here for. We testify of the truth that we know but ultimately everyone has their own agency.

So this morning I just want to talk about two things (because the rest of the week wasn't quite as interesting haha)

One, we took these two older couples on a tour. The wives were so sweet and loved us while both the husbands were convinced that we were not going to be saved and spent an hour trying to end the tour as they just kept repeating it over and over and would not let us go. I think that is when I finally understood the power of just pure testimony. At the end the wives gave us hugs and thanked us for our time (they tried to stop their husbands the whole time) But it was a good experience.

AND THEN!

I. Helped. An. Old. Man. Cross. The. Street.

It was out of a movie. Sister G and I see this old man trying to start crossing the street and he couldn't do it. So we walk up next to him and pretend like we are going to cross the street and start talking to him when all of a sudden he asks "Would you like to help me cross the street?"

"WOULD I!?!?!?!"

"IT"S ONLY BEEN A DREAM OF MINE!"

I am a witness miracles happen!

But that's pretty much all for this week. Haha we are super tired but thats a good thing :)

Love you all so much!
LUUHHHVVVV
Sister Eging

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Heavenly Things: April 6, 2016


This weekend waaaasssss GENERAL CONFERENCE!!!

Which was crazy by the way.

There were so many people flooding Temple Square from all over the place and we were on our feet from 8:30 am to 9 pm at night!

But it was amazing to feel the spirit that was here and to teach those who had no idea what was happening the reality of living prophets and apostles.

I learned so much from being able to teach and testify of the Restoration and realized just how special it is that we have the privilege of listening to prophets and apostles. Men like Moses and Noah, Peter, James, and John. For such a long time there was nowhere in the world that you could listen to messages from God relayed directly through a prophet that had been given the authority to do so.

And it all started with a simple prayer of a 14 year old boy.

Man so cool (Can you tell our mission focus has been on the Restoration?)

We spent all our time finding people to teach, asking for referrals, and speaking a lot of Portuguese so that was really cool. (I can understand pretty well now. )

And then to end the weekend we had a guest speaker ALEX BOYE! Who if you don't know who he is...... thats okay. Because I hadn't heard of him until my mission when we play "I'm a Mormon" messages to people all the time. But, this is he.

https://www.mormon.org/alex

So that was really fun and funny. And we got ice cream at the end so a win-win-win.

I think what I liked so much is that often time God has so many blessings that He wants to give us but there are little things in our lives that keeps us from receiving them. Things like negativity, comparing ourselves, and not being willing to change. God doesn't want us to be upset, sad, or angry. All of those thoughts are destructive and heed our personal progress.

Anyways it was really cool and I loved it a lot. I also loved some of the talks we were able to see. Namely Elder Oaks and Elder Holland's talks as they laid down the law and made no excuses for the gospel.

Well I love you all very much :)

Keep the love coming
~Sister Eging~

PS Funny Story

So this past weekend before Conference there were many meetings being held in the basement of the South Visitor's Center which is where all of our stuff is. Meetings for many of the 70 and Elder Christofferson was there too.

Well it was also a pretty stressful time in the Egalves companionship and we may have been having a bit of a cry sesh in one of the meeting rooms down the long hallway. Well just as we are wiping away our tears and crying some more we hear someone walk past, turn around, and come back to our room. And as we turn around there is Elder Christofferson with his hand out for us to shake. What the what!?!?!

So I know it doesn't sound that funny but seriously I could not stop laughing and as he walks away all we hear is Bom Dia sisters! Oi! Tudo Bem? And yes all of the seventy from all of Brazil come walking by and Sister G has this half smile half I'm going to cry/laugh any second look on her face as she says Oi! back to all of them.

I was dying.....

So funny. It really turned everything around hahaha and was hilarious. Even though I guess you had to be there.
Companions!

Saturday, April 2, 2016

Conference Time Is Here – Mar 30, 2016


Yep you heard right.
Another General Conference is on its way.

For Temple Square sisters this means being able to teach and testify of the Restoration one million times over (as well as raiding everyone else's closet so that we can use their clothes for Conference...)

Sister G and I will be going to the Sunday Afternoon session so if you're tuned into Conference at that time look for a blonde American with a curly-headed Brazilian! (To find out where to see or hear General Conference go to lds.org and click on "watch general conference.")

This week I just want to talk about our miracles. Well miracle that occurred yesterday.

So yesterday morning we received serious training from the missionary department (we always have some type of training or reminder because.... #headquartersofthechurch) about just asking everyone, members of the church, non members, anyone if they knew anyone or if they themselves would like to learn more.

We are super pumped and decide to do so, with very little success....

We then go and take this family through God's Plan and it turns out they were all Catholic and one of the daughters is actually going to BYU. At the end of the presentation we keep talking and teaching and invite them to meet with Local Missionaries. The mom said that some already stop by occasionally so we left it at that. As we walk down the stairs I kept getting this impression that we needed to ask to stay in touch with them and teach over the phone. We go try and call one of our investigators who doesn't pick up...

As we walk back out I tell Sis. G that if we see the family again we are going to do it.....But I lied..... we ran into the family again and I got scared.... hahaha yeah I felt silly. But my rockstar companion made me follow through on my prompting and we circled around them before they could leave and got to stay in touch!!!! (FOLLOW YOUR PROMPTINGS!)

Then as we left we hear someone yell " Hey Sisters!!" We turn around and it is this woman chasing us down and saying "I have a referral for you!"

Yes we got chased down..... That never happens!

SO it was just some really cool realizations that when we do all we are supposed to and all that we can do then God will bless us. He doesn't want us to fail and He doesn't give us commandments to fail. Everything He asks us to do is for us to succeed and be happy.

Well yep.... this email was a little scattered haha sorry but it's all good!

Can't wait for Conference! Grab your pens, pencils, and some gold fish because it's going to be a good one this year :)

I know God loves us so much and it is such a blessing that after so long in darkness there is a living prophet on the Earth to lead and guide all of the children of God.

Love you all!

~Sister Eging~
A Missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

After several pictures of Sister Eging trying to get her companion's attention, she finally succeeded!