Compelled To Be Humble

This week has been another beautiful one- not quite as lovely and perfect as last week...but still pretty miraculous. I'm learning all over again that slow weeks are just as humbling as crazy amazing ones, and that we as missionaries are consistently compelled to be humble- that's the only way we can become better! The only way we can be something more! I feel like Paul these days, when he writes in 2 Corinthians, "Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong". It's the real deal, my friends! Heavenly Father puts us in situations (makes us serve missions, man oh man) that cause us to be humbled, and then, because we are humble, He can help us to change. Over these past 14 months, my life has been changed beyond comprehension because I've been compelled to be humble...here's to four more months of humility! 

But anyway, haha, let me tell you about my week. It's been a good one! We kicked it off with a pretty normal pday, with the normal shenanigans and Audrey chill times...the best!  Right after pday came to an end, we raced over to Olive Garden to eat dinner with the Hollidays- pretty much the greatest dinner EVEEEEER!!!  The Hollidays are just the best, and Olive Garden is eternally my favorite place to eat...it was the greatest all around. Martha, our new fave less active, even came- it was such a party! 

And then, we stopped by Joe's and watched Pres. Monson's talk with him before heading over to teach Cheska- love her!! We taught her everyday this week again, and it's going really well...ah, I just love her the most. She's such a wonderful woman!!  She's still not 100% sure what to do, but we chatted about personal revelation on Monday night and watched "Patterns of Light"...it was a lovely time! I like the way Elder Bednar discusses revelation in those videos, but I always think more in puzzle pieces- that every answer I receive, every Spirit poke I'm given, is adding pieces to my puzzle, until one day it's complete and I can see the whole picture. 

On Tuesday, we exchanged away with the Bemidji sisters- the best!! I hung ten in Grand Forks with Sis. Bennett and it was just the greatest. We partied so hard and saw so many miracles- gotta love exchanges! ANNNNND, the Bemidji sisters went to Bismarck over the weekend for Women's Conference...and they brought back a new car for us, YAHOOOOOO!!!!!! His name is Tanner, the Nissan Rogue, and he's probably the fanciest car I've ever been in. The dream!! Having a car again is the greatest thing ever- thank goodness for Bemidji sisters and trips to Bismarck!! 

Exchanges!

So, once back to Grand Forks, we first thing ran off to teach Linda- it was the coooooolest!!!  Linda's the one we met while street contacting, who showed up to church last week all unprovoked...man oh man, she is so prepared!!  We shared the Restoration with her and she immediately knew it was true- she even told us as we chatted beforehand that she wishes there was more books than just the Bible, because all the Christian churches read from the Bible and teach different doctrines- AHHHH, she just gets it!! She was so excited to read the Book of Mormon and pray about what we taught...and we have another appointment with her tonight. It's going to be beautiful! I am so jazzzzzzed!! 

We also taught Shawna about following the prophet on Tuesday, talked about prayer and Enos with Cheska, and ate dinner with the Ah Pucks- such a good Tuesday! We finished up our night by teaching my main man Henry- love him!! He's doing so well, soaking up all he can and testifying left and right about the temple...he's just the best. I love that man so completely!!  Such a good seed. Our current game plan is to go do baptisms on Nov. 5th...AHHHH, I am just so excited!! Love him!!!

On Wednesday, so much craziness happened. Such a good day! We taught Cheska in the morn times about fasting and tithing and committed her to fast to know if she should be baptized- it was such a powerful lesson. The Spirit was so strong, and Cheska is just so prepared- I'm almost sure that she already has her answer. She just gets it! 

good ol' Cheska...and Parker, haha! :)

We had interviews with good ol' President Hess after that gorgeous lesson- ah man, I just adore President. He's my fave!! He makes me so weepy and it's always the greatest thing when we get to chat. I told him about my recent epiphanies regarding humility, and we talked for a long time about true conversion, about understanding that this work is not ours- slowly but surely, I have become more truly converted to the gospel because of my humility. I'm still not 100% there, but I'm becoming the person I know Christ needs me to be, and it was so lovely for my sweet mission president to tell me that. It was just the best! 

And then, we ran off to teach Tanisha. She opened the door and almost dropped us...when I asked if there's anything we can do to help her, haha. She stopped herself mid-door slam and asked if we could bring a vacuum...so we headed back to home base to grab a vacuum. One our way back, we saw this random lady running- and Sis. Bennett recognized her from her time in Fargo! We ended up knocking on her door and scheduling an appointment for later that night- such a crazy experience. Our path is truly guided!! 

We taught Tanisha after all that craziness and then ran off to dinner at the Kauffman's...and then, we chatted with Ivy, Logan, Madison, and Zack, Sister Bennett's homies from West Fargo- such a cool experience!! Ivy is less active, and Logan, Madison, and Zack are her roommates...and they all agreed to meet with us again as we testified of the reality of the Atonement- yahooooooooooooo!!!!! Three rogue new investigators, yeeeeeehaw!! Such a good night!

On Thursday, we exchanged back- love that Sister Tucker of mine!  It was really good to get back together and get back to changin' the world...and weekly planning, haha. We did just a tad of it on Thursday and then finished up on Friday- such a party! 

So, instead of weekly planning away on Thursday, we dropped off an Amharic Book of Mormon to our dear and beloved Almaz and contacted for a season at the park, where we met a mildly interested man named Arthur...it was a party. 

impromptu Almaz visit- such a dream! :)

We ate dinner with our beloved Orozcos on Thursday, and ran off afterwards with Audrey to teach Cheska- the best!! We went over the Word of Wisdom and the Law of Chastity, and Cheska loved it all...it was such a lovely time. I adore that Cheska! Such a good lady!! 

ANDDDDD, on Thursday, I turned 14 months old- AHHHHHHH!!!!  I'm not quite sure where the time went...man oh man, I'm getting old! 

On Friday, we went to district meeting and weekly planned for a season...and then, we taught Cheska. Love her!! We brought Sis. Ah Puck along, such a perfect fellowship, and we answered her questions about the Word of Wisdom and read some from the Book of Mormon. Such a lovely lesson!  On our way out, Cheska gave us each a popsicle for the road and it was just the best. I adore her!!

We also taught Harry on Friday, such a party, and tried our peeps...little slow, but overall a good time. 

And then, it was Saturday! We taught Teddy and Almaz about the Book of Mormon in the morn and had a crazy rest of our day...man oh man, such a party! Almaz has been reading away in her Amharic BoM and is starting to know it's true- YAHOOOOO!!!! Teddy still has a lot of doubts, but we read Ezekiel 37 with him and explained the stick of Judah and the stick of Joseph...and I think we blew that sweet Ethiopian man's mind, haha. It was the first time in all my days that I could explain that scripture effectively and it was so cool. We're going to take a bit of a break from our Ethiopian homies, give them a chance to read and pray...but I'll keep you updated. Love them!!

We  taught all the people at the mall following our lovely lesson with Teddy and Almaz- such a good day! We met one woman, Vicky, who came down for the day from Winnipeg...and she was just so prepared to receive the restored gospel and the BoM. It was awesome!She was probably the cutest lady I've ever met...hopefully missionaries in Winnipeg will be able to get in contact with her!! 

We also taught Cheska on Saturday night- the best!! We were going to meet her at the church and teach her just before Women's Conference...but Cheska ended up running late and our plans changed a bit. Out of the blue, the Orozcos invited us all out to dinner and recorded Women's Conference for us to watch afterwards- such a tender mercy!!  So, as a whole team, Cheska included, we went out to Buffalo Wild Wings (our b-dubs, as Audrey would say) and chatted about the Bible and BoM over wings...it was just the best!! I adore the Orozcos so completely. If you ever want to make a missionary's day, surprise them with dinner. You'll win their eternal admiration!  Goodness, the Orozcos are such wonderful people. My faves!!

ha, such a good time!

After dinner, we headed back to the Orozcos and watched Women's Conference and taught Cheska- it was the perfect night. We're even going to take advantage of the recorded Women's Conference and watch it again with Cheska on Thursday- the besssssst!!!  Such a perfect Saturday!!

I love the Orozcos so so much!

On Sunday, we went to church and all of our people came too- the best!! I sat between Martha and Henry, with Cheska sitting by the Orozcos and Sue hanging ten with Sis. Tucker...such a lovely time! There was a perfect guitar musical number of "I Heard Him Come", which made me all kinds of weepy- it was pure perfection all around. We even stuck around after and went to a baptism for Kole Ingram, an adorable eight year old- and Cheska came, too!!  It was such a delightful day! We taught Cheska after all that adventuring, just read Alma 32 with her and talked about developing faith...such a lovely time. Such a lovely Sunday!! 

Welp, that was my week! It's been a crazy one, full of miracles and love...and next week will be magical, too!! It's already been a perfect Monday! 

I love you all so much, my dear friends! Have the greatest weeks ever, keep being the coolest- you're the best!! I adore you! Never forgot how much you are loved! 

Love, 

Sister Robinson

The Most Delightful of All Mission Weeks!

Goodness GRACIOUS, I don't even know where to begin with this email and this week. It's truly been the greatest week of all my mission life, with more miracles and tender mercies than even this group email can contain- and the baptism of our dear friend Henry, AHHHHHHH!!!! It was the single greatest moment of my life, and I'm still ridiculously weepy about it all even as I type this...man oh man, it was just the best. Henry Edwin Tamba is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and I didn't know I could experience so much joy- my sweet Liberian is a member of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ! AHHHHHHHHH!!!! It doesn't even feel like real life, and I am just so grateful for the opportunity I have had to teach that lovely man and prepare him to be baptized. I'll tell you all about it in due time, don't even worry...but his baptism was definitely the highlight of this most gorgeous week of all time. Life is beautiful and God is good- we are so blessed to know what we do! 

Alright, let's do this thing. We kicked this perfect week off by pday-ing away, the usual...and chilling for a minute with our bestie Audrey Orozco- the dream!! We ate popcorn and watched a movie (approved, of course- don't worry!) and hung ten on recliners- such a magical pday! 

pure perfection! :)

After all our tomfoolery, we headed out to teach the masses. We tried AJ first, and Sherah came along, and then ended our night by teaching Henry- the best! We taught that adorable little man every night this week and it was the happiest time.  On Monday, we went over the baptismal interview questions and taught follow the prophet- that lesson is totally becoming one of my faves. It's the greatest! It makes so much sense, and I love watching Pres. Monson's most recent conference talk and feeling the Spirit just ooze into the room- the truth is truly undeniable. Henry immediately testifed that Thomas S. Monson is a man of God, and that he knows he is the Prophet- it was amazing. Henry is amazing!! 

On Tuesday, we had an early morning lesson with Cheska, the super cool new investigator we taught at the Orozco's last Sunday- the best! We went over the Restoration and she struggled a bit with the Priesthood- she's been raised Roman Catholic her whole life and I think we rocked her world with that lesson. Yikes! But, we scheduled a return appointment for Wednesday...and we ended up teaching Cheska everyday this week, too!!  I'm learning that teaching people everyday is the secret to life- it's amazing how much faster they progress!

We also had to clean out our sweet van Bertha on Tuesday- such a tragedy. BUT, we're going to get a new car tomorrow- hallelujah!! It was still sad to part with Bertha, but we took a farewell picture and said our goodbyes...and learned in full that cars aren't waterproof, haha. So many life lessons are acquired from missions!! 

cleaning Bertha. ):

We tried out peeps in the afternoon hours of Tuesday and taught a nice man named Scott about the Restoration before heading off to dinner- such a party! We ate with the Kauffmans and was such a lovely time- love them!! We ate yummy spaghetti and had snow cones for dessert- they have a SNOW CONE MAKER, AHHHHHHHH!!!!  It was the greatest thing ever, man oh man! We also shared follow the prophet with their fam and my heart nearly exploded with Kauffman love- they're just the best!

We finished up our Tuesday by teaching our good man Henry- such a lovely time! The Smiths came along and we went over the ten commandments and temples...ah, Henry just brings so much joy to my life. He's the greatest!! 

As we taught away, our investigator AJ strutted through Henry's door- AHHHH!!! So, we taught AJ right after our lesson with Henry and got a return appointment for Wednesday- tender mercies of the LOOOOORD!!!! 

And so, we totally taught AJ on Wednesday and it was the loveliest time. Love him! We first thing in the morn prepped for Henry's baptism and took a media hour and then ran off to AJ's, where we ate crazy Liberian food and taught him the Plan of Salvation. The best! We found out later that the mystery meat of the crazy Liberian food was goat- AHHHHH!!!  It was pretty good though, haha. I do love African food!! 

But anyway, AJ was a bit dubious about the Plan of Salvation...it was a tad disheartening. BUT, he committed to come to Henry's baptism- and he totally came, yahoooooo!!!! He's a cool cat. 

After AJ's lesson, we taught Cheska- the best! We chatted more about the Restoration and answered her questions about the Book of Mormon and it was sweet. Love her!

And THEN, our BFF Audrey swung by Cheska's and we hightailed it to Travis'- the greeeeeeatest!!  I've missed that hooligan of ours! When we pulled up, he was casually leaning on his car, reading the Book of Mormon and smoking a cigarette...ah man, he's such a hoodlum! We read some scriptures together and talked about the Atonement- and he told us that he knows it's all true but he's not ready to quit smoking yet.  We've got a plan up our sleeves though, don't worry...Travis will get baptized yet! It was a really good lesson, and Travis was so honest with us- the best! I just love becoming friends with your investigators and loving them- it changes everything. Travis is just my fave! 

Such a hooligan! :)

Audrey took us out to Qdoba after that most lovely lesson and I almost sobbed with joy- I love burritos so much!  I forgot for a sec, haha. It's the Lord's food!! 

We ended our night by trying the masses and walking around town- and teaching Henry, yahooooooooo!!! Love that guy!! We also casually ran into Almaz on the way over to Henry's and scheduled a return appointment for Saturday- the best! Such a good Wednesday!! 

On Thursday, we weekly planned for a minute and then taught Rodeen- I love her SO MUCHHHHH!!!!!  She cooked us chili and we taught her about the Gospel...and the WHOLE time, she chatted about her baptism- it was the COOOOOOLEST! Ah, Rodeen. Such a lovely woman!! We invited her to Henry's baptism and she TOTTTTTALLY came, huzzzzzah!!! I think she has more of an answer than she's ready to admit- Rodeen is going to be baptized SOON, I can just feel it! She's ready!! 

We tried our peeps and biked around town after that most gorgeous lesson with Rodeen...no luck. So, with a bit of despair in our hearts, we biked on over to the Orozco's to followup a referral- and they ended up inviting us over for dinner, yahoooooo!!!  Ah, the Orozcos are my FAVES. The best!! Audrey went out teaching with us for a minute to Rolly's and then we raced back for fajitas- goodness, they're the greatest people I know, those Orozcos! 

(so much biking.)

Rolly's lesson with Audrey went really well- I love that man! He's the best! We talked about baptism and invited him to Henry's and read Alma 36...and he came to the baptism, YAHOOOOOOO!!! It was the greatest! 

Rolly and Joe!

We finished up our Thursday by first teaching Cheska about the Plan of Salvation and then racing off to the church for Henry's baptismal interview- such a crazy night! Cheska had oodles of questions about the Plan of Salvation but most of them involved how she could be baptized for her grandma- it was amazing. The Spirit was so strong and Cheska wept while admitting that she's starting to get answers- AHHHHHH!!!! This gospel is just so true, and it's incredible to see the lives of those I love change because of it. The best!

And then, it was Friday. We had district meeting in the morn and then a lesson with Cheska right after- such a party! We read 2 Nephi 31 with her and talked about the gospel- it was sweet! Her boyfriend in Dickinson skyped in and testified like a pro and the Spirit was so strong again- just the best! 

We ate some lunch with Sherah following that gorgeous lesson- I missed our home girl! She's doing good, and I am still obsessed with her- such a party to hang ten with her for a minute. Love her! 

We tried our peeps once more and did a bit of street contacting...and then we were off to dinner with the greatest woman I've ever met, Martha Stewart- such a party!! She actually lives in our building and just started coming back to church a few years ago...she's straight up amazing. She moved to Grand Forks a month ago for work, loves the gospel, and fed us spaghetti and cheesecake- it was the best!! We taught her the Restoration, because she kind of got thrown into church and doesn't really know the doctrine- her first calling once she was active was Relief Society President, man oh man! She's just the coolest, and we scheduled another appointment for next Friday- I'm so jazzed to be working with her! She wept through the whole dinner, especially as we testified of Christ, and told us that it was a miracle that we found her- man oh man, Heavenly Father is so good to us!! Martha is the greatest!! 

We finished up our Friday by teaching Henry about eternal marriage- it was the best! Bro. Buttars came along and we finished filling out his baptismal record...man oh man, I still can't believe this week really happened. It's too crazy!! 

On Saturday, we taught Teddy and Almaz with Bro. Dickson about the Plan of Salvation, chatted with Cheska about the prophet, and ran off to the church to prep for Henry's baptism- AHHHHHH!!! We finished the programs and downloaded videos for the changing times and filled the font...and that truly is the sweetest sound in all the world. We finished weekly planning on the foyer couches just to hear it and weep a bit- life is truly amazing. God is truly good!  I found myself all day on Saturday in awe of His goodness and grace- through Him, Henry was baptized and we were able to prepare him. It's amazing! 

hehe!

Also, making programs is SUCH a dream. Man oh man!

The baptism itself was so lovely- the ward made it so beautiful and almost all of our investigators came. My heart nearly exploded with love!! Henry's white pants were a bit too long, Grand Forks water in the font was a bit green, but the Spirit testified throughout and it was pure perfection. We all ate cake afterwards and Henry just glowed- I've never seen him so happy. It was beautiful! I feel like I stared at him through the whole cake eating experience and through all of church on Sunday- he doesn't even look like him anymore! He is truly a changed man, with the name of Christ written on the fleshy tables of his heart. It's amazing! The gospel is true!!

We love Henry! 

Ah, such a lovely Saturday. We ate dinner with the Hutchisons after the baptism of the century, such lovely people, and trekked back to home base, street contacting all the while- a perfect day! 

On Sunday, we taught Teddy and Almaz again, watched our dear Henry get confirmed, and taught Cheska about the temple at the Orozco's- such a lovely Sabbath! On our way back home, we casually ran into Safee and AJ...and they both committed to be baptized, AHHHH!! Life is crazy here in Grand Forks!! We even had a rogue potential who we taught about the Plan of Salvation outside her house a couple weeks ago wander into church today- crazy, crazy!! Life is too good to be true!!!

Ah man, such a gorgeous and lovely week- truly the best week ever!! I love you all so much, and I am so grateful for all you do- have the greatest week! I adore you!!

Love, 

Sister Robinson 

also, here's a random bra we found whilst biking. The best! :)