Howdy y'all!!
So it was actually a fast week! This weekend my companion (Hermana Tuckett) was sick and it turned out to be a blessing because I took the time that she was sleeping to read the talks in the Texas Houston South Mission handbook and reading those made quite a difference. My favorite, and the ones that really hit me, were "Continue in Patience" by President Uchtdorf, "We Are Doing A Great Work and Cannot Come Down" by President Uchtdorf, "An High Priest of Good Things to Come" by Elder Holland (I encourage you all you read this one, its AMAZING!) , and "A Child and A Disciple" by President Erying. They all helped lift my spirits and my trust in the Lord. I figure that the 2 biggest things that I will learn on the mission is patience and diligence. Its hard for me to struggle with something as I have with learning Spanish. I know that it will come and that the Lord will help me, I just need to get my heart and my head in the same place and put aside my fear. I am working really hard to change my thoughts in the morning to make it so I am thinking about my investigators and the people who's life I can help change that day. I am working on having patience and enduring my afflictions and difficulties well, just just enduring them.
One of my favorite quotes "Patience means to abide in faith, knowing that sometimes it is in the waiting rather than in the receiving that we grow the most." That quote from President Uchtdorf really stuck out to me because I realized that that is what the Lord is doing with me. I am learning to put my faith and trust in him and that in due time I will learn what I need to and he will then bless me with what I want. I wouldn't be able to learn these things if I knew spanish right now, I now realize that more than I did before. On of my favorite quotes from Elder Holland is " Some blessing come soon, some come late, and some don't come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ they come." And another one that spoke directly to me and I hope will speak to some of you "You keep your chin up. It will be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come." I just love Elder Holland!!
Anyway it was a good week. I had my first spainsh fiesta and the only thing it had in common with other ward parties I have been to was that it was in the gym of the church. ha ha. It didn't have funeral potatoes or any sort of casserole and it was no music that we have ever played in the good ol' Mill Road Ward but it was a good time. We even had 3 investigators out to it! We had 8 investigators to church yesterday and have 12 progressing. We have 6 with a date and that is only going to improve as we had a challenge from our mission president this week to double that number. Things are going well here and I am happy to hear that things seem to be going well at home. I will think of you all as I go outside and enjoy the 65 degree weather... ha ha. Thanks again for all of you and for your letter, love and continued support, it means the world to me. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless you and your families.
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Monday, February 28, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 11
Howdy y'all!
So sorry this is a day late, I know you all were dying of suspense, but since yesterday was President's Day they changed our P-day. Today I made sure to leave me with enough time so I could write a good email to you all. So I'm not really as homesick anymore just in case y'all were wondering, only in the mornings during study time before we get out and work. So last week my mom sent me an email asking me questions and I should've forwarded it on here so you all could know too so I'm going to to it this week.
1. Tell me about your trainer, where is she from, how long has she been out, etc.
2. What is your apartment like?
3. Did you get your bicycle? Are you riding bikes or in a car?
4. What is your area like?
5. Have you taught anyone yet? Are you using spanish alot?
6. What is the weather like?
7. Are you close to places to go buy things you need?
1. My trainer is Hermana Tuckett. She is from Alpine, UT and this is her last transfer- she even extended, and we get along great.
2. My apartment is pretty clean and spacious. Our kitchen is little but its not like we cook alot anyway. Our bathroom is small but all is well. Its clean and in good repair and that is about all I can ask for.
3. I did get my bike and it is nice. We have both bikes and a car, we have rode bikes about 2 times already and we wear shorts underneath so all is good there.
4. My area is in the very far northeast corner of the mission (Houston mission to the north and Houston East to the east). It is in a suburb of Houston about 20 min from downtown. It is a decent area, not a whole lot of white people around. I like it though, it sure is different than Utah, and there are no mountains so I have no idea which way is north or where anything is relative to me. I miss the green... I know Utah isn't that green right now but here we don't really have a spring and my companion said the place we are doesn't really ever get green... We have a spanish ward (Houston 1) and it is full of great people and great member missionaries.
5. We have done a whole lot of teaching (I think we taught 23 lessons this week) and have 9 investigators with baptismal dates and we had 8 at church on sunday. I try to use the little spanish I know, but it is not enough. Like I said I understand easily less than 20% of what is said during the day, but all the ward members tell me it is getting better so I guess I better believe them.
6. The weather was cold when I got here but has started to warm up and the humidity is certainly coming.
7. Yeah we have a Walmart kinda close. (yes I have to shop at walmart... The things we will do for the Lord- I'm hoping that if I shop at one here He will stop the one they are building in Heber but I don't think that will happen) I did go to Ross last week and buy some shortsleeve shirts so I'm good to go clothes wise.
So things are going better. We have some great investigators that I am excited about and excited to teach. So this week we met Giovanni at a gas station, we went by to set up a time to teach and we ended up standing on his porch for 45 minutes while he told us his life story. He is an engineer and is very smart. He knows there is a God (sees the logical part of it) and there have been times in his life where he has had everything and yet still felt something missing (do any of you know what could fill this hole??? hmm... I wonder...) So we left him with a Book of Mormon and he said he would read it and I'm so excited to teach him because I know that the gospel will fill this whole and bring peace to some of the burdens he has been carrying. I'm excited to teach him the logical part of the gospel because there are so many logical reasons also to why this is tur true church.
This week did go by fast and I like being out and teaching a lot better than sitting in my apartment studying. We did have some fun adventures this week though, so part of our area is pretty south and it takes us about 30 min to get there so we don't go down a whole lot but on Sunday we didn't have any appointments so we took the bikes down and explored for a couple hours. It was pretty cool and it was a gorgeous day and a very pretty area. There wasn't a whole lot of hispanics but there were some pretty cool looking houses and apartments and it is totally a place I would come visit when I get home and am not a missionary. Well like I said things are getting better and starting to go by fast. I heard the heartbreak back home about Jerry Sloan resigning... I have to be honest and when I read that we were in the car coming back from a mission conference with another compainionship and I let out a gasp and they all asked what had happened and they didn't believe that I had gasped about that but come on! Thats big news!! I though the only way Jerry Sloan would stop coaching is when he died! (kinda like Orrin Hatch) ;) haha. That is all the politics and sports I am going to talk about for now (GO COUGARS!!).
I hope all is going well with all of you and you are all staying positive and keeping your heads up! I know that our Heavenly Father loves us and that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can all be made clean and be forgiven of our sins and that He will take our burdens if we let him. Don't let discourgagement get you down, we have the blessings and fullness of the gospel in our lives!!! What more could be better!?!?! I love you all and thank you always for your continued support. I'm going to share a secret with you all... I probably wouldn't have stayed on the mission if I didn't know that me coming home early would disappoint you all. Sometimes the only thing that keeps me from calling my mission president and throwing in the towel is knowing that if I did that I would be letting y'all down. The knowledge that all of the people I love and respect know I can do this makes me believe in myself at times when I just want to give up, but the support of you all keeps me going so I thank you will all of my heart. May our Heavenly Father bless you and your families.
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
So sorry this is a day late, I know you all were dying of suspense, but since yesterday was President's Day they changed our P-day. Today I made sure to leave me with enough time so I could write a good email to you all. So I'm not really as homesick anymore just in case y'all were wondering, only in the mornings during study time before we get out and work. So last week my mom sent me an email asking me questions and I should've forwarded it on here so you all could know too so I'm going to to it this week.
1. Tell me about your trainer, where is she from, how long has she been out, etc.
2. What is your apartment like?
3. Did you get your bicycle? Are you riding bikes or in a car?
4. What is your area like?
5. Have you taught anyone yet? Are you using spanish alot?
6. What is the weather like?
7. Are you close to places to go buy things you need?
1. My trainer is Hermana Tuckett. She is from Alpine, UT and this is her last transfer- she even extended, and we get along great.
2. My apartment is pretty clean and spacious. Our kitchen is little but its not like we cook alot anyway. Our bathroom is small but all is well. Its clean and in good repair and that is about all I can ask for.
3. I did get my bike and it is nice. We have both bikes and a car, we have rode bikes about 2 times already and we wear shorts underneath so all is good there.
4. My area is in the very far northeast corner of the mission (Houston mission to the north and Houston East to the east). It is in a suburb of Houston about 20 min from downtown. It is a decent area, not a whole lot of white people around. I like it though, it sure is different than Utah, and there are no mountains so I have no idea which way is north or where anything is relative to me. I miss the green... I know Utah isn't that green right now but here we don't really have a spring and my companion said the place we are doesn't really ever get green... We have a spanish ward (Houston 1) and it is full of great people and great member missionaries.
5. We have done a whole lot of teaching (I think we taught 23 lessons this week) and have 9 investigators with baptismal dates and we had 8 at church on sunday. I try to use the little spanish I know, but it is not enough. Like I said I understand easily less than 20% of what is said during the day, but all the ward members tell me it is getting better so I guess I better believe them.
6. The weather was cold when I got here but has started to warm up and the humidity is certainly coming.
7. Yeah we have a Walmart kinda close. (yes I have to shop at walmart... The things we will do for the Lord- I'm hoping that if I shop at one here He will stop the one they are building in Heber but I don't think that will happen) I did go to Ross last week and buy some shortsleeve shirts so I'm good to go clothes wise.
So things are going better. We have some great investigators that I am excited about and excited to teach. So this week we met Giovanni at a gas station, we went by to set up a time to teach and we ended up standing on his porch for 45 minutes while he told us his life story. He is an engineer and is very smart. He knows there is a God (sees the logical part of it) and there have been times in his life where he has had everything and yet still felt something missing (do any of you know what could fill this hole??? hmm... I wonder...) So we left him with a Book of Mormon and he said he would read it and I'm so excited to teach him because I know that the gospel will fill this whole and bring peace to some of the burdens he has been carrying. I'm excited to teach him the logical part of the gospel because there are so many logical reasons also to why this is tur true church.
This week did go by fast and I like being out and teaching a lot better than sitting in my apartment studying. We did have some fun adventures this week though, so part of our area is pretty south and it takes us about 30 min to get there so we don't go down a whole lot but on Sunday we didn't have any appointments so we took the bikes down and explored for a couple hours. It was pretty cool and it was a gorgeous day and a very pretty area. There wasn't a whole lot of hispanics but there were some pretty cool looking houses and apartments and it is totally a place I would come visit when I get home and am not a missionary. Well like I said things are getting better and starting to go by fast. I heard the heartbreak back home about Jerry Sloan resigning... I have to be honest and when I read that we were in the car coming back from a mission conference with another compainionship and I let out a gasp and they all asked what had happened and they didn't believe that I had gasped about that but come on! Thats big news!! I though the only way Jerry Sloan would stop coaching is when he died! (kinda like Orrin Hatch) ;) haha. That is all the politics and sports I am going to talk about for now (GO COUGARS!!).
I hope all is going well with all of you and you are all staying positive and keeping your heads up! I know that our Heavenly Father loves us and that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can all be made clean and be forgiven of our sins and that He will take our burdens if we let him. Don't let discourgagement get you down, we have the blessings and fullness of the gospel in our lives!!! What more could be better!?!?! I love you all and thank you always for your continued support. I'm going to share a secret with you all... I probably wouldn't have stayed on the mission if I didn't know that me coming home early would disappoint you all. Sometimes the only thing that keeps me from calling my mission president and throwing in the towel is knowing that if I did that I would be letting y'all down. The knowledge that all of the people I love and respect know I can do this makes me believe in myself at times when I just want to give up, but the support of you all keeps me going so I thank you will all of my heart. May our Heavenly Father bless you and your families.
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Monday, February 14, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 10
Howdy y'all!!
Okay... so nobody I have taught so far talks like that but I will! ha ha. First of all Happy Valentines Day!!
Well... here I am in Houston day 6. I started my mission by being honest in my farewell and I am going to continue to be honest with all of you that I love and admire. This week has been so long and difficult. I am homesick for Utah and I am continuely frustrated with my inability to speak and understand the language. I understand probably less than 20% of what is said to me through out the day. I love being on a mission though and already love the people here and their faith in our Savior as their lives are not easy. This is going to be a very short email this week because I didn't budget my time wisely on the computer but I promise I will do better next week. I was blessed to be able to go to the Houston temple as my trainer (This is her last transfer) had some converts get sealed. It was amazing and the Houston Temple is gorgeous. I am working hard to not be discouraged in my inadequacies and I know that one day I will learn spanish and understand... I just need to be patient, which is something you all know I was not blessed with. I love you all so much! Keep the faith!
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Okay... so nobody I have taught so far talks like that but I will! ha ha. First of all Happy Valentines Day!!
Well... here I am in Houston day 6. I started my mission by being honest in my farewell and I am going to continue to be honest with all of you that I love and admire. This week has been so long and difficult. I am homesick for Utah and I am continuely frustrated with my inability to speak and understand the language. I understand probably less than 20% of what is said to me through out the day. I love being on a mission though and already love the people here and their faith in our Savior as their lives are not easy. This is going to be a very short email this week because I didn't budget my time wisely on the computer but I promise I will do better next week. I was blessed to be able to go to the Houston temple as my trainer (This is her last transfer) had some converts get sealed. It was amazing and the Houston Temple is gorgeous. I am working hard to not be discouraged in my inadequacies and I know that one day I will learn spanish and understand... I just need to be patient, which is something you all know I was not blessed with. I love you all so much! Keep the faith!
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 9
Kelsey left the MTC yesterday to leave for Houston! Her new address is
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
4627 Austin Pkwy
Sugar Land, TX 77479
Dear y'all!
Well... here is officially my last email from the MTC. Its a weird feeling. When I entered the MTC 2 months ago I never thought this day would come. I guess it goes to show you that the days do go by and there is nothing you can do about it. I have learned a lot during my time here and yet I feel so unprepared and inadequate as I get ready to leave in the morning. I'm excited to go and teach the people of Houston. I'm excited to see miracles and to watch peoples lives change. I know it will be hard and that I have tough days ahead of me, but the hope and knowledge that I have the Lord behind me and the hope that I will change at least one person's life is what keeps me going. As many of you know the unknown and change scare me and I don't like it, but I know that its in situations like these that we grow the most. I know that considering how fast the last 2 months have gone, the next 16 months will go by twice as fast especially if I get lost in the service of others. It has been as great last week at the MTC and I know that this is just another transfer but I know that today is the first day of the rest of my life, there is so much out there ahead of me that I can only pray that I can follow the Spirit and do the things the Lord needs me too.
I guess the last thing to do is to bear my testimony:
I know this church is true. I testify that the true church of our Savior Jesus Christ was restored through Joseph Smith. I know that our Heavenly Father knows us and can call us by name. I testify that Jesus Christ is my Savior, Redeemer, and our older brother. I know that families can be together for ever. I know that nothing is a coincidence and that Heavenly Father is always in control. I am so thankful for the Atonement and for the opportunities that it affords us, I wouldn't have be able to be serving a mission or be able to be in tune with the Spirit if it wasn't for the Atonement. I know that the gift of tongues is real. I know that the Spirit will guide me to those the Lord has prepared. I testify and promise that if we follow the commandments and live our baptismal covenants we will be clean before God and be able to have the comforting power and peace of the Atonement in our lives and return to live with our Heavenly Father once again. Digo estas cosas en el nombre Jesucristo, Amen.
I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to serve my Savior and Heavenly Father. I am so grateful to all of you for your love and support, I couldn't do this without it. When ever I have a rough day I think about all of you and know that your thoughts and prayers are with me and sometimes the only thing that keeps me going is the thought that if I quit I would disappoint you all. I promise all of you that I will never give up and that I will work hard everyday. I love you all so much and I hope you all will ponder and look at your own life and strenghten your testimony, with such a happy thing as the gospel if we strengthen our testimony then we will only be happier in a world where true happiness is a rare thing. May our Heavenly Father bless all of you and your families. Until next time, when my email will be from Texas. :)
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
4627 Austin Pkwy
Sugar Land, TX 77479
Dear y'all!
Well... here is officially my last email from the MTC. Its a weird feeling. When I entered the MTC 2 months ago I never thought this day would come. I guess it goes to show you that the days do go by and there is nothing you can do about it. I have learned a lot during my time here and yet I feel so unprepared and inadequate as I get ready to leave in the morning. I'm excited to go and teach the people of Houston. I'm excited to see miracles and to watch peoples lives change. I know it will be hard and that I have tough days ahead of me, but the hope and knowledge that I have the Lord behind me and the hope that I will change at least one person's life is what keeps me going. As many of you know the unknown and change scare me and I don't like it, but I know that its in situations like these that we grow the most. I know that considering how fast the last 2 months have gone, the next 16 months will go by twice as fast especially if I get lost in the service of others. It has been as great last week at the MTC and I know that this is just another transfer but I know that today is the first day of the rest of my life, there is so much out there ahead of me that I can only pray that I can follow the Spirit and do the things the Lord needs me too.
I guess the last thing to do is to bear my testimony:
I know this church is true. I testify that the true church of our Savior Jesus Christ was restored through Joseph Smith. I know that our Heavenly Father knows us and can call us by name. I testify that Jesus Christ is my Savior, Redeemer, and our older brother. I know that families can be together for ever. I know that nothing is a coincidence and that Heavenly Father is always in control. I am so thankful for the Atonement and for the opportunities that it affords us, I wouldn't have be able to be serving a mission or be able to be in tune with the Spirit if it wasn't for the Atonement. I know that the gift of tongues is real. I know that the Spirit will guide me to those the Lord has prepared. I testify and promise that if we follow the commandments and live our baptismal covenants we will be clean before God and be able to have the comforting power and peace of the Atonement in our lives and return to live with our Heavenly Father once again. Digo estas cosas en el nombre Jesucristo, Amen.
I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to serve my Savior and Heavenly Father. I am so grateful to all of you for your love and support, I couldn't do this without it. When ever I have a rough day I think about all of you and know that your thoughts and prayers are with me and sometimes the only thing that keeps me going is the thought that if I quit I would disappoint you all. I promise all of you that I will never give up and that I will work hard everyday. I love you all so much and I hope you all will ponder and look at your own life and strenghten your testimony, with such a happy thing as the gospel if we strengthen our testimony then we will only be happier in a world where true happiness is a rare thing. May our Heavenly Father bless all of you and your families. Until next time, when my email will be from Texas. :)
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 8
Querido familia y amigos,
Here is one of my last emails from the MTC! So last Thursday was the best day ever! What happened that made it so fantastic you ask? I got my travel plans!! I head to Houston on February 8th at 8:30 in the morning! What a fantastic day!
This week has been a bit of an up and down week. It's hard because I am super excited to get to Texas and to go and preach and teach the gospel, yet I know that it is super important to stay strong in the MTC and sprint to the finish. I know that I will be successful in the field because no obstacle in front of me compares to the power behind me. Yet at the same time I am starting to feel so unprepared and inadequate for the challenge ahead of me. I want it to get there and to just get into the flow of things. Its funny because I have a decent sized spanish vocabulary when it comes to gospel topics, but if someone were to talk to me about anything else I would be totally lost! Ha ha. That too will improve with time. I have a testimony of the truthfulness and reality of the gift of tongues. The difficult thing about that is that for me to receive the gift of tongues I have to first show an act of faith by opening my mouth, even when I am not confident in my communication skills. My inability to fully express myself is something that has frustrated me here in the MTC these last 8 weeks, but something I am learning is to truely trust in the Lord. I know that it will only get tougher to show that faith when I get to Texas and are talking to real people, but I have promised myself that I will do all I can to practice and learn the language and to show the Lord my deep faith and testimony.
I'm excited to get to Texas and to be a tool in the hand of the Lord. I have worked hard to notice the tender mercies of the Lord everyday and to learn how to follow the promptings of the Spirit. There are people in the Houston South Mission that are being prepared to hear the gospel and I am so excited to be able to serve them and see their hearts change as they come unto our Savior Jesus Christ and let the Atonement cleanse their lives as I have seen it cleanse mine. I already love the people of Houston (even though I haven't met them yet) and am excited to bring them the HAPPINESS of the restored gospel. I can't think of anything in the world that could make us happier than knowing that we have a Father in Heaven who loves and knows each of us individually; or knowing that we have an older brother who will walk with us through our darkest moments; or knowing that we can be with our families FOREVER!!! Oh mí gatos!! This gospel is amazing!
Well my time is almost up- so until next week! I urge you all to read the First Presidency message from last months Ensign and the "we need missionaries" talk in this month's and talk to all those young men you know and get them to prepare for a mission!!
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Here is my next address:
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
4627 Austin Pkwy
Sugar Land, TX 77479
Here is one of my last emails from the MTC! So last Thursday was the best day ever! What happened that made it so fantastic you ask? I got my travel plans!! I head to Houston on February 8th at 8:30 in the morning! What a fantastic day!
This week has been a bit of an up and down week. It's hard because I am super excited to get to Texas and to go and preach and teach the gospel, yet I know that it is super important to stay strong in the MTC and sprint to the finish. I know that I will be successful in the field because no obstacle in front of me compares to the power behind me. Yet at the same time I am starting to feel so unprepared and inadequate for the challenge ahead of me. I want it to get there and to just get into the flow of things. Its funny because I have a decent sized spanish vocabulary when it comes to gospel topics, but if someone were to talk to me about anything else I would be totally lost! Ha ha. That too will improve with time. I have a testimony of the truthfulness and reality of the gift of tongues. The difficult thing about that is that for me to receive the gift of tongues I have to first show an act of faith by opening my mouth, even when I am not confident in my communication skills. My inability to fully express myself is something that has frustrated me here in the MTC these last 8 weeks, but something I am learning is to truely trust in the Lord. I know that it will only get tougher to show that faith when I get to Texas and are talking to real people, but I have promised myself that I will do all I can to practice and learn the language and to show the Lord my deep faith and testimony.
I'm excited to get to Texas and to be a tool in the hand of the Lord. I have worked hard to notice the tender mercies of the Lord everyday and to learn how to follow the promptings of the Spirit. There are people in the Houston South Mission that are being prepared to hear the gospel and I am so excited to be able to serve them and see their hearts change as they come unto our Savior Jesus Christ and let the Atonement cleanse their lives as I have seen it cleanse mine. I already love the people of Houston (even though I haven't met them yet) and am excited to bring them the HAPPINESS of the restored gospel. I can't think of anything in the world that could make us happier than knowing that we have a Father in Heaven who loves and knows each of us individually; or knowing that we have an older brother who will walk with us through our darkest moments; or knowing that we can be with our families FOREVER!!! Oh mí gatos!! This gospel is amazing!
Well my time is almost up- so until next week! I urge you all to read the First Presidency message from last months Ensign and the "we need missionaries" talk in this month's and talk to all those young men you know and get them to prepare for a mission!!
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Here is my next address:
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
4627 Austin Pkwy
Sugar Land, TX 77479
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
