Howdy y'all,
I hope y'all had a fantastic Easter and day remembering the Resurrection of our Savior and spending time with your families! It was a weird day for me not being with family, and still having to work, and not really understanding what was said in Sacrament meeting, but it was all good! This week went by pretty fast and we had a BAPTISM!! Norma was baptized on Saturday and confirmed yesterday! She is super awesome and bore her testimony in Relief Society yesterday too! There is no doubt in my mind that she was ready to be baptized and that she knows the Church is true. The awesome thing is that she was a member referral and has been investigating the Church off and on for about a year now and the member has been there all the way supporting Norma and being an example to her. That is the way missionary work should go. Here is the Investigator Weekly! (yes I made a name for it, I have to keep things fresh, new, and bold so I make sure I keep you all captivated for the next about 60 weeks!! ha ha) Anyway- Investigator Weekly:
Francis: She called us on Wednesday and told us she doesn't want to get baptized anymore. We went over and visited her on Thursday and we think its for two reasons that funnel into one reason 1) She called her mom and told her about getting baptized and her mom told her that she was already baptized and Francis didn't say anything against that. 2) She has a really hard time giving up coffee, she only made it one day last week and told us that the Bible says we shouldn't eat meat. So if we don't eat meat she won't drink coffee. Both of those reasons equal a lack of testimony about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, we will see what happens but she isn't really a fan of us coming over anymore- we might be giving her a break.
Paula: She is super awesome and has a testimony of Joseph Smith from a really weird round about way that I will tell you all about next week because I don't have time to tell you this week. She has a date for May 14th and we are super excited.
Raul: We are still teaching him even though he is out of our ward boundries because his wife won't let the other missionaries come over and she has kinda turned against us but he knows its true and just needs to decide if he is willing to make the sacrifice that baptism will take.
It was a good week that flew by. We had interviews this week and and I found out that it is a very real possibility that I am going to be senior companion next transfer and I am absolutely terrified. I know that faith and fear can not co-exist so I am working on replacing my fear with faith. I know that the Lord qualifies those He calls so I am trying to be obedient to be open to those blessings. My spanish is slowly coming along but its still not to where I feel comfortable having to rely on it solely but we will see what happens! I love you all and thank you for your prayers, love, letters, and support!! May the Lord bless you all, where ever you are.
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 19
I never said it would be easy,
I only said it would be worth it.
Howdy y'all,
So that is the new phrase that I tell myself everyday and I read a great quote from Elder Holland about how missionary work is not easy because salvation isn't easy. Its not a cheap thing and salvation wasn't easy for our Savior so how can we expect it to be easy for us? Its a pretty good quote- sorry I don't have the reference or anything- but it really kinda hit me.
This week was a pretty good week, we were able to go to the Houston Temple this week for Zone Conference which was pretty cool- it is a gorgeous temple. I had a little bit of a culture shock- I hadn't seen normal white people for like a month. My area right now is by Houston Baptist University and the close roads are Fondren and Bissonett (just in case y'all wanted to Google Earth it) in Houston, Texas. Now on to investigators:
Norma: She is totally awesome and her baptism is set for 10:00 Saturday morning! She is super excited and we are super excited for her. She wanted the old Obispo (Bishop) to baptize her but he couldn't do it this weekend so she decided to have one of the missionaries do it because she didn't want to wait! ha ha.
Francis: She has her baptism set for this weekend too but Hna. Stevens and I aren't exactly sure if she is getting baptized because she knows its true or because she wants to make us happy. She likes going to church and she has real desires but I just don't know if she is ready yet. We haven't had a whole lot of ward involvement with her which is a little hard but we have a Noche de Hogar (Family Home Evening) with them tonight with a family from the ward so hopefully that will start some friendships there. We will know how much she really wants to be baptized by tomorrow at her baptismal interview. She has to go all week, starting on Saturday, without coffee and she likes coffee so we will see how serious she is if she has gone these last few days without it. I hope to report on her baptism next week!
Paula: She is a new investigator that we have taught a couple times and she came to church yesterday! I think that she really enjoyed it and said she thinks she should read the Book of Mormon now. ha ha She isn't sure if she wants to get baptized again- but she loves to talk about baptism. I think its because she knows she needs to but she is living with a man and isn't really interested in getting married any time soon so we will see what happens with that.
That's about it for right now, our teaching pool is a little low but we do have some solid investigators. I'm excited for the baptisms this weekend and its times like these that really make it worth it and make up for all the difficult and hard times. The next 2 weeks until transfers should go by pretty fast but I am kinda nervous knowing that I could end up being senior companion (or even training) next transfer because of the huge turn over of Spanish sisters. Its a really scary thought because I am no where near prepared but I know that the Lord prepares us for the things that we need to do and that I won't be alone, whatever happens. My companion is going home on the 3rd and its weird to see her not excited or any of that, its good because she isn't trunky (slacking off) but it is so hard for me to understand why she isn't excited but maybe I'll feel the same way at the end of 13 months... who knows. Well I hope you all have a fantastic Easter with your families remembering the amazing promises that the Resurrection of our Savior brings us. It is incredible to see the changes that come into people's lives when they realized and learn about the true nature of this amazing event and the promises that it brings to ourselves and our families. I love and miss you all and once again want to thank y'all for your prayers, love, letters, and support. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless all of you and your families!!
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
I only said it would be worth it.
Howdy y'all,
So that is the new phrase that I tell myself everyday and I read a great quote from Elder Holland about how missionary work is not easy because salvation isn't easy. Its not a cheap thing and salvation wasn't easy for our Savior so how can we expect it to be easy for us? Its a pretty good quote- sorry I don't have the reference or anything- but it really kinda hit me.
This week was a pretty good week, we were able to go to the Houston Temple this week for Zone Conference which was pretty cool- it is a gorgeous temple. I had a little bit of a culture shock- I hadn't seen normal white people for like a month. My area right now is by Houston Baptist University and the close roads are Fondren and Bissonett (just in case y'all wanted to Google Earth it) in Houston, Texas. Now on to investigators:
Norma: She is totally awesome and her baptism is set for 10:00 Saturday morning! She is super excited and we are super excited for her. She wanted the old Obispo (Bishop) to baptize her but he couldn't do it this weekend so she decided to have one of the missionaries do it because she didn't want to wait! ha ha.
Francis: She has her baptism set for this weekend too but Hna. Stevens and I aren't exactly sure if she is getting baptized because she knows its true or because she wants to make us happy. She likes going to church and she has real desires but I just don't know if she is ready yet. We haven't had a whole lot of ward involvement with her which is a little hard but we have a Noche de Hogar (Family Home Evening) with them tonight with a family from the ward so hopefully that will start some friendships there. We will know how much she really wants to be baptized by tomorrow at her baptismal interview. She has to go all week, starting on Saturday, without coffee and she likes coffee so we will see how serious she is if she has gone these last few days without it. I hope to report on her baptism next week!
Paula: She is a new investigator that we have taught a couple times and she came to church yesterday! I think that she really enjoyed it and said she thinks she should read the Book of Mormon now. ha ha She isn't sure if she wants to get baptized again- but she loves to talk about baptism. I think its because she knows she needs to but she is living with a man and isn't really interested in getting married any time soon so we will see what happens with that.
That's about it for right now, our teaching pool is a little low but we do have some solid investigators. I'm excited for the baptisms this weekend and its times like these that really make it worth it and make up for all the difficult and hard times. The next 2 weeks until transfers should go by pretty fast but I am kinda nervous knowing that I could end up being senior companion (or even training) next transfer because of the huge turn over of Spanish sisters. Its a really scary thought because I am no where near prepared but I know that the Lord prepares us for the things that we need to do and that I won't be alone, whatever happens. My companion is going home on the 3rd and its weird to see her not excited or any of that, its good because she isn't trunky (slacking off) but it is so hard for me to understand why she isn't excited but maybe I'll feel the same way at the end of 13 months... who knows. Well I hope you all have a fantastic Easter with your families remembering the amazing promises that the Resurrection of our Savior brings us. It is incredible to see the changes that come into people's lives when they realized and learn about the true nature of this amazing event and the promises that it brings to ourselves and our families. I love and miss you all and once again want to thank y'all for your prayers, love, letters, and support. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless all of you and your families!!
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 18
Well hello my family and friends, (thought I would change up the greeting this week ;) )
So this started out as a rough week for us but ended up strong. We didn't have a lot of success until about Friday when we started teaching this new family. I have learned in my short 2 months in the field that the mission has more bad times than good, but the good times far out weigh the bad. My day could be going horrible but one good lesson turns it all around. An update on the investigadores (that's Spanish just in case y'all were wonderin) :
Raul: He came to church yesterday and after Sacrament told us that he was feeling something weird, in a good way. It was something he had never felt before and his pride was the only thing that was keeping him from crying. I have known that he knew it was the truth for about a week now and I know that his wife (Alba) knows its true too, she just doesn't want to change and he needs to decide whether he wants to go it by himself for right now. The bad news is they moved out of our area and into another ward so we are going to pass them over to another set of Hermanas (sister missionaries) but they are sad that we aren't going to come by any more. I have hope that they will be baptized soon.
Francis: She came to church again yesterday, she really likes it. Her date is this weekend but we are probably going to extend it because we still have a lot to teach her and we don't feel like she feels like she has a solid answer yet so we will probably move it to next weekend.
Norma: I think this is the first time I have talked about her (single mom 3 kids: son 12, daughter 7, and son 2) . She is amazing. She has completely changed in the last 2 weeks. She has been an eternigator (an eternal investigator) for about a year now. She has a 12 year old son who is a member but doesn't like to go to church. Norma has had some rough relationships in the past and that has kinda hindered her desire to change. When I first met her at the beginning of the transfer she wouldn't open up at all and I didn't have a lot of hope. The next time we went by though she told us that she had been reading and we decided to invite Antonio (12 year old son) in to the lesson because he usually just went in the back room while we were there. We talked to him a bit and he told us he didn't like to talk to girls and so we were gonna put the Elders on it but the next time we went over he joined in voluntarily and actually participated! This was when we set a solid date for Norma's baptism, the 23rd. We went over on Friday with Hna. Rodriguez (the member that referred her) and Norma invited Hna. Rodriguez to her baptism and we planned the time so that she could make sure and be there. So on the 23rd at 6 pm is Norma's baptism! ha ha And if you can believe it, it gets better! Yesterday at church at the beginning of Principios del Evangelio (Principles of the Gospel) when she stood up to introduce herself she told everyone that she was getting baptized soon and is excited to come to church and wants to keep coming! I don't know what changed things for her but she seems so much happier now and is starting to get it. I'm excited for her too.
So things are going good, I have my rough days but people like Norma make it all better. When things get rough and I find out about things I miss or am going to miss (such as finding out another good friend got engaged) I wonder why I left a life that I loved to come and struggle out here in Texas. It's not like I was lost or searching for what to do with my life or was feeling something missing. I had plans for the future and I was happy with the way things were going and the way my future looked, in times like this when my heart yearns for home I have to remind myself that I did it because I knew it was what the Lord wanted me to do. This is the first time in my life that I have completely aligned my will to His will. I put aside everything that I wanted to serve Him and do what I knew He wanted me to do. I know things will be just as good if not better when I get home and that I am doing what the Lord wants me to do and that He takes care of me. Everyday I see little tender mercies that remind me that He is watching out for me and is aware of my thoughts and feelings. A mission will probably be one of the hardest things I will ever do in my life, but I couldn't do it alone and I'm not doing it alone. Its hard to see my companion getting ready to go home in a couple weeks but I know my time will soon come and until then I will play all four quarters.
I hope all is well with all of you! I am continually grateful for all of your love and support. The work continues to progress in Houston, Texas! Oh and its true about everything being bigger in Texas. I saw the biggest cockroach I have ever seen in my entire life this morning!! IT WAS HUGE!! Like the length of my pinkie and absolutely disgusting! ha ha I took a picture of it so y'all can see it one day!
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
602 Eldridge Road
Sugar Land, TX 77478
P.S. This is a reminder to all of my aunts and uncles that you have a niece on a mission and you all should probably write her. I'm pretty sure the agreement was one letter a month so that means that some of you owe me 4 letters... ;) just a friendly reminder! For those of you that do write me you can ignore this little reminder! Love you all!
So this started out as a rough week for us but ended up strong. We didn't have a lot of success until about Friday when we started teaching this new family. I have learned in my short 2 months in the field that the mission has more bad times than good, but the good times far out weigh the bad. My day could be going horrible but one good lesson turns it all around. An update on the investigadores (that's Spanish just in case y'all were wonderin) :
Raul: He came to church yesterday and after Sacrament told us that he was feeling something weird, in a good way. It was something he had never felt before and his pride was the only thing that was keeping him from crying. I have known that he knew it was the truth for about a week now and I know that his wife (Alba) knows its true too, she just doesn't want to change and he needs to decide whether he wants to go it by himself for right now. The bad news is they moved out of our area and into another ward so we are going to pass them over to another set of Hermanas (sister missionaries) but they are sad that we aren't going to come by any more. I have hope that they will be baptized soon.
Francis: She came to church again yesterday, she really likes it. Her date is this weekend but we are probably going to extend it because we still have a lot to teach her and we don't feel like she feels like she has a solid answer yet so we will probably move it to next weekend.
Norma: I think this is the first time I have talked about her (single mom 3 kids: son 12, daughter 7, and son 2) . She is amazing. She has completely changed in the last 2 weeks. She has been an eternigator (an eternal investigator) for about a year now. She has a 12 year old son who is a member but doesn't like to go to church. Norma has had some rough relationships in the past and that has kinda hindered her desire to change. When I first met her at the beginning of the transfer she wouldn't open up at all and I didn't have a lot of hope. The next time we went by though she told us that she had been reading and we decided to invite Antonio (12 year old son) in to the lesson because he usually just went in the back room while we were there. We talked to him a bit and he told us he didn't like to talk to girls and so we were gonna put the Elders on it but the next time we went over he joined in voluntarily and actually participated! This was when we set a solid date for Norma's baptism, the 23rd. We went over on Friday with Hna. Rodriguez (the member that referred her) and Norma invited Hna. Rodriguez to her baptism and we planned the time so that she could make sure and be there. So on the 23rd at 6 pm is Norma's baptism! ha ha And if you can believe it, it gets better! Yesterday at church at the beginning of Principios del Evangelio (Principles of the Gospel) when she stood up to introduce herself she told everyone that she was getting baptized soon and is excited to come to church and wants to keep coming! I don't know what changed things for her but she seems so much happier now and is starting to get it. I'm excited for her too.
So things are going good, I have my rough days but people like Norma make it all better. When things get rough and I find out about things I miss or am going to miss (such as finding out another good friend got engaged) I wonder why I left a life that I loved to come and struggle out here in Texas. It's not like I was lost or searching for what to do with my life or was feeling something missing. I had plans for the future and I was happy with the way things were going and the way my future looked, in times like this when my heart yearns for home I have to remind myself that I did it because I knew it was what the Lord wanted me to do. This is the first time in my life that I have completely aligned my will to His will. I put aside everything that I wanted to serve Him and do what I knew He wanted me to do. I know things will be just as good if not better when I get home and that I am doing what the Lord wants me to do and that He takes care of me. Everyday I see little tender mercies that remind me that He is watching out for me and is aware of my thoughts and feelings. A mission will probably be one of the hardest things I will ever do in my life, but I couldn't do it alone and I'm not doing it alone. Its hard to see my companion getting ready to go home in a couple weeks but I know my time will soon come and until then I will play all four quarters.
I hope all is well with all of you! I am continually grateful for all of your love and support. The work continues to progress in Houston, Texas! Oh and its true about everything being bigger in Texas. I saw the biggest cockroach I have ever seen in my entire life this morning!! IT WAS HUGE!! Like the length of my pinkie and absolutely disgusting! ha ha I took a picture of it so y'all can see it one day!
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
602 Eldridge Road
Sugar Land, TX 77478
P.S. This is a reminder to all of my aunts and uncles that you have a niece on a mission and you all should probably write her. I'm pretty sure the agreement was one letter a month so that means that some of you owe me 4 letters... ;) just a friendly reminder! For those of you that do write me you can ignore this little reminder! Love you all!
Monday, April 4, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 17
Hello my dear family and friends,
First of all I hope you all had a fantastic Conference weekend. It was a good weekend for us and we had 5 investigators at conference. It has been a long week so I'm going to start with Wednesday. We had a long day- we moved apartment complexes and were hoping to get everything moved in the morning so we could work all afternoon and evening. When we were about 10 minutes away from being all packed up and all of our furniture in the trailer Elder Hamilton (senior missionary in charge of housing) called our new complex to make sure our apartment was ready and it wasn't! They were still laying tile and it wouldn't be done until 4! Well at this time it was 10:30 am and we were in shorts with our suitcases packed in the car. So we had to pull out our suitcases and change and go work for a couple hours until we could move in. That made for a long day and put a damper on our schedule but its all good and now we have a 2 bedroom apartment! ha ha. Its not quite as big as our other one but its nice to have a study room.
So now on to the weekend! I was lucky to be able to listen to 1 1/2 sessions on Conference in English. I loved conference but I have to be honest and say that at some points it was very hard because of the fact that I wanted so bad to understand what was being said and it was difficult to be watching it somewhere else than in my house with my family. First time ever I have watched it in a church! We did have 5 investigators that attended and I will talk more about them a little later. It was a great weekend on the account that last night I was able to give the talk on baptism at Geovani's baptism!!!! I found out on Friday night that it was going to happen and that I had been asked to speak! It was such a cool experience to see someone, where I remember Hna. Tuckett contacting him at a gas station one night, make all the changes in his life and see him almost from start to finish. I feel so blessed to be a part of it. I also found out that another one of our investigators from last transfer, Ancelmo, was baptized last weekend! Leading up to Sunday he didn't feel ready but after Testimony meeting he was in tears and said that he wanted to be baptized so in a matter of 3 hours everything was ready and he was baptized!! There are a number of investigators that I taught that have dates for April 30th that are on track that we are planning to go back too also. Seeing Geovani get baptized was an amazing experience and that is why I'm a missionary. To help people find a renewed faith in Christ and teach them how to use the Atonement to cleanse their hearts and understand their purpose in live by gaining that relationship with their Heavenly Father and Savior.
I'm excited for our investigators here also to see them progress and hopefully have them make the same changes that Geovani has. The investigators that went to Conference this weekend are:
Fancis & Cepactli Salas: I told you last week about this amazing family. Well this is the mom and the 9 year old girl. They have come to church the last two weeks and yesterday they attended the afternoon session. We had a lesson with Francis this week and she is slowly progressing and has a desire that I feel is slowly growing to help her family become closer. As we were leaving Conference yesterday she said it was very beautiful and asked us how often it happens. She was disappointed when we said its only twice a year. She then said "So you're coming over Wednesday right?", and we hadn't set an appointment for Wednesday yet but as of yesterday at 5 we have an appointment with her on Wednesday! ha ha
Raul & Alba: They came to the Saturday afternoon session. We were excited because we have been trying to get them to come to church but it they haven't made it a priority yet. I was happy that most of the talks that session were on family, or at least I think they were on family- I didn't understand a lot of it, so that they would have that to relate too. Their 3 kids were so well behaved I was amazed! ha ha. We are hoping to go by tonight to check up and see what they thought and solidify their baptismal dates.
This area is a lot different than my last one and my companion is a lot different than my trainer, not in bad ways, just different. I feel this area is going to take a lot of stretching, growing, and learning on my part to help it become successful. I'm nervous but will do my best to work with my companion and to see in what ways we can change things to make this the successful area it can be. The Spanish is slowly coming, some days it feels better than others and often times I find myself getting discouraged because I feel like I should be making more progress than I have; but I just relate it to climbing Kilimanjaro. When we started the hike the mountain didn't seem very big and we were all gung-ho to climb it all in one day. As the days progressed we couldn't believe that mountain still looked the same size and the top didn't look any closer and we started to realize how big the mountain really was. Especially summit night, when it was cold and dark and we were tired, hungry, not feeling well, and the stars looked closer than the top of the mountain. All we could do it put one foot in front of the other and take on each step, rock, and task one at a time and eventually we made it to the top and got to enjoy the view and sense of accomplishment. I relate these first couple weeks, months, and transfers to this a lot when things get difficult. Sometimes I take it one day at a time, one lesson at a time, one contact at a time, or even one minute at a time and know that soon all of these will build on top of each other and I will be able to look back and see how all of these little steps helped me accomplish my goals and how I grew with each step. I know that Spanish will one day come and that I will be able to understand and communicate. I know that our loving Heavenly Father knows my feelings and situation. I know that my older brother, Jesus Christ, is there with me every step of the way lifting me when things get difficult. I knew the mission would be hard, but I don't think I understood how hard. Things are going good though, I just get frustrated with my own inadequacies and short comings. I am excited for this week and some of the things my companion and I have planned to implement to hopefully get us some new investigators!
OH! Funny story that I forgot to tell you all last week. So for the first time in my live I broke the Word of Wisdom and it was on my mission! ha ha We were eating dinner at a sweet members house and she gave us iced tea and we had no idea until she pulled out the bottle to pour us more! Needless to say this week when we went over again we reviewed the Word of Wisdom.. ha ha Anyway, I hope all is going well with you all, where ever this email finds you. I love you all and am continually thankful for your love, support, and letters with advice, love and encouragement. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless you all.
Love always,
Hermana Kelsey Berg
First of all I hope you all had a fantastic Conference weekend. It was a good weekend for us and we had 5 investigators at conference. It has been a long week so I'm going to start with Wednesday. We had a long day- we moved apartment complexes and were hoping to get everything moved in the morning so we could work all afternoon and evening. When we were about 10 minutes away from being all packed up and all of our furniture in the trailer Elder Hamilton (senior missionary in charge of housing) called our new complex to make sure our apartment was ready and it wasn't! They were still laying tile and it wouldn't be done until 4! Well at this time it was 10:30 am and we were in shorts with our suitcases packed in the car. So we had to pull out our suitcases and change and go work for a couple hours until we could move in. That made for a long day and put a damper on our schedule but its all good and now we have a 2 bedroom apartment! ha ha. Its not quite as big as our other one but its nice to have a study room.
So now on to the weekend! I was lucky to be able to listen to 1 1/2 sessions on Conference in English. I loved conference but I have to be honest and say that at some points it was very hard because of the fact that I wanted so bad to understand what was being said and it was difficult to be watching it somewhere else than in my house with my family. First time ever I have watched it in a church! We did have 5 investigators that attended and I will talk more about them a little later. It was a great weekend on the account that last night I was able to give the talk on baptism at Geovani's baptism!!!! I found out on Friday night that it was going to happen and that I had been asked to speak! It was such a cool experience to see someone, where I remember Hna. Tuckett contacting him at a gas station one night, make all the changes in his life and see him almost from start to finish. I feel so blessed to be a part of it. I also found out that another one of our investigators from last transfer, Ancelmo, was baptized last weekend! Leading up to Sunday he didn't feel ready but after Testimony meeting he was in tears and said that he wanted to be baptized so in a matter of 3 hours everything was ready and he was baptized!! There are a number of investigators that I taught that have dates for April 30th that are on track that we are planning to go back too also. Seeing Geovani get baptized was an amazing experience and that is why I'm a missionary. To help people find a renewed faith in Christ and teach them how to use the Atonement to cleanse their hearts and understand their purpose in live by gaining that relationship with their Heavenly Father and Savior.
I'm excited for our investigators here also to see them progress and hopefully have them make the same changes that Geovani has. The investigators that went to Conference this weekend are:
Fancis & Cepactli Salas: I told you last week about this amazing family. Well this is the mom and the 9 year old girl. They have come to church the last two weeks and yesterday they attended the afternoon session. We had a lesson with Francis this week and she is slowly progressing and has a desire that I feel is slowly growing to help her family become closer. As we were leaving Conference yesterday she said it was very beautiful and asked us how often it happens. She was disappointed when we said its only twice a year. She then said "So you're coming over Wednesday right?", and we hadn't set an appointment for Wednesday yet but as of yesterday at 5 we have an appointment with her on Wednesday! ha ha
Raul & Alba: They came to the Saturday afternoon session. We were excited because we have been trying to get them to come to church but it they haven't made it a priority yet. I was happy that most of the talks that session were on family, or at least I think they were on family- I didn't understand a lot of it, so that they would have that to relate too. Their 3 kids were so well behaved I was amazed! ha ha. We are hoping to go by tonight to check up and see what they thought and solidify their baptismal dates.
This area is a lot different than my last one and my companion is a lot different than my trainer, not in bad ways, just different. I feel this area is going to take a lot of stretching, growing, and learning on my part to help it become successful. I'm nervous but will do my best to work with my companion and to see in what ways we can change things to make this the successful area it can be. The Spanish is slowly coming, some days it feels better than others and often times I find myself getting discouraged because I feel like I should be making more progress than I have; but I just relate it to climbing Kilimanjaro. When we started the hike the mountain didn't seem very big and we were all gung-ho to climb it all in one day. As the days progressed we couldn't believe that mountain still looked the same size and the top didn't look any closer and we started to realize how big the mountain really was. Especially summit night, when it was cold and dark and we were tired, hungry, not feeling well, and the stars looked closer than the top of the mountain. All we could do it put one foot in front of the other and take on each step, rock, and task one at a time and eventually we made it to the top and got to enjoy the view and sense of accomplishment. I relate these first couple weeks, months, and transfers to this a lot when things get difficult. Sometimes I take it one day at a time, one lesson at a time, one contact at a time, or even one minute at a time and know that soon all of these will build on top of each other and I will be able to look back and see how all of these little steps helped me accomplish my goals and how I grew with each step. I know that Spanish will one day come and that I will be able to understand and communicate. I know that our loving Heavenly Father knows my feelings and situation. I know that my older brother, Jesus Christ, is there with me every step of the way lifting me when things get difficult. I knew the mission would be hard, but I don't think I understood how hard. Things are going good though, I just get frustrated with my own inadequacies and short comings. I am excited for this week and some of the things my companion and I have planned to implement to hopefully get us some new investigators!
OH! Funny story that I forgot to tell you all last week. So for the first time in my live I broke the Word of Wisdom and it was on my mission! ha ha We were eating dinner at a sweet members house and she gave us iced tea and we had no idea until she pulled out the bottle to pour us more! Needless to say this week when we went over again we reviewed the Word of Wisdom.. ha ha Anyway, I hope all is going well with you all, where ever this email finds you. I love you all and am continually thankful for your love, support, and letters with advice, love and encouragement. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless you all.
Love always,
Hermana Kelsey Berg
Letters from Kelsey - 16
Howdy y'all!!
So... I was transfered closer to Relient Stadium but we can all look at it as a blessing that BYU won't be coming because I would be dying inside if they were to come.
So my new area is Houston 2 Central. I am in the ghetto and we rarely see white people, they are either Hispanic or Black. The ward is more bi-lingual than Houston 1. (Just a quick side note the bishop, Obispo Orlando Ramos, is a member of a year and a half. He was called to be the bishop the day after he and his wife were sealed in the Temple. He is some big engineer or something like that but totally looks 'bishop'. His wife was called to be the Relief Society President soon after their baptism and was released 3 months ago when he was called.)
My companion is Hermana Stevens from Bear Lake, ID and is in her last transfer so she leaves May 3rd. Its weird to know that I will take over the area and I feel very unprepared but I know that as I work hard these next 6 weeks the Lord will prepare me and lift me to the level He needs me to be. Spanish is coming slowly and sometimes I understand what is going on, in reality its probably more than I think but speaking in anything but present tense is a struggle. This week was a long week but I received a great blessing from the Lord (sorry if that sounds too missionary... I'm trying not to be ;) ). On Thursday morning I was feeling very home sick for Heber and for my last area where I had finally started to feel comfortable. During my prayer to start my personal study I plead with my Heavenly Father to help me not feel homesick. I didn't want my heart to ache and to go through the tough transition that I did when I first got to Texas. Before I even finished my prayer I felt comforted and the hurt went away and I haven't felt homesick since. As most of you know I very, very, very much dislike change so having to move so much the last little bit has been difficult but I know that Heavenly Father is mindful of me and that with each change I will grow, learn, and push myself just a little bit more and hey, who knows by the time June 2012 rolls around I might like change!! Ha ha
Now on to our investigators:
Familia Salas: They are a family of 5 who are amazing and their 9 year old girl wants them to be a normal family who prays and eats dinner together. ha ha. She is the driving force in her family. The mom and 9 year old came to church yesterday to Sacrament meeting and they seemed to enjoy it. We will find out this week how sincere they are when we check up to see if they have been praying and reading. Their date is April 23.
Raul y Alba: They have 3 kids. Alba goes to a church every Sunday morning at 8 but Raul doesn't. Raul reads what we leave them and Alba doesn't. We tried to get them to church yesterday but Raul's haircut went over so they didn't come- a pretty legit excuse if you ask me. (I think a haircut is SO much more important than my salvation ;). They promised to come to General Conference on Sunday though. Alba really wants to follow Christ and know which church is true, it just depends on if they are willing to change when they get the answer. We are praying that they recognize their answers on Saturday. Their date is also April 23.
Quick update from H1 Giovanni's baptism date is this Saturday!! I hope it goes through and will let you all know next week!
This area is a lot different than my last one. Its smaller and we have less progressing investigators. We will work hard though and meet our goals. We do have 10 with a date which is something we can work really hard on and help them achieve their goals. The work progresses and I continue to see tender mercies from the Lord every day. I thank you all so much for your love and support and know that the Lord will continue to bless all of you. With the Lord at the helm we have no reason to fear.
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
P.S. Just a reminder about the new address:
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
602 Eldridge Road
Sugar Land, TX 77478
So... I was transfered closer to Relient Stadium but we can all look at it as a blessing that BYU won't be coming because I would be dying inside if they were to come.
So my new area is Houston 2 Central. I am in the ghetto and we rarely see white people, they are either Hispanic or Black. The ward is more bi-lingual than Houston 1. (Just a quick side note the bishop, Obispo Orlando Ramos, is a member of a year and a half. He was called to be the bishop the day after he and his wife were sealed in the Temple. He is some big engineer or something like that but totally looks 'bishop'. His wife was called to be the Relief Society President soon after their baptism and was released 3 months ago when he was called.)
My companion is Hermana Stevens from Bear Lake, ID and is in her last transfer so she leaves May 3rd. Its weird to know that I will take over the area and I feel very unprepared but I know that as I work hard these next 6 weeks the Lord will prepare me and lift me to the level He needs me to be. Spanish is coming slowly and sometimes I understand what is going on, in reality its probably more than I think but speaking in anything but present tense is a struggle. This week was a long week but I received a great blessing from the Lord (sorry if that sounds too missionary... I'm trying not to be ;) ). On Thursday morning I was feeling very home sick for Heber and for my last area where I had finally started to feel comfortable. During my prayer to start my personal study I plead with my Heavenly Father to help me not feel homesick. I didn't want my heart to ache and to go through the tough transition that I did when I first got to Texas. Before I even finished my prayer I felt comforted and the hurt went away and I haven't felt homesick since. As most of you know I very, very, very much dislike change so having to move so much the last little bit has been difficult but I know that Heavenly Father is mindful of me and that with each change I will grow, learn, and push myself just a little bit more and hey, who knows by the time June 2012 rolls around I might like change!! Ha ha
Now on to our investigators:
Familia Salas: They are a family of 5 who are amazing and their 9 year old girl wants them to be a normal family who prays and eats dinner together. ha ha. She is the driving force in her family. The mom and 9 year old came to church yesterday to Sacrament meeting and they seemed to enjoy it. We will find out this week how sincere they are when we check up to see if they have been praying and reading. Their date is April 23.
Raul y Alba: They have 3 kids. Alba goes to a church every Sunday morning at 8 but Raul doesn't. Raul reads what we leave them and Alba doesn't. We tried to get them to church yesterday but Raul's haircut went over so they didn't come- a pretty legit excuse if you ask me. (I think a haircut is SO much more important than my salvation ;). They promised to come to General Conference on Sunday though. Alba really wants to follow Christ and know which church is true, it just depends on if they are willing to change when they get the answer. We are praying that they recognize their answers on Saturday. Their date is also April 23.
Quick update from H1 Giovanni's baptism date is this Saturday!! I hope it goes through and will let you all know next week!
This area is a lot different than my last one. Its smaller and we have less progressing investigators. We will work hard though and meet our goals. We do have 10 with a date which is something we can work really hard on and help them achieve their goals. The work progresses and I continue to see tender mercies from the Lord every day. I thank you all so much for your love and support and know that the Lord will continue to bless all of you. With the Lord at the helm we have no reason to fear.
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
P.S. Just a reminder about the new address:
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
602 Eldridge Road
Sugar Land, TX 77478
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