{mis-sion-ary, [noun] someone who leaves their family for a short time so that others can be with theirs for eternity}

Thursday, June 25, 2015

If You're Happy and You Know It

I'm running on 3 hours of sleep, so if this email doesn't make much sense, I apologize. Being a missionary in and of itself is absolutely exhausting. But when you only get 3 hours of sleep, it's pretty much impossible.
This last week has been pretty great! We've been serving in the sites a ton, which is so great, but then yesterday I came to the realization that #1: the fourth of July is next week. And #2: Pageant is only 1 week after that! How is it already pageant time?! I can't believe that! That means I've almost been in the field for a year! I wish time would slow down! After pageant what am I supposed to look forward to next?!?! Just kidding! There will be tons to look forward to!
We had a great weekend! Benjamin came to church! We've been working with him quite a bit to get him ready for baptism. He'd been going to the Lyons ward for a while because he has friends there, so our bishop wanted him to come to the Palmyra ward a few times before getting baptized, which makes sense considering he'll be getting baptized into the Palmyra Ward. So he's been coming here the last few weeks, which is great and he's really starting to make friends here which is really great. He just has the greatest desire to have the gospel in his life. There have been a few obstacles that keep coming up, but the Lord is just making everything work out perfectly! After overcoming so many road-blocks, he should be good to go for Saturday:) WAHOO!!:) How wonderful to see the changes that the gospel makes in people's lives!
Also, we have been working with a cute 9 year old girl, Zoe. Sisters have been working with her parents for a while, but since the parents haven't really gone anywhere with it, we've really focused on the kids. Zoe is the smartest 9 year old I've ever met and always has the greatest questions about the Book of Mormon. Well this last weekend, we went over to visit her and her mom looks at us and says "Is there anyone that would be able to give Zoe a ride to church? She's just been DYING to go every week." My jaw just dropped to the floor. Since I got to this area, I've been praying for her mom to soften her heart and allow Zoe to come to church. So we called the Primary President right after we left. She lives about a half hour away, but it just so happened that she would be in Palmyra that night and would be able to go over and meet Zoe's mom and then pick her up for church the next day! Oh... and not to mention... She has a daughter that's exactly Zoe's age. Coincidence? I think not... She was such a doll at church! She even went up with the primary kids to sing for Father's Day! When church ended, we went and found her and she was SOO excited!:) She just kept saying "I want to come every week!! This is so fun! I just have to come every week!"
We've seen so many blessings, on top of being in the sites 6 days a week!:) On Monday, we did exchanges with PalMac who are the Site Trainers and they had to take another companionships shift at the Smith Farm, so I served my shift at the Smith Farm with Sister Olsen, then when we exchanged I got to stay at the Smith Farm with Sister Jones!:) Who else in the world gets to say that they spent 12 hours at the Joseph Smith Farm...? No one... And yet, with so much time in the sites, our areas are just exploding! It's amazing how the Lord can hasten His work without me! I'm just lucky to be a part of this great work! And Being in the sites is so fun! I saw a family from Smithfield yesterday at the Peter Whitmer Farm. I got to take one of the Elders that had been in my district in Irondequoit and my Zone in Buffalo and his family on tour as they came back to visit his mission. There are just so many great things about where I am!
I just can't even describe how happy I've been lately! Sister Olsen and I are best friends. I live in one of the most sacred/beautiful places on earth. I get to serve in dedicated sites where people come to me to learn about the gospel. I have great family and friends back home! Even with 3 hours of sleep, I'm still happy! And it's funny! Missions are not easy. There are people that are rude. Now that pageant is getting closer, we have more anti's at the sites. We get doors slammed in our faces and rude things said about us. And yet... We're happy. What the Heck? It's because we are sharing the true and living gospel of Jesus Christ. It's amazing the joy that really comes from this gospel! This really is the only way to true joy and happiness! To ETERNAL joy and happiness! 
Thank you all for your love and support!:)
I love you!
Love Sister Nield



 

Thursday, June 18, 2015

.002

Hello everyone! I can't believe another week has passed! It seems like I'm emailing every other day!
This last week was a really great week! We were able to meet with quite a few people and we were at the sites everyday except P-day. 
It never ceases to amaze me how the Lord does His work! He can hasten His work, even if I'm not in my area all day every day! Our area has been seeing a lot of miracles! We've been teaching Becky's mom and she is just the sweetest little old lady. I'm convinced that she's one of the reasons I was transferred here! She came to the Smith Farm when Sister Locher and I took Becky. And when we shared the first vision with them, Norma's eyes got really big and she looked at me and she said "Do you feel that?" haha She's so ready for the gospel! We're also working with a man named Benjamin. He'll be getting baptized next weekend hopefully. He has such a great desire to do what the Lord has asked of him and to live the gospel. He's so funny!
I won't lie. When I came back from being full pros it was really hard for me to not have all day everyday to be in my area, finding and teaching people. I loved the sites! I loved being at the sites. But it was hard at first to be back. I've come to realize since then, luckily, that serving in these sites is EXACTLY where God needs me. If He'd needed me to be in my area all day everyday then He would've called me to a full proselyting mission. But He didn't. I'm part of the .002% of senior couples and young sisters that are serving in the world today that gets to serve here in the New York Rochester mission and in these sacred historic sites. I was called HERE because He needed me HERE! Coming out, I wanted to teach as many people as possible in a short amount of time and who would've ever guessed that'd be in a Visitor's Center. These places are dedicated for people to come, feel the spirit, and strengthen their faith in the Savior. I get to help people with all different levels of testimonies (active member, less active, non member), and I get to strengthen their faith in the Jesus Christ. And whether I'm teaching the 95% members or 5% nonmembers, I am a 100% effective missionary because I am strengthening their faith in the one who provided their salvation. HOW GREAT IS MY CALLING!!!! I get to teach the restoration in the place where it happened. I get to help people from all over the world recognize the reality of the restoration. Last year during pageant we had over 90,000 visitors. I'm needed HERE! I am a guardian of the restoration!:)
I love these sites with all my heart and I don't know how I'm ever going to be able to leave them. They have stolen my whole heart. I love getting to have the opportunity to find specific instances where I and my testimony is needed here. The other day, Sister Olsen and I were serving at the Hill Cumorah and we had a young man that came in. He's from this area and he passes the visitor's center every time he drives home from work. He got off early so he decided that he'd stop by to see what was going on. Well as sister Olsen and I were using the resources that the visitor's center provides, we were able to teach him about the restoration and help him realize that there is purpose to us being here. We gave him a Book of Mormon and were able to share with him how he can know for himself that it's all true. How many other missions get people coming to them? Not many.
Since the Pageant is coming up pretty soon, we've been getting TONS of visitors lately. A lot of youth groups have been coming and it's been cool to see these young men with their mission calls. They have no idea how much they are going to love these people in the areas they will serve in. They have no idea how much heart break they will feel when someone they love rejects the gospel. They have no idea what's ahead for them, and in a tiny general way, I do. They are so lucky to have the opportunity to serve their Heavenly Father. One part I don't appreciate about the youth groups is all the flirting... I can't even explain how many times I've wanted to step between them all to make them stop. Haha 
We also had Zone Conference this week and I realized how close the Hill Cumorah Pageant really is. We only have a few weeks left and it blows my mind to think about how quickly this last year has gone. I remember pageant like it was yesterday.
There are so many great blessings of being able to serve here. I love my mission. I love it. (For lack of better words.)
I love you all and hope you have a great day!:)
Love Sister Nield


 

Thursday, June 11, 2015

One Year Down

Ok ok ok... Today is my year mark! I may or may not have had a little freak out moment this morning as I we were doing our work out. Today we went to the Hill Cumorah and ran up it, and then on the way down, we stopped for a minute to enjoy the view. I got the chance to reflect on the last year, all the things I've learned, the changes that I've made in my life... and then... I all of a sudden got this huge wave of stress and anxiety realizing that I only have 6 1/2 months left to enjoy this wonderful, sacred place! What do I want to accomplish in the next 6 1/2 months?
So this morning, during my personal study I reflected on some things that I've learned while being on a mission. All the things I've learned can basically be put into 4 different categories: Gratitude, Faith, Sacrifice, and effort.
Gratitude: A grateful attitude to the Lord allows us to see the many tender mercies and miracles that are place in our paths every day. The more we give thanks for what we have, the more we notice the little things that we receive. The Lord is so giving and the least we can do is give thanks.
Faith: Faith leads to action. When we really have faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ, we desire to be as He is. Perfect. And even though we'll never achieve perfection in this life, we can have confidence that the Atonement of our Savior will make up for what we lack. As we exercise faith, we receive more faith. It's an ongoing cycle.
Sacrifice: We are servants of the Lord. Christ came to earth to do the will of His Father. We are here to do the will of our Father too. Our purpose and the purpose of Christ are (or should be) exactly the same. But because we're human, the natural man has the tendency to lead us astray and to make other things look more appealing occasionally. We have to constantly make a conscience effort to sacrifice our will, our wants, our desires, to submit our will to the will of the Lord.
Effort: All we're really asked to do is to try our best. Be better today than we were yesterday. As a missionary, effort can be shown in obedience. It can be shown in planning, goal setting. One thing I've learned is that just because I put in the effort, doesn't mean I'm going to get an outward reward for it. If there's one thing I've learned while being here, it's that exact obedience brings miracles, not baptisms. I'm so grateful for the things that I did before my mission that helped me know how to work hard, but I've learned how to work even harder while on my mission and that's something that will bless me for the rest of my life.
   I also read in Preach My Gospel chapter 8 today, in the section that talks about setting goals and the very first sentence says "Goals reflect the desires of our hearts and our vision of what we can accomplish." I thought to myself What are the desires of my heart? What do I want to accomplish that I can control? Something that doesn't involve the agency of others... Just my own effort. I took the time this morning to set goals for the last 6 months of my mission. 
I can't believe how fast the last year has gone. It's gone by so fast and so many things have happened. My life is changed forever. I'm a completely different person now than I was when I went to the MTC. Sometimes I read through my old journal and it's amazing to see the growth that I've made. I will forever be grateful for the decision I made to serve a mission. My future will be so much better because of the things I've learned while here.
I love you all and I'm so grateful for the love and support you've given me! Have a stellar week.
Love Sister Nield 


 

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Feast Upon the Words of Christ

Ok. So if you haven't seen on Facebook yet from my mother posting pictures, I've been transferred! What a crazy, unexpected, bittersweet change!
This weekend we had stake conference. Sister Locher and I were getting pretty nervous about transfers and what would happen! We were best friends and we were hoping and praying that we'd stay together! After the adult session of conference, we went up to go say hi to Pres. Francis. We shook his hand and he grabbed my shoulder and said "have you received your assignment yet?" My heart about pounded out of my chest. The only times an assignment is extended is for Sister Training Leaders or Site Trainers and I was already a Sister Training Leader so I thought for sure I was getting transferred. He could apparently see the wheels turning in both mine and Sister Locher's head because he finally said "You're giving a training at MLC. The assistants will be calling you soon." We about DIED! Obviously that meant that we'd be staying together!
So then the day of transfer calls comes and our district leader tells us I'm getting transferred! I was so angry because I thought they were joking, but they weren't. I have never cried so hard to leave an area. I LOVED the people and Sister Locher and I just worked so well together and we saw so many miracles and I just couldn't believe that after President telling us that we were staying together that we'd get transferred! I was transferred to Farmington, which is right next door to my last area. I'm in south Palmyra now. I live next door to the temple and the Smith Farm is right down the street. As sad as I was to leave Shortsville/Canandaigua and Sister Locher and Becky, I've been wanting to be Sister Olsen's companion for such a long time! And it finally happened! She's so awesome! She's been out a transfer longer than I have. We lived together for a week during pageant and have pretty much been best friends since. At transfer meeting, President could tell I was a little upset to leave and so he came up to me after and told me that these changes happened very last minute but he knows that this is where I need to be! That's comforting to know! Sister Olsen is from Elko Nevada and she's an amazing singer. We are going to have so much fun together. We already are having so much fun together!:)