His grace is sufficient for you

My dear friends and those I love,

 

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fantastic week. We had a pretty darn good week. Main progress this week: Progress with the members. We seriously need them! We have stayed busy trying to put together and plan a fireside for the 23rd of November. President and Sister Vest have agreed that Sister Bott and I are their favorites (haha) so they are going to come and do a fireside for us. :) Its still in the works.

 

It was Sister Bott's birthday this week, BIG 20, we partied like we were on a mission or something.

Surprise!  Good Morning!

Big 20!  Missionary Style!

(So we tracted) but we also got a cool little evening out of it! We got to go to a concert called "Better Together" and it was a bunch of small churches around here that came together and put on a benefit concert to raise money and food for the local pantry.  We took a less active so we got to go.  It was at a Catholic Church that organized it and it was fun to see all the different followers of Christ come together. We weren't allowed to proselyte or else I would've grabbed the mic or something!

Jagan Dockstader

We had an investigator and 2 less actives at church on Sunday. Vanessa is our only solid investigator and she told us Sunday she is moving, so that was a bummer and we are back to square one with investigators but I looked around, saw those two less actives, and realized I was still fulfilling my purpose.

 

I got to go to Cameron this weekend! Oh the joy in my heart going to that place! A lady I taught for awhile, Jennifer Schumate, got baptized. When I was teaching her she wanted to get baptized but couldn't because her and Daniel were living together. The sisters continued working, they got married, and then got baptized! It is so rewarding to see the seeds Heavenly Father planted through me and Sister Moody and Buckhave, to continue being harvested. So overall, good week! Good things happening and progressing. Lots of laughs and happy vibes.

Jennifer Schumate

I  have studied a lot lately about the atonement and the grace of Christ. The enabling power he has to change us, to reform us, to refine us. I testify to you that the power of Christ's atonement is real and eternal. His grace, his enabling power, has the capacity and ability to heal us from the inside out. The price has already been paid for. Do we realize that? Do we realize that we are not utilizing Christ's atonement if we are not repenting daily, partaking of the sacrament and giving all we have to him?

"He cannot work with what he does not have. And the only thing he cannot make us give him is our heart and our will."

The grace of Christ is sufficient—sufficient to cover our debt, sufficient to transform us, and sufficient to help us as long as that transformation process takes. The Book of Mormon teaches us to rely solely on “the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah” (2 Nephi 2:8). As we do, we do not discover—as some Christians believe—that Christ requires nothing of us. Rather, we discover the reason He requires so much and the strength to do all He asks (see Philippians 4:13). Grace is not the absence of God’s high expectations. Grace is the presence of God’s power (see Luke 1:37).

 

Christ's grace is sufficient.   I love you all! Have a great week!

Sister Flink

One Word ~ WOW!!

I have so much to say this week and such little time to say it. But bear with me, I will focus on the highlights. Well, I have a new companion, Sister Bott! She rocks my socks off. 

Companion #5 - Sister Bott! 

We are such good friends and we have been working SO hard, it’s amazing what happens when you have two missionaries who are passionate about the work. We are on fire for Indian Creek!  We have so much excitement to get it going. We have lots of ideas and plans to carry out success here in Kansas, and we WILL see a baptism this transfer.

Miracle #1: We have 6 less actives we saw this weekend come to church, and 1 investigator with her 2 kids. The lord is blessing us!

 I want to talk about something that happened this last week. I had a very unique and cool experience. I will do my best to explain it briefly. Elder Christofferson gave a CES devotional talk about Sacrifice, and talked about an Amish family who had recently converted to the church. This is what he said:

"About three years ago a member of the Church shared a copy of the Book of Mormon with an Amish friend in Ohio. The friend began to read the book and could not put it down. For three days he had no other desire but to read the Book of Mormon. He and his wife were baptized, and within seven months there were three Amish couples converted and baptized members of the Church. Their children were baptized several months following. These three families decided to remain in their community and continue their Amish lifestyle even though they had left the Amish faith. However, as a result of being baptized, they were subjected to “shunning” by their close-knit Amish neighbors. Shunning means that no one in their Amish community will talk to them, work with them, do business with them, or associate with them in any way. This includes not just friends but family members—brothers and sisters, parents and grandparents.

 

Initially, these Amish Saints felt very alone and isolated as even their children were subjected to shunning and removed from their Amish schools because of their baptism and membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their children have endured shunning by grandparents and cousins and close neighbors. Even some of the older children of these Amish families, who did not accept the gospel, will not talk to or even acknowledge their parents. These families have struggled to recover from the social and economic effects of shunning, but they are succeeding.

 

Their faith remains strong. The adversity and opposition of shunning has caused them to be steadfast and immovable. A year after being baptized, the families were sealed in the temple and continue faithfully attending the temple on a weekly basis. They have found strength through receiving ordinances and entering into and honoring covenants. They are all active in their Church group and continue searching for ways to share the light and knowledge of the gospel with their extended families and community through acts of kindness and service."

I know that is a lot but guess what happened? When I was serving in liberty jail, THAT Amish family came in. I got to take them through the Historic Liberty Jail. As we talked about the early saints and the persecution and things they went through for their faith, I was talking about the situation they were facing at that very moment. Shunned from everyone and everything they knew, because of their faith and truth they found. Could you imagine? Look at all the things we take for granted, and look what they have given up to be members of the church. The mom is now the young women President in their branch in Ohio, and the dad is the High priest leader, and the 17 year old daughter wants to serve a mission. It was such a special moment I’ll never forget. 

 

Here is the talk if you want to watch, listen or read about it!

https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/article/ces-devotionals/2014/01/saving-your-life?lang=eng
Saving Your Life

Elder D. Todd Christofferson

Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

CES Devotional for Young Adults • September 14, 2014 • Brigham Young University

Things are going great. President and the Zone leaders have expressed to Sister Bott and I that they put us together to see great things happen. President came up to both of us and said, "I expect to see great things from this power companionship. Go get this place going." And here we are!

Here are a few pictures from the Oct 14, 2014 Transfer Day!  Love my Sister in Zion- Elders too!!

Sister Moody



Sister Vance

Sister Hansen, Elder Lowry, Elder Holt

Cheryl, Sister Mancell, Sister Buckhave

 



Elder Moss, Sister Bott!

I love you Sister MOODERS! 

Sister Moody will be heading home soon!  Kisses until we meet again! 

Miracles and tender mercies are happening.   The Church is true. I love you all!

Sister Flink

He Has The Capacity To Change Our Natures.‏

What a great week! THE OURTH FAMILY GOT BAPTIZED! 

Marni, Garrett, Darren, and Abbey Ourth!  What a beautiful day!

The Ourth Family

Brother Ourth and the Sisters!!

When I was in Cameron, I worked with the Ourth family for 4 months. They have been RLDS their entire lives, and we worked and worked and WORKED with them!   And I got to go up their with Sister Mooders where it all started! Abbey, the 13 year old, got baptized when I was still there.  Then I left Cameron with so much sadness because I had to leave Marni and Darren behind in the middle of teaching them.  But the day came yesterday.~They got baptized! Garret, the 18 year old son, has been a convert for 6 months and he got to baptize his parents. There is no words to describe the feelings as you get to see that happen. Marni just cried and gave me the biggest hug when she saw me and told me she missed me.   I could see in her eyes how happy she was that she finally made this choice. You just can't put a price on experiences like this.  You can't put a price on the salvation and happiness of souls. And more than that, salvation and happiness of a beautiful family. Oh, Marni and Darren asked me to bear my testimony at their baptism, that was such an honor! I basically cried the entire time, but being able to do that was something that I will hold special.

Best Surprise Ever!  I love Marni!

I love Abbey! 

The other great blessing is I was reunited with my MTC companion from Layton Utah, Sister Mancell!  I have missed her.  I also got to see Sister Buckhave again!  So many loved one there to greet me and express their love for me!  I love Cameron and my Sisters!

Sister Mancell - MTC Companions and fellow Northridge Knight! I love her!

Sister Buckhave - I have missed her!

Sister Studyvin with her girls! 

Sister Moody (1st Companion) Sister Mancell (MTC Companion), Sister Buckhave (2nd Companion) all together again!

 

The Jail has been really busy this week. I have been taking tour after tour and learning so much about the early saints of the church, and also the prophet joseph.  The prophet Joseph said this about his Liberty Jail experience, "After having been enclosed in the walls of a prison for 5 months, it seems to me that my heart will always be more tender after this than ever it was before. My heart bleeds continually when I contemplate the distress of the church. Oh, that I could be with them. I would not shrink at toil and hardship render them comfort and consolation." The liberty jail is sacred. I am not a VC sister, so being able to serve in one even for just a week is a huge blessing. Next week when I email, I will be back in Indian Creek.

 

The main thing that I want to share with you is the power of Jesus Christ in our lives. We all go through our own Liberty Jails, those times when their seems to be no escape. We feel trapped, weighed down, exhausted, our trials seems to go on forever. I have experienced that more than ever recently, while I love being a missionary in Kansas, It has felt like its own Liberty Jail at times. Joseph asked, "Oh God, where art thou?" He was a prophet of God and yet, he was suffering. None of us a exempt from the process of trial and growth. But when we turn to the savior, we receive more than we deserve. At least I feel that way. We receive the response of "My son, (or daughter), Peace be unto thy soul." And those words are real. He is the peace that we all yearn for. "There IS a reason, it is for our own development, our purification, our growth, that we buffet the fierce waves of sorrow and misfortune. and w shall be all the stronger and better when we have swam the flood and stand up on the farther shore."

 

Sorry about this Massive email, I just love all of you. So does Heavenly Father. Always remember and keep faith that HE HAS A PLAN. Endure all things well and he will exalt you. That is a promise of heaven.

Love Sister Vance (Companion #4)!  Going to miss her tomorrow as I head back to Lenexa KS!

Little side note from Sister Moody to her family!  On Saturday we did this weird exchange thing cause Sister Hansen got to go up to Adam-ondi-ahman with the other VC sisters, so I got to be with Sister Flink until 5 o'clock. BEST EVER! We got to do 3 presentations together and I love saying "Ya, my companion, Sister Flink will tell you....." hehe! Made me happy. Nothin like having your best buddy as your comp for the day.  ~ 

I love you have a great week!   Sister Flink

Oh How I Missed Missouri!

Well, I got P-day on Monday but then I got to Liberty and my new companion, Sister Vance, had P-day on Thursday. So you get to hear from me again!

 

I am so happy to be in Liberty! It has been so great. Monday afternoon, we drove up and dropped Sister Colledge off at the mission home and Sister Vance, Sister Ray, and Sister Allen were all waiting there for me to pick me up and take me to Liberty. Sister Ray and I talked the entire way about Indian Creek and about the area.   When I got home, they had all decorated the apartment and "heart attacked" the door frame to welcome me. It was so sweet. Right then, I knew it was going to be a wonderful and well needed week and a half.  Sister Vance is awesome! I knew her before and she's so sweet.

Companion #3 - Sister Vance

So being at the Jail is super awesome. Wow, the life of a VC sister..... (easy peasy pumpkin squeezie) You are on shift half the day, then you do studies, then you go to dinner and have like 1 or 2 hours to proselyte. So there is definitely pro's and con's. Even though I feel like a lazy bum just sitting at the jail all day, I LOVE IT.  I dont want to leave, and the senior couples all want me to stay. I've been staying busy taking tours. I do them myself expect the history presentation because I don't know enough of that yet. My first day on shift and first day at the jail, there was a tour bus of tons of Koreans that were traveling the church history sites. Usually they have to make a reservation so everyone was totally caught off guard. They looked at me and said, "think you can handle the rotunda (jail presentation)?" Yup! It was awesome. Sister Vance and I would say a few words, and then we'd stop and a translator would translate for all of them, probably a group of about 30 Koreans. Then we'd tell more, stop, and he'd translate. It was such a cool experience because even with the language barrier, the spirit is the same. The truth is the same. They all were just dying to take pictures with the missionaries. And throughout the presentation, their camera's never stopped flashing. It was basically the Korean Paparazzi. The jail is usually pretty slow during this time but it has remained really busy, we've taken one tour after the other. We all said it was a sign from Heavenly Father that I need to stay.

 
 
 

 

Wednesday we had district meeting, then we were on shift, we had dinner, and then an appointment. And bam,  just like that the day is over. Having appointments and investigators to work with has been so refreshing. But more than that, A GOOD COMPANION. Wow, it makes such a difference. Sister Vance and I laugh all the time, it has been some good stuff for ma heart! Unfortunately, I don't live in the same house as Mooders. We have an apartment, but I see her in passing a lot on shift change at the jail. And we are going up to Cameron together on Saturday for the Ourths baptism!!!!! Im going to back to Cameron!!! Im so excited. Sister Moody just came and jumped on me and I literally almost cried when I saw her. She goes home so soon, you need to make her come see you guys. She's from Payson.

 

We have some good plans the rest of this week and then we have P-day again on Monday. And then transfer calls are on Tuesday. My email to President went like this:

 

President Vest-

So I will start my letter this week with this: What is the possibility that I can stay in Liberty and not go back to Indian Creek? (As I giggle at myself)

That statement is about 20% joking and 80% serious! (As you are probably giggling at ME)

 

Yeah its worth a shot, we'll see what happens. Haha!

 

Well, that is the update. things are spectacularrrrr.  And I get another P-day on Monday so im a little spoiled. I love Missouri.  Maybe that's why Zion is Jackson County. 

I got the package! the apartment is all decorated for my new companion! Haha.!  It came just in time.

Happy Halloween in Indian Creek!

I love you!

 

Sister Flink

He Will Make Of Us More Than We Will Ever Make Of Ourselves.‏

Well, General Conference was awesome right?! I hope you all take and apply what you learned!  But most importantly, GO SHARE THE GOSPEL!

 

My dear companion decided she is going home this week.  So I am going to be getting "emergency transferred" to the Liberty Jail in Missouri for a week and a half.   Then I will be back in Indian Creek with a new companion. I am hopeful for things ahead, but sad for what is currently happening. The great thing about the gospel is that Heavenly Father knows best.  My life will forever be changed because of Sister Colledge.  We bonded in a way that will remain with me forever! 

We will meet again in Clearfield Utah!  Good Luck in everything you do Sister Colledge! I love you!

SO, we got a special preview of "Meet the Mormons" and it was AWESOME. The theaters are basing the opening night toward how long it will stay in theaters and if it will be spread to more and if the church will be able to make more movies. So, ALL of you, October 10th, Go watch it with your friends and family and invite less actives and non members, its a great opportunity! We also had an awesome Zone Training and alot of changes were made in this mission to help hasten the work. We will be getting Ipads by December and trained to use them by Jan.

 

The Lord is "hastening his work in this time."  I am in a hurry today but I will have more to update and say next week!

 

I love you all.

 

Sister Flink