Hello Everyone!!

We had a great week!! I got to go on exchanges to the Woodlands with Hermana Larson. She is pretty much my soul sister. The Woodlands is like this fairy-tale forest filled with really really rich people.. There are mansions for daysss. It is so gorgeous! We were able to find a ton of really special people to teach!! Exchanges are always a blast! 

Here in Conroe we found a child prodigy. We found their family in a dress shop the other day and started teaching them the restoration. Turns out their 9 year old son had been taught by missionaries before and reads in the Book of Mormon every single day. He pretty much taught us the Restoration. He knew everything. It was a miracle!! He was asking us who our favorite Book of Mormon prophets were and everything. He also taught us about all his favorite stories! So cute!  We are so excited to be teaching them and helping them come unto the waters of  baptism!

We have been focusing a lot this week on helping people do their family history and take names to the temple. Family History is such a great way to participate in the work! Everybody do your family history!! 

Well friends.. Sorry this is so short! Have a great week and read your scriptures!!! 

Love,

Hermana C.

Helloooo!

This week was a very interesting week. Let me start with the story of how I had to sing in front of President Mortensen.... Once upon a time there were some elders who were going to have a baptism on wednesday and they needed a musical number. But unfortunately, these elders struggled a little bit with planning... So they asked me and Hermana Haslam the morning of the baptism if we could sing a little something something in espanol. Hermana Haslam told them we would. I was not a happy camper when she told me. Just because I have never sang a duet with anyone before and my vocal abilities struggle hard and also, we were jam packed with appointments. We barely had any time to prepare, but we were able to pick a song and run through it a couple of times. Wellll... The baptism was supposed to start at 7:30 that night and we had an appointment at 6. We went to our appointment and the people we were teaching decided that it was story time. They talked non stop until 7:20 when we finally had to just tell them we had to go. We jumped in the car and tried to speed to the church. We didn't get there until about 8:00 because there was a huge train that decided to just chill for like 15 minutes. I thought we would be ok because usually when Hispanics say it starts at 7:30.. what that really means is 8:30.  Well we get to the church right after the baptism had been performed. As we walk in, guess who is there.. Yep. President and Sister Mortensen. I wanted to die. I felt so bad for being late but at the same time I was kinda relieved because I thought maybe we got out of our musical number. Hehe! But the elders were so kind to make sure we sang... They called us up there and we pulled out Hermana Haslams ipad to use to read the words. The lady at the piano started the intro before we even had it pulled up.. So we had to stand there for like 10 awkward seconds waiting for the words to pull up... Then we sang and it sounded horrible and I wanted to die the whole time. Haha! It was so funny. I couldn't stop laughing after wards because I couldn't believe what I had just experienced. After the baptism, I went and made a personal apology to President and Sister Mortensen. They just laughed and said it was great. My life. The end. 

We were able to extend four baptisms dates this week. We are working hard with all of them to get them ready to make and keep covenants! We have a cute little family that is getting ready to be baptized! We just need to get them to come to church... Pray for them!!! This area is so fun! We also got to go see wild alligators last pday. We went to this members house who owns a bunch of land and he took us on a little safari adventure in the back of his truck. It was a blast! The gators were just swimming around in the lake! There was about 20 of them! I shed a tear when we left because for the first time in my life I could say "see ya later alligator" to a bunch of alligators. Mark that off my bucket list. 

Well I hope y'all have a wonderful week this week! Keep doing the things that bring lasting happiness! I love you all! 

Hermana Christensen

Hace Calor....

Hello Friends!

It is really hot here in Texas. Really. Hot. And no one believes in air conditioning. I have never been so sweaty in my entire life. My mission has turned me into a better person spiritually but physically.. I am just always kinda nappy. Its whatever! We had another great week in good ole Conroe. I have learned that each area has different struggles and strengths. One of the biggest struggles in this area is getting people to read the Book of Mormon. For the first time in my life I have had people tell me they won't read the Book of Mormon because they don't want to or because it doesn't interest them. It makes me so sad. We are trying really hard to get them to understand that the Book of Mormon is so key to their conversion. If they do not read the Book of Mormon, they are not going to understand the fullness of the gospel. And if they don't understand the gospel, they are not going to be able to make covenants and qualify for eternal life!!! READ THE BOOK OF MORMON PEOPLE!!!!!!! Just a voice of warning to anyone who does not read from the Book of Mormon every single day.. I have seen that the biggest reason for people becoming less active is failure to read from the sacred pages of the Book of Mormon. Testimonies slip when they are not consistently being fed from the scriptures. We are promised that as we read from the Book of Mormon every single day, we will receive the strength to endure in our trials and afflictions. Everybody read the Book of Mormon!!!!!! 

We taught a bunch of lessons this week! We have done a good job at talking to everyone and teaching as we find. We were able to find 12 new investigators this week! I love this area and the people so much! We also had Zone Meeting this week. I love Zone Meetings! They are always so spiritually uplifting! We were told that the Texas Houston Mission is the top mission in the South West right now as far as baptisms and retaining members and finding. It is so fun to be involved with such a great work in such a great place! 

Fun fact, one of the members lives on an old Boy Scout camp and it is filled with Alligators. Honestly, I had no idea gators lived in Texas.. But I guess they do! There are also a bunch of wild hogs and armadillos everywhere. It is like I live in a little zoo! Haha! 

Well I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love ya! Keep smiling and serving everyone around you!

Love,

Hermana Christensen

Happy 4th!

Hello Friends!

So we had transfers on Tuesday! I was so nervous! It felt like I was leaving my home again and stepping into the unknown. Haha! But is was really fun none the less. I am now blessed to be serving in the beautiful town of Conroe Texas! It is so different from my last area... I am in the middle of the country and I love it! We actually cover four little towns; Conroe, Montgomery, New Caney, and....... Cut n' Shoot. There is literally a town called Cut n' Shoot. And one of the only churches they have there is the Church of the Cowboys. Yes it is a real thing. I think they call it Cut n' Shoot because people will literally shoot you if you are on their property. They paint purple lines on the trees and if you past the trees, they are allowed to shoot you. It is a little concerning.. These people are a little bit insane. But it's cool. We still love them!  Haha! Anyway, my area is GORGEOUS. We are in the middle of the forest. It is so green and there are lakes and trails and deer and flowers and ahhhhhhhhh! I feel like I was made for this place! The people are awesome! They all live in trailers or little houses that look liked they were built in the 1940s. And fun fact, the Texas flag was created here in Conroe. And so there is a lot of Texas pride here.. I have never seen people so obsessed with a state before. Its a little weird. There is also a ridiculous amount of stray dogs here. I have serious PTSD around dogs now. We went to a less actives home the other day. We opened her fence and walked up to her front door and as we were walking, this pack of pitbulls came running at us from around the corner. We both screamed and ran out and slammed the fence right before they got us. I hate dogs so much. On the bright side, I am getting in really good shape because I have to run away from them so much. Haha!  

My new companion is Hermana Haslam. She is so awesome! We work so hard! I am learning so much from her! The ward here is awesome too. It isn't very big but the people are so humble and so willing to help us. They love the missionaries! One of the families told me I had really good Spanish and I cried a little inside. There is another family here that is literally obsessed with missionaries. They have a photo album filled with all the missionaries. And for their family vacations, they go to visit all the families of the missionaries. Haha! They even make shirts for all the missionaries that has their family name on them. They are so sweet! 

The work here is awesome. It is a little more difficult just because there are not many people here. My last area had hispanics everywhere! It was weird to see white people in my last area. Now we have to work a little harder to find the hispanics because everyone is white! But we have some awesome investigators and we have made some goals to help them progress towards baptism. 

We actually had a really cool experience the other day. We were out contacting some people when this man started yelling at us to stop. He ran over and asked us if we were the Latter Day Saints. We told him we were and he just started to cry. He said that when he was in the army he had a friend who would take him to our church on Sundays. He said he hasn't been in three years but he knew that we had something different. He then started to tell us that he had just found out that his wife had been unfaithful to him. He said he didn't know why he should live anymore. He told us that he had been praying all day for the Lord to send him help and guidance. He told us that he saw us and felt the strongest feeling to go talk to us. We were able to share with him a message about the Savior and teach him the power of the atonement. The spirit was so strong and he just cried and cried. As we ended with a prayer, he looked so different, he looked like he had peace. We told us he wants to come to church and take lessons. We got his info and gave it to the English elders and he is now started to take the steps to baptism. It was such a powerful experience to be the means of answering someones prayer. The church is so true my friends! 

Well I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you all! Read your scriptures and say your prayers! 

Hermana Christensen

Milagros cada dia

Hola amigos!
Ivonne and her family got baptized this week! It was such a spiritual
experience! They were so excited! We had a really neat experience with
their family earlier this week! So on Monday Ivonne called us and said
that she had thrown out her back and she couldn't get off the floor.
Luckily I am a CNA and Hermana Rupp is a medical assistant so she was
in good hands. We were able to get her off the floor and on the couch.
She was in so much pain. We were really worried because Ivonne could
barely move and we didn't know if she would be able to be baptized
this week. The adversary was working so hard on her! We spent the day
praying about what we should do. We still had a few things to teach
her and we didn't know if she would be ready by Friday. We were super
stressed and kept praying for a very direct answer. All throughout the
day we didn't feel like we were getting a clear answer. So we decided
to take action and see how the Lord directed us. After a lot of
pondering, we decided to postpone the baptism until Sunday. We called
the Ward Mission Leader and told him our plan. About 5 minutes after
we hung up the phone, we received a random text from President
Mortensen. Without knowing anything about what was going on, he asked
us how Ivonne was doing and if she was getting baptized on Friday. We
explained to him the situation and he told us and I quote, "Plan on
it. Remember who always waits by the water. She will be healed by
Friday. Assure her she will be ready." I was completely overcome when
I read that. We had prayed for a specific answer and we received one.
We immediately called the Ward Mission Leader and told him the baptism
was back on for Friday. We felt so much peace all week! Ivonne was
healed and she was ready and she was baptized on Friday. It was a
testimony to me that the Lord is in complete control of this work. The
adversary will do all he can to keep people from baptism but we are on
the winning team! As we listen to the promptings of the spirit, we
will receive guidance and answers!
 
We received transfer calls last night. I am out. I won't know where I
am going until tomorrow though.. I am kinda sad.. But I feel like my
time is done here I this area! There is more for me to do somewhere
else! I will have my new address next Monday for those who asked about
it!
 
Ivonnes kids bought "Missionary Barbies" the other day. They bought a
blond one and a brown haired one and they pretend they are me and
Hermana Rupp. Then instead of playing house, they play missionary
lessons. It is soooo cute! Haha!
 
Well my friends, the church is true! Have a wonderful week! Read your
scriptures and say your prayers!
 
Love,
Hermana Christensen

Baptisms for Days

Bueno!
How are y'all doing? Kevin was baptized this week!!!! It was so great!
He was so happy and the spirit was so strong! I love watching my
little investigators get baptized! It fills my heart with pure joy!!
This week Ivonne and her family are getting baptized! We are so
stinking excited!!!!! They are so ready! Please keep them in your
prayers! The adversary always works really hard on people the week of
their baptism!
 
We actually had a really cool experience with Ivonne yesterday! She
invited us over for a bbq so we could teach one of her friends! Her
friend was this big Mexican man who could probably kill you just by
looking at you. He was intense. We started talking to him and he just
started to break down and cry right in front of us. He told us how he
is addicted to alcohol and it is ruining his life. He said he wants to
change so badly but he thinks it is too late. We were able to testify
to him of the atonement and the power of the Book of Mormon. He just
cried and cried. The spirit was so strong! He agreed that he would
come to church on Sunday and he is going to start reading the Book of
Mormon. It was such a blessing to be there right at that time to help
him!
 
There are so many cool experiences we have had in this area! I love it
so much! Next week is transfers and I have gotten a couple of hints
that I am going to be leaving my area. It makes me kinda sad but I
guess we shall see what happens! The Lord will send me where ever I am
needed!
 
So update on the hurricane... Biggest disappointment of my life.
Hurricane Bill turned into Tropical Storm Bill who later turned into
just Rain Storm Bill who by the time it got to us, was just Great
Depression Bill. It just rained... Lightly.. Everyone felt pretty dumb
for freaking out and buying supplies like it was the end of the world.
There were some nasty tornados that hit some parts of Houston, but we
didn't get affected. But who knows.. Hurricane season just started!
 
 
We get to go to the temple tomorrow!! Ahhhhh!!!!! I haven't been in to
do a session my whole entire mission! President just decided that we
should all go so we could receive revelation for our areas! I am so so
excited!!!!!! We are doing the 10am session with our district
tomorrow!! Eeeeeee!
 
Well darlings, have a wonderful week! I shall talk to y'all another
time! Be good and read your scriptures!!!
 
Hermana Christensen
 

Horray for Hurricanes

Hello everyone!
So we are in the midst of a hurricane watch right now! Woo! We were
instructed to get lots of water and non perishable food and then hang
out in our apt because there is a crazy storm coming! Houston can't
catch a break! We were at the store this morning and it was PACKED.
People were stocking up on what ever they could get their hands on.
This is why we have food storage! So when natural disasters come we
don't have to be all panicky! I couldn't believe it. The store was
actually running out of food. It was crazy! Anyway, we are all
prepared! Now we are just watching and waiting! As of right now, it
doesn't even look bad out! Just a little cloudy! It is supposed to hit
at 7 tonight so I guess I will let you know what happens!
 
So this past week has been awesome! We have a baptism coming up! His
name is Kevin! And he is actually Litzi's cousin! He is going to be
baptized this Saturday and we are so excited!!!!!!
 
This week we had a couple of really cool experiences. We have started
teaching this really special family. They have a little son (hes 6)
with terminal cancer. He is down to his last few weeks and he just
stays on the couch while the family cares for him. We had an
opportunity to sit with all of them this week and teach them the plan
of salvation! It was such a special experience. The spirit was so
strong as we taught of how families can be together forever. It was
probably one of the most special experiences I have had on my mission!
We also have this other little family we are teaching. They have been
investigating for a long time and haven't really been keeping
commitments. For the longest time we haven't been able to decide if we
should continue seeing them or not. We decided to have a "do or die"
lesson with them. We went in and talked about waiting on the road to
Damascus and how we need to act now on our faith! (There is a really
good Mormon message if y'all have time to watch it. It's called..
Waiting on the road to Damascus) They took our lesson really well.
When we were done, both me and Hermana rupp both had the strongest
impression that we can't give up on them yet and we need to keep
teaching them. And then low and behold they came to church yesterday
for the first time in 4 months! Hopefully they will start to progress
towards baptism!!!!
 
In other news, I learned how to make tamales this week! This sweet
Hermana in our ward was put in charge of making tamales for the ward
party we had on Saturday. She asked if we could help her for a bit, so
we did! It was so fun!!!! The ward party was crazy. Hispanic wards go
hard when it comes to party's. They are filled with food and everyone
is dancing and they usually last until about 10 or 11. We have to go
home at 9 so we missed all the craziness this time. We had a few
investigators come and they loved it! Also.. This is a little off
topic.. But none of the Hispanics use utensils when they eat. It's all
hands! Or tortillas. They make fun of us because we are used to always
eating with a fork or a knife. Some of the members have a special set
of utensils that they only use when we are over! It is so funny! I am
so bad at eating with my hands! It is hard not to make a mess! Haha!
 
Well I hope y'all have a great week! Look for missionary experiences
every single day! I love ya!
 
Hermana C.