From St. George

Well a lot has happened the last little while so here is the updates. First, for those that don't know, and for those who haven't heard much. I am currently serving in the St. George Mission with my mom as my companion. I got sick while I was serving where I would get bad abdominal pain. So I got sent home. I had gallbladder surgery and am on the recovery. Which is good. I will be going back in a couple of weeks probably somewhere around the 7th of July. So it has been crazy to be home, I am missing winnipeg but fortunately I get to go back when everything is good again. I have been out 8 months, so still have plenty of time to enjoy the rest of my mission. I am still learning a lot here, different from a mission, but I think patience and relying on my Father in Heaven knowing that he is aware of me. I didn't think I would learn it this way but we don't always expect the things that happen to us most of the time. I have had a chance to talk to some of my recent converts and also to some of the investigators I taught and it has been good to encourage them and just to hear of the great things they are accomplishing. So that has been really neat. I am doing good, but still am excited to go back. It has been so wonderful to see friends and family and feel of the great support that I have. It really is encouraging to me to feel like I have such great people cheering me on. Second, my mission address is changing as of June 16.

The new mission office address will be:

845 Shaftesbury Boulevard
Winnipeg, MB R3P 0M5
Canada

What the mission office says about letters that go to the old one:
We will be setting up a forwarding service so that any post you have already sent which may currently be in transit will be forwarded to the new address when we have moved. This will be in effect for approximately 6 months, so hopefully no post will be lost.

So that is kind of crazy, just so you know. I just want you to know that I love the gospel it is something that really brings me the most joy. I love canada and am excited to go back to my mission this I think just makes me appreciate that much more the time that I get to spend serving my Father in Heaven. I just hope that I have been the instrument he has expected of me. I love my Savior, I truly know that by ourselves it would be impossible to really accomplish or have what we hope for. Especially eternal life and exaltation with our families. What an amazing blessing it is know these truths. And that we can know it through a prophet of God. I love President Monson and his sincerity, and humility in this new calling of his. I love you all. Thank you for the support.

Love, Sister North

Here are some more pics:

From the Field

Hello!
This week has been a great week for a couple of reasons. I am currently still in Winnipeg, and love it. The weather is getting beautiful I think this morning on my alarm clock (thanks ash) it said it was 22 which is about 71 degrees. So beautiful. We played sand volleyball which made me happy and I am really grateful for all the parks here in canada they are amazing!

This past weekend was Stake Conference. And it was so great! The stake presidency talked about the 3 fold mission of the church and there steps of getting every family to participate in them. It really was great the revelation and insights that
they had. They want to increase the member finding and missionary teaching of Elder Bednar and gave everyone really great ideas of how they personally can accomplish it. And the pattern we need to establish in our lives, and the steps towards family history and temple attendance. I really respect the leaders in this area. They are really great. So we heard from everyone in the stake saturday night because on sunday it was a broadcast. The broadcast was all of the canadian stakes and the speakers were President Monson, Sister Dibbs, Elder Steven Snow, and Elder Ballard. And each of their experiences of service in Canada. And their love for Canada. It was really great though. I learned a lot even though the night before was a huge thunder storm, lightning storm, which blew their antenna or something so we missed the first part of it, but it ended well. It was great to hear the love they had of their experiences here in Canada and how part of them will always have special place in their hearts. It was really a great opportunity. We had some investigators there, who wanted to hear the prophet speak, but we could only get audio and it wasn't that loud, so they heard it but it was quiet and no visual so I was trying to take copious notes to pay attention.

One of our Investigators Yuki is going back to China, many of the university students do because they are originally from China so they go home for the summer. She will be back in like 3 months. But it seems so long.

There is a single sister who was a service missionary who has currently been released. She has some health problems but we usually go over there to do different service things and share a message. She has 3 bookcases full of books, and it is interesting because she doesn't even remember how many she has. so we have been trying to organize them in some sort of order. So she fed us last night and we are working on finshing we have one more shelf of keep and throw away decisions but we still have to get those cabinets organized most are church, but she has so many books. It has been good to do some service, it is hard to do here, because we don't really have to many options so it is great to serve, because she really needs all the help she can get with her home.

Winnipeg is beautiful, I really love it, and the memebers, and the people. We are learning a lot this transfer and hopefully will apply it. hehe. We see interesting people every day. The other day I saw a gentleman walking across the street, and he decided to stop about 6 feet (kind of in the middle of the farthest lane) on the street to check his watch, well cars were coming and so he checked it and kept walking. We were laughing because I would personally never do something like that, but to this gentleman it was perfectly normal. How great. Also there was a gentleman the other day wearing a pink turban. So everything you wouldn't think you would see people do, is done here. It is great. I love it!

I love you all. I hope all is well, and that everything goes great this week for you. I love being able to serve the Lord, and am grateful for the gospel, without it we would still be in our own personal apostasies. I love getting to teach and to testify, and help these people understand the worth that they have to there heavenly father, and the happiness they can find through living the principles of the gospel.

I love you! Have a great week!
Love, Lou (sister North)

News from the North

Hello everyone!
Reports from The Windy city of Winnipeg. So the weather has become something beautiful! Today at our activity I was getting pretty warm. What a grand change. The Baptisms were amazing the spirit was so strong! Heather and Colleen looked beautiful in white and I really know that they were making amazing choices in their lives. I love them so much, and really can see them becoming strong members of the church. So last night was fun because as I called in to the District Leader, Sister Ferguson and sister capps got into a water fight next thing I knew I was covered in water as well, I think Elder Cutright was a little confused but to say the least we were wet but happy. I love the people here in canada so much. We really have some amazing members, right now we are working on building the area after the 2 baptisms and really its a lot of work, but its worth doing. Sister Ferguson and I sometimes beat up on each other as far as tackling when one isn't paying attention, its good exercise. hehe. I am learning a lot, and really trying to learn everything I possibly can. The other day in my studies I was learning about personal apostasy and it was such an interesting topic because well, even when we are slacking on the basic things of reading our scriptures, saying meaningful prayers, and going to church, we are having our own mini apostasies. It is so important to stand firm in all things. I love the gospel and how it really changes peoples lives for the better. Yesterday we talked to this guy on the street, and he was like sure lets talk religion. He was really smart and as we talked his desire to learn and to read from the book of mormon grew because, The book of Mormon answers the questions of the soul, so now he is coming to a pot luck and will start investigating the church and who knew if we wouldn't have talked to him what would have happened. There are
people all around who are ready, which is a crazy thought. But we do meet some crazy people on the street, who you just wonder what in the world they are thinking, but it is good fun. You just laugh. Such as meeting Elijah the Prophet who told us the New Jerusalem is right here in Winnipeg, who knew? And that they world is going to tilt to the 23 parallel so that those here in Winnipeg will have the best view, and the best weather... good thing I came here... whew! I love you all. Thank you for all of your support. I am lucky to have the amazing friends and family that I do. Take care!
Love, Sister North ( from the not so frozen north now)

Pictures from Zone Conference

It was warming up here, the cold part is the wind. whew. Spring is a hopeful thought. Overall we are being pretty blessed. Sister Allan and Sister Capps looked at my wardrobe and were like honey you are going to melt this summer so we are going shopping today to pick out a couple things that can get me by... we are going to suzy sheer which is I think like a t.j. maxx. I love all of you so much and am grateful for the wonderful support I have at home.

Love, Sister North

Hello Family and Friends.

Well I am now serving in the Windy city of Winnipeg. The weather is getting much nicer, but the other days its was 70 kmh so we felt like we would get blown away but it just adds a little more fun. I am in a Young Single Adult ward so I am working with people that are my own age which is pretty funny. Very different from a family ward but is good because I can relate on different levels. My companions are sister Allan and Sister Capps. Sister Allan is obviously my fellow st. georgian and I found out that yes we do have accents. words such as field, idea, feel and fill. Supposedly we say it different but at least we can both pronounce it wrong together. hehe. I love it here! There are some amazing people. We have 3 baptismal dates for May 3. Heather- who is so good, and so excited about her baptism. her family is thrilled but I have never seen anyone so aglow when it comes to the church. Colleen- who was paegan and now has a great testimony of God and his love for her. She even took out all her ear piercings but one to be obedient right after we talked to her about it. and Yuki- who is Chinese and never knew of God before and last time we taught her she said she can just feel it even though she can't always understand what is being taught at church. They are amazing. I love you all. Thank you for your support. I know that this is where I am suppose to be and that teaching the gospel really brings me the most joy! I know that living the gospel will make us happier than anything else we can do! It changes our lives for the better. and we really can
be purified by the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Chirst. I love you all. Take
care. And I hope to hear from you soon.

Love, Sister North (up in the warming frozen north)

Lindsey and her newest companions.

Winnipeg

My area is now in winnipeg! I work in the YSA with all the young people so basically their college ward. My companions are Sister Allan from St. George, UT.(She is practically family) and Sister Capps who is from Portland, Oregon. They are both hilarious and they are hard workers. The weather has actually been quite cold the past few days. It had started to warm up and now it is freezing again. But I got to give it to these two sisters they are working out champs! The city is huge~ and there are so many people from so many nationalities. President Morgan lives here, and I have seen him twice this transfer so I think it will be nice to be serving around them. We won't seem them a lot, but occassionally so that is nice. The senior couples are the Heltons, work in the office, and the Hansons, who are city builders. Winnipeg is a lot different from Regina but it is fun.
So we as a companionship are playing the biggest losers with ourselves because i want to be healthier again, sister allan will be going home, and sister capps just wants to be healthy too. So it is going to be fun. So Linda... how did you figure out percentages? Lets see... We have set some stretching goals so we will be working hard which is good. I am going to be learning a lot. I am really happy and feel like things happen for a reason. So I was the only sister traveling into Winnipeg so they let me travel with two of the Zone Leaders. But before I left I said goodbye to some of my favorite people in Regina. One being Myles, who gave me a porcelein angel...it is very pretty. He really has a big heart. I love this area already, it will be a change from the family ward but there are great people here. I love the gospel it is true no matter where I serve, but I know that my morning studies are going to be more effective here so every transfer you learn something new. And I am excited to
see what I get to learn this time. I love you all. Thank you for your support. I
am excited to be here in Winnipeg so send any mail to the mission office.