Season 8, Episode 2, The One With the Christmas Cheer

 Hey Folks! 

   This week was so good!! We got to go caroling for 2 nights with other missionaries in our zone. We really got to live the motto "the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear." Then on Christmas Eve President Goaslind wore an awesome headband to get into the spirit. He is so funny. On Christmas Eve night, we got to have all of the sisters come to my house and we had a huge sleepover! We slapped all of the mattresses into the front room, busted out some Martinelli's, and played some card games. It was a super fun night. Then on Christmas day we woke up, opened our packages, and made breakfast. Christmas day was super chill. I got to call my family and wish my mom a happy birthday, play Gatorball with the zone, and eat dinner with a family in our ward. So overall, it was an awesome week. 

   Today I had a really good talk with my older brother Jacek. We talked about our family, the traditions we have, and the blessings that come from eternal families. I am so grateful for the family that I have been blessed with on this earth. The fact that I get to be with my family forever is something that brings me so much peace. During this Christmas season I have missed the traditions that I normally do but I got to be here and share the glad tidings of great joy with people. Being a missionary has strengthened my testimony of the importance of families because I have now seen how much the gospel really can bless families. I love my family and I am so grateful for them. My family is kinda crazy, some of the funniest people I know, amazing photographers, great adventure buddies, and some of my best friends. I am also super grateful for all of you and I would like to challenge you guys to show some appreciation and gratitude for the family you have. I love you all!!!

                Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 8, Episode 1, The One With a Much Warmer Christmas

 Hey Folks! 

   This week has been kinda slow but also really good! We had transfers so I had to say goodbye to my dear Sister McEwen who actually got transferred up to the ward I started in, Pioneer YSA! At transfers I got to say hi to a lot of my friends so I was happy. Then I got my new comp Sister Merkley! She is from Texas, is also an STL, and just awesome. We are starting to have more fun together as we are becoming better friends. On Sunday we even got to have a companion study with 3 amazing young women, pick oranges straight off of the orange tree, and have an incredible Christmas Sunday. That was a fun day. Also it is currently December 21 and down here in sunny AZ we have a high of 74°. So it's hard to feel like Christmas is in 4 days when I can stand outside perfectly fine in a normal shirt. The weather says that down here I will have Christmas in the high 60's. No white Christmas down here for me. BUT I can still feel the Christmas spirit no matter where I am. I just need to remember and focus on Jesus Christ. 

   Ok I know that this week is Christmas. But equally important, it is my moms birthday. I would like to ask all of you a favor and let her know happy birthday on the 25th. My mom is one of the most incredible people you will ever meet. She is fun, kind, beautiful, supportive, outgoing, and a huge example to me. My mom Amy is awesome. Her testimony and the way she lives her life shows me how I want to be as a mother one day. She is one of my best friends and I can't talk highly enough of her. I love my mom so much. Especially now since I have thought more about Mary and her love for Jesus Christ, I gain a stronger love for my mom. I am so grateful for my mom Amy and I want to take this time to wish her an early HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! 

  I love you all and I am grateful for each of you. I hope that you have a Merry Christmas and that you feel the joy that comes from celebrating Jesus Christ. 

                  Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 7, Episode 6, The One With the Movie, the Sunset, and the Nativity

 Hey folks!! 

   Ok this week was actually awesome. This email might be a bit longer so if you don't want to read it all that's ok. But some crazy awesome things happened this past week, so it's gonna get interesting.. ok so last Monday night we got to watch a movie!!! I was so stinkin happy. We watched The Other Side of Heaven 2 and it was so good. I seriously was so happy that I was watching a movie on my mission. Then later on in the week Sister McEwen graduated training and I am so proud of her! I even got to take a picture with President and Sister Goaslind with me holding some of Sister Goaslinds homemade bread. Delicious. Then we saw a BREATHTAKING sunset on our way home. The sunsets down here are so cool. Then as a house we celebrated our own mini Christmas! We did a secret Santa kind of thing and filled each others stockings. Then a couple nights ago I got to help with my housemates wards Christmas Nativity drive through. Kinda confusing I know. Sister Lunt and I stood out on a busy street with a sign trying to wave people down. We kinda felt like weirdos since we were kinda making a fool of ourselves. We actually ended up having a lot of fun that night. AND we were told when it ended that some people came to the nativity because they saw "2 girls by the street with a sign waving me down". We actually got people to go!! It was pretty amazing. Just some fun times this week. It was a blast.

   Ok for my little thought for y'all today, I just want to share something that I learned while studying in Helaman 14 what Samuel the Lamanite taught when he was on the wall. When he was preaching about the birth of Jesus Christ he says in verse 3 "this will I give unto you for a sign at the time of his coming; for behold, there shall be great lights in heaven, insomuch that in the night before he cometh there shall be no darkness". In this verse he talks about how when Christ will come to the Earth there will be only light. Then in verse 20 he says "in that day that he shall suffer death the sun shall be darkened and refuse to give his light unto you". In this verse he talked about when Christ will be taken off the Earth and there will be no light. While reading these verses it showed me another reason why Jesus Christ is literally the light of the world. And after Christ was resurrected, the light came back and has never gone away. Because Christ lives. He brings the light into our lives. I am so grateful for the light of Christ and its influence in my life. I would like to urge each of you to continue to share your light of Christ with others. Serve and love them and they will see it. I love all of you! Happy Holidays! 

              Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 7, Episode 5, The One With Personal Revelation

 Hey Folks! 

   This week I was able to go to MLC and I got a ride home with Elders so that was casual and weird at the same time. I also got a picture with Sister Gosalind and all the STL's. Today I "ran" a 5k, then we got breakfast, and then we went shopping and tried on crazy jackets. We didn't do a whole lot this week but it was fun. 

   Overall this week was pretty good. But, I'm gonna be honest, I kinda struggled a bit. I'm not telling you guys this for sympathy or to complain. I wanted to tell you all that I was not doing good and that I found the answer to help myself be better. The answer that I got was that I need to make sure that I read the Book of Mormon every single day. Once I got that very personal revelation, I knew that it would help me. So, I made sure that I set aside time each day to read in the Book of Mormon. This past week I was reading in 2 Nephi 9 and that whole chapter helped me out a lot. One specific phrase in verse 43 says "happiness which is prepared for the saints.". That sentence gave me so much hope. Because even though I wasn't doing good in that moment, I knew that there is happiness prepared for me. I just have to continue to be the best Latter Day Saint that I can be. I am very thankful for a loving Heavenly Father that gave me that revelation to help me to be happy again. But I had to do my part to receive that happiness. If any of you are struggling in any way, please pray to your Heavenly Father and ask him what YOU need to do to help yourself become better, listen to what He will say, and then act on it. I can promise that you will be blessed as you do. I am very grateful for all of you and I love y'all so much!! 

                  Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 7, Episode 4, The One With Thanksgiving

Hey Folks!! 

   This week was pretty great. The highlight of my week for sure was Thanksgiving day. It was so much fun. We went to a park and played sports in the morning. We played mostly 3 hit kill with a volleyball and we even played a Turkey bowl!! Playing football was SO much fun and I felt like I was back home playing with my dad and brothers. And I even accidentally dressed up as Rachel from Friends for Thanksgiving. And what is even more crazy is I wore something like what she wore in a Thanksgiving episode. Anyways it was fun. Then we went home and took some funny pics and the  got ready for the day. I got to have dinner with 2 families in my ward and the food was amazing. It was a good and fun Thanksgiving dinner. Oh we are also a part of a Christmas concert thing so we got to record/film for it this week! So it was a pretty fun week. 

   I just want to say how grateful I am for each of you. You all have helped me so much in my life. I hope that all of you know how much I love all of you. I am also very grateful that I get to be a missionary right now. I read a talk by Dieter F Uchtdorf called Grateful in Any Circumstances. In it he says "We can choose to be grateful, no matter what.". I know this is true. We can always choose to be grateful. There is always something to be grateful for in your life. One good activity that I love is to sit down and time yourself for 1 or 2 minutes and write as many things as you can that you are grateful for. You will surprise yourself. I love and am so grateful for all of you.

           Love, Sister Yates :)  

Season 7, Episode 3, The One With the Christmas Light Show

 Hey Folks! 

   This week was pretty good! We got to be witnesses for a little girls baptism. I did an exchange with Sisters Lunt and Bake and they are incredible. We got to hear from our prophet!!! I saw a beautiful sunset. And I even got to watch a dope Christmas light show. That brought me pure joy. They even played some songs by Celine Dion and You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch. It was awesome. It was just a good week with some good moments. 

   For my lil spiritual thought for this email I want to just share a little quote from a book that I found in my current house. The book is called The Boy, the mole, the fox and the Horse and it's by Charlie Mackesy. It is the cutest book ever and it almost brings me to tears every time I read it. One quote from it that I love is "When the big things feel out of control... focus on what you love right under your nose.". I love this quote and I think that I have seen this definitely help me during my mission. Right now it may seem that the whole world is out of control. But if you stop and look for those little things that you love or are grateful for, the world becomes so much better. Never forget that there is so much good in the world. There is kindness, laughter, love, friendship, and moments that bring us joy. It might be hard to see but it is there. I can promise you that. I would like to challenge each of you to look for those things right under your nose that you love and then appreciate them. Doing this will help. I love and am SO thankful for all of you!!! 

                  Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 7, Episode 2, The One With the Mission Tour

 Hey Folks! 

   This week was honestly awesome. We had so many good moments. We had some fun dinners with amazing families in our ward. We even had an incredible pre-Thanksgiving dinner so that was a nice warm up. I was very full and very happy. They even had a cute place holder with my name on it for me. We got to do some chalk art at some parks with some uplifting messages. This past week we had a virtual mission tour with Elder Alliaud of the Seventy and his wife. It was so amazing. I learned so many things and I will share a little bit of them with you. 

   One of the biggest things that I learned from Elder Alliaud was the questions where am I? And where do I want to go? He talked about seeing where we were and then seeing where we wanted to be. He taught us to know the difference of being a missionary and being a true disciple of Jesus Christ. When we are a true disciple of Christ, the name tag never comes off. "True discipleship requires us to swim upstream sometimes." He also taught us that the only constant in life is change. And that we need to get used to it. A lot of things are going to take us by surprise. Example a: COVID. We need to grow our testimony and grow our faith every single day so that when things like this happen, we won't be shaken. We will have our solid foundation built upon the rock. One last part that really struck me hard was when Elder Alliaud said "if you want to walk where He walked, you need to do what He did". I do want to walk where Christ walked. So I know that every single day, I need to do what Christ did. Christ did a lot of different things but one thing that sums it all up is that he loved those around him. So my challenge to each of you this week is to show more love to those around you. You will feel more of Christ's love for you as you do. I love you all!! 

            Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 7, Episode 1, The One With My Hump Day

 Hey Folks! 

   I know. This is crazy. I really can't believe that I hit my 9 months. It does not feel like I am half way through my mission but I am. These first 9 months have been the craziest and best 9 months of my life. I have seen so many miracles, moments of pure joy, a lot of sadness and heartache, and lives being changed. I have met some absolutely incredible people that I love and adore with my whole heart. I have missed home. I have learned a lot about myself and my savior. My testimony has been strengthened more than I ever thought it would. I am very grateful to be here in the Arizona Tempe Mission. I am very grateful for my friends and family that helped me get and stay on a mission. I am grateful for these past 9 months and I look forward to the rest of the time I have here in Arizona. 

   Just some updates for y'all. This past week I was transferred out of Tempe and I am now in San Tan! My companion is Sister McEwen and she is the cutest thing ever. I am actually serving around and with my trainer Sister Daines so I am extremely happy about that. And I am in a fantastic ward. They are all very rich and very fun to be around. These members are also some of the most gospel centered and humble people I have ever met. They are amazing. We have already seen some miracles in the short time that I have been here. Oh also just last night we had a devotional with former General Young Womens President Elaine S. Dalton! It was spirit filled and I learned a lot from her. One scripture that she shared with us was Doctrine and Covenants 84:88 that says "And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up." I love this scripture and I know it to be true. I would just like to invite each of you to read this verse and then go throughout your week looking for those moments when the spirit is in your heart. Or when angels are around you. Look for those moments where Christ bears you up. Or when he is right beside you. Because He is always there. Thank you for all that you guys do for me. I love y'all! 

              Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 6, Episode 6, The One With Spoopy Season

 Hey Folks!!

   So my email won't be too long today because transfers!! I was called last night to be a second half trainer and I will be serving in the San Tan Zone! I am really sad to leave this ward and my companions. Sister Packer and Sister Layton have become great friends of mine and I absolutely live this area. But, I am excited to experience something new. This past week was a lot of fun! We had Halloween as you all know and my comps and I "dressed up" as the Plan of Salvation/ the Plan of Happiness. It's a very subtle costume cuz I'm a missionary :) Halloween was probably the highlight of my week. Oh AND Sister Packer graduated from training this week!! Anyways I had a good week.

   I would just like to bear my testimony of the Plan of Happiness. I have been able to teach this plan to some people this week and every time I was able to share that I know this plan was designed by God and made possible by Jesus Christ. I am thankful for the knowledge and blessing that I can be with my family forever. I am thankful for the chance that I have to be on this beautiful earth and experience joy because of the bravery of Eve. I am very thankful that one day I can be resurrected. This plan and this gospel is the map of how to return to our Heavenly Father. I am very thankful for the Plan of Happiness and I know that it is God's plan for me. I would like to challenge all of you to read Alma 34 or Your Happily Ever After by Dieter F Uchtdorf and see what you can learn about the Plan of Salvation. Also President Oaks gives fantastic talks about the plan if you are ever looking for a good talk. Anyways I love my savior and I love y'all!! 

                  Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 6, Episode 5, The One With the Restoration Miracle

 Hey Folks! 

   This week was awesome! I am feeling a lot better and we were able to have so much fun this week. We also had a super cool miracle. We were going to teach the Restoration to one of our friends named John. But because of poor planning we taught the lesson in the back of our car, in a parking lot, running on 6% battery life. All we knew is that if we got through the first vision, we were gonna be ok. So we were teaching simply and powerfully. But we still had time for a bit more. So my comp Sister Packer just bore her testimony about the Book of Mormon and it was awesome. Then I pulled out Moroni 10:2-3 and promised that if he read and prayed, he would know that it's true. So we finished the lesson and he goes to share a comment and then... the phone died. RIGHT AS SOON AS WE ENDED. It was a huge miracle to us. We were also able to have a good amount of lessons this week and see more little miracles. We also got to go to a Relief Society activity and decorate Halloween cookies! I never thought I would miss Relief Society activities this much. Also I got to grab a picture of all my Sisters that I am over before a fiesta and they are all so cute. I am so lucky to be surrounded by such incredible women and missionaries. AND just barely today we ran into our amazing friend Jess!! I missed her a lot and I loved running into her. A tender mercy 💗

   For my little thought I would just like to share my simple testimony of The Book of Mormon. I am so grateful for the Book of Mormon. I feel closer to my savior and my Heavenly Fathers love when I read it. I have seen it change lives, including mine. It is truth. It is another testament of Jesus Christ. It is the roadmap of how to find happiness in this life and how to return to our Father in Heaven. I love this book. I would love to challenge all of you to read Alma 32 and 3 Nephi 11 this week. They always help. 

   Love, Sister Yates :)