Season 9, Episode 4 The One With Change

 Hey Folks!! 

   Not too much happened this week. Well there was some pretty awesome stuff. We did have some really good dinners with members, some awesome companion studies with young women, and lots of service opportunities. One of those was that we got to help with paperwork for people getting vaccinated for COVID. We got to meet and talk to so many cool people. It was a lot of fun. Also on Sunday we found out that the ward boundaries are changing in our stake. So there is quite a bit of change going on and the missionaries are kinda out of the loop. We are figuring it out though. I am a little sad because we lost one of my favorite neighborhoods to another ward that Elders have! It broke my heart, I'm gonna miss the members a lot. But on Sunday we got to take a nice walk to our dinner and I took a lot of pics there. Overall it was a pretty calm and good week. 

   So I have been studying a lot about faith recently. I thought that I had a good amount of faith but then I got on my mission. Being a missionary requires a lot of faith. So our mission has been doing a faith study. I have been loving it. I have gotten some revelation on what I personally should be doing to grow my faith. One quote that I have loved is by Joseph B Wirthlin and it says "Faith is not so much something we believe; faith is something we live." It is so true. Faith is the the belief in things hoped for and not seen. But it is also how we live. If faith is a principle of action, shouldn't we be acting in faith in every moment? Just being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints requires living by faith. And the good thing is, if you only have a mustard seed of faith, it can still become a tree of life. We just have to do our part and take care of the tree. Strengthen our testimony. Build our faith. Day by day, moment by moment, you're faith will grow and become stronger. There are so many things you can do to grow your faith. So I challenge each of you (and I need to do this myself) is to pick one specific thing that you can do to strengthen your faith and do it every day. It will bless you in so many ways. I love you all and I am grateful for your examples to me of great faith. Have an amazing week!! 

                 Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 9, Episode 3, The One Where I Spoke on Valentine's

Hey Folks! 

   This week was honestly really awesome. I had some really cool and spiritual experiences. I had an exchange with some sisters and I had so much fun with them. Then the next day we had a Zone Conference down in Casa Grande and that was really good. I got to see my good friend Sister Shaw and we even got a selfie with President and Sister Goaslind. That same day we had 2 lessons with families and those were filled with the spirit so strongly. At the first one, the mom gave us some flowers and the family was so kind and funny. In that lesson I was able to bear my testimony about the Book of Mormon. I just felt the spirit so strong and it reaffirmed my testimony. Then at the second lesson Sis Merkley bore a very powerful testimony about God's love. That was a good day. I needed it. Then I got to be with one of my favorite doggos named Blue. AND on Saturday we got a call from the member of our bishopric and he asked if we would speak in sacrament the next day on Valentine's Day. So I spake in church! Listen. I do not like speaking in church, but that was the least nervous I have ever been to speak in church. I think it's either I just got lucky or I am slowly getting more ok with things that make me uncomfortable. That's pretty much what a mission is. It's being uncomfortable all the time to share something you love. It was a good week though. I had fun and definitely made some memories. Also on Valentine's Day, we made some stops at a bunch of peoples houses and all of them gave us something! It was so sweet. We felt so much love from our wards on Sunday. 

   In my talk that I gave in church on Valentine's Day I decided to talk about how we can feel or recognize Gods love in our life. And how we can show God that we love him. In my talk I quoted a talk given by President Monson called We Never Walk Alone. In it he says "your Heavenly Father loves you—each of you. That love never changes... It is simply there. It is there for you when you are sad or happy, discouraged or hopeful. God’s love is there for you whether or not you feel you deserve love. It is simply always there." Dear friends and family, I do know that God loves each of you so much. I know it because of the love that I have felt for each of you. Please never forget that you are loved by so many. By me, your friends and family, Jesus Christ, and your Heavenly Parents. You are SO loved. I would like to invite each of you to read the talk that I quoted earlier by President Monson. And then if you need just a little bit more, pray with a humble and open heart and ask Heavenly Father if He loves you. The answer will always be the same. I LOVE each of you!! Have a fantastic week! 

                 Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 9, Episode 2, The One With One Year Out

 Hey folks! 

   This week was actually pretty stressful yet pretty awesome. I HIT MY YEAR MARK!!! Well, I hit the year mark since I have entered the MTC. That was a crazy feeling. I only have about 6 months left. It's kinda blowing my mind. I am on the older side of the mission and I still feel like I have been here for about 5 months. I am seriously so grateful for the time that I have had as a missionary, and I hope that I will be able to truly live every moment that I have left. Also this week we got to pick orange trees at a members orchard. That was a blast. I also had a mission leadership conference and it was honestly one of the best meetings I have ever been to. It was so motivational and inspiring it was crazy. I seriously walked out of that meeting with 10 things that I can do better at. The whole time President Goaslind kept saying the same phrases. Can we improve? Can we do more? We can do better. We can be better. So what are we going to do? I am so grateful for the chance that I do have to recognize ways that I can improve. There is always going to be ways that I can be better and more like my savior. Listen, it was just an awesome meeting and I really needed it. This week on Saturday I also went on an exchange with Sister Westhoff. That was probably one of the most memorable exchanges I have ever done. Before the exchange, I had to move the SIM card from Sister Merkley's phone to my phone. Once I did that. It completely stopped working. We were without a SIM and wifi pretty much the entire day. Let me tell ya, missionary work right now without technology is so hard to figure out. That day both of us were stretched in ways we hadn't been stretched before. So to keep things interesting and for us to actually accomplish work, we biked to a church building after dinner and used the church's Wi-Fi for facebook finding. It was actually awesome. Fun times guys. 

   Ok sorry about that mega long spill about my week. For my spiritual thought I will just share a scripture that really stood out to me this past week. Mosiah 2:21 says "I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants." I would also love to invite each of you to read Mosiah 2:20-22. Those verses were a really good reminder to me. My Heavenly Father really has supported me every single day. I could not have done this past 12 months without him. I know that I have a loving Father in Heaven that knows me and cares about me. I am so grateful for the  chance that I have to be better every day and build my relationship with my Father and Brother. I love you all and hope y'all have a fantastic week! Make every day count!!! 

                 Love, Sister Yates :) 

Season 9, Episode 1, The One With the Gigantic Grapefruit

 Hey Folks!! 

   This week was transfers so a lot happened but at the same time not a lot happened. Confused? Good. Since I am staying here with Sis Merkley we just continued to work hard and get to know our new ward Greenfield 4th! Something that was a lot of fun was that we got to pick grapefruits at a members house! We are trying to do more service and we are focusing on picking citrus trees. Also we got to take some home and they are GINORMOUS. Some other highlights of my week was petting dogs (of course), awesome dinners, and an amazing companion study with young women. Overall it was a good week and I am so pumped for this next transfer and all the work that we are going to be able to do. 

   Last transfer I decided to try to develop the Christlike attribute of diligence. There is a scripture used for diligence and I loved learning more about it. It is Doctrine and Covenants 58:27. It says "Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness". The words that stood out to me the most was anxiously engaged in a good cause. Missionary work is the most important work on the planet. Don't believe me? Well the prophet has said that. And if missionary work is the most important cause, I need to be more than anxiously engaged. I need to be urgently participating, constantly helping, and forever gathering scattered Israel. I also need to recognize what the good causes are on this earth. Some of them are being kind to everyone, feeding the hungry, serving others, fulfilling callings, and even using social media for good. Once you find a list of good causes, start to be anxiously engaged in them. Then join me in the most important cause. It's the best. Trust me. I love you all and I hope y'all have an amazing week! 

Love, Sister Yates :) 

Ps. I am inserting a picture of a tongue twister that I found this week that makes me laugh so hard so I hope y'all like it.