Hey y'all!This week was pretty great! It went really fast! The week started with a trip to Franklin, and a lot of driving through small towns and corn fields. It was the most successful trip I have ever had in Franklin. We saw just about everyone we needed to. We stopped by M--- and B----'s, and we got to see them and you know what! M--- has just about quit smoking. She had to go to the hospital last week for bronchitis because she quit so suddenly, but in two and a half weeks she only had two cigarettes since we challenged her to quit. Her husband, B----, hadn't had such luck, but they are coming along and have been praying about a baptism date. Hopefully we can set it soon!
C---- came to church and is growing just slowly. We also spent more time than usual this week on campus because we met with A----- and a few other people. Our lesson with A----- was amazing! His first question was about missionaries and how a member told him we help people become members, and he said how do I become a member. So we spent a good amount of time explains what baptism was because he didn't know. We invited him to be baptized, and he said he want to learn a little bit more and make sure it was okay with his wife. We considered that a soft acceptance.
Also, we were on bikes for the majority of this week which allowed us to zip around faster even though we get many strange looks. Two girls on bikes and (yes, my companion rides a child-sized bike) in skirts and helmets. We definitely turn heads.
We have seen blessings this week. Two separate occasions when we had an appointment fall through we have felt guided to do something else in the area. Usually this means street contacts or tracting, but we can always see why we were there at that moment even if it was a discouragement. Our count of Africans found this week is 20. They were all living in places where Africans don't usually live, so we were happy to find them and refer them to the Swahili elders.
We had interviews with president this week and it is always so wonderful to meet with him, such a inspired man.
Spiritual thought: It comes from a talk on priesthood, but I think it applies to other things as well. "The tough part of that reality is that for Him to give you that increased power, you must go in service and faith to your outer limits." As our responsibility increases, so does our ability to function. Such is the power of the atonement that the Lord will give us a way to accomplish what we need to do for Him. With that, we receive power and can truly work miracles.
I love being a missionary!!
Sinceramente,
Hermana NielsonP.S. The south has giant spiders
Hey y'all! This one won't be long! We had a very busy day and a very busy week! We had a lot of set appointments this week, which was great! We had the car the last part of the week, which helped a lot. It has rained so much this week! It's the most rain anyone can remember. Luckily we have been mostly somewhat covered (mostly).
We had a great lesson, with C-----, who is growing in his faith and came to church. We even met with a very strange less active who had interesting ideas and would claim all church doctrine as his own personal revelation. Strange dude.
Probably the biggest change is that I am now the designated driver! There is some rule about missionaries who are about to go home can't drive, so I am taking over that! Most of the time it's fine, but anything out of the city (which is half our area) is pretty much skinny, windy country roads which hardly enough room for two cars. So I am learning a lot.
I have hardly had time to think this week. We have had to skip dinner a couple times to keep up with our appointments and goals. If we weren't planning lessons or spiritual thoughts, I was planning my training for district meeting or preparing my talk for Sacrament Meeting yesterday. My talk was on forgiveness, and right before I got up to speak, the bishop leaned over and said, "Our other speaker didn't show up, so you can fill a half hour right?" Uh.... So that was decent considering.
We actually had 5 investigators at church on Sunday!!! That was awesome! We were just going around inviting people left and right to hear my talk and some people actually showed up! The G----- came. They were quite confused by the stake business session but said I did good and we took them on a tour of the family history library.
Another audible was A-----. I was grabbed by a member to speak with a nice Indian man who loved family history and had been wanting to know the church and read the Book of Mormon, but the closest one in India was so far away. Now he is attending Western Kentucky University (WKU) and found out there was a church in Bowling Green and just showed up. He attended our church tour and it was the best attended church tour ever. We are meeting with him this week on Wednesday (he wanted to meet today but we have appointments pretty solid till Wednesday).
WKU starts classes this week, so Bowling Green will start to be a bit busier. Today we spent P-Day with a recent convert who leaves so soon to move to Utah!
Here is a thought from my talk: "Restoring what you cannot restore, healing the wound you cannot heal, fixing that which you broke and you cannot fix is the very purpose of the atonement of Christ." I would take it a step further and say forgiving what you cannot forgive. The atonement can help us through everything, even the struggle to forgive. I have seen great examples on my mission of the poison bitterness can bring to a life and can derail your promised blessings.
Hope everyone has a great week!Con amor,Herman NielsonP.S. As we were knocking, a lady didn't have any water but had to give us something. So we received potatoes as a gift. The lady somehow knew my deepest desire... potatoes!
P.P.S. This is my child
P.P.P.S. That, my friends, is a tobacco field.
So, first things first. Transfer calls came last Saturday. Plot twist, I am staying in Bowling Green, and killing Sister H-----! This comes as a suprise to me. A couple days before transfers came, we kept getting calls from the APs asking if we could move to the other side of town, if it would be hard on our schedule to move in an apartment with room for 4 sisters. So we thought something crazy was going to happen, but then calls came really late and it didn't mention anything. It's going to be a good transfer! We are excited to make Sister H-----'s last 6 weeks awesome!
We had a crazy busy week this week. On Tuesday, we rode out to the far side of our area, in Franklin (with the J------- (the senior couple missionaries) to meet with B----- and M---. This was my first time meeting them, but they are so amazing. They have been through some rough times but have gained a strong testimony of the Book of Mormon! The Spirit was so strong. We invited them to be baptized! They said yes! M--- wanted to push it back for a few months, but B----- said no! We are committing to this and following through! They are praying for a date! We are so excited for them! We also met with C----- again. He has not quit smoking but opened up to us about what he is thinking. He told us he received the strongest calm feeling to be baptized but was doubting himself. Ugh! Satan is working so hard on him.
We had an awesome experience last night. We had been knocking to reach our new investigators goal, but none of our potentials were home or interested, etc. Then we walked past this house at about 8:30 pm and felt like we remembered talking to a kid that lived there like my first day here. He didn't seem terribly interested, but we decided to try anyways. We knocked and a lady let us right in. Pretty soon we were having a great lesson with her and her quadruplets! They are just such a sweet family. They had a lot to say, but in the interest of curfew, we didn't finish the Restoration. But my Sister H----- pulled out Helaman 5:12, and they loved it. We left the Book of Mormon. We made a appointment to return.
I am excited to see what Bowling Green has ahead for it! I am also excited to help in the Spanish/English work more permanently! The members are awesome and between English and Spanish we are going to be very busy. It seems like everyone knows a less active or has a neighbor they want us to visit! So we are excited to dig in!
My spiritual thought for the week is on love. Love is the measure of our faith, the inspiration of our obedience and the true altitude of our discipleship. Christ-like love is truly the answer to so many problems today.
Hope y'all have a great week!
Love,Hermana Nielson
P.S. This is the Bowling Green District.
P.P.S. The most amazing windflowers grow here.
:)
This week was very busy! We were running around crazy. Don't have a lot of time today.
We met with C---- three times this week. We want to help him progress. The only thing is he is almost ready to meet his baptism date, but he smokes more than a pack of cigarettes a day. He has been pretty good about keeping the other word of wisdom requirements. He is learning so much and changing.
On Wednesday, we went to the far, far end of our area to meet with an investigator. We met a lot of really awesome people while we were out there -- out in the country and here in town. Southern hospitality is real. People are so willing to let 2 young girls in their home. Many times this week, I have left a home with more stuff than I entered it with. You give away the Book of Mormon and a pamphlet, they give you water, candy, a map, and dessert. It is really wonderful. Sometimes it's hard to filter through southern hospitality and interest in the gospel.
I really am loving Bowling Green. It's a wonderful little town. We met some Hispanics people here this week -- about 5 different groups. They were all so nice! One lady we knocked into, after she heard our Spanish, invited us in for pupusas. We had a lesson with her. Unfortunately she didn't believe in God, and would not budge, but she was very nice. We met a old man, and a young kid and were able to teach them all!
Some other great news is that R---- from Buena Vista got baptized yesterday. Apparently she wasn't planning on it, but she received a sign that she would be baptized in August so she picked a day for her baptism. I am so happy for her! I didn't get to watch or anything, but in Buena Vista, we set a goal for a baptism this transfer. That was a goal met even if I wasn't able to be there for it!
Me and my companion took a nature hike not to far from our apartment today, so that was fun! This summer has been the hottest and wettest summer on record! We are walking next week, so wish us luck! Also transfer calls are this Saturday so.... We will see!
Love y'all so much!
Hermana Nielson
P.S. These photos feature Hermana Nielson in pants. Look at your own risk.1. cute kittens
2. finding constantly and always sharing the gospel
3. butterfly habitat
4. taking a selfie in this companionship is hard
5. a little paradise
Howdy!!This first week in Bowling Green has been quite a "blessed" week (I've been working on my southern vocabulary). I've never been so blessed in my whole life, more literally than figuratively. Everywhere we go everyone is wishing blessings upon on us for the " important work" we are doing. Somehow that translates to "Thanks, but no thanks .. I've already got a church." This can be very difficult, you see, because many different people have different ideas here. Let me illustrate this point with a example from my first night in Bowling Green. We were knocking a street of doors. The first man we talked to seemed very enthusiastic and came out to talk with us. He identified himself as some Christian church, but after a little conversation he took a bit of a turn, next thing we knew he was gripping us by the shoulders and blessing us to have no success and be struck down because we are false prophets. Poor man.
Really, though, Bowling Green is great! It has a very diverse population because it has a huge refugee population. Fun Fact: there are missionaries who speak Swahili in my district! We have had the car this week and have had quite a time finding our way around (Sister H----- has been here just a few more weeks than me).
We have some pretty solid investigators -- a good bunch of different countries of Asian people we are teaching, very simple teaching, and it's hard to keep their countries straight. Another investigator named C----- is awesome. He has a baptism date for the end of August, and we are in the process of helping him stop smoking. We knocked a lot of doors this week and met a lot of the wards recent converts and less actives. We met with 3 siblings who got baptized a month ago, two who are named K- and P---. They are from somewhere by Thailand and speak pretty good English. Their parents don't speak any English, only a language called Karenni.
We also went on exchanges this week. My third day in Bowling Green, I left to go on exchanges in Hendersonville with the STLs. We met some really awesome people and had some really great lessons and a lot of fun! Also this week was Spanish Conference! So I was back in Nashville for that! We talked a lot about how we can better do Spanish missionary work and improve on our Spanish and work with Hispanics and members. We ate tortillas and fried chicken, so that was appropriate. I rode with the Spanish elders and a senior elder from Bowling Green while his wife stayed with Sister H-----.
So if you can't tell, it has been quite a crazy week! I am looking forward to staying in BG for a whole week, meeting some of our other investigators too! (And maybe meet some Spanish investigators.) Also, the county fair is coming to BG this week, so that will be interesting!
Spiritual thought from our lesson in gospel principles this week: Remember how important the sacrament is in our lives. The effectual rebaptism every week is so import in our continual repentance process. It is so important. Never miss a chance to recommit to the Lord.
Hope y'all have a great week!
Love,Sister NielsonP.S. I took a lot of pictures this week1- Stopped in a cute town on the way to exchanges #epitomeofthesouth
2- We look like tourists that robbed the little bank
3- All the Spanish missionaries in the mish!
4- We have to walk through a forest to get to a couple of our investigator's homes
5- We do very in-depth weekly cleaning/my cute comp.
6- All my previous companions (Hermana H----- returns home in 2 weeks.
