Find Him 11.23.15

Wow, I can't believe it is p-day all over again. It's such a privilege to be on a mission and to help others come closer to Christ. Today has probably been the best p-day on the mission. We went shopping at the mall with Sister Masters (she literally is the cutest and reminds me of my sister Jenessa) to get some clothes and a winter coat. It got super cold last night (28 degrees) so I decided it was needed to buy some nice clothes to keep me warm. Then when we got home Brother and Sister Sabino called us out of the blue and told us they would pick us up in 5 minutes for lunch. It is Brother Sabinos birthday and they took us out to red robin. Today made me flashback to being home and for a little, I was sorta sad but I was overcome with joy to know that I am serving the Lord. Yes, I miss my life back home, my family, my friends, BUT there is so much joy from serving a mission. I cant explain how amazing it is.

We had exchanges this past week and I was with Sister Slater.

LITERALLY THE FUNNIEST TIME OF MY MISSION. She is just like me and we had such a great time together. We were able to teach 5 lessons together and the spirit was incredible. I learned so much from Sister Slater. Turns out she is friends with some of my friends who went to American Fork High School. She has 4 months left on her mission but I know I'll definitely be spending time with her when I get home.

Thursday we had Elder Cardon from the seventy come to our mission. We had a big multi-zone conference and I learned so much. It was such a privilege to be able to meet him and his wife. It was such a spiritual experience. One thing that really stuck out to me is when we discussed faith, hope, and charity. They each are a point in a triangle with Christ in the center. I've realized how they truly connect together and they are a huge part in missionary work.

We taught a lot of lessons this week but my favorite one would have to be with D we taught her the word of wisdom along with baptism and confirmation. D has concerns with the word of wisdom but as we were teaching her, she said "you know instead of giving into temptation yesterday, I opened the Book of Mormon instead." This made my heart swell with joy. Before we even taught word of wisdom, she has been turning to the Book of Mormon to get rid of habits.

T is an investigator that missionaries have been working with for 6 1/2 months. She has received all the lessons and is more than ready for baptism but doesn't commit to anything...she likes baby steps. We went over to her house on Saturday to read the Book of Mormon with her cause we haven't been able to teach her in a couple weeks. After we finished Alma 8 together I asked her, "T, what did you get out of that chapter?" She said "I feel like whenever I read they are speaking to me. I think God is telling me I need to be baptized and I should set a date." Sister Wolf and I beamed with joy.

Because she is so ready, we extended December 5th to her.

This past week has been amazing and hard at the same time. I've reflected a lot of who I was before I left, who I am becoming, and who I will be when I get home. I know that the Lord is shaping me into the person I need to be. I know that through humility my Savior can make my weaknesses become strengths. I know we have a loving Heavenly Father and Savior who are by our side. We are in their watchful care.

I know that Lord gives us commandments because He loves us and He is going to do all that He can to have us live with Him again. Missionary work is hard but it is rewarding and I love it. We have a loving Savior. FIND HIM.

UNTIL NEXT WEEK,

XOXOX,

Sister Detamore

 

Two Months 11.16.15

It's me again..it's only been a few days since I last emailed but so much happens. I'll try to keep this email shorter since it's only been 4 days since I last wrote. I can't express how much I love being a missionary. Today I hit 2 months since I hit the Provo MTC and wow, has it flown by. I have learned so much and grown so much...I can't imagine what I'll be like in the next 16 months. I'm so grateful for the experiences I have had and I know without a shadow of doubt that this is exactly where I need to be.

We taught J and B this week. #lovethem. J totally had a missionary experience the other day where he told someone about the Book of Mormon and how much he loved it. He was super excited to come to church on Sunday. Well, we got out of ward council and had a voicemail from him saying his ride wasn't going to take him to church.

Unfortunately, J’s phone is broken so he borrowed his neighbors phone and we couldn't get a hold of him so Sister Wolf and I chased Brother Mazey, our ward mission leader, down and sped off to his house. We showed up on his doorstep and he was super happy that we got his voicemail. J came to church yesterday for all 3 hrs and LOVED it. During gospel principles, he was answering questions and participating. He seriously is so incredible. His girlfriend, B also has a baptismal date but she isn't as interested as him but we will continue to work with her because we love her and know it could bless their lives.

We taught D again and it was incredible. She is reading the Book of Mormon between every single visit. She explained to us that there is a reason that we ran into her and that we are teaching her.

She was able to come to church yesterday with her 2 yr old and stay all three hrs! After the sacrament had been passed, she turned to me and said "wow, my son did that like a champ." I couldn't stop laughing. She is seriously the sweetest lady.

We had lots of lessons with new people and found a lot of new investigators/ potentials. One lady, named S is a lesson that really touched my heart. We were teaching her the restoration yesterday and sister wolf transitioned from God is our loving Heavenly Father to the gospel blesses families...usually I pick up from there but instead I uttered the words "S, what is your relationship with God right now?" She immediately broke into tears. She said, "you know..that's the problem. I've gone through so much that I don't even know if God is really there for me." We discussed how much our Heavenly Father loves us and that we go through trials so that we can become stronger. We really focused on god is our loving Heavenly Father as we taught the restoration. I extended baptism and she accepted! I know that we met her for a reason and that the gospel can bless her life!

So horror of all horrors happened this week. With having iPads, our area book, lesson plans, calendar, everything is on our iPad. Well, Friday the 13th decided to play a joke on us and cause our areabook app to crash...not just us but other missionaries in our mission. Without thinking, i deleted the app and lost the information we hadn't synced...meaning 3 hrs of weekly planning info, 7 lessons, new lessons scheduled, and information of all the people we met that day. It was the worst experience and I'm pretty sure that I haven't cried that hard in a long time. We had to call our president to get our schedule for the next day and we blindly worked Saturday. Luckily,

24 hrs later, our app started to work again. We were able to catch up on everything and I am so very thankful!

I was called out of the congregation yesterday to speak/bear my testimony since one of the speakers didn't make it to church. I guess that's what you get when you're a missionary lol but thankfully, I don't have a problem speaking in front of people..most people know that about me haha (:

Today Sister Sabino and Brother Sabino surprised us with Frosty’s from Wendy's, the also took us to Wendy's on Saturday. They are some of the sweetest people and I seriously love them and their little boy a lot. They were the members who picked me up from my first transfer meeting and they have been a HUGE blessing in my life from day 1. I am so grateful to be a missionary serving in Fairborn, Ohio. If you asked me a year ago, if I would be serving a mission today, I would have said no. I am so deeply grateful for all of those who helped me to make the decision to serve a mission. This has been the most challenging, incredible blessing I have ever received. This week I've done a lot of deep studying of the Atonement. I have gained a deeper understanding and appreciation for my Saviors infinite Atonement. I am so thankful to have a loving Savior who is there for me. I'm not who I was and its all because someone suffered and died for me. I know we have a loving Savior who is waiting for us with open arms. He knows how to succor us and we mean the world to Him. Never deny yourself of the mercy of our Saviors Atonement. I know my Father in Heaven is there for me and loves me. I know that we have someone who is there for us no matter what. I am so humbled to be able to spread the gospel and help others to come into Christ. I love my Savior and I love His lost sheep who I get to bring to the fold.

Until next week...XOXOXOX,

Sister Detamore

Give it All to Him 11.11.15

Well...another week (and a half) down...We have P-Day today because transfers are tomorrow. I can't believe it's already transfers; I'm not quite sure where the time went but it's been incredible. I will be staying in Fairborn with Sister Wolf..yeah! I love being a missionary!!! ❤️ Its been quite a week...lots of lessons, lessons cancelled, challenges, falling down our stairs in our apartment (yes, it was painful but absolutely hilarious), stepping in dog poop two different days, and more. I have so many things that I wanna write about but that would take forever so here is a few snippets of my week:

As we have done some contacting this week, we've had a lot of people challenge our beliefs and our testimonies. I honestly never have had those experiences until my mission and it has opened my eyes. I have experienced things, heard things, and seen things in the past two months that I've never have before. My eyes have been open BUT it has only made my testimony a lot stronger; it makes me realize how true this gospel is.

We were going to find a potential on Wednesday and we ran into some people who were doing a fire in their front yard. We met D and she is such a shy, sweet lady. She accepted our invitation for baptism and we can't wait for her. Every time we teach her, I can feel the spirit so strongly. We had a lesson with her yesterday on the plan of salvation and the spirit was so strong. It made me realize how grateful I am to have the knowledge to know that I can be with my family forever because of Gods plan for us.

We had a lesson with J and B on Thursday but they weren't there. We tried getting in contact with them and we've been to their house multiple times but we couldn't find them. It became extremely frustrating and heart aching because they had felt the spirit so strongly in their first lesson and were excited to be baptized. It came to a point where I felt that they were avoiding us and not wanting to meet with us. Monday night Sister Wolf and I were trying to decide what we should do since our lesson fell through and we both had a feeling to go to J and B just one more time. We got to their house and it looked completely dark but we decided to knock on the door anyways. J opened the door and he was so happy to see us there. He explained to us that they had been staying at his moms home for a couple days and that's why they weren't home. He said that he had talked to his mom about the Book of Mormon and she was completely against it...he said that he was so frustrated with her because he loved the book and really enjoyed it. He said they came back to their house that day because they were sick of getting in fights with his mom about the Book of Mormon. I asked him how far he was in and he said that he was already to 1 Nephi 16; my heart swelled with joy. I had almost lost hope and felt defeated because I felt like they were avoiding us BUT that was not the case at all. They love reading the Book of Mormon and even stood up for it when Justin's mom was bashing on it. I know that this gospel can bless their lives and I'm so grateful we have the opportunity to help them receive the restored gospel.

We went to our lesson with A who has a baptismal date and it was the most awkward lesson. Immediately he explained to us that he hadn't read the Book of Mormon and he didn't know if the church was the right fit for his family and that his girlfriend was uncomfortable with us coming over to teach him. We explained to him that first thing he needed to do was read the Book of Mormon and pray to know if it was true. We explained that the gospel can bless his life as well as his families lives. We began to teach him the plan of salvation and I had shared a scripture..he cut me off and said " I don't mean to argue scripture but I don't think that's what that scripture says." This frustrated me because I was literally reading it out of the scriptures. As we were teaching him, his girlfriend showed up and she was frustrated that we were on her porch again. We awkwardly said a closing pray and left his house. I felt like the lesson was a complete train wreck but I know that all I can do is bear my testimony and invite him to know for himself whether we teach is true or not.

We contacted a potential named S this week and he is the cutest/funniest old man; I seriously consider him a grandpa. We had a lesson with him on Monday and as we were sitting there his grandson (S) pulled up so we invited him to join us. We taught them the plan of salvation using the Book of Mormon. S said that he didn't really understand the kingdoms of glory so I explained that God loves us so much that he is going to give a place where we feel comfortable.

He said that he really liked that and that it made sense to him. As we were teaching, we talked a lot about the atonement. I expressed how grateful I was for the atonement because the mistakes I have made are forgiven through the atonement of Christ. We discussed that we have someone who knows exactly what we are going through and that we never feel alone. S turned his grandson and said that he didn't need to feel alone because he had God and Jesus Christ there for him always. I knew there was a reason that S showed up at his grandpas house that day and that he hear something that day that he needed to hear.

We have a lesson with them tonight and I'm so excited to help them feel the spirit more and make steps towards Christ.

On Friday I had a experience that really touched my heart. We have weekly planning and I really have a hard time focusing because I find it soooooo boring. I had no energy that day, I didn't want to do anything, and I just wanted to sleep all day. As sister wolf was in the bathroom, I prayed to my Heavenly Father that I was tired and I didn't know what to do to make it go away. Clear as day I heard the words "Get to Work." Never in my entire life have I had an experience like that before. My heart swelled and my eyes filled with tears. I knew that my Heavenly Father had heard my prayer and immediately he answered it. I am so grateful to know I have a loving Heavenly Father who is always there for me. I want you to know that we DO have a Heavenly Father and he DOES answer our prayers. He may not answer them when we want Him to and how we want Him to BUT I know that He will answer.

NO, missions are not easy BUT they are worth it. I can't begin to explain what I have learned and the experiences I have had. I know that every day my Heavenly Father is molding me into the woman he wants and desires to me. My testimony has grow deeper than it ever has before. I know that this is the Lords Kingdom on the earth once more and that it was restored through the prophet Joseph Smith. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and that we can receive personal revelation from it every single day. Because of the Plan of Salvation I can be with my family forever as long as I follow Christ and become like him. If you feel alone, discouraged, lost, turn to our Heavenly Father and Savior...allow them into your life. They love you. They know you. I am so thankful to serve in Ohio and to be a servant of the Lord. I love you all and I am so grateful for all the support I have.

I'd like to end with a part of song that I've grown to love to listen to, it's called Give It All To Him (mom, and anyone else PLEASE LOOK UP THIS SONG AND LISTEN TO IT):

With a pounding heart inside my chest

New shoes on my feet

I tell her goodbye one last time

A tears rolls down her cheek

She says I love you son [daughter]

And just like that I'm gone

With nineteen years behind me

I've got a whole life full of dreams

I spent countless nights asking God

Down there on my knees

Pretty soon I knew

What I had to do

So with a smile on my face

And a prayer in my heart

With my whole world behind me

My life's about to start

I can't count all the blessings that are waiting in the end So I forget myself and give it all to him

Until Monday...XOXO,

Sister Detamore

 

Bonus Pictures! 10.7.15

Hey there, Jen here, Sister Detamore is super blessed to have a wonderful Mission President and wife who are dedicated to taking and posting pictures of the missionaries. This gives us another view of Sister Detamore serving in Ohio. Enjoy!

The Lord’s Work 11.2.15

What an incredible week with incredible miracles. This week I truly realized that this is the Lords work and how much he truly is a part of it. We've had many opportunities the past month getting potential investigators but Sister Wolf and I have struggled to find new investigators where we are actually teaching...we barely could hit our goal of one new investigator each week. This week we had the opportunity to not only find potential investigators but we were able to find 10 new investigators. We also were able to extend baptism to 7 new people so we have 10 people with dates working towards baptism.

The zone leaders called us last night to talk about our successes this week and they asked us to do training at the zone meeting Wednesday...so I'm pretty nervous to train on Wednesday since I'm so new but I am super excited and ready to take on the challenge. There have been so many miracles this week and so many things I can ramble on for days about but I want to share with you all some of the highlights of this week.

To keep my family and everyone updated on my health..Tuesday we had interviews with the mission president and his wife (President and Sister Daines) which was incredible but as we were there Sister Daines knew I was sick and she asked me to go to the doctors. So Tuesday night I had the wonderful (not really wonderful) opportunity to go to the doctors. I had the symptoms of the flu, strep throat, and a cold all together plus random bloody noses....The doctor never told me what I had but he prescribed me with an antibiotic and some liquid for the throat/cough. So pretty much I was dying all week and Friday was the first day I had enough energy to seem like I was peppy. Super crappy but we continued and worked every day. I am now about 85% healthy again and so very grateful to feel more like myself!

So on Thursday we went to take a couple pictures cause Fairborn is CRAZY about Halloween and we decided to contact while we were there.

We ran into J, B, and G. (Band J are dating and have a little boy and G is J's cousin). We talked about the gospel and got to talking about the Book of Mormon. J said he has never read it but has always wanted to. That morning I had prayed to Heavenly Father that I could place a Book of Mormon that day and I had the opportunity to give J one. we set up an appointment with all three of them. Saturday morning we text J to confirm the lesson and he said that he had read the Book of Mormon and had questions...we were super excited because many times people don't read before our visits. J really liked the Book of Mormon so far and how faithful Nephi was to the Lord. We taught the restoration at the lesson and the spirit was incredible. All 3 of them were so focused in the lesson...especially J. We explained that Christ's church was established back on the earth and that we had a prophet leading and guiding us today. Jsaid he knew there had to be a prophet but that he hadn't heard anything about him. The entire lesson I was preparing to extend the soft invitation to baptism (there is a soft and hard invitation..if you don't know what I'm talking about look it up in Preach My Gospel) and before I knew it I was extending baptism for Dec. 5th to them. They said they wanted to baptized by the proper authority of God. It be honest, it wasn't me talking as I extended baptized...i learned that day that if we open our months, they will be filled. I was being lead by the spirit and it was incredible. I knew it was divine placement and we were meant to meet these 3. God truly puts people in your path, you just have to be willing to open your mouth and share the gospel. I literally was on cloud 9 spiritually.

#spiritualcloud9

We've been teaching M W and sorta her daughters but the kids never have received the lessons. So we taught the restoration to the 4 little girls and we were able to extend baptism to the 3 that were at or over the age of accountability. We set up an appointment to teach the girls the Plan of Salvation but when we got to their house the 2 boys decided to sit in the lesson. That is a miracle in of its self...

They always say "the church girls are here!" but once we start the lessons, they immediately leave. We were teaching the Plan of Salvation with coloring pages that I made and the kids were soaking up the information. At the end of the lesson, I decided to extend baptism to the 2 boys...L accepted. Ca was a little hesitant....L whispered "say yes" and sweet K did a thumbs up and said "C, it's a good thing". It was the cutest thing I've ever seen. All of 7 of these kids are 11 and younger but they have all accepted to be baptized. We are now teaching the entire family...we haven't been able to teach any of the lesson to the dad yet... He had a baptismal date but he hasn't been to church so we had to move the date. We are hoping to work on him this week so that we can teach them as a family. They all (besides the dad) have the baptismal date of Nov. 28th and I know that this gospel can bless their family. I have seen the blessing within my own family and I know that this gospel unites families on earth and through the eternities.

Friday we had new missionary follow-up training and it was incredible.

All of us new missionaries and our trainers had the opportunity to go with the President and Sister Daines to the Columbus Temple to do an endowment session. This was probably one of the most spiritual experiences I've ever had. I am so grateful for the temple and the blessings we receive from attend it. Whether you can do an endowment session, baptisms, or simple just sit on the temple grounds...please make it a point to go to the temple at least every month...or if possible, each week. The temple is a piece on earth and I testify that the spirit can be felt strongly there. I love the temple and I know that our Heavenly Father gave us temples to feel of his love and to come closer to Him.

This week was filled with so many miracles to the point where I can't write about all of them. I know that this is the Lords work and I am simply an instrument in His hands. This week my testimony of the gospel grew farther and deeper than it ever has before. This is Christ's church restored on the earth. We have the tools necessary to make it back to our Heavenly Father and Savior...all we have to do now is use the tools. Because of the Atonement, we can make it back to them. Just as the Book of Mormon is the keystone to our religion, the Atonement is the keystone to The Plan of Salvation. The way we show our love and devotion to God is by following His son, Jesus Christ.

Everyday strive to become more like Christ. I am so incredibly grateful for the gospel in my life. I am deeply grateful for the Atonement of my Savior. This work is hard but I know that Salvation is not cheap. Even through the hard struggles, I am so thankful for the opportunity to be a missionary and to find the lost sheep. Thank you for all the support and love! I love you all!!

Until Next Week...

XOXO,

Sister Detamore

Hightlights:

Temple session

1st Halloween in Ohio