Monday, January 31, 2011

I don't have much time

This song sums up life pretty well right now. It's by Hilary Weeks and is called He'll speak peace. I sing it lots.


How do I walk through the darkness
Trust that I'll find your hand
Where do I look for the answers
So that somehow I will understand
And when it feels like i am falling
When I've given the best I have
How will I know you're there
When my heart aches
when my soul yearns
When the road seems far too long
How will I learn what you teach me
When I don't even know how i'll go on
When the sea of life is raging
Only you Lord can calm the waves
and help me know, you're there
There are times that I can almost feel You
And it feels like You are right by my side
I need you there, to know you're there
And when it feels like I am falling
When I've given the best I have
When the sea of my life is raging
Only you Lord can calm the waves and
help me know
How will I know
I need to know
You're there.

He is there.. I am so grateful to know that.

Here are some funny text messages we've gotten from investigators running late for appointments
"I'm struck at subway i'll be there soon"
" Sorry i'll be there shortly... too much snow, hard to move" He's from India so the snow throws him off :)

Monday, January 24, 2011

It's cold outside!

It was -20 C this morning which is -4 F. Wow! It hasn't gotten above -17 the last couple of days and yesterday I experienced having the inside of my nose freeze which is a really strange sensation. The cold really makes me appreciate the warmth just like the bitter and sad things in life are helping me appreciate the sweet and happy things. I am truly blessed. we had an adventure the other night the fire alarm went off at 12:52 and it was sooo loud.. we all just waited in the lobby so I was grateful we didn't have to go outside. I found a lot of people don't feel like talking when it's the middle of the night... it's a good thing we stop proselyting at 9:00. We got back inside at 1:30 and I have never fallen back to sleep so fast. we have had a lot of miracles this week and I'm so grateful. We had an investigator finally set his baptismal date and some investigators we lost contact with finally called us and so we are really grateful. I read an amazing talk by Elder Utchdorf that was given in a priesthood session. Here are some of my favorite parts." There is an important concept here: patience is not passive resignation, nor is it failing to act because of our fears. Patience means active waiting and enduring. It means staying with something and doing all that we can- working, hoping, and exercising faith;bearing hardship with fortitude, even when the desires of our hearts are delayed. Patience is not simply enduring; it's enduring well!... I know for sure that the promises of the Lord, if perhaps not always swift, are always certain......Often the deep valleys of our present will be understood only by looking back on them from the mountains of our future experience. Often we can see the Lord's hand in our lives until long after the trials have passed. Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential buildinging blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way to future opportunity, understanding, and happiness.... Patience means staying with something until the end. It means delaying immediate gratifications for future blessings is means accepting that which cannot be changed and facing it with courage, grace and faith. Ultimately it means being "firm and steadfast,and immovable in keeping the commandments of the Lord every hour of every day, even when it is hard to do so. Patience is a process of perfection. patience means to abide in faith, knowing that sometimes it is in the waiting rather than in the receiving that we grow the most." Isn't that Great stuff! This talk really helped me out. So I was thinking I would do a little play by play of this past weekend so you know what life is like here. Friday morning we woke up... it's a challenge for me. I usually set a seperate alarm on the phone and so it goes off a little after sister rosenlofs and then I hit snooze twice.. it's so dark and cold in our apartment in the morning. Then into the bathroom where the floor is wet because the sink is leaking.. we still need to report that. Then I think I tried jump roping for a bit. I get ready and my sweet companion makes us a some breakfast. We study.. I love study time. Then we went to go help Nandranie who is from Gayana go move some stuff from a strorage shed.. it was a big cement building and we froze!Then we went and visited one of my favorite recent converts Mandla who is from Swaziland. Then our appointment with D'andre who is from the Bahama's cancelled. So we went and rode the subway and talked to poeple. I talked to someone from Taiwan, India, France, Ethiopia. Then we met with Pankaj who is from India and watched finding faith in Christ. Then we visited a member from China. It was really a funny experiece. Her appartment is full of boxes and dolls (my companion has a fear of dolls) and stuffed animals. She invited us in but when I went in she kept standing there and I'm pretty big with my coat and back pack and I just lodged myself between her and the boxes.. so i backed up and we all managed to get through. She had boiling cups of water for us and at first i was like i've never just had hot water but it was rather enjoyable when it cooled down a little and it warmed us up. Then she was in the kitchen and I was petting her cat and all the sudden it bit me and then starting scratching my arm like crazy.. it scared me and I was looking at me companion for help, The cat bit her too. Then she kept asking us if we liked her cat but every time it came near me I would get so nervous. I've got some good battle wounds. Then we went home and colored a picture for and investigator and planned for Saturday. We taught English and my class is Meedo who is from Saudi Arabia and Shiukumar who was a monk in the Himalayas for 10 years. We had a very interesting conversation. At the end of Class meedo asked me if I would go dancing with him and a couple of the elders were around and it was an awkward experience. Then we met with Pradyut who is from India and he has been meeting with the Jehovah's witness's and he is really confused. But he really likes the book of Mormon. then We had an appointment with a lady from Jamaica but she cancelled cause it's too cold. We went in search of some referrals and made some visits. We had an awesome appointment with a family from the Congo and the parents have been baptized for 5 years but none of their children so we are very excited to teach them. They are really lovely people. Then we did some more finding. Church was busy because I sat by Agdus she is from Iran and then two other investigators came in so we kept moving around to help them understand what was going on. Our ward is so diverse I love it. The bishop is from Canada and his counselors are from Italy and England, used to be the Philippines. The Relief society president is from Ecuador and the primary one is from Tonga. Our ward mission leader is from Grenada. So then we went and visited a family from Vietnam and then one from the Czech Republic. We went to visit Jason who is from Lebanon but he wasn't home so we did more finding :) Well I'm running out of time but I hope that gives you a picture of missionary work in downtown Toronto. I love it. I love you all and think of you and pray for you so much. Remember that God keeps his promises. Have a great day. Wow this is a long one


Sister Savage

Monday, January 10, 2011

The best and worst of times

Well wonderful things happened this week and it was one of my hardest weeks as well. The fifth was 2 months since mom passed away and the sixth was a year since the last time I saw her and got to hug her. There is no way to really say how that makes me feel. Time is passing and I feel like I'm in a dream. I read a scripture in Luke though that stuck out to me. Luke 21:19 " In your patience posses (preserve, win mastery over) your souls." That's what we want right so it's good have to be patient. I also read some good quotes by Jeffrey R Holland about looking to the future and not dwelling on the past. " I plead with you not to dwell on days now gone, nor to yearn vainly for yesterdays, however good those yesterdays may have been. the past is to be learned from but not lived in. We look back to claim the embers from glowing experiences but not the ashes. And when we have learned what we need to learn and brought with us the best that we have experienced, then we look ahead, we remember that faith is always pointed toward the future. " So now on to the good and lovely things of this week. A family of five from Hungary was baptized yesterday and it was a very spiritual experience. The elders didn't tell me I was conducting the music so it was announced and I rushed up trying to find the page and guess what we sang, families can be together forever... I was totally unprepared. I struggled and cried through it in front of everyone but I felt so close to mom. I felt my testimony strengthened that our family is forever. Wow. and then to see them be baptized and we did the half time show while they were getting changed and watched some clips on temples and bore our testimonies.. I felt so privileged to be there to see them take the first steps towards making there family an eternal one. The elders made sure to empty the font this time because a couple of weeks ago they forgot and then we were playing a game at the church on preparation day and one of the elders was trying to get away from another one and tried to go through the font and he ran into a full font of water... it was pretty funny but we felt bad he had to walk home in the cold sopping wet. I tried some interesting food this week and pleasantly i loved all of it. We had Vietnamese noodles and meat in broth stuff call Pho but it's pronounced Fu. And we had congee which is melted rice and I was a little worried but it was very tasty. We had some Filipino pie that was yam and coconut and it was so yummy. So we ate good this week. We had a pretty interesting teaching experience. I talked to a guy from Saudi Arabia on the subway and we set up a time to meet and talk some more but there was a big language barrier. So we met him at a little shop and he wasn't getting much and then he was like hold on my friend is coming so another man came from Saudi Arabia and then another and another.. it ended up being five of them and two of them were really not happy that we were talking about Christianity but the other ones were asking good questions but it was really hard to communicate with them. Then we remembered Sergio who was baptized not to long ago speaks Arabic so were hoping to take him teaching with us which would be awesome! Our friend Gerald is progressing so well and knows he can't keep putting off baptism and is planning to talk to his fiance this week and he has gained such a strong testimony of the Book Of Mormon. He invited her to church next week so we're hoping she'll come. I forgot some things last week that I've been learning how to do.. one is deciphering if people are talking to themselves or on a blue tooth and another is running for the bus. Sister Rosenlof and I did a very impressive dash for a bus the other night. unfortunately we couldn't talk much once we got on cause we were panting so bad.... but we made it! We are blessed people and I love and miss you all so much! Keep sharing the good news in all you do!


Love me

Monday, January 3, 2011

Things i'm learning

I'm Learning:


How to start and end conversations very quickly

How to embrace awkward moments

How to share the message of the restoration in one subway stop or less

How to mix random things together and make some pretty good meals

How much of a choice it is whether we are happy or sad

How much I really don't know

How much help I need

How much I love the gospel

How much so much of the stuff the general population worries about doesn't really matter

How much God knows each of individually

How Christ really is the only one who knows how we feel

How to cry without making too much noise or messing up my mascara too badly

How much I want to help people be happy

How much the scriptures apply to us today

How much music helps me

How to stay semi warm when it's freezing outside

How much i'm grateful for all and love all of you!

and the list goes on and on and on. Everyday i'm learning and for that i'm grateful for that.

We had some great lessons this week and a lot that fell through but of course there has to be that opposition.

i'm excited for the New Year and hopeful that this next year has a lot more learning and healing and understanding to come.

I love you all and miss you. Love me!

Sister Savage

Saturday, January 1, 2011

But if not

Well recently I've been thinking a lot about a talk i remember reading for the first time in Russia. Called But if not. I've wanted to read it again and then the other day in companionship study sister Rosenlof said my mom sent me a really great talk and it was it! I was very excited. I wanted to share my favorite parts. This is after He told the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego and he said " They knew that they could trust God-even if things didn't turn out the way they hoped. They knew that faith is more than mental assnt, more than an acknowledgment that God lives. FAITH IS TOTAL TRUST IN HIM. Faith is believing that although we do not understand all things, He does. Faith is knowing that although our power is limited, His is not. Faith in Jesus Christ consists of complete reliance on Him." " We must understand that great challenges make great men. We don't seek tribulation, but if we respond in faith , the Lord strengthen us. The but if nots can become remarkable blessings." "He has the power, but it's our test" "Our God will deliver us from ridicul and persecution, but if not.. Our God will deliver us from sickness and diesease, but if not... He will deliver us from loneliness, depression, or fear, but if not.... Our God will deliver us from threats, accusations, and insecurity, but if not... He will deliver us from dearth or impairment of loved ones, but if not... WE WILL TRUST IN THE LORD" " We will have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that if we do all we can do, we will in His time and in His way, be deliverd and receive all that He has." Wow huh. Pretty cool.


Christmas was so different but it was great. We had breakfast at the senior couples house and they colored there two front teeth black and sang all i want for christmas is my two front teath. We then exchanged secret santa gifts and it was fun. I loved talking with you and I feel so blessed to have such an amazing family. I'm thankful for all the letters and packages sent.

We started to teach a guy from india and on from Iran this week. I love talking to people cause you never know where they'll be from! We got a referral a month ago and set up an appointment and then found out it was just out of our area. Her english name is blessings and she is from Africa and yesterday she was baptized and it was so neat to hear her bear her testimony afterwards. It strengthened mine. she's amazing. I called the family from India that sister simons and I taught in the beginning of my mission and it was wonderful to talk with them. They are moving to new jersey but He said as soon as they get settled they will find the nearest church because he said they've been missing those days. I just know they'll be baptized someday. Patrick from my old area was supposed to baptized but he has had major health issues. Hopefully he'll be better soon. My previous companion from New Zealands parents sent me a really cool necklace. It is made out of bone and they say they carve it to mean certain things. This symbols on mine are the spiral which is "New Life or befinning, growth, harmony, and peace" and the twist or crossover is " Bonding of friendship and joing of lives for eternity. It is really cool. They also taught me a Maori phrase "Kia Kaha" or "STay Stong" So Kia Kaha all you who I love!

I love serving in Downtown and i'm glad sister Rosenlof and I will be staying another transfer.. our whole zone practically is staying which is nice. We all got nerf guns for christmas and we spent today at the church playing with them.. they hurt a lot less than kill ball. I'm trying to think of other new stuff... hmm.. i'm not sure. I know how much i love you! It's getting really cold! love me!