Each One Bring One

Christmas came and went and a new year is right around the corner! All is well here in Canada and what a blessing it was to be here for Christmas!  It was such an amazing day, the spirit was so strong, and the spirit of Christ was everywhere. I will never forget it. 

There are SO many things to talk about!  First, transfer calls were last night and guess what! I AM TRAINING! J I am so excited to stay here in the Ajax area and to have the privilege of training a new missionary.  We are going to Brampton tonight and will stay there and then greet the new missionaries tomorrow and then I will head back to Ajax with my new companion!  I am so grateful for this opportunity!

On Christmas day we had several fun activities we were able to be a part of.   First, we were able to go to the stake president's home for a brunch and after we acted out the Christmas story from Matthew.  (Being in a trio gave us the chance to be the 3 wise-women!) It was so much fun and I hope to do that someday in the future with my family! Afterwards, we were able to go and visit a family where their daughter just got home from the Provo, Utah mission. It was so fun to talk with her and celebrate the Christmas season with her family for a bit. I am so grateful that I had the chance to be able to see my family and talk to them.  It gives me so much comfort that my family is doing well while I am here in Canada serving the Lord.  I love you all! J We ended off the night having a dinner in Ajax with a family and then traveled to Oshawa to have dinner with one of Sister Warburton's families and their friends. It was great to talk with non-members on such a fun and spiritual day of Christmas.  The Italians loved us! I hope that all goes well in the future with the Oshawa sisters and them.  So overall, it was such a fun and memorable Christmas!

Second, I have some exciting news! We met with one of the most golden investigators that I have ever seen. His name is Benny Andersen! He is a 75ish old man who is Danish.  Here is his story.  He was taking the train in Denmark and met two sister missionaries on the train. They talked for a short time, he asked them for a Book of Mormon, and that was it.  He was so intrigued by the Book of Mormon that he wanted to know more about it!  So he went to the states and traveled the Mormon Trail! How cool is that?!  He was there for the summer and drove the whole thing!!  He finally ended up in Salt Lake City and loved it!!  He was pretty sad that he couldn't go in the temple, but we told him maybe someday J Since being back from his trip, he has been trying to read the Book of Mormon in Swedish (which is close to his native language, which is Danish) alongside with an English Book of Mormon, just to try and understand.  The night before our lesson, I had called him and told him that we don't have a hard copy of the Danish Book of Mormon in our apartment, but until we do, he can read it online in Danish. He was SO excited that he had even saved the Danish Book of Mormon to his desktop on his computer and had been reading it since.  In the past he got to 1 Nephi 17 all by himself in another language.  Our first lesson with him of the Restoration was amazing! He said that he belongs to the Lutheran Church and will keep studying but we will see if he changes. I knew that his countenance had already changed after the beginning of the lesson.  He is amazing, and had so many great questions! Oh, and on the way out he said, "I know that you don't drink coffee or tea or anything but can I get you ladies something to drink? What do you drink?" Hahaha... He is pretty much the greatest old man ever!! I am SO EXCITED for him!!

"The Trio" Sister Poettcker from Canada, Myself and
Sister Warburton from Utah

Lastly, we were able to teach Louis and Faye!! We went over to their apartment and we taught them a lesson about the temple.  It was so spiritual. After the first minute of talking about temples, they were already crying.  I feel that we didn't even do much to teach them, but that they taught themselves.  The spirit confirmed to them the truthfulness and beauty of the temple. We were able to set a temple date with them for January 24th! J Louis was able to renew his temple recommend yesterday and we will be re-teaching the lesson's to Faye before she gets her temple recommend.  I am so excited for these two and love them so much! They are amazing! All they needed was just someone to be next to them, to guide them and love them.

I am truly so grateful that the Lord has given me a portion of his vineyard to work in. I am so excited for this new transfer with my new companion!  It is going to be great and we are going to see so many miracles happen... I can just feel it J

For this upcoming New Year, I was thinking of a challenge that everyone, my family at home and others that read this could do.  It is, EACH ONE BRING ONE.  I invite each of you to really think about something that can help you hasten the work of salvation. Whether it be bringing someone to church, bringing a name to the temple, introducing someone to the gospel, and to do it J Anything you can do to hasten the work of salvation!  I know that when you do this, you will find SO much joy that comes from doing so.  We each have a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! That is the most powerful tool in conversion.  We, ourselves, are being converted everyday in the gospel if we continually do all that we can to nurture, grow, and strengthen our own testimony.  Going to church, reading our scriptures, attending the temple and praying daily.  So, why not share it with someone else or do it for loved ones that have passed? J  EACH ONE BRING ONE. You can do it!

Until next time...

Sister Robb

Merry Christmas

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

I can't believe that Christmas is here already! I love the atmosphere around Christmas time and it's been so special on my mission.  I am separated from the world and don't worry about the 'hustle and bustle', but come closer to Christ everyday.  One thing that I have loved doing here on my mission is "Singing Tracting".  It's where we just knock on a door and begin to sing to whoever opens the door, so that's been fun this Christmas season!

We were able to meet with a former investigator last week! Her name is Hina.  She is Hindu I believe, and she is amazing!  She is truly searching for the truth and had a lot of questions for us. We are meeting with her tomorrow and will be teaching her the rest of the Restoration, so that will be great!  

Remember Loui and Faye from last month? AH! They are doing great!! They are super, super busy having 3 jobs and they were finally able to meet with us. We were able to have a lesson with them about the Plan of Salvation and they loved it. We will be having a lesson with them this week about temples and try to get them ready to go to the temple next month. It will be Faye's first time and Loui's second time but what is cool is that he has his mom and dad's names done!  So they can take their names to the temple with them!  I am so excited for them! J 

We bore testimony to a man who let us in while knocking on doors last night.  We testified to him of the Plan of Salvation and how his family can be together for eternity.  He loved the idea and said he would look into it, but doesn’t want us to teach him at this time.  At first I was bummed, but then I decided it was alright, God works little by little sometimes, and I have gained a great testimony about that in the past month.  I know that families can be together forever through our Father in Heavens restored power, called priesthood, again upon the Earth today restored through His prophet Joseph Smith!  Eternal families are sealed in the Temple, the house of God, and how I LOVE the knowledge of my family being eternal and being able to share it with others everyday!

So, I don't know if I said this last time but I AM IN A TRIO!!!  It's been crazy, but great!!  Sister Warbarton is the sister missionary in Oshawa (right next to my last area, Whitby). Her companion, Sister Wanlass just went home last week, so we are put into a trio until transfer calls next Sunday.  It has been CRAZY, working in two areas has been really hard, but it's been great.  We go from Ajax to Oshawa about every other day, doing our best to try and keep things going in both areas.

Sister Poettcker and I were able to do a "Free Hot Chocolate" stand with the Pickering Elders! We set up on Saturday right by the road next to the mall. Lots of people were in shock and didn't know what to do, so it was quite funny to see people reacting to us giving out free hot chocolate. We were able to hand out two Book of Mormon's and a lot of He Is The Gift cards J We also were able to sing at the corner of the street next to the mall and wave to the passing cars going by, it really made me happy.  We tried our best and gave it all we got, so that was fun!!

Lastly, I wanted to share a really neat experience. Sister Poettcker, Warbarton, and I with the other missionaries in the Oshawa area went caroling to investigators, less active, and members homes for a couple of nights.  On one night in particular, we sang at an investigator's house and they loved it!  Not only did they enjoy it, but their neighbors came out and wanted us to sing to them too!  Just as we were about to leave, the mother in the investigator's house came running out to us and gave me a hug with tears streaming down her face and said, "Thank you, Thank you!  You don't know how much that meant to me. I could hear everything downstairs and I began to cry, feeling something I haven’t for a very long time. No one has ever caroled to our house and it brought back so many Christmas memories.  I will never forget you missionaries!" and then she gave all of the sisters hugs and shook the elder's hands J  It was an amazing experience. You can really feel the spirit through music and singing, especially during the Christmas season. There is never a more exciting and welcoming time for the spirit to touch everyone's hearts! J

I am so thankful for this time of year that we have to more fully celebrate our Saviors birth.  It is the most wonderful time of year because it is full of so much love, peace and hope of a brighter tomorrow.  Because of Him we can return to live with Heavenly Father and our families and friends for Eternity.  I know that He lives!  I know that He loves me and He loves you!  Something that stood out to me this year is that when we celebrate Christ's birth we don't just celebrate his birth but his whole life. We celebrate what we know will come with his earthy ministry, atonement, suffering on the cross and his glorious resurrection.

I love you all so much and hope you have a very Merry Christmas as we celebrate what our Savior has done for you and for me.

Merry Christmas and until next time...

Sister Robb

Angels Among Us

So much has happened this week and I can’t believe that Christmas is coming soon!  I hope that everyone has been sharing He Is The Gift with people. If you haven't, I encourage all of you to do so! You will be so blessed J So discover, embrace, and share the gift with everyone!

After I read in Preach My Gospel chapter 9 about Finding People to Teach, I then prayed to Heavenly Father in helping us to find people to teach. I found my answer as I read in 1 Nephi 16 in my personal study. This is when Lehi receives the Liahona to guide their course through the wilderness and when Nephi breaks his steel bow.  I am sure we all know the story, after the bow breaks and Nephi's family begins to murmur exceedingly, what does Nephi do? "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did make out of wood a bow..." [vs 23] Now what of the Liahona? The Liahona's pointers move according to faith and diligence!  How does this apply to me?  Well... I felt prompted to put my faith and diligence at work so the Lord can guide me to people we need to teach. I told Sister Poettcker that we needed to try all of the former investigators in our area.  She said she had faith in me, so we went to work and guess what, we have two new investigators because of it! Their names are Sonny and Howard.

Sonny is Vietnamese and has a wife Yen, and a 6 year old son named Marcus. It was a miracle that we were able to get into their home. Here is the story: Sister Poettcker said she has already tried this door a couple of times and no one seemed to want to answer the door, even when they are home. Why not one more time? So Sister Poettcker and I were knocking at their door and no one answered, so we turned around and there pulled in Yen (the wife) and invited us in. We talked to the three of them and taught them a simple lesson about prayer and about Heavenly Father.  We need to go super simple and slow with them. It was great!  We will be going back sometime this week. The only problem that we will have with them is finding a time that works! They own a nail salon and work every day, even every Sunday.  So, we will pray to know what we need to say or do for them J

Howard is a Jamaican man and was almost baptized a second time at another church but moved to Ajax and didn’t follow through.  He has been taught in the past and felt good while he read from the Book of Mormon. We will be teaching him more tonight and I hope and pray that he will follow through this time.  

I have learned that we need to constantly thank the Lord for what He has given us and that when our "main bows" break, we don't blame the Lord or others... but rather 'make' a "wooden bow"! Never give up!  Always work hard and lastly, be creative!

We went with the young women in the ward to the Ajax hospital and sang to patients in their rooms! It was fun and was great to do something with the ward and become more involved. I loved seeing the patients light up as Sister Poettcker and I gave the patients He Is The Gift pass along cards.  An elderly lady named Natallia (who was Italian) took my hand and said thank you for the picture and kissed the card.  It was such a tender experience. 

AJAX - known as the town by the lake

Our investigator named Ruby is doing well! We taught her the Plan of Salvation and had such a great experience from that. She loved the lesson and said she learned so much! When we got to the part where Christ's Atonement is central to the Plan of Happiness, she said, "Wow... I better change myself so I can live with God again!" Sister Poettcker and I just looked at each other and smiled.  I invited her to be baptized and she said yes! We set the date for January 18th and she said she will pray and think about it.  Hopefully when we see her this week and help her come to church each week she will become prepared for that date!

I had a special spiritual experience this week that I wanted to share where I had felt that my uncle Claye was right beside me.  It was a day that Sister Poettcker and I were coming home to make some lunch.  As we were driving down the street I saw a man that was standing in his empty garage with his hands in his pocket.  I had a strong prompting and pulled over off the side of the road.  Sister Poettcker asked what I was doing and I said, "I feel like we need to talk to that man."  We got out of the car and as I walked up to him, I could tell that he was upset and he began walking to go inside.  I asked him to wait and told him that I felt I needed to talk to him. We asked him how he was doing and if there is anything we can do for him.  He then said, "I lost my wife almost 2 weeks ago by an intoxicated driver as she was going for her daily walk in the morning and crossing the street. She was killed and there is nothing you or anyone can do for me.  Goodbye."  I then felt so strongly as if there was someone by my side, giving me comfort. I looked and no one was there.  I then felt something inside me saying tell him he'll be okay... she's with you. As I told him this, he was shocked and said, "You don't know what you are talking about. You don't know what I am going through, and how my life has changed." I then was prompted to tell him about my uncle Claye who was killed some years ago. I told him Claye’s story and what a remarkable good man he was and bore my testimony and said that I feel as if he is with me right now and our loved ones are close by.  I then said once again that I felt prompted to stop and talk to him and that I knew he needed someone to show that they cared. He settled down, opened his heart, and felt more at peace, and shared a few memories of his wife.  I don't remember what I said to be honest, I just remembering opening my mouth and telling him about Claye and showing him love and concern as I bore my testimony.  It was an amazing experience. I will never forget it.  I thank Heavenly Father for prompting me to talk to this man and was so blessed to feel my Uncle Claye standing right beside me. 

I do not doubt that Uncle Claye and Grandpa Colton are helping me out here in Canada!  I can’t really describe what has happened, but I know that they, along with other angels, through the guidance of God, are preparing the hearts of the people in Canada, America, and EVERYWHERE else in the world!  God knows what he is doing and I have no doubt He will lead me where He wants me to go, the way He wants to do so!  My faith is increasing each and every day and I am so thankful for My Heavenly Father’s Plan of Happiness and His Son, my Savior, Jesus Christ, who provided the way for us to partake of that plan!!  I am comforted that I can, indeed, see my Uncle and Grandpa again!  They are not gone, just passed beyond the veil and are continuing to do God’s work there, and helping ME as I act as an instrument in His work here!  How incredibly grateful I am for that beautiful, beautiful knowledge!!

I love being a missionary! It has been the greatest experience for me.  I hope you know that each of you can make a difference. You can mean the world to someone if you just trust the Lord and have the courage to talk to someone who may need you J You mean more to Heavenly Father than you could ever imagine. Share this knowledge and light with others! You can make the difference.  Love to all!

Until next time...

 Sister Robb

Tis The Season

On Saturday I was in a Christmas Parade!  There is a small branch of 15-20 members in Bancroft.  The senior missionaries there invited about 30 of us to go up to Bancroft and be in the Parade, sing, and share the gospel (He Is The Gift) to the thousands of people there.  It was so fun! We all got to wear Santa hats and sing, but most of all, to touch the hearts of people in Bancroft. While walking through the parade, I was able to quickly talk to some people and share with them the gospel.  It was so amazing! It was as if there was a wave of spirit coming down the street... I don't know if anyone felt that way, but I sure did. With the 12 of us loaded back in the van, we drove the 2 1/2 hour drive home singing hymns the whole way J 

‪After calling everyone on the ward list, we were able to get a couple of appointments with people.  One of them was a less active lady.  We were planning on sharing the message, He Is The Gift with her, but she had much more in store for us.  We asked her when we walked in if she needed any help and she said, "Yes, I saved you some things in the other room to do."  We turned the corner and there was a bare Christmas tree!  She asked us to decorate it for her.   We decorated the tree, talked with her and her husband, drank some hot chocolate and had a really powerful lesson afterward. So that was

fun!

‪This week we were able to teach Ruby, our investigator!  We read from the Book of Mormon with her and also helped to set up her Christmas decorations. She is doing great! 

We taught a potential investigator about a week or so ago, had a lesson on the restoration, and asked her to come to church on Sunday.  Well, she came yesterday with her husband Elliot and her 2 year old daughter Melodia (Spanish for Melody). They said they would come back to church on December 21^st so hopefully they will let us see them again before then! 

‪I am so excited to share the gospel this Christmas season to all of Heavenly Father's children and my brothers and sisters here in Ajax.  I love what President Uchtdorf said in the First Presidency Message this month:

‪"Jesus the Christ, who knew perfectly how to give, set for us the pattern for giving. To those whose hearts are heavy with loneliness and sorrow, He brings compassion and comfort. To those whose bodies and minds are afflicted with illness and suffering, He brings love and healing. To those whose souls are burdened with sin, He offers hope, forgiveness, and redemption.

‪If the Savior were among us today, we would find Him where He always was, ministering to the meek, the downcast, the humble, the distressed, and the poor in spirit. During this Christmas season and always, may we give to Him by loving as He loves. May we remember the humble dignity of His birth, gifts, and life, and may we, through simple acts of kindness, charity, and compassion, fill the world with the light of His love and healing power." 

Let us follow the Savior's example of giving.  There is never a more exciting time to share the gift we have with others than this month :)  I KNOW this Gospel is true, and it changes your life if YOU let it.  Nothing brings me greater joy! I know that this is God's work, if it were not, I would not be feeling the tremendous emotions I experience everyday.  I work harder than I've ever worked in my life. His Truth is restored, and He wants all to know of it, therefore, I want all to know the Truth as well!  Let's share it with each other, for I know that this is the only way that we can return to live our Father in Heaven, and how beautiful that knowledge is!!! We have the truth, now let's go share it with all we know and love!  Love to all!

‪Until next time...

‪Sister Robb