Sister Zerkle

New Market

                                                                                                                        May 12, 2014

Hello and happy day-late Mother's day! If you haven't been to motherhood.mormon.org you should definitely check it out! The video is adorable!

I went on an exchange in Newmarket this week and it was quite exciting! I got my first sunburn of the season! It's nice to have some color again :) Before that exchange I was having a small down moment and wondering why I am where I am and why I was called to be a sister training leader. That night when I was in Newmarket, I prayed and asked Heavenly Father those questions. The next day it was incredible to watch the answers unfold! She was going through many hard things that I have gone through on my mission and I was able to help her and leave her with commitments that gave her hope. The Spirit whispered to me that I am here for several reasons: 1) There are sisters that need my personality and experiences to help them learn and grow as missionaries. 2) I need this experience to progress and become the kind of missionary my Heavenly Father needs me to be. 3) There are people in the Oshawa area that need me to be their missionary. It's as simple as that. And it never ceases to amaze me how Heavenly Father uses my strengths as well as my weaknesses to bless the lives of those who I influence wherever I go.

While I was in Newmarket, Sister Zerkle was here in Oshawa and they met an INCREDIBLE man named Dave. He is a retired school teacher and is a history buff! He has read the Bible three times, but doesn't like going to church because of the hypocrisy that he sees there. She offered to come back the next day to help him do yard work because he is working on quite the project. I think he was a little surprised when we actually showed up the next day ready to work! It was incredible to watch service soften his heart. He was asking us questions about what we do as missionaries and the church while we shoveled dirt and placed patio stones. He let us teach him about the Restoration after we had worked for about an hour and a half. Because of his interest in history, he was intrigued to learn about the Book of Mormon and the group of people that left Jerusalem in 600 BC. He committed to read it, but he wouldn't commit to pray about it or come to church. But we know that he'll come around :)

We also had another unexpected service opportunity! We dropped by a member on Saturday night, but she wasn't home. The lady across the street was outside so we went and talked with her. We found out that she is friends with the member and that she had met with missionaries before!! After talking for a while, we offered to help her clean her house, and she was shocked! Her boyfriend was also shocked! We left to put on service clothes and were back in 15 min. She was so grateful. She lived there with her boyfriend and her three kids and his three kids and works and is going to school, so her housework gets put on the back burner sometimes. Her home was beautiful for mothers day! She asked questions about that the church services are like and said she might come. She didn't end up coming but we know she felt the Spirit while we were in her home.

Another miracle! As we were walking down the sidewalk yesterday, there was a lady in a baseball cap approaching and I was all ready to talk to her because as missionaries we talk with everyone! I was caught off guard when she looked up and said, "Well it's the missionaries! How are you sisters? Where are you from?" She obviously knew who we were! Through our conversation we she told us that she is from Winnipeg, her dad is a Bishop there, she was given the choice to be baptized when she was 8 and said no! She still hasn't been baptized, but wants to someday when she's ready to live the commandments and live in harmony with the Gospel. Isn't that insane?! She's met with missionaries before, but was open to letting us come talk with her. She has only been in Oshawa for 10 days and said her dad told her to find the church here, but we found her first :) He has been praying for her. I could feel it. We talked for about 20 minutes and when we walked away Sister Zerkle and I were still trying to process what just happened! It was an overwhelming sign that I am where I am supposed to be and we were exactly where we were supposed to be in that precise moment! 

I hope you have a fantastic week! I love this gospel. I love my Savior and my Father in Heaven. I love my companion. And I love being a missionary!! 

Love and Prayers, Sister Felix

Quote of the Week: "Our full potential is not on this earth." -Sister Zerkle (She said this while we were talking with someone and the Spirit burned it into my memory witnessing of it's truthfulness!)

I am choosing to give it my all!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!! :)                                                                                                                                                 May 5, 2014

What a week it has been! Tuesday I went on an exchange in Bowmanville and it POURED rain all day! We had an appointment that morning, but for the rest of the afternoon we were out tracting in it. It was definitely an adventure! I've gone on at least one exchange every transfer for my whole mission, but now I go on two exchanges every week and the Sisters look to me as an example and for feedback on how to improve. It was a little weird at first to be the leader, but I'm getting used to it. I'm so grateful for the amazing sisters in this mission! On every exchange I've been on so far the sisters have been so humble and willing to change and they help me change and improve as well! I think I have the better draw because I get to work with all these amazing sisters and learn from them and they only have one exchange a transfer. 

On Wednesday we went to MLC (Missionary Leadership Council) and it was incredible! Absolutely amazing! It was like a zone conference for all the zone leaders and sister training leaders in the mission. It was pretty much a lot of instruction, reporting, and discussing. It was humbling to be there for sure! Here are some of the highlights:

The purpose of a council is the find the will of God. 

"A goal forgotten is no longer a goal."

"Repentance is a process of joy." -Sister Scott

President Scott did a question and answer time instead of instruction, and it was inspiring to hear his response to questions that have been on our minds. A main theme of the questions was actually repentance and earning the Lord's trust.

Sister Scott is brilliant at teaching from the scriptures, and she talked a lot about Moroni 7, which happens to be my favorite chapter in the Book of Mormon :) She asked this question, "How am I being blessed because of the covenants I keep?" I invite you all to ponder on that question as well.

All of the departing missionaries and new leadership always bear their testimonies at MLC, and it was a good time of reflection for me. I was the last to bear my testimony and there were probably four or five who bore testimonies that are going home. Some of them, probably most of them, talked about wishing they had more time on their missions and how sad they were to leave. I thought about the six months I have left and pondered on some ways to make the most of it. The Spirit bore a strong testimony to me that I have complete control over how I react to the time I have left on my mission. I am choosing to give it my all. I've tried hard my whole mission to give it my all, but I feel a greater sense of urgency since that meeting. Heavenly Father has called me. All of me, my whole soul to serve Him here for 18 months. I only have 6 left and I want to do my best to show my love for my Father in Heaven.

Friday we had Zone Training meeting and the Zone Leaders asked Sister Zerkle and I to instruct. We had 20 min to instruct on whatever we wanted. So we decided to instruct on this line from the white handbook: "You will be expected to devote all your time and attention to serving the Lord...As you do, the Lord will bless you and you will become an effective advocate and messenger of truth." Our zone has been struggling in the past few weeks to hit our full potential, so this was a crucial meeting to pump everyone back up and give the zone the boost necessary to reach our potential. We talked letting go of distractions through focusing on the Christlike attributes. We highlighted one of my favorite sentences in PMG about becoming Christlike missionaries and not just doing missionary things. It went really well for our first instruction together. Between our instruction, the Zone Leaders instruction, a KILLER musical number, and a good council, the zone was on fire! This week we've seen so many miracles in our zone. I've never felt so unified as a zone and I love it! We did a zone fast and it worked miracles. I wish I could express how amazing it's been to see it all unfold! And we're only on week three of the transfer!

We went on another exchange on Saturday with the Bracebridge sisters and it was the first time I stayed in Oshawa for the exchange and Sister Zerkle went to the other area. I've only had two weeks to get to know the area, but it was good for me to get to know the area even better.

We cover a few small towns north of Oshawa as well and on Sunday we went out to a small town called Port Perry and did some tracting. We met this incredible lady named Alexandria. It was extremely apparent within the first few minutes that she was a firm believer in Christ! She has such strong faith and usually people that are that strong in their faith are usually strong in the church they go to as well. But she was open and willing to listen. She actually had a Book of Mormon and had previously met with missionaries in Calgary. She said the thing that confused her last time she met with missionaries was why she needed to be baptized again? She let us come in and explain the answer by teaching the Restoration. It was incredible to watch her receive the answer as she understood the pattern of prophets and priesthood authority through dispensations. She understood at the end and committed to read and pray about the Book of Mormon and be baptized again if she found it was true. We're so excited about her!! There was something special about her and I feel she is truly prepared!

I hope you all have a great week! 

Love and Prayers, Sister Felix

Quote of the Week: "If we are not improving, we are not repenting."

Splits on a Bike!

Sister Zerkle

Hello from Oshawa!                                                                                                                        April 28, 2014

This week could have possibly been the happiest, most tiring, busiest week of my mission thus far!! Next week is looking like it's going to be the same :) It's going to be a good transfer! I love my new companion, Sister Zerkle, with all of my heart! She is hilarious! Some of my favorite things about her are: 1. She doesn't like to write in her journal, so she draws comics in her journal of things that happened that day. It's hilarious! 2. She has incredible, fluffy hair that she sometimes ties in a knot of top of her head and it looks fantastic! 3. She LOVES Megamind! She and I try not to quote it all the time, but sometimes it just happens :) 4. She is an INCREDIBLE missionary!! I am very humbled and grateful to be her companion. She works hard and works smart. 5. On transfer day when we became companions, we got in the car, and usually the car ride back to the area consists of "get to know you" questions, but Sister Zerkle and I had been on an exchange just two weeks prior, so we already knew each other and we were able to just get right to work! It's been a blast!

WE FOUND A FAMILY!! We first met the husband in the lobby of their apartment building when we were dropping by a member family. He was wearing a Las Vegas t shirt, and that's where Sister Zerkle is from, so it was a good conversation starter! We talked with him for a little while and gave him a mormon.org card. I didn't think much of it because that is a very normal thing that happens all the time. But a few days later we were there again, and we decided to knock on a few doors on the top floor, so the first door we knock on a lady named Yaima, answered the door and invited us right in! She explained that her husband met us a few days ago and that she wanted to learn more. She only had 10 minutes so we explained about the Book of Mormon and gave her one. They are from Cuba and have only been here for seven months. She knows enough English to carry on a conversation, but since there are so many uncommon terms we use in the Church, teaching her in English would be like someone trying to teach me Chemistry in French! So we need MEMBERS! We taught her the next day with a Latino sister in the ward and it was the most spiritual lesson I've ever taught. Probably because I wasn't teaching. The Spirit was. We basically read the Restoration pamphlet together. She had one in Spanish and we were following along in English. The Spanish speaking Sister would explain if she had questions and Sister Zerkle and I testified very simply so she could understand. It was incredible! When we got to the first vision, I simply said to her, "This is important. Read it slowly and think about it as you read it. I know it is true." Usually we recite the first vision by memory when teaching it, but the Spirit hit me like a brick wall as she read it slowly in her own language. There were a few seconds of silence after she read it and it was so powerful! We helped her recognize the feeling of the Spirit and even though she speaks Spanish and I speak English, we were most definitely on the same page and were understanding each other. When we asked her to pray about Joseph Smith, she looked at us like we were crazy and said, "I know it's true." She was so excited about the Book of Mormon and told us we could meet with her every day if we can! :) We are going to try teaching her husband as well. He came in from work at the end of that lesson and told us, "This home is your home." And Yaima said he likes coming to church so we think he will be just as receptive as she is. Since 10ish months of my mission have been in YSA work, I've never taught a family. So I am really excited about them! They have a five year old son who is adorable!

I went on my first exchange this week as a sister training leader and it was a blast! I went to Ajax and served with Sister Wise for a day. We rode bikes the entire day, and it was my first time riding a bike on my mission!! With the helmet, bike, backpack, and my name tag I felt like a real, live, true, stereotypical missionary! I probably had a goofy smile on my face that whole day just because I was so happy and proud to be a missionary!

We'll be going on two exchanges this week. One tonight, and the other later in the week. We're still trying to figure out how to make it all work out because we have MLC (misionary leadership council) this week and Zone Training, so it will be a puzzle to fit it all in!

I am so happy :) I know that this is exactly where I am supposed to be. I am so grateful for revelation. Personal revelation and revelation given to our leaders. It all comes from our Heavenly Father through the Holy Ghost. I know our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are real. They are just as alive as we are. All we need is to open our heart, ears, and minds to realize it. I love this gospel so much. I know it is true. Have a great week!

Love and Prayers, Sister Felix

Quote of the Week:

"Be strong. Live the gospel faithfully even if others around you don’t live it at all. Defend your beliefs with courtesy and with compassion, but defend them."

-Jeffrey R. Holland

Friends, Sushi & Indian Pants

TRANSFER to Oshawa

                                                                                                                                                                  April 21, 2014

Transfer news!! It was a very humbling transfer call last night... President Scott called and extended a calling to me to be a Sister Training Leader. I will be going to serve in Oshawa with Sister Zerkle! I'm very excited, but a little nervous. I know this is God's will and it will help me reach my divine potential. It will be my second time in a family ward! I'll miss YSA work, but I'm excited to teach families again. Sister Taylor is going to Ajax, Sister Dyer is going to Etobicoke, and Sister Harris is staying here.

We found a new investigator this week named Lisa. She comes from a Buddhist background and is incredible! We were only able to meet with her once because she went home to Ottawa for the summer, but hopefully she'll continue meeting with missionaries there.

Yesterday was quite possibly one of the most spiritual of my mission. Easter Sunday in the Kingston branch. Amazing. I sang in the choir :) Brother and Sister Roberts spoke. Brother Roberts is a surgeon and he talked from a medical perspective about Christ's suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane and death on the cross. He said he's only seen one patient bleed from their pores and it comes from extremely intense pain and blood losing the ability to clot... There is a medical term for it. I can't even imagine the Savior bleeding from every pore. I don't really understand or comprehend everything he was talking about, but there is no denying what I felt. There was not a dry eye in the room as this humble surgeon testified of the reality, divinity, and miracle of the Atonement. The Spirit bore witness so strongly of the Atonement in that moment.

Then after church the Elders had a baptism. Our investigator Lucas came which is super great because he's getting baptized this Sunday! Ron and Nancy were baptized and it was an extremely spiritual experience. He and Nancy are in their 60's and the sweetest little couple! At the end of the service, the branch president invited Ron to say a few words. He stood up and said something like this: "I want to thank you all for coming on this special day. (then he started to choke up with tears.) I am so happy. So incredibly happy!! Thank you again for coming and supporting me and my Nancy." Then he sat down. It was something in the way that he said, "I am so happy. So incredibly happy" that made me start crying! Again, the Spirit like a wall of truth hit me and testified again to my heart of the importance and truthfulness of the message I share. I know it is the most valuable thing in our lives. What a blessing it is to have this pearl of great price!

Well I've got a lot to do today, so I hope all is well with all of you. I know this is Christ's church. He is the head. It is built upon His gospel. It is true.

Love and Prayers, Sister Felix

Quote of the Week: "The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of people, and then they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature."

-President Ezra Taft Benson