Alicia! 5-28-13 Brentwood, TN

Hello! Thank you so much for your emails!! You are all so amazing! And thank you for the birthday wishes and the birthday package :) My birthday felt pretty much the same as any other day- but it is weird that I can now tell people that I am 22. I loved my package! I haven't taken those shoes off since you sent them. They are AMAZING! And I feel like they may just last forever. Hallelujah!!! And the shirts are super cute too! They all fit great and I am excited to have more color in my wardrobe. Thank you so so much! I love you all! Oh! And the buffalo tooth necklace from Mel looks pretty fantastic as well ;)

 

So there have been a lot more changes happening around here. No surprise right! On Tuesday I got my new companion. Her name is Sister Daphne Munafo!!! She. Is. Amazing! We get along SO well and she is an incredible missionary! It is amazing how your attitude for life and missionary work can change depending on the attitude of the person you spend 24/7 with. She inspires me so much and we are working to make BIG changes happen in this area. We WILL see a baptism and the work is going to take off. I can feel it. I can see it. I love it!

 

She has only been in the field for a week now but you would never guess that. I feel in some ways that she is training me. We work together with a beautiful unity and we laugh and have fun at the same time. I am so grateful. It makes a big difference to have a good companion. And now I know how to truly appreciate good companions ;) I am praying that I get to keep her for at least two transfers. Unfortunately, she is a visa-waiter.... She was called to go to Brazil before issued the call to serve here. BUT we get to learn Portuguese together! So far I have learned two words- salvation and yes. Pretty good for a week! :)

 

Other crazy news: So you may be wondering (or not since yesterday was memorials day) why I am emailing today. Yesterday we had a mandatory, mission-wide, mystery meeting. We were imagining everything under the sun happening- the second coming, splitting the mission, an apostle.... Nope. None of that. President and Sister McKee have been released from their mission a year early..... :( We didn't see it coming! Sister McKee has undergone immense health challenges, but she is back! She has pretty much fully recovered and we thought we would have them until the end of their call. The Lord obviously has other plans. They are really sad about it, but they are doing as the Lord commands. They are leaving on July 1st when we will then receive our new mission president- President Andersen. He is from Ogden Utah. His wife and one of his kids went to Utah State. I think we will get along just fine :) It will be an interesting change. I am grateful though to know that as long as we are already being obedient and living the mission rules, a change in mission presidents probably won't change that much. I have great hopes for what this could mean for our mission. We are already experiencing miracles in a way that I could never imagine. The Lord is hastening his work!

 

Sister Munafo and I have been all over the place this week. We have so many investigators in about 4 different areas that we work. We continually have to adapt our teaching to the needs of those we come in contact with. One area we work is project housing. The people are all black and are very receptive to the message- they just have a hard time keeping commitments. There are also many that can't read or are generally less-educated. Another area is very well-to-do. The people there are very intellectual and will study it out but question every bit of it and don't want to change. They are wrapped up in their materialistic lives. The last area is more in the middle but they are lacking a great deal of faith. That seems to be the biggest problem in the work in this area. The people don't understand love and they don't understand faith. There are people who are non-denominational- and it is so sad because their belief is that God is love. God loves us no matter what we do. So it doesn't matter how we live because we will all be ok in the end. We were talking to a lady that said that this was her basic belief, but as far as Jesus Christ was concerned, she didn't understand his part in the plan....

 

We went to a non-denominational service and the doctrines and interpretations were heart-breaking. God does love us, but we need to exercise our faith. I am feeling that pressure more and more. Our faith needs to be increasing and we need to be working harder. Salvation is not a cheap experience! Only when we have the faith TO OBEY do we truly understand the sacrifice of our Savior. I can't even really explain the views of these people- many of them don't even believe the same things. They are so lost, it is depressing. And yet they think they are happy. They go to church, get their cup of coffee, listen to some Christian rock music and then hear a sermon that is based out of a modern-day translation of the bible. They don't read on their own. They don't study it out for themselves. They all believe different doctrines. And they don't understand Jesus Christ.

 

"A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible." (2 Nephi 29) How often those words ring out in our ears here in the South! Do we truly understand what a gift and a blessing the Book of Mormon is?? Do we truly understand what our Savior did for us? Do we KNOW that this is God's kingdom once again established on the earth before the Second Coming of our Savior?? And if we do, why aren't we doing anything about it?!  In Jacob 5:70-76, it refers to the laborers in the vineyard. And it says that there are few in these last days to try to bring as many back as possible. I wish, oh I WISH that people could feel this fire and understand the great importance of this work! It is so much larger than anything I have ever been a part of. It is so much more important than my greatest wishes and desires. It is truly a call to every single member to step forth and spread his word.

 

I know that God loves us and because he does he gave us a Savior to provide the way to return to him again. I know that we must exercise our faith in obedience to follow the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that God has provided help for us in these last days to accomplish ALL that he requires. This is HIS work. I am grateful that he has chosen me to be a part of it.

 

I love you so much. I am grateful for your example of love and service. I am truly blessed with a family that understands and lives the Atonement. That is the greatest message we can carry. I pray that you are all doing well and look forward to next weeks emails and adventures. I love you!!!

 

Love always,

Sister Alicia Johnson

Alicia! 5-20-13 Staying put in Brentwood, TN

My dearest family! Thanks for the birthday wishes!!!!!! I love you all so much!!! And Happy Birthday to you Daddy!!! I am going to send you a birthday card this week :) Which means it won't be there for your birthday... horrible planning.... But! Know that I love you so so so much and that my intentions were good!!

 

I figure I should just hold the suspense and let you know about what is happening with transfers..... I am actually STAYING in an area! Wow! That is a first ever! BUT I am getting a brand-spankin' new companion right outta the MTC! I am super excited! This will be my first full training from the beginning. And I just have such a peaceful feeling (or maybe I am just super hopeful) that I am going to just love this companion so much! I love my companion now, but it will be a relief to have a new companion. Man! You just learn so much about yourself and about people out here! I thought I was never going to make it with my Indian companion, but we handled that area in such a good way that by the end of the transfer, I would do anything for her. I LOVE her so much! And I miss her a lot. I have felt that way about all of my companions. They are all so different, and yet I can see the impact they have had on me. Especially my blessed trainer. We got to sing at the Nashville Sounds baseball game on Monday and I got to sit with my trainer Sister Thatcher and my MTC companion Sister Bauer. My heart was overflowing with joy! They are sooo incredible! And I got to see my dearest Sister Hill at the Trainer-Trainee meeting on Thursday two weeks ago. It has been great! This transfer and companionship has stretched me emotionally though... and like I said, it will be a relief to have a change.

 

Man! Time just flies around here! It seriously always feels like months have passed every time it is a new week. There are some cool things happening here in Green Hills. We are fighting a lot of opposition but we are always seeing some incredible progression. One of our members is incredible. Her name is Kathleen Flake. She is a religion specialist or something really academic that lives and works everyday in the life and mind of the early saints. She has represented the Church on PBS on several occasions and has written 3 or 4 very academic books on the priesthood, polygamy and other sorta controversial stuff. She is absolutely inspiring though! She served a mission and can see and feel the momentum of the hastening of the work. She has inspired many members of the ward to get involved and be a part of the work.

 

There is a new book out that is approved reading for us. It is called "The Power of Everyday Missionaries" by Clayton Christensen (I think). (Ps if you get a chance I would appreciate getting one sent to me ;) also a personal copy of the general conference ensign would be amazing). Missionary work is changing drastically. The Lord is calling everyone to lend a hand and be a part of this hastening. Missionaries cannot do it by themselves anymore- and the prophet, apostles and the Lord have made that even more apparent with things like budgets, miles, etc, etc. We HAVE to have members and they absolutely make the best missionaries. It is incredible the power of a member's testimony in the lessons we teach.

 

Good example: yesterday during church a member approached us with a favor. Will you come have dinner at our house tonight and teach a less-active member and her non-member boyfriend? He had arranged everything FOR us and we just had to be there. We not only had a meal provided for us but it was one of the most powerfully, spiritually uplifting lessons that I have seen in a long time. The power of the spirit in that home was absolutely tangible. Can you imagine what that would feel like to be on the members end of it? When this man, K, enters the waters of baptism and then is sealed for time and all eternity to his family, I can only imagine the feelings of knowing that they were instrumental in bringing these children of God back to their Father. "How great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of your father!"

 

As I said, there is still a LOT of opposition. But miracles are happening all over the mission. In one area, a senior couple was sent to start a branch. 6 months later, there is a branch and the members are so fired up about missionary work that I guarantee within a year they will have a ward. The missionaries in that area went to the Dogwood Festival, which brings in thousands of people, and had people fill out a survey with four questions. The questions were about the book of mormon, eternal families, the restored church and about having missionaries over. From those surveys, they had 286 referrals! There are now 5 missionary sets in that area to handle all of the referrals. If that is not a hastening of the work, I don't know what is.

 

In our area, the progression has been slow, but the intensity is building. We had 15 member-present lessons with us this week. That is an enormous change from the 2 we had our first week! I am excited to see what this next transfer will bring. :)

 

This is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. The responsibility is incredibly great. There is an enormous mantle on my shoulders for the many investigators that we are teaching, the new missionaries, training, leading.... And yet, I would never go back. The Savior walked the hardest walk, I want to look back and see that I walked a portion of that walk with Him. Because when all is said and done, that is what it will come to. Jesus Christ truly gave His life for us so that we could live again. What am I willing to give Him in return? "Salvation is not a cheap experience," but with His help, miracles will happen. They are happening everyday. They will happen in your life too if you trust in Him. The only way to truly experience the Atonement of Jesus Christ, is to apply the doctrine. Faith, Repentance, Keeping Covenants, Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost and Enduring to the End. Am I repenting daily? Do I truly understand what the Atonement means for me? I know that when we truly come to know what the Atonement means for us personally, that everything we do will change. Our vision will be raised. We will accomplish miracles.

 

I am so grateful for you all. I am really excited to see my package! I am really excited for transfer meeting too :) Those are my favorite meetings :) I know pretty much all the missionaries now.... so it is always good to see them again :). Daddy! I love you so much! I hope that you have the happiest birthday! You and Mom should go to Texas Roadhouse and get some ribs ;) that's what we'd be doing if I was there. Also, you should go on a motorcycle ride to Jackson Hole! I think that would make the best birthday ever.

 

I pray for you all and love you so much! Thank you for being so wonderful :)

Love you always,

Sister Alicia Johnson

 

PS I am still trying to figure out facebook... I might end up NOT being a facebook missionary. I haven't quite decided yet. It just gives me a headache. I will let you know though. Hopefully by next week I will have it figured out and if I am not then we can just reactivate my old account and you can keep posting stuff like you did before. I might do more by having you be my facebook missionary ;)

Alicia! 5-13-13 Brentwood, TN

Video chat with Alicia! So much fun:)! Love that girl!!♥

Mom and Dad and family:

I love you so much! It was so good to see your faces again. It was really hard to hear Mel crying over the phone... I miss that girl so much.... And sometimes I just wish I could get a hug from Mom and Dad.... Even Zach and Jare! Just being able to run up and hug em! I miss it. I love our family. I have truly come to appreciate what a great family we have. There is so much love and support. All of us have been loved equally and treated in the best way. Mom you are beautiful and amazing. Thank you for always laughing and smiling- even through the hard times. And Daddy thanks for your cute, silly ways and the sweet, sensitivity to support and care for us. I have the best parents in the world! And I wish I could just express it! We have so many amazing memories together- especially in the little moments. Family dinners, family-made-videos, laughing with the cousins, running around in the yard, throwing Easter eggs, playing board games, Car Wash... And then as we got older, being able to call whenever we need advice or help or just when you need to know about another boy. I love you so much!! I hope you can feel it- cause it sure is hard to express it in words. It was a hard day as a missionary, but a very blessed day. Thank you for being there :)

And a shout-out to my siblings! I don't know if I have said it enough- but I love you! Zachy, you saw me through some hard times too. You always make me laugh- even when I am so mad I want to cry. You brighten up the room with your big smile and your radiant spirit. You will forever be counted as one of my angels. And Jare, we have gone down quite the road. I am so grateful that you are my big brother and my friend. Thank you for loving me through everything and doing everything you could to turn to the Savior so that our family could be one again. I love and trust you. And Mel... man I love you so much! You make me laugh ALL of the time- even when we aren't together. I can't even count the memories that I have with you from infancy to now: playing pretend, and sharing secrets and just being there when no one else could understand. I love you all so much. Please never forget that.

I love hearing about the going-ons at home! It sounds like everyone is being guided to where they are meant to be. Thanks again for being so great. So missionary life! Today I am going to be singing the national anthem in a choir of about 30 missionaries at a Sounds Baseball game. We have an investigator and a less-active member coming to support us. That is pretty cool :) I am really excited and unsure about the whole Sister Trainer Leader thing. I know that my primary responsibility is to help the sisters within my Zone. That, coupled with the regular duties of missionary work. I know that the Lord expects a lot of missionaries- and it never ceases to amaze me how much trust he puts in youth! How many prophets were called at young ages to lead and serve and share God's word? Captain Moroni, Samuel, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, Nephi... so many! Their strength is just outstanding! I have come to learn a lot about the Spirit this week and about the power of the restored gospel. My studies have been very focused on that. What is the gospel? What is the RESTORED gospel? What is the fulness of the truth? Why the Book of Mormon? Why Joseph Smith?

My testimony of the Book of Mormon and of Joseph Smith have grown immensely. Any hard question can be answered by the Book of Mormon. It is so powerful! And it changes lives by the very nature of it. I am incredibly amazed by the power. I was reflecting upon my own testimony as a 14 year old girl and how I came to understand the Book of Mormon was the word of God. I knew that my parents had taught me, but at the time I could not feel God's influence in my life. I was angry. I was hurt. And I was lonely. At 15, the prophet challenged the world to read the Book of Mormon. I took the challenge. I read often- probably not every night, but often. I don't even think I took anything in. Until I came to Alma chapter 36. I could feel the pain and the anguish of Alma. I could feel it. I could understand it. I was living it. In agony, I got on my knees. I began to pour out the desires of my heart. I cried for peace! Heavenly Father, I can't go another day like this! In the depths of my humility and pain, a force washed over me that I had never felt before. The power of peace. For a moment, my heart felt love. I began to cry tears of deep gratitude to know that God was finally there. He was with me.... You are never alone.

That mighty change of heart has led me to understand the healing power of the Atonement. This week, as I came to reflect upon my own witness of the Savior and his peace, I took a different approach to missionary work. No longer was it, "This is the Book of Mormon. It is another testament of Jesus Christ. It is a great book that will change your life and will bring you peace." Instead, I found myself bearing, powerful, sincere testimony about the lasting peace that the Book of Mormon can and WILL bring to your life. I found myself learning about WHO the prophet Joseph Smith really is and the impact that he has made on my life and millions of lives throughout the world. I discovered the relationship that God has with each of his sons and daughters and how that should impact each one of them.

Probably one of the most powerful lessons we taught this week was to a young boy- 14 years of age. He was walking the street with his head down. My companion, who was very inspired, said, "We need to talk to him." We began to talk to him of faith. We began to share with him the story of a 14 year old boy who had questions in his heart about the Church of Jesus Christ. The Spirit bore powerful witness as together with my companion we talked about a miracle in our day. God has called a prophet! We no longer have to live in the darkness of the unknown for our loving Heavenly Father has reached out to His children. The boy was so humble. He took the Book of Mormon. He walked away and began to share it with the children around him. I know that God will guide him to the truth and he will be instrumental in bringing many souls unto Christ because of his faith. The faith of a 14 year old.

Now, I am almost 22 years old. Many who read my emails are older. What does the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ mean to you? Let that testimony penetrate your soul! Only when we come to realize our full potential can we recognize the joy that our Heavenly Father has in store for us. There is more peace and happiness that awaits us- and it all begins with simple, sincere prayer and reading from a simple, pure book. I know the Book of Mormon is true. I know that God knows you. He knows me. I promise that as you do those small and simple things, that God will not forsake you. You will come to see and feel the power of the Atonement as you obediently strive to follow God's plan. He is so good! He is so merciful! And he trusts us to "come follow Him."

Will you read from the Book of Mormon everyday this week and ask again if it truly is the word of God?

My dearest, beloved family, I love you. I love this great work. Miracles are happening all around us. This week we saw an enormous increase in our numbers and met many people who have been prepared to receive the truth. The Lord is hastening his work and he is calling ALL of us to be a part of it. Live so that those who do not know Christ will come to know Him through you. You are amazing. I am so blessed to be in a family with such strong and faithful, all-around good people. Keep the faith!

Transfer calls will be coming this Saturday. This is anything-can-happen-land so whatever comes, we will be ready :) "I will go and do what the Lord commands for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them to accomplish the thing which he hath commanded." I know that you will trust the Lord for whatever he has planned for each of you individually. You can do whatever he requires. I love you all and pray that you will have a blessed week.

And now that my novel is written, I bid you goodbye for another week!

Love you always,

Sister Alicia Johnson

Alicia! 5-6-13 Brentwood, TN

My dearest family!

Quick updates: I am now a Facebook missionary. You may notice when you try to log into my account that it has been deactivated. I have created another account for missionary work. This is a pilot program that only happens in certain missions and I have been approved to be a part of that. I know that you can add me as a friend (and I recommend that you do) but I won't be able to respond to messages you send on Facebook. I will have to block most of the information. What you can do on my wall will be to bear testimony and also share links to the videos or messages that I will eventually post. Right now, I only have one picture and one friend. I haven't had much time to work on it... It is a work in progress :) But it will be great eventually!

Also: I have a bike! We went to a members home for dinner and she said I could have/use hers! Great! So I didn't have to buy one :) I love how the Lord works :)

Other: I thought of something else I could use for my bday- Bath and Body Works "Warm Vanilla Sugar" body spray and/or perfume.

And: Happy Birthday, Mel! Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad! Happy Mothers Day, Mom! I don't have the details yet on calling home. I do know that we have a member who will allow us to use skype at their house (on the big screen) and that church is at 1pm-4pm for our ward. I imagine that the mission president will want us to call in the morning so that we have the evening for proselyting so I don't know what will happen yet. I will let you know details when I find out :)

Last: This upcoming week is going to be very different. We have a trainer/trainee meeting from 9am-4pm on Thursday, a Zone meeting on Wednesday AND... a Mission Leader Conference from 9am-4pm on Tuesday. That's right! I am a "mission leader" of some sort. I have NO idea what that entails, but the Zone Leaders seemed pretty excited about it. Then Friday we have weekly planning for most of the day and Sunday is church and calling home. Man! I don't know how much missionary work is going to take place... But hey, it will be a nice change of pace :)

This week has been very different again. I don't really know what it is about this area. I can't quite figure out the flow of it. In my other areas we were able to get things figured out pretty quick, but this area is just different for some reason. We didn't have a car at all this week (again) due to it being in the shop until friday. So we were on bikes for a day or so and then were calling and begging for rides the rest of the time. The miracle is we had 10 member present lessons. That may not make much sense to you- but our average for having members with us is generally a lot lower. So that is pretty cool.

We also ended up with some pretty cool new miracle investigators. One guy we contacted at about 8pm. We were just walking down this street and he was walking to his car. We said hello and asked how he was doing. We were really friendly so he asked what we were doing walking around that time of night. We were able to share the Book of Mormon with him and also the first vision. The Spirit was very powerful :) It was very cool to meet someone who has been prepared. You can just feel it! We tried to meet with him again last night... but he wasn't home. So thus begins the challenges of helping him progress. We will get him there though. Persistence ;)

We had Stake Conference this week and the leaders really wanted us to work hard on getting someone to go. We also didn't have any rides anywhere- so we had to make phone calls like crazy. We spent an hour and a half calling members- to no avail. No one would come out with us. We ended up calling the Relief Society president who is really great and comes out with us sometimes four times a week.... Then, once we were with her, my companion called every single investigator in the phone. ALL of them. No one came. BUT we did get some responses of people who want to meet with us! So that was cool. It was exhausting though. We need secretaries....

Nothing really prepares you for what missionary work really is. What I can say though, is that as hard as it is, I am so happy. Yesterday, my companion really opened up to me with some concerns that she has had. I felt prompted that for "training" we should spend some time alone praying vocally to God for answers. I know a little bit how Enos felt. My prayer was probably 20 minutes long. I don't know if I have ever prayed for that long before. What I do know, is that it has truly carried me. I have this peace within me that is deep and lasting. We came in contact with two of the rudest people yesterday, and I am at peace. When we trust in the Lord and humble ourselves to let him lead us, when we pray sincerely, He is there. He is just waiting for us to reach out to Him. We also need to be humble enough to know that everything happens for a reason and that when we submit ourselves to God, everything will be ok. Miracles are happening in this area- even if the miracles are just within myself. I love my Savior. I love my mission. I love my family. I pray that you will all have a blessed week. I look forward to hearing more about the adventures that you will be having on this journey of life. I know that our Savior is watching out for you. You are never alone.

Love you always,

Sister Alicia Johnson