Alicia! 1-27-14 Franklin, TN

Here's the news:

So yesterday morning I woke up feeling pretty yucky. We went to church where I tried to tough it out- but I didn't make it through sacrament before I had to run to the bathroom and throw up. Yay. I am doing a bit better today but I haven't really been able to eat much.... It is really good timing (not) as I have to be at transfer meeting tomorrow. Hooray for the flu bug! Everyone has it!

That's right!!! Transfer meeting tomorrow! Can you guess what is happening?! Pretty much the same as every other transfer! I am training and whitewashing again! This is my 5th time opening or whitewashing and 5th time training as well. So it just makes sense to have the last two transfers be whitewashing and training. I am getting moved back to the Nashville Zone in the Franklin 1st ward. We will find out who the new comp is tomorrow :)

I feel really good about this change. It has been a peaceful ride these past few days and I feel like this is going to be a really good area for me. We are replacing elders- which is another plus. The members always seem to love the new sisters after elders leave. It feels like I am going home before I go home. I am also looking forward to the new missionary. I just hope that we get along. We will see, we will see. Another Sister Munafo?? A girl can dream can't she? :)

This week has been pretty good. Sister Roberts had the flu bug onThursday and she is still recovering from a cough. I have been pretty healthy other than yesterday and today. Lots of vitamin C. We also went on an exchange on Wednesday through Thursday so another interesting work week. Alas. Saturdayis probably when the most stuff happened. We taught the baptist preacher again. He still had the same concerns and wasn't going to budge. We felt impressed that he needed to experience the power of the priesthood so we invited him to an 8 year old baptism. He closed the book and told us he was done. We are no longer to come back. Kind of sad- but kind of expected it really. The interesting thing is the past two visits his wife and son sat in and listened. He son seems really receptive. We were able to leave a Book of Mormon with him. Seed planted. You never know right?

We also had another awesome lesson with a single soldier who has a father that was converted to LDS 5 years ago. He has been to church a couple of times and he also had a friend in basic training that was LDS and gave him the military set of standard works. He has been prepared. We taught him the restoration and also the plan of salvation. He loved it! We are expecting great things from him. :)

Well, here is the news. Only 3 months left and 2 transfers. Gonna make it great :) I sure love you all! Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Alicia Johnson

Photo sent by member from Franklin:

Alicia! 1-20-2014 Oak Grove, TN/Ft Campbell, KY

Well hello there! How are you doing?! Are you not so happy that the sun has decided to shine a bit more these days?? Dad, I think you are totally right. I am greatly effected by the weather like you are... But the good news is that the weather changes all the time so those low moments don't last forever right?! I am seriously considering moving somewhere warm and sunny year round because that was a ROUGH couple of weeks. There are rumors of another arctic blast though this week.. grr... We are getting closer to summer though. YES! It was definitely a better week. Now that I have figured out the root of the issues (as I said last week) I mostly just had to fight with not getting frustrated and annoyed at the tiny little things all of the time. It helps when we have time with other missionaries. So we have started going into Clarksville everyTuesday and Thursday for what they call "skills". It is basically just extra roleplaying for an hour. It helps break up the monotony of having the same type of companion study everyday. We have been around missionaries a lot more and that is great! We are also having another exchange this week that will help a lot too. Plus- this is the last week of transfers! So we are expecting some changes. Very rarely do they keep trainers and trainees together for longer than two transfers. They have 16 new sister missionaries coming in this transfer and they have to open more areas. Sooo... perhaps I will be opening a new area next week. We will see, we will see. I am praying for a change- although I do finally feel like I have adjusted into the work in this area. We have built up some solid relationships with the members and investigators. It would be a bit challenging to walk away from the work that we have done since I feel like I have been doing most of the relationship building. That is what happens when your companion doesn't talk much. Sigh. Whatever happens though, I trust in the will of the Lord. If He needs me to stay, I will stay. If I need to go, that is fine too. Two more transfers left- who knows WHAT is in store.  Gosh I am jealous that you get to go to the islands this week! I hope that you have a TON of fun! Since I have been gone it has been party after party for you all! Mel and Disneyworld and Mom and Dad in Italy and Kauai! Jaron getting married. Zach just rockin' it in good ol' Utah! Unless I missed a trip somewhere? We better go to Disneyland when I get home!  I got to speak in church yesterday. It is funny how things that used to be really hard have become much easier. I also had to train two zones on Thursdayat Zone Conference. So hundred or so missionaries and an entire branch. Odd as it seems, I really enjoy speaking in front of a lot of people. This has got to be preparing me for something...  We had lots of fun teaching opportunities this week. Our baptist preacher friend, is considered progressing now :) He has been reading from the Book of Mormon and read all the way through first Nephi. He had a lot of questions though. His lessons are quite interesting. We started out talking about the Book of Mormon, then he got on his preacher soapbox and started hollering about Adam and Eve for like an hour... yep. An entire hour of our own personal sermon. What was frustrating was he acted like we didn't believe anything he was saying. In reality, we teach that stuff all the time. I just wanted to make him read 2 Nephi 2.... It summed it all up beautifully and much quicker than his sermon. Anyways, eventually he stopped to breath and we were able to bring it back to the Book of Mormon and what he read. His biggest issues lie in the whole idea of Priesthood authority. So we are going to do some research on all of that and help him see why it is important. The cool thing was eventually he told us that when he started reading the Book of Mormon, he wasn't sure about it. He didn't like it. He decided he would pray and his heart softened and he was able to give it a chance. Then he started thinking, "you know, maybe this is possible." So he hasn't decided yet where he stands. That is ok. We have a progressing investigator!!! :) Well, I love you all so much. I hope that you have a wonderful week full of island magic and fun! Can't wait to tell you about transfers! :) Love you! Sister Alicia Johnson

Alicia! 1-13-14 Oak Grove, TN/Ft Campbell, KY

The Miracle of Growth! 

You know something, I have learned a TON this week. It was kind of miserable at the beginning, but then it got exponentially better. I attest, the weather MAY be a huge factor... It was the coldest it has ever been for a long time on Sunday and Monday, but then the sun came out!! I love the SUN!!! 

I love you all very much. I have the best family. They have the best advice and support. You don't judge- you lend a listening ear (or reading eye) when I feel that all I can do is gripe and moan and cry. The long day is over for now. I am back :) This is what I learned:

Wednesday we had a Zone Meeting. Our Zone Leaders trained us on some very important things. One in particular focused on our personal struggles and recognizing that we are ALL struggling with something. And we need to love those around us and help them. It felt good to realize that I wasn't alone in my inward battles. I just have really wanted to find a solution. On Fast Sunday I prayed for help in understanding what was going on. 

After Zone Meeting, it finally came to me. I was able to go on an exchange with another Sister for two days. The instant we were together, I started talking it all out and rooting out the issues. I have been struggling with my relationship with my companion. And because we are together for 24/7, you don't have a lot of room to vent. I have been feeling a lot of stress and pressure because my companion and I are VERY different. And most of how we are different is social. So when it comes to being around others, I am generally the one approaching people and carrying on the conversations and the lessons. I had let all of this frustration build up inside of me- so much so that at the last transfer I wanted SO badly to be moved to a new area. I wasn't so I sent myself spiraling into this low, horrible, unhappy place. I couldn't stand how different we were. And we had a hard time connecting on a personal level. It just wasn't clicking. This made me turn a bit icy and unresponsive in situations that should have been fine and manageable. 

The Sister I was on exchange with has been having similar problems with communication with a brand new missionary who is very quiet as well. So as we were able to work together for a couple of days, I got my old spark and drive back for the work. I grew an attachment to everyone we visited and recognized how much good we were doing and had already done. 

Exchanges don't last forever. But my emotions were much more in check and I could now finally see what was truly going on. So (blessed companionship inventory....) we talked about why I was struggling. We talked about how she was struggling and we accepted that we are different. And things improved. 

I am learning something about life and missions. Life and missions are all about relationships with others. We are going to be around others who do not think the same as us. We must learn to communicate and work with others differences. Accept others for who they are. I think about my whole mission and EVERYTHING has been effected by my companion. My whole missionary experience has been about my companion. For real. Dealing with training and opening areas, anxiety, change, different levels of assertiveness, teaching styles, cultural differences, emotional needs, getting along just swimmingly, connecting on every level with only minor setbacks, differences in purpose and desire, social differences, and straight up different personalities. Good grief! It took me 14 months to figure that out! 

I am happy. I woke up today and felt this beautiful feeling of peace rather than the despair of the first three weeks. I'm back!! :D

We have done a lot of great work this week. One lesson in particular was pretty amazing. We have now visited and "taught" a baptist preacher on three different occasions. The first two visits were mostly him teaching us while we added our two cents and listened and agreed with his knowledge of doctrine. The third instance he wanted to know what we had to say. We shared with him about the Restoration and the Book of Mormon. We read Moroni 10:3-5 and something clicked with him. He said that just the other day he had been praying to be led to truth. He looked at us and asked if we were angels. If God had sent us because of his prayer. He then invited us to go on a "God walk" with him. We walked around his circle outside his house while he vocally spoke to God and expressed his love and desire to follow Him. He asked for truth and understanding with what we had shared. When we finished our walk (which was incredibly powerful- I could feel the Spirit burning within me) he told us that he would read. We have another appointment this coming Saturdaywith him. 

Miracles are occurring. Our vision becomes clouded during the low times, but if we continue to look forward and press forward with hope, the Lord clears away the darkness and lets the light in. I know that He is real. I know that He loves us. 

I love you all so much. I hope that you all have a blessed week. :) Thank you for everything you have done and continue to do for me. I have been blessed SO much in my life. I look forward to seeing you 100 days :) (yes the countdown is on! 100 days left- I can hardly believe it!)

I love you!!! 

Love always, 

Sister Alicia Johnson

Alicia! 01-06-14 Oak Grove, TN/Ft Campbell, KY

IT'S COLD!!

You know it... Half the time I think I am going to freeze to death. Yay. I am sure it will be ok. Just gotta keep my chin up. 

Thanks, as always, for your emails. Sounds like life is pretty up and down right now. I feel ya. Maybe it is because of winter? Just makes things a little bit more tricky. I loved hearing about your opportunity to serve though Mom. Thank you for helping that man. He sounds like a precious spirit of our Heavenly Father. I just love the sweet elderly people so much! I wish I could spend all my time with them. 

This week was really different for me as well. We had the entire day off on New Years which was really fun. We watched "Monsters University"! I loved it! It was just nice to be able to do something fun all day long. Friday we had a meeting in Nashville, and I love our sweet Mission Mom. She is a great listening ear. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Transfers are three weeks out. I am 16 pdays away from home. There are really great moments with people that I love. 

As far as teaching goes- this week was about half of what we normally do with all the meetings, days off, half days, etc, etc. Not too much to report really. Keep Liz in your prayers. Things are getting rough for her. 

I am really grateful for Sunday. It brought so much peace to be at church surrounded by the light and learning of the gospel. After all is said and done, I am grateful to be here. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve- challenging as it is right now. Things are going to work out. 

I love you all and hope that you have a great week!

Love you always, 

Sister Alicia Johnson