WEEK 48- Clevland Cavaliers and Famlies are Forever

Hello family! Another week gone huh? How does that keep happening?

Well this week was an eventful one for sure! Craziness of all kinds

but truly life changing.

First off we got to do lots of service this week which is always a hi

light. They are doing special olympics here in Missoula so we got to

go help with that this week! We'll be helping some more in a few weeks

when they go to state. This time we helped with bocce ball and

rounding the athletes up for each of their events! It was so much fun,

the kids are so sweet and get so pumped about playing

We also got to go over and help J  clean his place

out!  I just adore J with my whole

heart. It was great to just help him clean and

answer some of the questions has.  We had some amazing chats about the

church and the Book of Mormon and life after death.  He gave me this GREAT hat!

 He really is just the kindest soul you'll ever meet.

 The Fadleys are moving also, so we went over with

the relief society and packed them all up.

They are just sweethearts and we love them so much. It was amazing to take some time

this week to just go and serve. There really is a special love and

spirit that we can feel as we serve others and serve alongside others.

It's such a blessing.

So now to talk real fast about the title...so I don't think I've

talked too much about P is a member that we've been working

with and he's something special. He lived in a group home for the

first little bit that I was here but then a few weeks ago he decided

he felt too pressured in the group home so he ran away. He ended up

just chilling on the streets and living in the Poverello(a community

shelter place) he has been in touch with us and  the church .

The Ward is well aware of his situation and have tied to assist

him but he kinda does his own thing.  We got a call from him and he was convinced the Cleveland Cavaliers

were trying to get him. He has gone off his medicine  and  it was hard for him to work things out.  We called

The Elder’s Quorum  president and he was able to work things thru and help him out.  We pray a lot for people

Who battle these difficult battles.

The absolute best part of the week was our lesson with R. This

one lesson made every single hard thing I've ever felt or experiences

on my mission completely 100% worth it. We've been working with him, he wants the joys the

Gospel can bring…. But hard to  commit and change….well,

remember how he came to church last week? Amazing right? So...one of

the talks was on the difference between a contract marriage and a

covenant marriage. At first we were nervous because guess what. R

and J had just gotten married right?

But the talk really hit home with him! We

had a lesson on their home after church and he asked all kinds of

questions about what a covenant marriage is and how we can be sealed

to our families forever. It was so amazing to be able to testify of

the amazing strength and power that my family has felt from being

sealed as a family. I can just tell you that the Spirit in that room

was tangible. It was amazing to see the shift that happens when the

goal is no longer just baptism. The goal became a forever family.

It was possibly one of the sweetest, most precious experiences

of my mission to hear each member of that family testify of what it

would mean to them to be sealed together as a family. R set a

baptism date and the whole family is ecstatic and working together

toward that date. R texted us the next morning with the sweetest

thank you for what the gospel is doing for him in his life and for his

family.

This gospel does bless families. I testify of that  and I am a

witness of that. I've seen it in my own family, I've seen it in the

families of the amazing members we meet and I've seen it as it begins

to change a new family who is working toward that. I'm so eternally

grateful for this gospel

W/<3

Sister Hodgson

We got locked out of the church ...oops

 BEAUTIFUL MISSOULA

We explored the Saint Anthony's church on Pday

WEEK 47- Prayers and Love

First off can I just say I love my mission?  Being on a mission is tough.  It's super tough.  But I've never loved hard things so much in my life!  Kinda a super weird week and mommy has more info on the details.  But a small thing we've been focusing on this week is prayer.  We had an awesome MLC this week and that was AMAZING.  President and Sister Wadsworth are always so inspired.  But one of the things I really got from it was what prayer is and how to pray with complete faith.

We had some amazing lessons with Randy this week and guess what.  He's reading the Book of Mormon.   It was awesome!  But we were a little bummed because he worked on Sunday so he wasn't going to be able to make it to church.  After thinking about the things we learned in MLC and in the zone training we did after, I knew I needed to build my testimony of prayer.  So Saturday night, when I kinda realized this, I was saying my nightly prayer and in it, prayed with all my heart that Randy would be able to come to church tomorrow.  So...Sunday morning in Ward council, we got a text from Jessica.....and guess what it said. RANDY GOT WORK OFF AND WAS ABLE TO COME TO CHURCH!!!!!  Oh gosh we flipped.  Haha we were trying to be all dignified and stuff in Ward Council but when we got out we went crazy! ……and then we got taking to each other we figured out that both Sister Freeman and I got the prompting Saturday night to pray that Randy could come to church.  Independent of each other, we prayed that he could come and the the next morning, he gets off work. Gosh the power of prayer is real.

Mom I shared some mission personal stuff with you....but I have learned a lot this week.  I've been learning a lot about what it truly means to love people.  And it's done amazing things!  It's been incredible to see how much love does for the soul.  But it also means you get hurt more.  I honestly, truly love these missionaries we serve with and those people that we serve!  But it hurts sometimes too.  The more you love the more we all become changed!  Those that love and those that are loved! But also the more it hurts when you can't really help any farther.  And when it becomes their agency....But it's helped me realize just how much I truly love my mission.  I love you and miss you! But I couldn't be anywhere else right now.  I have been learning what it means to love the Lord first and it's definitely an eternal process....but I love learning how to do it.  Somehow, even when it hurts I still love it.

Love you , miss  you, have an amazing week

W/<3

Sister Hodgson

Saying good bye to Sister Crosland.  She was my "baby" ( greenie) and then we have served together here and I ADORE this woman!!
"til we meet again" ( this is hard )

So for zone training, we did the whole anti-nephi-Lehites and each started off the transfer writing down personal things on swords and prayed and buried them all. It was an awesome experience to be able to put the things on the altar and just burry them and become
who God needs us to be.


                                                              




Cool power boxes !!

Zone Picture

Week 46- just listen! its so not about us :)

Holy cow, another week gone by. How does that keep happening?! And

this week was truly a week of miracles. Haha we're exhausted but it's

the best kind of exhausted you can be!! ( Note- She found her initials in the cement she did not make them :)  )

So to start off, were gona take it back a few weeks to zone

conference. One of the big themes of zone conference was listening. So

many times, our instinct is to just jump in and start teaching people

and inviting them to do things and such. Which is cool and all but the

assistants gave a huge discussion on why we listen and how important

it is. ..so much of what they say is golden!.... but how

often do we miss that because we hear something they say and just jump

over things and start talking….out of love and excitement…..anyway

So this week was transfers so we were a little busy for the first part

of the week with everything for that. Always fun, sad busy and different!

So Sister Freeman and I have been studying diligence a lot lately and holy cow things happen. So Thursday was weekly planning....normally the toughest day of the week for me because we sit and plan and schedule everything for the next 10 days. And you know how much I've always loved planning. Haha but hen you add on top of that, not going out to work for those hours that we plan and it's torture. But we know it's important, so

we've been praying that we can be more diligent and effective in these

planing sessions. And wow oh wow it was probably the best weekly

planning session we've ever had! Ever. We focused 100% on the people.

What they need and how we can help them. We thought about them, prayed for them, and truly loved them. We saw where they are now, where they came from and where we hope they will come to be. We talked about how to do our part to help get them there. Then the

rest of the week, we put the plans in play and went to work. We saw

miracle after miracle and everything we had prayed about and planned

for seemed to be coming to pass. It just shows that it's the Lord's

work and when we do it His way, it's a whole lot easier for things to

happen.

So just a few of these miracles...first was the F family. They have been struggling and we have tried our ideas and our plans but this week we've

been focusing on listening, we truly have just been sitting and asking

questions, trying to figure out what they need .

We felt super prompted to show them a video that seemed to

fit right with their needs. Holy cow, the Spirit was super strong and

I just felt so much overwhelming love for them. The

Spirit was able to touch them and I literally saw a change in them.

And guess what. THEY CAME TO CHURCH!!!! WHATTT

They had the chance to partake of the sacrament for

the first time in 4 years. Gosh this work is amazing.

Also, Randy. Ohh R. He's just the best. He has been becoming much

for comfortable with us and really opening up…we have tried to listen better and we have been better directed to know what he needs and how to serve him….he is doing the goals he is helping set.  

Last one I promise...soooo J.  She had visited with Missionaries before and was working to be baptized.  Then she put on the brakes and had not been back. We tracted into her last month and have never been able to meet with her……..we finally got an aptt with her !!

 Our original plan was to go in and teach the restoration. But guess what we did...yep, we listened. Haha we asked questions, hi-lighted principles of the gospel, and through that, the restoration was taught once again and

she bore her testimony on the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon.

She's read it and knows it has changed her life. She talked about her

concerns, why she didn't go through with baptism last time. She said

she felt like she was doing it for other people and she wanted to make

sure she's is ready and that she's doing it for herself. And now, 12

years later, she seems to be ready.

The miracles this week just kept coming. We worked hard, it was sunny

this week so we were out walking everywhere and talking to people. We

walked over 6 miles a day for a few days this week, got super

sunburned and now have holes in our shoes, but no one cares 'cause

this gospel is true! My testimony of this work was strengthened

tremendously this week. This work is truly not about us. The minute we

remembered that and LISTENED, things started to change. This is the

Lord's work and it's about His children. We have the amazing

opportunity to be instruments in the Lord's hand. Our job is, yes, to

teach! But our main job is to listen, to love and to make it possible

for the Spirit to teach God's children. I'm so grateful to be a part

of this work. It is amazing. I love the Lord and my heart is so full

right now. I love you all!! Have an amazing week!!

W/<3

Sister Hodgson

hiking  the M in Missoula

WEEK 45 - General Conference, golf and I got kissed

 

 Ohmygrsh. I love general conference. I can't believe we have to wait 6 whole months till the next one. But crazy week this week!! And transfer news?! We're both staying!  This Place is beautiful and lots of work to do I am good with that!

So busy week again this week....Monday was super awesome! The Zone Leaders planned an Easter egg hunt. So all throughout the stake center there were missionaries hunting for Easter eggs, and the funnest surprise was some of these 'eggs' were actually balloons filled with candy that we had to go around a pop with a dull pencil. Haha it was great. The best part was that some of these balloons had Taco Bell tacos in them...haha oh zone leaders. Still, no one knows how they got the tacos in the balloons but we've learned to not ask questions.

 

 

 

This Monday we went to DI and  got some silly clothes to go Golfing in!!  Fun day!!

Tuesday through Thursday we were on exchanges which was awesome. I was with Sister Shoemaker and she's amazing!! The first day she and I got up early and for exercise went and hiked the Missoula M. It was way fun! And SO beautiful for the sunrise. Perfect way to start the day:) and the good things just kept coming, we saw SO many miracles. My favorite one was we were Tracting and talking about ways to find people and she was like "I wish people just called us and said they wanted to hear the gospel...that'd be nice" then literally like right after that we got a phone call and the message went something like this: "hi, my name is M. I hope this is the missionaries. I got baptized then left the church and I want to come back. Can you come see me? Also my girlfriend wants to be baptized too." Haha whaaat?? So we got an awesome  new friend !!  Gosh dang this work is amazing.

I have gained a huge testimony of the Priesthood on my mission …I can’t go into  it really…but just know I have seen miracles, I have seen people see the priesthood being used and touching lives.  I am so grateful for this power On earth and lives it changes.

And to top things off general conference was amazing. I loved it. The

messages were so inspired and answered so many of my questions. I love

that no matter how tough things get, they always get better. The Lord

always provides ways for us to receive strength.

I love the people here in Missoula and I love sharing the gospel. It has strengthened my

testimony so much to be able to share it with others and see them start to grow  their testimony.

Hope ya have a great week!!

W/<3

Sister Hodgson

I was kissed on my mission ...Love this sweet man                         We found a foot in someones back yard

Keep "shorty" in your prayers