Background: This is Janell’s final mission letter. Thanks for your interest, prayers, and support for her these past 18 months, and for the kind comments we have received. For those of you who live locally, her plane will arrive at 7:30 pm, Wednesday, November 28th at the Sacramento airport. We fly in on Frontier airlines. If you want to hear her speak on her experiences, she is currently scheduled to speak at the chapel on Elk Grove Blvd. about 3 blocks east of Hwy 99 (across from McDonald’s), at 9:00 am on Sunday, December 9th. We hope to see many of you there! – Val

 

A week from today I will see you...WEIRD!

I really never thought this day would come. It is kind of weird. I went to the temple today for the last time as a missionary (well I will be going with you all so I guess it is not the very last time). Tomorrow I have an interview with the mission president and then we will have our “death” testimony meeting. Crazy. Time hasn't flown by but I just really never thought I'd be at this point. It is not real yet. I am SO excited to see you so soon. Just remember not to come to the visitor center until Wednesday. Tuesday you can't come cause i won't be done yet.

I love this gospel so much. It is just so true. I love my Savior. I can't describe in words how I feel about Him. I really am so blessed. I'm excited to see everyone. I will let you know about my past week when you get here. There will be so much chatting! I am starting to get sick though but hopefully it will go away soon. My body is stressed for the change. Haha. Oh well.

I love you all so much. Thank you for everything you do for me. Heavenly Father is so good to bless me with you. :)

I will see you in a week! LOVE YOU!

Sister Lewis

Background: Our daughter-in-law, Denise (Craig’s wife), father died this past week. The “death interview” means they are leaving the mission (like when we “die” we go from one location to another location).  The attachment is of Janell and her two good friends that are sisters, Perla and Tasha Antoniak. – Val

My family,

Sounds like things have been busy as always. Actually I have to say that it seems more busy than it ever was when I was at home. Please tell Denise that she is in my prayers as well as her family.

I am very excited to see you all. It has been very good here. Last night we got to teach a family. It was so great. The children are young men and young woman age and they want to go to the activities. It will be fun to see what happens. I love the gospel.

So I have been feeling mixed emotions lately. I am getting sad thinking that I will leave these people. I didn't know that I would feel like this. I love this ward. It is hard to imagine that they won't be apart of my life soon. But I still have time left with them. You will be meeting some very wonderful people when you are here. I'm excited for you to meet them.

I don't have much to report. The VC is now open again even though it is still under construction. One of the construction guys hung around after he was done with work and chatted with us. I believe he is searching for something in life...love it! His name is Chris. I'm sure that I will talk to him more before they are all done with construction.

Today Sister Miller and I will be going to the city with the Hardy's. It will just be us 4. I am so excited. We will be going to the Library of Congress. I haven't been there yet and since this is my last full p-day we are going. Next week is the "death" temple trip and then the next week I will be with you all. Fun times ahead!

Next week is going to be such a busy week. I will be singing on Tues night. I will sing a duet with Sister Finlay "This is the Christ". I love that song. I then will have the temple, my death interview with the mission president, service day in DC for Thanksgiving and my last Why I Believe program at the VC. It is going to be jammed packed but I am excited.

I have a lot of love right now. I love my Savior so much. This is the best work. I am so grateful that I had this opportunity. I am speechless. I love you all so much and I know I could not have gone through life without you all. You all have taught me so much. I love you more than you can ever know.

Stay safe. Have a wonderful week!

Love,

Sister Lewis

Background:  We fly out to pick Janell up in 12 days. – Val

 

Well hello hello! Sounds like you all had so much fun. I am so sad that I missed it. I haven't been to AZ for a while. I hope there are more games in the future so I can attend.

This week has been interesting because of the storm. We weren't allowed to go out at all on Monday. So we cleaned, studied, and I put together a puzzle of the US and quizzed my roommates on the Capitols of the different states. We had a blast. Oh and we listened to Christmas music. It was a good day. The storm wasn't as bad as they had anticipated. Apparently it was really bad in New York and New Jersey. I hope those people are ok. The Visitor Center has been closed the past 4 days because of the renovation. I have been really bummed because I love the VC. I hope we can get back there soon.

In other missionary news...well there is not much. We are just trying to find people to teach. Not too easy to do. Almost all of our investigators now don't have much or any desire anymore. We are ground zero. BUT with faith we WILL find!

Oh last week was our Festival kick off in our VC training meeting and we put on a mini play. It was A Christmas Carol kind of and I directed it. It was fun. It was funny cause we had really no time to practice so it was all over the place. I hope people understood what was going on. Good times.

Well I can't think of much else that has happened since last time I emailed. Things are all running together now.

Oh my gosh I just remembered what happened last week that was the most significant. I swear I'm loosing my mind. Last Saturday we had a special mission conference where Elder Cook came and spoke to us! It was SO good! The Spirit was so strong. He talked about the new missionary age and how there would be so many missionaries now coming out and the importance of the members in the work. After the meeting he shook all of our hands. He was so nice. I started crying because it was the first time that I realized that I would go home soon. I just sat in the theater watching everyone as they were shaking the Apostle's hand and I cried. Sister Lawrence came and sat next to me and I started to cry more. I will miss her the most I think. I sure love her a lot. She is such a beautiful daughter of God. She told me that she has learned so much from me. It was a special moment. I love her.

Well I think that is it. Tell Diane that I want some pictures from her. I want to see the beautiful bride. Also, we staying a full week here after I am done? Is that right? Do you get my plane ticket? Am I supposed to be released here or when I get back home? When do you get in town? I want to know it all.

I love you all so much! Can't wait to tell you all the stories that I have and you can tell me all of yours. I pray for you all. The gospel is SO true! I love you!

Sister Lewis

Background: The photos are of the missionaries who are returning home at the next transfer...let me know if you do not see Janell.  The wedding she is talking about is our granddaughter, (and her niece) Marie.  - Val

 

Family,

This past week has been so good. I am so anxious to hear about the wedding. I want to know all that happened and see if one of the Browning's could send me a couple of pictures from it. Where did they go for their honeymoon? Where do they plan on living? I want to know what is going on.

Last week was John's baptism. It was SO good! What a blessing it was to be apart of it! Everyone was saying that this kind of baptism was a once in a mission baptism. It is just awesome because both he and his wife are so solid and wonderful. Not that others aren't...now I am digging myself into a hole. Anyway, it was so good. John came into the building a little nervous but Audrey was all smiles. He didn't want to wear the suit. He called it his jail suit because of the look of it. Ha. He is so funny. He looked great all in white. So many people from the ward were there. What is cool is that John and Audrey have been coming to church for about 2 years now so they know a lot of people. They are in a "empty nesters" group in the ward where they do a bible type study and that is how they were introduced to the church. Two years ago they had NO plan on joining the church. Now look at them. Ah, I love them so much. They are like second family to me. I'm so excited for you all to meet them! You will love them and they will love you. Sunday was the confirmation and it was so good. John just kept smiling. He and Audrey left after the 3 hour block to go to their beach house. He texted us that night to tell us thanks. I sure will miss them for the couple of weeks that they will be gone.

Now that the baptism is over it has been pretty slow in our area. It is kind of anti-climatic unfortunately. When you are blessed to teach someone who is so ready, it is hard when you teach those who aren't really interested. People don't return your calls or they are always busy. It makes me so sad. I wish that people would just experience it and know how true it is and happy they could be. We are praying to find the elect. Pray that we will. We have been so blessed so I am not complaining at all. I know all contacts are good because that means that they are one step closer to excepting the gospel. Heavenly Father is so aware of His children so I know all will be well.

This week in our training meeting at the VC the trainers (i.e. me and the other 3) are doing a skit. Yes, my theater side got the best of me and we wrote a Christmas Carol type of skit to go along with our theme for this upcoming Festival of Lights. We have a rehearsal right after I write this letter and I am nervous because a lot of people who are now involved said that I am way ambitious for this one and that makes me nervous. It was so fun to write so I hope it all turns out ok. I just want the sisters to enjoy it and feel the Spirit. It should only be about 15-20 min long but there is a cast of about 15. Don't know how many will actually be in the audience but oh well. Pray that it will work. I shouldn't let my creative side out because I don't have the proper time for it to be at it's best. Oh well. Heavenly Father is so good to me that he sent me to a mission that I could be able to do something that I love. We shall see how it turns out.

Well that is about it. It is coming down to the wire now. It doesn't seem real that it is coming to a close. I know that my body is ready but in my mind it still seems like a have a lot of time left. I do. It is 4 weeks which is SO much time. I hope that I can do good with the time I have left. I sure do miss you all so much though. I am very excited to see my family and friends. It is time.

I love you all so much. Keep me updated on all that is new and awesome. I will see you all soon kind of!

Love you!

Sister Lewis

 

Background: We’ll be picking Janell up in 32 days.  I’ll notify her that all 5 Thanksgiving invites work for me!  “Death” pictures mean the missionaries are going home. – Val

 

Hello family,

I have written down some names of people to visit when you come, and I'm pretty sure we now have like 5 invites for Thanksgiving dinner. Yikes. Not too sure what to do about that but I guess we won't go hungry. We will definitely go to the temple while you are here. That was in my plans a long time ago. By the way, I don't think I get released till Wed. I don't think it is on Tues. just to let you know. There are some historic places that I would love to see. I think there are a couple of them out of the mission boundaries so I will have to check how we can do that. The mission boundaries are so small so it's not hard to do that. There is still a lot of time until then. Keep me posted on the wedding and the baseball games. Tell dad not to hurt himself. You have to be healthy when you come here to get me. Oh, also it will probably be really cold when you get here just to let you know.

I have not received halloween stuff from Jodee...I Can’t wait! I was thinking about her yesterday a lot and I was quoting her in the car. I was telling Sister Miller all about her. It was fun. I miss her. Tell her that.

This past week has been busy. For the next 3 days the Visitor Center will be closed so that is a bummer. I love the VC. They are doing renovations so they have to shut it down for a little bit. They are a little behind schedule so it is a little nerve racking but the Lord's hand is in it so no worries. We get to go to the temple this Friday though so I'm super excited! Today we went to the Arlington Cemetery. It was so cool. It was the most beautiful day. We took "death" pictures for all the missionaries who are dying. It was a weird thought because it still doesn't seem real or that the day will come. We also watched the changing of the guard. It is so interesting. I can't believe those soilders can do what they do for so long. It was fun. I will have to get copies of the pictures and send them.

This Saturday John will be baptized! Oh, I love that couple. He is so ready and prepared. We got to see them last night and we will get to see them tomorrow as well. We talked about the plan of salvation and he summed it up so well. He is solid. So many people will be coming to his baptism. It will be a rock star baptism. It will be a great day, a baptism and a wedding! I can't wait to see all the pictures from that. What a tender mercy from Heavenly Father to let me participate in a baptism of such a great man on the day that I will miss the wedding of a niece that I love so dearly. I got a little sad when I thought about it but I know all is well. I will hear all about it soon.

Yesterday at the VC two girls came in, one from Norway and the other from Germany. They were the cutest girls ever. We chatted for about 2 hours about the plan of salvation, the word of wisdom, and who God and Jesus Christ are. They were just listening and asking so many questions. It was fun to see and experience. The Spirit was so strong. I knew that their hearts were touched. They didn't want to have missionaries but I told them that we'd be friends and I would email them. They travel a lot and they agreed. I knew that seeds were planted yesterday with them.

I have had some other cool experiences in the past week. On Sunday we went to a fireside at the VC by the General Primary President, Sister Wixom. It was so good! I got to see some of the people that I have met in past areas so that was fun. A couple of weeks ago I had a long, deep conversation with a girl from a previous ward and she was there on Sunday. She told me that she was feeling much better after our talk and that she did what I invited her to do and it was helping. I told her it wasn't me. It never is me. That is what is so cool. Yesterday also a girl from the ward I served in Utah as the RS president came in cause she has been here for a little while and knows that I am there at the VC. She came in and cried. I just talked to her. She told me that Heavenly Father sent me on the mission here for her. That made me smile. I am fining out more and more that I am here for a specific reason. He uses others to help His children. He sure does love all of His children. That I know for sure.

I hope I am making sense. I don't have a lot of time now. Tell Jolene to stop getting concussions already and tell her that I want to work out with her when I get back home.

Also, I need advise. I know that I need to find a job when I get home and I have NO idea what my plans are. Is that something I should be thinking about right now so that I am prepared or should I just wait to get back? I don't know what to do or where to go. I haven't had any ideas come to mind so I figure that I'm not supposed to think about it right now. ANYWAY...

I love you all so much!

Sister Lewis

 

 

October 10 Parts 1 & 2

Background: This is a reply to a letter I sent her.  In the first sentence, Janell is reacting to some photos of her niece, Rylee (JoAnn & Jordan’s daughter) I sent her.  I will also be sending a reply from her Mom’s letter.

Oh she is SO cute! Oh my. She looks so much like her father. That is so funny:)

I thought the missionary announcement was SO awesome! We were at our investigator's house (John and Audrey's house) when we watched it. I think it is so cool. There will be double the missionary force and I know that it will strengthen all the stakes in Zion. I am kind of glad that I will be done with full time service before it is in full force. I love serving and I will continue to love serving after my mission but being companions with 19 year old girls...well it could be hard for me. I would rather serve in young womans than be a companion to one. Ha, I know it sounds bad but I really am grateful for all the things I am learning and I am SO excited that all can leave earlier. It will be so good for the youth of the church. I have noticed that the youth of the church seem to be a lot more solid than in the past. There are good kids now a days. I love hearing about the nieces and nephews getting ready to serve. Have them work in Book of Mormon reading and Preach My Gospel into their daily activities. They will be that much more prepared. Maybe I can help some of them prepare when I get back.

The two talks you mentioned were my favorite talks as well. I also loved Elder Uchtdorf's talk. Well, there are many that I loved. I loved Elder Nelson's phrase, "Ask the missionaries!" Yes! That is what I like to hear. Now there will be many of them so hopefully they WILL ask the missionaries. What a wonderful time it is in the gospel. That conference changed me in a lot of ways. I hope it stays. Elder Holland's talk pierced my soul. I love the apostles. What amazing men. Today I studied more of the Plan of Salvation. I love that I find new meanings and insight to Heavenly Father's plan.

My health is fine. I'm feeling a lot better. I got a blessing so all is well. I am truly blessed. I'm so happy to hear that you are feeling better. I need both you and mom to feel good so that you can still come. You are still planning on coming right? I have a lot of people that I want you to meet. A lot of people want to meet you as well.

Well I have to write mom now. I'm really excited to see you both in 6 weeks.  All I know is that I was thinking about you and mom yesterday and I was looking at your picture. I am so grateful to you two. I love you both so much you don't even know. I have been so blessed. I am so excited to see you and talk to you about everything. It is something that I have really missed. I love my pappy and my mamz. You are the best!

I love you so much. Keep me updated with everything!

-Janellie

Background:  This is the letter to her Mom.  For those who are not members of our church...the missionary talk that’s being mentioned is that young men are now eligible to go on their missions at age 18 instead of waiting until age 19, and young women can serve at age 19 instead of waiting until 21.  Currently there are 58,000 missionaries serving in the world, and my estimate is that there will be about 90,000 serving at this time next year. – Val

CONFERENCE WAS AWESOME!

I love conference SOOOOO much. I hate when it ends. I want to just feel that Spirit all the time. I was so humbled to hear from those wonderful men and women. They are such wonderful disciples of Jesus Christ. I learned a lot. I loved all of it. I wrote dad some of the things that I liked. This church is so true. In every way. I can't wait for all my nieces and nephews to serve! Prepare now. I will help you all if you want any help to know how to prepare. Heavenly Father will help you every step of the way. It is the best thing to serve. Watch and listen to the promise that Elder Nelson gives at the beginning of his talk from conference to those that serve a mission. Pretty incredible. It will change your life forever. Let me know if any of you send in your papers in the next 6 weeks. I want to know all about it. I can't wait till the world is full of missionaries!

I am feeling a lot better. I received a blessing so all is well. I was supposed to rest and now I am doing fine. Yesterday were transfers. Sister Miller and I are staying together!!! Whoo hoo! I was so happy about that. She is so fun and awesome. She is a little older on her mission so it is nice. We will also be able to be together for John's baptism on the 20th which will be awesome! Sister Matsumori told us yesterday that she didn't think she'd see that baptism while she was serving. I am so blessed to be able to be here. We hope that we can also find more people in this next 6 weeks. We are teaching a 14 year old girl that is so great. She doesn't know who God is so we are starting slow. She is so cute.

I can't believe I have 6 weeks. It still seems like 6 weeks will be a long time. I think I have been on a mission for 10 years and I still have a year to go. Sometimes it goes by fast and other times it goes by slow. I can't really remember the beginning of my mission. So funny. I have to admit that I am excited to see you all soon. A mission does really help you appreciate and love those that are the closest to you. I miss you all like crazy. I love this work though and the thought of it ending is weird. Mixed feelings. BUT too early to think about all of that.

Last week was busy with conference and all. We were at the VC most of the week it seemed. The coolest thing happened on Sunday. I was at the VC sitting looking at the art exhibit when a sister came in and said that I had people asking for me. I went out to see Tamera and Sheldon Young!!! Oh it was so glorious! I love them SO much! Their kids are so cute and it was so fun to talk with them and laugh with them. They are so great. What a blessing to me to be serving where I am.

Well I'd better go. Keep me updated with everything! Can't wait to hear about the wedding! Tell Mindy to write me. I love you all! The gospel is true!!!

-Sister Lewis

 

Background:  Janell is still battling an illness. Please help pray for her recovery.  Thanks....Val

I don't have much time today so I will have to remember to write a longer letter next week. 

Last week was an interesting week. I was sick most of the week and I continue this week. I was at home all day Saturday while my companion went to a mosque with another missionary. I wanted to go so badly but I felt awful. It made me realize how much I actually love being a missionary. I think my body is dying down. I hope not, because I still have lots of time left. I got to go to the RS broadcast though on Saturday and it was so good. I got to see my old ward I served in and got to see Michelle. She is so awesome and we have an appointment for you all to meet her when you come. She is one of my favorites! Sunday night we were at the VC for a musical performance. I got to see Perla which I always love so much:) She is so great!   A couple of days ago we got to do some service at a member's home and at the end of the visit we watched her kill and skin her rabbits. Ha, I have never seen that before. It was interesting. To top it off she cooked it that night and gave it to us. We still have yet to eat it.

Today we went to M Street with the Hardy's (they are one of the senior couples here). They are so wonderful. We shopped around and then they took us out for lunch. After, we went to the Capitol and received a tour. It was beautiful. It was so cool to be there. I love the history sites here. The Spirit is strong in those buildings. I got a little emotional looking at everything. Heavenly Father is the best.

Well, I do have to go. I don't feel very well right now and I'm about out of time. I love you all so much. I really miss you a lot. The road trip right after I get home I'm sure will be great....I just hope my body doesn't crash on me:) Old age...it's the pits! Love you all a lot! Tell Casey that I'm going to kiss the baby's face right off when I see her!!!!

-Sister Lewis

Background: Here is the link Janell refers to in her message below:  http://embedr.com/playlist/between-heaven-and-earth-lds-mormon-temples – Val

 

Family,

 This week has been a very good week. Couple of days ago we had a great lesson with John and Audrey. He said that earlier that day that he talked to the bishop (because they are good friends) and they had a long conversation. The bishop asked when he is going to get baptized and he told him October 20th! We were so thrilled to hear that! We had prayed about how to ask him about a baptism date because we knew we didn't want to push it because he had to make that decision on his own. We didn't have to ask him about it he just told us! I love when people are truly prepared. It is so awesome. So, John is getting baptized on the 20th and has asked that Sister Miller and I say the opening and closing prayers. He has already picked most of the people to be involved in the program. I am so blessed to be a part of all of this. Sisters have been in and out of this area wondering when he would meet with missionaries. I have been blessed. He is so wonderful. The Spirit is so wonderful. I love how it works. The gospel just makes sense. You see the light clicked in people when all the pieces of their life puzzles start coming together. The answers to their questions for so long are being answered and it feels so good. We get so excited to see them every week. We get to see them tonight and we will be watching the documentary, Between Heaven and Earth. I love that documentary. If you haven't seen it, go to you tube and type it in. You can watch it.

Also this past week we were able to meet with this cute 14 year old girl named Jessica. She grew up in a Jewish family but they don't practice. She wants to believe in something and having an atheist view right now doesn't feel right to her. We taught her about the restoration and she said that she would love to come to church. I feel that the younger kids have a special spirit about them. A lot of pioneers of their families of finding the truth. I told her that she was like Joseph Smith who wanted to know some answers and that by praying she would find those answers. She prayed with us and it was a perfect prayer. She is amazing and I'm excited to teach her more.

I apologize if this whole email is non-sensical. I have a sinus infection I think. I have been getting sick and I feel terrible right now. It was hard to sleep last night because I couldn't breathe. I hope to get medicine for it soon. Mom, I think I am a talker as well so when we see each other it should be pretty funny. I have thought a lot about home this week. I had a terrible dream a couple of nights ago about being caught in a tornado and for some reason I was in a less active's home but I didn't want to stay there. I knew we wouldn't be safe. I was close to our home in the dream. I got everyone to get in a car to drive to your house. I knew we would be safe there. It was an interesting dream because I have had some "tornados" as of lately and it is interesting because my first reaction was I wanted to be home. Home is safe and is love. I was longing for that. Don't get me wrong, I love it here a lot, but just with some recent drama out of my control I wished to be with people that I love. Ha. All is well now. The most important thing is that I know that my Heavenly Father loves me and my Savior loves me. The Atonement is real. I love and am so blessed to know that. I was able to talk to a recent convert yesterday at the VC that I gave a tour to before he was baptized. His name is Phil. It is so fun to talk to him because his life has changed so much and he is so happy. It is such a testimony builder to me.The Atonement works for everybody if they allow it. The Savior loves all of us so much. This work is true. I love all of you so much. I miss you a lot. Be safe and be happy. Jesus Christ loves you...always remember that.

Love,

Sister Lewis

 

Yes I deserve the reprimand about the length of the letters. I find that I don't have a lot of time so they are short AND I have a very poor memory so I can't remember my past week. I will try and be better.

Last night at the VC I met a family that had 7 children all under the age of 11. The father was from a family of 11 and the mother was from a family of 10. The father's parents also adopted 10 Russian children as well. Get this also, his parents got married at 28 and had the 11 within 15 years...no twins. What the?? I was in awe. It was fun to talk to them. I love the visitor center. Had a guy come in yesterday that had a ton of questions about mormons because of the election going on. He is Catholic and wondered how our faiths differed. He probably would have stayed forever if his little son wasn't wanting to go. I told him to come back and invited him to meet with missionaries. He was such a nice guy. It is so cool to see how whats going on in the world is bringing Heavenly Father's children closer to Him. I love it.

Yesterday before I went to the VC was very cool as well. We went to go see a lady that we knocked on many a time. She talked to missionaries like a year ago but no contact since. We showed up and her husband was pulling out to go to work. He got out of the car and went in to get his wife. So we got to go in. Miracle. She was so nice. We sat in her office and she told us about her country Liberia and her life story. It was incredible and sad but also good. We talked about God and Jesus Christ and how important they are in our lives. We talked about church and she said that she would try to come with her family. She is a very educated woman. She lives in the most beautiful home. She gave us a tour after we chatted and told us to come back and cook with her. It was so fun. What is also cool is that morning during my studies I randomly read an article in the latest Ensign about the Book of Mormon for our day. It talks about the war chapters and everything. It was a good article. But what was cool is that our conversation with Gbomai (pronounced Bo-Ma) she asked about war and why there is war. I told her that in the Book of Mormon there are many instances of war and throughout history that has been the case and I used what I had learned earlier in the morning with her. I love how the Spirit works. Later yesterday we also met the nicest people in the world. The wife is a less active but I didn't realize it until at the end of our conversation. We had just gone over there because we received a referral to give a dvd to this family. The husband is not a member and the wife doesn't have a testimony at all but they LOVE the missionaries. We were there forever and they just chatted with us. They just got back from Utah and going to the Shakespear festival. They saw all the shows that you did. They gave us homemade peach butter and they were the most delightful people. They offered to take us to tour DC on our P-day. I told them that you were coming to town in November and they said that they would love to meet you. Their son is an art docent at the national cathedral so he said that he'd give us a tour. A lot of people would love to meet you two. It will be fun.

We are still meeting with John. We had a wonderful lesson on Tues and we have a lesson for tonight. He already knows pretty much everything so it is just answering some concerns. On Tues we talked about the Word of Wisdom. He said that Christ's name is Wisdom so it is the Word of Wisdom. Yep. He is so good. We read from D&C 89. He took it and just read. It was so cool to see how the Spirit taught him. We didn't really say much and then suddenly he smiled and said that he has never heard the Word of Wisdom put so positively. He thought it was just a negative obedience thing but he LOVED what it really was saying. I love the scriptures. They are so true. They are far more powerful than anything else.  I loved that we turned to the scriptures. Tonight we will be talking about the Priesthood. I'm excited. I love that couple so much. I told them that I want to travel with them because they are so awesome. You will have to meet them for sure too.

Well I need to go. Time is far up. I hope the length of this letter was sufficient. I love this work. It is true. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't. Jesus Christ is our Savior. What a blessing! Tell Todd happy birthday today and tell all the other birthdays coming up or past that I send my love! I love you all so much!!!

Love,
Sister Lewis

 

Background:  Today is Janell’s birthday, and she is commenting on a fruit basket her Mom had delivered, and then she commented on a funny birthday card she sent Jodee that had a bunch of monkeys on it....cute card!  We hope you enjoy her latest “miracles”.  Val

 

Wow that was an eventful trip. First thing before I forget, I need an absentee ballot so I can vote. I am a Utah resident so is there any way you can get one for me?

Second, THANK YOU for the gift! I loved it!!!! So delicious! You are the best! Tell Jodee that I know I didn't sign my name because there were too many monkeys that I couldn't fit my name on it. She can write my name on it if she can find a spot.

This birthday has been great. Sister Miller and I went down to the National Mall and went running around the monuments. It was so beautiful. I love this country. It is my favorite part of DC to go to the Jefferson monument. It is so peaceful there. The Spirit is so strong there. After we went down there we went to the Cheesecake factory...so thank you! It was fun. I still have to go home and get ready for the day but it has been a wonderful day. I have a feeling the best is yet to come because...miracle of the week...Sunday we were at church and I spoke. I don't think the talk was very good but I just prayed that people felt the Spirit. Pretty sure everyone in the ward was sleeping. BUT after Sunday School John came up to me. Now, John is the husband of our recent convert, Audrey. She is so incredible and so is he. She started investigating the church about a year ago and got baptized in March. He comes to church with her every Sunday but doesn't really seem interested at all. On Sunday he came up to me and took me to the corner of the room. He told me quietly that he wanted to know if we would come over and teach him "mormonism 101". He said that he didn't want anyone to know. I was SO excited inside but I played it super calm and told him "sure thing". This is HUGE! I been thinking that I was going to teach him ever since I got here in Olney but I didn't know how it was going to happen. Well, tonight is our first meeting. I will let you know how it goes. I'm so happy!!!

I have seen many miracles this past week. We met a girl at another recent convert's house (Sakina is the RC and Crystal is her friend). This girl is 17 years old and she ended up sitting with us and opening up to us. She isn't really happy in life and feels like something is missing. We told her what it was. We told her to pray. We saw her the next night at a YW activity and she loved it! She is so cute. She is ready to hear the gospel. I love it!

I can't wait to go on a road trip with Min. That will be fun. I have a list of people that we will go visit when you are here. I have had so many people offer their house for you stay but I said that you already have everything booked. You will love these people. They are so amazing! I love this gospel so much. I love these people that I get to meet. I love seeing the blessings take place in the life of others. Heavenly Father sure loves His children. I love my Savior. What a blessing we have to know all of this. Keep me updated with all the miracles in your life. LOVE YOU!

Sister Lewis

 

Background:  Tomorrow (9/13/12) is Janell’s & Jodee’s birthday...they’re 30.  As instructed below, you can watch LDS general conference on KBYU TV, Saturday and Sunday, October 6th & 7th at 9:00 am and 1:00 pm each day.  The whole world would be better if everyone watched and applied the instruction given at these meetings!   Val

This last week was a long week it seemed. It was good but just seemed long. Today we had a mission wide Sports Day. My companion is a sports girl so she was all decked out. She played college ball before she came out on her mission so she was lovin today. She put eye black under my eyes so I was hard core! I looked so tough but of course didn't play tough. It was so fun though. I will have to get copies of the pics from others to send to you. Our team took the championship so that is always fun. I didn't play the last game because one of the sisters got smacked in the face with a soccer ball. I took her to get ice and make sure she didn't pass out. Yes, I was the team mom. People joked about it because I am so old:) Oh, it's lovely.

Mom, I heard that you talked to Sister Dougall. She is excited to meet you.

Monday night we had the best dinner appointment with the Olsens. Oh I love them SO much. She made me a cake and they sang happy birthday. It is weird that I am so old. I was having a hard time with knowing that I'm getting old but I think I am ok now. It is just weird.

I don't think I have anything fun and exciting to report. My brain is fried. The weather is fine. It has been raining a lot but it is still very hot. Autumn is coming soon and so that will be nice. We will be preparing soon for Festival of Lights. There is a lot that will go into it so we have to start now as trainers at the VC. I don't know if I will get released from that calling after this transfer or not but there is work to be done until then.

I love you all so much. This work is true. I am SO excited for Conference coming. Invite people to listen to it. They will love it. Tell my visiting teachers that I thank them for their letters. I'm not very good at sending letters so if I don't get a chance, tell them that it means a lot to me. 

I love you all. Talk to you soon!

-Sister Lewis

HELLO!

Well right now you are having so much fun in Utah I bet. I can't wait to hear about it!
This week has been busy. We had a car wash last Saturday. At first no one was coming. It was super cloudy so we thought no one would end up coming. I didn't just want to stand around and hold up signs. It wasn't my thing. So I decided to go with Sister Lawrence down the street and tell people about it. We talked to a few people. It was nice to just walk and feel like we were accomplishing something. When we got back to the chapel cars started to come. The spanish sisters in our district were so cute and set up a little table in the foyer of the church that had a picture of Jesus and a whole lot of stuff...and lemonade. That tactic worked because while people were getting their car washed they came inside and had lemonade. I was able to do the "tour" part and talk to people. That is my favorite of course. There was a girl who came and she asked after we had talked if she could come to our service sometimes. I said, "of course!" I was so happy! This girl works down the road from the church at the local theater. Of course we hit it off because she is in theater. The cool miracle of it all was that she actually came to church the next day! Oh it was so cool! I love how Heavenly Father is so aware of all of His children. The other cool thing that happened was that one of the guys we talked to down the street came with his car. That was fun to see that he came. It was a good day.

On another note, I have learned more on my mission how much Satan is real. Sunday night we had a miracle in a way, but not a miracle that we all like to hear. We were checking on people in our area and I had a feeling to go to the other side of our area which is about 20-25 min away and check on a former investigator. It was weird because we had only 25 min left before we had to stop proselyting. We were driving there and I just thought that maybe I was not doing the right thing since it was so far away. We got there at 8:29 which is a min before we are to stop. We saw someone home and it was the recent convert that had been out of town. We were so excited to see him. We were also excited because it is his sister that we want to teach. He told us to come inside and we just talked about his trip and everything. I then said that I was so excited that he would get to come to church so that we would know more people. He then said that he has decided that he is done with church and he won't be going anymore. His whole countenance changed. It was so awful. He did not seem happy. We were in silence for a little bit. We asked him why and he just said that he made up his decision. I wanted to cry. It was so sad to see him reject his Heavenly Father. I know he doesn't really realize that is what he is doing but that is exactly what he is doing. I told him that this decision is not permanent and that Heavenly Father will always be there for him. Heavenly Father knew that His son was struggling at that moment in time and that His missionaries were on the other side of their area but needed to go talk to him. We didn't change his mind but we were able to call his closest friends after we left. It was a miracle in a very sad way. It was a very hard night but a testimony of how much our Father loves us. No matter what.

I love this gospel. I am so grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ. He can heal us and will if we let Him.
I love you all so much. I loved my package by the way! Best gift ever! Thank you thank you so much! I love you all so much! Talk to you soon!

Sister Lewis

This past week has been filled with service. I love doing service. It seems like we get a lot of it here in this ward. The people in this ward are so nice. I do love the ward. Me and Sister Lawrence thought of an idea for an activity here. Well it was by the Spirit actually but it will be so cool.  There is a young woman who is a recent convert and she is a dancer. Sister Lawrence knows how to hula and the idea of having a Polynesian night came to mind. We are trying to find a time to have a night with the young woman where they can invite their non-member friends and we can all learn how to hula! The only problem is that Sister Lawrence may not be here in the next transfer but we will figure it out. It should be way fun. This Saturday we are having a free car wash at the church which is another activity that we are hoping that will bring people. I don't know how it will turn out but it should be fun. We are trying to think of different ways of finding people to teach. I love to have fun while doing it so Heavenly Father is helping out so we can do both!

Sunday was the "Why I Believe" program at the Visitor Center. It was so good. Tasha and Perla performed. They are so awesome and talented. I love having talented friends. The speaker was the new mission president and his wife from the DC South mission. It was SO good. That president sure is amazing. The Spirit was so strong.

It seems like my companion and I have been serving at the VC a lot lately. I love the VC. I have the chance to call people. I talked to the lady that got baptized and she was talking about how she plans on going through the temple in a year. She wants me to be there. It would be in the Reno temple. I told her that I'd be there. Wow, this is what it is all about. I love the gospel and how it changes lives. It is so true.

Transfers are next week so I will be updating you with maybe a new companion and/or a new area. I love where I'm serving now but I don't know what the Lord wants for me. I gotta go. LOVE YOU and MISS YOU!

Sister Lewis

Background:  The first part of the letter Janell is talking about the trip her Mom and I are taking to pick her up in DC in November. – Val

Well I didn't really get a information letter about everything going on but it was good to get the itinerary. M Street is really fun. There are a lot of shops and it is right by Georgetown University. I talked with Tasha and Perla (saw them last night at Night of Music and Inspiration that I sang in) and they said that we can come to Thanksgiving at their house. It is a while away so not too sure if that is a sure one but we have about 3 other options as well for Thanksgiving if needed. People are so nice. That is so exciting that Jennifer Gale is getting married. I didn't know! Who is she marrying? Tell her that I am so excited for her! So fun. I would love to see Abrin in his show but don't know how I'd get there. You already set the airline flights right? No way we could stop in Utah for a couple of days? By the way, who will be taking care of Jodee while you come? Is she going to be ok for that long? If we need, you can make the trip shorter. I just want it all to work out well. I want both you and dad to come for sure but if it will be hard for Jodee for one reason or another I'm ok with changing things around. We don't need to stay as long if you don't want. We can meet everyone faster. Sorry, enough about all of that. It is still a long ways away so we won't even think about it.
So this week has been good. I love my companion. She is so fun. I haven't been feeling very good lately but maybe it's just my age kickin in:) Sometimes I feel so old. I love the ward I am serving in. There is a girl named Amber Shaw that is a return missionary in the ward who is awesome. She loves to do missionary work and so that is fun. We had a bonfire at her house on Sunday and she brought a less active member along. It was good to talk to him. He wants to come back to church. It was really fun. The members in this ward are great. I love hearing all of the conversion stories from the members. They are pretty awesome. I feel like we are working a lot with less active members right now. We don't have too many investigators really interested but we are searching.

 

Last night was Night of Music and Inspiration. I sang with Sister Lawrence and Sister Holt. They did so good. We sang "Be Still My Soul". It was a good night. I sure do love the VC. I am so blessed.
I wish I had more stories to tell. By p-day I forget everything that has happened. Time is so weird on a mission. Today we had an activity with our zone. We played minute to win it. Abrin would have LOVED it! I have some fun ideas now so we can all play when I get back.

I wish I had more stories to tell. Maybe next week I will have so many you won't even know what to do with them all.   

I love this work. I love my Savior. This is the true church of Jesus Christ. He is always there for us. Read the Book of Mormon. Pray. Go to church. Serve. Do all these things and I promise you will be happy. It is the remedy. I love this gospel!

I love all of you so much. Keep me updated with everything! LOVE YOU!

Sister Lewis

 

Background:  Sorry for getting behind...I got a new computer, and am just catching up.  Marie is our granddaughter...Diane’s daughter.  Val

 Sounds like it has been busy as always. Tell Marie congrats! Make sure that I receive a wedding announcement when the time comes. When exactly is she getting married and in what temple? I want to know all the details. That is so fun and also so weird. I guess my nieces and nephews are growing up. Tell Mindy I want info from her. How is being home? What does she love about it and what is hard?

I'm so happy that dad is playing baseball again. I didn't want him to have to give that up. I wish I could have been there at the game. I will plan on watching him play next year so tell him to get ready for that.

Did you get my package thing that I sent? It is just a bunch of stuff from the mission that takes up room. I just wanted to clean up some things. If you have a book that you are keeping things in then you are welcome to put it in the book. There are a couple of cd's that you can listen to. They are from programs that we have had at the VC. I also sent Dobbie a card. Did she get it? I wanted to write down a recipe for "healthy cookies" that we had at a member's house the other night but I forgot to write it. I know that she would love to make them and give them to her class. It is:

3 bananas (mushed up)

2 cups of oatmeal
1/3 cup unsweetend applesauce
1/4 cup peanut butter
coconut (if desired)
1/3 cup crainsins or chocolate chips (I used chocolate chips but they would be more healthy with craisins)
1 tsp vanilla (I forgot to put this in and it still turned out fine)

Mash up the bananas and then add the rest of the ingredients. Let it sit for 20 min and then put them on a non stick pan and bake at 375 for 10 min (time and temp will vary). Let them cool. You can freeze them if you want. I thought they were so good and cool that they were so healthy. Maybe it could be a fun activity for her to do. Have her let me know how they turned out and who she gave them to. You can add cocoa powder in the mix but I don't think it is needed.

Mom, I have a request of you if you can, please send a copy of the letter Todd wrote to Lexi that dad read at her funeral. There are some less active members in the ward that just lost their 4 year old daughter and I mentioned Todd's letter to them. It would be a great way to remind them of the plan of salvation. I don't think the wife is a member either so it would be nice for them to remember Heavenly Father's plan. Thank you.

This week has been busy and a LOT has happened. We don't have many new investigators. We have a guy that wants to bible bash. He said that we were deceived but said it in a very nice way. I got so sad because he pretty much insulted the Book of Mormon, which I love, and by so doing I got really sad. The whole book testifies of the Savior, the very person that he says that he follows. I didn't say much to him by the end of the lesson because he just kept talking and talking. We finally left and I was just so sad. I wasn't angry at all. I then was pondering in the car about the importance of the Book of Mormon. We decided that we didn't want to experience what we just had experienced again so we decided to call himi and tell him that if we come over again that we will only read from the Book of Mormon. I just knew that is what we needed to do with him. There is nothing he will listen to and maybe if we suggested only reading from the book he insulted, then he wouldn't want us to come back over. That is what we kind of wanted. So I called him and told him that we will only read from the Book of Mormon next time we come over. He agreed and asked what chapter he needs to read so that he can write down questions. I was shocked. We meet with him Saturday. I don't know how it will go but all I know is that we will only read from the Book of Mormon. Hopefully it will go well.

Also last week I met the coolest kid ever. He totally reminded me of Caleb. We talked to him and ended up finding out that he is into theatre and he sang some songs to us from Suessical the musical. I loved it! I told him that I saw that show before I came on a mission. We just connected real fast. We haven't been able to get a hold of him but we hope to soon. He just graduated high school and leaves for college in a couple of weeks. He has such a nice spirit about him and has a really sweet voice. I love that he was placed in our path that day.

On Sunday we had a guy show up for church that we didn't expect to show up. He is originally from Africa and he is the nicest man. We haven't been able to see him this week because he is in the middle of finals for school but we hope to see him and teach him. His name is Haptom. He bows his head everytime we shake his hand. He is so nice.

Yesterday Sister Liddiard (a missionary that went home a few transfers ago) came into town. It was so fun to see her. I got a little sad because it was weird not having her as a missionary. It is so different being a missionary. It is a different feel. She started talking about being home and how she hates it. She talked about how everyone who was on the mission has changed a little bit. It made me feel like I will not like being home. The mission is so hard but it is so good in so many ways. It was weird to hear her talking about dating and things to that nature. It didn't make me look forward to that at all. I know much prayer is the only thing that will get me through post mission life. But I don't have to think about that right now.

I am excited that you got the tickets to come. It sounds like we will be her for a while. I'm not too thrilled with that because that is a super long time and I don't know what we will do for that long of a time especially since I will still be a missionary. Was it the cheapest? I guess traveling on a Wed would be the cheapest. I guess we will do a ton of sight seeing. There is a lot to see so that is what will probably happen.

I love you all so much. Thank you for everything you do for me. Keep me updated with all the new developments in the life of the Lewis'. Just to let you know p-day next week will be on Wed and the week after will be on Thurs. It will probably bounce back and forth for a while so just try to get your letters written by Tues. I am so excited that you get to go to Cedar City. That will be SO fun! Can't wait to hear about it!

Love you all so much! Talk to you later!

-Sister Lewis

 

Hello!

Here on the mission is has been very busy. I am trying to learn a new area. I am falling in love with the ward. They are SO great. We had a mother and her son randomly show up to church on Sunday. I LOVE when that happens. They had a great time.  In Sunday school they went over Alma 32 which was awesome. I could tell that Jacquline had lots of questions but liked it. Her son Ryan went to the young men's class and I saw kids getting his phone number after church. Also on Sunday it was busy because me and Sis Lawrence had to teach in sharing time in primary. It was so fun! We taught about honesty and did a little skit the kids loved it. I only got to do it for junior primary because I had to go into the Young men, young women meeting and tell my conversion story. They had 3 other people in the ward do the same. I was all over the place on Sunday. We didn't get to go to RS to sit with Jacquline but it was probably for the best. She got to sit with members and that is the best. We talked to her afterward and she said that she learned a lot but she didn't really want to meet with us. She seemed hesitant. If nothing else, it was a good experience for them both. We hope to teach them soon though. That would be awesome!

We met with a man this past Monday and he is very into the Bible. He LOVES the word. We had a great talk and he wrote down all of his questions. He wants evidence. It will be a good experience for me because it will help me study better. I don't know if he is really ready but he is super nice and I'm sure we will have a lot of good conversations. Hopefully something will prick his heart and so he can know of the truth of it all.

Ah, the gospel is so true. I find that out more and more everyday. It is the best thing ever. I want to make a count down till general conference. I LOVE conference. I have been reading last conference addresses and it makes me more excited for the one coming up. We are so blessed.

I got an email from Kim. I am so excited that she is my visiting teacher and she is already SO good. I wish all could be as good as her. Tell her that I am grateful for her testimony and her diligence in serving. What an example she is. I don't have a lot of time to write her so will you let her know? Thanks!

Well, keep me updated with everything. I love you all so much. This work is true! MISS YOU!
-Sister Lewis

It sounds like it has been busy as always. It has been equally busy here. Today are transfers and I'm back with my baby, Sister Lawrence. Poor girl has to be with me again. I guess I have a lot more to learn from her so that will be good. It should be way fun! I will serve in Olney, MD. Could be my last area, who knows?

Well Saturday was an interesting day. I was on an exchange with the sisters from my old area, DC 2nd. We had a great time. It was fun being back in my old area but it was nice because I realized that I wasn't supposed to be there anymore. I had my time and it is now gone. I was glad to feel that. I always thought I'd want to go back but now I not tare. All is well. Anyway, after the exchange we had shift at the VC. The VC called me right before and said that I had a visitor. I didn't know who it could be. I thought it was weird cause they wouldn't tell me. I walked in the VC and I first see Kevin's face. I thought it looked like him but it wasn't processing very fast. I knew it couldn't be him because they were in Russia. I then looked over and saw Diane's face. I said, "What??" Then I went over and gave her a HUGE hug! I was so happy to see her! I then asked where Mindy was and they said that she was teaching. Come to find out, of course, 5 min after they got to the VC, Russian ladies came in and Mindy was teaching them the gospel. Oh, it was SO awesome! I got to go by her and watch her teach. They wanted a Book of Mormon in Russian. I was in heaven! What is so weird about it all is that I had imagined this before my mission of how I'd see Mindy maybe and teach with her. I thought for sure it wouldn't happen, but Heavenly Father is oh so good. I also got to bear my testimony to them and Mindy did the same in Russian. Oh she looks so beautiful. I love them all so much. I love my family SOOOOO much. You really are all the best ever.

The next day they were at church in Laurel with me. A sister told them where I was serving and the address of the church. It was so fun to have them at church. I didn't want to tell too many people that they were related, but I got to tell the very special people that I love who they were and introduced them. That was so fun. Diane took pictures. That night I saw them again at the VC for the "Why I Believe" program. I sang in it so they got to come and listen. It was so awesome to look up and see them as I was singing. Tasha and Perla also got to come! It was such a special night. I felt a little guilty that I was so happy. I had so many people that I loved there. A guy I gave a tour to about a month ago got baptized and he bore his testimony. And I also got to see people from my previous areas...awesome night!

I am so blessed. I'm so grateful for this mission and for everything I get to experience. I'm so grateful for such a wonderful family and amazing friends.

Yesterday we had our last District meeting of the transfer and our companions had to say what Disney character they feel that their companions are most like and what they learned most from their companions. I had 2 companions so I am the Disney characters, Dutchess (from Aristocats) and Dori (from Finding Nemo. That is because aparently I talk, talk, talk and forget everything). So funny. Companions are so funny.

I will miss Laurel. I sure do love the people there. The people are all so nice. I love the ward and I will miss them all. I'm excited to meet the Olney ward. I hear they are awesome! I love and miss you all so much. Tell Diane and Kevin and Mindy that I love them and I am SO grateful that I saw them. It was truly a tender mercy for me.

Keep me updated with everything! LOVE YOU!

Sister Lewis