Jauary 18, 2016

January 18, 2016

A local Mainer told us this joke:
Did you know the 'toothbrush' was invented in Maine? If it were
invented anywhere else it would be called a 'teethbrush '.

It's so true....

First things first:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ON SATURDAY DAD!!!
You are the best father in the WHOLE WORLD!!!

Fun fact: the ocean is still awesome even when it's dumping snow and
27 degrees. :)

👍🏼

Have a great week!!!
I LOVE YOU ALL!!

January 11, 2016

January 11, 2016

Fun fact: Mainers call going 'up north', 'down east'. So up is down
and north is east. Directions go something like this: "you wanna head
down east past the big tree with the cah, it's in the sticks a bit,
it's the one with the cah pahked in the doh yahd." THIS LITERALLY
HAPPENED.
(New England translation: 'Doh yahd' is actually door yard, which is
actually a garage.)
I love the New England (Maine) way of speaking, it makes me so happy :)

Crazy miracle of the week:
We have an investigator named Bruce! Bruce is so sweet and kind. He
has a lot of health problems, but he is so happy! So we have been
teaching Bruce a lot, and he has a baptismal date for February 13th!
He is so excited, and he understands the gospel so well.
One day after our lesson, Bruce invites us to come with him to his
other church. He has come multiple times to ours, and we felt like it
could be a really good to go with him. So we agreed! So, we went with
him that evening to his church, called 'Transform Ministries'
and thePastor was very kind! There was about 3 other people there, so we
doubled their congregation. It was very lively and energetic. We
answered questions and got involved, and it was a great sermon! At the
end everyone was feeling very spiritual, so we stood up to pray. He
turned on some music, and everyone starts swaying and praying. Out of
the corner of my eye, I see Sister Monjars hands shaking a little bit,
and I looked at her and she gave me big-eyed look like 'somethings
about to go down'. Pastor Kyle then invited anyone that wanted to say
something, to go ahead and say it. Well, Sister Monjar pounced on
that! She bore such a firm and powerful witness of the restored
gospel, the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith, and how Truth is restored on
this earth. She then invited everyone to learn! Pastor Kyle said "on
behalf of my congregation, we accept your invitation."
(The congregation was the Pastor, Pastors wife, Bruce and another lady)
So we invited them to come to our church...
And They did!!
Pastors Kyle and Bruce came to church yesterday! His wife was sick,
and the other lady didn't show up.
It was such an awesome experience, Pastor Kyle got along great with
our bishop, and he really like church. He even stayed all three hours!

January 4, 2016

January 4, 2016

Fact: in the 1800's there was a law that the slaves could only eat
lobster 3 times a week. It was actually considered a poor mans meal!
Now that it is exported all over the world it is much more expensive
and in high demand.

I am now in the Saco Maine area, but I live in a precious little town
called Biddeford. Biddeford is the Maine version of Vegas. Lots of
casinos and bars and clubs everywhere! The only difference is that
it's not 125 degrees, more like -25 degrees.
I am also in a TRIO! I have 2 companions: Sister Allen and Sister
Monjar. They are so fantastic!
The people here are very kind! It's a New England thing to just roam
around the streets, which is very great for the work of salvation! We
meet a lot of great people every day.
There is a distinct feeling of spiritual preparedness here. The people
are open to stopping and talking to us, we usually know their life
story within the first five minutes, and then the spirit kicks in and
we are prompted to introduce different aspects of the gospel that can
help them.

A 'journal-worthy' experience happened the other night! We stopped to
talk to 3 guys on the street, we started to introduce the Christmas
video to them asking if they wanted to watch it, and one man said "hey
I can't pass up seeing a movie with two hot chicks!" My first thought
was 'what the heck!?" And then there was like .2 seconds of "well...
Thank you sir! Not the compliment I was going for, but I will take
it." And then the thought of "we should probably not be here right
now..."
Turns out they were harmless, a bit drunk, but nothing three sisters
can't handle!

We had the opportunity to go and contact a potential investigator
named Cecile. She was so kind when we first met her. When we got to
her home she was so gracious and happy. She welcomed us in and we sat
down, ready with the restoration. When we began talking she asked if
she could share her religion and what she believes. We knew that we
needed to sit and listen, she needed someone to talk too. Cecile has 2
parakeet birds that live in the living room, and it seemed the more we
talked the louder they chirped and tweeted! At points it was hard to
focus. But the lesson continued. After a while we began discussing
with her things that we believe and things we have in common. Sister
Monjar then diligently followed a spiritual prompting to share 1 Nephi
11: 14-21 about when the angel came to Nephi in a vision and he saw
Mary the mother of Jesus. Right at the moment she began to read from
the Book of Mormon, the birds that were so loud and distracting,
stopped. They were silent. The only thing that filled the room was the
spirit of the Lord testifying to all of us that the things Sis. Monjar
was reading was true. They were quiet the entire time she read the
passages, and then began again when the discussion went on. It was
beautiful and awe inspiring. A small moment in time that solidifies
the testimonies in our hearts, that the Lord truly is mindful. And
that the Book of Mormon is the word of God!

 

I hope that with the new year, we can each make a goal to read the
Book of Mormon every day. It is SO IMPORTANT. I promise you that if
you do, this year will be a great one. You can never go wrong when you
are on the Lords side.

Love you all!!!

Sister Lewis

MAINE ❤️❤️❤️

December 28, 2015

December 28, 2015

Fact: what Utahns call 'white elephant' new englanders call a 'Yankee
swap'. Yankee swaps are a lot less brutal than white elephant gift
exchanges, at least as far as I have experienced.

This week was a lot different than I thought I would be experiencing
this time of year.
It started off with some really far out experiences like: inviting a
person to learn more about Jesus Christ, and then him interrupting us
to confess that he was a 'raging heroine addict' and that he needed a
'fixing'. We were also followed by a crazy man who was laughing
hysterically and shouting word that I am pretty sure we're not
English.
It was all down hill from there.
  My sweet companion, bless her heart, was inflicted with much pain as
she endured kidney stones. (She gave me permission to tell you.) we
ended up in the ER for a good chunk of Wednesday evening as they tried
to find ways to help her. To no avail, she was left to her own
devices. On Christmas Eve we went to a members home and she curled up
on their couch and I helped with the Christmas festivities. We had an
AMAZING time! It was so much fun getting to know them better and to be
in their spirit-filled home. The next day was Christmas! Shout out to
my awesome family!! It was so awesome to talk to you and see your
gorgeous faces!!!! We spent the day with the AMAZING Weiss family! It
was so comforting to be with people like them, family away from
family, on such a sacred holiday. I feel absolutely blessed that I was
able to be with them and for everything they did for us to help us
have a memorable Christmas. :)
We went to our bishops home after the Weiss's and played games.
Glorious games!! It feels like it's been a million years since I have
played, it was so fun!
The things that I have learned from this week will carry me through my
mission, and through my life. The people in this area, and especially
this Ward, have a special place in my heart.

There is nothing big and glamorous about a mission. They aren't filled
with extravagant experiences, orchestras don't play in the background
as you leave your apartment in the morning. Fireworks don't go off
when something amazing happens.
The life altering, soul changing, experiences often come in quiet,
sentimental experiences. Like sitting by a fire and talking about
things of the spirit with people that you love. Long hugs. Sentimental
scripture sharing. Bearing testimony over the phone.

I feel so blessed to have had this opportunity in concord (getting
transferred tomorrow) but I know that I was here for a reason, I met
people I needed to meet, I learned things about myself that I would
have only learned here.

I love this mission!!

Sister Lewis