Finally able to write!

I'm finally getting a chance to write--wow it's been busy here.  I think I say that every time I post!  I guess that is just missionary life!
Last week was another great transfer week!  We welcomed 10 new missionaries on Tuesday afternoon- 7 sisters and 3 elders.  It's always so fun to see them come through those doors at the airport!  Excited and exhausted from getting up so early at the MTC to get here.  I had to laugh because as we were doing our training that afternoon I could see their heads starting to nod, so we invited them to stand whenever they needed to to be able to stay awake.  Most of the time on Tuesday afternoon is orientation stuff--learning about housing, cars, medical, etc.  We have learned not to do any 'doctrinal' or spiritual training that day because they are just too tired to even comprehend it.  So we do this orientation and then have our yummy dinner and then the assistants come and do some fun things with them--telling them about the different zone areas and letting them guess where they think their first assignment will be.  We really are done by 8:00 pm so we can get them to bed early!  And they love that!
Wednesday after our training in the morning they all met their new trainers and were off to their areas.  I love watching them all head out--they are so excited to now really be 'in the field'!  It's amazing to watch the faith of these missionaries as they come out.  I love it.
Wednesday evening we had to unexpectedly drive to Lethbridge to deal with some challenges there, so we stayed down and met up with all the  missionaries for transfers at the stake centre there.  Then we drove back to Calgary to take our departing missionaries to the temple.
Our temple session is always so nice with them.  It really is a tender time to be with them in the temple as they reflect on the service they've given, and contemplate going home.  And of course after the temple we had a delicious dinner with them.
Friday morning we took them all to the airport and hugged them good-bye!  It really is such a revolving door--we are sad to see these ones we have grown to love leave us, but yet we are excited to greet a whole new group!
Saturday we were able to catch up on a bunch of things and prepare for our MLC which was today!  And we actually took a little date night on Saturday night and went to dinner and relaxed.  It felt good-but we still had so much to do that we were both a little anxious!  But we sure slept good on Saturday night!
Sunday we were able to go to the ward where we live.  This is only about the 5th time in the 20 months we've been out that we've gone there.  And Sunday night we spoke at a city wide YSA Fireside in Calgary.  It was great to see all of these young single adults--one of them was Mike's mission companion from his mission in Phoenix--so it's fun to catch up with him, and one of them was one of our returned missionaries now living here in Calgary.
On Monday we had our usual office meeting with our couples serving in the office. They are so wonderful, and we are getting nervous because we are losing them and haven't found replacements yet!  Elder and Sister Peppinger leave March 17, and the Thorleys leave at the end of May.  We have found a brother to come in and do finances, but we are praying to find two senior couples!
Monday we drove to Lethbridge to stay for the week.  We began interviews with the Lethbridge East zone on Tuesday and today we had our MLC.  We love MLC!  Today so many missionaries did trainings that were so great.  We had trainings on the Doctrine of Christ, on companion exchanges, and How to Introduce the Book of Mormon.  We are always so proud of these missionaries when they teach and train.  We love to hear their insights. Steve taught about being spiritually 'born', and how Christ becomes our 'spiritual father' because He gives us new life through repentance and baptism.  It was really great.   We also had training on how to teach the doctrine of Christ, and more specifically on repentance--not only how to teach it, but how to practice repentance in our own lives.  
MLC is just a wonderful meeting, but our hope is that the leaders can take what they have learned and be able to teach it and use it to help the rest of the missionaries in our mission.  That's the purpose of MLC--to take what is learned there and bless the whole mission with it.  These leaders are learning how to be leaders, and they are doing a good job!  This is great work, but it is work!  I know that the Lord directs it and He helps us in it.  There are times when I am so tired I wonder if I can go on, and yet He always strengthens me to be able to do what I need to.

Elders Moffit, Stringam &Assily (assistants) love to eat at Chick-fil-a at the airport before picking up the new missionaries.

Our new missionaries!

At the temple with departing missionaries.

Sending Elder Ajeman home to recover from his broken femur.

Dinner and then a selfie with Sisters Taylor and Lane!

Role playing at MLC

More role-plays at MLC

Doing a few little 'wake up' exercises at MLC before afternoon session!

Elders doing a few push-ups to wake up and get energized!

All the Sister Training Leaders at MLC.

All the zone leaders at MLC.

Rough week!

This past week has been a rough one!  It actually started out well-going to Zone Training Meetings, which are always awesome.  We were able to attend the Calgary North Zone's meeting, and it just invigorated us to once again hear these missionaries teach and train each other.  The future of the church is in good hands as these young adults grow to become the leaders.  They really are amazing.
Then on Wednesday we were headed to the Confederation Park Zone training meeting when we received a call that one of our elders in BC had broken his femur and they were waiting for the ambulance to take him to the hospital.  We arrived at the building for the zone training meeting, and when we received word that this break would require surgery and the insertion of a rod in his leg, we decided we needed to head to BC.  So we left the meeting and went back home to pack a couple of things and head out.  We arrived in BC about 8:00 p.m. thinking we would make it in time to see this elder before the surgery.  Well, we got there, and found him, and they kept putting his surgery off because more serious cases had come in.  Finally about midnight the surgeon came in and said he felt it was best to postpone surgery until the morning because he was tired, and he didn't feel good about performing surgery in that condition.  We agreed of course!  So, the poor elder had to wait until about 9:00 the next morning before going in.  His surgery went well, but he is still in the hospital recovering, and we are hopeful he will be out in 2-3 days.  After we got things squared away with him- with his companion, and the ward ready to look after him, we had to leave to get to Lethbridge for Steve's coordinating council meeting with Elder Evanson and all the stake presidents in the south of our mission.  We didn't know if we would even be able to get out of Cranbrook because the weather conditions were so poor, and roads had been closed due to accidents. BC has had a record year for snow--it is piled so high in that city on the sides of the roads, and on Wednesday night while we were there it snowed about another 10 inches.  But a sister who works in the transportation department phoned us and said that all accidents had been cleared, and if we left in 15 minutes we would be able to get out of Crowsnest Pass before they closed it.  So, we did!  And let me tell you, there were some horrendous driving conditions!  At one point we were on complete ice.  It was white knuckle driving, and I was glad it was Steve driving and not me.  But we made it to Lethbridge only about  30 minutes late.  That meeting ended about 9:30 and we headed back to Calgary and got home about 11:45p p.m.
Friday morning we had our meeting for our new trainers who will be training the new missionaries coming this Tuesday.  We have 10 new ones coming and are excited to get them here in our mission.
Saturday and Sunday we participated in the Calgary West Stake Conference with Elder Peter Meurs of the Seventy as the General Authority who came.  It was great to meet he and his wife.  He was just newly called last April--so they left their home in Australia and moved to SLC.  I have such admiration for these couples that just leave their homes to go serve the Lord wherever they are asked.
It was a great stake conference with a wonderful spirit there.  President Steele, the stake president, spoke about our need to be able to listen to the spirit, and to find time to be still and let the spirit speak to us so we can be guided.  He reminded us that the spirit always speaks the truth--so if we can learn to recognize it, we will always know what we need to do.  It was such a good talk, and reminded me that I need to find the ways to access the spirit more in my life.
I learn so much at stake conferences.  It really is a blessing to be in so many of them.
We are excited for transfer week this week coming up!  It's always a fun, busy week!

Calgary North Zone surrounding Elder Boss for his birthday- he is front left!

Sister Zimmerman blowing out a candle for her birthday at the New Trainers  Meeting.

Saying good-by to Sister Jakobi before she goes home to Germany.

True Canadian Winter!

Today I needed to go to Costco since I hadn't been there since before Christmas.  Steve thought I was crazy because it was -19 outside and snowing and the roads were bad.  But, I was going!
Well, I learned that the best day to go to Costco in Calgary is on a day just like this!  No one was there because of the weather I guess!  Easy to find a parking spot right up front--no lines- it was great!
Everyone has told us that this year has been a true Canadian winter.  And I believe it.  Last Sunday we had a chinook and temperatures soared to +14 (which is 58 fahrenheit), and this past weekend and today we have been at -15 to -19. (about -4 fahrenheit) Bitter cold!
We have also learned that they don't really worry about plowing the roads here either!  So you need to like driving on snowpacked roads.  I don't mind that really!  We have been getting quite a bit of snow the past few days--and our zone out in BC has been getting pounded with snow.  They had to cancel their zone training meeting for tomorrow because they can't let all the missionaries that need to drive in be on the roads.  They are hoping to hold it on Thursday.
You gotta love it!

This is how they plow the roads in Calgary-- they don't!

 

Crazily busy!

We have been so busy with zone conferences, interviews, and today an MLC, that I am just now sitting down to write about the last 10 days.  Last Monday we were able to go to BC to do their interviews that night, and the next day we held their zone conference.  It's kind of fun to go out and do their zone conference separate from all the others.  It's just a small group--but they are great, and we love being with them.  So, our zone conferences for this transfer are over, and we will complete all of the interviews by this Saturday afternoon--so they will all be done for the transfer.  We have come to know that this is how our life will be from here on out!
Wednesday we had the great blessing of watching a Worldwide Missionary Broadcast.  It was so cool!  To begin with they basically took us on a virtual tour of the Church Office Building and it ended up in a room with Elder Oaks, Elder Bednar, Elder Andersen, Bishop Waddell, Sister Oscarson, and Elder Brent Nielsen--all members of the missionary committee.  We then got to just 'sit in' on their council live!  It was an amazing experience.  They again reminded as (just as they did last year in their broadcast) that we are here to "Teach repentance and baptize converts".  And they discussed the importance of repentance in all of our lives. They told the missionaries that they can't teach repentance without practicing repentance in their own personal lives.  They also discussed the importance of living and teaching the Doctrine of Christ.  They also discussed topics such as: Helping investigators progress towards baptism, establishing the church, how to become a more persuasive teacher, and helping people keep commitments.  It was such a cool experience to just watch them have a council together.  Close to the end of the broadcast they announced a new change in the daily schedule of a missionary.  They are giving the missionaries more latitude to decide when they will have their companion study, language study, and do their 12 week program.  They can choose to do it in the afternoon, however their schedule works best.  Also, they moved planning from the nighttime to the morning--which that in and of itself is an inspired move!  To not be planning at night when they are so tired is awesome.  It is now done in the morning before 10:00 a.m. They can also come home and even be in bed by 9:30 if as a companionship they choose to, and get more sleep.  The brethren want the missionaries to become 'agents unto themselves' as stated in D & C 58, and to learn to make more decisions on their own, as they pray and ponder about it.  This will bless their lives as they go home as well.  I loved it.  And our missionaries loved it.  It inspired us!
Wednesday night while Steve went to his coordinating council meeting with Elder Spackman and all the stake presidents in Calgary, I had a young women's group come to the mission home for a little fireside.  I had two of our sisters, Sister Grange and Sister Williams, come teach them and answer questions.  It was a fun night with these young women.  They are so cute.
We had interviews on Thursday and Saturday, and on Friday we had a retrainers meeting with all of our newest missionaries (all 6) and their trainers.  We had a great meeting with them.
On Saturday afternoon Steve participated in the Confederation Park stake conference general priesthood meeting.  He was able to show pictures of families and others that have been baptized in our mission, and one family that has even been sealed in the temple.  He said it was great for them to see the successes that are happening in the Canada Calgary Mission, and to inspire them to just open their mouths and invite people to learn of Jesus Christ.
Sunday Steve spoke in the Woodbine ward, and right after that we drove up to Airdrie (which is about 35 minutes away) to participate in their 3rd hour meeting, and share some thoughts on missionary work.  That was really fun.
Monday we had our usual meeting with our couples serving in our office.  As we are losing Elder and Sister Peppinger on March 1 we are in a real bind because we don't have someone to replace them.  They have been fanstastic, and we will be so sad to see them go.  Elder and Sister Sefcik, who serve part time in the office, and live here in Calgary, are also supposed to be released, but they have agreed to stay on to help us out through this bind.  But, Monday afternoon Steve was able to meet with a brother that lives here in Calgary who wants to serve a church service mission, and he wants to come in and do what Elder Peppinger has been doing (our finances).  So, that is a HUGE blessing.  You just don't know how invaluable the office couples are.  They do so much work.
Calgary's weather is crazy!  On Sunday, as we had a Chinook here, it got up to 55!  Most of the snow melted, we weren't wearing coats, it was great!  Then yesterday it dropped right back down to -8, which is 17!  So, I put my warm winter coat back on today!
We had a great MLC today, with not only our zone leaders and sister trainer leaders, but we also invited our district leaders.  It was such a wonderful day--so filled with the spirit, and all of the trainings were wonderful.  We feel that everyone went away uplifted and edified and inspired to go do the work.  We had 62 missionaries there- about 1/3 of our mission.  Every leader in our mission attended--so as you can realize, they can have a lot of influence. ..for good or bad.  So, we tried to help them realize the vision of what they can do.  They are so awesome though--we just love all of our missionaries.
This is great work; but it is also very tiring.  Sometimes I wonder how I can make it through the day.  But as always, Heavenly Father renews my strength and energy.  He answers my prayers and gives me what I need, to do what needs to be done.  He is so kind and so generous in his blessings to me.
It's little things like this that help me know how much he loves me.

Sisters Barlow, Larsen and Elder Murdock in BC

More BC selfies!

The BC zone at zone conference.

The Somerset Young Women at the mission home- Sisters Williams & Grange in the middle.

The Streak Continues!

Friday afternoon we found out that this new baby coming to Brad and Katy will be our SEVENTH grandson!  Yes the streak continues on Miles boys!  We are so excited to have one more little grandson!!  We love them all!!! Can't wait until June when he makes his arrival!

Zone Conferences!

This past week we held 4 of our 5 zone conferences, and they were so wonderful.  We really love Zone Conferences--they are so inspiring.  We always pray that the conferences will uplift, inspire and edify the missionaries, and strengthen their testimonies.  For these conferences we had each of the missionaries come prepared to give a 3 minute talk on the attribute of Christ they are working on for this transfer.  One of our Standards of Excellence is to choose and develop a Christlike attribute, (many of which are listed in Preach My Gospel) and work on it for the whole transfer.  At each conference we chose 3 or 4 missionaries to give their talks, and they were so good.  We heard talks on patience, charity, humility, and hope.
We also discussed the talk Elder Dallin H. Oaks gave in General Conference last October on 'Sharing the Restored Gospel', and how we could share his suggestions with the members in the wards.  He gave 3 great ideas that all members should do...1)Pray for a desire to share the gospel 2)Continue to be faithful and keep the commandments 3)Pray to be inspired as to what we can do in our individual circumstances, and commit to act on the promptings we are given.  So, we invite anyone who reads this to follow these suggestions from an apostle and see what wonderful things can happen.
We also discussed being diligent, and then each zone had their own breakout session where they discussed using the back page of Preach my Gospel every day in their work.  We also had a fun question and answer game (candy bars being the prize!), where they answer questions out of Preach my Gospel, The White Handbook, and the scriptures.  It is always fun!
Then we had lunch which is always deliciously prepared by Relief Society sisters from the different stakes.
After lunch we talked about teaching repentance, and the importance of that as we teach our investigators, because it is through repentance that we begin to change, and we access the power of the atonement in our lives. We then role-played teaching repentance, which is always a great thing to do.
After that Steve led a discussion on 'Coming to Know Christ'.  The missionaries shared their personal experiences on how they have really come to know Christ.  Not just know of him, and have read about him, but how they have truly come to know him.  They shared many things--through prayer, through the scriptures, through adversity, through serving, and through trying to develop the attributes of Christ they come to know Him.  It was such a wonderful discussion.
After that we had a testimony meeting which was so powerful.  We love to see how their faith and testimonies grow throughout their missions.  It is really amazing.  I wish everyone could sit in on one missionary testimony meeting.  There is nothing like it.  I always hate for them to end.
We held two different conferences in the Calgary area, then we held one in Lethbridge and one in Taber, and tomorrow we head to BC to hold their zone conference on Tuesday.
Thursday night we were able to go to dinner with our Area Seventy in Lethbridge, Elder Evanson and his wife Jody.  We just love them, and are so appreciative of his support in this work.
On Friday night in Lethbridge the 3 stake presidents hosted a tri-stake community musical event featuring Wayne Burton who is an LDS singer/songwriter.  He has written songs for EFY and many other things.  The event was held specifically for members to invite non-members and less active members.  We had an incredible turnout--about 800 people, with about 100-200 being non-members. The music was beautiful and all centered on Jesus Christ.  Wayne did all of his own music, with the exception of the hymn, Beautiful Savior, which one of our Sister  missionaries, Sister Messick performed-and she did a beautiful job!  And one of our elders, Elder Assily also did another solo which was absolutely beautiful, too.  Then, most of our missionaries serving in that area sang two choir numbers with a few other members in the stake.  It was such a great night--you could feel the spirit strongly through the music.  We hope that many people were touched by it, and that it might generate interest in wanting to know about our Savior.
Saturday we did interviews with the Lethbridge zone, and following interviews we had dinner with President and Sister Lybbert from Cardston.  They have also become good friends, and we love to be able to be with them.  One of the wonderful perks of serving in the gospel are the friends that you meet.  I look at my life and the many dear friendships I have because of serving in callings, and it is so cool!  I have so many friends because of church service!
This past week our weather has been so much warmer--around 25-34 Fahrenheit.  Such a change from the bitter cold we were having.  I haven't even worn a coat--in fact I sent it to the cleaners!  I guess I am acclimatized to Canadian weather!  Everyone has told us that we can now say we have experienced a true Canadian winter.

Cardston Zone

Lethbridge Zone

Sisters Patton, Hatch, Ence, Sears

Bow River Zone

Sisters Rasmussen & Brignone

Fish Creek Zone

Fish Creek Zone

Confederation Park Zone

All of our Spanish speaking missionaries

Calgary North Zone

Calgary Zone

They love taking selfies!

Calgary West Zone

Lethbridge East Zone

Medicine Hat Zone

Our missionaries that sang at the musical event in Lethbridge- Wayne Burton on right  in light blue shirt

Interviews...

This last week we began our interviews for the transfer.  We headed to Medicine Hat on Monday afternoon (on snowy, unplowed roads) and arrived safely Monday night.  Tuesday morning we were able to attend a great zone training meeting with the Medicine Hat zone.  It is so awesome to see the zone leaders and sister trainer leaders carry forth with what we discussed at MLC the week earlier.  They really did a good job training, and also having others in the zone participate.  These great missionaries are the future leaders of the church and I have all the confidence in the world in them.
Following the zone training meeting we conducted interviews with that zone.  Or I should say Steve conducted interviews!  When those were done we met with the Stake President, President Salmon, to see how we could help him with his vision of missionary work in his stake.  He is a wonderful leader and we have grown to love him.  We love all the stake presidents we are able to work with, and feel it is such a blessing to be able to know them!
After our meeting with him, we drove to Lethbridge.  Wednesday we had interviews with the Lethbridge East zone, and then Wednesday night Steve went out teaching with some elders and I went out teaching with Sisters Jakobi and Messick.  It was such a great night of teaching.  On our first lesson we met with their investigator, Leon, who was getting baptized on Saturday.  They were going over the baptismal interview questions with him, to be sure he was prepared.  It was such a tender experience to hear this man (I would guess his age about 55), answer these questions and be so excited to be baptized.  He actually offered the opening prayer, and in it he said, "Thank you for helping me to quit smoking."  It was such a simple, heartfelt prayer.  I felt so honored to be able to sit in on this lesson with him.  After that, we went to teach a Young Single Adult named Judith.  She was so sweet.  She is very spiritual and has been taking the lessons for a bit, but has struggled with her reading of the Book of Mormon to know if it is true.  So, the sisters had prayed about what to teach her, and determined they would read the first chapter with her.  As they did, they shared favorite verses with her.  And then she began to share verses that 'stuck out' to her.  After we were done, she said that she was now motivated to read the Book of Mormon--that she liked these verses!  It was so cool!  Following that lesson we went to teach a less-active family from Peru who have been here in Canada for quite a long time.  They were so kind and nice, but struggling in their faith.  They are also struggling financially finding a job--so life isn't easy for them.  So, the sisters taught what they could and invited them to come to church and make friends in the ward.  It was a great night of teaching, and I was so proud of our sisters.  They taught with love and enthusiasm, and they shared their own testimonies and experiences, and it was really touching.  It is always good to be out teaching with our missionaries.
Thursday we drove to Raymond, Magrath, Cardston, Fort MacLeod and Claresholm to conduct interviews.  It was a long, but good day!  We then drove home to Calgary and on Friday we conducted interviews in the Calgary zone.
Saturday we spent most of the day preparing for zone conferences which begin tomorrow!  But we did take a break to attend another sealing of a couple who were baptized last year, Shawn and Amanda Ryan.  This is the couple that we were present at one of their very first lessons out in BC.  And then they were baptized-and we were able to attend their baptism-and now sealed in the temple.  It was such a beautiful day!  We have been able to witness now two different couples (families) be baptized and then one year later go to the temple to be sealed together forever!  That is what this great work is all about.  We have to begin with the end in mind!  Our purpose as missionaries is to bring people to Christ through the ordinance of baptism, but we always have in mind that this is just the beginning, and where we want them to be is in the temple!
I wish you could all see people that a little over a year ago knew nothing about the gospel of Jesus Christ, and  see them in the very early stages while they are investigating, and watch the spirit touch their hearts and they embrace the gospel and decide they want to be baptized.  It is just so incredible.
I love this gospel!  My life is full of joy because of it.  Yes, we have had our fair share of challenges, but through them we have been sustained and comforted and lifted.  I know the Savior's atonement is real--I love Him for what He has done for me.  Words cannot express!

Medicine Hat Zone

This is the McLachlan family that was sealed in the Calgary temple 2 weeks ago!