I love being a missionary!

Zone Conference

Happy Memorial Day, well probably sad for you because you didn’t get an email from your favorite missionary- Sister Barnes!!! Just kidding, oh and we were just too busy yesterday so we made time today because it is district meeting, also I get to go on an exchange (my first one) with the Sister Training leader- Sister Rupp who is awesome! Ok here is the answer to some of your questions...

Our area is pretty big, it takes us a half hour to ride to either side, my guess would be about 5 square miles, but it has a ton of hills, my legs are getting so strong! Sister Walter and I are the only missionaries in our ward and the only missionaries in the Rockridge Apartments. Our zone has about 20 missionaries- 6 sisters. Oh and we learned that sisters will have been tripled in number from January to August - 25 to almost 75! Go sisters!!! We email usually from Pima Community College library, but today we are doing it just from our office at our apartment building. We have probably 10 or twelve missionaries in our stake, not sure though, our stake is pretty big. Sister Walter and I get along so well, I love serving her, life is so much easier when you are focused on others and not yourself. I really have found that I find myself when I have the spirit and when I am thinking about others. The scriptures are true! I usually just do personal study during Sister Walter’s language study, but sometimes she teaches me Spanish words, she also always prays in Spanish, so I have learned a lot from just listening. I can’t speak very well but I can understand a lot!

Ok here are some awesome things I have learned from just living life as a missionary. First, I really appreciate the pioneers. They had so much faith to start and keep crossing the plains; I know it must have been hard to make such little progress everyday to a place they didn’t even know. Also not counting the ones in the winter, it must have been very hot and hard to push those wagons up the hill. I can really relate. Their faith and sacrifice has really helped me. Sometimes I feel like they are pushing my bike up the hill when it gets too hard, who knows maybe they are. Their faith has really helped me, even though it is like 150 years later. I have really been trying to have more faith, because faith is power!

Next thing is that everything before my mission had a purpose, and that purpose was to prepare me for my mission. I learned that it was not a mistake that we went to Nauvoo in 2011. By doing that I really changed my focus from basketball to the Lord and His gospel. Although I gave up my dream for playing in college, it gave me an opportunity to go on a mission and I am so grateful that I put my priorities where they needed to be, for me. What a huge blessing, I don’t know where I would be right now without Nauvoo. Also, I often find myself saying, nobody came to Tucson by accident :) because they didn’t, we are not meeting the people we are meeting by luck or accident, it is the Lord.

Also, we had to go to the mall on P-day because our ride needed to run in and get a bag, with mission presidents ok of course. It was awesome; I forgot how worldly the world was! I felt awful and didn’t want to look at anything, I am going to be so "weird" when I get home, because I hated being in the mall, it was the weirdest feeling ever. Also I am so grateful that I set my self apart from the world before I actually got set apart as a missionary. (I am not saying this to boast at all). It started with the trip to the Lakes in Washington. I really learned how and had a very big desire to be set apart from the world in what I watched, listened to, wore, and everything. I am so glad I did, because it has been a huge blessing while on my mission and a much easier adjustment than what it could have been. I highly highly highly recommend living mission rules before you go on your mission. Don’t yolo or try to "get all the fun things" in before you go, just be like you are supposed to be, that is my advice to missionaries preparing for service, and for everyone. Start now and choose to become. “You become what you want to be, by consistently being what you want to become” - our mission quote by Richard G Scott.

I HATE fear. I hate when I am too afraid to do what the Lord wants, and I strive to have faith and not fear. Sister Walter has also been helping me overcome my fears about rejection and about offending others. I have made a resolve to have way more faith and to also not be afraid of offending others because I am just sharing what I believe and trying my best to give them what has made me SO HAPPY!!! But like the pioneers again, their journey was hard but so worth it. And every hard trial has come 100 fold back in huge blessings. The lord is SO merciful to us missionaries and really every single one of his children, especially you!

Now for some fun stories... :)

While at Wal-Mart on P-day, I saw a guy carrying a swing so I smiled at him, not that weird. Then he walked past a few more times and every time I would just smile at him. I saw him one last time and he stopped and asked if he knew me. Then he asked me if I was in a famous singing group or something. :) I said no, and that I was a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This made him physically jump back and run away. I think he recognized Christ in my countenance, at least I hope so, and that he recognized it. (Alma 5:14) I hope he can remember that experience, I really had a good laugh out of it! I will keep smiling :)

I met the coolest lady named Bonnie, I love her!!! I have never felt the spirit stronger while teaching someone, she is so ready for the gospel and I really feel like I am definitely supposed to be the missionary helping her. I had some amazing impressions from the spirit, and gratefully I acted on them. We were able to relate her business that she had been explaining to us to the gospel perfectly and she understood so much! We get to see her again in a few days and I am SOOOOO excited for her, she is the most happy energetic bubbly person I know, and I already love her!

We had a miracle with our investigator Thea. She is heading out of town for 9 days and her baptism is in 2 and half weeks- yikes! So we had planned to go through the baptismal interview questions with her to see what else she needed to learn and gain a testimony of. We didn’t know how to bring it up though. But when we walked in the door her first question for us was "What do I need to do to be ready for my baptism? We then were able to give her an amazing lesson with no interruptions, which was a huge miracle because she has three little kids and one with cerebral palsy. It was seriously a huge blessing!!! We are praying hard that she can get her answers while on her trip to help her son. I have faith that more miracles will happen with her, because she is so ready and SO amazing!

Also mom you are inspired, we just had a Book of Mormon challenge, so thanks for the little inspiring messages, they are my Book of Mormon bookmarks! I love the Book of Mormon and I am so excited to read it through again focusing on church attendance, baptism, and prayer. It really is so powerful and so true! Along with that my favorite thing to teach is the first vision. It brings the spirit instantly and is so true, I love it, and I love the Prophet Joseph!!!

At our zone conference we had, we learned some amazing things. Sister Walter and I discovered that we needed to make some big changes in our ward; we are very behind when it comes to missionary work. So we set some incredible goals for this week. I don’t know how we are going to do it, but I know the Lord will bless us, and He has already blessed us so much! The ward members are jumping on board, the less actives are making progress, and we are making headway with our difficult investigators, and I hope we can get some new investigators soon!

Story of yesterday was that the members really rock in our ward and everywhere!!!! They helped us out so much when we got a flat tire and our phone died, and we were late for an appointment. Then we had two member present lessons in one day!!! We have only been able to get two in the last two weeks. They were perfect for the lessons and I know that what they bore testimony of was exactly what the investigators needed to hear to progress and come closer to Christ. I want a member at every lesson now, and that is our plan so hopefully it works!!! They take such good care of us, and are sososo nice. So keep up the good work on your end.

Our message we have been sharing is that we need to listen to the investigator and the spirit. When we do, something they say will always highlight a truth that you can tie to the gospel. This is a promise, and I know it is true! So talk to someone, and listen to them. Don’t worry about what you are going to say. Then when they are done, the spirit will tell you what to say that you can relate to the gospel. I invite you all to try it this week. Also I love that my name is Allison because it sounds like I'll listen, well kind of. And I love the listen chapter in Preach My Gospel. Please study it and apply it everyday!!! Have a missionary experience, because it is awesome!!!

I love you all so much; I really appreciate all the emails and mail I get! It makes my day!!! I love you all! Love, Sister Barnes