June 23rd

So first off. DALLIN GOT HIS MISSION CALL!!!! :) I was suuuuper excited when president Toone called me on Thursday and let me call Dallin and ask him where he was going. Florida Tallahassee the second best mission in the world! (Obviously Arizona Tempe is the best. sorry Dallin ha-ha) but I’m really excited for him to get out there and serve the lord! It truly will be the best two years of your life! :) 

This week we had zone conference and like usual it was AMAZING! I just love being able to learn and soak up the spirit and receive revelation. President Toone is such an inspired man and I love him soooo much!  the spirit was so strong in the meeting and by the end Hermana Hansen and I were just sobbing because it finally hit us that all off this is coming to an end. I really never want to leave. But with the little time I have left I am going to make sure that I give it my all that I truly serve with all my heart might mind and strength! We had an amazing unplanned lesson Tuesday night when we went over to visit our ward mission leader and his son Sam was there who is less active. We stared talking to them and we shared some things about faith that we had learned earlier that day in zone conference. And that’s when the spirit took over, like it took complete control! There we were sitting outside on the porch in the hot Arizona night sitting on our lawn chairs and the spirit just knew exactly what Sam needed. There were inspired questions after inspired questions, and he just opened up completely it’s amazing how that works! "The spirit is the most important single element in this work. With the spirit magnifying your call, you can do miracles for the lord in the mission field. Without the spirit, you will never succeed regardless of your talent or ability." the spirit truly helped us to see a miracle that night with Sam :)

We also had an amazing lesson with a man we met the other day named Roberto. He’s a carpenter here from Mexico and we talked to him outside for a little bit and then we shared the because of him video with him and it brought tears to his eyes. he was so grateful that we shared it with him and then he told us how much he respects us and our willingness to be walking around in 100+ degree weather to be sharing these things with others he was so interested as to why people as young as us would leave their families and go out to serve the lord. He was just so amazed and so touched by that. He has such a sweet and tender heart and strong love of his savior. That is my favorite part about missionary work just being able to meet so many amazing people. I just LOVE it!  he’s suuuuper cool and we are really excited to start teaching him. I love this work with all my heart and I feel so blessed that the lord trusts me in this part of his vineyard with his amazing and wonderful children! People are just amazing! I love being a missionary! And it is something that will never change even when I have to take of my tag. I love this gospel and I know that is true, that we god has a plan for everyone and he is watching out for each of us! I love you all just as much as he does! Talk to ya soon! Let the Holy Spirit guide!

Love,

Hermana Savage 

June 16th

This week was super! to start off Hermana Hansen and I had a super fun P-day we switched things up and went to downtown chandler and went through some of the fun little stores and boutiques, had lunch and just enjoyed a nice relaxing non hectic p-day. Then we were able to go on exchanges again this week. I was with the one and only amazing Hermana Haar and we worked in her area for the day. It was fun, we contacted a referral that Obispo gave us that night of a man from Spain and he has a goat farm! So he took us out back and showed us all off his goats! It was a fun exchange I just love being able to work with the sisters and being able to help out in their areas, plus I get to meet so many more new people that way! Exchanges are the best :)

On Thursday we saw a miracle, we were trying to contact a potential and as we were walking to her house there was a man sitting outside on a tree stump with his head hung low hitting a  knife against the wood. he looked a little scary and we weren't so sure if we should talk to him, but he also looked really sad so next thing you know I’m walking up to him and asked him how his days been going. Sometimes the spirit pushes you to do scary things without you even realizing it. Immediately he responded "muy mal" (really bad) he then went on to explain the day he had had and how his wife left him and his little three year old girl and he just didn’t know what to do. We talked to him for a little bit and shared about the love that heavenly father has for him. We read some scriptures with him and taught him how to pray. It was a really cool little street lesson and it was just what he needed! :)

During weekly planning me and Hermana Hansen had some squirt guns hidden in our bags and then we squirted everyone, it was pretty funny and then later that day we were walking in a trailer park and we saw these two little kids in their underwear wearing iron man masks and their mom was squirting them full force with the garden hose. It was hilarious and we couldn’t stop laughing. we then had to try and get all the courage we could to try and contact this referral that had two of the biggest dogs I have ever seen in my life behind the fence  but we opened the fence and we made it too the door, and the dogs didn’t kill us! The referral wasn’t home though so we will have to try again.

One of our investigators Fabiola was able to come to a baptism with us on Saturday and it was amazing! She really enjoyed it and we had a lesson with her that night and talked about baptism and she was crying and we were testifying of the atonement and the healing power, it’s something that she needs to understand still. I love teaching about the atonement and being able to help people to have that hope and see that light at the end of the tunnel. What a blessing we have to know that through the power of the atonement we can be free from feelings of guilt or hurt and we can have peace and joy. What a blessing we have to have this knowledge. I took it for granted because now seeing people who don’t know that and how hard it is for them, I realize how blessed we truly are to know that through the atonement all things can be healed! I love this gospel and I love being able to share it with others and I hope that you can all experience that joy as well! Share the gospel! Love ya'll tons talk to ya soon! 

Love, 

Hermana Savage 

P-day Adventures!

Lunch at wimpy burgers

We went to the wedding dress shop just to look, but don't worry! we're not getting "trunky" we just like wedding dresses :)

Some handmade Mexican paletas!

Hermanas Haar, me, Rogers, and Hansen :)

June 9, 2014

We had lots of fun things happen this week. To kick start the week we had an awesome Zone meeting. We did it a little different this time and we broke up into groups and rotated so me and Hermana Hansen only had to prepare a short 15 minute training that we gave three times instead of one long training to everyone. It was good but I actually miss the longer trainings that me and Hermana Manwill would do in phoenix. Maybe next month we can do a longer training :) After the meeting we went over to the Lewis's and had lunch. They are the senior couple in our zone (I know we have a senior couple cool right?!) It was super fun and even better when sister Lewis brought out a squirt gun and ran around the house squirting all the elders. It was the best ha-ha. 

Hermana Hansen and I decided to liken the scriptures to ourselves this week and the inspiration came from 1 Nephi 2:15 "and my father dwelt in a tent." Tuesday night we grabbed our mattresses and hauled them out to the patio where we pulled out the cloths line to hang up some blankets and make a tent. We then spent the night in the warm Arizona night under the stars talking about the creation and the amazing world we live in seriously the world is sooooo amazing! Every time I look at the stars I just can’t believe God created all of this just for us! It was a super fun camp-out. Ha-ha

We also went on our first exchange for the transfer and it was super fun. I went with Sister Tanaka in her area for the day, and she is probably one of the sweetest kindest people you will ever meet! She’s from Japan but has lived in the U.S. for 8 years now. We had a miracle lesson that night and it was probably one of the coolest of my mission. We were teaching a man who has been taught for a while and we watched the Joseph smith Movie with him. And the member that we had with us was AMAZING! Her testimony and everything she said was perfect! The way that they connected was amazing. It was so evident that she was supposed to be there. And it was so amazing to see how the spirit worked in that lesson. It so strong! It was nice to be able to teach in English and be able to say everything that I wanted to because I have never been able to bare such a powerful testimony of the restoration before as I did in that lesson. We were all in tears as we bore our testimonies and talked about Joseph Smith and the restored gospel and the way that we can find and seek for truth in our lives. It was so powerful! I love exchanges :)

We also attempted to bake cookies in our car this week... they were like half done, but still pretty delicious  I can’t wait till it gets hotter! Once it hits the 115 range I think we will be baking cookies like pros :) I love being able to serve in Arizona there is seriously no place I would rather be in the world then right here. The people here are amazing, we have the most beautiful sunsets you’ll ever see, the weathers the best, (maybe a little on the warm side but still loads of fun) the funniest missionaries in the world, I have the Best companion ever and I get to be a part of the full and restored gospel! What else could ya ask for?! Can’t wait for next week! Talk to ya soon, love la all toooooooons!

Con mucho amor,

Hermana Savage 

Here is some of our Zone at lunch with the Lewis's

"and my father dwelt in a tent" ~1 nephi 2:15

Yummy cookies :)

June 2, 2014

So this week we were able to see a couple of miracles and it was awesome! I forgot to tell you last week but something super cool happened on Sunday! Our ward mission leader is amazing! he is one of the best I have worked with on my mission so far. he has such a strong testimony and desire to love and serve others, his family has been less active for a while now and Hermana Hansen gave me the heads up, so when we were leaving their house last week after correlation meeting I was talking to his son and just casually slipped in as if I didn't  know he hadn't been to church for a while "Hey we'll see ya at church on Sunday right!?" he was a little surprised at the invitation but said he would try to be there. His whole family came to church that Sunday :) I didn’t realize how big of a deal it was until we were back over at their house later that week and Hermano Diaz was so excited and content that his family had come to church. and then he told me "Your invitation made an impact on my family. Thank you." it was so powerful and I had no idea! It really helped me to realize what a simple invitation can do! Never underestimate the power of simply inviting someone one to come back. When done with love it doesn't have to be a scary thing and it definitively doesn't have to be a complicated thing, but miracles happen when you reach out to those around you and invite them to feel Gods love more abundantemente in their lives! So my compromiso to ya all this week is to look for someone who you can invite to do something, big or small, member or nonmember, active or not to help them to be involved in this wonderful blessing that we have called the Gospel of Jesus Christ! :)

We also got the opportunity to ride our bikes all day long in the hottest day of the summer so far! end of the month and out of miles yet again... but it was super fun. Nothing like coming home after a long day in the 108 degree weather and being completely exhausted and wet and all covered with funky tan lines. We always get a good night’s sleep after a day like that. I was also bit by a dog for the first time, but don’t worry no blood involved and it didn’t really hurt it was just out of nowhere so it just startled me when we stopped out bikes to knock on the door and next thing we know there is this lunatic dog jumping all over the place until he found my ankle...  adventures ha-ha. We had MLC this week too and it was suuuuper weird not representing phoenix. But I’m going to catch on to the whole Gilbert thing in no time. We wore yellow and navy blue this time. Our zone leaders are elder Rackham and elder Anderle. They are both really fun and we are excited to work with them. We are going to have a celestial summer up here in Gilbert! Bring on the heat, bring on the miracles! I love being a missionary and I love all of you too! Have a great week! Talk to ya soon! 

Love,

Hermana Savage