Some weeks are the bomb!

Ya know some weeks as a missionary are BOMB and some are just tough! And this week was on the tougher side! You'd think this week would have been the BEST because Jack was being baptized buuuuut that's actually the reason why it was so tough! So we went to Jack's baptismal interview and geez the interview went on for almost 2 hours! I had no idea what was going on and boy was I frustrated! After what felt like 4 years, Elder Yardley came in and told us that Jack would need to be interviewed by President Zarbock over the phone on Saturday before the baptism! So me and Sister Fehoko fasted, prayed, and prayed some more but it turns out that Heavenly Father has another plan for Jack Hadley! and it might be a little while till we see him enter the waters of baptism! 

Saturday night I was realllll upset. I felt like things were starting to get real good and that I really was making a difference here on Pohnpei! I couldn't understand WHY this had happened with Jack after we had worked SO hard. I then turned on a talk by Elder Christensen and he spoke of how the Lord chastises those He loves and how we must accept and even ask for His correction. Missions are hard, but it's the hard that makes it so great! If it wasn't tough then Heavenly wouldn't be able to shape us into who HE needs us to become. Missions are a GIFT.

But let's get real! the WHOLE week wasn't bad! So first off I learned a BOMB trick from my girl Sister Bowers that changed everything. She taught me to boil a pot of water and then put that in the bucket so then it's like taking a HOT bucket shower! holy crap it's like I'm living in the states! BEST thing everrrr! ALSO. I found Snickers ice cream at the store and I almost started to cry! That was pretty close to the hot water. EVERY week is a blessing here on Pohnpei. Even if it's tough, it's a blessing! Missions go by wayyyy to quick so I got no time to be upset! I LOVE this Gospel, my Savior, and being His missionary!

Kalanghan kumailllllll! love you all!

xoxoxox Sister Russell

Happy Mom Day!

yo! yo homies! Today was the best day EVER because I just talked to my MOM!! Mother's day is the most bomb holiday ever! good heck. But not only was today but this week has been gooooood.

So lemme tell ya about a little miracle we saw last week! So we knew we needed to teach Jack the Word of Wisdom but were a little hesitant because we knew it's be a problem. We went into the lesson and geez was it going rough. He grew up in a REALLY tough situation and has been drinking and doing drugs since he was 12! He has a hard core addiction to beetlenut (an island drug) and chews anywhere from 20 to 60 a day! I felt hopeless in that lesson. Sister Fehoko was teaching and I was praying so so hard to know how I could help him understand. When all of a sudden it just came to me. I talked to him about how would treat a gift that Heavenly Father had given him. I asked him if he'd do things to ruin that gift or if he would try his best to take care of it and all of a sudden things started to click. he wasn't quite sure what to say and just looked at us and says "I'm speechless. It all makes sense now." HOLY crap are you for reals? he decided that day that he would live the Word of Wisdom and as of today it's been 2 weeks that he's been 100% drug free! He explained to us the energy and joy he's had in his life since quitting drugs and I'm just like DUH.  Heavenly Father really does prepare His children to receive the Gospel. Like what drug addict just drops everything like that? The Lord sure is helping us out!

I also learned a BIG time lesson this week about how God answers prayers. I have had a question that I've been struggling with and oh geez I was getting nothing! So I decided to do something and boy did Heavenly Father stop me and put me on the right path! and I knew He'd answered my prayers because my mind was clear and for the first time I felt peace about the situation. I'm not quite sure where I'd be without this Gospel! 

Also, with Mother's day today and it being away from my mom it helped me realize just how LUCKY I am to have her in my life! My mom has been my best friend for my whole life and geez do I miss her! I'm not sure what I did in the pre-earth life to get sent to her! Moms are the BEST!

thankssss for the support and love! love you alllll!

LOVE. Sister Russell

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Yo Yoooo...

 

another week in the coolest mission EVER cheeeeccckk!

So here's my bad news for the week. Jack went to Kitti (the other side of the island) for a funeral and we haven't see him this whole week! Worst. His baptism will be pushed back a little but that's ALL GOOD. There must be a reason! We'll just keep on praying that he'll make his way back over to Mesihsou SOON.

But other than that this week has been BOMB. On Saturday we had a baptism for Hillary and Depo! Their parents are recent converts of the elders who served here before we did and for some reason the kids weren't baptized yet! It was cute though because they got baptized in the ocean and the night was perfect! Right up until the closing prayer when a typhoonish storm decided to roll in. ahhaha good timing. Ohhhhh and right after the baptism we went to see one of our investigators, Olter! hahahah we walked up and realized that they were having a party so we thought we'd peace out and come back tomorrow but NO we got thrown right in! I've never realized how awkward missionaries are until you get them thrown into a Pohnpeian party! We just about died. hahah. gotta love being a missionary.

ALSO. We've been working real hard with the cutest 16 year old ever, Cynthia! We've be teaching her for some time but had big time problems with permission to be baptized! Howeverrrr with a whole lot of prayers my girl Cyn got permission! & not only that but she's helping us teach her family & now her brother & sister are on date tooooo! I'm sure on day her family is going to be REAL grateful for her sweet example. it's crazy how often you see little miracles like that as a missionary! Heavenly Father is in the details for sure!

OH and Tuesday was goooood! Birthdays are dang weird in the mission field. But I was on exchanges with Sister Bowers (not planned ;)) so you know it was the BDE. 20 is old. Like geez that's half way to 40!

it was a DANG good week! Like everyyyy week in the mission field! 

LOVE. Sister Russell

and the teenage years are over......

Hellloooo and happy happy Easter! So, if you guys didn't already know, Pohnpei is a little behind the rest of the world and so we got to watch conference yesterday and on Sunday! and oh geez wast that bomb. Watching conference is like being home for 33 seconds. And what made this conference even better was watching as Jack (remember him from last week?) listen to intently as if he was nervous to miss even one word. There were moments when I would start to doodle in my notebook or day dream about who knows what and when I would snap back into it I would look at him and realize just how fortunate I am to hold the calling I do! I thought I understood the Atonement before my mission, but as I watched a man who had been stuck in darkness before meeting with the missionaries and now was filled with so much light! The lord truly prepares His children to accept His Gospel! 

This past week the senior couple, Elder and Sister Fulton, joined me and Sister Fehoko to go see Jack. We taught of Jesus Christ's life and the great blessing of the Restoration. We each bore testimony of the Book of Mormon and of Christ's love for Him. We gave him a specific chapter in the Book of Mormon and asked that he read it before we came back the next day. As we returned on Wednesday we walked into his house and there was a new light in him! We asked about his reading of the Book of Mormon and he told us that he KNEW without a doubt that it was true. He had stayed up all night reading it side by side with the Bible and noticed that there was a different feeling as he read the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon has power in it! That's for sure!!

This week was a blessing! As is every week here on Pohnpei. I'm so so lucky to serve here on this crazy island! ALSO. Thanks for the bajillion emails and the birthday wishes! I've got a whole lot of support at home so thank you thank you thank you!!

Life is GOOD.  I feel like I learn 391705800 lessons every week in the mission field and a BIG one I learned this week is that your attitude changes everything! Which is really really REALLY true. If you've got a happy attitude then everything seems to work out!

THANK YOU again! sending loooots of love from Pohnpei!

LOVE. Sister Russell

Hey, hey, heyyyyyyy

Heyyyy Kumal koaros. menlau mahk on ngehi! I had NO time last week on email and didn't get to group email! But don't you worry! I'm good!! These past two weeks have been a little crazy. So about 3ish weeks ago I got REAL sick and when I went to Guam last week my companion pulled President Zarbock to the side and told him all that was going on and how she was nervous about me. Soooo I got pulled into President's office and he came to the conclusion that I would be given 1 week to get better and if I was still sick then I would be pulled to Guam to serve there! (I told him that wasn't an option but he wasn't really  listening) So as you can imagine on Monday I was pretty down, like WAY down. But Tuesday came and we were out and something just clicked! Being sad and upset wasn't going to make me get better and life is a whole lot better when we are happy! Life got a whole lot brighter on Tuesday! 

And THEN on Wednesday Heavenly Father handed me and Sister Fehoko a perfectly prepared investigator. I've never met someone like Jack. he tries a new church every week because he feels like something is missing. Then on Thursday as we were in a lesson he looked at me and said "what am I feeling? I can't explain it, but it's warm and peaceful." THEN on Friday we had a lesson with him that I will never forget. I've never seen the adversary and Heavenly Father work so hard against each other. But it's a good thing that light will ALWAYS take over darkness. & don't you worry because Jack is now on date for the end of the month! He asked when was the soonest he could receive the gift of the Holy Ghost! like when the heck does that happen?? BEST DAY EVER.

 Heavenly Father answers prayers and He is in the details of our lives. I've never seen His hand so great in my life than I did last week. #blessed!

I know a lot of the blessings and success that I've found on my mission has come from the prayers of you all so thank youuuu!

Xoxoxox. Sister Russell

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Pepdiiiiaaaaas

Hellloooo everyone! 

Remay was baptized this week so boooo yahhh!! I was a littttttlllle frustrated this week because RJ (Remay's brother) backed out of the baptism on Friday night just before the baptismal interview. We went to their house with the elders and Sister Albert pulled me and Sister Fehoko to the side and explained to us that RJ wasn't ready to make that kind of commitment and that he would be baptized once the rest of the family would be baptized! So I kinda just wanted to be like "Soooo do you all wanna get baptized tomorrow orrrrr?" Geez I wish people would just understand haha!

But I'm counting my many blessings because Remay was still baptized and I'm not sure I've seen someone happier than her as she got out of the font! She was dripping wet and ran up and jumped on me and was so so happy! Then as she bore her testimony to the ward she started to cry as she thanked me and Sister Fehoko for teaching her about how she can follow Jesus! It was so stinkin cute.

Soooo what else is new? 

1.I got a new house this week! It's white and it's like living in a mini temple!

2. I found THE biggest dead spider this morning my bed! (at least it was dead, right?)

3. I learned how cut open coconuts like a pohnpeian! 

4. I'm still in the process of learning how to hula.

5. lots and lots and lots of new investigators this week! Boo yah!

Yikes sorry! This is short! But not toooo much to report this week! thank you thank you thank you for all the support I get from home! You guys are the bessstttt! 

Sending loooots of love from Pohnpei!

LOVE. Sister Russell

Cockroaches for Days......

Hey hey heyyy! 

(I know I always say this!) But this week was a GOOD one!

We had stake conference on Sunday and holy crap that is so so fun!! To see all of the saints on Pohnpei come together is seriously the sweetest thing ever. But also the church is really really new on this island so stake conference is a big mess and honestly it kinda stresses me out! Like holy crap Elder Yamashita from the seventy is talking and they are all just moving chairs and doing who knows what hhahaha it kills me. But you should have seen how excited Remay Albert (the girl who is getting baptized this week!) was when Elder Yamashita came up and shook her hand and wanted to meet her! She was so happy I thought she was gonna cry! To me it's become normal to see these general authorities around but to her it was something she will never forget!

So YES Remay and RJ Albert are getting baptized this week and holy crap I cannot wait!! The mom and dad need a little more time to get permission from their parents (Ya that's a thing in Micronesia) but they should be joining their kids and getting baptized soon!

Also, yesterday we had Zone Conference and a huge part of Presidents training had to do with Heavenly Father's love! and it made me just stop and think about really how much Heavenly Father loves His children. I know I've said this before but that is one of the sweetest things as a missionary! We get to feel just the smallest amount of Heavenly Father's love for His children as we teach them. I LOVE it.

Okay so funny story from this week. So it's like 10:15 and there are like 4 cockroaches running around our house (they were HUGE and real quick) so Sister Fehoko is chasing them with a Knife and Sister Bowers has a broom and then I had the plastic bag that we were gonna scoop them into! and as you can probably tell, it wasn't working. Sooooo after like 10 minutes of trying Sister Fehoko wacks one with the knife and it freakin flies! hahahahah So we all scream and then sister Wari (who was asleep) runs out of the bedroom screaming and runs right outside hahahahah I'm crying just writing this. She thought a man was in our house hahaha. What the heck.

"This is not the Paris, France mission. We're a croc wearing, hard working mission!" - President Zarbock

so there you go!

LOVE. Sister Russell