Helaman 5 :)

Mum, PahPea, Family and Friends!

What a wonderful week!! We've been working hard and seeing miracles left and right, in front and in back. in other words, ALL around us! LOVE this work so much!!! I don't have much time today, so let's jump right into a shoutout to...

HOLLY (sparks) MATEER!!!! HAPPY ONE DAY LATE BIRTHDAY MY FRIEND!!!! I love you so much and hope you have the greatest birthday of all time!! I could continue to make this birthday wish ooper cheezy, but for the sake of time and also embarrassing you, I'll just say; you mean a lot to me. like a lot. and I love you. eyup. that's all you get. :) LOVE YOU GOOB! happy birthday!!! p.s. you're old. :)

ok, so now let's have QUESTION TIME!!

1.  Transfers - assuming you are staying in Mississauga?  Sister Edwards?

EYUP x 2! SOO excited!!! :)

2.   Victor?

He's so sweet, I don't think I could adequately describe our love for Victor. He has such a HUGE heart and cares about his wife and God SO much. He asked for our ward mission leader to give his wife a blessing this past week and as he did so, the Spirit was SO strong. His wife began to say a prayer in Portuguese afterwards (because they're from Portugal) and although I didn't know what she was saying, the Spirit was definitely there and they both felt it. Ah, how I love the priesthood, how I LOVE that God trusts worthy men to hold that priesthood, that power of God to do His work for the salvation of men! How grateful I am to all you who live worthily to allow God's trust to be placed within you. You don't receive thanks enough, but thank you. 

3.  Latavia?

Doing well, enjoys reading the scriptures with her sister everyday. We're hoping we can help her attend a baptismal service this Sunday with her mom so they can feel the Spirit of the ordinance and in the Lord's House. Ultimate blessings in His Church!  LOVE it! :)

4.  Shelly?

She is taking care of her sister in Barrie, I believe, and won't be back til next week, but we'll stay in contact and let you know.

5.  Joan?

Also got VERY sick this past week. a nasty little bug is flying around up here so please keep her in your prayers as well, thanks!

6.  What was your favorite exchange this week?

yikes...that's like picking a favorite companion...can't be done. :) I went on a GREAT exchange with both Hermana Bishop in Christie and Sister Ghiman here in Mississauga. Hermana Bishop and I talked a lot about consecration and how we want to be better ourselves as well as Sister Ghiman and I. The latter is a brand new missionary from Romania and she is so funny! You know how I talk a LOT? I feel like I only spoke about 15% of the day in comparison to her! haha She's so sweet, so grateful to have gone with both of them!

7.  How has the weather been?

in all honesty? Super duper cold. ha! We were out knocking on doors around where someone used to meet with missionaries last night for about 15 minutes and we literally had to defrost our toes afterwards!! crazy, eh? It's ok though, we're in the worst of it now, but it'll lighten up towards the end of February. It's a good thing we're happy people and burst out laughing when we're in pain, because the alternative would be ooper annoying! haha :)

8.  What are your plans for the remainder of today?

clean our car, apartment, go get something to eat, groceries, then zone activity at the church before transfers tomorrow! also... elder green keeps asking me at church if we have retrieved our car key that I dropped down the elevator shaft on Christmas...yikes...I don't think anyone will ever let me off the hook for that one...:)

9.  Any message for Channing (who turned ONE on Tuesday, 1/21)?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LITTLE ONE!!!! wait....you're one?? SERIOUSLY??? I haven't even met you yet!!! That can't be possible...(o0ps...that's a 200 fly *copyright from Dee Loose) Yikes, that's so exciting!! I hope you had a great day sweet one!!! I love you so much and well...I'm excited to actually meet you one day! in the meantime, do your best, eat lots of food, and keep mommy and daddy busy! :) Say hi to your new little brother/sister for me when he/she arrives!! :) LOVE YOU!  (NOTE FROM SHERYL - apparently I haven't told Sister De Groot that Erin is having a BOY!  Oops...my bad!  LOL)

FINISH MY SENTENCE:

10.  Describe a typical Sunday in Mississauga (if there is such a thing!)?

wake up at 6:30, and get ready quick to leave the apartment at 7:05 to be at the church at 7:30 for correlation. then 8:30 is ward council. then 9:30 is studies/call investigators/welcome people to church for 10:30. Then at 1:30 we go out to find more people to want to come the next week!! :) At first, I was a little nervous about all the meetings in the mornings, but it allows us the most effective amount of proselyting time which I am VERY grateful for!!:)

11. The FUNNIEST thing that happened to me this week was...

we went to panda again. and they remembered us...by name...I like those people. :)

12.  The BIGGEST EXCITEMENT happened when....

I FOUND OUT SISTER ZERKLE IS THE NEW SISTER TRAINING LEADER!!!!! WOOHOOO!!!!!! yeah. I'm a little excited. :)

13.  One of the things I love most about Sister Edwards is....

to accept God's will in EVERY aspect of life. There is no point in worrying about ANYTHING because ultimately, things will work out the way God wants them to. Just "keep moving forward" She's SO great!!! 

14.  My FAVORITE teaching moment was...

Victor. teaching him the Plan of Salvation. We don't know what God has in store for him and his wife, but he knows what he needs to do to allow them to be together forever. Preparing for baptism near the end of February! :) The Spirit truly touched his heart and he is acting faithfully to that piercing. I have learned so much from this sweet man!

15.  I loved my meeting with President Scott because...

He's so full of wisdom and the Spirit! I've learned on the mission that a great leader is one who has a balance of justice and mercy, and President Scott has that down to a "T"! As I talked with him, I felt his love for me and the Saviors love for me and acceptance of my desire to follow Him in His work.

16.  His counsel to me included...

"we get to a point in our lives where the Spirit becomes our teacher, fully and completely. Of course, we still have those who will give us constructive criticism, but when we get to that point, we don't so much need anyone else telling us what we need to improve on, we simply need to listen to the Spirit and follow his guidance." I love President Scott SOO much, I can't even describe it!!!

17.  I am most grateful for...

President Scott

Consecration

burying weapons of war

our car heater working

The Spirit being the teacher

Victor :)

Well, I need to head out, but please know that I know this Gospel is true! fully and completely! God lives and loves us! Christ died for all so that through Him, through the Atonement of our Savior and His Gospel, we CAN achieve eternal salvation! "We are saved through the grace of Christ, who paid the price of our sins. Our works, such as repentance and keeping the commandments, do not save us, but they are requirements set by the Savior to help transform us. God's grace is divine power to help us with all of our shortcomings and is available to us at all times." (Ensign 2013) Let's share it with all! How GREAT is our calling!!

Love for now and for ever,

Sister De Groot :)

Missionary Invitation: ponder over your testimony of the priesthood and the capabilities of that power upon the Earth today, the blessings it's brought to your life. Then share it via a social network. Helaman 5:10-11, 47-50. That power has been restored, but the reason some don't accept it, is because they don't yet know! Let's share it! :)

Such an AWESOME week!!! :)

Mum, PahPea, Family and Friends, 

What a TREMENDOUS week!! Ah, I love this Gospel so much, I have seen so many miracles as I have been consecrating myself a little more each day to the Lord and His great and marvelous latter-day work! I saw the sweet pictures of Bailey at her baptism and she looks so beautiful! I especially loved hearing that she got her own set of scriptures and has been reading them non-stop! How precious that sweet girl is! :) So proud of you, B!!

Bailey, on her baptism day - January 18, 2014

Bailey loves having her own set of scriptures,
and has been sleeping with them every night!  :0)

I had a wonderful experience with fasting this week that I'd like to share. We committed many people on the street to come to church this past Sunday because, here in Mississauga, that's something that our district has been struggling with. Upon talking with everyone on Saturday, we came in contact with one, Victor, who's wife is in the hospital battling cancer for the 2nd time. He came to us and just started pleading, begging for us to help him. We committed him to come to church after bearing testimony to him of the reality of our Savior's Atoning sacrifice on His behalf and God's plan for our everlasting happiness, and then prayed with him. And I can testify to you of the almost tangible presence of the Spirit of God in that moment. As I prayed, I felt the most overwhelming love for this man and his wife. I couldn't help but cry as I felt the Spirit guiding my entire prayer on his behalf, and hearing him, through his tears, whisper beggingly, "Please, please". It was one of the most sweet and inspiring moments I've ever had talking with individuals on the street. Come Sunday morning, I was saying my morning prayer, and I felt very strongly that I needed to fast for Victor and Latavia, another one of our investigators, to come to church. Submitting immediately, I began fasting and praying for them all morning. Long story short, both Latavia and Victor were being swayed to go to different places, although they both said they knew they needed to come to church, and they came. It was so interesting to me how God is already willing to grant blessings to us but are made conditional on our asking for them and truly doing all that we can. 'Prayer and fasting oft' has become so personal to me and I love it so dearly. (Helaman 3:35) it's helped us have a tremendous week and I know it'll continue to do so in the future weeks. After all, it is the last week of the transfer; last week, best week! :)

QUESTION TIME:

1.  How's your teaching pool these days?

Right now, we have 8 people that we are teaching on and off (because of individual circumstances), and 4 that we're meeting with on a more regular basis. Victor and Latavia are two of them, and Shelly and Joan are the other two. Shelly is super busy but LOVES the Book of Mormon. She said she'll come to church this sunday and bring her sweet 4 year old son. Joan is a very nice lady we met on the street as she was driving her wheelchair past us. She has such a sweet and strong faith in our Savior Jesus Christ and a great desire to grow closer to our Father in Heaven.

2.  Shelda?

We called her and she said she's a bit too busy right now, so we'll continue to stop by and say hi and see if we can help, but for now, she'd prefer to read the Book of Mormon by herself. The Spirit really does prepare the hearts of individuals, and we have full faith that when the time is right, she'll come in contact  with missionaries again. :)

3.  Have you met the new Office personnel?  (the ones that took over for the Caldwell's and the Rees'?)

Sure have, about 5 weeks ago, actually. :) Elder and Sister Green are in our ward here in Mississauga and Elder and Sister Gillen (yes Pops, he remembers you. I told him you looked like Harrison Ford and he goes "Oh yeah! the good-looking one!" :) I have your back, pahpea! :)) we saw them after our mission leadership council, and we'll see them again next week :)

4.  Is this the week you will be meeting with President Scott?  If you already did, how did it go, and what was your favorite part about it?

This week, Thursday! SOO excited!! :)

5.  Did you ever find out where the Rees' are from?

oh woops...no...sorry!

6.  What was the most delicious thing you ate this week?

Panda Express, hands down. They opened about 3 weeks ago and we were so excited to go!! we were actually talking about how we wanted it before we knew it existed here in Canada! this is the 2nd one in Ontario! :) They manager liked us so much that he even gave us a free meal! So naturally, we're going back today!!!:)

7.  Other than Oreo's what "food from home" do you most crave (that you can't get in Canada)?

mexican food, but that can't really be sent...haha Oreos are great! oh and the cookie butter in the package that you sent this week...THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! you're incredible mom!! thanks for the package!!!

FINISH MY SENTENCE:

8.  The BEST part about exchanges is....

learning from the examples of all these Christlike sister missionaries! ah, they're incredible!!!

9.  My FAVORITE teaching moment was....

Teaching Shelly this past Tuesday. She has such strong faith and wants to know if what we teach is from God. As we shared the first vision with her, we promised her that if she listened to the Spirit as we shared his experience, she'd feel the Spirit testify to her that these things were true, and sure enough, she did. By the end of it, she was crying and said "I believe it's true, but now I need to ask God in prayer after I read the Book of Mormon to know it's true." :) It was absolutely incredible, the Spirit was SO strong! :) I love the Spirit so much!

10.  This week I went on exchanges with (Hermana Okelberry and Hermana Dudley) and served in (Mississauga North and Mississauga North). Brought them both to our area! :)

11.  My favorite SERVICE opportunity happened when....

we prayed with Victor on the street. ah. so incredible. and also beginning to meet with the Sloats family. They are a family all born into the Gospel and feel they don't have a sure understanding of the doctrine of Christ, so they're allowing us to serve them by coming over and teaching them the lessons we teach as missionaries so they can become stronger in the Gospel. we invite ALL to come unto Christ and I already love this family SO much! seriously. so much. :)

12.  I laughed so hard when....

we had to run home to make it home on time for curfew and I was sore from intensely exercising the day before. why is it that I laugh when I'm in pain...? yeah, I don't really know. but it sure is enjoyable! :)

13.  Sister Edwards and I bonded over......

cookie butter and sharing miracles from exchanges in the car ride home when we reunite :)

14.  My FAVORITE scripture study time centered around...

keeping our covenants. just keep reading, you'll know. :)

15.  My testimony was strengthened when...

I realized why I needed to fast yesterday morning. God truly is aware of everyone, and if we listen, we will be the means of bringing peace to someone in their time of trial. but only if we hearken to that prompting.

16.  I am most especially grateful for...

Personal Study

Fasting

Law of Consecration

Sister Edwards

Baptism by God's authority

I testify that this Gospel is true! and I only know that through personal study and prayer. You asked what my favorite scripture study centered on, and it was something I was so grateful I was able to learn. I had a realization this morning that seemed so silly that I didn't understand it earlier; one of the reasons I personally needed to come on a mission was to understand how to keep my covenants. I was reading in Helaman 3 and in the Book of Mormon manual talking about sanctifying our lives to our Fathers. In the manual it says this "Those who partake of the sacrament and temple ordinances with pure hearts and who faithfully keep their covenants have NO PROBLEM being modest, paying generous fast offerings and tithing, keeping the word of wisdom and Sabbath day holy, sharing the gospel daily, attend the temple frequently, conduct family history research, do home or visiting teaching, visiting the sick or serving those in need....These are the faithful saints of the Most High who keep the sacred covenants they have made in the house of the Lord and who continue faithful, having a determination to serve him to the end, and truly manifest by their works that they have received of the Spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins. (D&C 20:37) Covenant Keepers...live the law of consecration. Their time, talents, and financial resources all belong to the Lord." (Elder Spencer J. Condie of the 70)  I have always had a testimony of the truthfulness of this Gospel, I've always felt it, but I guess I didn't really understand what I knew to be true before I came out here, I just knew I knew it. But now I know and it's so simple, covenant keepers live the law of consecration. Everything I am, every talent I have acquired and will acquire is meant for the building up of the Kingdom of God here upon on the Earth at this time, in this, His restored Church. I am so grateful for this enlightenment from the Spirit and I am so grateful that I get to apply it each and every day! What a blessing it is and how great is our calling!

Love for now and for ever,

Sister De Groot :)

Missionary Invitation: study keeping your covenants with your Father in Heaven, and make plans on where you can improve. One in particular that I know is undermined throughout the Church is home and visiting teaching. The impact that these visits have with families and individuals is crucial for one to grow in Gospel. Our bishop said to us the other day "there is no one so strong in the Gospel that they do not need a visit from their home or visiting teaching, a check up, a renewal. We need each other to conquer in this work. If we do it with merely ourselves, we will fail, we will become complacent, and we cannot become that person God knows we are capable of becoming. We have to serve and we need to let others serve us, for that is how we all grow. If your home or visiting teachers haven't called you or aren't visiting you, call them and ask them to come. tell them you need them, because you do. Help them to help you on your path to enter the presence of your Heavenly Father." oh. how wise our bishop is! :)

Here's a picture of my finished tree.  Thank you all SO MUCH for the ornaments!!  :)

The Lord's math is not our math, nor His time, our time. His is Eternal, His is perfect.

Mum, PahPea, Family and Friends!

Why hello sunshines!! I hope you are all doing well, for here in Mississauga, Ontario, things are going SO well! It may be cold, but we've mastered layering and looking like Eskimos! We are finding more and more people to teach which is VERY exciting! We had a cool experience yesterday of service. We went to drop by a family who have 2 girls who have not yet been baptized and wanted to share a message with them. But when we got there, their parents weren't there so because we couldn't go inside, we shared a message of service and pounded the ice off their driveway with shovels. We were only able to get it off down to the sidewalk because then the ice was completely solid and about 1.5 inches thick. I was determined to break it off, but realized we probably didn't want to break their shovel in an attempt to serve them. We thought it'd be a bit counteractive....:) We both just felt so good though as we left, and the girls came out with water bottles for us and reassured that we didn't need to do it, but lit up to see how much ice was gone. How sweet they are, and how wonderful service is!!:)

I don't think I have any shoutouts this week so let's jump into QUESTION TIME!! :)

1.  Are you still meeting with Shelda? 

We are later this week hopefully. She's been super busy tending to her grandkids but we saw her this week and she wants to continue reading the Book of Mormon so she can find out for herself. Good thing, because God's really the only one who can tell us that it's true! The only convincer of truth is the one who knows all! :) 

2.  Anyone else to tell me about?

Not at the moment, we've had a lot of new investigators, but most of whom aren't able to meet for a while, so please pray that we can find those that are prepared at this time, and we'll do that same! thanks! :)

3.  Pictures coming today? 

yup! the apartment is still being worked on by us, but I have a couple to send...

our new district before Elder Engen went off to his mission in Spain because his visa has come

Sister Edwards and I bundling up to face the cold

 sister rees

Sister Caldwell

our curtain rod/broken hanger apparatus (to fish out the keys on Christmas day) :)

4.  How was Sister Edwards birthday?

"AWESOME!" she says. :) We made bacon and pancakes, I burnt the first couple pieces first...and we sang happy birthday to her at our zone training! She's just so great. and 20!! wow. weird....:)

5.  Did your New Year's package arrive yet???

it sure did!!! thank you SOOO much, I LOVE the calendar! I can't believe those pictures were a year ago! crazy!! and the short bread nuggets?? oh my. I love you so much, thanks a billion! S Edwards said she'd appreciate the recipe. just sayin. :)

6.  Have you received any other mail at your new place?

Not yet! :)

7.  Any message for the Caldwell's?  (who dad and I LOVED meeting, btw!!!)  :0)

"you know...we think you're both pretty great." :) We love you Caldwells!!! and pray for you often, hope everything is going well and that you're feeling lots better! You're in our prayers always!

8.  Did you find a hat or hats?  (are your earmuffs too weird to wear?)

haha I did find 2 hats for very cheap which was great! ha no, the earmuffs are great and very warm!! but I think my head is too big because they hurt if I wear them for more than an hour. I have worn them multiple times, but the hats are a bit lighter on the head, I'll be honest. I still wear them over the hat though if it gets too too cold. :)

9.  How did your exchanges go with Sister Stoddard and Hermana Sandall?

SOOO good!! I love them so much. ah. so much!! :)

FINISH MY SENTENCE...

10.  My FAVORITE part of the week was...

Zone training when we role played the role of the Holy Ghost in conversion. The Spirit truly is the teacher, not us, and how grateful I am for that!! :)

11.  More than anything, I wish...

I could overcome my weaknesses to be a perfect missionary for the Lord. But then again, my weaknesses are made strengths through the Lord while at the same time, I grow. so I guess it's a temporary wish, then realizing that everything I go through is a blessing in one way or another. or both! :) 

12.  I helped Sister Edwards celebrate her birthday by...

singing to her! and talking about it all day. I was tempted to ask a guy on the street to sing with me happy birthday to her. but I don't think she would have liked that. so I didn't. :) 

13.  I've really been excited to tell you about....

The fact that Brother Madsen in our old ward in Alpine showed up at church yesterday in our ward!! he's here on business and had no idea that I was here! He actually didn't notice me at first, but once I showed him the name tag, his face totally changed! haha A little piece of home on the mission, how precious. :)

14.  I felt the Spirit so strong as.....

We bore testimony to a man who let us in while knocking on doors last night. His name is Thomas and we testified to him of the Plan of Salvation and how his family can be together for eternity. He loved the idea and said he would look into it, but doesn't want us to teach him at this time. It's alright, though. God works little by little sometimes, and I have gained a great testimony about that in the past couple weeks. I know that families can be together forever through our Father in Heavens restored power, called priesthood, again upon the Earth today restored through His prophet, Joseph Smith! Eternal families are sealed in the Temple, the house of God, and how i LOVE the knowledge of my family being eternal and being able to share it with Thomas and with others every day!

15.  My favorite part of the teaching process is....

bearing testimony and then inviting to repent. Every commitment these individuals make to read scripture every day, the Book of Mormon and the Bible, and to pray and come to church and to live commandments, every one of these actions is repentance, is changing our will to God's! How wonderful the purification process is!

16.  I laughed really hard when....

I was on exchange with Sister Stoddard and we went to their correlation meeting with their ward (I basically knew all the missionaries from previous assignments serving around them; s zerkle, s taylor, e gibb, & e palmer). anyway, so the ward mission leader told a story of one of his companions when he was on his mission who would, whenever he wanted someone to do something, would raise his hands and in an ooper high pitched silly voice would say "just do it!" haha ah yikes, it was hilarious. but now that i'm reliving this, I'm realizing it's probably not that funny to do. so to make it funny, try to reenact what you understand I'm describing and do it to someone else. then I dare you not to laugh. ready go. :)

17.  My most embarrassing moment was when....

a guy on the subway squeezed my shoulder to say bye to me and I flinched like I I just saw a zombie. ah man...the mission is making me so insanely awkward, I love it...:)

18.  After we finish emailing, we plan to....

get some food, go birthday shopping for sister edwards, write letters, clean the car, clean the apartment, and personalize our apartment. :)

19.  "Finding" in this area is most successful when....

working with Part Member families and former investigators. and of course, talking with everyone! :)

20.  This week, I am most grateful for.....

exact obedience

exchanges on buses

sister stoddard letting me use her boots because I have holes in mine...:) (don't worry she has multiple pairs. I'm just borrowing them for the winter)

repentance

Baptism (so excited for you, B!!)

the Gift of the Holy Ghost

Well, I need to head out! I hope you all have a wonderful week! Remember that if you're struggling or needing answers to questions, pray and study like everything depends on God, and then work as if everything depends on you! "some blessings come early. Some come late. and some don't come until heaven. But for those who embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they come." -Elder Jeffrey R. Holland. This Gospel is true! Christ lives! and NOTHING else matters! -Sister Amber De Groot   HOW GREAT IS OUR CALLING!!!

Love for now and for ever,

Sister De Groot :)

Missionary Invitation: Study the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ from Preach My Gospel manual, Chapter 3, lesson 1. Strengthen your testimony of the Savior, Jesus Christ and of the Book of Mormon being the word of God. The only way is through study, pondering, and praying to ask specifically if it's true. God will let you know through the power of the Holy Ghost, I testify to you! :)

Alma 29:9-10

Mum, Pops, Family and Friends!

                                                                                                           

So guess what? It's 2014!!! Crazy sauce! How did you start out the new year? Resolutions? Service? Eat healthy? Share the gospel? They're all great! especially the last one...;) As for Sister Edwards and I, we started off the year by reading the 4 gospels in the new testament, Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price with the Other missionaries, and oh, how WONDERFUL it was!! I love that God continues to give us more scripture, that He never stops talking to us through a prophet and personal revelation! How incredible is that? There's a modern day Adam, or Moses or Abraham or any other prophet in the Bible or Book of Mormon, on the Earth TODAY!! I love it. kind of a lot! :) (For those who aren't very familiar with this living prophet, go to lds.org, then type Thomas S. Monson into the search box, and get to know the Prophet of God on the Earth today. Enjoy!) We were also able to start off the new year by finding a new investigator named Shelda. She's from Trinidad and we knocked on her door. Blessing that it was -14' outside that she let us in and stood there yearning at the Book of Mormon as we were telling her about it. Because she wanted to read it right then and there, we asked if we could share where it came from and how she can come to know that it's the word of God, and she happily accepted. We had a wonderful lesson as the Spirit was there so very strong! She said it just made sense that God would call another prophet and give us more scripture, and she's excited to try out the 'equation' (read, ponder, pray about it, and come to church) to know that it's true. She's such an incredibly faithful woman and we are so grateful to have met her and introduced our testimonies of our Savior, Jesus Christ and His restored Church! :) And! what a great birthday present to Sister Edwards to meet such a nice woman! Sister Edwards is turning 20 tomorrow!! woot woot! Happy birthday to her! she's just so great. I love her kind of a lot. We've got some bacon and pancakes planned and singing to her at zone training tomorrow! woohoo! :)

alright, let's jump into...QUESTION TIME!!!

1.  Did you get your new apartment organized?  Pictures?!?

kind of, we're working on it. Making it ours is what we're still struggling with. it kind of seems like a bomb shelter right now because everything is white. actually...I've never been in a bomb shelter so I'm not sure if they're white. maybe an insane asylum? but it doesn't feel that way. just looks. :) I'll give you pics when it's our apartment, mmm k?;) or at least gets better...but hey, if you want to write me, here you go! (ps one of my new years resolutions is to write back to those that write me, so if you write me, you'll get a letter. sometime...;))

Sister Janelle De Groot

660 Kaiser Dr

Mississauga, ON

L5W 1T6

CANADA

2.  Did your New Years package arrive yet?  (If yes, have you received it from the other sisters yet?)

it hadn't up to this weekend so my guess is it arrived today and I'll pick it up tomorrow :)

3.  How did meeting Brian go?

He actually already left to Guyana. But our call went well! we'll see him when he gets back in a month. :) 

4.  Any message for Bailey who turns 8 next Sunday (12th)?  (Her baptism is on January 18th)

Happy Birthday, B!!!! I am so excited for you on this special day of yours! not only are you 8, (you're so old!!), but you've decided, yourself, to get baptized! B, I want you to know how proud I am of you! You have such a sweet heart and are going to be an INCREDIBLE helper to Heavenly Father in His Church! Ask mommy for a piece of paper and a pen and make sure to write down your feelings from your baptism and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, because I can promise you, you're going to treasure that experience! almost 14 years ago, I was baptized and can still remember that same feeling I felt because I documented it! Do the same, sweet B and you will be so grateful! I am so proud of you, big girl!!!! Ask mommy to give you a big hug for me! I'll be there in Spirit!:) Love you, Bailey girl!!!!

5.  After walking up the stairs from your basement apartment, what is the first thing you see each day?

Some cute little trees in the backyard of our landlords house all covered in snow!:)

6.  Am I correct in that you no longer have a car?  How is that going?

Nope, still have a car! It would be miserable to walk around Toronto doing exchanges! haha

7.  Are you still a Sister Training Leader in your new area?

Sure am!  and Loving every second of it!!

8.  How many sets of Sister Missionaries are in your District/Zone that you go on splits with?

10 companionships :) 

FINISH MY SENTENCE:

9.  My favorite teaching experience this week was with (____) and centered around (       )....

Shelda, The Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So incredible! :)

10.  My most memorable study session was on....

Giving up "all" to be a servant of the Lord. I read Acts 4 and it was so incredible how Peter and John refused to give up their testimony or hide it in any way. I was taking inventory of my teaching and contacting, and wondering why in some certain situations, I back down a bit, especially here in and around Toronto where many people do not believe in Jesus Christ at all or have a small understanding of His role as our Savior and Redeemer. I was simply thinking about how precious this testimony is to me, what I know to be true. and being a missionary, a representative of Jesus Christ doesn't mean I push my religion on people, but I have the sacred opportunity to declare what I know to be true, without hesitation and invite all to find out for themselves. I would deeply recommend reading Acts chapter 4 and see what revelation you receive for your personal testimony or missionary work. I love you all so much, remember "doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith!" 

11.  Sister Edwards and I had a wonderful time....

basically beating up the car this morning with our snow scraper. the car was COMPLETELY frozen over that no doors would open and our little tiwi told us our car might have no battery because of the cold. silly tiwi. everything's all good now!:)

12.  The last time I met one-on-one with President Scott was....

2 transfers ago (but I get to in 2 weeks!!) 

13.  My favorite thing about that time together was....

feeling of his love and appreciation not only to me and the other missionaries, but for everyone here within the Canada Toronto Mission and his love for the work of the Lord. He just gets it, and it's incredible how tuned into the Spirit he is. I feel like a great leader is one who has found the balance between justice and mercy, and I feel like President Scott represents that balance almost perfectly! 

14.  Our plans for today include....

Getting our oil changed at the Chevy Dealer, food shopping, buying  a couple hats for myself because it's a little bit really cold, making our apartment ours and writing letters. oh and eating. because I'm kind of really hungry. shocker, eh? some things never change...:)

15.  Did you ever take a picture of your completed "ornament-filled" Christmas tree?  PICTURE, please!!!

oh yikes...haha not completely, but I brought it to mississauga to take a picture of, so I'll do that this week, really! going in planner...:)

16.  This next week, I am especially looking forward to....

pounding the pavement in our new area! and going on exchange with Sister Stoddard and Hermana Sandall. I served in London with Sister Stoddard, Sister Zerkle trained her and I hear the latter is an incredible missionary!!!

17.  I am MOST grateful for....

fasting

scriptures

canada gloves

the caldwells (office missionaries that went home this past week)

the reeses (office missionaries that go home this week)

The testimony of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ

Well, I need to head out, and I hope you can feel of my love and adoration for this work. I love being here in Ontario and serving my fellow man. I love my Savior, Jesus Christ. I love His restored Gospel. I know that this is true! His Church has been restored, I know this because He has answered my prayers by giving me a witness from the Holy Spirit. I know that this is our Father's work, and what an honor it is that we have all been called, members and missionaries alike, to share this great and Restored message of Truth! How GREAT is our calling!

Love for now and for ever,

Sister De Groot :)

Missionary Invitation: question #10 :) What does this chapter mean to you? and what are you going to do with that knowledge?

Read-a-Thon with the Zone

gross bug in our apartment

and yup. it says -19'. welcome to Ontario my friends. :)