After all that has been said and done, the most important duty is to preach the gospel. -Joseph Smith Jr.

NOTE FROM SHERYL:

   You'll notice that this weeks letter from Sister De Groot does not include a "Question Time/Finish My Sentence" portion.  Why, you might wonder?  Well, here's the story...

   Last Sunday evening I sat down to write an email to Janelle, as I have done every Sunday for the past 18 months.  After writing and hitting the SEND button, I ALWAYS go into her myldsmail.net account to double-check that the letter was received.  "ALWAYS"....except for last Sunday, when I was extremely tired and decided that "of course!" it was in her inbox....after all, wasn't it ALWAYS?!?  In spite of the nagging "you'd better make sure!" feeling that I had - over and over - I decided that checking my SENT box was adequate.  BIG MISTAKE!!!

   You can imagine (if you're a missionary mom, that is!) how TERRIBLE I felt when I discovered mid-Monday (after teaching swimming lessons, which is why I didn't check her inbox earlier that morning) that she had NEVER RECEIVED MY LETTER (my SIL, Janice, did instead....OOPS!!!)  :0(  

   I quickly wrote a note to the mission secretary, explaining what had happened, and asking her to inform my sweet daughter of the mishap "if she happened to talk to her".  (Naturally, I really meant "PLEASE CALL HER ASAP AND TELL HER!!!!")  Well, she "happened" to talk to her on Tuesday and relayed my message (THANK YOU, THANK YOU, Sister Green!!).  The message I received back (from Janelle, via Sister Green) was "CHERRIES", which means...

"I love you to the moon and back, to infinity and beyond, always and forever, whatever you say PLUS A CHERRY ON TOP!!!"  

Well, Jay, CHERRIES back to you!!!  I hope you enjoy reading TWO weeks of letters next Monday!!  :0)

Mum, PahPea, Family, and Friends!

Hello there! I simply need to express how grateful I am for this wonderful work, yet there truly are not sufficient words to describe it. (how many times have I said that? probably a lot....:D) President and Sister Scott return home at the end of this week and it's weird to see them go. I appreciate President and Sister Scott so much. Actually, appreciate is not a good enough word. Love. Love fits better. eyup. I love them dearly. I love the examples that they are to all of us missionaries and everyone they meet, the admiration they have for our Savior and our Father in Heaven's plan, the sweetness of Sister Scott and how the soul is being pierced by the Spirit whenerver she talks with someone, the love they show for each other, the level of expectation they hold for us to live up to our eternal potential, and simply everything about them both. I thank them both so much for the miracles they have spearheaded in this mission by the power of the Holy Ghost. They are seriously INCREDIBLE instruments in the Hands of the Lord. Definitely molded to fit perfectly in the Hands of the Carpenter. They've shown me the importance of living up to your potential, no matter what, to always take the calling that our Father has commissioned you to do and run with it with a smile on your face! :) goodness, I love them. ok. my Scott ranting is over. thanks for bearing with me. :)

Sister De Groot with President and Sister Scott  :0)

So....This week! It was great. We found a few new investigators that came to church on Sunday! Laurie and Derek and their 3 kids all under 8. they're adorable. :) Tunde also came to church after sacrament meeting and apologized profusely for missing the first hour. ah man. She's just so cute :) She's expressed desires to be baptized a bit down the road because of the difficulties she's going through, so our plan is to help her see the blessings of baptism and the peace that comes now from living the Gospel. I love the blessings of the Gospel that flow to us as we sincerely live it, it's astounding how instantly that happens. What a miracle. :) I haven't heard an update on Robert or Kresho in Mississauga, all I know is that they weren't baptized this week! Hopefully I can hear soon about their progression so I can let you know, rest asured, I'll let you know when I know as well! :)

Our area has been progressing little by little each day, and I love it! I was thinking about how it connects to light and darkness-something we, as a mission are studying in preparation for tomorrow's zone conference-and how sometimes we feel we are moving at a snails pace, desiring to move much faster, when in reality, there is no other way but to move at that speed, for the snail cannot move any faster, that's the speed the Lord has blessed him with. When we're in that moment, we feel there is no possible way to get to where we need to go at the time we planned to get there, and pray helplessly for guidance and direction. We receive it and follow it, feeling that it hasn't really made a difference, but he hikes up to a rock anyways, where we feel like giving up. When in reality, our Savior guided him there so that someone bigger could lift the rock he sat on and take him to where he needed to go, much quicker than he could on his own. That's the whole point. we don't understand why sometimes, we just do it and trust that the Father will allow all things to work out, if we allow it to. How humbling this experience has been for me. For it I will be forever grateful, helping others learn of the same life lessons through the sharing of the Restored Gospel of our Savior.

Sister Fisher and I are getting along SOO well. We have so much joy in this work! :) We changed our alarm to this quote by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland as he addressed missionaries in the Missionary Training Center, "Elders and Sisters, don't you ever quit. don't you ever give up, don't ever talk to me about going home. I've said from this pulpit before I am manifestly the wrong man in this world to talk to about whether you want to go home, you better talk to somebody else. Because I am absolute, totally, and completely biased, I am insufferable on that subject. I would wrestle you to the ground, I would grapple with you all the way to the airplane terminal, I'd get into your backpack and go with, you will never get rid of me! You try to go home, you look up in the middle of the night of your bedroom window and I'll be there! and I might scratch. I might make sounds. Just don't you ever turn away from this greatest experience of your life." Amen. :) I love elder Holland so much! The mission truly has been something that I needed to experience for my growth and for the growth of my investigators I've had the privilege of teaching. For those of you who are questioning whether you want to serve a mission, I ask you, why question it? Why even contemplate it? Why second whether you would like to sacrifice 2 years or 18 months to be in the daily, full time service of your Father in Heaven? Being exactly obedient to the work of the Lord to allow the Spirit with you constantly so that you can truly be an actual instrument in the Hands of the Lord to aid in bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of man? This is real, brothers and sisters. If you haven't served and you know you need to, please serve. for those who have served and have lost the vision of their calling, I invite you to allow yourself to be reawakened. I love this Gospel too much to not invite you to make changes in your life, as I am doing in mine to be in closer harmony with the Savior's teachings. I don't know why I went on this rant, I wasn't intending to, but the Spirit led, and I followed. How grateful I truly am to be in the Lord's service. This truly is the greatest work of the Almighty God. and I just love it! :)

Thank you for all you do. thank you for your love of the Savior, for your dedication to His work and your commission, thank you for praying for all missionaries throughout the world, thank you for praying for those who do not yet have the restored gospel in their lives, thank you for choosing in the preexistence to come to this Earth and go throughout these experiences. Thank you. I love all of you so much and hope you feel of my gratitude and love toward you all! This Gospel is true. I know it to be! and how grateful I am for the opportunities we all have been given! How great is our calling!

Love for now and for ever,

Sister De Groot :)

Missionary Invitation: write down what you believe is your commission. come up with your title of liberty. and then put it somewhere where you'll see it daily to remind you of the great calling you accepted before you even came here! do so prayerfully. I'm sure it'll be inspiring to you. :) PMG pg V

p.s.pictures! 

Pollyanna and her adorably pregnant self, received her endowments last week and is having a baby very soon!!! isn't she cute??? :)

 and another MLC picture!

p.s.s. mom! thank you so much for the package, you're the greatest! you'll get a picture when it's the 4th of july!!! :) I LOVE YOU!!!!!