A Widow, A Wizard, and a Father's Prayer

The Widow

She told us that if she didn't have God in her life, she doesn't know how she'd be here now.  When her baby was only three months old (i think), her husband died suddenly, and she was left to raise her son by herself.  She had to depend on God.  And later, her son got really sick, he was in the hospital for days, then months, and those months turned into years.  She had to depend on God.​  Then he got better, she knew it was a miracle.  Now he's healthy, off with friends doing fun summer things.  She got re-married, and she's still smiling.  Her son is about 26.  She met with us!  She is such a great example!  Aaah!  I love her, and I pray that she will accept the gospel.

 

The Wizard

Well, he's actually a Father from the Catholic Church, but they dress in those cool long black or brown dress-looking-things, ok it's like a cloak, and they look like wizards.  We were at a place where the tramwaj goes by and the light was red, I thought for sure he would stop...but he didn't :)  I thought about it just for a minute, then later a couple days later, I was trying to hand someone an ulotka and I'm pretty sure I started crossing the street on a green, but when I looked up it had turned red.  I felt guilty, for judging the catholic priest, and for being a hypocrite... However, we can learn from this that people are always watching you.  So don't break rules, especially when someone thinks that FOR SURE you aren't going to!  Be the bigger man/woman and let's be obedient!

 

A Father's Prayer

Well, we weren't sure where to go last night, well that means that Saturday night planning we weren't sure where to plan to go Sunday night.  We decided that it felt good to go and visit a couple, well we go there last night and no one had been listening for a while... then BAM!  We saw this guy in a park między the buildings and we stopped to talk to him.  The light was getting dimmer and dimmer as we talked to him but he was so nice and so open.  He was about dad's age and writing something on a peice of white printer paper.  As we told him the story of Joseph Smith and quoted scriptures to him and talked about the Bible, I saw that he knew his bible well, he wrote down the James 1:5 reference!  And he was just intrigued by the fact that we could speak polish too, he asked probably like 5 times where we learned polish.  We get that a lot - people wondering if we have Polish parents or grandparents or what not... NOPE od zero uczyłyśmy się!  It's so cool!   Anyways, in the end he told us he would chętnie read the book of mormon and pray about it!  He said he's SEARCHING!  AND he said that he was writing a letter to his daughter because he was trying to figure out how to have a better relationship with her.  I really felt like we were an answer to a father's prayer last night.  And he's so cool.  I hope that his relationship with his teenage daughter gets better, that she's nicer to him, because he really does love her.  I hope that he reads - we gave him Alma 41 where Alma speaks to his son who isn't exactly in line either.  The father told us that we were like three angels - an adventure he hadn't expected.  We ended the conversation with a prayer and left the conversation on a high!  I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!

 

The Mountain Man

We also had a lesson with one of the coolest people I've ever met this week.  I met him at a stop light close to the Rynek a couple days back.  He has longish strawberry blonde hair, fairly sunburned skin, and bright blue eyes that kind of bore into your soul.  He was on his bike, looked like a rock-climber, and I don't even know what I said to him, but we talked about God and that I was a missionary and that we wanted to meet sometime.  He agreed.  We also talked about rock-climbing.  Oh man.  He's so cool!  So he wanted to meet in a park, so we set up to meet back where we'd met the first time.  The morning of our meeting I looked up some scriptures that had to do with Mountains in them, and I kept coming across scriptures about the Holy Ghost that morning as well - AAAAHHH I love the SPIRIT!!!! - - Well we were on our way to this meeting and we're talking to this lady on her bike (yes contact people on bikes, it works) and she was just wrapping up our conversation when Maciej comes whizzing by on his bike.  He slams on the brakes and says hi and was about to keep going to meet us there but I just said 'hey let's just go up to AWF if you want, wait for a sec.' So we finished our conversation with Barbara and went on with Marcin to walk to the AWF park.  We shared a first with him and he seemed to like it, he had really good comments.  He told us about how he prays up in the mountains and how his life has been really hard and that he's a black sheep and bunktował przeciw Bogu, but I don't see much of the rebel in him.  He seems really humble.  We talked about how reading the scriptures is important.  He believes he doesn't need the scriptures as much as just fervent prayer and listening to what God says to him - but that God doesn't say things as much as he helps us feel things.   He said he thinks he can get an answer from god if the book of mormon is true with out reading it - i've never thought of that... maybe with faith like that, you can!  It was such an interesting conversation.   And the things I studied seemed to really fit with his personality.  He says he likes to spend time with people who are calm because they don't suck his energy.  He says he's a vampire when it comes to energy - cool... He really is super SUPER chill, Jenny Williams would get a long with him well too... anyways, so I look up this verse in the Bible, where God comes to Elisha not in the wind and not in the fire but through a still small voice, and I can't FIND it!  Haha, I didn't really think i was worried about it that much, but he was all like, 'calm down, it's fine' - so I guess I was giving off nervous vibes.  I know I was giving off nervous vibes.  Anyways, just being around this guy made all three of us just realize that life could be so much more chill. We can just be calm.  The Scriptures say, 'be still and know that i am god' - and man, we learned that from him.  At the end we asked if we could pray with him and he said we could pray but he wasn't sure if he wanted to.  We always try to encourage them to because we know there is so much power in prayer, so I asked again and told him that he could do it.  He agreed and waited for some people to pass us on their bikes.... then he takes off his bike-riding gloves, and comes in front of us and crouches down and asks if we could hold hands... okay not sure what to do here... but we said okay, so the four of us hold hands and he says the most amazing prayer I've ever heard.  It was so heart-felt and he prayed for us a lot - that we'd have strength, that God would put good and kind people in our path, and then he paused and told God that he could also put hardened people in our path that have the capacity to change!  Ah, man, it was so cool.  And the energy was like EVERYWHERE.  I KNOW that God exists, can I get a Halleluljiah! :) Can't spell hallelujah, but that's okay... Anyways, such a cool experience, and we were all so calm afterwards, so nice.  Then he texted us later that day with the SCRIPTURE I couldn't find.  We got him to look up a scripture!  Yay!!!! :) anyways, he's getting baptized.... we hope!

 

 Moroni the Hell Shaker

I was reading about Moroni this week, what a driven individual!  I love him!  I want to be more like him, so dedicated!  

 

THREE OF US ON MISSIONS!!!

I am feeling some of this weird pain that nathan is gone. It's so weird!  I can't even wrap my mind around it.  But this week when I have the usual conversation of how many brothers and sisters do you have are they all in the states no one is in brazil... and then I've got one in MEXICO!  YEAH!  It's so fun.  I love telling people that three of us are on missions.  The church is SO true!  I'm so excited to hear from Nate.  And Scott!  :) Tonja wrote me, she's so cute.  And Laura Williams wrote me this week, that brought me joy!  And Brother Roberts wrote, tell him thanks!

 

Well, anyways, I have so much more to say!  But I already wrote a ton, so just know that I love you all!  The work is moving forward.  Lives are being changed!

Kocham was!

-Siostra Amber Allen

The World Hands out Free Beers, We Hand out Free Books of Mormon

Dearest family, what a crazy week, Scott and Nathan both heading out this week!  Aaaah!  I am feeling it... But you know what, it's gunna be sweet, our work will just bless and sanctify eachother's works as well.  I'm thinking in Polish and it's really not helping me write in English.  I spoke a lot more Polish this week and I'm really grateful I did.  I need to do it more.  I love the Polish language.  It's a pain sometimes but I love the pain :)

We had one of the craziest weeks of my mission yet.  It was fun... and we were all over the place!  I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!  The work is picking up, I think it's because people are coming back from vacation, for one thing, for another, I made another attitude change and FAITH really moves mountains.  I don't know why sometimes it's discouraging (oh wait, yeah I do...) but it SHOULDN'T BE, we're on the winning team and even if we can't see the score board, we know who will come out on top so we have to keep fighting the battle and EXPECTING miracles.  I love that.  We've been being a lot more positive and we're shooting high with our goals this week, things will just HAVE to happen awesomely, I'm excited.

We went to go meet with our cute friend on Friday night and we get to this tram stop and there are TONS of people, and a HUGE container on a pedestal with about four ronchy looking people handing out free beer.  We were handing out ulotki on the other side of the street inviting people to order free books of mormon.  And which one do people take?  The beer.  WHAT!  There was a tangible lack of the Spirit in that whole vicinity - It made me almost sick and definitely nervous, I wanted to get out of there.  Unfortunately I'd heard our friend wrong on the phone - I thought she said she'd be there at 20:00 but instead she said she'd wait until 20:00 -- oops, so we get there, she's not there, call her, she has to come over again, :( Sorry!  And then we waited for EVER in that wretched place... We bought her some yellow roses for 10zł and waited... Some kids, like maybe 10 or 12 came up to us and asked us to go get them a beer.  NO, kid!  I told him it's not good for him, it's not going to help him.  He's like 'my girlfriend has one and i'll look stupid if I don't get one.' 'Forget it!  Take her a rose!' so we gave him a rose, but we saw him again later, with out the rose, asking someone else, so... to no avail... However, how did the world get here!  I just can't believe it sometimes.  I was on a train back from Warsaw this week as well and the two men in my cabin were being so defensive about their beer.  I hate beer.  I HATE it, yes.  It ruins lives!  I met a woman in the park the other day who's son is in the hospital and has been for a couple months because of alcohol!  I wish I could just destroy it all.  But Satan has to exist for a while longer, I guess.  Let's just do our best to keep him away from OUR homes and lives!

We met with some AWESOME people this week, Marietta, Magda, Iga, Krzyszek, Rafał, Alicja, Gosia, Angelika, Sławek, and many others on the streets.

A cool story, so we wanted to get 15 lessons this week, I've been wanting to hit it for some time now, and we were at 14 on Sunday morning.  We had 15 minutes before we were supposed to be at Magda's to pick her up for church.  So we pray hard and Sister Hemming literally runs down the street, so I ran too, and pretty much the first person I met and the first person she meets we teach the Restoration to (two lessons going at once) and they both let us PRAY with them on the STREET! :) Awesome, awesome, AWESOME!  :) So anyways, I love the work, faith, prayer, and Sister Hemming is SUCH a grand example of all of those things! 

The most amazing point of my week was perhaps the meeting in Warsaw with all the mission leaders.  We have the most amazing missionaries in the church, I swear.  I don't know how many times I've already said it, but I'll say it again and again, the CALIBER of these MISSIONARIES are just OFF THE CHARTS!  Elder Żeleżniak and Elder Raines (Assistants to the President...who also were in the MTC with me) just ripped it up with the spirit in that meeting.  They both took part and told us different things that really 'prepared the minds of the people spiritually' - as it says in Alma, I think, somewhere... When Moroni is fortifying things, maybe?  Can't remember... Anyways, They wrote a list of things on the board that missionaries in Poland see as impossible.  Then Elder Raines had us look out the window... for some strange reason... why were we looking out the window... then he said, 'ok this was a object lesson, look back at the board' so we look back at the board and they'd erased the "IM" in the word 'Impossible' and it now said 'The Possible List' - It was because we CHANGED our PERSPECTIVE - and that's really how simple and beautiful it really is!  -- After that meeting, all I wanted to do was just go talk to EVERYONE again with renewed vigor - I never want to SLEEP!  I know we can do this!  I KNOW we can baptize in Poland.  I know we can get to that point where Poland explodes with the Gospel like it is in other nations. I know we can do more than the norm, more than they have in the past.  God wouldn't have his missionaries here if it weren't for the fact that there are PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY who are praying to find us.  I know that God wants me here, in Kraków.  I LOVE KRAKÓW... um I may even say it's my favorite city... aah, I'm not allowed to say that, am I?  I love all of them, but I seriously feel so at home here and I LOVE everything about this city.  I love the branch and the people and the atmosphere (except the beer part, that is) - and ah, man, I never want to leave.  (ok maybe someday I could want to leave)

I just hope you all know that I know that the Spirit is REAL.  I know that God lives and LOVES us.  One last little story for you all before I go:
The Bike Crash
I actually didn't see the bike crash, I wasn't there.  But God saw it.  And He knew she was hurting.  I saw a nice looking girl with a bike, in a tramwaj.  I said hello and started to ask if she'd like to hear a message about the church that has brought me so much happi.... 'No I'm not in the mood right now.'  - I could have said 'okay, sorry.' and left it at that, but instead the spirit prompted to ask her what happened, 'Well, are you okay?  Did something happen today?  How has your day been?'  She replied that she'd gotten in a crash on her bike, and that she hurt bad, all over her body.  I looked and saw that she had ripped up her skin on her left arm pretty good, there was blood, and her hand wasn't super pretty either.  Her clothes looked dirty on her left hip and I'm sure I got a 'mommy face' on as I looked at her wounds and cooed 'oow!' - 'are you okay!?  I have ibuprofen in my bag if you want some, and if I had something to wipe you off with, and how is your bike?'  She slowly started to lighten up, it's crazy how a little pampering can do that to people.  She said she'd be okay, that she just needed to get home and then she'd be alright.  We then shared some small talk, where are you from, what are you studying, the likes.  She's an only child, I told her about my family and she asked if I did a lot of babysitting when I was at home, yes I did... and then we were getting close to her stop...I didn't know whether to bring up the gospel again - yes I'm a missionary but I don't want to push things on people if they don't want it, it's their choice and at first she was not excited to hear about it - she told me thanks for the nice conversation, and I said you're welcome, and i also felt to say something else and so after a second of thinking,  'I hope you know that God loves you,'  I said simply... and she just sort of looked beyond me and nodded her head a little... it was a yes, but a very weak one... I waited for a couple seconds of silence and then said, 'You know that right?  That you are a daughter of God, and he loves you?'  'Sometimes,' she said.  And I waited again, what could I say?  'can we meet with you sometime?'  'Yeah, I think you can'  Great!  And I got her number, and stood out of her way tried to help her get her bike off the tram -  I called her an hour later to ask if she'd gotten home alright.  She didn't answer but texted back saying thanks for the call and that she's still pretty sore, but at home and all is good.  I don't know, but there was just something about that experience.  I love her!  I knew her for like 10 minutes tops. And I love her.  She's so cool.  And so humble and she doesn't have the assurity that God loves her but I do, and it's my duty and my privelege to share it with her.  How cool is that!  I LOVE the Gospel!  I know The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is TRUE!  We CAN do this!  Sweet is the work,

Love,
Siostra Amber Allen

Learning Heaven

Happy Birthday Grandma Ethel -  :) I wore pink today even!  I didn't even look at my list of birthdays, just felt like it was her birthday, but I wasn't sure :)  I'm glad I remembered - and glad I have someone watching out for me from the other side :) And I'm glad she's a convert too.

Yesterday was Sister Young's birthday and she's now 20!  Yay!  That's pretty fun.  Thankfully, the Onkens had us over for dinner and even made cake with a candle and she got to make a wish and blow out a candle.  Sooooo nice of them!  It was pretty much the best dinner of my life - considering the difficult hot and sweaty and fasting day we had yesterday -

This week has been actually one of the coolest of my mission.  Oh, wait, the HOTTEST in terms of weather... but coolest as in rockin' in terms of awesomeness.  We had some CRAZY experiences and I just have to remind myself I'm not dreaming sometimes.  But it was about a lady named Teresa.  She is a little old lady whose number was on the old contact sheets of the Elders.  They gave them to us, we called her, she's 79, and turns out that she says she was baptized.  Um, she's a long lost MEMBER!  Well, the elders are a bit skeptical but on the Sister's side of town, that's our story and we're stickin' to it!  To make it more exciting, Teresa apparently is...was... pretty good friends of the late Pope John Paul II... haha, oh man... and I can't help but smile every time I think of that experience we had Friday night! :) :)

I read this in D&C 6 this morning, "Therefore, fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and Hell combine against you, for if ye are built upon my rock they cannot prevail." - and I LOVE IT!  We're doing the Lord's work out here and I'm just loving it so much.  Really, when you put your faith first, when you LEAD with your FAITH and remember all the awesomeness that is backing you up in this church, then you really can't be unhappy.  The Church is TRUE, everyone, and oh if everyone could just know it!

I read again some of my favorite talks I've collected on my mission yesterday in personal study.  Let me state that again...  Yesterday in Personal Study, I read some of my favorite talks.  These were talks I've collected while on my mission :) there we go, nicer... :) One is called the Inconvenient Messiah by Elder Holland.  It was a speech to the students at BYU before I was born.  IT is MONEY.  He said that we need to never stop offering up our bruised hearts despite the continual rejection we get out here... He said that in our extremeties we will come to Know Christ and find the price to pay a PRIVILEDGE!  I saw a mom with four cute daughters today - that is VERY rare in Kraków, Poland.  I asked if all of them were her's - yes they are, she responded - WAY TO GO!  I told her, YES!  I know it's not easy, but the price to pay is a priviledge. 

Another talk called 'The Atonement: All for All' by Bruce C. Hafen said 'We can have eternal life if we want it, but only if there is nothing else we want more.' - it's so true.  So many times there are people who say they have enough, the're close enough to God.  Or people who say they can live in their sins and God will be merciful anyways.  That's not the way it works, my friends!  Mercy can only claim the repentant.  and Justice claims the atonement, and those who don't correctly use the atonement.  Let's all correctly use it!  Let's repent and come unto God and CHANGE.  I still have a lot of changing to do before I get to where God wants me.  But I'm grateful for this mission and all it's teaching me to change.  Aaaah!  I LOVE POLAND.  And most of all I love my Heavenly Father, He's... MAGICAL.  Like He's WAY better than Harry Potter!  Or Gandalf!

We have five new invesgetators this week - YES!  People actually said 'yes' to their commitments this week.  We had 13 lessons and we're shooting for 15, or above, I really want some more, but yes, this is what we are working on if you want to help pray for the efforts.

Not much more to say - even though I know I'm missing like a million stories... However, I know that the CHURCH of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is TRUE!  YES there IS an institution on the Earth that is of God!  I know that President Monson is God's mouthpiece on the earth today just as in times of old.  WE ARE SO BLESSED.  You just remember how blessed you are this week and remember how you have been given your specific assignment in the Kingdom.  Fulfill it well.  What ere thou art, act well thy part!  Love you tons
-Siostra Amber Allen

Zion's Camp

Oh boy.  Well, here we are again on a Monday Preparation Day and I'm sitting here e-mailing.  It's pretty crazy.  I can't believe how fast the weeks are going.  This one did seem to be really long, but looking back it seems like it was just yesterday I was in the random library e-mailing :)  Now I'm in an enternet cafe.  Kraków is such a beautiful city, have I told you this?  It's got cobblestone streets, several universities, good ones, and really old beautiful tall buildings.  There are pigeons everywhere, and this week is really hot.  Gregg, I feel for you.  Actually I think Jenny might be burning up too, and Scott for sure will be in Jamaica!  :) crazy, so no complaints!  Just loving it!

I hear that Gregg is going to be a Zone Leader!  And Jenny may train soon!  And Scott and Nathan are about to get their endowments, whoa... the world is evolving at a rapid pace! :)  It's pretty cool!!! 

I'm going to tell you a few stories, then I've actually got a ton of people to e-mail today for some reason, so yep...

Story #1: The Boy with the Broken Bike

We felt like we should go out and try to find this one girl and where she lives - we get out there about an hour and realize it is taking a long long time, but we felt like we should go out there, that perhaps there was at least someone on the way.  So as we talked to everyone along the way, we get on this bus when we meet this boy named Andrzej.  I think I may name one of my sons Andrzej some day - it's way cool... And he's a red-head with freckles, and he's rather tall, and he's 18.  His bike had broken and he'd tried to fix it but ended up just getting smeared grease stains on his face :) haha, he was the nicest kid.  He also said some fun words like 'prestiż' :) when I told him we studied in the states... haha... Well turns out this bus ends up breaking down too!  And so we spent probably a good 25 minutes getting to know Andrzej and letting him feel our good energy - aka the Spirit! - and then we were able to give him a Book of Mormon and get his phone number!  He ended up telling us that his mom died of cancer three years ago, he has two siblings and a father who owns his own business... man... he said it was really hard.  But he was so kind... and he just had this awesome soul, I could just tell! :)  I'm so excited to just watch the rest of all these stories someday, and to imagine in my mind what I want to happen.  I wish that he'll just read it all, and pray, and then read the bible, and pray more, and then meet with the missionaries, have a super awesome spiritual experience, know the TRUTH and get baptized and stay strong for EVER!  That's what I want to happen.  He's just too cool to not bring with me to the Celestial Kingdom, along with a million other people I've met in Poland.  These people - I love them. I just wish they could break free from the traditions of their fathers.  They can do it, it's just going to take someone... maybe just one person... to start the fire... and I want to help feed the flame!

Story #2: Exchange to Wrocław

I got to go on a lovely exchange to Wrocław this week!  I hope I helped out in Wrocław, all I know is that they definitely helped me.  Sister Blake is twice the woman I'll ever be and she's just so great.  Sister Ellis is also there and just working so hard, with so much faith, and so much trust in god.  I'm grateful for the Sisters in Poland, we we seriously have such a great group, perhaps the greatest :) AND Wrocław is GORGEOUS, i'll send some pictures

Story #3: Zion's Camp

So, Presient Kucia, the coolest Branch President in the entire world, decided to have us watch a clip about Zion's Camp for Sunday School yesterday - during Church!  I wonder if you can find it on line or rent it or something... it's so awesome.  It focuses on two boys in the camp and how one dies and just the craziness they have in Zion's Camp.  They get clear back to Missouri and then God tells them to come home. So yeah, they get out there and come back and some people are like 'WHY are we going BACK!?'  why would God tell us to come home - all we want to do is fight!   But they are obedient and out of those tested individuals comes the leadership of the early church of saints!  9/12 of the Apostles are chosen from that group!  How cool is that!  And sometimes I just feel like certain things are so hard, why this, why that - aaah and I know I shouldn't play the why game - but you know what, god has a greater plan.  He always has and always will and he commands and revokes, he giveth and he taketh away.  He knows what he's doing.  Trust him.  WE HAVE to TRUST HIM!

I know that Christ is Our Savior.  He felt it all.  He knows it all.  I can't comprehend it, but I know it's true.  He is Alpha and Omega, beginning and end, and he's also my Big Brother.  He loves you.  And you knew him, so we must come to know him now.  He is not out of our reach.  He still wants to succor us, he still wants to comfort us.  We must let Him.

I love the mission.  I love this sweaty, painstaking, at times heartbreaking work.  I know who I'm doing it for.  And we can't let Christ take the cross by himself.  We've got to carry it with Him.  -- Sister Hemming shared that insight with us this week, she is such a star.  I'm so grateful for my companions and what they are teaching me.  I'm trying not to compare myself and just be TEACHABLE :) because I have so much to learn from them :)  I love Sister Young and Sister Hemming.  We have so much fun in this three-some thing.  It's going to be weird not having it someday.  We're only about half way through this transfer, so another 5-ish weeks.  :)  Love it!

O.k., love you all!

-Siostra Amber Allen

Sisters Ellis and Blake on my exchange

Tis a Gift to be Simple

WELL... what to say?  I'm in a new library cuz the other one is closed for vacation... "WHo closes a library!?"
So...today I go to Wroclaw for exchanges, i get nervous for exchanges because i feel like i should be able to...anyways...i get nervous but i know god will be with me, so its gong to be alright.  Sorry this keyboard is super crappy and i have to erase every three letters..so this may not be a long e-mail! 
I was also going to try to send pictures today ale niestete, nie mozliwa...

Ive been trying to decide whether or not to realize that I have three months left.  I seriously had pushed it out of my mind so well that when President asked me in my interview how much time i had left, I had to think about it.  He told me that when he was a Stake President they told him when he had about a year left that his time was winding down.  They told him that because they realize that you tend to maybe do some things a bit differently if you realize you won't be there forever... thing is i don't want to think about coming home really.  It's kinda scary  -- and i'm going to miss poland and being a missionary like crazy... so im going to stop thinking about coming home and just know somehow in the back of my head that iv'e only got three months left so i'd better put it all on the table.

This week I had a cool experience.  i felt like i should clean up my pile of clothes.  I mean, of course I should do that, because you don't want to live in 'squaller' - but like i hadnt felt like doing it before and that morning i just felt like i should.  So, i did..and as i was organizing my 4ft. by 6 ft area where i keep all my clothing AND my luggage, my blue skirt with pockets fell to the ground and i heard some clattering...uh...what is that?  So I pick it up and look in the pocket and there's my Karta miejsce.  this thing is like gold... you must have it at all times when traveling autobusem i tramwajem.  And i didn't have it on me for like 2 days - at least one, and here in Krakow the bilet checkers check you OFTEN.  So i just KNEW that god had prompted me to find that and that they were going to check for bilets that night.  I even told my companions. Sure enough, there was a bilet check that night... crazy.  Thanks Heavenly Father!  So, my friends, just always listen to the Spirit, simple but grand.

Tis a Gift to be Simple:  this week i got frustrated a bit...and got sticky...i must be patient, and simple.  i must remember that God has it all under control!  i'm so grateful to know that God has things figured out and we can just relax and yet work hard and be obedient too.  No need for the anxt. 
K, well, wish me luck, this week is going to be a great one!

HAPPY BIRTHAY Nathan! 
love you!
-Siostra Allen

Fragile: Souls

This week we had an awesome experience when we ran into a family again that we had met about two weeks ago. We LOVE them they are so cute! We had planned to go out to a girl's house to visit her, she told us she wasn't interested and we hadn't had a whole lot of luck out there, but as we came back home we met that family and then knew why we'd gone out there! So glad that God puts people in our paths!

Also a cool experience, when I called a girl on our potentials list and she told me she had gone to her catholic priest and talked to him about the Book of Mormon.  Apparently he had told her not to read it and that they don't believe in it.  He also somehow explained to her that we are responsible for Adam's transgressions - which we are not.  So I explained to her how we are not responsible for another person's sins and that babies are pure and holy.  I told her she could read and pray about it and ask God for an answer and not to ask a priest or to ask the missionaries or anyone else, but to ask God.  She asked how she could recognize an answer.  This is such a hard question for me.  Because the answer is VERY specific for every person.  But it's through the Holy Ghost - I explained it will feel good and happy and asked her how she feels when she does something good for someone else - kind of like that!  Yes.  So I know that child baptism is an incorrect tradition.  I also know that the Book of Mormon is so true.  I know that something has to be 100% prawdziwy to be of God.

There was a hard lesson we had with a man  here in Kraków this week as well, he told us that we are making up our religion, that every religion has a book or something tangible like the Book of Mormon that they base their belief off of.  He said that when we pray we're just making up our answers that God is giving us.  He says that there's a certain way the brain works ---yadda-yada-yada.  And that was pretty much the whole meeting.  He was thinking up a pschyciological and theological and scientific way to explain everything.  But he still believes in God... that's the weird thing.  He thinks that God just doesn't get involved in our lives... WHOA.  The mnóstwo amounts of dziwny rzeczy są tutaj... And yet we just testify and hope they'll someday see the light.  I know God answers prayers.  I know He lives.  I know that I need to trust Him more.  I'm repenting of it and will do better this week, it's a promise.

I want to speak better polish.  I want to see some people baptized.  I want, I want, I want - Haha!  That's very selfish, I just realized. 

These people need us here, and we're here to just show them that God loves them.  Even if it is through my smile.  So I'm going to strap my smile back on and head out there again.  One more day, Lord, once more into the fray.

I'm glad that it's hard, I guess, so I can experience the joy of the days and moments that are good that much more.  I'm glad it's hard so I could say I served a mission in Poland for the Savior.  I'm not the only one out here.  I also don't believe Poland is really a 'hard' place, it's just getting softened and some day these catholic churches are going to be changed into Stake centers if I have anything to do with it.

I love you all!

- Sister Amber Allen

The Walls are Continually Before Me

Gunna switch it up:  Here's some fun things I learned this week:

 

Thy Walls are Continually Before Me

Walls...There's all kinds of them.  Big ones, small ones, made of brick, made of clouds, or metal, or thoughts... And usually walls are associated with problems.   Christ has us written upon his palms and our 'walls' are continually before Him.  This statement has been stuck in my mind for quite sometime and I reflect on it then and again... And it's just amazing to me that we are so well known to the Savior of Mankind.  Sometimes I hit walls.  Don't go thinking that I don't!  This missionary work in Poland is not easy.  Sometimes I wonder... and have to stop myself... this wondering stuff, it's no good.  I've got to have faith and not wonder... 'what if's are icky...  Basically, Christ knows me.  He knows how to succor me.  I've just got to let Him in and remember it wasn't easy for him either.

 

Instruments in His Hands

Brat Onken in church yesterday painted me a really awesome picture of how we are Instruments in the Lord's hands.  He got up to bear his testimony in Sacrament Meeting and talked about how we should really just be instruments and life wouldn't seem so hard.  If we just turn our lives over to God and stop fighting against His will and if we just were teachable and not stuck up... Brat Onken graduated in music at BYU and he plays the piano like a pro.  So his idea was about the Piano and how pianos don't boast in themselves, they have no pride when you play their keys, instead they are just showing off what the player knows how to do.  Really all we have and are we owe to God and we should have less pride.  Something I need to definitely work on!  Having a 'Not My Will but Thine' attitude is really what this life is all about.  Sometimes I get all worried that Poland isn't progressing, that we're seeing nothing... ok not nothing but very, very little, that maybe I'm doing something wrong.  But then I think about how hard we work and I think that perhaps if God wanted the work to move forward it would... maybe it's just not his time yet.  So why am I so impatient!?

 

Called to be You

This one has been especially on my mind lately.  And Because of that, when President Edgren talked about it in our Missionary Leadership Council Meeting, I knew that the 'mantle has been passed' as they sometimes say, or that he for sure is in tune with the Spirit.  I know I wasn't called to be someone else.  But sometimes I feel as though I ought to be.  Sometimes I feel like I should be just as good as one of my previous companions, or be baptizing as many people as Gregg is, or have as much faith as Sister Hemming, or be as funny and spiritual as Sister Young... but then I must remember we're all a part of this big puzzle, and we're all different for a reason.  So what ere thou art act well thy part!  And I'm trying, promise I'm really trying!

 

Heavenly Father Approved

I read a talk this morning from this last April General Conference, by Elder Kopischka and it was about how we should be seeking the lord's acceptance and approval and not anyone elses.  This is also hard for me.  I know that people expect you to help people get baptized here in Poland, I'm trying, promise I'm really trying... But what does GOD want me to do?  Doesn't he want me to help people get baptized too?  And so I'm praying hard to figure this one out.  I know that I'm working hard, but I definitely could use His approval. So this week I will be praying to feel it, to feel that my strength and my energy is enough.

 

Do not avoid things that are hard

Yeah, okay so that's pretty self explanitory... What doesn't kill you makes you stronger... it just hurts.

 

The Youth are Ready and Rising

Sounds like there's some crazy things happening with this influx of missionaries.  I'm so excited for the world to just get blown away by these missionaries.  The rising generation is so much better than me.  These new missionaries are blowing ME away.  I am comparing myself, and need to stop, but seriously - - their polish is better, they are figuring things out faster than I ever did... and the bar is ever rising... I feel as though I'm getting a bit left behind or old or... ugh!  No!  I don't want to slow down, I don't want to.  I don't want to be the one just training the ones with energy, I want to give my energy too...Sometimes I just wonder where is it?  ENERGY the pace is quickening!

 

Live Like you Mean it: Plan with Revelation: The Natural Man Wastes Time

President Edgren really emphasized planning.  I love planning.  It's hard sometimes because we mostly do our planning at night or on fridays when it takes forEVER, but in the end, if you plan well, you get results.  Please be planning your days and weeks!  And plan for the WHO!  When you think 'oh I'm going to bear lake, I'm going to luke's baseball game, and james' football game and...and...and' instead of thinking of just the places you are going, think of WHO you will see there.  What do they need?  What are their problems?  What can you study in personal scripture study TODAY that will HELP that person?  Plan ahead and the Lord will richly bless you, it's a promise.

"Inspired plans: Make no small plans, small plans have no power to ignite the hearts of man"

 

Arms WideR Open

Not just arms wide open, but WIDER.  President Edgren also talked about this.  We've just got to love, and love, and MORE LOVE!

 

Also, to say 'have fun' in polish you can say this, 'bawcie się dobrze' and I've been saying that every once and a while and apparently both of my companions thought I'd been saying 'Babcia dobrze' which means 'grandma well' um... HAHA!  They thought I'd been wishing everyone a good grandma... so that's fun...

 

Also, when I was in Warsaw I got some updates on some of my investegators there.  The one is 16 years old and her mom won't give her permission to get baptized but she's got a TESTIMONY of the BOOK OF MORMON!  That's great news!  I just pray and hope she can hold on until she's 18, when she can make her own decision.  Another sister is having a hard time gaining a testimony of living prophets and didn't pass her interview, so pray for her.  Ciesława is still sick and I guess isn't close to baptism either... arg...but we keep a chuggin'! :)

 

More one sentence awesomeness:

Get up in the morning and say 'i fear no man.'

They don't know what they don't have time for, we do - Be agressive

No plateauing and no excuses

Attitude is EVERYTHING

There was a story our president told us about a man who used to go down to BYU to watch the football games and return early Sunday morning and then got a calling in the bishopbric and wanted to know if he could just skype for the one meeting in the morning and then catch a different session of church later in the afternoon... um... president edgren was his stake president, I think, and told him he'd let him make the decision but that he told him, 'I envy you for the sacrifice you are able to make, this is something you love so much and you have been given a chance to give it all up for Him'  - man... what a way to look at life.  I should think about this when it's hard.  I'm giving it up.  Giving up the comfort and the... easiness... and man, I should be grateful that I can sacrifice for the Lord.  Besides, it's not like I'm one of the Sons of Mosiah who served 14 year missions!  Or Alma and Amulek who watched their recent converts burn in a fire, their women and children too!  Man... I'm lucky, really lucky.  And I'm not like Abinadi who died before knowing if he really did any good... that is quite a story.  Oh how I am grateful for the Book of Mormon!  And the Savior, who experienced it ALL.

 

Yeah, one more thing, President said that this country is really amazing.  That it's history is tragic, heroic, and amazing.  That God loves these people.  I got a bit teary eyed as he spoke when I again realized how much I love Poland.  I love this country.  Sometimes I forget how much I love it, but then there's the times I remember and those are really sweet.  President says he can see the day coming when the membership in Poland will reach 'Critical Mass, and quantum leaps'  - it 'may not be on our watch' but I think it'll get there, he said.  So I'm just hoping for that.  I pray really hard, and try not to doubt!  It's all going to be okay!

 

Yes, so I love you all, and I can't believe nathan is leaving us and there will be an even smaller band of the Ben 10 left in Provo.  Well, all the more blessings, I guess!  I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is TRUE!  God lives and loves us!  Keep up the good work and thanks for all the prayers!

Love,

Siostra Amber Allen

The Krakow Threesome

Well, I wanted to have the subject of my e-mail be 'We're Comin' in Hot, Kraków.'  Haha... but wasn't sure if it sounded too high-school... :) Oh my, oh my.  I am learning lots of lessons here in Kraków, fam, and they are hitting me FAST.  It's amazing how much you learn from each companion you have and Sister Hemming is no different.  THIS GIRL IS A FIRECRACKER!  She's SO ready to hit the road running and I'm SO proud of her, like SO proud of her.  She's teaching me faith all over again - I think every new missionary does.  It's that 'trainee faith' you hear about, I forgot about it.  But they have such high expectations and there's no such thing as limitations and it's so good.  Also reminds me how TOO realistic I get sometimes.  I could stretch my imagination a bit more and expect more miracles!

This week, we saw lots of amazing things happen. It's interesting being a trainer and starting to think more about your trainee's and their welfare more than my own. I pray for them so much. I love them so much. And I want the best for them. I see how hard it is for them and what an adjustment they are making and I just want them to see miracles, and we have seen them, this week! We prayed to know where to go, as we were planning Saturday night, and Sister Young felt we should go to visit a former investegator named Monika. I wasn't really feeling the same, but I sent thoughts heaven-ward and thought that I should let her have this decision to make. And so we did it the next day and instead of Monika we met Joanna. Joanna is Monika's roommate and is searching for her 'droge w życiu' (way in life) and she really was interested!!!  And she's so cute and college-age and doesn't agree with the institution of the Catholic church, automatically AWESOME.  We shared about the Restoration and gave her a book of Mormon and she is willing to meet again. This really brightened our day and let Sister Young know that she was important in the eyes of the Lord, let me know that God is really looking out for her as well.

I've learned a lot about being a mother, actually, in the last week. It's one thing to have one child, but a whole other ball game to have two. It requires love in all directions except inwards. I mean, I can like myself, but I HAVE to be thinking of others at all times. I love it. I love to love, and I want to do it more effectively.

I've been reading in Alma recently, Alma 12:30 says 'And they began from that time forth to call on his name; therefore God conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan of redemption, which had been made from the foundation of the world; and this he made known unto them according to their faith and repentance and their holy works."  - whoa... I LOVE THE BOOK of MORMON - yeah, 'God conversed with men' and he STILL DOES.  He can converse with YOU and he converses with ME.  I also have enjoyed watching how much Sister Hemming prays.  She comes home and prays, she prays more than once during personal study and at other times of the day.  I pray a lot in my head, but maybe I need to be making more of an effort... and kneeling really helps.  I just wish everyone in Poland knew they could have that personal conversation with God.  I wish they knew that plan of redemption.  I wish they knew that if they just had a seed of faith and if they'd just TRY to live the laws God has given us, the world would be a better place SO much quicker!

 

We also recently got April's General Conference talks in Liahona form FINALLY!  And I've just been eating that thing UP!  I read president Monson's talk that says "Appreciate the sacrifices which your parents so willingly make in order for you to serve.  Their labors will sustain you, their faith encourage you, their prayers uphold you.  A mission is a family affair.  Though the expanse of continents or oceans may seperate, hearts are as one."

OH HOW I LOVE THIS QUOTE!!!  I'm so grateful for you guys!  You are the sustaining, encouraging, praying force behind what I'm doing here and I love you for it.  I'm also really grateful for the families and parents of the two women with whom I'm serving right now.  They miss their families and love them dearly.  They talk about them all the time and I'm especially grateful to here that there are other great fathers in the world.  There are a lack of those, I believe, and not discounting the mothers, we love our mothers SO much too, but the world is lacking in good fathers and we are so SO grateful for our dads.

 

Mom, I watched part of the broadcast, but only part...not sure if we'll ever watch the whole thing while here... but I watched Elder Perry's talk - SO GOOD!  Aaah!  I'm so excited about this missionary stuff... cuz guess what!  I'm a SISTER MISSIONARY when the world is EXPLODING!  :) aaah!  So cool... Mom I didn't see you in the choir, but Sister Hemming was singing in the choir WITH you! :) So that's cool!  And thanks for being there, and singing, it made me excited to watch!!  The Lord is hastening his work, PLEASE everyone BE A PART OF IT!!!

 

Anyways, I think you are all at Bear Lake?  So send my love to everyone!  I got an e-mail from Tasha today which made me SO happy!  I just want to hold baby Tyler SO BAD!  I also got an e-mail from Sister Folsom and one from Sister Bezdjian who left me last week, she's home!  WEIRD!  And she saw Sister Ostler and... man I just miss them so much. 

 

Oh wow.  This week I feel really old.  Have I said that before?  Just feeling older as the days go by... and they go by so fast.  We're in July now?  What!?

I know that the Lord is looking out for us, he loves us SO much!  He showed us a great sunset last night even, and I loved it.  I love Kraków!  And we're seeing miracles, tons of numbers and books of mormon in the past few days!  I'm so excited for this transfer, we're going to rock this town and see some baptisms, I know it.  Hobie Ho Here we GO!  (spencer, that was a Spader reference, when's the last time you read those books?)

Love you tons,

- Siostra Amber Allen

Ode to President and Sister Nielson

Well, I wrote a letter to President Nielson today, good-bye's are so hard! 

 

 

Wtorek, 18ego, Czerwca:

     Well, we had a lesson with a lady who said she's been raised in the Catholic church and she'd rather stay that way, that was a sad meeting.  She wouldn't even take a Book of Mormon.  Then our plans got whirl-winded and instead of having the "Member-Lesson" we'd planned (aka having a member with you on a lesson) we had the lesson with the investegator and the one with the member seperately at completely different times.  It was a hard day.  But the best thing about the day was the Blue Earrings Story.

 

          "The Blue Earrings"

       As I got onto the tramwaj, I knew I had to talk to the woman sitting there within the first thirty seconds of standing by her or I'd slowly loose courage and it'd just get harder.  So I immediately talked to her about the Book of Mormon and shared a brief bold statement about it's truthfullness and meaning to me.  She was not interested.  No big deal, I'll just talk to the next person... or maybe I ought to make her feel loved...? (that's always my dilemma, go on to the next person, or make sure that first one knows that I'm not just a robot handing out fliers about my church.)  I decided to talk to her, and she was very nice and up for small talk.  We exchanged pleasantries and talked about how she was married and how people in Poland wear their wedding rings on the right hand instead of the left (yeah cool, huh!)... etc., etc... Then it was her tram stop.  She stood up to leave and I figured I'd tell her how much I liked her blue earrings because I'd noticed them from the very first minute we began our conversation.  I hurried to tell her that I liked her earrings as a 'by the way' compliment and a good bye statement... Well, all of a sudden she stops, puts her baggage down, and pulls these cute blue dangly earrings out of her ears!  Somehow they ended up in my hands and I tried to say no, but somehow, there they were, and she was gone... The tram pulled away without another word... It was the oddest sensation.  I looked there in my hands and couldn't believe it.  She had just given them to me.  She didn't even KNOW me!  And yet she gave them to me because I told her I liked them... I wanted to cry.  No one had ever been so nice to me, especially not in that way, and I was seriously taken aback.  I couldn't get that incident out of my mind and replayed it over and over... should I have refused, and tried to give them back?  Followed her off the tramwaj to give them back?  Did I say thank-you?  Would I do the same?  Would I have the guts to just give something that I'd earned or bought or loved?  Then I thought of the Savior.  He has the same loving attitude that this woman had.  He loves us unconditionally and without holding back.  As soon as you say 'Lord I love thee, but I'm lost and I need your help' - He was willing to die for us, and take away our sins, if only we just ask.  And all we have to do is hold out our hands, let him in.  LET HIM IN.  I think sometimes it's hard for me to let others help me.  I want to help myself.  But really we need to let the Savior in.  Let him serve you, succor you.  Think about him, his life, his sacrifice, and the meaning behind the Atonement, it will blow you away.

 

Środa, 19ego, Czerwca:

       This day was a fun day.  We went to the train station to wait for the Kielce Elders to show up around 8:30 in the A.M.  We sat and Sister Young and I just read out of the Book of Mormon together (Sister Bezdjian suggestion) and commented as we read.  We read in the Words of Mormon and just thought about Mormon and his situation and how awful it must have been.  I'm so glad we at least have hope that things will change in Poland.  At least we aren't all dying off and we're the last strong members of our religion and beliefs....

        After the Elders all got there, we boarded a bus heading to Katowice for Zone Conference.  Zone Conferences are always a blast, and this one was no different.  It was so great to see Sister Bezdjian and talk to her about life and leaving and craziness.... ALSO Sister and Brother Reed are there in Katowice so THAT was an extra treat.  Also Elder Rittmanic is in Kato, he's still loosing weight, it's so weird.  He really looks so different than the boy I knew at the MTC.  And as of transfers last night, he's now a Zone Leader!  Crazy! 

       O.k. I guess I'd better tell you about transfers really quick, now that you're curious!

 

TRANSFERS: SISTER YOUNG AND I ARE STAYING IN KRAKÓW and we're getting an extra companion!  So I'm double training.  I'll be training a new sister AND finishing off Sister Young's training.  It's gunna be SWEEEEEEEEEET! 

 

Anyways, the Zone Conference was SWEET!  We all had to cut up something to give to Sister Nielson for her quilt.  I also got sang to for my birthday (a little late, but hey better late than never, right?) - AND I got birthday cookies!  Homemade, chocolate chip/M&M soft cookies!   Yum!  Then the Assistants also did a really cool little segment on being united as a companionship. There are four three-somes going on in the mission this transfer, it's going to be a party.  The mission is so young.  And we have so many sisters all of a sudden!

My favorite part of the Zone Conference was President's part.  He always does such a good job and says exactly what I need to hear.  He got a bit teary-eyed at the end.  My mission president is leaving me! :(  Arg.  So that made me cry... and we all just cried... Then we had a testimony meeting.  I'll tell you.  Those testimony meetings are like heaven.  It's the best.  I gleened the following truths:

 

"Be a Better Stupid than you were yesterday." - Elder Dopp

"Learn Something new everyday" - Elder Neuner

"Serve for Three" - Elder Lanham (like put 8 years into 2, or like think of who can't serve that you're serving for - for me that'd be like maybe Rachel, and Sister Ostler, and maybe even Tasha and Tavia, not that they didn't want to serve, or that they're not serving, but you know, like think of the mission in terms of how much you can GIVE!  Just GIVE MORE!)

"Let the Book of Mormon change your life." - Elder Meherg

"Learn from and be grateful for the trials." - Elder Dodge

"Time flies.  Love and soak up every second of it." - Elder Rittmanic

"Let it ALL fall under the category of 'what does god expect' and not 'what do others,' or 'what do I expect'" - Sister Blake

"Keep Learning How much you Don't know." - Elder Blom

"Make the reason that you are here LOVE for the SAVIOR." - Elder Tiner

"Give what you LOVE." - Elder Stumpf

"Bear Testimony more frequently." - Elder Smith

"Giving up your will and accepting the Lord's = HAPPINESS." - Sister Packard

BEAM and BE EXCITED like Sister Pearson

"Preserve spiritual confirmations by writing them down." -Elder Walter

Say things like, 'I declare' and 'I bear witness' + SMILE = Miracles :) - Elder Zeleżniak

 

Aaah!  And I just keep getting these feelings this week, I'm not sure if it's just because president is leaving, or WHAT, but I get all anxy.  Like over excited so that my stomach gets all queezy.  I think that usually happens right before transfers, so maybe that's all it is.  But I also felt at that Zone Conference just how much I really love these missionaries.  We are our own little forever family.  I just know it.  We're all so COOL!  Like the coolness couldn't be contained in that room of missionaries.  I felt like exploding with awesomeness! :)  Aaaah!  Seriously.  Elder Walter and Elder Dodge and Sister Young and the members of our branch here in Kraków ALSO blow my mind.  They are just amazing.  Simply amazing.  I'm in the best place in the world.  I love being a missioary.  And I don't want to believe it could ever end.

 

Czwartek, 20ego, Czerwca:

Great, we're only on Thursday... I'm so sorry!  I just saw a letter from Jenny in The Dominican Republic! 

 

Piątek, 21ego, Czerwca:

An angry lady on the street... okay well she wasn't super angry, I've met much worse.  But you could tell there was anger inside of her, you know... and as we talked to her she was just up tight and not happy and I tried to pout it out to her.... You see she was saying that she could do whatever she wants.  That God, if he exists, doesn't have rules because why would he give us free agency AND rules AND if he's nice why would he punish us?  All these crazy questions... and she just wanted to live how she wanted to live...but she was so UNHAPPY because of it... I could feel the calmness coming off of me and the anxyness coming off of her and it was such a stark contrast.  Just another realization moment where, I KNOW THE CHURCH IS TRUE.

 

Sobota, 22ego, Czerwca:

We went to do CULTURE NIGHT! 

Also taught the Law of chastity to one of our favorite investegators... didn't go over super well...she doesn't see why the law of chastity is so important... AAah!  Satan is so good at decieving, it's crazy...

 

Niedziela, 23ego, Czerwca:

We sang a special musical number at church.  We were all nervous for transfer calls, and felt SO much better after they were done.  We get a new companion on Wednesday, I believe.  And we're not going into Warsaw to pick her up, she has to get here by herself - ADVENTURE!!!

 

And that's about it... I'm sorry I ramble, if there's things I'm missing.  I just hope you all know that I know that Christ lives and loves us.  Sister Young and I spent a lot of time last night talking about the Savior, and about our Personal Conversion.  We talked about how it was hard to pinpoint a turning point in our lives but how BIG a role FAMILY plays in our conversion.  Without you guys I wouldn't be here.  Without my amazing parents, I wouldn't even be CLOSE to here.  And without President Nielson and Sister Nielson I ALSO wouldn't be half the missionary I am today.  I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is TRUE with all my heart, no doubt about it.  Let's tell the world!

Love,

Siostra Allen

Something Fierce

 Monday June 17, 2013

 

I'm loving this mission stuff something fierce!  And I think that would be a great band name.  Write it down.  :)  I may just start up a band someday called 'Something Fierce' (if it's not already on the market...)

 

Well, y'all, I just am so glad it's Preparation Day.  It's a beautiful day when I can just read about my family and eat a delicious rhubarb zdrozdziuwka (spelling?) and go to the mall and get our groceries (which we're in serious need of) and just chill a bit before another FANTASTIC week of MISSIONARY work.  I'm grateful that God is okay with breaks.  He's okay with them as long as you know your priorities and still be a missionary.  We still talk to people about the gospel as we're going about our Preparation Day and we still have our name tags and dresses on.  So it's just great!  I love it! 

 

So that picture you sent me of all the cousins, Ashley is so cute!  Someone please tell her that she is so cute.  And everyone just looks taller, weird!  :) So fun!  I loved getting taller, sometimes still wish I could get taller, but I'm happy that my hair is getting longer, that's good...

 

This week was really interesting, lots of questions thrown in our direction.  Sometimes we have just the normal lesson where you pray, share your message and ask them questions, then you have the lesson where they've researched your church a little and they want to know ALL about it.  One young man asked us about homosexual relationships, and then we met another man with the same concerns the very next day, and then a young woman who thought that we shouldn't be against it.  We were able to really testify boldly that we KNOW marriage is between a man and a woman and that it's not something you mess with.  The one lady said that 'I could care less what people do on their own time in their own home, they're not hurting me!  It's their deal, leave them alone.'  Well, actually, I told her, everything we do, everything we have, is GOD's DEAL.  Don't you for a second think that you just got here on your own, grew up on your own, and you eat and breathe and sleep all because of yourself.  This is not your deal.  This is God's deal.  These are his rules.  AND He KNOWS what will make you most happy in the long run, it's all about trust.  Do it his way, he'll bless you.  Pray about it if you don't know it's true. 

 

Prayer is so powerful.  I know with all my heart that prayers are answered.  they are answered for me on a daily basis.  As I pray for help with the language and with just being a missionary, it's hard work, but it can be done with prayer.  Prayer makes everything so much easier.  If you are not praying at least once an hour, pray more!  I could even do better.  But I try to pray consistantly, it really does help loads.

 

 

Did I ever tell you about how hillarious my companion is?  Actually maybe 'we' are hillarious combined.  Like the time when she got her scarf stuck in the hair dryer and started jumping up and down screaming 'it's eating it!  It's eating my scarf!' and I nonchalantly bend down and UNPLUG the silly thing from the electricity... yeah well the blow drier is dead... but her scarf was okay...and our house isn't burnt down.... :) :)

Or did I tell you about the time we got milkshakes we got her first p-day here, they put a half a liter of MILK, like just MILK and then some frozen fruit in it and handed it to us to drink... i'm pretty sure the kiwis were curdling the milk.... gross...

Or how this last week we've seemed to be running into a lot of young guys who listen to our message and may just be hitting on us... we're not sure... ugh!  Actually, this one time, we stopped this guy on a bike and talked to him for a minute.  After a few minutes, he told us he wasn't interested in our church but he'd like to take me out for coffee sometime... Uh, I told him we don't go on dates on our missions, besides we don't have time and etc., etc., uh then he was like, 'really you don't have time?'  Well that's not the point, I promised I wouldn't go on dates on my mission - - this is all in polish by the way - - and, I said, besides, I don't drink coffee... 'Well how about tea, I'll just have you over for tea and you guys can tell me a bit about your church.' Uh... no probably not, you'd meet with the Elders, actually, and actually we don't drink tea... 'Well, WATER, we'll meet and talk over some WATER then, you can't do that?!' - Szkoda that I already gave him my ulotka with my NUMBER on it, we ended up saying, sorry nope, can't do that, catch ya later!  Ha... awkward....

 

I had a weird dream this week... Luke Skywalker was in it... and there was a part where there were two swans fighting, in and out of an under ground lake, dark and watery... a black swan and a white swan...and the black one was the good one... and I asked it why it was black if it was the good one, it said that the necklace it was wearing looked better on black than on white... Then the skywalker dude, we were on a train and we were stow-aways and... not sure who 'we' were, but we jumped off at a train stop, and he waited a bit until it was moving and he fell off a cliff and one of us said to the other, 'he's not very good at train stops...' haha... oh man... weird dreams.  Do we have any interpretations from the crowd?

 

Well, what else can I say?  Pray for us to have an AWESOME last week together.  It's so weird, I don't want to say good-bye to Sister Young.  She's so awesome!  I love serving with her!  We may go do our 'Culture Night' outing this week, not sure what to visit or do, but that'll be fun.  Pray for people to show up to their meetings and to be at least curious about our church.  Pray for them to have their hearts softened.  I gave a talk in church yesterday about the Restoration.  It's hard because I say a sentance in Polish and then interpret directly to English... but it's alright, I'm trying to get the hang of it.  I felt it went well.  I learned from preparing the talk a few things (some of which I already knew).  1.  Joseph Smith WAS a true prophet.  I love and admire that man and really REALLY want to be worthy to meet him someday.  2. We should all be a little more like him, take some SERIOUS thought about SPIRITUAL matters and MAKE THEM A BIGGER DEAL.  He went to great lengths to figure out which church was true before he went out and prayed about it.  He went 'as often as time permitted' to those religious meetings and read the Bible, and THEN he asked.  If you want personal revelation (which why would you NOT want it, in ANY part of your life) you must STUDY it OUT first, and THEN ask God.  Are you asking God what is his will for you?  For those you have in your stewardship?  I love this principle!

 

I know that we all have weaknesses, I have tons.  Some are horrible.  Some aren't that big... BUT I know God loves me.  I know because I asked him.  You can ask him too.  Remember he's always there for you.  He loves YOU. 

=)  Till next week!

- Sister Amber Allen