Foodstuffs

I have lots of food. People give us food, my mom sends me food. We buy food. I probably don't need anymore food. I have been trying to see how long I can go without buying groceries. It's going pretty well.

My Mom sent me some cereal and some pancake mix, but I refused to buy ANY food last week so I have been eating the cereal dry. Which is cool. Mom sent me syrup to go with the pancake mix- super nice of her but it didn't really work out, so I have been coming up with new things to put into the pancakes- all of which include chocolate. The following is a  list of strategies I have tried in order of success from least successful to most successful.

1. Butter

2. Hot chocolate mix in the pancakes

3. Peanut M&Ms

4. Lindor truffles- they melt.

5. Brownie mix in the pancakes

6. More Brownie Mix

7. Andes Mints

8. That second batch of brownie pancakes with Andes Mints

9. Plain with Hot chocolate mix on top.

10. Dove Dark chocolate hearts in the pancakes

My hypothesis is that the best combination out of these ingredients will be Dove dark chocolate pieces in the pancakes with hot chocolate mix on top of the pancakes. Don't worry. I have enough of all of these things.

If I decide to be bold my next move might be Fruit Smiles pancakes.

On Friday- Valentine's Day. One woman whom we had never met before turned her car around after passing us and pulled over so that she could hand us each a heart-covered plastic bag with lindor truffles inside of them. She said. "I remember tracting. You need Valentines" That was sweet of her.

A note to all of you who feed missionaries in any way. Thank you. We love you. You are great. Those of us who serve in the Western United States (and maybe other places) receive an abundance of sweets. So many sweets. If you feed us- we love Salad and healthy foods. Really you can give us whatever you want and we will be grateful and eat it- but if you want us to be healthy. It is hard to get vegetables as a missionary.

Yesterday we held a special fast with two of our investigators. Fasting is one of those commandments that seems ridiculous until you try it. I believe it to be utterly divine. I could not have thought of it. I have received more strength and guidance through fasting, prayer, and scripture study combined than I could possibly pass off as coincidental or made up. I have a testimony of the power of fasting. I don't know how it works. I don't know why it works. I only know that when I go without food for two meals as I ask the Lord for help or guidance- help and guidance come and I am able to recognize the Lord's hand in my Life. I feel His love for me.

Hope you all have a great week.

Mark 9:23-24

Love,

Sister Caroline Faulkner

Love is Lovely

Happy Valentine's Day!

Missionary work is all about love. I don't really know anything about St Valentine, and as a missionary romantic love isn't really our focus- but Christ's love is. We try to share that love that we feel from Christ with the people that we teach.

Our Heavenly Father loves us, and because He loves us He created a plan for us to return to Him after this life. We couldn't do it alone, so He sent Jesus Christ to make it possible. Christ came because His Father sent Him and because He also loves us. His mortal life was marked by love, and because He still lives and loves us, He continues to guide us as He did in the past through a living prophet, the scriptures, and through the Holy Spirit. All that we teach as missionaries  comes back to love.

Because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can return to live with Him and our Father in Heaven again as families after this life if we so choose. We can be forgiven and made clean from our past sins when we repent and try to be more like Christ.

We have a special word for Christ's love- Charity.

"And Charity sufferethlong, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own,is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity butrejoiceth in truth, beareth all things, believeth all things hopeth all things,endureth all things." - Moroni 7:45

Obviously we are not perfect. We cannot truly be like He is, but He has the power to help us improve and to fill us with love for others.

As missionaries, we go about bringing people to Christ because they are God's children, and their salvation matters very much to Him. So when we knock on your door and you think "How can these people possibly care about me when they don't even know me?" remember that God loves you and Christ loves you. As representatives of Jesus Christ, we love you as well. We cannot truly understand His infinite love for you, because it is beyond our capability to love anyone that much, but we love you with all that we've got.

This week, we walked through a lot of snow and ice. We talked to some nice people and some not-so-nice people. We invited our investigators to do some hard things. When one family agreed to give up tobacco so that they could be baptized and make covenants with Christ we were so happy. We were so happy to see how excited they were to learn about General Conference and how the prophet, the Apostles, and other leaders in the church share the words that Christ wants us to hear every 6 months. We were sad when people chose to stop meeting with us, or when they chose not to learn more. We were sad when they struggled to progress spiritually. But because of faith we don't give up. We know that Christ continues to reach out to people. 

"Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit." - Galations 6:18

Love,

Sister Faulkner

Moses Lake Washington

Drops in a Pot

I forgot my camera today- so pictures will have to come next week. Sorry about that.

Tomorrow is my two month mark! But having 16 more to go means that those two seem like drops in a bucket. That's fine, I like it that way. It's been an interesting two months.

I find that every week feels really crazy. We work with so many different people that juggling their ups and downs can make me emotionally sea-sick. This week was another mixed-bag. Though I must say that it seems a little heavy on the negative side and a little sparse on the positive end of things.

Yesterday was the Superbowl. We decided not to go out and annoy the people watching it. We did other productive activities at home. I am pretty sure the Seattle Seahawks won- for those of you who are still wondering.

I didn't tell you this, but about a month ago I dropped a name tag on our way home. We found the magnetic back next to the sidewalk about a week later, and I had just about given up looking for it when my companion found its remains on the ground about a mile away on a different street. I'll share a picture in the future. I feel that the chances of finding it are pretty slim- until I remember that we walk up and down and across our little area for the better part of every day- so that was exciting.

I learned what Pot smells like. We knocked on a couple of doors that opened to reveal the overwhelmingly cloying and sour smell of skunk/ body odor. The people behind both of those doors told us we could come back! Which is great. I am glad that I can correctly identify the smell now. I figure that knowledge will help me out later when I teach High School.

We were dropped by several people this week as well. The most promising family that we had when I got here dropped us. We were crushed. We are still really upset about it. They were so excited to be baptized! Then things fell apart. They got sick, we couldn't get in and teach them. They couldn't go to church. She was having a hard time quitting smoking. They dropped us- and not gently. The worst part is I had SEEN them change. I had witnessed what the gospel of Jesus Christ had done for their lives. They were like them people of King Benjamin in Mosiah 5:2 who said

"Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually"

I have been thinking, in my study, about how to get from that feeling to the end of that chapter which reads "ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ the Lord God Omnipotent may seal you His."

I think it takes continued repentance. Mosiah 5 talks a lot about depending on Christ so that we can be cleansed by Him, because only under His name (in His gospel covenant through baptism and repentance- taking upon ourselves His name) can we make it back to our Father in Heaven.

We got dropped by a few people this week- and it has been hard to recover. But we are teaching others who are moving forward. We will recover, and we will go on to help others. Even though it hurts sometimes.

Thanks for your support.

Be steadfast and immovable.

Love,

Sister Caroline Faulkner

Daring Adventures

Hello! It's a beautiful morning here in the WKM (Washington, Kennewick Mission)! Transfer calls came this weekend and I am happy to be staying here in Moses Lake with Sister McMurtrey for at least another 6 weeks! We are having so much fun.

A new transfer means a new planner! I decided to decorate this one (It keeps them from falling apart and looking ratty. I am really proud of it. Here is a picture.

All of these pictures came from two Ensign magazines.

Sister McMurtrey laughed at me when she saw me taking pictures of my planner- she says I'll decorate a bunch of them. But I wanted to share my joy. 

We've been naming several of the cats in our area. Here are some pictures 

These are Puck, Sugar and Salt. Their Parents are Oberon and Titania. They have another brother named Bottom. I needed the stick to get them this close to me. 

This is Spice. Her owners think her name is Alice. She lives next door to us and we love her, but she always tries to get into our apartment and we have to catch her and throw her out into the snow. Or the rain.

There are lots of nice humans in our area as well. This week we tracted into a pastor from another church who was really kind to us, and a lady who had no intention of talking to us about her faith in Jesus Christ but insisted on giving me a pair of gloves. Those of you who know me from Provo may already know that I try not to wear gloves or mittens as a general rule. I admit that my hands were exceedingly chilly that night. I now have three pairs of gloves and/or mittens. I promise that I actually do use them sometimes.

On our quest to talk to 70 new people a week, we've been doing pretty well. We've been having a blast. We may run out of doors to knock in approximately 3 weeks, but we know that things will work out. We'll just have to find people in other ways. Maybe we'll draw the Plan of Salvation on the sidewalk like those missionaries in New York City did.



Maybe we will try looking for all the people who weren't home when we tried them before. Or we'll have a cool church activity and have the ward invite their friends.

Each door is like a daring adventure. Each new person we talk to might be ready to accept the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. I still get lost in our area. I'm going to have to learn it by drawing my own map or something.

Joshua 1:9

love,

Sister Caroline Elizabeth Faulkner

Close Your Mouth

Once you have opened your mouth and introduced someone to the gospel - you come to the really difficult part: Closing your mouth.

A difficult lesson to learn in missionary work is that there has to be silence for the spirit to work in people. You have to let them think about it. Some people have a really hard time with silence in conversation, but the Holy Spirit speaks in a still, small voice. It is necessary to listen carefully.

I have learned this week that lessons go much better if you are willing to wait in silence and not speak unless the spirit prompts you to say something.

Asking inspired questions is a great way to allow people to really consider the meaning of your words and the way that it applies to them.

My trainer told me last month that "A Mission is like one big awkward moment". What I think she meant was - if you are doing it right there will be long periods of silence. It's okay and you get used to it. She was right.

You have to prepare and make sure to "treasure up in your minds continually the words of life" so that "it shall be given you in the very hour" what to say. We do a lot of studying - but I have found that my study in the morning often prepares me to answer someone's question or know what someone needs to hear later in the day. But only by the spirit can I know what they need to hear, and I need the spirit to bring that back to me at that moment.

I also know that by silencing my own first impressions and my previous understanding I learn about Christ's love. If you refuse to let your own thoughts get in the way and just listen to people - you get to know them, you see what they can become. You feel Christ's love for them in some tiny measure. Then you can better help them, because you see a bit of Christ's vision for them.

I'm still learning about this. It will take me a while to get better acquainted with silence and with the spirit- but I know that Jesus Christ is behind this work.

In other news - The Seahawks are going to be in the Superbowl. I know this because of all of the illegal fireworks that went off at once last Sunday, and the people that told us not to bug them because they were watching the game.

We went to the Columbia River Temple today - which is why this blog is late. I love the temple and I am so grateful to have one so close to the area I am serving in. It brought me a lot of peace to visit the Lord's house today.

Speaking of Temples - The Gilbert Temple Open House is going on this coming week. Everyone is welcome inside. There will be tours. Bring your family and friends. I wish I could be there for the open house and the dedication, but I am glad to be here. I am excited to visit it when I get back to Phoenix.

Click here to get more information about the temple open house.

Thanks to all of you for your love and support and for all that you do to forward the Lord's work.

"Let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; for behold he is mightier than all the Earth" 1 Nephi 4:1

Love,

Sister Caroline Faulkner

Open Your Mouth

Last week we were cleaning windows for a service project and the windows in the shade were cold enough that when we sprayed the outside with glass cleaner the liquid froze onto the glass. I could only think of what my little brother Jordan would say.

"Elegant." 

For those of you who know Jordan- you'll have seen him do this before.

Also "Happy Birthday" to my older brother John this week, and My step dad Craig right around the corner!

We have a term in the Washington Kennewick Mission- and I do not know how many missions use it- we call a finding situation an OYM for "Open your mouth". When we go about finding people who are ready and willing to hear learn about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ we knock doors, we talk to people in the street and we share with them a little bit of what we teach- just a few sentences, whatever fits their needs and the situation. We try to refer to the fact that Christ's Church has been brought back to the Earth today because that is the unique message that we have to share. We try to set goals for how many people we can talk to every day, so we know how we can stretch ourselves and reach as many people as possible.

People are not numbers. Obviously. People are individuals, cherished of Christ. See Doctrine andCovenants 18:10-16. Because we love Christ and our Heavenly Father, we want to help them with their goals. See Moses 1:39. We have the privilege of working as instruments in the hands of the Savior as we reach out and bring them to Him. We spiritually carry them on our shoulders. As a representatives of Jesus Christ, our voices are His voice, and we extend to others the call that has been extended to us. Christ has called us to follow Him and because of the joy that we feel in His service, we pass that call along. It comes as we open our mouths.

This week I spent some time studying Charity. My favorite chapters of scripture on the topic include Moroni 7 and 1 John 3. I encourage you to read them. Charity is the pure love of Christ. It is the motivation behind Missionary work. I feel that as we experience Christ's love for us we naturally desire to extend it to others. As missionaries we work hard, but that does not mean that we are doing our best. I felt as I studied that as I learn about Christ's love and the power of His Grace to change and lift us, my focus moves outward from "How hard can I work?" to "How many people are being affected by my work?" That is what Christ cares about. He cares about His children. In the Gospel of John chapter 3, we read that God sent His son to save the world. Not just a few. The world. "All those that believe on His name" is a changeable number. Christ wants to save every person, not just a few. He wants us to reach as many people as we possible can because each is equally and infinitely valuable to Him. Of course, this requires me to give all that I can. To "...serve Him with allof my heart, might, mind, and strength" is my purpose and my goal - not blindly, but with a purpose. To open my mouth to every person that I can, with my limited mortal abilities, so that Christ has has the opportunity to express His love for His children through me.

Could Christ do this without us? Yes. He is the master teacher. He is perfect and powerful. He is the best of all missionaries! And He in His wisdom and mercy sends out His army of willing (and oh so imperfect) volunteers. He allows us to labor in His vineyard - to take part in His work and to have this opportunity to taste of His love for His children. Alone, I know that we would fail. It is only because He sends His Spirit with us to do the real teaching. All we do is treasure up His word and open our mouths. The Spirit is the link that connects those we teach with God. It is what they really hear.

We set goals to open our mouths and speak to as many people as possible so that we can keep our eyes on our purpose. We try to focus our efforts on helping Christ's love and mercy reach as many people as possible in our weakness and His strength.

 I am grateful for this opportunity to be a part of His work. (No matter how many people slam the door in my face). We are never alone. Christ is with us. He carries us.

Keep the faith.

Love,

Sister Caroline Faulkner

Homeward Bound

This life is a journey. It is for a purpose. God put us here so that we could gain bodies and so that we could learn and grow. He is our Father and He wants us to become like Him. He wants us to have the joy that He has. This life is no accident. It is a journey back home. As we repent and learn and become like Him, we prepare for Heaven, as Brad Wilcox says we "learn" Heaven. We prepare ourselves to feel comfortable in God's presence so that when we meet Him again we will feel comfortable enough to stay there. We are all homeward bound. That is what we set out to do when we chose to come here.

There is a movie called Homeward Bound that I loved as a child. It is about two dogs and a cat who travel across the Sierra's to make it home, and I've been thinking about it a lot this week. My favorite scene happens towards the end when the oldest dog, Shadow falls into a pit and he can't get out. The younger dog, Chance, jumps in and tells him "You pushed me this far, now I'm pushing you the rest of the way. Now try again!" I won't spoil the movie for you, but often  I want to be like Chance and tell people. "I know it's hard, but it's worth it. You do not have my permission to give up now. 'Not now, not when we're this close'" But I can't. People make their own choices. I know what the Atonement of Jesus Christ can do for people. I've seen it work in my own life- but they get to choose.

One of the people we are teaching almost dropped us this week. We were devastated. We knew that she knew the truth. She's been going through a lot, but that's why we have the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That is what the Atonement is for. I know that the blessings for obedience, though the sacrifice may be steep, are always greater than anything we give up to follow. We had a couple hard days, but she came to us again and told us that she knows the truth, that she will do what she knows to be right, and that she still wants to move forward and be baptized, though she knows it will not take her problems away, she knows that the covenants that she will be making will give her the strength to endure.

I'm learning a lot out here about the Spirit and about acting in Faith. Today I read a quote from L. Tom Perry. He said "The discipline contained in daily obedience and clean living and wholesome lives builds an armor around you of protection and safety from the temptations that beset you as you proceed through mortality"

I thought as I read that about the Army of Helaman and how they developed habits of obedience in their childhood that enabled them to have courage even when the Lamanites were winning and they could have been killed. They knew that obedience brings blessings and they were willing to make any sacrifice to do what the Lord wanted them to do. (And they all received many wounds. There was sacrifice involved even though the Lord preserved their lives.)

 As we teach, we invite people to start testing the waters of obedience. We invite them to learn about the blessings that come with obedience so that they are prepared to make covenants with God. As they do, they develop that personal armor of moral courage and internal security even when persecutions rage and mobs combine. I thought about how that experience that they gain enables them to recognize the Holy Spirit and the mercy of the Lord so that when they ask in faith if what they have read is true they have some help in understanding the answer that they get and so they have the courage to ask in sincerity.

We invited a family to be baptized this last week. They agreed and we are so excited for them. We have already seen the things that they have been learning bring peace to their lives despite the difficult circumstances that they are in now. I think that Lord leads us to people in tough times because they can see the changes more easily when they apply the principles we teach. I know that He is aware of our needs and that He loves us.

I know He is aware of my needs. I have received so much support this week from people at home that was supposed to come at Christmas, that I needed more this week than I did at Christmas.

I keep your cards. I also got some packages from my Mom that did not make it into this picture, but I got enough food that I don't think I'll buy much for groceries this week.

I keep your letters, I love you all. The Lord loves you as well. Keep the Faith

Love,

Sister Faulkner