Happy Thanksgiving!!

Hello Family!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!! I hope you know how grateful I am for all your love, support, and prayers! I hope you eat delicious pie and yummy stuffing and fulfill all your wildest turkey dreams:) But really, I am so grateful for YOU!! 

Miracle of the week:) Guess how many investigators we had at church on Sunday?! Just guess... :) 6!!! Wow! And with our less actives as well, we had 11 people that we're working with at church! Is that not a Thanksgiving miracle or what?! We had our lovely family - Daisy and her 3 kids. Then we had our returning member Nichole and her boyfriend Eke (AK) come which was the best ever!! Another investigator and her son came, and then 3 other members we're working with came! So awesome!!

This week it was COLD! It's officially become cold weather. You go outside and it's not that bad... and then the WIND comes, and the wind is freezing!! It really does cut through your clothes haha! But my warm clothes are doing their job and keeping me warm so it's okay. I'll probably just be a wuss for the next 4 months while it's cold;) But I'll still enjoy it at the same time!

I am so grateful for this time to be a missionary here in New York! I love my Heavenly Father and my Savior Jesus Christ! I know this gospel can change lives, and I'm grateful for the chance I have to be a part of His work:) I know Heavenly Father loves each one of us and he has a plan for us. Not only has he shown us the outline of his plan, but he's given us the steps we need to take to return to live with him. I am so grateful for Jesus Christ, and that through him we can reach our goals. Through Christ we can be happy and we can live with our Father and our families forever! I am so grateful for Joseph Smith and his faith as he trusted in the Lord and restored the gospel to the earth. I am so grateful for the Book of Mormon and the powerful witness it is of God's love and guidance on the earth today! I am so grateful for the peace, comfort, and guidance that comes from the Holy Ghost so that we can know for ourselves that this gospel is true!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and may we all "live in Thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which He doth bestow upon us." (Alma 34:38)

Love, Sister Johnson

PS. I loved getting little notes from everyone. Tell the family I say 'Hi' and thank you so much!

PPS If you see Daniel or Janie Harvey - tell them that Daniel was right and that everyone really does fold their pizza in half to eat it!

Transfer #4

Hello Family!

Transfer #4 in Harlem! Wahoo! I'm so happy I get to spend another transfer in Harlem with Sister Israelsen!

This week was a week of less active miracles!! A huge focus for me and Sister Israelsen has been to strengthen our ward and our less active members. We currently have a list of 32 less active members that we've met with and are trying to continue to work with! And that's not including the 11 kids, 6 of which are over the age of 8 and haven't been baptized, non-member spouces, and family members that may be interested! And there's still more out there we need to find! So we've got our work cut out for us with our less-active members and their families!:)

One of our returning members (because we won't let her be "less active" anymore!) is awesome and so solid! We've met with her twice and she is amazing! Her name is Nichole:) Side note: She told us the other night that the one commandment she's always kept since primary was tithing. What?! She still has her tithing set aside! So she's awesome. But what was amazing is the love that we have for her and the spirit we felt with her. We had a lesson planned, but as soon as we started talking to her we realized what we planned was not what she needed. We ended up talking about prayer and it was so wonderful! She was able to pray with us after not praying for a little while and she said she felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders. Heavenly Father is there and he wants to hear from us! It was so amazing to have that much love for her that nothing else mattered but us helping her come closer to Jesus Christ and helping her feel Heavenly Father's love for her.

Returning member miracle number 2! On Sunday a less active who hadn't come to church for a long time showed up to church with her daughter! We talked to her and set a time to meet with them. Last night we met with Daisy and her three kids Jacob, Samantha, and Julian. We taught the Restoration using the pamphlet and pictures. It was so simple and as we taught about the priesthood and baptism Samantha said she wanted to be baptized! Together as a family they're going to read the Book of Mormon and pray, and Samantha and Jacob are now preparing to be baptized! 

We also found three more less actives that we've been trying to meet with for a while, but we finally met with them and set times to continue to see them and their families! It's so amazing to see the miracles that Heavenly Father is sending our way. I wish I could tell you about every single one of these lost sheep we're bringing back to the fold. There are families, couples, and individuals that we're so excited to keep working with! I love them all and know that Heavenly Father cares so deeply about each one of them and all of us! He loves you!! So never forget that!

The lesson of the week is to have faith and hope! Faith is trust. We have to believe in Heavenly Father enough to trust Him. That's how we create a real friendship with Him. Then we must have hope, which is believing and expecting. When we have hope we not only believe good things can happen, but we know that through Christ good things WILL happen! Another thing is that we need to be able to see progress and rename it. You can't have a seed and then still call it a seed when it's grown into a giant tree! If you don't see the progress in yourself or in others and rename it, then you're missing the point of the Atonement! There is always change and we need to accept and recognize that or we're holding ourselves back from what we can become.

I love you all! Keep loving and have hope! God is good and miracles do happen! The church is amazing and brings the greatest joy and the best book in the whole world is the Book of Mormon! Make it a great week! Love you!

Love,
Sister Johnson

This picture was sent from a member

True Conversion

Hello Family!

We had a great week! Nothing too eventful happened, but we're happy and doing great! We've officially been companions for over a month now too, so that's exciting:)

Here's one little miracle from the week:) So we came down the stairs from a building and there was a guy waiting for the elevator. We said hello and then gave him a card. We started talking and he was really interested in coming to church so we were all excited and we were telling him about church. Then his elevator came so he got in and we started to leave. But then I thought, Man! We didn't even teach him anything. I should have given him a Book of Mormon! and then, because God is good, something happened to the elevator and the door opened again and he was there! So I seriously ran over and I was like, Wait! Gertice! And I gave him a Book of Mormon and taught him a little about it. He needed that Book of Mormon, that's why the elevator didn't work;)

This week I was reading in my study journal from the MTC and I read something from Elder Holland. He said, "You need to be the very first convert you ever have." I have to be truly converted, because I can't convert anyone beyond my own conversion! We had a lesson with a less-active that I finally felt like things clicked in my head. The Restoration of the gospel and the Book of Mormon are central to conversion!! She had some concerns and doubts about church authority and some other commandment/policy things, but instead of talking about how those really are commandments, we focused on how questions are good and normal! We need to have questions just like Joseph Smith, so that we can ask and come to know for ourselves if it's true! We all need to convert ourselves, we can't rely on someone else's conversion! And the Book of Mormon is the way we can know for ourselves! So keep reading everyday;)

We're focusing lots on Less-actives and they just keep appearing!! It's amazing! We got a media referral for a less-active which I didn't know was a thing, and then we had a less-active just call and reach out to us that we were able to teach! (She's the experience above). It's wonderful and we're determined to help these wonderful sheep come back to the fold!:)

One of the biggest things I feel like I've learned on my mission along with this true conversion topic is how critical the primary answers really are! Scriptures, prayer, and church. It's not just nice to do, it's necessary! That's how we get the strength we need every day and week! That's how we show we're committed and how we stay committed!

Me and Sister Israelsen keep laughing about how a mission really is like a rollercoaster. It's up and down and all over the place but I love it! It's so much fun! I think I've said that probably a thousand times to Sister Israelsen haha! I just think it's so much fun to walk around the streets of New York talking to people and trying to follow the spirit to be guided to where we need to be! Of course there are times where it's a bit overwhelming and we don't know what we're doing, but I would never trade this time for anything in the world:) And I've also realized more and more how much I LOVE bus contacting! We travel all over, and our travel time becomes our finding time which is so awesome! I love it and I'm legit in love with Harlem:) I never want to leave! Being a missionary is the coolest experience in the whole world!

Thanks for all the love and support! I love you so so much! I have the best family in the whole world and I'm super excited for all of your fun Christmas adventures! Make it a great week!

Love, Sister Johnson

Central Park in the fall is BEAUTIFUL!

I love my companion!

Happy Halloween :)

Hello Family!

Happy Halloween! We had our ward Halloween party on Saturday which was so much fun! We had a great time and me and Sister Israelsen ate so much food we thought we were going to explode! Everything was so good! We had been inviting everyone to the party for so long so it was fun that it finally came! One of our investigators, Kim, and her grandson Nize (Nah-zay) came which was great! A few of our less actives came as well and everyone had a lot of fun:) 

For the real day of Halloween we went home by 7:00 and when we got home I dressed up like a pioneer. Cause you can't go through Halloween without dressing up!;) So I'll include the picture:) and we made a pumpkin pie smoothie, and had a mission wide conference call with President Smith and just talked about so many awesome things from the Book of Mormon:) The Book of Mormon is so powerful, amazing, and we should all read from it every single day!

Funny story. So Saturday earlier in the day we were at the church doing some studies and lunch and an Opera came to practice in our church! Haha what?! Like the metropolitan opera! (I think... a guy had a hat on that said the metropolitan opera, but maybe it wasn't them?) Anyways, it was super awesome and I was in heaven hearing instruments and singing in the background just like my good old BYU practice rooms in the HFAC:)

I thought Utah weather was unpredictable (which it is), but let me tell you, New York is the same! One day it's freezing, the next day it's warm. The other day it had been sunny and nice, and then on Sunday it started POURING rain! Seriously we walked out of the church and it was sprinkling a little, and then two minutes later we were running through huge puddles and pouring rain haha! It was super wet but super fun! It's always an adventure and I LOVE IT!! We were running around trying to find less active members and then there was a lady that I told her I liked her jacket. We started talking and she was like I have a 24 year old daughter you should come meet! She needs you! So then we just went with her right then and had a lesson at their house haha! Super awesome and it went really well:) She was really excited and wants to read the Book of Mormon!

On Monday (Halloween) we were on a less active hunt and we found 6!! Six less actives! And not only did we find them, but they want to come back!!! So we were so happy! Mission miracles! #holidaymiracles

The Atonement of Jesus Christ is so amazing. None of us are perfect, but God's merciful plan is perfect. In Alma 42:29-31 Alma is talking to his son and basically tells him, "Don't let your sins trouble you so much you won't accept God's mercy. Trouble enough that you repent, but then let God's mercy and patience completely fill your heart and humble you. Then get out there and share the gospel so that you can help souls understand God's mercy too!" This is His plan, His work, and it's so wonderful to be a part of it! I love being a missionary and I love being here in Harlem!

I love you all! Make it a great week!

Love, Sister Johnson

Lots of busses, lots of rain:)

Nice view from the top of the shopping complex right by our house!

We are Fishers of Men!

Nice view from Central Park

Halloween Party with Kim!!!

Me as a pioneer. This is the place. The Book of Mormon is true. Happy Halloween!

Pray for a missionary experience!

Hello Family:)

This week was another great week full of adventures:) One thing me and Sister Israelsen have really been focusing on is our referrals. Some missionaries don't get any referrals, but not us! We are blessed with a million! The thing is they pick one companionship in the area and then send all the referrals there, and since we're the best (haha just kidding, we just happen to be the first on the list probably) we get ALL the referrals! They keep coming and it never ends. We got up to 21 this week... what! (They add on to each other if you don't contact them, so we didn't actually get 21 in one week, we just had 21 total of referrals that we still haven't been able to contact). So we've been working hard on those. We're now down to 14 so we've contacted a few which is awesome! Media referrals are the best, but we're also running out of Bibles to give them so that's a problem cause they all want Bibles (and they secretly want a copy of the Book of Mormon;)

Krystal is doing good:) She's gone through and is going through a lot, the mists of darkness are a real thing! But we're working with her and she's super excited and still wants to be baptized! Speaking of baptism, we had a baptism in the YSA Ward and Me and Sister Israelsen were blessed with the opportunity to teach the Restoration while they were changing after the baptism. It was such a wonderful experience and we really felt the Spirit work through us as we testified and taught the wonderful message of the Restoration. I know that it's because God loves us so much that He called Joseph Smith to be a prophet so that we could now have everything we need to know how to get back to Him:)

We got to wear PANTS on Saturday! Real live pants! It was pretty crazy. We helped a member in our ward with some community service and we decorated part of the city for Halloween! It was cute and super fun:)

One struggle about the city is learning all the busses and transportation. It took me a while but I've got it down now! With Sister Bongolto I always tried talking to people on the bus, and then I had no idea where we were so I would just get off when she got off. But when I realized I would eventually take over the area I tried to be better at knowing where we were, so then I had a hard time talking to people because I was focused on where we were. I felt like I couldn't share the gospel and know where we were at the same time haha! I've been doing better until the other night. We were talking to a lady on the bus and I totally wasn't paying attention to where we were until right after our bus stop. Which is unfortunate because if you miss the stop on the M60 bus, you go to Queens... So that was an adventure! We saw a wonderful night time view of our beautiful area and mission as we accidently traveled over the freeway to the New York, NY South Mission. But luckily there was a bus right there heading back, so we made it back safe and we weren't even late past curfew:)

Have a wonderful week! I love you all so much! Pray for a missionary experience:)

Love, Sister Johnson

p.s. Sorry to get your pumped about Hope in Harlem, but it is now post poned for the time being. I'll let you know updates if that starts up again:)

BONUS PICTURE!! We were videoing ourselves teaching so we could evaluate ourselves and for some reason my tablet took a random picture haha!! But this picture is seriously a gem. Just look at that! I'm all bugging out, making a weird face, and Sister Israelsen is just like "Oh Sister Johnson, what in the world."

PANTS for service! Wahoo!

Fanciest/cutest project building door I've ever seen:)

3. What we look at most days:) Project building halls!

4-5. Our little accidental adventure to Queens...

6. Our super fancy panini waffle sandwiches:)

Nihao!!

Hello Family!!

This week was wonderful! Sister Israelsen is so amazing and I really feel like we'll be able to do a lot of great work with her here:) We get along really well and I know we'll be able to learn lots from each other and accomplish much so I'm excited! We exercise a lot in the morning and eat healthy which makes such a difference! We're finding ways to improve our teaching and skills as missionaries every day and it's wonderful! Also, Sister Bongolto went to the Bronx, so she's not too far away from us! 

Big news of the week... I cut my own hair this morning haha! (I'll send pictures!) and I finally ate a NY bagel and they seriously are as good as everyone says they are! So yum. Another thing is the weather! It's starting to get chilly! In church we had ward conference and the Stake President talked about how our life is a process like the refiners fire. We have intense heat and then intense cold as part of the purifying and refining ourselves to be who God wants us to be. My first 3 months were filled with some intense heat days... these next few months will have quite a few intense cold days I can tell! I'm so excited and this will be the best winter of my life!! Wahoo!! 

We're starting a new little booth called Hope in Harlem where we plan to have a permanent location where people can see and we can bring hope to those here in Harlem! We'll have a table set up on the corner with things to bring people hope. Either an uplifting spiritual thought or information for the many many resources we have available for them (family history, English classes, Hotdogs and homework, addiction recovery, self-reliance...)! We're super excited to get this started so I'll let you know how it goes:)

Our amazing investigator Krystal is going great! She is so prepared and still moving forward with her baptism coming up on November 5th:) She has had a hard past, but her faith and determination to overcome those struggles is amazing! I'm so happy and excited for her:) We currently have 3 investigators who have accepted the invitation to be baptized! So I hope we can really help them take the steps they need to reach that goal! We're pushing hard for more member involvement which is so exciting and amazing! This is the best work ever, so everyone should be involved!!

We're in China Town right now! What?! I know how to say I'm a missionary and Jesus Christ in Chinese! It sounds like "Woah sure chuan (like John but with a Ch) jow (like jousting) sure" and "Yay sue Gee do" NYNYN Mission is the best! Where else can I be an English missionary with a day being a Spanish missionary and a day being a Chinese missionary?? I'm in love:)

Make it a great week!

Love, Sister Johnson

More pictures from Central Park

I cut my own hair!!! I was so excited! I've been planning this for weeks and I finally did it! Wahoo!
The width of a pass along card is how much I cut haha;)

The Brooklyn Bridge

Bridge in China Town

China town!

Transfers/Conference

Hello Family!

My new companion is SISTER ISRAELSEN!!! I'm so excited and so happy to work with her! She's from North Logan, Utah, she's a swimmer, the oldest child of 5, and she is so sweet and amazing! Her last area was actually the MTC... so the Lord has called me to be a trainer!:) It's very humbling, exciting, and wonderful to have this new call. A few times this week I wasn't sure if I was ready for this, but God is good. So good! He will help me, no doubt about it:) He's given me this call so I can trust in Him more and truly become the missionary he needs me to be! And more than anything, I want to become that missionary so bad! I need her and she needs me and we'll be able to learn and grow together. I really feel so blessed knowing that he sees my potential and all that I've become and will be able to become is because of Him. I love being a servant of the Lord and I'm excited to see what's in the journey ahead:)

Our investigator Krystal had her baby this week which is very exciting! She sent a picture and he's super cute:) We haven't been able to see her for like a week and a half though which is sad, but we're excited for her!

General Conference!! Where do I even start? We're so blessed to have this guidance from Heavenly Father for what we need in the next 6 months. It answered so many of my questions and I hope it helped you with yours! Here are a few of my favorite tid bits:)
- Love Christ more, suffer less.
- A loving God is as close as a prayer.
- When you pray are you really praying or just saying a prayer?
- If you're trying, repenting, and doing your best you will positively make it home! 100%!
- Be ambitious for Christ.
- Members and Missionaries need to work together!!
- Focus on JOY!!
- True worship transforms us to become true and sincere disciples of Christ.

Isn't Conference wonderful? Now take that beautiful inspiration and revelation you received and use it! It's for you! I love you all! Thanks for your support and love! Make it a wonderful week:)

Love,

Sister Johnson

Me and Sister Bongolto 

Me and Sister Israelsen!!!