Surabaya (Week 68)

HAPPY NEW YEAR Y'ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope we have all started these first 5 days well and our goals are going strong, amin!

This week has been a rough one spiritually. I feel like satan is really trying to get me to lose my focus. But it's ok because I know that I have the strength and the tools to overcome him. Being in a trio is a new experience, not super different than a duo but still new and I'm still trying to get used to it but I'm so grateful for my companions! They are two very fine young sisters from Indonesia and I love them dearly. They bring such a strong spirit when we are teaching that is absolutely incredible and I feel like our lessons have just been on fire lately! I love these people and am so grateful for the testimony they all share with me. I am so blessed!!!!

Yesterday we had an AWESOME church. it was all on Family and man it was beautiful! I've really come to learn the importance of family home evening and teaching the gospel in the home. I've seen so many homes where the gospel is not taught and just how satan is working so hard to destroy families, we can't let these little things to strengthen our families go! Family home evening, family scripture study and family prayer are all so important. I really appreciate my parents that tried hard to do family home evening, family prayer and family scripture study. Of course we wern't perfect at it all the time ;) but my parents have been such great examples for me and I am so grateful for that. THANKS MOM AND DAD! I've also learned that children have "roles" in the family. I think of it like this, the family is like a team. Dad and mom are the captians, and God's the coach. A family has to work together to overcome the power of the adversary. Families are meant to work together. And our families are what are going to help us come back into Heaven. Parents have to listen to the game plans from heaven to know how to help direct the children and then we need to exicute the game plan. I don't know if that makes sense now but it does in my head. 

I know families can be forever! I know that God lives and loves us and families are SO important! I can't wait to come and re-meet ALL of my family again :) 

 

I love you and am so grateful for everything you all do for me! THANK YOU!!

With love,

Sister Sperry :) 

Surabaya (Week 67)

(There is no week 66 post because we got to Skype with Sister Sperry instead!!!)

Hey ya'll long time no email ;) 

Things have been pretty crazy. The week before Christmas I got put into a threesome and then one of my companions got sick with the chicken pox. Fortunately I was able to go out with the mission couple a few times but those other times when I wasn't able to...well lets just say I gotta find myself a job real fast when I get home! I can't stay still I was going nuts!! But I learned a lot and had a lot of time to ponder and study the scriptures. I even made my new years goals! 

We did get to go out starting on Thursday so Christmas was fun. Friday we worked HARD and my legs killed from riding my bike again. But it felt so nice! I think I'm going to buy a bike instead of a car when I get home. Saturday was really cool especially for the last lesson we had that night. So we went to a woman's home whose husband wont really allow her to go to church...she kept complaining about it and I asked about her Book of Mormon reading. not where it should be. So I promised her, and this is the cool part, that if she read the Book of Mormon she would find the peace that she needs and her husbands heart will start to open. WHAT?!!!! Those were not my words!!!!!!!!! I didn't plan saying that at all!!!!!!!! But I know where they came from and I am so grateful for the authority of my calling and the help we received from the Holy Ghost. My companions straight away supported my words and helped her to know she has to do her part for God to do His. It was a really cool lesson with a lot of companionship unity. woot!! But maybe I could ask for some extra prayers for Ibu Wati and Pak Sapto. 

Other than that, we had a baptism yesterday and are preparing for another one this next week. What a great way to end the old year and start off the new year! 

...Which reminds me, have you already made your new years goals!?Iif you haven't yet START WORKING ON IT!!!! Making goals gives us a purpose and something to work on. It helps us to see our potential and then achieve our potential when we act on them. I know that goals are very important and we need to work towards things because our potential is amazing! We are all Spirits of a love Heavenly Father and we all have the potential to become gods and goddesses. I pray that we will all be able to make some meaningful goals this year that are going to help us progress to a better life. 

Thank you for your love and support and all the Christmas Spirit! Selamat Natal dan Tahun Baru!!!

love,

Sister Sperry :)

Surabaya (Week 65)

MAN WHAT A CRAZY WEEK!!!

There's so much that happened this week. SO turns out Sister R Fisher that's serving here is going to be opening up Semarang for Sisters. (WOOT this is her second time opening a city, she must be really good at it) but we will have an uneven amount of sisters which means...guess who's going to be in a 3some! Sister Sperry, Sister Aryanto and Sister N. Hasibuan. pure craziness! I'm stoked but poor Sister Aryanto, this is her 3rd threesome companionship ;)

Also Elder and Sister Funk came to visit Indonesia for District Conference and a mission tour. It's super cool because he's a general authority that's served in Indonesia! When it was first starting to open! He's the one who really DID open Semarang and was very successful there too. We got to meet one of the members he baptized and man it was just an awesome experience. And then when he would tell a mission story WE COULD RELATE! We read the dedication prayer for Indonesia and it's neat because in there the is a part that says "thank you for the assurance that we have received that thousands upon thousands will come to know the truth in Indonesia." Elder Funk says he's already beginning to see that be fulfilled. That's a huge blessing for me because sometimes I wonder if we are really doing much. Then President told us the statistics for this year and said that we passed our goal. He began to tear up when he told us how proud he was of us. This is not a man who tears up often!

I like how Elder Funk explained because he was a missionary in Indonesia it has helped him to make higher goals in his life. I totally feel the same way. I feel like I can do anything God wants me to and I am so excited to see what lies ahead. I love my mission and am so grateful for this opportunity to see the church grow, especially in Indonesia. I can promise you I am going to be a missionary for life because this is the best thing that has ever happened to me.

Well love you all. Sorry I won't be writing for like...a long time because of Christmas and all but SELAMAT HARI NATAL in advance ;) 

with Love,
Sister Sperry :) 

 

Surabaya (Week 64)

Selamat Siang semuanya!!!!

Things are going well here! There was a lot of rain and so that meant some flooding and we found some more leaks in our house but have already got those fixed thanks to our awesome Mission couple Sister, Sister Williams. She's really helping to keep things in shape and working how they should. The Williams' are awesome and really any mission couple that there is is awesome!

Here's how the week went!

Senin: We went to a member's home and had some really yummy Thai Food. She's from there so she knows how to do that kind of stuff. Her Christmas tree was beautiful! Then Sister Aryanto and I visited Mommie Arnold. She's an old investigator that we have rediscovered and she is so sweet. She had a stroke 4 years ago which makes things hard for her but we are working on ways to help her come to church and be baptized with the Priesthood. She wants to and she's so cute!

Sisters Sperry & Aryanto

Selasa: It was kinda a slow day but it was good! Met with some people and had some really good lessons. I know these people felt the Spirit now they just need to admit it! It also rained pretty hard which is always super fun!

Rabu: We went with Sister Williams to visit a less active member with a really hard story. She needs help that only coming back to church and reading her scriptures is going to give! We hope to see her a lot more often and guess what...she came to church this week! 

Kamis: We saw Mommie Arnold and helped Rachel get ready for her baptism. She's so ready!

 Jumat: We rode our bikes pretty far and met with a woman who isn't allowed to come to church because of her husband. But she listens so well in our lessons and still believes very strongly in Christ. We're hoping to really be able to help her out! It also rained A TON!!!!!!! There was flooding in the streets and it really was like trying to ride a bike through the kiddie end of a swimming pool. Super neat! 

Sabtu: RACHEL WAS BAPTIZED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! she was so happy and eveything else went well! The elders also had a baptism that day and the next day

Hari Minggu: there were 5 people confirmed. Two kid baptisms from the week before, one from that day, and then the two that were on Saturday. The church is growing here in Surabaya!!!! I love it!

I love this missionary life! I love the Lord and I'm so grateful for this AMAZING opportunity!!! I love you all too! have a great week!!1

love,

Sister Sperry :) 

Surabaya (Week 63)

SOoooooo...It's DECEMBER!!! NUUUUTS!!! I can't believe it's already the endish of the year and before your know it...we're not going there.

I hope everyone had a fantastic week and wrote down a million things your were grateful for. You were all in my list of things to be grateful for this week! :) 

Here's how the week went: 

Senin: I spent all of pday applying for college. fun...\

Selasa: Nothing special really, just a good working day. We met a new investigator that lives really quite far away! But the weather was SO NICE because it had just rained so I wasn't even mad! 

Rabu: We worked really hard and saw lots of good things happen. We had a good lesson with one of our investigator's and her husband and we hope things will work out well with them. We are trying to find families but we've kind been not finding them..so we are still trying and we hope that that lesson will really help them!

Kamis: we had one kinda crazy lesson because she's in a rough position in life but we just tried so hard to help her see how the gospel can help. I pray she'll keep reading from the Book of Mormon. 

Jumat: This was cool! We were trying to meet with a less active when we accidently ran into a refferal we wanted to go see later. We went in and she had met with the elders before! We gave her a baptismal commitment and she wanted it right away! The only thing is she has a difficult time getting to church after her stroke. I know with help from the branch and a lot of faith we'll be able to get her there. :)

Sabtu: I taught in DDM (district meeting) and I think it went well...I learned a lot and I think that's the important part. It was a lot about change and the Atonement and how we need to apply it in our lives here as missionaries before we can help others apply it in their lives. I'm not coming out of this the same person!

Hari Minggu: another broken heart...not as many people came to church as we were hoping but we had some really good lessons afterward and Sister Aryanto made really yummy nasi Goreng :) So all is well!

I hope you have a great first week of Christmas! As you are shopping and doing all that fun stuff don't forget what this season really is about...sending missionaries chocolate ;) JOKE! Christ. Because of Him we can become more than we ever thought and because of Him we are blessed. I'm so grateful for Christ and everything He and Heavenly Father have ever done for me. I am so blessed!!! 

Love you all!

love,

Sister Sperry :)