EIGHTEEN MONTHS COME AND GONE!

    

October 2014

April 2016

Well. I would say that his has been the best last week of my mission.
Despite the fact that I got sicker than ever, we pushed through and
it's been incredible and I am so grateful.

Monday was the best p-day ever. We had a zone p-day and we just played
a lot of really funny games, like pantyhose tug a war and chair
football. Loved it!! It's been such a blessing to serve in the Hyde
Park Zone with all of these great missionaries. They are my best
friends!

Tuesday, we blitzed and Kings Cross with the ZLs. We stopped this
really cool girl, who happens to be American! She's great and we got
her number. She said she wants to come to church sometime. We also
talked to some...interesting people and got the typical "don't talk to
me" and "is this about Jesus? No." But then we talked to two Chinese
girls, Holly and Snail, who were SO nice!! The should also be coming
sometime soon. :)

For dinner, Jane from Hyde Park 1 fed us authentic Chinese food. It
was the best!! I love her. I just love all the people I've met. ❤️

That night we had correlation which is always a hoot. Then after we
taught our new friend Camilla with Philipa! Camilla came in on Sunday
wanting to meet with missionaries and she is AMAZING. Her boyfriend is
a member, and she has already read the Book of Mormon and knows it's
true. Really, she's incredible! So we had an awesome lesson with her.
I can tell we will be good friends!! :)

Then on Wednesday we had some really cool people come into the VC.
They were having a meeting in the public affairs office, and so Sister
Hannig and I got to escort someone who had been knighted, Sir Paul
Corridge, and Michael Trand (who is the top dog guy for freedom of
speech and religion in most of the U.K. And Europe). It'
 was pretty fun! I've had the privilege of meeting so many cool people here.

Thursday came and we went to UCL to have a lesson with Qian. I love
her so much!! She had heard some things that really concerned and
confused her, mostly do to with church history, so we spent a lot of
time clearing that up. Then the last half of the lesson was pretty
powerful as we bore testimony of keeping commandments and how that is
how she will get the answers and help she needs. She is the best and I
love teaching her! She gave one of the most beautiful prayers, and
prayed for my safety in traveling home and it was just very tender. :)
then after we had institute dinner, but Boya didn't show up. :( but we
still had a good time talking to members recent converts!

Friday was zone meeting, and it was my last. But it was SO good and
spiritual!! I just LOVE all these missionaries! One thing unique about
the Hyde Park Zone, is that you see each other A LOT because all he
areas are very close, and we have the VC. SO I've really grown close
to them and they really are my best friends.

Saturday was my very last VC meeting. :( but it was so good. Again, I
just love everyone here!! And Kasper made a celebratory cake (half
because I am leaving and half because we had 7 VC baptisms in April)
and yes, half the cake WAS covered in bacon. And gluten free. So it
was amazing.

The Hulets took us out to lunch and I ate at my last British pub. Man,
I love those! Then that night we had dinner with my English BFF
Harriet Walker!! Then went to the adult session of stake conference,
and it was beautiful.

Sunday was stake conference and Camilla came. :) after, we went and
had a picnic in Hyde park with e rest of the ward and it was a BLAST!
I really feel so blessed to have ended my mission in such an amazing
area. After we had a lesson with Camilla and she is still incredible.
We taught about the plan of salvation and honestly? One of the most
spiritual lessons I have been in.

Monday was a perfect last day of work. At the VC, We gave a tour to a
group of BYU students here for study abroad, and I just love being
able to show others the chapel and bear testimony of the special
building that this is. I'm so blessed to serve here. That night we
taught Wei Wei and read 3 Nephi 11. Perfect last lesson!! His
testimony of Christ is incredible and powerful. :) Then we had a
dinner appointment at Kaspers, and I had my last English roast dinner!
Then we all shared mission experiences and it was a perfect last
night.

Well!! I cannot believe the time has come for me to say goodbye to the
country and people that have my heart forever. I wish I could sum up
these 18 months with a few sentences, but nothing can convey the love
I have for my mission. I'm not the same person I used to be, and I'm
so excited for the new journey ahead! I couldn't have asked for a
better last transfer, in a better area, with a better companion. It's
been amazing. The Gospel is true and Christ is my best friend. Testify
and wearing His name  for 18 months has been the best choice I have
ever made. England is my country and forever will be! ❤️

Love you all and see you soon.

Xx Sister Moody

SUN, RAIN, SNOW, HAIL, AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

Prince Albert Bridge at night.

One more week!

Honestly, this was one of the best weeks of my mission. It was just way busy and wayyyyyy good. Also the weather was insane. One moment it was sunny, then rainy, then hailing, then snowing, then sunny again. Oh England....

Monday we had a party in the morning! Sister Hannig and I, Elder Burgess and Elder Lindsey, Kasper, Patrick, and Wei Wei (Yuxin joined us a bit later) all went to My Old Dutch and had pancakes, and then went to the chapel and watched the Joseph Smith Movie. It was SO much
fun, and so great to talk after and hear each of their testimonies of the Restoration. Then that night we spent in Camden Town and Tottenham Court Road, and upended up running into our investigator, Boya! So that was fun. :)

Tuesday was a pretty typical day. We did have an amazing online miracle. This man named Paul came on Mormon.org and we started talking to him. He had some concerns and struggles and we talked about how the gospel was the answer he was looking for. We invited him to meet with missionaries (he lives in Ireland) and he agreed! We sent the referral, and then he seemed to disappear from the chat. We had to go, so we sent a message with our Facebook name and left. An hour later, he added us! We've been in contact ever since and he has been meeting with the missionaries and just loving it! He's amazing!!

Then that night we had a lesson with Simon, our recent convert, and he's the best. He is preparing for the Melchizedek press third and so we read a talk and talked about how to honour it and prepare to receive it.

Wednesday consisted of district meeting/my funeral. I gave the gap (2 minute teaching drill) by myself, gave a training, AND a departing testimony. Haha but it was honestly a really good district meeting! Elder Burgess showed us this video where they asked people from different religions questions about Christ, but they had to answer without saying anything. It was BEAUTIFUL. After, we blitzed Exhibition Road and found a new investigator, then had lunch with the elders. (Whoever found a new investigator had to buy the other lunch. So they bought it for us. :))

And then THE best VC miracles happened. We were online, checking on referrals we had sent. So when we send a referral. We then try and keep in contact with them and help encourage as they meet with the missionaries. We also have the ability to text from the computer, so I sent a text to someone I had been in contact with previously, but hadn't answered lately. He texted right back and told me how much he LOVED the gospel and missionaries and knew it was all true! I asked him about baptism and he told me that he had just been baptised that previous Saturday!!!! It was amazing!!! He then just bore his testimony to us and you could truly feel the Spirit so strongly. Then Sister Hannig also found another referral she had sent who had been baptised. So it was a pretty great day. :)

Thursday before institute we had a lesson with Boya. She is the sweetest. We watched the Restoration before we taught her, and after she said "So, I'm a Mormon now?" We told her that she was well on her way and she just got so happy and said "Yay!! I'm going to become a Mormon!!" Then we taught her lesson 1, and she loved it. She accepted a baptismal date of the 22 of May. And she stayed an additional 3 hours for institute and dinner. She's amazing!!

We also gave so many tours to Italians that day. Literally, it was just one after the other ate another. I have never spoken to that many in a row!! Haha it was so funny.

Friday, we taught Spike, and also talked about the Melchizedik Priesthood, and he is also preparing. :) Then we went into the Holborn/Kings Cross area to find and that was so much fun. I haven't been in that area since I was in Whitchapel and it was kinda like going home. I loved it! And we were able to talk to some really cool people. Hopefully the seeds we planted will be harvested later on. :)

Also, way over in the London South mission, our dear friend Ada was baptised!! Ada came into the VC when Sister Kerr and I were companions had is just incredible. It's been amazing to stay in touch and see her progress!! We love her. :)

Saturday was one of the craziest VC days of my life. I stepped into the bathroom for 2 minutes and when I came out there were at least 5 tours, more people coming in, and it was just crazy!! So much fun and we were way busy for an hour or two. I loved it!!

Then over in Stratford, our dear friend Maria was baptised!! Maria also came into the VC and Sister Kerr and I taught her before referring her on. She is INCREDIBLE and we love her. :)

Sunday was full of miracles! First, our new friend Athena came to church, as well as Roger and Qian!! Roger is back and so ready to be baptised. He has a date of May 22nd and is SO committed. We taught him with Kasper, and the spirit was strong, he's the best. :) It was also wonderful to see Qian again!! We love her lots. She is still reading and praying every day, and is progressing beautifully. I love her!! Then later, Sister Hulet introduced us to a new friend named Camilla! Turns out she was taught by missionaries in York, and just moved here. She came to church looking for missionaries to teach her, so we set up a time to see her on Tuesday. :)

Well! So many good things are happening here. While sometimes it saddens me to know that I might not be here to see all of the fruits, I am SO grateful for the opportunity I have to serve and to plant these seeds. As my last week approaches, I'm planning on working my tail off to set everything up so the next sisters can just baptise like crazy. I truly love England with all of my heart.  I love the people, the culture, just everything. But most importantly, I love the Saviour and am grateful for the opportunity I have had for 18 months to wear His name and testify of His Gospel. :)

Love you all!

HAPPY 90TH BIRTHDAY QUEEN ELIZABETH!!

April 25, 2016

**Note for those interested...Heather will be giving her homecoming talk on Sunday, May 15th at 11:00 am. The address is: 673 East 300 North in American Fork

Monday, we went to the My Old Dutch pancake house with the Ashbys and other sisters, and then we sang at a care home and it was so sweet. They were singing along, clapping, cheering, and just so thankful. And we got to talk to all of the residents afterward and it was just so special. The sweetest spirit was there and I just loved it.

Tuesday, Elder Vernon, one of the senior self reliance elders, took some elders out for lunch and decided to teach them how to treat sisters, so later they came back into the VC and presented us with a slice of cheesecake and said "I'm sorry, you're right! We are always wrong." It was HILARIOUS.

Haha, then while we were on mormon.org chat, I talked to this awesome guy who was asking a lot of questions about how to overcome uncertainty. He asked how I could devote time to God if I wasn't sure if He was even there. I bore my testimony that I DID know for sure, and that he could to. He then responded with "do you have members in my area that I can reach out to? Better yet, can they reach out to me?" So I got his info and set the referral. It was just really cool to be able to see how the Spirit works, even through the computer. I love being able to chat and talk to people all over the world. The Spirit has no barrier and it is incredible to watch. :)

Later that day, we taught our recent convert Patrick. He is THE BEST! We started off talking about Joseph Smith (Patrick found out about Joseph Smith on his own and watched the Joseph Smith movie 2 years before he was baptised. It's pretty much where his conversion began) so we spent a solid 15 minutes quoting the movie and talking about how great Joseph Smith is. I loved it. :) then we watched the Mormon message "Reclaimed" and talked about the Atonement. I loved it! Really, Patrick taught us. Those are the best kinds of lessons. :) then we had correlation and that is always a party. :) I love serving in Britannia!!

Wednesday we had district meeting, and Elder Lindsey quite possibly gave the most hilarious training EVER. Then we blitzed Exhibition Road and Sister Hannig and I found a new investigator! Later that night as we were walking home, we hear someone yell "SISTERS!" And we ran into some members who are just here on holiday. I love running into members on the street because it's so fun to talk and it's always such a tender mercy. :)

Thursday, we had institute and our good friend Qian came!! I LOVE Qian! She is the sweetest, and is just progressing so well. Wei Wei taught with us, as well as the elders investiagtor Yuxin. (Yuxin basically teaches like a missionary and so we really wanted to have her in the lesson, even though she wasn't baptised yet. :)) And it was so good! We were able to talk about feeling ready for baptism and what she needs to do. She told us that she wants to be baptised, but feels something pulling her back. But then she told us that she is willing to do everything to get to that point. She is THE BEST! And Yuxin and Wei Wei just acted like missionary companions and we were the member present. I just loved it!!

We also had a lesson with Wei Wei, and Yuxin joined. We read Alma 32 and talked about faith. My favourite was Yuxin's comment when she said "Like the scripture said, faith is to belief and not know. So if I know, it's not faith and so I don't need to know. I just believe that God is there and it feels good." I LOVE HER! (This was all before her baptism)

Friday, was THE BEST. I had the opportunity to go with Sister Shigekiyo to the temple! After almost 18 months of not going, it was exactly what I needed and more! Being able to account to the Lord and have that time in the temple, made for the perfect day. Also, being with Sister Shigekiyo was so much fun and we just talked about memories from Huntingdon. It was the best. :)

  

Saturday was the VC meeting/farewell to the Ashbys. (They went home today) Ah I love them! I'm really going to miss them. I feel so blessed to have been able to serve around them. They've really been there for me through thick and thin. I owe them so much and am so grateful so have served here and met them. :) Luckily I will see them soon! ;)

Then that day was Yuxin's baptism!! It was incredible. And then when she bore her testimony. She said "How can I stand at the straight and narrow, feel what I've felt, and not hold onto the iron rod?" MAN! It was so good haha. She's been learning with the elders for about 6 weeks and is just incredible. We love her lots. :)

Sunday was just filled with miracles!! First, we were on shift in the morning and we got a text from a former investigator who said she was coming to church! So that was really cool. She came and we were able to teach her. She is also from Guam so we had a fun time talking about that. :) And then our new friend Boya came to church and had a wonderful time. As well, we had two people come who we weren't expecting! That was really cool and such a tender mercy. :)

Well! Sorry I always say a lot haha, but I just feel like the closer I get to the end, the more things happen and the more I have to say! Just know that I love this work, and I love this mission. If I would be here for another 18 months, I wouldn't mind at all. :) But I am so grateful for the time I have had and the ways I've changed. I love the gospel. :)

Cheers!

Xx Sister Moody

THE CRAZINESS OF BRITANNIA

April 18, 2016

Well, well! I love being a missionary. :)

So this week has been so good! It started on Monday with a mission wide finding blitz! Well, this means that the whole mission is on the streets finding between 6 and 7. So Sister Hannig and I prayed and looked at the map and decided to go to Elephatn and Castle. It was close to about 3 different universities, so it seemed perfect! (and it was outside of the mission boundaries #BritanniaLife) Anyway, we got out of the station and started walking and there was NO ONE. Not a soul. Then we saw one YSA walking towards us! We tried to stop and him and he was just rude and walked away. Next guy, same story. Next guy had a pocket knife and a weird look in his eye, so we passed. We finally got a bit frustrated, then we looked up and saw some YSA working in a cheap chicken shop. We figured we could go for some chips and so we ordered some just to be able to talk to them (grosses chips EVER. but worth the conversation). Anyways, one seemed kind of interested but wouldn't give us his number. So we wrote ours on a napkin and went on our way! (Later that night, he ended up texting us and said he wanted to meet up! So miracle ther!!) There was still no one out, but we eventually ran into a really nice Canadian who gave us her email. Then we saw someone running and we stopped him. His name is Hide and he is from Japan! He was SO nice and wanted to come to institute, the only problem was he only has an email because he hasn't gotten a UK number yet. But we got that and then went back home. :) All in all, we will probably never find there again! But, it was worth it to meet the people that we did. :) Then on our way home we ended up talking to a worker in a little souvenir shop, gave him a Book of Mormon, said a prayer, and committed him to come to church with us! So that was fun. :)

Tuesday was interviews! So we spent the morning with President and Sister Stevens and can I just rave for a minute about how much I love them?! Seriously though! We were able to have separate interviews with each of them and they were exactly what I needed to hear. They really helped me feel good with my efforts thus far, and helped me know how to make these last 3.5 weeks the best ever. I adore them and am SO grateful to serve here with them. :) We also had a little district meeting which consisted of Sister Hannig, myself, and Elder Lindsey talking about American and singing My Country Tis of Thee to Elder Burgess, our English district leader. He loves us.

Then after that, we had a lesson with Min Tzu! She is not very committed at the moment, but we will continue to WeChat her and have lessons and see how we can help her. I love her a lot! She just isn't really prioritizing the Gospel. After, we had a lesson with our recent convert Spike, and another with Wei Wei! I LOVE them! They really teach us, instead of the other way around. I just love it. :)

Wednesday, we had lunch with the Neeleys and the even got gluten free bread for me. :) Then, while we were on shift, Matt West walked in! (He's my brother-in-laws brother, or just my British brother) That was SUCH a tender mercy and so we got to talk for a while. :)

Thursday after shift, we headed up to London North for an exchange! I was with Sister Pan Scorziello from Spain! She is great, and we came at the same time, so this is also her last transfer! It was much needed and we were able to talk a lot about our missions and the next steps and how to feel satisfied with what we've done. I just love her. :) Then that night the AP's called us. Our friend, Hide, that we had met on Monday had come to institute and they talked to him for us AND got him to accept a baptismal day of May 22nd!! It was incredible!! So good. :) Then, when Sister pan and I were finding we stopped my a formers house, and they had moved, but a YSA from China had moved in so we got her number. :)

Friday, Sister Pan and I went and visited a less-active and she gave us apples and we had a great time talking about President Monson. :) It was also POURING and I got wet through my coat. Haha, then Sister Hannig and I left and went back to South Kensington and taught our recent convert Patrick! And like always, he taught us instead. He's the best!! I just love everyone here in Britannia. :)

Saturday, we had the VC meeting and we talked about using the "I'm a Mormon" exhibit. This board has a lot of different I'm a Mormon vidoes and is really helpful in getting people to understand that we are normal. Then that evening we called a ton of people in our phone and were able to invite some new friends to church. :) ALSO! Our Online investigator, James, got baptised!!! He is in Hawaii and is just amazing!!

Sunday was a bit rough. Everyone who was supposed to come to church, ended up cancelling. So while we were sitting in sacrament meeting, I was feeling pretty down and discouraged. I started feeling like I wasn't good enough, and that I had wasted the past 18 months, etc...just thoughts that the adversary would put into your mind when you are feeling weak. Then they brought the bread to me, and the thought came to my mind "Have you forgotten who this is really about? Have you forgotten Him?" And I realised again that this is NOT my work or my will. It is His, and it is all about Jesus Christ. He will bear our burdens, strengthen us, and help us along the way. It's all about Him. He's the reason I'm here, and I've never been more converted to His gospel! As I took the sacrament, I was really able to ponder about this and feel the love that He has for each and everyone of us. I love being a missionary, and I love being in England, proclaiming His name!

Anyways, I know I always type a lot, but I just really love it here. :) Love you all! Thanks for everything and have a great day. :) Cheers!

Xx Sister Moody

RULE BRITANNIA!

 April 11, 2016

Monday we had a whirlwind tour of the Victoria and Albert Museum by Sister Ashby, where we were able to see some AMAZING things, like Shakespeare's first folio and Da Vinci p's notebook. It's was pretty incredible. :)

Tuesday was crazy busy. I loved it! Shift was good, and we were able to have a really good online lesson with our friend in Madagascar, and it turns out he is being taught by my good friend, Elder Rasmussen! How crazy, cool, haha. Then we had a lesson at 3:30 with Min Tzu, where
we went over tithing. She is the best!! Then at 4:30 we had a lesson with our recent convert Spike, and talked about the Book of Mormon and patriarchal blessings! He is amazing. Then at 5:30, we had another recent convert lesson with Wei Wei! Ah man, so good! He kept talking about how amazing it is to be disciples of Christ and to be a part of His kingdom. I really love having the opportunity to work with the amazing people here in Britannia. They've already taught me so much!! Then we had dinner, and half way through Sister Hannig randomly said "I need gelato. Now." Hahaha so we ran to this place down the street to grab gelato, and ended up running into Sophie, the HP1 elders investigator! (The elders had just whitewashed in so they didn't actually know her yet, but both Sister Hannig and I are close to her) so that was a huge tender mercy, and we were able to invite her to the chapel so the new elders could meet her. The Lord truly helps us be where we need to be, even if it is by inspiring us to get gelato. ;) Then we had correlation at 7:30! It was just a crazy, busy, and wonderful day!!

Wednesday, we went finding on exhibition road and talked to some interesting people, but they weren't very interested. We did get one guys mobile number though! So that was good.

Thursday, we decided to call random people from our phone and see if anyone was interested in meeting again. The first person I called was a girl named Jill, and she immediately said she would love to meet, and offered a time that ended up being PERFECT for us!! It was such a
needed tender mercy. :)

Friday, we had zone meeting! It was really great. We talked a lot about accountability and solving problems the Lords way. I really love zone meetings and being able to gather with other missionaries to discuss the gospel and missionary work. I'm currently serving around some of the best missionaries who have become some of my closest friends and I am SO grateful!!

Saturday was the VC meeting and breakfast, which is always great. :) Then later that evening, we had the best lessons. First, our new friend from last week, Yim, came! We taught him with a great member, Eszter. We talked about the Restoration and the Book of Mormon, and he really seemed to get it. When we told him about Joseph Smith he said "So, it sounds like he was called as another prophet? That's cool!" Haha and then we invited him to be baptised on the 8th of May, and he said that if he could 100% know that it was true, of course! So we promised him he could know if he would read, pray, and come to church. :) Then our miracle new investigator from phone contacting came for her lesson AND SHE BROUGHT A FRIEND. And they are both SOOOO good. We taught with Jacint Horvath, who was a missionary who served here and then moved back. (it's weird teaching with former elders, but really nice!) We also talked about the Restoration and invited them to be baptised on the 8th of May and they accepted. :) Jill and Sierra! And Sierra has a member friend that lives in Utah! They are both from Taiwan, but are really interested and receptive. I'm SO excited to be able to continue to meet with them. :)

ALSO! A big group of Chinese missionaries went to the temple and they took along our investigator, Qian, and the elders investigator, Yuxin. AND IT WAS PERFECT. Qian had a beautiful time and watched the Testaments and was so touched, she cried. See also sends us pictures on WeChat every time she is reading. :) It's the best! We will see her this week and hear more about her expirence.

Sunday was a bit crazy, as always haha. :) We had church, and that was so good. Then afterward, we had a munch and mingle and it was a great time to meet members and introduce myself to the ward. I love Britannia!! It's so much fun and the members are the best. That night the AP's friend, Arteh, was baptised and so we went to that. It was a beautiful service!

Roger, who was supposed to be baptised on Sunday has disappeared a bit and hasn't answered our calls. Hopefully we will get in touch with him this week!

This week we also had a good amount of contact with our online friend, James. He is in Hawaii and is going to be baptised on Saturday! He is SOO excited and he bore his testimony to us on Facebook and I loved it. He is really great. We love him! I just love having the opportunity to serve in the VC and work online, with so many different people from all over. :)

I'm just so grateful to be able to serve here at this time. I'm grateful to be a missionary and to witness little miracles every single day. It's all true! The Gospel is great and I love it with all my heart. :) Have a great week!! Cheers!

xx

Sister Moody