THE SACRAMENT :)

hello hello!:) Another week has come and gone. WHAT!? weird. okay so lets go through the week.

1. Zone Conference: WOW. It is always a really good thing to see President and Sister Bonham and the mission family. I love the bond that we have as missionaries. Its just like we all understand each other even though we all come from very different backgrounds. I wish we could all be more like that. Just see each other how Heavenly Father sees us.:) It was great to receive instruction and to find out ways on how you can improve. That's another thing i love about being a missionary. I feel like i am constantly wanting to improve and be better. We talked a lot about obedience. and how it should be our quest and when it is it will no longer be irritation. I have come to know through personal experience that when i am exactly obedient God does bless me. Oh and then the missionaries who are going home get to bear their testimony. They pulled up the list of a couple of the names of some missionaries and my name was one of them. It was interesting to be the one up there bearing my testimony. It causes to reflect on all of your experiences and the ways you have grown, it was sad to say goodbye to some of the people that i love so much.

2. LYNNWOOD. exchanges. I feel so lucky. I was able to go on my last exchange in my second area. WOW. It was so interesting to be back there and to be working. I LOVED IT. I was there just one year ago and i feel so different and so much the same. I got to see Eric and Kathy for one last time. That was so neat, to be in there home one last time to teach the. Eric has now received the priesthood and has passed the sacrament. He's GLOWING.

3. Wedding. One time someone who is taking the lessons and trying to come back to church got married and we were invited to the wedding last minute. Its always a good thing when your bishop calls you and says.. "sisters, how close are you?!" haha We were able to get to the wedding right on time. We have been working with her and trying to help her get back to church. After the wedding she came up to us and said....SISTERS! I GET TO TAKE THE SACRAMENT! WOW. I think that is something we should all think about. are we like this women on Sunday morning? Do we think.. YES! today is the day i get to renew and remember the covenants i have made with God?!:) if not.. we should think of some ways we can improve. Because of what she said it has allowed me to really ponder what the sacrament means for me.

4. MIA: we were teaching Kennedy who was doing so awesome and loving everything and these past two weeks he has been MIA. We hope that we will be able to see him soon.

The Church is true. I know that we may hear that a lot in this church but i do know that it entails a lot. I love the gospel. I know that i have weakness but i know that through them i will be made strong. LOVE LOVE LOVE YOU ALL!

Love, Sister Norton:) 

Can ye feel so now?

WOW. My thoughts are just EVERYWHERE. I am really thinking about all the wonderful things that I have been able to study this past week. I really hope that everyone will get at least something out of a this little missionary email.

First things first. Can you all believe it?! It happened. Yesterday I truly reached my 17th month mark? UH? I feel ummmmmmmmm weird. BUT SO GREAT. I love that I sort of finally understand what I am doing now. The feeling never ever gets old to walk up to a complete stranger and introduce myself as "Sister Norton" and explain to them my purpose and what I do. I feel so so happy! I think that a mission has been one of the best things for me for many reasons, I love having something to do and to always be busy, sharing the gospel, working with so many people, learning to love the gospel more than I ever thought that I could, studying the scriptures and conference talks etc. The list of reasons that I love a mission could really go on and on and on. The main reason I love it so much is because I have been just a simple tool or vessel for my Heavenly Father. I know a little bit more what Jesus Christ actually did for me and for all of us, and that is why I love being on a mission so much.

CAN YE FEEL SO NOW?

if you have not read Alma chapter 5. go read it:) BUT There is a great question that Alma asks each one of us...

 26 And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?

Conversion is what comes to mind when I read this particular verse. He is asking us after we have experienced that change of heart, can we actually feel it?

The gospel allows us to change. Its allows us to BECOME and to continue to BECOME who are Father in Heaven intends us to be. That is why I love being on mission. We teach so many people and it is so interesting to see them change even when they don't notice at all. Slowly but surely they begin to repent, and a light will come on in their heads and you just see it. I had such a hard time with PATIENCE. at first i just wanted them to take in everything that i had so that all their problems would be solved. Then i soon realized that i still had set backs, and trials and hardships and i had the gospel in my life. When i saw these people as God sees them things would always go better. I know that because i have the gospel in my life i can see the "BIG PICTURE" i see the eternal perspective and i have the end in mind, and i now have the end in mind for those that we teach and it is to make a promise with their father in heaven.

When asked the question... CAN YE FEEL SO NOW we should want to say YES:)

I have been loving everything that i have studied this week. I read another great talk by Jeffery Holland. He never disappoints. He gave a talk in October of 2012 called. The First and Great Commandment. as i was reading it I had to ask myself this question.. Do i Love the Lord and do i love the lord with all my heart and would i be willing to do ANYTHING for him. I would like to SAY YES! That is the challenge. Think about what you would do for the Lord.. and then DO IT. even if it is hard.

This week was... well it was a roller coaster. There are ups and there are downs. I am grateful for the companion that i have the people i am serving and the area i am in. Some things don't go as planned but i know that this is Gods work and that if we continue onward and work hard it will be great! FAITH FAITH FAITH!

Washington is great! it has been sunny for a solid 3 days now. LOVE IT!

love love love you all!
Love,
Sister Norton

What a day.....

long story.. I had my whole email typed up to you all and then sadly my Internet connection failed... yikes! I am pretty much out of time and yeah. I am SO SORRY! The worst part is that it was a pretty good email too! SO I will hurry and try to parapharse it. here we goooooo

We had such a week. Things are going great here in EVERETT.  We were able to go to the tulip festival today! It is up in MT. Vernon, and there are fields and fields of tulips EVERYWHERE. Sadly once we got up there they had all been cut off:( then to our surprise we were able to find a couple of tulip fields that had been hidden and they were BEAUTIFUL! Yellow:) it just makes ya happy. I love it here. Then we just rushed all over the place today. One thing that I love is to be busy. SO I really thing that the mission has been the best thing for me. I hate when we have down time... I really don't know what to do with myself.

Moving on. This past week I was able to finish the Book of Mormon again. It feels like such an accomplishment when you are able to read the entire Book of Mormon from cover to cover. I love that feeling!:) It has been so cool to read it over and over again and to always get something out of it. We are teaching someone at the moment that has been reading it but hasn't really gotten everything out of it they way that we would like him to, then it hit him like a ton of bricks he said, during our lesson he said. I know understand that if I am going to read the book of Mormon it will be a lot better for me to read it and to believe that it could be true.! YES! Now that he is doing that he is getting so much more out of it. I know that if we do that that we will as well. Not only are the stories in the Book of Mormon awesome but they are real and true.

I love love love this gospel! I love you all. I promise NEXT week will be better:)

Love, Sister Norton

Everett! #13

WOW!  What a week that we have had, with new investigators that have been found, service projects that have been done and to end it all off with Conference:) Every talk was so inspiring and so amazing. Oh I sound so missionary, but I cant help it!:) I love the GOSPEL! There is so much to say and so much to do I just don't know where I can or where I should even begin.

I feel so spiritually fed and so great! We have been so busy here in Everett and I feel so lucky to be here. I keep telling my mission President.. President Bonham, thank you so much!

SO it is happening. Today was my very last transfer call. CAN YOU believe it. My last transfer is already here. HUH? I am staying with Sister Dalley in Everett. I am really happy that I will be finishing my mission here. I love everything about it. We have even started to bike more which is always great! I feel such a connection with each of our investigators and with all of the ward members. OH I love it. We were able to find a couple new investigators this week. One of them was just a miracle! Her husband is a less active member and he is wanting to come back to the church. When we knocked on the door he was in shock and said... "Well I guess this is the time for me to come back" Then he looked at us and told us that his wife was really interested. WE were able to have a great lesson with them and she is wanting to become a member! WHAT!? I have truly seen that as we have been OBEDIENT and worked as hard as we could even when times get hard the Lord blesses us. He is so aware of us and I know it.

Conference: WOW! AMAZING. There were so many great talks and so many neat and powerful things that were said. I loved the talk that was about the gospel and if it was still wonderful to us.

KEVIN W PEARSON gave a talk and told us that there is no one at any age that is immune to Satan's influence. It is always always there but there are always going to be things that we can do to win. They are simple and easy steps. Go to church, read your scriptures and say our prayers. These things are vital and we should be doing them. HOLD on to the TREE is what he stated and do NOT get lost. I loved when he said this. " Once you enter into covenants with God there is no going back" TRUE.

Conference made me want to be a better missionary but not only that a better daughter of God. There is a sweet peace that the gospel brings and when you have a firm testimony of it, it will not take away everything that we have to go through in this life but it will make it bearable.

I know I am a little all over the place. I hope you all will be able to understand what I am trying to say. There is work to be done and things to do and goals to be set. I love my purpose and I love who I have become. The refined me.

LOVE YOU ALL!

Love Sister Norton:)