April 14 - Staying in St. Helena

****To see the most recent pictures from Sister Decker, click on the "St. Helena Photos" tab****

Dear family and friends,

I received news that I am staying in St. Helena for another 6 weeks follow-up training Sis. Petersen!  I'm excited, especially because the work is slowly but surely speeding up in St. Helena.

I realize how important member-referrals are to successful missionary work.  One of the main reasons why the work is so slow for the English sisters (us) is because though the members are willing to come out with us to lessons for investigators we've found through our own efforts, they do not invite their nonmember friends to hear the Gospel.  We need the members' help!  It's hard to do all the finding.  As full-time missionaries, we're full-time teachers.  As members, we all covenanted to take upon us the name of Christ, which means being a full-time finder.  Find those who are ready to receive the message of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.  OYM!! (open your mouth)

So!

This week we met with Teresa Cervantes, who has a baptismal date for May 24th.  She's going strong!  She brought up some concerns about her family (her husband Jose and her daughter Nayeli) not getting baptized with her, but the woman in our branch fellowshipping her, Sister Baker, helped her to see what a great example she will be and that her family will follow her example.  Teresa when we left said, "You know, maybe it won't be a problem.  It'd be great to be a good example to them."  It's been really cool to see how the Gospel is already changing her and her family.  She is pretty sassy, and she still is her sassy self, but it's a more quiet, dignified sass...if that's possible haha.  Sister Petersen and I love her so much!  We are so excited for her :)  We're teaching her the Plan of Salvation when we meet with her a couple times this upcoming week - I think she'll just eat it all up.  She's already in 2 Nephi 7 after only 4 weeks of reading in the Book of Mormon, and is really understanding and comprehending it well!

We drove way out to Pope Valley on Saturday and had a MIRACLE happen!!  We were attempting to find this house for a referral the Hermanas gave us and started talking to a woman named Cassandra.  As it turns out, she is an inactive member of the branch!  She went less-active when she was 16 years old, and her mom is a member in our branch, Sis. Chaffin.  Cassandra came back to church last year about 4 times, but she said that "no one could answer my questions."  She doubts the priesthood and doubts Joseph Smith's translations of the Bible (especially Abraham and Moses).  It was really...cool, for lack of a better word, to see how listening, discerning, teaching basic doctrine, and testifying confounds the people who think they know it all.  She kept saying that our Church is a "church of man," and yet she was seeking answers from MEN and WOMEN in the Church.  She has never sought her own spiritual answers.  We found out that really, her concern is that she has never read the Book of Mormon.  We asked her, "Well, have you ever read the Book of Mormon?"  She went off about how wrong it is and how we shouldn't add to the Bible and such and such, and Sister Petersen simply asked again, "Have you ever read it?"  She replied sheepishly that she has not.  Then Sister Petersen said to her, "I know that the Book of Mormon is true.  There is no point in us coming and talking with you until you read the Book of Mormon yourself and pray to know it is true."  We introduced the Book of Mormon to her and then I bore my testimony.  We read 2 Nephi 29:8-10 with her:

"8 Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word?  Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another?  Wherefore, I speak the same words unto nation like unto another.  And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also.
9 And I do this that I may prove utno many that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and that I speak forth my words according to mine own pleasure.  And because that I have spoken one word ye need not suppose that I cannot speak another; for my work is not yet finished; neither shall it be until the end of man, neither from the time henceforth and forever.
10 Wherefore, because that ye have a Bible ye need not suppose that it contains all my words; neither need ye suppose that I have not caused more to be written."

After that, she said to us, "Okay, I will read it."  She asked us to look into the validity of Joseph Smith's translations of Abraham and Moses.  But you know, the longer I am out here on a mission, the more I realize that when you have a solid testimony of the Book of Mormon, your testimony of the First Vision, Joseph Smith, priesthood authority, and Jesus Christ strengthens tenfold.  My testimony is unbreakable.  I do not care what anyone says - when people try to tell me the Book of Mormon is not true, I feel the Spirit burn within me and make my heart pump fast and the thought whispers in my head, "The Book of Mormon is true" over and over and over.  I know without a shadow of a doubt the Book of Mormon is true.  I want to shout it out to everyone, and we are trying to talk with everyone we see about this Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ and the beautiful proof that it is true, the Book of Mormon.

Each morning when I study from Preach My Gospel and the Book of Mormon, my heart grows fuller and my spirit feels lighter.  If it were not true, I am sure I wouldn't feel that way.  But it IS true.  I am so grateful for that knowledge.

Sister Petersen is doing so well - she is improving more and more each day and helps me to tighten the screws and work a little harder every day.

Alright, I'll end with some funny/cool/random stories:

1. This lady named Sis. Nielsen is a sassy, feisty less-active member who lives at the veterans' home.  She came to church one day and we were so excited!  In the middle of a talk, she yells out, "Turn your mike on!"  We talked with her after and found out why she doesn't like to come to church - she's almost completely deaf.

2. This old guy at the vet's home always tells us this one story of when he was at church.  The pastor asked, "What song would you like to sing?"  He answered, "Rock of Ages!"  And didn't realize it was an actual hymn.  Then when they would sing, "Rock of ages," he yelled, "THROW IT THROUGH THE WINDOW!"  I didn't get it until I realized he was talking about a rock...he was cracking up with his big toothless grin haha.  What a fella. 

3. An awesome lady in our branch, Sis. Lisa Morgan, always feeds us on Wednesdays.  This week, we started talking about where she used to live in Brooklyn, New York.  She pointed at a picture of her old apartment and says all calm, "Yeah, one night a guy tried to climb through our window.  It wasn't very cool."  Then just turns the page to the next picture like it's no big deal.  Haha Sis. Morgan is hilarious and awesome.  All 4 of us St. Helena sisters absolutely love her to pieces.

4. Sis. Petersen and I went contacting down St. Helena's main street on Friday night and these two men were sitting in front of this store on a bench, so we started talking with them.  One of them stands up and then I realized from the stench and from his swaying that he is slobbering drunk.  The other less-drunk friend got up and put his arm around his dead-drunk friend to keep him from falling over and they started asking us questions about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  I bore a simple, sincere testimony about the Book of Mormon and the slobbering drunk guy looks at me, puts out his hand, and pats my head!  He did this multiple times during our 5-minute chat.  At the end of the chat, we were saying good bye and the wasted man COMPLETELY ENVELOPS ME in this sloppy embrace.  Awk.  Then, his less-drunk friend pulled both Sis. Petersen and I into a group hug...whew.  Don't drink!  It makes you look like an idiot, and makes you hug poor innocent sister missionaries.

5. The other day we were about to get in our car and I saw this pretty yellow and black butterfly on the ground.  I stooped down and put my hand out.  This butterfly walked right onto my hand and sat there for a minute, flapping its wings, then flew away.  It was majestic.  Call me the butterfly whisperer.

I love you fambam and friends!  Hope you have a wonderful week :)

Love,

Sister Kolee Decker

P.S.

Oh, I forgot!  Both my mission "mom" Sister De Rurange and my mission "dad" Sister Zenger are "dying" (going home) tomorrow!  I will be an orphan.  It's alright.  I've got my daughter haha.