August 25th - EARTHQUAKE! The cherry on top of a crazy week haha

Dear family and friends,

Hi from Vallejo!  This week was psycho haha.

So I'm sure most of you heard, but I'll just update y'all anyway: there was a 6.1 earthquake Sunday morning at 3:20am here in my area.  Craziness.

It was my first earthquake!  Well, technically, in St. Helena Sister Petersen and I felt one, but it was a tiny little 2.5 and lasted for about 2 seconds and it just made us lose our balance and get dizzy.

This one was MUCH bigger!  It was rather disorienting waking up like that, but we are safe!  So, I woke up to a big jolt, and then all of a sudden everything started shaking like crazy for about 15 seconds.  I ran and hid under Sister Naqia's bed (apparently I was supposed to run to a doorway...I don't know what to do in an earthquake!  Oh well) and then we said a little prayer together while it was still shaking.  

When we ended the prayer the shaking stopped and then for some reason I started crying - guess it just shook me up...pun intended ;)  Our district leader and our zone leaders called us and checked on us, and then President Alba called us and made sure we were okay, and many members called us and made sure we were okay.

Since our apartment is on the further side from American Canyon and Napa, we didn't have any damage - only a few things fell over in our apartment.

After the bigger shake, we tried to go back to sleep (lol) but there were a few aftershocks so Sis. Naqia and I just laid in bed until 6:30.

Our bishop, Bishop Judd, texted us and said that we weren't going to have church today - we were just going to meet in Napa and divide up and help everyone out with the damage.  So that's what we did!  We got ready and ended up going to Sacrament Meeting in Vallejo (they just held the first hour and Sis. Naqia and I wanted to partake of the Sacrament before we headed out into the craziness), then headed to Napa with our ward missionary, Kristen Parker.

Vallejo only has a little damage in the older part of town.  And a lot of the stores got messed up - things falling of the shelves, broken glass from windows and bottles, etc.  But it wasn't too bad.  In American Canyon and Napa (where the epicenter of the earthquake was), the damage was pretty bad.  Many older buildings had a lot of structural damage, especially brick buildings.  There were also some huge cracks in the roads - it almost reminded me a zombie apocalypse in the downtown Napa area.  But for the most part, structural damage was minimal.  It was mostly just the inside of people's houses that got destroyed.  We went to a few members who were assigned to us and helped them out, then we went to neighborhoods closer to the epicenter and helped move all the debris in and out their homes.  

It was really fun to help people out all day!  We were helping people from 9am-8pm last night (with an hour break for dinner) and it has made me TIRED.  Whew.  So so so tired.  But really happy.  It felt good to just work and serve and help people out.  It also opened up and softened many hearts of nonmembers to just have us show up and ask how we could help.

As far as I know, there were few fatalities, so that is really good.  There weren't too many fires, either, and the gas, water, and electricity was back up by the end of the day.  I am so grateful we live in America where we can recover quickly from natural disasters.

Being in that earthquake, though, really made me reflect and think of how dependent on God we truly are.  We think we are in charge, but sitting there during that earthquake while everything was shaking so hard and hearing things fall and crash around me and hoping nothing fell on me...it was pretty helpless.  Made me realize that we are not in charge at all.  There really is nothing we can do when things like that happen but ask Heavenly Father for protection and for strength.  I am so grateful for a merciful and loving Heavenly Father who hears and answers our prayers.  I am so thankful I was able to help out the people whose homes were hurt from the earthquake as well and really be like Christ yesterday.

Super weird thing that went along with that: In St. Helena, when I was with Sister Petersen, I had multiple dreams that we were involved in an earthquake and that I had the opportunity to help people out.  And lo and behold, I WAS involved in an earthquake and I DID have the opportunity (and still do until everything is cleared up in Napa and AmCan) to help people out!  #callmelehi #visionarywoman ;)

But I am perfectly fine besides being tired :)  Life is good.

Okay!  So, now for the rest of the week! :) 

So, Sister Harmer and I finished strong on our last day together (Monday) by picking up a new investigator Jeremy!  Jeremy  is so cool.  He is 29 and lives in Benicia.  He is going to school to become a police officer.  He was in the Navy for 5 years and has been out of it for 4 years.  He LOVES the Giants and the 49'ers.  He also loves the Book of Mormon!  He told us whenever he reads he feels all warm inside and very peaceful.  He accepted a date to be baptized on September 27th :)  So pray we will be able to meet with him often and prepare him for that date.

Ah man.  Sister Harmer and I dealed with some deadly Thai curry Monday, though....whew!  It hurt our tummies real good haha.  Keep that in mind, because it connects to later in the week...

So transfers!  I am now with Sister Amelia Naqia.  She is from Fiji and is 22.  She has been out for 4 1/2 months and this is her 2nd area.  She is basically hilarious haha.  I'll tell you about her in some bullets:

-She is SO bold!  I love it!

-She speaks amazing English!  She has only been speaking for 4 1/2 months but speaks like a native!  It's fun because we do language study every morning for her English, and in return she teaches me a little Fijian!  "Bula, na yacagu (pronounced yathagoo) o Sista Decka!" (Hi, my name is Sister Decker!)

-She likes running!!! Yay!!

-She laughs like ca-razy at everything and it is awesome

-She ran track!  She did the same events I ran: 400m and 800m

-She is a convert to the church: her and her family joined when she was 12

-She rode a HORSE to school.  What? #Fiji

-She loves the movie the Expendables...and Sylvester Stalone (Alexandria Adair, you'd love her haha)

-She worked on a farm her whole life and grew bananas, mangos, coconuts, papayas, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, kasava, sweet potatoes, oranges, etc.

-She is deathly afraid of lizards

-She eats BATS!  Like the kind that fly.  Quote from this week, "Sista Decka, do you eat bats here?"  Me, "No...? Do you?" Sister Naqia, "Yeah, it tastes like chicken!  It's so good!"  Haha.

-She always laughs at random things and I love it

-She has 3 siblings - an 11-year-old sister and a 28-year-old brother and a brother who passed away when she was 8.

-She sleeps underneath the bed lol.  In Fiji, they sleep on mats, not on beds, so she doesn't like the bed and chooses to sleep on the carpet underneath the bed haha.  So when the earthquake hit and I ran under Sis. Naqia's bed, I ran to where she was sleeping haha.

And funny story for the week: Sis. Naqia looked through our fridge and asked me if she could eat the leftover Thai curry.  I said, "sure!"  Dun dun DUN!  It was the deadly curry...I forgot it was deadly.  And poor Sister Naqia had some tummy problems the first day we were together as a result of that haha.  And she was SUPER sore from running the hills here in Vallejo so she couldn't walk very well either.  Poor girl.  She's such a good sport.  We had to walk up a TON of stairs that day as well.  At one set she goes, "Another stairs?  Oh no.  Sista Decka.  Help me."  Haha I love her accent.  It's so cool.

So random facts about Fiji I learned this week:

1.  They speak British English.  Hence her cool accent.  And she always says cool British words.  At the grocery store she asked where the trolleys are instead of carts haha.  She also says things in kilometers and degrees Celsius :P

2.  In Fiji, the diet is fish, vegetables, and fruit.

3.  The "Fiji" water is actually from Fiji!  Looky-there.

4.  They sleep on mats, not on beds

5.  Biggest sports are rugby, volleyball, and netball (yeah...still don't get what netball is from her explaining. Oh well)

Our first day together we also ate with our Fijian less-active member, Kesa Nakatouga!  It was fun and cool to hear them speaking Fijian together.  

The week went well despite the craziness.  Whew.  Lots of craziness...our phone broke, our area book on our ipads weren't working, and we had an earthquake!  But we are alive and doing well!  So take that Satan!

Haha I love you all, choose the right this week and remember how much God loves you!

Love,

Sister Kolee Decker

August 18th - RQ GOT BAPTIZED!

Dear friends and family,

Hi!! 

So guess what?!  RQLin got baptized this weekend!  It was such a good experience.  Everything ran super smoothly...except for the actual ordinance haha.  We made sure EVERYTHING was perfect.  We got to the church 2 1/2 hours early to fill up the font and made SURE it was nice and high and the water was warm, since he isn't a fan of water.  We kept turning off the water and watching it to make sure we had plugged the font correctly, and it wasn't draining at all, so we felt really confident.

The programs were beautiful - our ward missionary, Kristen, made them for us.  Everyone in the program came and many of the ward members came to support RQ.  He said he was a little nervous, but excited. 

The program started and everything was perfect, and then the doors to the baptismal font opened...the font had drained to about a foot and a half of water!!!  Oh man.  So, the actual ordinance was rough.  He ended up getting baptized 3 times so he could make it under the water all the way.  Whew.  The first time, Harrison - who baptized him - kept him under water so long haha.  Oh man.  He kept trying to fully submerge him since the water was so shallow and almost drowned him!!  When he finally let RQ come up for air RQ took a breath and asked if he was fine...and nope!  He had to go two more times.  The last time he went under, they had to do it on his knees haha.  The water was SO low.

We tried so hard to make it perfect.  But perfection isn't in this world, I suppose.  #struggleisreal

But!  He made it though, and he felt really good. The Spirit was there so strongly - it was a sweet experience.

The most powerful part, though, was honestly when he got confirmed yesterday.  Jason Chinn confirmed RQ and gave him the most powerful blessing I have ever heard!  RQ absolutely loved it and said he just felt a burning in his chest during it.  I am so thankful to be a part of his life.  I feel so privileged to be serving the Lord in this part of His vineyard.

Disclaimer: we really had plugged the drain; the seal broke.  There was another baptism the next day and the water drained for that one, too.

I'll send some pictures :)  

And as for transfers, I am staying in Vallejo!  Sister Harmer is leaving for Vacaville.  I will be serving with Sister Naqia, a missionary who is pretty new - she's been out for 4 1/2 months.  It's going to be so nice not to train haha.  Not that I dislike training...I've just been training for 6 months and it'll be nice to have a little break.  Sis. Naqia is from Fiji!  I hear awesome things about her, so I am pumped to work with her.

I am sad Sister Harmer is leaving me, but I'm excited for her new adventure :)  She is so special and I am so thankful I got to work with her.

Funny contact story:

We contacted a crazy!  (The usual).  This guy we started talking to on a street corner was acting a little odd so we tried to say good bye and walk away, and he yeels out to us, "Next time, I'll bring the eye droppers for when the car gets close to the curb.  You know?"

...What?  Oh man.  Crazies. #vallejo #theyalsochosetocomehere We're all children of God, no matter how nutty we may act.

Oh man.  Good times.  

Well, I don't know what else to write this week.  Choose the right and have fun.  Life is already hard enough.  Laugh through it all and life gets a little easier :)  Love y'all!

Love,

Sister Nikole Decker

August 11th - BUSY week!

Dear family and friends,

Hi! This week is the last of the transfer! Sister Harmer and I find out if we get moved around or not on Friday. I don't know what's going to happen this time around...guess we'll see!

This week was great! Most of our investigators are moving to go to school elsewhere which is a bummer haha, but it's also a tender mercy because now Sister Harmer and I have more time to find new people to teach. We've been booked with teaching appointments (again, not
complaining) so it'll be fun to go out and find more people. We've also been booked with random doctor appointments and car appointments and such so we've been struggling to find new investigators in the time in-between. Again - tender mercy :)

RQ's baptism is this weekend and Sister Harmer and I are stoked! I can't wait for him to enter the gate to Celestial glory :) I know this work is true and I know that the Book of Mormon brings us close to Christ, especially because RQ didn't have much of a religious background at all and he now knows from reading and praying that Jesus is his Savior. It's so neat!

RQ is so funny. He is trying so hard to keep the Word of Wisdom for his baptism and doesn't want to mess up, so he texted us the other day and asked if lemonade is tea. We said no, but told him to take a picture and show it to us to make sure. Haha he showed us the picture and it was a bottle of "Simply Lemonade!" He is so sweet and sincere in his desire to do what is right.

He is so ready as well! He passed his interview and it made him STOKED for his baptism on Saturday :) Lots of picture to come on that.

I can't remember too many details from this week, but I do remember that Sister Harmer and I laughed TONS! It was great :) I always feel so privileged and humbled to work with her - she is an incredible missionary - she will very soon be a great leader and hopefully bring a new missionary into the field. She would be incredible at it! I love her so so much. It's a hoot and a half to be her companion!

Dad, you'll really like this news: I got my driving privileges back!!!
Just a 3-hr driving class later haha. So now I can drive in the mission field! Yay! It's a win-win. I like driving more, Sis. Harmer likes being a passenger more.

Well, sorry it's so short this week! I'll try to be more interesting next week, promise.

Love y'all, remember that you are a loved child of God :)

Love,

Sister Kolee Decker :)

August 4th - Watermelon :) And 11 Month Mark Today!

Dear family and friends,

Hi from Vallejo!  This week was full of FRUIT!  Again!  Our one and only ward missionary, Kristen, gives us so much fruit!  I'm not complaining, though.  Fruit is so tasty, especially here in northern California.  Oh man, especially watermelon.  She figured out I absolutely love watermelon and now she always makes sure if she feeds us or drops off food for us or comes out with us that I am freshly supplied with watermelon.  

I am trying to be creative and think of ways we can serve her - she is just so good and kind to us and helps us with our work so much!

As for the week, things went really well!  Sister Harmer and I got along very well and we did our best.  We picked up an amazing new investigator named Eliana Barriga - she is Kristen Parker's good friend and housemate.  She accepted a date for baptism as well for October 11th, so we're stoked! :)  

RQ is doing awesome as well - we only have obey and honor the law to teach him and we are going over the baptismal interview questions with him this week as well.  He is super excited for his baptism and will definitely make his date as long as he keeps the Word of Wisdom.  He can do it!  Please keep him in your prayers these next 2 weeks that he will not drink coffee.  That would be the only thing holding him back.  He has the most sincere desire to change and be better, and wants to do his best.

He gained a strong testimony of prayer this week.  He did something wrong last week that affected his parents, and he told us he was scared to tell them.  He kneeled down and asked Heavenly Father what he should do to fix the mistake he made.  RQ told us that God put into his mind the thought, "Tell your parents.  It will be alright."  He said he felt at peace, so he told his parents and his parents weren't upset, just grateful that RQ confided in them.  

He was afraid to tell his parents that he was getting baptized (they are very Catholic) but he prayed and felt at peace with the decision to tell his parents as well, and when he told them, his parents were just fine with him getting baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!  :)  His smile when he told us that story was so sweet.  He just gets it.  He knows God loves him and that God answers prayers.  

It was Sister Harmer's birthday yesterday and it was a good one!  She went to bed early, so I had the opportunity to decorate the apartment with streamers and little sticky notes and signs.  I bought brownie mix earlier in the week on exchanges so we made those together last night as well!  Our ward mission leader, Austin, invited us over for a birthday dinner.  Kristen gave Sis. Harmer her own pink bottle of pepper spray haha AND decorated our car with balloons and that wash-off paint saying "Happy birthday!"  I gave some elders in our zone a few balloons to tape onto our door as well while we were gone during the day in Napa, so when we got home for the night at 9, there were pink balloons all over the front door as well!

Funny story about the balloons:

Sister Anderson and I went to the store really quickly during lunch on exchanges so I could pick up a few items for Sis. Harmer's birthday and not have her know about it, so when I picked balloons I just grabbed the first bunch I found.  Little did I know that I had chosen balloons with the phrase, "It's a Girl!"  On them.  Whoops.  Haha our neighbor saw the balloons taped to our door and thought one of us was having a baby!  We had to explain to her that no, it was just her birthday.  She looked kind of confused, but hopefully we explained it clearly enough. Side note on our neighbor: she was really hostile to us at first when we got there, but she's really warmed up and loves talking to us.  Hopefully we can start teaching her soon :)

Overall, it was a fun day :)

The night before Sister Harmer's birthday, on Saturday, Kristen and a recent convert in the Vallejo 2nd ward, Marguerite, and Elder and Sister Barney had us over for dinner.  We ate the most delicious salad ever - spinach, almonds, blueberries, strawberries, and poppyseed dressing.  Not only that, but of course: watermelon.  And the tastiest chicken and steak and Louisiana potato salad. Oh man.

The longer I'm out here, the more I love food.  Whew.  I just love good food.  I feel like that's all I talk about now...sorry if my e-mails are turning into me describing my favorite meals from the last week haha.  I'll try to cut the food details short.

I went to my first MLC (Missionary Leader Coordination) on Friday - all the zone leaders and STL's go once/month to be instructed on how to be better leaders and missionaries.  It was such a privilege to be taught by them all day long (from 9am-4pm) and to feel the sweet spirit they brought.  I loved being in that room with all the leaders of my mission and had this profound thought come into my head: these are not only leaders in mymission, but future leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I have confidence in the rising generation :)  

I also noticed an ongoing theme in all the leaders there: humility.  The longer I'm out here, the more I realize that a great leader has quiet dignity - knows why they are here but does not have to be loud about it.  It remind me of a scripture in the New Testament:

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong" (2 Cornithians 12:10).

I can't believe 11 months are gone already.  Time keeps moving and I want it to at least slow down - but I feel good about what I have accomplished and who I have become in these past 11 months and can't wait for what the next 7 will bring.

Choose the Sprite this week when a Coke is placed before you! (Lol sorry had to put that in there)

Haha anyway, love y'all!  Remember: You are magnificent!

Have a stellar week!

Love,

Sister Kolee Decker

Picture: Us with our favorite member, Kristen Parker :)  She is the BEST.

July 21 - Fruit fruit fruit!

Dear family and friends,

Hi from Vallejo!  This week was awesome.  You know, the usual.

So, some crazy things happened!  I'll tell you a couple, as long as you (especially parents) promise not to freak out.  I am safe and happy! 

So, the first thing I wanted to tell y'all:

Our investigator, RQ, moved his date up for baptism to August 16th!  He is super excited because his birthday is the next day, Sunday, the 17th.  We told him he would receive the gift of the Holy Ghost on his birthday, the best gift he could ever receive, and his eyes lit up!  He is doing so well!  He told us about a spiritual experience he had reading the Book of Mormon.  We left him with 2 Nephi 31 to read and the next appointment he told us he felt a warm feeling in his chest - we were able to explain that that feeling is the Holy Ghost telling us what we are reading is true, and he said he wants to feel that all the time.  The promise in Moroni 10:3-5 is so true - if you read the Book of Mormon with real intent and being sincere, having faith in Christ, and ask God if it is true, He will let you know the truth through the power of the Holy Ghost :)

It is so neat to see how far he has come from when we first started teaching him!  His faith in Jesus Christ is really growing, and it is amazing to see.  I sure love RQ - he is a quirky, sincere, humble young man!

And secondly, we had an intense experience that happened when we were running on Thursday morning!  We were told by several people that this park across the street from our apartment complex (Hann's Park) was safe to run in when it was light outside in the mornings, and since it's summer the mornings are always light.  We've made sure the places where we run are sporadic, just to keep us safe and make sure no one notices a pattern.  So a couple times a week we've been running in this park since we first got to Vallejo.

We would always see this sweet little old Filipino man and this other female runner without fail whenever we ran in the park, but Thursday as we were running we realized that we hadn't seen them the last few times we ran there.  Sister Harmer kept saying her legs felt super tired, and I kept getting spooked hearing all the rustles in the trees around us.  All of a sudden before we crossed a bridge, this voice came into my head clear as day: "Turn around."  So I told Sister Harmer and she said she heard the same voice.  Immediately when we turned around, we had a second wind and were able to run back super fast.

We didn't think much of the prompting until Saturday morning when one of the elders, Elder Albertson, told us that there was a killer on the loose called the Zodiac Killer and that all the killings that happened were in that park we ran in a couple days prior!  Whew.  I don't know what would have happened, but I am grateful that Sister Harmer and I have the gift of the Holy Ghost and that we live worthily to hear His promptings.  

But don't worry - we are safe!  We make sure we vary the routes we travel on foot and in the car and are always keeping aware.  That experience just made me so grateful for my Heavenly Father and strengthened my testimony that when we stay close to Him, He will protect us.

The last highlight of the week was when we weeded a less-active member's yard!  Her name is Akesa Nakatouga and she is so amazing :)  The weeds were as tall as me - it was INTENSE.

Scouting joke:

You know what else is intense?  Camping. (Haha get it?  "In tents..." That's definitely a Justin joke)

But anyway, the weeding was so fun.  Afterwards, her sister-in-law made us the best pancakes I have ever eaten in my entire life.  Ah man they were so good.  I need to get the recipe from her.  And, Kesa really opened up and let us know some of her concerns about the Gospel and other areas of her life, so now we know how to help her better.  Service: good for the servee and the servers :)

Weeding was also fun because it reminded me of those good ole' days weeding to earn gas money.  The weeds back home...never ending.  I finish the front and back yard and they're all weedy again.  Amazing how that works.  Oh well, it taught me to work hard and to persevere haha.  Thanks Dad!

There are two hilarious elders in our zone that have this Asian battle going on haha.  One is Elder Lee and he is Korean.  Then there's Elder Or and he's from Hong Kong.  They constantly have battles over who is the more dominant Asian...oh brother.  It's super funny though haha.  Makes for a good time when we are together as a zone.  

Okay, so the reason I titled the e-mail fruit fruit fruit is because on Wednesday of this week I ate more fruit in one day than I think I ever have in a whole week combined!  So.  It started with the strawberries.  We were driving back from St. Helena visiting an investigator when we noticed this little family fruit stand, so we bought some strawberries.  They were SO good!  But they started stinking up our car really bad.  We bought so many though, and we didn't want them to stink up our apartment, so at the end of the night we ate so many strawberries.  They were the tastiest strawberries ever.  To add to the fruit, a member in our ward, Kristen, gave us a box of blueberries (yum!!! I forgot how much I love blueberries), and then still later on this potential elder in our ward, Justin, gave us this gallon bucket of cherry plums!  Then the next day, a recent convert in our ward, Reuben, gave us peaches and apples from his orchards in his backyard! Hence, so much fruit fruit fruit.  It's the best.  I've gone from being a veggie-lover to a fruit-lover out here.  Everyone grows fruit here and it's so much better than in the stores!  I'm so spoiled out here.

Also, since we've deep cleaned our apartment two Mondays ago, the spider population has decreased significantly.  #sistercleaningpower Hopefully I never whitewash into an elders' apartment again.  So many spider bites...and spiders...and roly-polies, weirdly enough.

Anyway, overall, it was a crazy, awesome, fun, miraculous week!  OH!  And we found this less-active member, Wayne, who has been hiding out for a few months - he came to church yesterday and loved it! :) It was definitely a miracle!

I love you all!  Hopefully this e-mail makes sense...I try to organize my thoughts but they usually end up coming out super random haha.  Make good choices this week and remember, "Nothing is impossible.  The word itself says 'I'm Possible'" (Audrey Hepburn).

Much love,

Sister Kolee Decker

P.S. Quote of the week from a mom describing her son:

"He's a ham.  He's better than a turkey, but not quite a beef."  Haha

Picture: Us with Clifford, the African Spur-Thigh Tortoise!  It's our recent convert, Reuben's :)

July 14 - I Love Nachos

Dear family and friends,

Hi from Vallejo!  This week went really well :)  You know, the usual.

So, I decided this week that I really love nachos.  But not the fake-cheese kind of nachos - the nachos where you have fresh chips, with fresh cheese melted on top, and avacado and salsa...oh man, so good.

I realized I have subconsciously become a vegetarian!  Not totally - if people serve me meat, I eat it.  But personally, I don't eat any meat!  I love eating black beans and garbanzo beans in wraps, but I don't even eat lunch meat anymore!  Which is surprising, seeing how before being out on a mission I just loved steak.  

Speaking of steak, our ward mission leader fed us this week and he lives in the BOONIES in the mountains.  He fed us an awesome dinner and for the first time in a while, I ate steak!  And I didn't like it!!  Weird. So yes, I have gone semi-vegetarian.  

Alright!  This week!

First off, our investigator RQ Lin Manzon is doing so well!  We set a new baptismal date for him for August 23rd, since he moves pretty slow.  He is excited for his baptism and came to church yesterday for the second time.  He is also attending FHE tonight!  Man, he is so funny - I'll try to take a picture with him this week so you can see how awesome he is.  He is the cutest, sweetest little Filipino guy - makes me slightly jealous of the missions in the Philippines...but it's alright haha.

As for our investigator Lindsay, she is really struggling with the Book of Mormon.  She comes from a Southern Baptist background where they tell their members that if they are baptized into the Mormon church and/or if they read the Book of Mormon they will burn in Hell.  Sometimes it bothers me that other "Christian" churches condemn us so much.  But I know that all I need to worry about is making sure I keep my covenants I made at baptism and help others to recognize the truthfulness of our message for themselves.  

It's interesting that came up this week with Lindsay and her old church, because in 3 Nephi 27:1-10 it talks about what Christ's church is.  Our church truly does reflect everything Christ commanded His church to be.  It strengthens my testimony and reassures me.  As for her church preaching all of that against us, I'm reminded of a verse in the Book of Mormon (can't remember the exact verse right now): "Fools mock; but they shall mourn."

Anyhow, we are working with Lindsay to recognize the Spirit and help her see the many ways God speaks to her.  Extra prayers are going up for her - she definitely needs them to get over this hump. 

Sister Harmer and I also taught an amazing first lesson to a new investigator, Ryan, this week.  Our Bishop's son, Matthew, is on a mission right now in South Africa and has been e-mailing his best friend Ryan.  Ryan decided he wanted to meet with the missionaries, so we met at our Bishop's home and taught him the first few principles in the Restoration.  He has NO concept or idea of God, so Sister Harmer and I explained about Heavenly Father and His plan for us called the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and how this plan blesses families.  It was SO powerful.  I don't think I've ever taught so simply to anyone before, and I don't think I've ever felt the Spirit more in my entire life than I did in that room on Thursday evening.  After we said a prayer at the end, he just sat and soaked the Spirit in.  We sat in silence for about a minute, and he looked up and said, "I feel like Matthew [his missionary friend] is here." :)  I'm sure Matthew is rooting Ryan on, as well.  I am stoked to teach him again this coming Thursday!

Guess what we did this week?!  (With God's help, of course)  We picked up a YSA FAMILY!!  Our investigators Joseph and Tracey invited a family-friend, Alex, to join in the lessons, and Joseph's sister, Divina, is also meeting with us.  They eat everything up every time we go over and are just enthusiastic and wanting to learn.  They always ask such great questions that make me think, too.  

It is such a testimony builder to me from what Elder Falabella told us that we need to teach families.  They have concerns come up, and since they have other people learning as well, their family member(s) can relieve their concerns for them between teaching visits.

It reminds me of something we see in nature all the time.  Just like a lion will attack a zebra that gets separated from the pack, Satan tries to do the same thing.  He tries to make us think we are safe or we can do everything on our own; that we don't need anyone else.  But we are easier targets when we are alone than when we are standing together.  

That's why we have families.  God knew that in families, we would be able to stand together much easier and make it back to Him.  Satan attacks families because if he can get us alone, we are much easier to pick off.

On that same note, I have an inspirational quote I wanted to share from Elder Wright and Elder Carrillo from Numbers Meeting last night.  

Elder Wright was telling us that earlier on Sunday they were contacting and something didn't feel right.  Elder Wright turned to Elder Carrillo and said, "I feel like a truck with an empty tank."

Elder Carrillo replied, "I feel like a truck with no wheels.  Hey, I'll be your tank."

Elder Wright: "I'll be your wheels."

And they continued talking to people.

It was a small story, but it really touched me and renewed my desire to make my relationship with my companion strong.  Because just like I said earlier, Satan can get to us much easier when we are alone.  

Funny moment of the week:

This awesome African-American guy sat and talked with us for a few minutes and at the end of our conversation wanted to say a prayer together, so we said a prayer!  At the end of the prayer, he starts walking way and then turns around and yells out, "Man, y'all are like GASOLINE - you filled up my tank!"

Haha.  It was awesome.  I love cultural diversity - it brings all sorts of diverse conversations and experiences into my life.

Anyway, I hope you all have a good, safe, righteous week!  Thanks family, by the way, for the additional funny scriptures :)

Love you!

Love,

Sister Kolee Decker

July 7 - I am staying!

July 7, 2014

Dear family and friends,

Hi!  We received transfer information on Friday and I learned that I am staying here in the Napa 4th YSA ward for at least another 6 weeks :)  Woot woot!  Okay, I'm calling I'm going to stay here 6 months.  Well, now that I've said it out loud probably not, but that is my hope right now.  I love it here!  Vallejo is the best.  And Benicia, and Napa (the other 2 cities we cover).  The ward is small, but so much fun.

Also, I have been called to also be an STL (Sister Training Leader).  That basically means I teach in zone meetings with the zone leaders and I also go on exchanges with other sisters in our zone and help them in their areas.  I am excited for this new leadership responsibility and am ready to serve, learn, and grow.

My district leader, Elder Williams, is going to be training a new missionary this coming transfer!  I'm excited for him :)  Sister Harmer is especially excited because it means she isn't the youngest in the zone anymore haha.  Another elder from my MTC generation (we came out the same time) is coming into my zone this transfer as well - Elder Rasch.  I am so excited to see him!  I haven't seen him since the first day I entered the field 10 months ago.  Whew.  Only 8 months left.  Weird.

Anyway, I'm glad I get to stay, because we have loads of miracles happening here!  

We set 3 baptismal dates this week with several investigators: RQ, Joseph, and Tracey.  RQ is this hilarious, humble Filipino young man who just graduated from high school.  Joseph and Tracey are a young couple (21 and 18) who referred themselves to the missionaries!  Their baptisms are going to be in August.  Pray that they will continue to desire to learn and know for themselves this Gospel is true!

This week we also dropped our investigator named Shane, and the same day picked up an investigator named Zayne. Haha.  Rhymes 4 dayz.  Zayne is so sweet!  He is a 22-year-old man who just got out of the army and is now going to school for business.  

Guess what?!  Our investigator, RQ, attended church yesterday!!  We asked him after church how he liked it, and he said, "I felt really peaceful.  It was really nice."  And gave us a thumb's up!  He also said he wants to wear a white shirt and tie to church next week haha.  He said he wasn't dressed fancy enough.  Our ward members did a great job and assuring him he looked great and that there is always next week, as well.  He also stayed for the "break the fast" and got to meet the majority of our members :)  It was such a good Sunday!

The 4th of July was so fun, too!  We talked to a lot of cool people, and the morning was especially fun.  A member of our bishopric, Bro. McAffee, asked if we could come early to his and his wife's house and help them cook breakfast for their neighborhood breakfast.  We agreed, and that morning Sister Harmer and I cooked a whole lot of eggs and bacon.  We were able to meet so many nonmembers!  The two we connected with the most were the McAffee's son Chad's friends - Mitchell and Maria.  Mitchell had the coolest mustache I have ever seen!  It really was cool.  I wish I would've taken a picture with him so I can remember, but it's alright.  His epic mustache will forever remain as a picture in my mind, I suppose.  Mitchell and Maria had lots of good questions and we really got to know them and what they want in life.  

We had to go inside early on the 4th of July - 7pm.  We heard lots of fireworks, and also some gunshots...but it's alright!  We were safe and sound inside our apartment.  

AND!  I also discovered I like something new!  Deviled eggs.  I tried them on Saturday when a member made them, and they were really good - I've never really liked them before, so that was cool!  Also, we ate a less-active member's house (Kesa Nakatouga) yesterday and I ate the best watermelon EVER.  And the best part: she gave us a huge bag to take home.  

So, yes, life is good :)

We had a couple funny experiences this week I wanted to share with you:

1.  The biker man.  This man on a motorcycle who was probably in his 20's was driving alongside our car and then we made that awkward eye contact - you know, the contact where you're both driving and neither of you smile but you both know you saw each other?  Yup.  Then after that he must've thought we were cute or something because he got SUPER excited and started waving his hands at us and trying to get us to pull over.  Sister Harmer says, "Write our number on a picture of the Savior and let's see if he's interested!"  We reach a red light and I hand him the card with the Savior on it and say, "Hi, sir!  We're servants of Jesus Christ, and wanted to leave you with a picture of Him.  Please call us to learn more!"  He looked semi-disappointed and confused haha.  Then the light turned green so we didn't have time to say anything else to him...and he stopped driving alongside us and just drove behind us haha.  That's what happens when you try to flirt with the sister missionaries.  We talk to you about Jesus Christ.  It's the best.

2. Me reading this sign on the side of the freeway while we're driving:

"Keep Napa County glass-winged sharpshooter free" (with a picture of bug repellent).

Me again: "What?  What is that?"

Sister Harmer: "I don't know.  But those glass-winged sharpshooters must be a huge problem if there's a sign that big for them."

Me: "How do we know what they look like?"

Sister Harmer: "We don't.  Wait.  That's dangerous!  We don't even know what they look like!  Oh well."

Haha...okay kinda lame.  But it was funny in the moment...yeah.  Sorry for that lame-o story.

3.  Sister Harmer and I finished up our weekly planning on Friday outside on the grass, and there is this ice cream truck that is always cruising the neighborhoods.  We hear the ice cream truck go by with its annoying "Do your ears hang low do they wobble to the floor?" song pass by.  Then:

*an army of kids sprint out of their apartments and run after the truck

Kids: "Quick, catch the ice cream man!"

Haha.  It was so cute and weird and funny. 

To end with, please look up these scriptures in the Old Testament.  They are so weird they are hilarious haha.  Our investigator Joseph showed them to us this week after our lesson.

Psalms 22:21

Job 10:10

I love you all!  Sorry my funny stories were really lame this week.  I'll try to make them funnier in the future, I promise haha.

Choose the right this week and remember that God loves you!  You are magnificent.

Love,

Sister Kolee Decker