Another Week

Hello!

Another week has gone by. It is crazy how fast a week can come and go. It is sometimes hard to believe I am sitting down to email you again. Well to start off, the weather has been wonderful. Surprisingly enough, it hasn't rained much this last week. Although it rained enough on Monday night (as you can tell from the pictures) to last us the rest of the week. England is a beautiful place and I love seeing the sky here. I always feel like it is bluer for some reason, but maybe it is just because I am paying more attention to it.

Some exciting news I have is that Daniel Andrew, one of our investigators, is getting baptized next week. He is 36 years and works as a jointer. (If I knew what that was I would tell you but basically I understand it to be some type of construction. Maybe I will do a bit of research and let you know next week.) He is divorced, but has exact joint-custody with his wife for his daughter, Ellie. Ellie is 6 years old and is lovely! She honestly is one of the most well-behaved 6 year olds I know. We had a fun lesson about prayer the other day with her and we drew what we were grateful for. I know that the gospel will bless their family's life, especially Ellie because she will be able to be part of the loving and nurturing environment of the church. Back to Daniel Andrew, who we call Brother Andrew, he has been investigating the church for a few months now (since before I arrived in Wigan). He fully accepts the doctrine of the church, but he was struggling with the law of tithing. I will admit it was a challenge for him and, despite our best efforts to explain the blessings of tithing and how it was a commandment, nothing appeared to be working. However, time can solve all problems. Since he had this struggle, he started reading his scriptures and praying on a daily basis. Brother Andrew decided he needed to learn for himself if this was true and whether baptism was correct for him. We all reach a stage in our lives when we need to make that decision. We need to decide, do I really believe and know this to be true? Or am I just leaning on the faith of others? We all have different struggles in our lives, but I know that as we learn to rely on the Lord, He answers our prayers. It doesn't matter what others say because we can really know these things for ourselves. I have seen this exact thing happen with Brother Andrew. He really came to know and recognize for himself that the gospel is true. He knows that Heavenly Father answers prayers because he has received answers. It is such a blessing to be able to witness the changes that he has made in his life and how much happier he is now. He will be baptized on the 4th of November and it will be an exciting day! I will be sure to report more later, but I wanted to mention it so that you weren't all surprised when I just dropped in a quick sentence in a few weeks.

To provide you all with some insight into the scriptures, I was studying the godhead (God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost) this week. Here is the insight I had and sent in my weekly letter to the mission president (we send weekly letters to let our leader/president know how we are doing and how the work is going in our area):

Lastly, during personal study, I learned more about the godhead. I completely believe the godhead to be three separate beings; however, I will admit the scriptures can be confusing. As I was reading Mosiah 16, I happened upon some scriptures that did not seem correct according to the doctrine I know. As I studied verse 15 in more detail, I gained greater knowledge. This verse talks about how redemption comes through Christ, who is our Eternal Father. I realized there are two parts to understanding this scripture, eternal and father. First, Christ is eternal because it is through him that we can live forever. As a result of his atonement, we can have eternal life. Second, Christ can be thought of as father because through baptism we become sons and daughters of Christ. We know baptism is necessary for salvation. As we understand what the words eternal father mean in context, it is clear to see that Eternal Father refers to Christ and doesn’t imply that Christ and Heavenly Father are one.

I know that our Savior, Jesus Christ, died for us. He suffered for both our physical/emotional and our spiritual infirmities. I know that as we rely on Him, we can receive strength and happiness. I am grateful for all He has done for us and I try and help others come nearer to the Savior each and every day.

Well know that I am doing well. There is an exciting week that lies ahead of us, so I will report more next week. Thank you for all your support! Keep up the good work. I love you and miss you!

Love, Becca

p.s. These pictures are from Monday night when we went out and it poured on us. The first one is of Sister Davis and we thought was ironic because of what the poster at the bus station said. The second one just shows how despite the weather, we are still happy and have fun!

Another week has flown by...

First and foremost, sorry I haven't been able to send pictures recently. Unfortunately the memory card for my camera is having some problems, and I have been unable to recover the pictures I have taken thus far. I will try and get a new one, so I can send pictures home in the future.

Second, it has been a wonderful week as usual. There is definitely something special about missionary work. I am grateful to be sharing the gospel with those who really don't know about it and the happiness it can bring to their lives. We really meet a variety of people and yet the message we are sharing can help everyone, no matter what life situation they are in! I know that there really are people who are prepared to receive the gospel, it is just a matter of finding them. For example, we met this wonderful young lady named Natasha. She had just moved to Wigan from Liverpool and surprisingly enough lived close to the church there as well. As a result, she was happy to receive our message. We got her address, but clearly I am not good with English accents yet because I thought she said L Street. When it came time to go visit Natasha, we could not find the street or anything that sounded like it. We knew the house had a blue door, but it was a mystery as to what exact street she lived on. As we looked in that area this week, we realized she probably said Earl Street. Sure enough when we went to the house it had a blue door! Not only that, but as we had met another lady on the street, she had actually given us the same address. It is so clear to me that there is someone there who needs the message we are sharing. When we stopped by before, no one was home, so we are going back again soon. However, the moral of the story is that people are ready to receive the gospel, we just need to be willing to find them.

Third, we have an area president, President Kopeschke, coming to our mission next week to give us a training. Trainings are a wonderful time to re-evaluate yourself as a missionary and see areas where we can improve our work. At the end of the meetings, there is a final meeting for the zone leaders. President Kopeschke requested that a set of sisters be present for the final meeting and guess who was asked after much thought and prayer? Yes, Sister Davis and me. It is definitely a great responsibility to represent the sisters and be part of the zone leaders council. I recognize that the Lord expects a lot out of me as a missionary and, while I am not exactly sure what it is that he expects, I hope that I live up to my potential. One of my goals is to be able to say by the end of my mission that I put in my 100% and tried my hardest. I strive each and every day to be the best missionary I can be.

Well that is about all I have time for now. I am grateful for all the love and prayers I have coming my way. You are all an example to me and I love you dearly. Keep up the good work!

Love, Becca (aka Sister Jack)

The weather has changed...

Well family the weather has changed. After some bright and sunny days (skirts and short sleeves weather), the cold appears to have arrived. Sister Davis and I were out tracting a few days ago. First, I will admit that I am grateful I brought my winter coat out with me that evening. As I was leaving the apartment, I thought to myself should I just wear a suit jacket or am I going to want my peacoat? By the end, I realized it would be best to bring my winter peacoat and I am glad that I did. It was about an hour before we needed to be home at the apartment and we were about to knock on the first door. Just before we could knock, it literally started to hail on us and we just laughed. We continued to go ahead and knock on doors. It is amazing how rewarding missionary work is because I can't think of any other reason I would be outside in hail knocking on doors besides in order to share the gospel with other people. At one door we knocked on, the person asked us If we were mad for being out in the weather. We responded, "No. We just know our message is true and has brought us happiness, so we want to share it with other people." It is definitely a test of our dedication and determination when it gets cold, but I know that this work is rewarding as we find people who are accepting of the message we share.

Speaking of the message I am sharing, I want to include an insert from my letter to my president (my mission leader) this week:

I have been reading t he Book of Mormon from cover to cover; I am not the quickest reader so I am only in Jacob, but I love every moment of it. One aspect that has particularly stood out to me this week was the plainness or simplicity of the gospel. When it talks about the doctrine of Christ in 2 Nephi 31, Nephi starts by mentioning how this doctrine is plain. Furthermore, Jacob mentions the plainness of the word of God. When it comes down to it, the message we are sharing of the restored gospel is plain and simple. The actual doctrine is easy to understand; however, the application into our daily lives is not as easy. The desire to change and apply the doctrine requires willingness on our part to live a better life and become more Christ-like.

There is another story that I would like to share and this one is about service. One evening we were on our way to teach a man. Sister Davis and I hadn't visited his apartment yet, so we were looking for his house. We got to the house we thought was his and found out he didn't live there. At first, we were a bit disappointed because we thought the man had just lied, which to be honest happens sometimes as a missionary. However, we came to find out that we were just on the wrong street. Nonetheless we continued to have a conversation with the nice lady who answered the door; her name is Carol. She is in her seventies and very sweet. We almost instantly connected about a variety of things such as science, horses, and the Unitarian church. We had a lot of things in common. While she was not interested in our message, we offered to help her with her gardening and she accepted. We went over to her house (when the weather was still nice) and spent an hour gardening with her. While we were gardening, we chatted and would occasionally mention gospel-related ideas. By the end of our service, she brought out some lemonade and asked us to tell her about Mormon. We had a wonderful discussion about the Book of Mormon and how we have a prophet on the earth today. We have seen her once since and taught a short lesson. The biggest thing I noticed from this experience is how service softens the hearts of the people. Whether or not she actually accepts the gospel, we have made a great friend as a result of the service we preformed. Now for my challenge to you--go out and serve someone. It doesn't have to be gardening, but think of something nice you can do for someone you may not know as well such as your neighbor.

Thanks for all the love and support I receive. I truly am grateful for all you do. Keep working hard and doing good. I pray for you often.

Love, Sister (Becca) Jack

Time flies...second transfer here we come.

I am sure many of you are wondering why I am emailing on a Wednesday; well let me tell you. It is transfers week. Every 6 weeks, we change things up in the mission. Some new missionaries come, some go home, and some change areas. Basically, it means I have the chance of a) staying in the area with my companion, b) getting a new companion in the area I am in or c) moving to a new area with a new companion. In this case, I was lucky letter a. I am in Wigan still with Sister Davis, although we all already knew that would be happening, right? It is always a surprise though and it is great to be where the Lord needs me. But know that if you ever don't get an email from me on Monday see if it is 6 weeks from this date and it is probably because we have transfers again.

So much has happened since 10 days ago when I wrote, and I don't even know where to start. How about last Friday when my companion and I attended a wedding. One of the ward members, Ben, got married at the Wigan chapel. Since Sister Davis is musically talented, she was asked to play the piano/organ for the wedding. Then since I am her companion, I attended as well. We took that picture of us after the wedding because it was a special day. For the record, missionaries usually don't attend weddings, and we only were able to with special permission from the mission president. It was a fun experience, and it was nice to be able to serve the ward.

Next, general conference was absolutely brilliant (substitute word for amazing in England). General Conference, which happens semi-annually, is a chance for us to be able to hear from the prophet and apostles on the earth today. It was great to hear from them. As other missionaries kept telling me, "It's better than Christmas!" When you are used to being spiritually fed each day, General Conference truly is a time where a lot of great things happen. One of my favorite talks was from Dieter F. Uchtdorf. He talked about how God knows us each individually. We are very important to him, "we are everything." At times we may seem insignificant, but I know that Heavenly Father knows us each individually and cares about us individually. You can find the talk at this website: http://lds.org/general-conference/watch/2011/10?lang=eng&vid=1194756909001&cid=12 to listen to it. President Uchtdorf can put things better than me, so I encourage everyone to listen to it. There are a lot of other things I enjoyed, but since I don't have much time I will have to give more updates later. Although, I am wicked excited the Provo Tabernacle is going to be in a temple! I remember when the tabernacle burned down, so to know that it is going to be a temple is very special. I am excited to return to BYU and enjoy the blessings of having another temple so nearby. The temple is truly a special place, and I know that you can feel peace there. It is the only place we can be sealed to our families for time and all eternity, and I am grateful for my knowledge of that sealing power.

Know that I am doing well and loving the work I am doing. Keep doing good in the world today, we need good people :)

Love, Sister (Becca) Jack