November-December Federal Washington LDS Mission Current Blog
From The Mission Presidency
Light the World
Merry Christmas from the
Washington Federal Way Mission! What a wonderful time of the year to be
teaching of Jesus Christ...”the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament and the
Messiah of the New.”* As most of the world pauses to celebrate the great gift
of his birth, we can teach not only of His birth, but that “He gave his life to
atone for the sins of all mankind.”* Let’s not let a single one of His precious
children cross our path without testifying that “His priesthood and His Church
have been restored to the earth… ‘built upon the foundation of apostles and
prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone.’”* Ephesians
2:20)
There are many words of this
wonderful season which can help us remember that “none other has had so
profound an influence upon all who have live and will yet live upon the
earth”*: Rejoice, miracles, charity, family, inspire, happiness, hope, light,
love, peace, kindness and joy. May we celebrate the true meaning of the season
as we reflect on “His life which neither began in Bethlehem not concluded on
Calvary. He was the Firstborn of the Father, the Only Begotten Son in the
flesh, the Redeemer of the world.”
As a mission we are
memorizing The Living Christ. It is a Christmas gift to ourselves
to be able to use these powerful words in our teaching and finding. Our goal is
for everyone to be able to recite it at our Christmas lunch and devotional
December 14th and 15th . We are already seeing results as missionaries are
quoting it in zone conference and district meetings. We invite all to join us
in this worthwhile undertaking.
Light the World is a great
opportunity for missionaries to find people to teach. It is a great
opportunity for EVERYONE to find and teach people. We invite all
missionary families to join in this great opportunity to teach of Christ and
testify of His divine mission on earth. Our missionaries ask those they
meet and talk to on the street to pull out their devices and watch the video.
We then invite them to act in some way. Be sure to put your
telephone number on the back of the pass along cards so they can contact you if
they want to meet the missionaries and be taught. Our goal is to connect them
with the missionaries when we talk with them on the street so be sure they have
your contact information and can call you later also.
A new referral app has just been
announced by the church. If you go to LDS Tools and to missionary, you
can type an address of someone you would like the missionaries to visit.
There is a place for notes also. The referral then goes directly to the
missionaries who are assigned to that area. These referrals make the day
of any missionary! We encourage you to take the time to check it out and
even better….use it! You can refer anyone in any part of the world with
the same result. It is a blessing to get these so quickly and
easily. Referrals like this result in a much higher rate of
baptism.
This month our training focus has
been “Setting Goals and Making Plans”. Our mission goal for baptism
this transfer was thirty six. Prayers and faith of family members
are always appreciated as we pray for our goals we set as a mission, zones,
districts and companionships. Goals and plans help us move forward
in the hastening of this important work found in Doctrine and Covenants 88:73,
“Behold, I will hasten my work in its time”.
We love our missionaries and
cherish every minute we can spend with them. We wish your family a
wonderful Christmas. This is just a guess, but I think that call
from your missionary may just be the best part of the season for you.
Love,
Sister Rasmussen
*The Living Christ
Our First Priority : keeping our eye on our purpose - to bring souls to Christ through faith and repentance, and to baptize converts
Baptisms this past transfer. Thirty six souls to be brought to Christ during the past 6 weeks was our goal. Here are some of the successes,
Sister Tippets and Sr. Hatch and their fellowship and teaching efforts produce evidence that "teaching people repentance through faith leads to baptism of converts".
Elders Mortenson and Elder Smith - see the happy glow on their faces as they lead souls to Christ.
Elders Grigg (far left)and Bollwinkel (far Left) celebrate with their converts! Heavenly Father loves the little children and when 8 yrs old, they are ready for baptism.
Petra was baptized on June 29th, her birthday!
Hermana Reed (left) and Hermana Short (left) and Petra in the middle
Kuol's baptism (in the middle in the yellow shirt)
After Baptism, devotionals are held where converts havae a chance to bear their testimonies - Music is an integral part of devotionals. No sound is so lovely as a missionary choir:
Newly baptized converts have an opportunity to bear their testimonies during a monthly devotional dedicated to the celebration of their happiness
Hope for a happy life ahead. Grateful to have found the Gospel at last
Sr. Mintindo sacrificed greatly in her conversion process! She knows the Gospel is true and is thankful!
Who is this General Authority?
'Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without
Learn to pray. Pray often. Pray in your mind, in your heart. Pray on your knees.
Prayer is your personal key to heaven."
"
We have every reason to rejoice and little reason to fear. If we follow the promptings of the Spirit, we will be safe, whatever the future holds. We will be shown what to do."
Tolerance is a virtue, but like all virtues, when exaggerated, it transforms itself into a vice. We need to be careful of the "tolerance trap" so that we are not swallowed up in it.
I want to emphasize that I have no quarrel with that well-fed gentleman with the red suit and the white whiskers. He was very generous to me when I was a boy, and we are looking forward with great anticipation to his visit at our home. All of those things with reference to Christmas are appropriate and good, and all of them are for children--except, I suppose, the mistletoe
Exercise is stressed by the mission presidency in order to promote good health. All missionaries are expected to exercise for 30 minutes per day! We have extra activities and fun days where one exercises and sports activities are held in addition to their routine exercises. These are fun and stress reducers for the missionaries.
We are as the army of Helaman; ready to take on the competors
Fancy Footwork girl! Good job handling the ball
President Rasmussen, Elder Olsen and President's Grandson. Fun day for all
Two photo bombers in the background!!!
A Happy Christmas box is looked for by our missionaries. With nearly 150 missionaries in the Federal Way Mission, managing all of the Christmas boxes and being sure they are delivered promptly and correctly is a very big job!
Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas in the mission field.
Elder and Sister Leavitt, our office support staff,sorting the happy Christmas Boxes
Zone Leaders deliver the packages to the different zones in the mission. As you can see, they are piling up. Memories from home are sweet during this time of year.
Zone Conferences:
Auburn
Enumclaw
Graham
Puyallup
Renton
Kent
New Missionaries in November
Tired and Hungry after their trip from the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah - but Sr Rasmussen never lets them down. Such a beautiful meal served in elegance.
You can see this new group from behind. Sr Rasmussen is training them after the welcome meal while Elder Rasmussen interviews each one on their very first day in the mission field. This is the first part of their orientation
After the meal each missionary is asked to email their parents at home so that they can know that they arrived safely to the Federal Way Washington mission home.
"They're leaving on a Jet Plane, don't know when they'll be back again. Oho we hate to see them go".
Senior Missionary Social Activities:
Elder and Sister Reynolds are very knowledgeable regarding Jewish Traditions. The Sukkot feast is a Jewish holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the seventh month. During the existence of the Jewish Temple it was one on the three Pilgrimage festivals on which they were commanded to perform this pilgrimage to the Temple.
The festival celebrated the Exodus and the dependence of the People of Israel on the will of God
Leviticus 23:42-43.
They are building a "hut" as if they were "camping" outside of the Temple during the Pilgrimage. It is apart of their "Thanksgiving celebration.
Leadership is exemplified by these two Zone Leaders: Elder Thibeaudeau and Elder Fuller. Much respected by their missionary Elders and Sisters, they exhibit an attitude of humility, compassion, empathy, and competence. They work hard and produce results. They lead and others want to follow!
Each week at District Meetings these two Elders preside over a district. There is a set of Zone Leaders for each district. The Zone Leaders assist their districts to organize, plan, and set goals. They are prayerful and love Jesus Christ.They teach and train and set examples for other's to follow.
Light the World
The program that the Church has introduced and is promoting is designed to awaken the world to the good, and to encourage us to appreciate and act when we see others in need. It also encourages a way of thinking and living that lifts the hearts of others.
This is the plight of some people. See their need, lift up their spirits, and spread the love of the Savior whenever we can.
The answer to the Guess Which General Authority this is: Elder Boyd K. Packer. A most beloved apostle of the Lord. He was the epitome of a righteous man, loved far and wide. The editor of this blog had a personal encounter with this prophet that she has never forgotten. It happened in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I was a young mother with 5 children. I had a baby that, although I did not know it at the time, had whooping cough. Elder Packer was presiding over the conference. During the meeting my baby started to cough. It was so intense that I took him out into the hall. The next thing I knew, a voice from behind me said, "is your baby alright"?. I turned around and it was Elder Packer who had left the stand during the meeting to assure the safety of my child. This was the kind of man he was. What a precious memory that is for me.
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