Week 26 - Walla Walla...A place so nice, they named it twice!

Hello! 

The last week of the transfer always flies by. We were able to go to the temple on Tuesday then have Thanksgiving on Thursday and now transfers are on Wednesday. WOW. We got the call on Saturday and I am getting transferred to Walla Walla, Washington to be companions with Sister Purcell! I am so excited, but pretty sad to be leaving Pasco so soon. There are so many wonderful people here and I am going to miss them terribly. I am so grateful that I was able to serve here, even if it was just for a little while :)

Thanksgiving was AMAZING. We were invited to eat with the Hissam family who were recently baptized. They are so full of love and light and it couldn't have been a better way to spend the holiday. It was so funny because they are vegans but they knew we were coming so they made this giant (definitely not vegan) delicious thanksgiving. We also ate so much food we couldn't move, so that was great.

With it being Sister Camplese's last week as a missionary we were able to bear our testimonies in sacrament meeting. I love being able to testify of the things that I hold so dear to my heart. I know our Savior lives and that he loves each and every one of us. This is HIS perfect gospel and we are given the opportunity to live it, love it, and share it every single day.

I love all of you so much and hope you have the best holiday season!

Love, 

Sister Madeline Whetten

At the temple with our district

At the temple with Sister Brandy Lynn

Last day with Sister Camplese :(

Week 25 - May the Force be with you...

Hello everybody!!

Pasco is losing its mind. It went from crazy dust storms to crazy snow storms. Tri-cities NEVER gets snow so it's a pretty big deal. Sister Camplese and I had quite the eventful week so I will try to sum it up for ya.

We were able to go to Zone conference which was amazing of course. We focused on truly loving those who we teach and relying on the spirit to teach directly to their needs. It was amazing and I learned so much about our Savior and how he needs us to teach.

One of my investigators from Richland was baptized on Sunday! He is such a cute little kid and he is so smart and full of light. It was such a privilege to be able to teach him and witness him making that covenant with his Heavenly Father. The Lord truly knows and loves each of us individually. Christ's Gospel WORKS and it is PERFECT.

Sister Camplese and I were able to see some wonderful miracles this week. Unfortunately, quite a few of our investigators decided not to meet with us anymore and when that happens you can feel pretty down in the dumps. We knew that we needed to give everything to our Savior and stop trying to figure this out on our own because obviously that doesn't really work. It can be pretty overwhelming to be in a relatively new area and having to start from scratch...again, but the Lord has a plan and he loves us so much that he is going to help us every step of the way. I truly believe that.

So funny story! Its been getting pretty cold here and a member got mad at me for wearing a small coat. She comes back into the room with A GIANT FLOOR LENGTH LEATHER COAT. It is huge and it was so hard not to laugh. When we got back home Sister Camplese and I realized I looked like a Jedi so we proceeded to take a ton of ridiculous pictures.

We were able to have a wonderful lesson this week with our investigator Summer. She is so bright and kind to everyone around her. We originally went to teach her family but she happened to be home and we had a lesson on temples. The spirit was so strong as we promised blessings of eternal families and joy. We know she is building that relationship with her Savior and we are so excited to see her progress.

Well, that's all I've got time for! We get to go to the temple today and I am so excited. I love the gospel and I know it is true. This is Christ's church and he loves us dearly. Have the best week!

Love, 

Sister Madeline Whetten

Max's Baptism

Feeling like a Jedi

Bunny love...and some allergy hives

Going to the temple

Week 24 - Let's harvest this field from sunrise to sunset!

Hola from El Pasco!

It has been such an exciting week up here in WARSHINGTON! (they actually say that it's ridiculous) I swear the weeks just go by faster and faster. The work here in Pasco continues to progress! They call Pasco the promised land for a reason. Besides the GIANT delicious apples that everyone keeps giving us (they are amazing I never want to eat regular apples again) (how do you like dem apples?!) (hahaha) we were able to find eight new investigators this week! 8!!!! The Lord is keeping Sister Camplese and I very busy as he trusts us to further his work. We had some pretty incredible experiences that I will try my best to summarize for you all.

We have this investigator named Debbie. She was raised southern Baptist but has not been active in a church for 40 years. Her daughter and granddaughter were baptized a few years ago and she became fascinated with the church. She is so sweet and loves to take care of missionaries. She invited us over to dinner Saturday night and she made us THANKSGIVING! Oh man. Like a full turkey and everything. It was pretty much amazing. We had such a powerful conversation with her and her husband Monty. Debbie had so many questions that were so perfect for teaching her about the gospel of Jesus Christ. She is so kind and has such a light about her.

We were also able to meet with our investigator Kelsey. She had had some concerns about not fitting in to the church earlier this week and it had stopped her from meeting with her again. On Thursday night we were prompted to just go over to her house unannounced and talk to her. She came out and we were able to talk with her about some concerns she had about mistakes she had made and comfort her with the knowledge of the atonement and acceptance. She thought that everyone who was LDS was perfect....UH NOPE. definitely not! Once we explained that to her you could see the spirit calming her down and reassuring her of the truth and healing of Christ's Atonement. We have such high hopes for her and her family and we know that Heavenly Father truly does know each of his children individually and loves them dearly. He leads and guides us everyday to those who he needs us to serve.

I love you all so much! I love the Gospel and I love it here! have the most wonderful week and keep all of these wonderful people in your prayers!             2 Nephi 31: 20

 

Love, 

Sister Madeline Whetten

Sunrise over the Columbia River

Sunset over the Columbia River

Sister Camplese and I with are car "Tiffany"

Week 23 - These boots are made for walking .... in Pasco

Hey! how is it going? What a wonderful crazy week it has been! Sister Camplese and I have been so lucky to see such great things happening here in Pasco.

The work has been a bit slow in this ward for the past couple of years so it is taking a little time to get the ball rolling. We are trusting in the Lords perfect timing as we go out each day to serve to the best of our abilities.

It is getting pretty cold here and we look helpless standing on peoples porches in the freezing rain. Luckily, the holiday season is upon us and people are relatively compassionate to two shivering sister missionaries.

We have been able to meet with a recently baptized family in our ward. They are incredible and we have loved getting to know them. The husband was able to bless the sacrament this week and it was truly wonderful to see him progress and to watch their family grow together. It gives us hope to see how much the Gospel truly does bless families.

I am totally out of time today, so sorry... BUT here is a wonderful scripture I came across this morning:

 

2 Nephi 8:12

"I am he; yea I am he that comforteth you."

Trust in the Lord and lean on him for comfort for he truly knows and loves you.

Have the most amazing week! love you all!

Love, 

Sister Madeline Whetten

Week 22 - Chronicles of Pasco

Hello Family!

It's like this week didn't even happen, I swear. Time flies when you are doing something every second of the day! Sister Camplese and I had a great week as we explored some more of our area and were able to do a lot of service for people that we met! Also, we saw a house with a giant Aslan statue and a lamp post so basically Pasco=Narnia.

There was one family in particular who we have been teaching. We helped them move on Halloween in skirts during a rain/wind storm out of their apartment! (you can laugh it was funny to watch) They lived above the other sisters in our apartment complex for a while so they were familiar with us and what we do. We were able to teach them for about a week but unfortunately they moved out of our ward but not before we were able to have and amazing lesson with Jacob and Kelsey who are 12 and 16. The spirit was so powerful as we testified of Joseph Smith and Christ's love for them. They committed to be baptized and we know they are in good hands with the elders in their new ward.

Halloween as a missionary isn't so hot, but Sister Camplese and I celebrated by stuffing our faces with enchiladas at a Mexican food restaurant in our coordinating Halloween color outfits. :D

There are so many miracles that our Father in Heaven blesses us with every day. We just have to remember to look for them. As we ponder the blessings we receive we are filled with gratitude for the love and kindness that he freely gives us! When we realize this, our desire to serve those around us just GROWS.

Yesterday we were able to bear our testimonies to our new ward in fast and testimony meeting. The love that we already have for the members of this ward is incredible and they are willing to get the work moving in their area.

Another neat experience we had this week was at the home of a less active sister named Gayle. We have been visiting her and her nephew Nick who lives there with them. Last week we were able to give him a Book of Mormon and a chapter to read. When we met with him again he had read the chapter and felt so comforted by its words. Gayle has been able to participate in the discussions and you can see her light grow as she testifies of what she still knows to be true.

WELL, it was a great week for sure. Sister Camplese and I feel all of your love and support here in Pasco! Have the best week!

Love, 

Sister Madeline Whetten