Monday, June 27, 2016

Week 62 - 6.27.16

This week we had exchanges with the Sheboygan sisters. Sister K stayed here with Sister Osburn and I went to Sheboygan to be with Sister Naughton! I <3 Sheboygan! It's so beautiful and right on the shores of Lake Michigan. We had a lovely time contacting on the beach, eating lunch at the farmer's market, teaching people at cool hipster cafes, and playing tennis for exercise in the morning! It was good for both of our souls. Sister Naughton is the coolest. She's such a patient person and is very bold with people. I loved getting to be with her for the day! But it's always nice to come back to your own people in your area. 

On Tuesday we had a bomb lesson with Will. Peter came and we talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Will was basically teaching us, though. But really! We asked him if he has seen his faith grow since meeting with us and learning about the gospel, and he said "yes". We asked "why", and he started talking about repentance. Perfect transition, Will, perfect transition. It was great! Last week we had asked him to pray about a date to be baptized and this week we set the date of July 16th! At the end of our lesson he said, "Last Sunday I was called an investigator, but it's much more than that. It's about doing the will of God". YES. IT IS. He then shared with us that the day prior to us tracting into him, he said a prayer in a last ditch effort to God to know if there was a God, even. Then the next day we knocked on his door! I know Heavenly Father has been guiding and preparing him to hear and accept this gospel, and I'm so happy that he's following those promptings.

Yesterday, after potluck, we had another lesson with Will. Peter came, and Meaghan did as well. We felt impressed to teach about the Word of Wisdom. I think we were all a little nervous going into the lesson cause this is Wisconsin and everyone has WoW probs, but it actually went really well. The issues are a little greater than we thought they were gonna be, but he committed to live the WoW. You could see the shock on his face when we told him he couldn't drink alcohol ever again in his life. It was great to have Meaghan there, cause she's a fairly recent convert, so she was able to relate and bear solid testimony of the blessings associated with keeping the Word of Wisdom. We really just emphasized Christ and His Atonement in all of this. There is so much strength that will come to Will as he turns to the Savior to help him quit. He knows it will only help his life and knows that the gospel is worth it. 

Remember our investigator, Juan? Well, we had a good lesson with him about the Plan of Salvation. We think he understood it. To be honest, we're not really sure though. He did say that he would get baptized if he knew that this was true, though! But said he wants to attend a church service first. So he was going to come yesterday, but texted us and said he didn't have time to get his church clothes in Oshkosh (he was in Appleton for the weekend). Lame. He did say he will come to church next Sunday, though. So that's good! 

It's been oh so hot and soooo humid this past week. But we tracted cause that's what we do, and found some super cool potential investigators! One of the families that we tracted into invited us back to teach them more this Saturday. They are hispanic, so we might have to pass them off to the spanish elders, but they speak great English, so we'll see what they prefer. They have the cutest kiddos, so I'm praying that it will work out! I know that the gospel blesses families so much! 

fun facts:
- we went bowling last p-day
- we cleaned a member's house (it's great cause when you're a missionary chores like this suddenly become fun lol)
- I hit my 14 month mark. uhhh
- shout out to my baby sis for turning 14. xoxo go kill it at those stake dances
- went to Adam's mom's birthday party and had cake and brats
- had our last district meeting
- the branch is huge now cause people are home from school and summer sales guys from UT are here
- potluck was amazing and then we got a surprise dinner appointment, yay!

None of that was spiritual, sorry. But life is so wonderful! God is so good and there are serious miracles happening here in Wisconsin. I love my Savior and I love this work! I'm sad that President and Sister Cutler are leaving this week, but I'm excited to meet the Williams! I know they are called by a prophet of God, too, so this will be a great change. 

Have a great week and make good choices! I love you! 

Xo,
Sister Quist

from a couple weeks ago on our hike!

 bowling last p-day and our last district meeting!

district: elder merrill, elder miller, sister white, me, sister killian, sister roskelley

 look who surprised me!! I <3 Jessica

Monday, June 20, 2016

Week 61 - Shout Out to My #1 Dad!

My heart is just so happy today! Our week was super busy and full of so many good things. Highlights include:

- WILL. Remember that guy, Will, I mentioned a couple weeks ago? He is doing so well! He came to church yesterday for all 3 hours and loved it. We have taught him about the Restoration and the Plan of Salvation and he's praying about a date to be baptized in July. We are kind of baffled by his speedy progression, but he is so sincere and knows that this gospel will bless his life.

- There is a recently returned missionary, Sadie, who has been coming out with us a lot this past week. She has been the biggest help in lessons and has contributed a lot to the spirit there. I'm just so grateful for the YSA's here. They are incredible fellow-shippers and know how to make visitors feel welcome. There is such a huge difference in the progress of an investigator if they have good fellow-shippers.

- Had exchanges with the Oshkosh sisters. Sister White came here and we worked our tails off. I honestly don't think Sister White has a mean bone in her body, so it was great to be able to learn from her example! We taught a billion first vision lessons which resulted in very sweaty missionaries and a few cool potentials! We also saw Will, but you know how that went. Met with Monique as well and she's on fire. She just got a calling in the Relief Society and is still my favorite. 

- Had Zone Conference this past Wednesday in West Bend. Super long drive, but so worth it! This was our last time hearing from the Cutler's before their release on the 30th. They did most of the trainings and it was all on temples and families. It was kind of a recap of MLC, but still very good. The spirit is always so strong when the Cutler's are speaking. 



- Met with Nicole on Thursday and she's so great. She always keeps us on our toes lol. We talked about the nature of God and how we build our relationship with Him.  She is recognizing the spirit, but doesn't really recognize it as the spirit, if that makes any sense. So we decided it would be best to start with the basics and work our way up. She keeps all her commitments, which is the only way she will be able to experience the gospel, but she had to work this Sunday so she wasn't able to attend church. Hopefully she'll be able to get off this week! 

- A little boy in the Neenah ward got baptized this Saturday and boy, Hispanics do baptisms right! They had a lovely service and then afterwards had a feast prepared for everyone. Homemade tamales, beans, rice, and a PINATA. Yeah. Quite the party. It was so fun, but as I reflect on it I'm just so happy that Alejandro decided to make that covenant with our Heavenly Father. Because as much happiness as pinatas bring, the gospel bring so much more! But really the gospel is basically like a pinata where the candy just never stops coming out. That was a bad analogy, but you get what I'm saying :)

- Gave a talk yesterday about missionary work and the Atonement... my two favorite things! I used 2 Nephi 2: 6-9 and kind of took apart each scripture and shared thoughts/experiences in regards to each one. I also added a little shout out to fathers and especially my cute dad (I love you, pops!). I've learned so much about our Heavenly Father and I know He sent our Savior to perform the Atonement. I know that the Atonement is real and its power is accessed by obedience and by repentance. How indebted I am to Christ for making it possible for me to change and become more like Him! 

So I think that's all I've got. Wishing you all a super rad week. 
Make good choices!

XO,
Sister Quist

fun with the cute ysa's yesterday!

stacy (who sent you the video), sis. killian, meaghan, me, karlene <3
 ...and kyle holding all of our stuff lol
 our hike last week! 

elder bedgisoff, elder curtis, elder burdsall, elder christofferson, sister killian, and me
 High Cliff State Park




 my favorite sister killian! 


 the big slide!

 going down the slide...
when it rains so hard it floods!

Monday, June 13, 2016

Week 60 - "Thank you sisters, for not taking "no" for an answer"

Hi All! A run down of our week:

  • Got locked out of our apartment at 9:30pm while trying to kill a spider. Spent 20 minutes trying to buzz people to let us in, but no one did. Said a prayer and the first person we buzzed let us in. Prayers really do work!
  • Talked to some super cool hipster people at Lawrence University. It was cool because we talked to this group of people and basically all of them said they didn't have a belief in God except for this one girl. I was just thinking about how tough it would be to hang around people who didn't share that core belief. I'm so grateful for the blessing it is to have people in my life who love the Lord just as much as I do!
  • Jesus came! As a mission we are reading the Book of Mormon and we just got to 3 Nephi 11 and this is right when Christ appears to the people on the American continent. Every time I get to this part I love that the first thing Christ does is give them the priesthood power! Then he teaches them His doctrine. Just shows how important both of those things are. 
  • Went on exchanges in Appleton with Sister Christensen. BEST EVER. We had Taco Bell and tracted in the hot humid weather and saw their investigators, Tonya and Sue. We did service at Bethesdas and got matching t-shirts for free. Sister Christensen is a wonderful missionary. She's just super genuine and herself 100% of the time.
  • Met with a new investigator named Jake on Saturday. I don't know if I said anything about him, but we tracted into him and he told us that when he lived in Minnesota he did service with some Elders! They never told him anything about the church, but it kind of got him curious. So we were able to teach him about the Restoration. At the end he said, "But you should know that I'm never going to be a Mormon". Hmm, we'll see, Jake...we'll see. 
  • Funny tracting story of the week. We knock on this door and these two shirtless guys answer. Both covered in tattoos and piercings. We start talking to them and tell them what church we're from and then out of the blue one of them says, "wait a second, I'll be right back". And goes inside. A few minutes later he comes out with a BOOK OF MORMON. We were like, whatttt!? Then he showed us his "Book of Mormon" musical t-shirt. Oh boy... we talked more about Joseph Smith and who he was. I think we cleared up some misunderstandings. 
  • Quincy got baptized! It was magical and spiritual and I'm so happy for him. It was such a privilege to be so close so that we could attend. I honestly didn't think I would see the day when Quincy would get baptized, but he persevered (and the sisters persevered), and he made it. He was glowing with the light of Christ! At the service he bore his testimony and said, "thank you, sisters, for not taking no for an answer". 

Not much time, but things are going well and missionary life is wonderful. I'm doing great and I love these YSA of mine here in Winnebago! We called our referral, Andrew, yesterday and got to know him a little better. He's moving here from Washington state. He said he has a lot of questions that his Baptist church can't seem to answer and said he hasn't been able to get "the Mormon's" out of his head and doesn't know why. Well, THE SPIRIT THAT'S WHY. 

Okay. Going to High Cliff state park. 

CTR. Read your scriptures. Love you!

Xo,
Sister Quist


Monday, June 6, 2016

Week 59 - When Troy Bolton stands you up <<‏

Hello to all my favorite people! We had a pretty rad week here in Wisconsin. SO MANY COOL THINGS HAPPENING. It's insane. A couple weeks ago Sister K and I tracted into this woman named Jacquie. She's been through a lot in her life and was very open to learning more about the gospel. We went back for our return appointment and 1. SHE WAS THERE and 2. She totally gets it. The spirit was a sure witness that God is truly our Heavenly Father, that our spirits were created by Him, and that He isn't some ominous being just out there in the universe, but He knows us personally and wants us to know Him. And how do we do this? By following His Son, by living His gospel, and by loving Him. I think my favorite part about teaching Jacquie has been seeing her come to realize who God is. Prior to us meeting with her she didn't quite know what to think about Him, but as we have shared the gospel with her she is beginning to understand a little more about the nature of our Father in Heaven. 

I think I told you about Cody, who just showed up to church for all three hours. Well, we got a hold of him and we're excited to start meeting with him this weekend! We've been receiving some super solid referrals lately. The zone leaders texted us with another referral for a young guy, Andrew, who is moving here soon. He reached out to the missionaries and wanted the church information and so we texted him and will be meeting with him as soon as he gets settled in. It's sometimes easy to get discouraged with all the negativity that surrounds us, not only as missionaries, but just as faithful followers of Christ. But I know without a doubt that the Lord is preparing so many of His children to accept this gospel here on earth! And despite the crazy amount of wickedness in the world, there are still honest seekers of truth out there. That gives me so much hope!

Thursday was kinda weird, haha. We got this strange text from a "Troy Bolton". (And I don't know about you, but any one who's alias is "Troy Bolton" already wins a spot in my heart.) He or she or whoever it was was texting us all this very false information about the church, so we told them that we would be happy to meet up to talk with them about it. They agreed, and we set up an appointment on Thursday. Well, the time for our appointment rolls around and "Troy Bolton" was a total no show. So that was pretty disappointing. ...No real spiritual meaning to that story, I just thought it was funny that their code name was Troy Bolton.  

We had Mission Leadership Conference on Friday with all the Zone Leaders, Sister Training leaders, President and Sister Cutler, and the Assistants. What a great meeting! The Cutler's are leaving at the end of June, so this was their last MLC. I just have to brag about them for one second, so here I go. I love those two oh so much. They have helped me to become a better missionary and disciple of Christ. I just appreciate all the love that they have shown to me. At the end of MLC they each bore their testimonies. President Cutler expressed that his deepest desire is to wear out his days in the service of our God. I can definitely testify that they have been such a blessing during their service here in Wisconsin. I will miss them! 


I feel bad cause this email is super long and I applaud you if you've made it this far, but like I said, so many cool things happening. Here are just a few other highlights:

- WE GOT LOTS OF NEW INVESTIGATORS THIS WEEK WHICH WAS A HUGE MIRACLE.

- QUINCY IS GETTING BAPTIZED THIS SATURDAY. Yes. The same Quincy whose door we knocked on a year ago in Oshkosh is getting baptized. I was able to see him at Stake Conference yesterday and he has totally changed. You can tell that he has let the Savior refine who he is. I'm so happy for him. 

- MARIA HAS A FURBY AND WE TOOK A PIC WITH IT.

- STAKE CONFERENCE WAS BOMB. Elder Evanson of the Seventy came and killed it. He talked about a lot of things, but something he said that I loved was, "Humility is having confidence that Celestial glory is attainable through Christ". 

- HAD A RETURN APPOINTMENT WITH A NEW INVESTIGATOR YESTERDAY IN OSHKOSH AND OUR GAS LIGHT TURNED ON ON OUR WAY TO CHURCH. But our girl, Sam, came to the rescue and drove us all the way to Oshkosh where we had a super good lesson with a guy named Will. He's excited to know the truth for himself and is coming to basketball this Wednesday. Yeah!

Thanks for staying tuned, guys. Much love from Wisconsin! CTR.

Xo,
Sister Quist

 <<When you're waiting for "Troy Bolton" to show up 
and you find deathly hallow signs written on the brick walls 
 killin' it with the stripes at stake conference Victory hand

sister killian, katie, morgan, & me

Saturday, June 4, 2016

Week 58 - A Week of Change and Lots of Contacting!

Wow! What a week. Said goodbye to my favorite Sister Schlosser on Wednesday. Can't believe she's home now. I miss her terribly, but so happy to have Sister Killian here. We hit the ground running when she got here and haven't stopped since. So much contacting this week! We've testified of the first vision and the Book of Mormon multiple times a day. It's been great! 

Wednesday we tried to contact this less active gal in the branch, but we didn't know her exact apartment number, so we just went around to all the apartments and asked for her. If it wasn't her we would just teach whoever opened up! We never did find her though...but we did find a cool family we're excited to follow up with. 

Thursday we found this super cool park that we've gone back to lots this week! Shout out to my girl, Sister Gifford, for letting us know about it. So many people are there all the time playing on the playground, fishing, walking or biking. It's a goldmine. The weather has been super warm lately so we've been out and about talking people's ears off about this wonderful gospel! At the park there is also this incredibly long slide that goes down the side of this huge hill and we've definitely gone down it. 

Friday was a miracle day! We decided to go see another less active girl in the branch and found a part-member family, too! The Cartwright/Ellis family is so cool. Sister Cartwright recently moved back to Appleton from Montana. This time, her husband, Bobby, came with. He is not a member, but took the missionary discussions for a while while in MT. We're very hopeful for them. They invited us back for a F.H.E. and dinner next week! 

Saturday we contacted...again. We went to UWO to find some more students to teach and found a lot of cool potentials. After lunch we went to contact some potentials, but none of them were home. BUT GET THIS. Right across the street we spotted two semi-less active girls moving into their new apartment. So of course we went over and offered to help them. I think they were a bit weirded out and maybe thought we were stalking them, but it was just a wonderful coincidence. Hopefully it softened their hearts a little bit and we'll be seeing them more often. 

Sunday was church. How I love church! I was greeted by one of my favorite people ever, JESSICA, who was up visiting her uncle for Memorial Day weekend. My heart basically exploded with happiness. I've missed her oh so much! Since our Stake Conference is this weekend, we had Fast and Testimony mtg. this past Sunday. George's car is broken and so we wondered if he was going to be able to make it to church. We didn't see him until the middle of testimony meeting when he got up to BEAR HIS TESTIMONY. Probably one of the most sincere and spirit-filled testimonies I've ever heard. 

And since yesterday was Memorial Day and p-day was moved to today, we had time to contact and meet with lots of people. In the morning we went to the Neenah parade and passed out lots of cards, so that was a fun change of pace! Later, we met with our super cool new investigator, Nicole! Oh my goodness, NICOLE. She's such a peach and super prepared. She's from a tiny town called Ripon, right outside Oshkosh. Which was my first area, so that's fun. She even knows a few members from her hometown. One of whom is the Elders Quorum President in the Branch and the other just got married in the temple. She's a bit of a wild child, but loves the Plan of Salvation. She labeled herself Agnostic, but is very open and excited to keep learning more. 

Lots of good things going on here! I love being a missionary and serving my Heavenly Father in this part of the vineyard! It's incredible to feel the gospel change who I am and see others changed by it as well. The church is true, guys.

Keep choosing the right and have a lovely week!

Xo,
Sister Quist

my new companion, Sister Killian
 lookin' tired, but had to celebrate the end of transfers with a margarita (virgin, don't worry!)
 cherie is our favorite!‏