Transfers!

Dear Family and Friends.

 

So since last week was so short and i had no time...i have some going back to do.  Okay. 

 

The first is that we got to go to the St. Louis Temple with Mykala.  She is such an incredible person.  She has such a powerful testimony and i am extremely grateful that i was able to be with her for the first time going to the temple.  She had such a great time and she was even to do her own family names. (: She is the best. 

 

Okay, so now to this week. 

 

Monday we went caving with the Elders and the other Sisters.  It was so fun.  There is a teeny tiny whole that you have to army crawl through the thickest mud.  It took me forever.  I thought i was going to get stuck.  Splunking is my new fave hobby.  It is so fun.  (:  We also had a mud fight in the cave, so you could say that it was kind of hard to walk after the mud got all dried up.  At part of it, there is a latter with a waterfall that we had to climb up. Scariest thing ever, but it was so fun! I also lost my shoe for half of it.  I have never had such a great preparation day. 

 

We had some really cool lessons this week.  We met with the one and only Shane.  He is so amazing.  The Lord has truly prepared him.  He is so open to learning and he has a very strong testimony.  He has a very strong desire to follow Christ and do his best.  We taught him the Word of Wisdom and he said that last summer he drank coffee and got really sick, so he stopped drinking coffee. He told us that he has been living the Word of Wisdom ever since then even though he had no idea what it was.  I absolutely love teaching Shane.  He is so smart and i know God truly does love him and is watching out for him. 

 

We also saw Deon again.  She came to church again and she is also continuing to grow and learn so much in the Gospel.  I love her dearly! 

 

The Gale family.  Such the sweetest little family.  Sister Parsels told them i could sing, so i had to sing them a solo. ha. funny story is that i don't sing at all.  It was awkward. But oh well right.  I have done more awkward things as a missionary before. (; 

 

Then this week we also had exchanges. I was in St Robert with Sister Hodgson.  We made homemade bread, muffins, and tortillas and then we delivered them to people in her area. It was so fun.  Sister Hodgson is such an incredible person.  I love her alot.  She is so cool and she is definitely a role model to me.  

 

This week we got transfer calls.  I will be staying in Rolla and i will be training again.  2 new babes in a row.  I am so excited to train again.  I can't wait.  It is going to be so fun.  

 

This week i learned a few things.  I learned that God truly does watch out for us.  He loves us a lot.  He knows our hearts and he indeeed DOES answer prayers.  I couldn't be more grateful than to be given 18 months to serve my Father in Heaven.  I truly know what it means to be happy. 

 

I love you all so much. 

 

Until next week, 

 

Sister Ritter 

 

Pictures:

1&2:  Caving fools!(;

3: Muffin making with Sister Hodgson

4: Looks like tornado season here in Missurah.  

 

Pics:

1,2,3

Our temple trip to the St. Louis temple with Mykala. 

4, We have a pretty awesome Zone. (: 

Birthday Week!

Dear family and friends:

This week was pretty crazy!

Tuesday was my birthday!!! I can't believe i am 20!!! It is unreal.
So i got to open presents from my cute little fam(:  Then we had a
pretty good day.  Sister Hill made me a peanut butter chocolate
cheesecake.  It was so good!!!

We also met with Deon this week.  She is so cute!!! She came to the
relief society pool party and she loved it.  She made a lot of friends
with the members.  We went to see her on Sunday and her mom came over
and she said, "Hey mom, these are my sister missionaries that come
from my new church."  Then her mom looked at her for a second, looked
at the cupboard, took out the alchohol and said, "Well i guess you
won't be needing this anymore."  Then Deon just laughed.  It was
hilarious.  I am so happy.  She loves the church. She loves the
lessons and she always thanks us for coming and teach her.  She is
definitely ready to hear the gospel.

We also met with Shane again and we set a date with him for baptism.
For August 8.  At our last lesson, he said, "As i was leaving, my dad
said, 'You know Shane...they are just trying to indoctrinate you into
their church.' and i said, 'Yup. That is the goal."  He is so
funny!!!! He also is very prepared. He loves the gospel and he is
already in Alma.  We started teaching him 3 weeks ago.  I love
visiting with him!!!

We are trying to work hard and to continue finding new people to
teach. This week was weird, and i am learning a lot.

Sorry, this is so short.

I love you all!!!

See you next week. (:

Sister Ritter

Bearded Lizards, and Other Creepy Things

Dear family and friends:

 

This week has been a little bit on the more difficult side. It was a loooong week, but it also flew by. Makes no sense, but missionary time is weird.

 

So anyways, it was slower, and we didn't have a ton of things happen.

 

This week started out with me waking up on Tuesday with a bug bite on my arm...no problem right.  So then on Wednesday, I woke up with another bug bite that was HUGE.  Slight problem.  I was fine with it....but Sister Parsels made me get it checked.  So we went to one of the doctors in our ward.  He is an ER doctor, so I figured that would be a good place to start. Brother Hill had no idea what it is.  Everyone that sees it asks/tells me "You got bit by a brown recluse spider."  "That is a brown recluse bite."  So I got put on medicine. And the unofficial diagnosis is Brown Recluse bite.  It is pretty gnarly.  I know I know. I ask myself the same question..."Why does Sister Ritter always have the off the wall random medical things happen to her?" The only thing I can come up with is because I am accident prone. So that's how our week started.

 

So we have this incredible investigator named Deon. Boy oh boy do I love her.  She is so open to learning about the gospel.  She has a very open heart and a strong desire.  She told us, "I love when you ladies come over because it is the only time I feel like someone has hope for me."  She is 21 with 2 of the worlds cutest little boys. She is progressing well and she is very down to earth.  We read the Book of Mormon with her and she loves it.  She doesn't have any concerns like most of the investigators do.  So we invited her to church.  Half way through sacrament, SHE WALKED IN.  I literally almost cried tears of joy.  She is amazing.  She stayed all 3 hours! She is coming to the relief society activity and to church again next week!  We have an appointment with her this week.  I LOVE going there.

 

We also went to the Veterans home this week.  We met an active member (Can't come because of health) named Vance.  He is so funny.  He had a lot of good things to say.  He has a very powerful testimony.  He told us he was extremely grateful for us coming because no one else comes to see him anymore.  He showed us his  flower garden and told us all about his life in the Navy.  As we were visiting with him, his nurse came in, who happens to be a less active member we have been trying to meet with. So we scheduled an appointment  with her.  MIRACLES.  It was a really relaxing, and fun visit.

 

Random fun fact: I held a bearded lizard and was terrified, and pet a snake (;

 

This week has just really been a learning experience.  I have been humbled and learning a lesson of trust.  I haven't fully learned it yet, but I know that Heavenly Fathers plan for me is better than the plan I have for myself and I just need to accept it and have faith that He knows what's best.

 

Until next week.

 

Sister Ritter

 

1) Me and Cheyenne(: Don't mind the bearded lizard on my lap.

2) Killer bug bite!(;

3) ELEVEN MONTHS!!!! I cant even believe it!!!

 

 

11 Month Testimony

I'd like to bare my testimony on the things I have learned this month.

 

It definitely hasn't been easy, that's for sure.

 

Ive learnd a lot about trusting in Gods plan for me.  And I'm still learning that lesson.

 

Ive been having many experiences that have allowed me to humble myself and learn how to strengthen my faith.

 

I kow God is with us.  I know He supports us and carries us through our lives when we feel we can't go on.

 

I know that prayer is powerful.  We can have so many experiences and miracles happen if we just pray and have faith.

 

I know God places specific people in our path so we can grown and learn from them. 

 

I know this Church is true.

 

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

Sister Makena Ritter

ABM!!!!!!

This past week was full of  a lot of crazy things!!!

 

First, the Oklahoma Tulsa mission closed and the Arkansas Bentonville mission opened.  Then, President and Sister Shumway went home, and President and Sister Loveland came in. 

 

Saying goodbye to the Shumways was absolutely horrible.  It was so sad.  It was like leaving home all over again.  They are wonderful people.  They made such a huge influence in my life.  They helped me become the missionary I want to be.  They were absolutely inspiring to me.  I consider them some of my closest friends/parents.  I love them and will forever be grateful for the things they did for me. 

 

We got to meet the Lovelands yesterday.  They are really nice. I know they will help me continue to become a great missionary and continue to help the Lord hasten the work.  I am excited to get to know t hem more. 

 

Next and probably the most crazy thing that happened this week.  Me and Sister Parsels were getting ready for bed and we got a weather alert to our phone.  It said, "Extreme tornado warning."  That isn't super scary.  I have had multiple tornado warnings. So I went about life while Sister Parsels was having a minor heart attack.  Then about 2 minutes later, the Tornado sirens went off.  That's when I freaked.  I have never heard them and we got another text that said "Take shelter now."  So we called the closest member and jumped in our car and raced around the corner to the basement of the members house. (We live on the top floor of the apartment complex, and we got almost every tiwi violation you can get. hahaha.)  So we got to the Ludlows and we were panicked.  I forgot shoes, the rain was pouring down, the sky was super crazy.  It was horrifying. So we stayed in the basement for about an hour and by this time it was close to midnight.  I didn't feel safe to go back home, so we called another member.  We went to their house.  They said we could spend the night there if we needed.  We asked Brother Blank for a blessing.  It was so powerful.  It was an amazing feeling.  I know the Power of the Priesthood is real.  I know that the blessing was exactly what Heavenly Father needed me to hear.  It was such a powerful blessing.  Even though the tornado was absolutely scary, and I didn't know what to do, I know that that will be a great experience I will always remember on my mission.

 

We got a new investigator this week named Shane.  He is amazing.  He is very open to learning and he has a great desire to know the truth and to know God.  He has been reading the Book of Mormon for awhile and he told us that he knows it is the word of God because he had a question and he prayed.  Then he opened the Book of Mormon and started reading.  He got his answer. That is what made him really interested in meeting with us.  It was such a cool experience.  I will never be able to explain the joy that comes as you see someone come to know the truth about God and receive a testimony that the Book of Mormon is true.  It is the best thing in the world.  I am so grateful for the power of the Book of Mormon and the influence it can have in each of our lives. 

 

We also went to meet this man named Dohn.  He is deaf, and he is very old, so we took Mykala (recent convert) because she knows pretty good sign language.  He was thee sweetest man in the entire world.  He had a HUGE smile on his face the entire time.  We saw him on the 4 of July.  He told us that he loved fireworks and that he loved my dress.  hahahaha.  I love him.  He is just adorable. As we were leaving, he went to walk us to the door, but I guess if a patient gets to close to the door the alarm goes off.   So the alarms went off and we were panicking and he was just there in his wheelchair with a look on his face like, "Why are these crazy girls panicking. I just opened the door for them."  It was hilarious.  I could feel the spirit really strongly as we were signing with him.  I guess now I am learning sign language. (;

 

So this fourth of July was super fun.  We went to the ward breakfast and we had an investigator, Karn, come.  He loved it.  He met a lot of the people and we saw him getting a drink. We asked him what he was doing and he said, "Getting juice for my people."  We said, "Your people?" And he said, "yeah...the people I am talking with."  It was super funny.  Then that night, we had permission to stay out until 10.  We went to a members house.  It was SO fun.  We did a ton of fireworks in the middle of nowhere.  Joe set one of them off and it was like an atomic bomb.  It shook my insides.  The table was shaking too.  It was a malfunction.  It was supposed to explode way up in the sky....but it stayed on the ground. (: Such a fun night.

 

This was the last week of our 10 week goals for the OTM.  We were trying to double our lessons and get 40 lessons.  We got 32!  It was such a great week.  We worked so hard and we witnessed so many miracles.  I know that the Lord is very proud of the OTM and he is blessing us so much for our hardwork.  I am so happy that I am here.  I love it.  I love seeing all the things that Heavenly Father blesses us with. 

 

I hope you all have a wonderful week.

 

Oh and I can't remember if I sent my new address or not.

Arkansas Bentonville Mission

1004 Beau-Terre Dr Ste E502

Bentonville AR 72712

 

Love you!

Sister Ritter

 

pictures:

1)Tornado night. Just chillin in the basement. (:

2)Last night in the OTM.  #LongLiveTheOTM

3)Just enjoying Rolla.

4) happy 4 of July

5) Happy fourth of July from the Rolla Sisters!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Awesome Week!

Dear Friends and family:

This week was awesome!(:  Time is just flying right along.  

So Monday. We drove up to St Robert to spend the day with the sisters.  It was  alot of fun.  Sister Hodgson made homemade crackers.  She put dill, watermelon, and sour cream on them.  Sounds crazy, but it was super good.  As we were leaving, we noticed a rim on our car was missing and we didn't know what to do about it.  So we knocked on the Sisters door and Sister Parsels said, "Um. We lost a rim." hahahah It was hilarious. It probably isn't as funny over email. (: So we have to fill out a report now(:
 

So tuesday we went to see this potential investigator.  Her name is Connie.  We go over there totally prepared to share the restoration with her.  We start asking her questions about her religious background and all about her life. Turns out, She was a member. Doesn't want to go to the temple because she isn't married, doesn't want to read the Book of Mormon.  It was so awkward.  The spirit really had to take over, because we had NO idea what to do.  She gave us a tour of her house.  And she gave me a cute little old lady dress.  It was funny.  We left that appointment thinking, "what just happened?"
 

Wednesday, we went on exchanges.  Guess who is my Sister Training Leader? Guess who i got to spend a whole 24 hours with on exhanges? That's right.  ITS MY MERRILL.  It was probably the best exchange in the whole world. We had the best time talking about our time as a companion and looking at all of our pictures.  It was amazing.  We learned how to can peaches together.  We helped a member. Lets just say. That was a one time service for Sister Ritter. That was a wreck.  I think i made a bigger mess more than i helped. (;
 

We had some really cool lessons this week.  

We went to meet Paulina and Valerie.  They work at a summer camp and are visiting from Mexico.  They want to learn more.  So we couldn't call their number because it is a mexico number.  We didn't know their address, so we just went to a random summer camp and asked if they worked there.  It took a while to find them but we did.  It was really cool.  They walked up to us and guess what happened, They had a friend with them! She was so open to the Gospel, Her name is Deena.  She said she is open to getting baptized.  I am so thrilled.  Paulina is a member and she just thanked us.  She said it made her feel like she was home.  It made me remember when i was with Sister Katich and Sister Shreve on splits with them.
 

We also had a really cool lesson with a Less Active named Thomas.  He works at the fire station, so we go there to visit with him.  We had a really powerful lesson with him and at the end we wanted to show him a mormon message.  His friend was there and we invited him over.  His friend, Zac, said No.  But Thomas said, "Dude, come on, it will change your life."  So he slowly came over to the video and watched it.  At the end of the video we asked if we could come back.  We set an appointment and Thomas said, "Zac are you going to come?" Here is the crazy part. Zac said YES! He is interested in learning.  It is amazing to see the power of one video and how the spirit works.  When Zac agreed, Thomas said, "That was the easiest recruiting i have ever done." hahahah. Sister Parsels almost died. It was hilarious.
 

Last story.  We went to see another potential with a recent convert named Mykala.  Well. That turned into a bible bash. Scariest thing. People have awful, weird beliefs about us.  It is just really hard that people trust others and other books without going straight to the source.  We had a rough day after that.  We felt bad and off all day.  Mykala was amazing.  She talked and everything.  She was amazing, but still, people like that aren't ready to change or ready to hear the gospel.  It was a hard day. But we are all recovered.
 

I love serving here with Sister Parsels.  She is an amazing missionary!  She has such a powerful testimony.  She loves the gospel.  She has overcome a lot to be here and i am beyond grateful to be serving with her. 
 

I love you all! Keep the faith! <3
 

Love with all my heart

Sister Ritter 

picture:

1) Me and Sister Merrill on exchanges.  "Reunited and it feels so good!"

2) Late 10 month pic!