End of Summer.

Friends and Family:

This week was pretty decent.  It was one of the slower weeks on a mission, but it still worked out and we are still alive. (: So i would consider it a good week. 

Last monday, we had dinner with the mayor in Salem.  His name is JJ. It was super fun.  He invited all the missionaries in our zone to come and have dinner with some investigators. President Loveland even came. Last minute, one of the elders told us the sisters were singing for him.  Well, it only ended up being 3 of us.  Super Awkward.  It didn't even sound super great. But...It was cool i guess. (: 

This week, our neighbor, Alex, moved.  It was really sad.  He was a cool guy and he was always really nice to us.  We shared a few lessons with him and he asked us if we could help him move.  He was supposed to move on Tuesday, so we did a lot of service and tried to fit all of his stuff in his car.  He debated the whole day whether he was going to take his couches, because he said he had a sentimental attachment to them, but he didn't need them.  So while we crammed his car full, he finally came down the stairs and said, "Sisters.  I think i will get a U-haul." So  then we stopped moving everything and he got a U-haul the next day.  We also decided to have a picnic breakfast with him to say goodbye. So we did that and left, then we came back at night. He was still there. He didn't end up leaving until Thursday and we said goodbye to him at least 5 times.  It was super cool.  We know that one day he will accept the gospel. We just know it. 

On Tuesday night, the absolute funniest thing happened.  We ate dinner with an older couple and we didn't know them, and they didn't really know us.  So we sit down for dessert and i looked at my fork and it looked weird.  So i stared at it for awhile and i realized it looked like my foot. So i thoroughly examined everyone else's forks, and sure enough...my fork was missing a prong, just like my foot is missing a toe.  I showed Sister Hill and explained it to her and we just laughed and laughed. I was dying. The couple didn't think it was funny at all. But it was definitely a funny moment. (Maybe it was one of those, 'had to be there' moments.)

We had a few lessons with Henry this week.  He is such an incredible person.  He is so willing to learn and he loves the gospel. He has a really strong testimony and a huge desire to be baptized.  We love teaching him so much.  We look forward to it all the time. He wants to be baptized, but he is concerned about what his family will say and think.  He asked us to pray for him and his family that they would be open. On Sunday, we had an appointment with him after church and he cancelled and said that it wasn't a good idea. I knew that he told his family and that they were not happy.  He told Mykala to tell us that he is still interested in the gospel and his end goal is to be baptized but he needs to work it out with his family first. He told us he doesn't want to formally investigate the church for awhile.  It was so depressing. I was crushed when i heard it.  It is so hard because i know how bad he wants it, and i know that Satan is going to do everything he can to stop Henry from progressing.  I just want Henry to receive all the blessings of the gospel.  I know that he is in the Lords hands and i know that he will join the church one day. It is super hard though.  

This week i also got the privilege to be with Mykala as she received her patriarchal blessing.  It was such an incredible experience.  I am so grateful that she is so strong in the gospel.  I love her so much. She is an incredible person with such a wonderful spirit.  Her desire and drive to follow Christ is such an example to me.  I am happy that she asked me to be with her for that moment in her life.  

We keep meeting with Deon and she is doing good.  She is progressing well. SHE PRAYS NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is so cool.  I love her prayers. They are so amazing, and what i love is she is herself in her prayers. She is developing faith and she is realizing the difference and the peace she has in her life. 

This morning i read a verse in Doctrine and Covenants that really hit me. It is D&C 12:8.  What i learned from that is that Satan is going to try so hard to "unqualify" us for what Heavenly Father has qualified us for.  He is going to work so hard to get us to feel unworthy and to feel unhappy about the things that God has entrusted us with. I know he does it, because this week has been hard.  Satan has been working on us a lot. My companions are such a blessing to me.  They have helped me through the struggles i have been having the past couple days and i have been able to see and help them as well.  We are all looking forward to a week full of miracles where we will be able to overcome all the setbacks Satan has planned for us. We are determined to make this week amazing. I know that we will be able to do it and i know that Christ is there for us. 

Love, 

Sister Ritter 

Pictures:

1) Breakfast Picnic with Alex on his "last day" in Rolla. 

2) Mykala's Patriarchal Blessing day!(: Sister Hodgson, Mykala, and I. 

3) Her blessing again(: 

4) Sometimes all you can do is make a funny face and move on.(: 

5) We found this mural. Took a pic. Then realized. It isn't that great of a mural. 

A Downpour of Blessings‏

This week was amazing. It POURED rain, but we had so many cool thing happen.  I would have to say it was an effective week and a joyous time to be a missionary serving the Lord.

We were sitting in the middle of companion study on Tuesday and we get a call from the mission nurse.  But it was Sister Hill. (THE sister Hill from the MTC) She said that she was coming and she was going to be in a trio with us and she was 1  hour away.  I totally didn't believe her.  But then she knocked on our door and BAM. We are in a trio again.  It has been crazy.  I have had 3 companions this transfer.  So that's the biggest news of this week. 

We also had a super miracle happen this week.  Last Sunday night we got a referral for a guy named Henry.  He is going to the university here in Rolla.   We got to meet him and started teaching him.  He is so open to the gospel.  He told us that he received an answer to his prayer and if it was the answer than he needed to continue on, even in college.  We taught him one lesson and invited him to be baptized on September 12. He said.....YES.  He wants to get baptized ASAP. It was so cool.  The Lord truly blessed us with an amazing investigator this week.  He told us he knows it is true and he is so grateful that we are able to come and teach him.  I am so happy!!!(: 

We are also teaching an Islamic couple named Asmahan and Abdu.  They invited us to go to the Mosque with them, so we went.  It was definitely an interesting experience, but it was cool to see how they worship.  It was definitely an experience to remember.  They are all so sweet there.  It made me love Asmahan so much more.  She is so adorable.  I am excited to continue meeting with her.  

We also had another lesson with Deon.  We taught her about Faith, Repentance, Baptism, the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End.  It was such an amazing lesson.  We did an object lesson to teach her and she said, "You guys blew my mind." And then she cried.  It was super funny.  She said, "You scared me so bad i am crying." I love Deon so much.  She is such a blessing in my life.  I learn so much from her every single time we meet.  She is truly humble and wanting to learn.  She wants to follow God and she knows that she is on the right path.  She has the desire to be baptized, and she is praying to know when she should commit to baptism.  

A miracle we had this week:  We were tracting and Sister Hill said, "That house number is the last 4 numbers of my phone number. But it doesn't look like anyone is home." So we turned the corner and the EXACT same number was on the next  house, so we knocked.  They let us right in.  Their names are Ben and Lauren.  They are looking for a church, are getting married in 3 weeks, they just went through a death in the family, and they are open to having visits.  SUCH A BLESSING.  It was the coolest thing that happened that day for sure.  We are just seeing so many wonderful things happen here. Ill keep everyone updated on them(:

In interviews, President told me that because of my surgery, i would be able to relate to people better.  I didn't really understand how that was going to happen, but he was right. This week i met 3 people that are missing toes.  It is actually a more common thing that i imagined.  It was crazy. Every time i found out i almost cried tears of joy.  It was crazy. 

A funny story: This week after Primary, one of the teachers came up to me and said, "Sister Ritter.  I just have to tell you.  One of the little girls in primary said the prayer and she said, 'please bless that Sister Ritters toe will grow back' I almost died laughing."  It made my day. Then i later found out it was Sister Hill's daughter.  She is seriously one of the cutest little girls i have ever met.

The final thing that happened this week was a text from the Elders. They sent:

" A BRIEF MOMENT ABOUT TITHING"

The parable of the tithed toes.  There was a certain missionary in the land of Missouri that came from the mountains of Utah.  Never before had a missionary been so enthusiastic about the law of tithing and many were converted because of it, when on the 3rd day of the week as she pondered her efforts and consecration as a missionary she thought about the law of the tithe and wondered how she could pay her tithing on her mission since she made no income, when she happened to glance down at her feet, suddenly she had the inspiration she needed and to show her commitment to the Lord she offered up one tenth of her toes unto the Lord in tithing.  She left to serve the Lord with 10 toes.  She returned with only 9.  Although her toe may be  missing, her heart was full knowing she had paid her tithing. Amen.

I love being a missionary so much.  It is the happiest i have ever been.  I know that Heavenly Father watches out for us and he truly blesses us when we come unto him and follow Him.  I know that we can receive all the blessing he has in store for us as we are obedient and listen to the spirit.  I know that the power of prayer is real and that we can receive anything we need as we ask for it.  

Have a great week, I love you all. 

Love, 

Sister Ritter 

pictures: 

1) At the Mosque with Asmahand(: (not pictured)

2) i PROMISE we were in the middle of a downpour...even though it looks sunny out. 

12 Month Testimony

What a month it has been.  My testimony has been strengthened so much.  More than i could ever imagine.

 

This past month i've come to learn that God truly does answer every prayer.  He does in His own time and His own way, but He does answer. 

 

At the very beginning of my mission, i prayed and set a goal to develop the Christ-like attributes of patience and hope.  Heavenly Father has given me such an incredible opportunity to reach my goal.  

Through all my surgeries and doctor visits on my mission, I've never felt so close to Heavenly Father.  It has been easy to face the trials that have come.  I'ave been able to develop hope because i know that  Christ won't leave me.  I know He knows what it''s like to have a toe amputated.  I know He knows the emotional stress that  comes from having to take days off and not be a missionary.  I have developed such a hope that i know everything is going to work out perfectly.  I don't worry about little things because Christ will take care of it.  

 

I've sort of developed patience as I've had to go through all these surgeries and recoveries.  Ive learned to be patient with myself and not beating myself up. (even though im still working on that skill)  I've mostly learned patience as I've watched others take time to serve me. 

 

I'm so grateful for my SAvior.  I'm grateful for the many miracles ive been blessed with.  I'm grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who knows me perfectly.  Most importantly i'm grateful for the incredible peace and blessings that come from living the gospel.  

 

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

"One Year Older and Wiser Too!"

OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!! I CANNOT BELIEVE I HAVE BEEN GONE FOR A WHOLE SOLID YEAR.

This week was a really good week!  We got a lot of things accomplished. 

On Wednesday, we went to the nursing home to visit Fern.  She was so happy to see us and she was beyond thrilled that we could play Bingo with her.  We got her tons of Bingo points so hopefully she can win the prize at the end.  She wants us to come back and play with her again this week.  So crazy thing i learned....Bingo is a serious sport when you become a little older. Like crazy competitive. Im not even kidding.  Sister Mawae Mollena, Sister Mykala, and I laughed forever.  Mykala even called Bingo. She said, "It was so fun.  I got to yell at old people." hahahahha (: Super funny! 

We met these really cool people names Abdu and  Asmahan.  They invited us over and fed us authentic Indian food.  It was super good.  We are going to start teaching them this week.  They are super awesome.  Really sweet and they have met with missionaries before.  We are so excited for them. 

We also met another Indian couple named Kishore and Maria.  They are a super cool story.  We got a text telling us they requested a Bible.  We went over and explained to them what we do as missionaries.  They were really interested because they had never seen anyone come to their house to teach about Christ.  We had a really cool discussion with them about how God can and does help us through our personal trials and how He always is with us.  They have seen a lot of  miracles in their life.  It was so fun to talk with them and to get to know them.  

A super funny thing happened this week.  We were with a member named Laney and we were doing another members visiting teaching because she just had surgery.  We stopped by one of her ladies and she had moved, but their was a man at the address and he gave us directions to her new house.  He said, "She lives down S63. Turn right on W and she lives in the house across from the big farm." Well...we tried to find her, but here in Rolla, Mo on Highway W... EVERYONE LIVES ACROSS FROM A BIG FARM.  So we just knocked on random doors and eventually we found the mail lady.  She told us she didn't recognize the last name, so we called the member and she said that she moved to Cuba.  So that was super funny.  It was such a miracle we ran into the mail lady though.  Such a blessing.  

We had a zone training meeting this week in Springfield.  It was super good.  It was all about how we can become a more consecrated missionary in our personal lives.  I learned so much.  I only have 6 months of my mission left to give the Lord everything i have. I have already wasted tons of time dealing with surgeries too, so i feel a huge rush to get all the work done that i can in the short amount of time i have left.  I got some encouraging advice and a blessing from President Loveland.  It definitely boosted my spirits and helped me with some issues.  At this same meeting, Sister Hodgson, Mykala, and I sang a trio.  Talk about scary.  But it went really well.  I had a great time.  

I am so happy with the blessings i have been given in the past few weeks.  I wouldn't change anything i have gone through for the world.  I am so happy.  I have never felt such joy.  I cannot even begin to count how many great things i have experienced.  God is real. He is so loving and i am so grateful for this wonderful time i have in my life to be a missionary. 

I love you all so much. 

XOXO

Sister Ritter 

 

pictures: 

1)Sister Mawae Mollena has been out for 1 month and i have been out for 1 year!(: 

2) "One year older and wiser too...happy year mark...to me!(:" 

 

 

One toe less, one broken toilet seat more!‏

So this week was pretty slow.  I wasn't able to go out and be a normal missionary.  It was super hard.  But i found a way to get through it.

I feel so blessed to be here in Rolla to go through this trial.  The members are so supportive here.  It has been a huge learning opportunity for me.  

Mykala sat with me and "babysat" me for 4 days.  We were able to watch a lot of church movies.  We had a great time and i was also able to help her and teach her some mini lessons so i didn't feel completely useless.  Mykala is incredible.  She has helped me so much.  

During this week i was having a really hard time dealing with the fact that i couldn't go out and be a missionary and that i wasn't doing anything productive.  I called Sister Loveland and talked to her.  She said something that i thought was pretty cool.  She said, "How many times in the Book of Mormon does it say 'And it came to Pass'?  Sister  Ritter. This too will come to pass."  I love the Lovelands a lot.  They are so wonderful.  They have taught me a lot through this experience.  

A funny thing that happened this week. It has to do with the title of my email. So...i finally was able to shower after a decade of not showering.  I was stepping out and slipped, landed on the toilet, and the toilet seat broke and fell off.  It was so funny.  Mykala was dying.  She was laughing so hard.  I am such a wreck!(; Luckily, inspections were the day before!(: hahahaha. Maybe it is only funny if you were there? It doesn't sound as funny when i type it. Oh well(: 

Mykala posted a picture of my foot on facebook and on Sunday, she came up to me and said, "Sister Ritter, The funniest thing in the world has happened. This guy emailed me and asked for my address because he saw the picture of your foot on facebook and thought it was me. So he got a card for me and wanted to send it.  then he told me that His mom gathered their whole congregation of their church together for an emergency prayer meeting." It was so funny! And another member said, "Do you think Heavenly Father reroutes the prayers?" Oh man.....i can't even believe it. It made my day. 

I am healing well and get to work this week.  I am so excited to be training Sister Mawae Mollena. She is amazing.  Sister Parsels is leaving tomorrow, so i am kinda sad i didn't get to be in a trio with them.  But it is going to be a good transfer.  I am excited to have better experiences to share next week.  

I am so grateful for my Savior.  He has helped me so much in my mission.  More than i could ever expect.  I am so grateful for all the trials i have had, because they have helped me strengthen my faith more than any way i can imagine. 

I hope everyone has a great week. 

Love you! 

sister Ritter 

Pictures: 

1) Me and Mykala(:

2) Basically my fave ever!(; 

3) After i destroyed the bathroom!!!(: hahaha 

 

 

"Losing a Toe for the Lord"

Dear Family and Friends.

WHAT A CRAZY WEEK i have had.

So last week we had some pretty amazing things happen.

 

On Tuesday, we had a huge miracle happen.  Every time we knock on doors and no one answers, we just shove a card in the door for fun.  Well out of the whole time i have been on my mission, no one has ever called on a "Door Jam" .  Randomly we had this missed call and so we called back and she said, "I got a card on my door and i am very interested in coming to your church." My eyes got huge.  IT was so cool.  So we talked to her on the phone for a while and gave her directions.  It was a cool little miracle to start off the week.

We also met a new investigator named Kristen.  She was interested and told us we could come back.  We had a lesson and it went super well.  She has a 6 year old son and He was really interested too.  It was really cool.  I can't wait to see where it goes with her.  

 

We also saw Deon again this week.  She is such an amazing person.  She really loves the Gospel.  She loves learning.  I love her a lot.  She is such an amazing person.  We took Sister Hill with us to her lesson.  She is so close to committing to baptism.  She has been coming to church and everything.  The Lord is blessing us a lot here.  

So now the crazy part of the week. So we found out on Wednesday that Sister Parsels was going to be staying in Rolla and that we were going to be in a trio until after my surgery because it isn't fair to the trainee to come in and sit for her first week.  That was really hard for Sister Parsels, but all is well, and she is helping me more than she will ever know. 

Transfer days are awesome.  I met my trainee Sister Mawae Mollena.  She is Hawaiian.  I adore her a lot.  She is so sweet.  She walked up to me and gave me the biggest hug in the world.  She said, "Everyone i have met has told me you are the best trainer ever and that i am super lucky." (:  She is so sweet.  She told me that she knows the Lord is blessing her.  She is really funny.  It is going to be an amazing transfer.  

Then Friday came. Surgery day. Again.  I cannot believe how much the Lord has blessed me on my mission.  I can't believe that i am still a missionary.  I know that God is truly watching out for me.  So i got my toe amputated. And as Sister Parsels says, "I got 'Ritter' my toe." hahahaha.  People have been saying funny things left and right about my toe.  A guy in the ward came over and gave me a blessing with Brother Hill.  He said, "On your first date just say, I lost my toe for the Lord. You will get a proposal in the least." hahahaha(:  The only way i can be okay with it, is if i laugh.  So anyways...

Sister Hill came and picked me up for my surgery.  She was so sweet to be my "mom" for the weekend.  She helped me with the IV and she has allowed me to live at her house all weekend.  I feel so blessed to be here.  The Hill family is such a blessing to me.  They have helped me feel at home and have comforted me through all of my fears and trials.  They are so incredible and i could never express how grateful i am for them.  I love every single one of them dearly.  

I know that one reason i have had this trial is to strengthen my faith is the Savior.  I felt like i had faith, but as i progress through this experience with my toe and my mission i realized that i was really lacking in faith.  I KNOW  that God is with us every single day.  I know that He loves us and watches out for us.  I know that Jesus Christ lives. He blesses us so much every day.  I  have so much faith in Christ.  I love my Heavenly Father so much and am beyond grateful for the blessing i have to be a missionary.  

 

Have a great week. 

 

LOVE YOU ALL!

<3 (As all the Elders say) 9 Toe Ritter (: