New Companion, New Zone, and Attending the Temple

Hi everyone!

This week has been one of downs and ups.  We had a few of our investigators drop their interest, and aren’t meeting with us anymore.  But, we came across a few less active members that said they would come to church!  :)  This month, one of our goals was to have our recent converts be able to attend the temple and do baptisms.  We got Virginia, Diana, and the Sowards to the temple.  The Sowards were able to take their grandparents names for baptisms, and Diana and Virginia got to do confirmations.  I love going with people to the temple for the first time.  It helps me feel like an effective missionary and that I’m making a difference!  :)  As we went through the doors, Virginia said that “Heavenly Father feels like he is here.”  :)  We had a follow up lesson with the Sowards latter in the week, and they told us how strong the spirit was during the baptisms at the temple.  I love them so much!

This week, we have had fewer days to proselyte because Elder Keetch of the Seventy came to create the new stake and zone, and did a mission tour.  We met at a stake center in Spokane, and it was such a good meeting.  It went all day, but was great!  Elder Keetch trained us on finding the elect.  He also shared about his mission to Germany and how he only had one baptism his entire mission, but he was still successful because he worked hard and gave his all. We also had two hours were we got to ask him any question we wanted and he would answer them.

Alyce is on date for baptism on July 30^th!  Alyce is paralyzed from the waist down and is a bit worried about being dropped in the water.  In our visits this week, we talked with her about her fears, and read Alma 7:14-15 with her.  We will do all we can to help her. :)

We also found a new family to teach.  They said we could come back next week and teach them, so we will see how interested they are.

I took a bunch of pictures this week, and Mom and Dad, can you post those on my blog?  I need to explain one of them.  I bought Sister Jackson an emoji  pillow that I thought was the top of an ice cream cone.......... no one told me that there was a poop emoji!  We got a good laugh about that one.

So transfer calls were last night.   Sister Paget is being transferred to Pullman, Washington.  :(  I will miss her a lot here in Green Bluff.  I am staying in the Green Bluff area and Sister Mallory Lott will be my new companion!  I served around her in Cheney.  She is super kind and sweet, and I'm excited.  Sister Jackson is transferring to Canada, in the Northern part of our mission, and I’m going to miss her as well.  Sister Parker is staying here, and her new companion will be Sister Hartle.  They will continue to cover the Colbert area.  Even though I am not moving to a new area, our area is now in the new Mount Spokane Zone.  In our zone, it’s just us and one other set of sisters, and the rest are all elders.  The other sisters that live here and cover the Colbert area will stay in the Spokane North Zone.

Well, that’s it for my week this week.  I’m feeling great and loving the work!  Thanks for all your support!

Love you all,

Sister Worthen :)

Sister Paget and I.  Last day as
companions together.  :(

Sister Jackson is transferring to Canada.  :(

The last that all four of us are together

I was sad because non of our investigators came to church, so
Sister Jackson grabbed a blanket and told me "we can
be depressed blanket burritos together."  :)

Tried doing yoga one morning.  It didn't turn out so well.  ;)

One of the members "little" puppies.  I think I take more
pictures of me holding baby animals than anything else.  :)

With Alyce

Diana at the temple with Sister Page and I

The Sowards and us at the temple

With Virginia at the temple

The pretty area that we get to serve in!

I thought it was a chocolate ice cream emoji pillow.
No one told me there is a poop emoji!  :)

Some More Random Thoughts

Hi everyone!

Note from Mom and Dad:  Taya didn’t write a “group” email home this week again, so the things in this post are just some comments, thoughts, and pieces pulled from her written letter, her email to us, etc.  Just some random updates and such from her:

IT"S SO HOT HERE I"M DYING!!!!! Today it got up to 104 degrees and the day before it was 106.  We don't have an air conditioner in our apartment either.  ;)   And we are outside a lot of the time so that's interesting.  ;)   I'm starting to feel like I'm getting a small taste of how Brittin feels sweating all day in the Philippines!

I have no clue what will happen with transfers in a few weeks with a new stake being created here and us possibly switching zones.... we'll have to see!!  I think one of the new stakes is going to be in the Valley Stake and the other will stay in the North Stake.  I hope I stay in the same area because we do a lot of teaching.  We have fourteen investigators right now!  Their progression is a bit slow... it will take a lot to get them close to baptism but I just love having the opportunity to teach so much and having so many appointments, and working with these great people!  :)   We found four new investigators this week!  :)

Alyce is still keeping the Word of Wisdom, which is great!  We also had a great appointment with Nick this week.  Bishop Stumm and his wife joined us for the lesson.  We decided to go back to the basics of the Restoration, and the Bishop did a great job in his teaching.  He definitely has the spirit with him!

Sister Paget is a Sister Training Leader here in our zone, and with that, she needs to go on splits with the other sisters in the zone.  So this week I went on splits with the Colbert Ward sisters, Sister Jackson and Sister Parker for a day or two.  We also all had a blitz in the Colbert area, which was productive.  :)

We attend two church meetings here each week, the Green Bluff ward, and the sacrament meeting at the Regency Nursing Home.  We have a few investigators there as well.  That makes for some busy Sundays for us, which is good.  I love sacrament meeting because it gives me some time where I don’t have to be talking with someone, planning for something, or have my bubbly pants on.  (NOTE from Mom and Dad:  Taya uses the words “bubbly pants” to refer to those times when a missionary may be having a difficult day, or may not be in the best of moods, but still needs to be friendly, engaging, and excited when visiting with people about the Gospel.)  I can just sit and think and reflect on the Savior.  I try to read my patriarchal blessing then too.  This week was fast Sunday and as a mission we are supposed to share our testimony with the ward each month.  After this I’ll never be nervous to get up there in my home ward again!  :)

I love you all so much!  I’m happy here and doing great!  :)

Love,

Sister Worthen :)

With Sister Paget, Sister Jackson, and Sister Parker

My emoji pillow!

Someone posted this picture of Sister
Paget and I at the "Professional Hoola
Hooping" Young Womens Activity

Sister Jackson and I on exchanges holding some
little kitties.  For some reason, I get to hold a
lot of cute baby animals here.  :)

One of the apartment that we tract at
caught on fire this week