Be grateful...even in a flood, craziest week ever!

Our adorable girl is doing so well, despite a bad cold, a blizzard and A FLOOD!

 Being woken up because an upstairs toilet exploded and water was gushing down the walls and out of the lights....her response was "isn't this hilarious?" and went about getting out of the apartment at 3:30 am with a smile on her face.

Love that girl!!!!!!

 Some of her cute sisters!

 YAY for Snow!!

You Can Trust your companion, but you darn better never trust Satan!

November 16

Hey Everyone!!! So I love this quote to start, at MLC this week or mission leadership council President Jacobsen said this about looking at each others computers and it was awesome!! I loved it! But how true it really is, we can trust really anyone around us but in all reality we can never trust Satan and the outside world! We must be founded on Christ and always strive to strengthen our faith! :) We had a great week.. I was sick for most of it but because of that I know the Lord blessed us! We saw so many miracles and just were able to recognize the Lords hand even more completely in our lives! :) 

So this past week was my little sisters birthday!! Woot Woot! :) She is 10! Love ya Grace, but on her birthday I was pretty sick and when I was writing in my jounral I decided to write down all the miracles that happened that day, of course it happened to be Friday the 13 which 13 is my favoirte number so of course I wrote down 13 miracles.. so I want to share them with you all today! :) Just remember Miracles do happen!! 

1.We went finding in the morning and the first door we knocked on was a lady that wants to meet with us! She was super nice and set up a return appointment! :) 

2. We met this referral that we have been trying to contact for quite some time! He happened to be home and was leaving for work but just talking to him was great! 

3. We were able to talk to a referral we got on Tuesday named trent that set up a time to meet with us for this upcoming week! He is super prepared! :) 

4. We felt impressed to stop by an old potential from like last year and we wound up talking to a different person but that person wanted to meet with us and decided to talk to us more! :) 

5. We contacted a referall that we had had for a long time, they didn't want to meet but we finally were able to catch them home! 

6. We had an amazing lesson with a less active family that I love! They are progressing well, we shared Moses 7:1-4 with them.. which I love. Go check out how many times satan says I in the first verse.. maybe try not to say I so many times this week! 

7. We had dinner with a less active member as well, we taught the first vision and the spirit was so SO strong! 

8. We were able to get some gloves from the elders they thought they had taken to greenville but they didn't! The member that needed them was asking about them so it was a miracle they had them! :) 

9. We were able to sing songs throughout the day even on my limited voice we were still able to smile our way through the cold day! 

10. We had a three way call with the elders in our district and were able to hear about their great miracles from the day. They had so many good things happen! They picked up quite a few return appointments which was awesome! 

11. Sister Steele was so awesome and totally was patient with my sick head and voice! She is just incredible and totally a miracle! 

12. I was able to take nap during lunch which gave me the energy needed to keep going! The missionary schedule is SO inspired.. man so great! :) 

13. The greatest miracle of that day was how much the Lord answered our prayers. I just love being a missionary, we would ask for something specific and it happened. When we have faith and are obedient the Lord will accomplish so many great things! I love being a missionary!!! :D :D 

Anyways.. my life is great, it's fantastic, it's the best! I can't ask for anything else, even on the days when things are hard or the clouds come out we always always can see the Lords hand in our lives! I am so thankful for this gospel, the eternal perspective that it brings helps us to always press forward with a steadfastness in Christ! :)  Have a great week everyone! Look for the miracles, I promise you that they are there!!! 

Love Sister Chisholm! <3 

 Thanksgiving package from home!

 yikes!

Sis Chizzy's temporary home due to the flood! We are so grateful to the Chapman's for taking in these cute girls!

Keep Calm and Carry ON!
November 23
 Hey everyone!! This weeks theme was PERFECT!! Oh my goodness gracious.. this week has literally been the most insane week of my life.. But it also was the greatest week as well!! :) Isn't it amazing how that works!? :)

So this week I was able to go on 2 trade offs!! One in Holland and one in Big Rapids!! :D My trade off in Holland went really well, I learned a ton from Sis Averrett about finding and also how to look at things in a different light. Then in Big Rapids we were able to PC or go on campus and talk with tons and tons of kids!!! It was AMAZING!! Oh man.. I love LOVE teaching people that are my own age. It's seriously the best. They are receptive to the gospel and are in a place that they desire to change! :) I LOVED it! Sister Trent and Sister Phelps are awesome! I again learned so much from them, the both are so diligent and doing so well! It was fun to be in a trio for a little bit again too! :) Then on Thursday while we were there we had a girl that is preparing to go on her mission hang out with us all day! :) We got so much work done and it was just awesome! Again a bunch of pcing and it was all just awesome! :) 

We had a zone training this week which also went really well, at least I thought so! :) We trained on the importance of members, and the spirit was definitely there because we shared things that we didn't have planned at all. It was incredible to be in the presence of so many amazing missionaries. I love that feeling! :) The elders talked about Sabbath day observance which was also incredible and obedience. Something that really stuck out to me was one of the elders talked about how obedience can be put kind of like the three kingdoms. We have the lowest level of obedience being those who are disobedient and don't desire to be obedient. Then the middle level is those who kind of halfheartedly want to be obedient but won't take the steps to do so. Then we have the highest level of obedience which is those who are striving to be obedient. Pay attention to that word strive. It doesn't mean that we are exactly obedient it doesn't mean that we don't sin or make mistakes or have weaknesses but that we are striving and that we desire with all our heart to follow Jesus Christ and be obedient. This really impacted me! :) I hope it does you too! :D It was a great training I LOVED it! 

Then we had a thanksgiving FLOOD !! haha This totally happened last year too.. but again Heavenly Father is just teaching us to be grateful!! :) At 3:30 in the morning on Thursday night someone was pounding on our front door!! I jumped out of bed turned on the light and heard just pouring rain!! But it wasn't outside.. it was coming through all the lights and in through the ceiling!! We had a giant mess of course! haha but the people beneath us had called maintenance and he was pounding on our door! It was super funny of course one because it was like 3 in the morning and 2 because what?!?! Who has a flood?!?! Sister Steele and I do! :) haha But the blessing is that not one of our things were destroyed.. we had some bad smelling clothes and some papers that kind of rolled up a little bit.. but everything else is okay! :D But they best best part is that we get to live with a member until they get it all figured out! :) I am loving it, we are living with the Chapmans and I am telling you Heavenly Father directed them when they made their house. It was made to house missionaries. :) The spirit is so strong and we are able to still accomplish the Lords work without being distracted. We even get to have family prayer with us and brother and sister chapman. It's been such a blessing to live with them and I couldn't be more happy that they are so willing and that we get to be with them! :D I LOVE it!! 

So that was pretty insane.. in the work side of things.. :) :) We received a referral about 2 weeks ago from the Grand Rapids elders who got a media referral that was actually in our area! So His name is Trent.. Sis Steele and Sis Bates taught him on trade offs on Tuesday and then we taught him again on Friday! The spirit was there even though we were all sorts of out of it because of our apartment but since the spirit was there it all fell into place! That's the only way to do this work, with the spirit! :) We set him on date for January!! And then he actually came to a baptism on Saturday  and to all 3 hours of church on Sunday!! :) It honestly has been such a miracle.. the work has been a little slow here for the past couple months and I just feel like so many things are about to take off! I know the Lord is preparing people to hear His gospel. How thankful I am to be able to be that instrument in His hands!! :D 

All in all, it has been one of those weeks where again I am so thankful for my Savior Jesus Christ and for the strength He gives me each and everyday! There is no way we could do this work alone, it wasn't meant that way! I love serving and along the way I am becoming more and more close to the spirit and learning so many incredible life lessons! :D 

I hope you all are grateful for the most important things this upcoming thanksgiving, this week I was again reminded our grateful I am for my home, for a roof over my head, for my beautiful family and for this great and glorious work!! :) 

Have a wonderful week!!! 

Sister Chisholm! <3 

trade offs with the sweet big rapids cuties!! :D 

 Trade off's in Holland!

Transfers arent scary! Miracles happen every day!

Cute Sister Chizzy had a great Halloween and is staying there in Wyoming area for another transfer.....she will have been there for 6 months, and is excited to stay for another transfer at least. She is happy as always and doing so well!

November 2

Hey everyone!!! :D 

SOOOO.. I am staying in WYOMING!!! Wahoo!! This will be my 5th transfer and honestly I am so SO happy to be staying here and with sister steele at that! :) Sometimes you have companions that are just great and you get along like best friends.. yep she is that companion! And I love LOVE this area, its crazy cuz when I served in my first area for 6 months I was just so done, but I feel like there is still so much that has to happen her in Wyoming still so I am grateful to be staying here! :) We are just going to rock it I know it!! 

So much happened this week and most of it goes back to my name of my email, so our mission motto is we are family and being unified as missionaries, with the wards and just as everyone, it's been such a great motto and it's been so much fun to be around so many incredible leaders and people that are such great examples to me! I am grateful for the church and the family that it is in our lives, truly we have a ward family and as part of Heavenly Fathers family we all are brothers or sisters! I just love the unity that comes from being a part of the gospel, we all are reaching out to serve and help others! 

This week we taught our investigator Jim and we started teaching him about Jesus Christ and when we started talking about the apostasy he was like, so what are your thoughts of the trinity? and that moment is always kind of interesting because everyone just loves the trinity.. so anyways I felt the spirit tell me to just be bold so I was. I said, we believe that they are 3 separate beings but one in purpose and he said, perfect explanation! It was so cool! He totally agreed with us and already knows that God is his Father in Heaven. I love how truth can always be bold and that truly truth will always stand, no matter what! The gospel is so true! :) 

Yesterday was my favorite day of the week, honestly Sundays are just incredible. We had a stake fast and we all fasted for people who know not God and who know not the gospel kind of off the scripture Alma 6:6. It was great. Our testimony meeting was amazing, we have a missionary from our ward leaving this week, he bore his testimony and then our ward mission leader actually got released this week.. That was quite the sad moment. Brother Chapman is AMAZING!!! He just got called to be in the bishopic, we are excited for him.. but honestly I had tears in my eyes as sister chapman bore her testimony about the gospel, and as they had him sit up on the stand. He has totally changed my view of correlation meetings and truly has helped me understand a lot about the  I am so thankful for the people that are here in this ward and this area, they have changed my life. I love this gospel so much! This week we were able to also help give service on Halloween, we raked leaves in the pouring rain!!! It was a blast, we were able to have two members helped us out and it was just great! I love serving others! :) 

Well everyone.. you all are probably sick of my super happy emails but as many times as I say it.. I love this gospel!!!! :D I know it is true, yesterday a lady in church said, I have known this gospel is true my whole life, and I can say the same! :) It may be tested daily and I may be sent to my knees over and over again about simple things but I do know this gospel is true!! :) I love it, it changes my life daily and I am so thankful for the enabling power of the Atonement, Jesus is the Christ the gospel was restored by the prophet Joseph Smith and families can be forever!! :D Keep smiling everyone, keep on pressing onward and just remember that a sister out in Michigan is praying and thinking about you!!! :) 

Love Sister Chisholm! <3 

November 9

To all my favorite people!! :D So I thought about writing about a whole day and all the amazing things that happened but I decided that is going to take way way too long!!! So I will just share some of my favorite moments from this week.. :) 

First off this quote.. " Who you are is determined by the decision you make right now!" Love it, enough said. If you are holding on to who you once were.. stop it. You can change right now and you can become the person that you want to be! As we turn to Jesus Christ we truly can have our hearts, desires and all things changed! This quote helps me out a lot! :) Also studying over the Christlike attributes in PMG!  

We got to walk a ton this week because we didn't have a car and each time we saw so many miracles. This one lady talked to us and then when the member came to pick us up she totally knew the member and was able to talk with her and invite her! :) So cool, missionary work for members is totally in right now! We also talked to this lady that was more then not interested and was twisting and turning our words but right afterwards a member pulled out with ice cream and said he had seen us and wanted to help us out so he bought us ice cream! so nice right?! :) Members.. they are the way this work is possible! 

Church was my favorite part of the week, it always is. I love being able to partake of the sacrament. It's my favorite part of the week! :) I studied about the spirit and miracles on sunday as well and it was amazing! I love that truly miracles are wrought by faith! Think about Jesus Christ and all the miracles that He was able to perform, we are so blessed because that power and authority is on the earth again! How grateful I am for the priesthood! :) 

Well everyone, I am just about out of time on email.. but I just want you all to know that The Lord lives. That Heavenly Father loves you and that even in those hard moments just remember that someone understands perfectly and that you are loved. Never forget to arm yourself with your shields, read and pray every single day! That will always fight away satan!! I love you all!! have a wonderful week!! 

Love Sister Chisholm! <3