CWM to CRM

Well hello!
This week has been one of change but I'm realizing that every week has
that theme in mission life and in real life. In past weeks I've been
able to see how I've grown and altered my heart along with my mind.
You also see others experience their own paradigm shifts. It is so
rewarding as a missionary to see growth in your investigators (the
people you are teaching).

The transition from the Canada Winnipeg Mission to the California
Roseville Mission has been easy and hard in so many ways. The easy
parts have been knowing I'm going where I was called so I have
completed what I was sent to Winnipeg to accomplish. The weather has
also been a good adjustment. I don't have to layer up and it feels HOT
here in comparison to winterpeg!! You appreciate it so much more when
you have experienced the extreme opposite.

Right now there is no snow in Roseville and from what I hear I
shouldn't expect any in this part of the mission. I'm serving in a
city called Granite Bay but it's basically a city district of
Sacramento if I understand correctly. The city of Roseville is right
beside Granite Bay so technically we live in Roseville but our ward is
Granite Bay 2nd ward. I have only been here a few days but I love it.
The people are so friendly! Members are so eager to support you in
your work- either by feeding you at lunch and dinner or by allowing
you to have investigator lessons in their homes or coming along to
lessons we teach.

I've only been here since Tuesday but it seems that we get fed by
members everyday sometimes twice a day. This is a nice change from
Winnipeg. Members of the waverley ward would feed us but it was
usually 10% of the people doing 90% of the work. However we did get to
know those ward members well! I Have enjoyed getting to know a new
family each day. Getting off the airplane I felt soo much love from my
new mission president (president Marston) and his wife (Sister
Marston). They were both waiting to greet me at the bottom of the
escalator. Sister Marston gave me a big hug and welcomed me into the
mission and President Marston shook my hand, tucked me under his arm
and guided me along to the baggage claim. They said they have been
waiting for me since October and they are so excited to finally have
me here. I felt so loved and important! I love serving in the southern
part of the Roseville mission and it was so nice to see Sister
Sorensen again! I'm not in her same district but I did see her the
first day I came in.

I'm in another tri-pan! Sister Canann (from Virginia) and Sister
Sheffield (from Iowa) are my companions! I love them- they are helping
me learn about the area and the people in it. Each day I feel I have a
better grasp on things.
The only hard parts about the adjustment from one mission to the next
is the dignified language rule we had in Winnipeg is not a thing here
in Cali. In Winnipeg I got really good at finding other words for (
this pains me to even type these words!)  awesome, cool and all the
other undignified words people say usually. Coming to California it
seems like every second word out of a missionaries mouth is one from
that no go list.  They sound like curse words to me! It's a little
thing but it REALLY has been the most frustrating adjustment. I can't
even say those words yet. They feel like poison. I tried this week to
say cool but I hated it. I hated saying it, I hated hearing it...
So this leaves me with predicament ... Do I forget that part of my Can
Win mission culture and try to adjust to this mission culture language
or do I keep what I've gained from my time in Canada? I can't figure
out how to do this one. I want to make connections with my
investigators and other missionaries but I am also a disciple of Jesus
Christ - I've promised to stand apart from the things of the world for
18 months.
I'm not sure what to do ... #missionlifeproblems haha!
I also am having a hard time not thinking about my investigators in
Winnipeg. I'm still thinking about them daily and praying they are
growing and doing well. It feels like I have left a piece of my heart
back in Manitoba.
Also I miss Sister Alder and Sister Geddes! Ha! We had some great
times before I left. I hope they are doing well and finding lots of
new people to share the gospel with.

My ponderizing scripture this week is
Moroni 10:32
"Yea, come into Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves
of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourself of all ungodliness,
and love God with all your might mind and strength, then is his grace
sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and
if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny
the power of God."

I love this scripture because this is a special time of year when more
people are thinking about Christ. He is the reason for the season! I
am so grateful for his atonement that makes it possible for us to
overcome sin and weaknesses. I'm spending more time this month reading
about his life in the Bible. As a mission we are also working to
memorize the Living Christ - which before I would have thought to be
an impossible task but I'm getting it. Look it up online! It's pretty
long.

There is so much memorization on a mission. Before I left Sister
Geddes was helping me memorize the 13 articles of faith. We memorize
our missionary purpose, passages of scripture among other things. I
have never been great at memory work but I'm finding new ways to
become better at it.

Our ward mission leader also has challenged us and a few others to
read the entire Book of Mormon in 1 month. There is a schedule laid
out so you know how much you have to read each day I started December
1st so I'll keep you posted..

I want to share my thoughts about the last time I read the Book of
Mormon in full. I have read from it often but have only read it cover
to cover twice in my life. For so many years I would read a bit here,
a bit there but I would never "feast" upon it like it suggests in the
scriptures
2 Nephi 32:3 Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of
Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what
ye should do.
It wasn't until I was preparing for my mission that I studied and
searched the scriptures in a way that I never had before. I went from
reading to reading, thinking, applying and questioning what I was
learning. When I finished the all 531 pages I prayed to know if it was
true- to really know. I have always believed it was true, that it is a
good book but I needed to KNOW for myself.
Sometimes we don't let our feelings be enough proof- we expect for
sign or miracles. I prayed to Heavenly Father to send me a specific
sign ( one that now looking at the time of year, was impossible) so I
changed it to something more plausible. I continued to pray each day
and night about having the confirmation that I was looking for. The
whole time I felt the spirit telling me the book is Good, it's the
word of God and tells us what we must do to gain peace in this life
and eternal salvation in the life to come. Still I wanted my sign. The
feelings of the Holy Ghost are small and still but they are real. I
KNOW that book is true. I felt the spirit testify it to me and last
Saturday I saw the sign I was hoping for. That last part was just
icing on the cake, the spiritual confirmation is everything! The Book
of Mormon is true! Try it out for yourself- read, ponder and pray. It
doesn't matter if you have never read a religious book in your life or
if you are a bible scholar- the B of M can answer any question you
have. It adds to the message in the Bible, it brings comfort and peace
when everything else fails to help.

Yesterday we watched the Christmas devotional that the church puts out
each year. This one was fantastic!!!! I loved the thoughts that were
shared. President Uchtdorf said "This season we celebrate the gift
that made all other gifts possible." How true that is! Without Him we
could not enjoy all the other gifts we are blessed with. The music was
BEAUTIFUL!!! One of my favourite songs included these powerful lyrics
"Unto us a child is born , into us a son is given and he shall be
called wonderful! Councilor! Prince of peace! " The speakers talked
about the birth of our savior Jesus Christ, how we can trust in him
during the good and the bad times, how to continue in faith even when
the going gets tough.
Christ is the light of the world! He gives light to those who sit in
darkness. I was thinking about that this morning and Don't we all sit
in darkness at some point or another? I know that He loves all so
completely.

Okay just a bit more and then I gotta run. Let me tell you about the
area we are working in. The Granite Bay Area is one of the richest
areas in the mission but we have had the most success in one of the
two trailer parks in our boundaries. Right now we are working a lot
with Ben and Dennae (a couple who the sisters have been working with
for a while) They have an 8 month old baby boy and are loving
everything we are teaching! They want to be baptized so badly. Before
they can be baptized they need to get married or stop living together.
This is important because the law of chastity is a super important
commandment that needs to be lived before baptism. It's tricky because
they have been in a relationship for 6 years now and have a baby but
not having pre marital sexual relations is a commandment and getting
hitched would solve that problem. Only problem is that Ben is a little
terrified of the marriage commitment. He said he feels like Dennae and
him have been together forever and he wants it to continue on that way
but the idea of marriage still freaks him out. He has started praying
to ask Heavenly Father to help him feel more calm about making this
huge life decision. They are such a fantastic couple.
We work with a lot less people here in Granite Bay than we did in
Winnipeg but it's still just as rewarding!

Also we had a huge nativity set up at our church building this
weekend. It was fantastic! So many people showed up, tons of members
and non members. Our companionship was door greeters. It was so much
fun talking to everyone! There were rooms full of nativity set ups and
pictures. There were also choir and music performances throughout the
weekend. I loved it!!!

Mission life is great. I have never been so tired but so happy!
Take Luck everyone
-Sister Taylor

Ah!! My mailing address is ( mission office)
8583 watt avenue
Antelope California
95843-9117
Email me if you want my apartment address!