Last full week in the MTC

This week was great! Although, to be honest, it was all class, class, class! It's hard to remember specifics on what happened on what day, it all kind of blends together We went on a walk to the temple so we were able to get some pictures.

Things are going well with our progressing investigator ---, we also have another PI named ---. She's a TRC investigator, so unlike --- (who is one of our teachers roleplaying) --- could be a real investigator, or a member acting. We're pretty sure she's a real investigator though. Things are going great with her. We gave her a Book of Mormon on Thursday and talked a lot about Joseph Smith because she had a lot of questions about him. We think we're going to invite her to baptism when we meet with her tonight. We're also going to try to meet with her on Tuesday even though it's not scheduled. The rest of our district will be gone and so it'll just be Sister Powell and I and she really wants to meet with us again!!!

Well, I'm just about out of time and that's all there really is to share.

Love, Sister Fleck

PS, sorry, there's no pictures, I couldn't figure out how to get them attached ): NEXT WEEK I PROMISE!!!!!!

First Letter from the MTC :D

The first week here has been amazing! I love the MTC, and being a missionary so much!

Wednesday was pretty much the scariest day of my life. After Mom, Dad and Tanner dropped me off an Elder helped me with my bags and helped me find a host Sister who could help me out. I got my badges (:D) and a few other things then my host took me to my residency to drop off my bags and then to my classroom. When I got into my classroom two or three elders and one sister were already there. After a while one other Sister and my companion, Sister P came in and then our teachers started talking with us, to be honest, I can't remember what about. We then went to meet the MTC presidencies and their wives, they talked to all the new missionaries about some really great stuff, once again, I can't really remember what, but I do remember that it was great. We closed with Army of Helaman, and in the chorus instead of singing "We will be the Lord's missionaries" we sang "And we are now the Lord's missionaries." which was really cool. Then we went to dinner and had Wednesday Night Experience, which was pretty cool There was an actor that was acting as an investigator, Elders knocked on their door, and kind of got to know them a little bit, then they left and let us (a large group) do the teaching. We did this three times with three different investigators, the first time didn't go too well, we weren't able to get our message across very effectively. The second one went really well, the investigator had lost his wife to cancer and wasn't sure where she was now. We were able to tell him about eternal families. It was a really cool moment. The last question from a missionary and his answer was just such a strong moment. A Sister asked him, "What if I could tell you a way that you could be reunited with your wife and continue to be a family with her and your children." He was quiet for a moment and then said, "Young lady, if I could come to believe that, I would turn heaven and earth upside down to do it." Then we were out of time and we had to go!! It was such a strong moment to close on!

Thursday we had a People and Progress workshop, and we kind of went over more of the stuff that we did on the Wednesday night experience, finding out about people and how to figure out what they need to know and how the gospel can help them. It was really cool. The days seem really long here, and Thursday feels like a week ago, so I'm having a hard time remembering what all we did. I think it was mostly just classes. OH! We did get assigned our Progressing Investigators. Progressing Investigators are one of our teachers portraying a person that they taught on their missions. Sister P and I have ---. She's a mom of 5, she's married to an inactive member, but was really introduced to the church through her Mother in law, when she moved next door to ---'s family because she was sick. We met our Branch President, his wife, one of the councilors and his wife. They are so great!

Friday was, once again, more classes, but Sister P and I got to teach ---! It was a cool experience. We went in there so sure that she needed to hear about Heavenly Father's love for her and ended up talking about trials and why we have them. I don't think we got the point across very well, but the spirit was there. We invited her to pray and ask Heavenly Father if he loves her, she wasn't comfortable praying in front of us, but said she would on her own. To be honest, I don't think she will... But Sister P and I are already planning for our next lesson with her on Monday and we're going to get her to pray with us, because we've learned how to comfort people's concerns when they don't want to pray with us. The best part of Friday, though was the last, about an hour or so of the day before we went back to our residencies. At the MTC, you see all these districts hanging out and laughing and having a great time. My district had been getting along, but we didn't really know each other very well. After gym time (which was after dinner) we had personal study and then companion study. The Sisters got a little distracted and instead of doing companion study we just started chatting. The last half hour or so two of the Elders came in to let us know what time it was, or something (I can't really remember) and we just started talking and laughing with them too, then the other two Elders came in and we just got to know each other, and we were laughing and talking and having a great time for about 15-30 minutes. It was so great to get to know the Elders and get really comfortable with them. The really cool part was that we were just talking about things we're interested in, nothing church related, but we still closed by sharing some scriptures and a prayer. No one said "We should close this with scriptures" or anything, one of the Elders just said, "Hey, I want to share a scripture with all of you." Then it reminded a couple of us about other scriptures.

I guess I should introduce my District now (:

The Sisters are Sister P and I, Sister P is my companion and she is amazing. She has such a strong spirit and testimony about her. I've never met someone that has their testimony about them, if that makes any sense, I can just almost feel her testimony when we're talking about the gospel! The other Sisters are Sister O and Sister G, they are great Sisters, and I'm so glad I get to share a residency with them! We all get along so well! The Elders are Elder G and Elder A, and Elder S and Elder M. I don't have any pictures of us this week ): but I will next week, I promise!! Sister P and I are the oldest. (She's also 21, but I'm a month older ha-ha) and we're also the only ones in our district going to the Oklahoma Tulsa Mission, the rest of our district is headed to St. Louis, Missouri.  We all have very different personalities, but we all mix together so well!! It is so cool! I love learning from these other missionaries!!

So today is my P-day (obviously), and in a couple of hours we get to go to the temple! I'm really excited to not only experience the temple, but to experience it as a missionary with the amazing Sisters in my district!

This is such a great place to be! I'm so happy to be here!

Love,

SISTER FLECK

(^That's me!! WOW!!!!)

What Christ has done for me. Farewell Talk

I gave my farewell talk on January 12! It went really well! I was really happy with it. Lots of people asked me to send it to them, so I promised I would post it here!

I was asked to talk about what Christ has done for me, and how my knowledge of that will help those that I teach on my mission.

I started planning this talk by writing out a list of everything Christ has done for me, when I couldn't think of anything anymore, I read some conference talks and searched the scriptures, and found more things, I was humbled by the length of my list, it was great evidence of how much Christ loves us. I know that if I asked each of you to add to my list, you would probably add things that I had never thought of, because we all have had different experiences in our lives and have felt and seen The Savior’s love in different ways.

Experienced Our Trials

We often feel completely alone in the world. We think that no one knows what we are going through, and how our trials affect us. This often feels alarmingly true. We may think that no one else has been through the exact same trials we have, no one thinks exactly the way we do, and so, it seems that no one can feel the way we do. These feelings of isolation are why the greatest thing that The Savior has done for me, is the Atonement. He did much more than suffering for our sins in Gethsemane. He experienced all of our trials. In experiencing our trials he felt our heartaches, fears, and insecurities, and in doing so He gave us the best confidant, Himself. When I feel as if no one else could possibly comprehend how I am feeling, it brings me great hope to be reminded, that this is simply not true! Christ suffered for us individually!

There is a song on the 2008 Especially for Youth album by Hillary Weeks titled One By One that has brought me comfort in the past.

I stand amazed that Heaven knows me,

He hears one by one,

Loves one by one,

When this crowded world around you,

Doesn't know your name,

He knows us,

One by one

He knows how you feel! He knows how you think! He knows your feelings and thoughts, because He too, went through the same trials you have. Because of this, no one knows you better than He does. It is so comforting to know when I am scared, hurt, and feeling alone I can turn to my Savior, and He knows exactly what I need to be comforted, whether it is a scripture, a quote, a loving gesture from a loved one, or just a reminder from Him saying “I know how you feel. I love you, ‘thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment.’”

I will be serving in the Oklahoma Tulsa Mission, the people in that area will have had very different life experiences than I have, and they have and will experience trials than I will never know or understand. Because the Savior knows us all individually, one by one, I know that when I struggle to understand how an investigator is feeling, how they need to be taught, or what I can say or do to

help them, I can turn to Christ. He knows them, He wants them to be happy and He wants them to come unto Him. I know that if I am patient and humble and willing to turn to Him for help, it will be made known unto me. I still might not be able to understand exactly how they feel, but I may be able to find a scripture, or a talk that speaks to them and offers comfort, or helps them understand a principle in a way that I, on my own, could not have expressed.

Suffered our Temptations and Sins

When Christ was in the Garden of Gethsemane, He suffered for our pains and our afflictions, but He also suffered for our temptations. He knows exactly what Satan has, and will tempt each of us with, and, because He has experienced all that we have, and because He knows us better than anyone possibly could, He knows why each temptation is a struggle to overcome. He knows what Satan says to make it seem appealing. He knows the thoughts and doubts that might push us to fall to the temptation. Because Christ suffered our trials, He is the only one eligible to also suffer our temptations because only He can understand why it is really a temptation to us.

Gave us the Atonement

In suffering for our temptations, Christ also suffered for the sins we have made. In doing so, He made repentance possible. The scriptures state in several places, that “No unclean thing can dwell with God.”

This scripture often seems daunting, but it is also why the Atonement is necessary. Heavenly Father did not expect any of us to be perfect. He knew we would give into the desires of the world from time to time, and because He loves us, and wants us to return to Him, He asked for someone to suffer for our sins. Christ, our older brother, volunteered to take on the seemingly impossible task, because He too, loves us. So, Christ came to earth, and taught about His Father, He then experienced all of our heartaches and pain, our temptations, and our sins. He could not have done one without the other, if He had not experienced our trials, He would not have known why our temptations were tempting, or why we gave into those that we did. If He had not experienced our temptations and sins, He would not have experienced the pains that came from our iniquities.

Because of His sacrifice for us, He gave us the ability to repent of our sins. Because of this, when we mess up, we can ask for his forgiveness, and do our best not to return to that sin, but if we do return, we can ask for forgiveness again, and again and he will continue to forgive us!

This is something that I know I will teach over and over again on my mission. We all need the atonement in our lives, whether we were have known the church all of our lives, or if we have yet to find it. We all make mistakes, none of us can be made perfect without the atonement.

Gives Us Hope

In Matthew 8 Christ and his apostles are traveling on a ship. While He is sleeping, a great storm arises and the sea becomes a tempest. The ship is being thrown about and waves are overcoming it, filling the boat with water. I can only imagine the fear the apostles felt. I’m sure they thought death was just around the corner for them. The probably imagined the boat filling with water, then sinking, or possibly that a wave too large and too strong for the ship would crash into them and they would capsize. They woke their sleeping Master saying “Lord, save us: we perish.” Christ stopped the winds, and calmed the sea, and there was peace. The apostles were amazed! They wondered “What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?”

Sometimes it seems like we are on a little row boat, in the middle of the ocean, during a hurricane. We feel like our little boat will not make it and we will drown. We imagine it filling with water and sinking, leaving us with no protection, we see a large wave smashing our boat, and pulling us down to the depths of the sea. We think our end is near. But, if we turn to Christ and ask for help, “Lord, save us: we perish.” He will come to our aid. He will stop the winds, and calm the sea.

Our storms are rarely bad weather. We have much different storms in this day. Sometimes, our storms make us wish that we were on a boat in the middle of a sea during a storm because it seems like, that would be easier to survive. Fortunately, we have Christ on our side! If we ask, he will stop the winds and calm the sea, and we will be amazed. We will wonder, “What manner of man is this that even the winds and the sea obey him?”

On my mission I know I will meet people fighting and enduring their own storms. They will probably wonder if they will survive, or perish in the sea. As a missionary, I hope that I will be able to help them call to their Savior for help, so that he can stop the winds and calm the sea.

Loves Us

Christ has done so much for us, in so many ways. If you write it all down, it’s a very long list, but then each thing he does is a large task. Christ is the only one who could have survived Gethsemane, and even he asked “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me:”

Why did he do all of these things? Why did he suffer all of our trials, physical pains, temptations and sins? Because he loves us. It’s that simple. He love us. How wonderful is that! He loves us purely and unconditionally! No matter what! He wants us to return to live with Him, because He loves us!

Christ suffered for my sins, He knows what I’ve done. But it doesn’t change the fact that He loves me! He sees all the good things about me, even the things that I don’t see, or might not recognize as strengths. Jesus Christ sees the good in every single one of us. He wants us to be happy, and to see the good in ourselves that He sees in us.

He was willing to suffer in Gethsemane because He wants us to return to live with him. He is willing to stop the winds and calm the sea because he wants us to have peace. Everything Christ has done for you and me is simply done out of love.

This is the biggest message that I hope to share on my mission. We are all Children of a Heavenly Father, who loves us so much that he sent his Only Begotten Son to suffer for all our heartaches, temptations and sins and to die for us. And That Son loved us so much that He did suffer and die for us! He loved us so much, that he was willing to give us a way back home, no matter how hard it would be for Him. I genuinely hope, that every person I teach, weather they get baptized or not, at least gains a testimony of the great love that their Heavenly Father and Savior has for them.

I know Oklahoma isn't the most exotic place to be called on a mission, but that's not why I'm serving a mission. I didn't choose to serve a mission to see the world. I chose a mission because I want to serve the Lord! I know that I will meet wonderful people during my mission, people that I wouldn't meet anywhere else.

Who is Sister Fleck?

Hi! I am Sister Lizzie Fleck!

I am a 21 year old girl from Eagle Mountain Utah! I grew up with my mom, Helen, my dad Jeff, and my little brother, Tanner. We have one dog, Pippin and a cat, Tink. I was born and raised in the church, something I have been extremely grateful for! My mom is my best friend, I can always rely on her to be there for me. If you've ever seen Gilmore Girls, we are Lorelai and Rory. Tanner is one of funniest, most talented people I know. My dad has served in the Air Force national guard since I was six. His deployments have made me a stronger person. Dad and I have been doing karate together since I was about 10.



When I was in second grade a family friend gave my mom a copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. As soon as Hagrid knocked down that door, I was hooked. While my mom was glad, that I was reading so much, she wished I would read something besides the first three Harry Potter books. It's easy to say that I've been a fangirl ever since. I eventually did expand my horizons, and I love reading.

In ninth grade I met my three best friends, Sara, Lela, and Deven. They are wonderful people. I love them so much and I would be a very different person without their influences. They're those friends that if we go weeks without talking to each other, it's okay, and we can pick up right where we left off.









After I graduated high school I attended Snow College. I was terrified, living away from home was an intimidating thought. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I learned so much about myself. I also met Nicole and Whitney. They were two of my roommates, and some of the greatest people I've ever met. 

Snow is a two year college, when I finished there I attended USU for a year, and planned on entering their Special Education program. USU has one of the best Special Education programs in the nation. Unfortunately it's extremely competitive program and I didn't get in. This summer I started contemplating my options, I had many. I could change schools and apply for a different, less competitive Special Ed program, I could stay at USU and try again, I was even considering taking a year off and working. The weird thing was, going back to school was the last thing I wanted to do. This was odd because I really enjoy school. I love learning new things, I'd never dreaded going back to school that much. It was June, and school was starting in a couple of months. I needed to make a decision, and soon. One night, I finally did the one thing I should've done from the beginning, I turned to my Heavenly Father. I told him that I wasn't sure what I should do, and I was confused because I didn't know what to do. I told him everything I'd thought of, I also offhandedly mentioned a mission. I had thought of a mission, but it was a scary idea. I was scared of being away from my family for so long. As soon as I mentions serving a mission, my question was answered. I felt calm and assured. I knew I was making the right choice.

I am so excited to teach the people in the OTM area. I cannot wait to share my testimony of Heavenly Father's love. I know I will met some amazing people and I will learn so much.

The Temple!!

So, this post is a few days late, but, I'm still doing it. On the 30th of November I was able to go to the temple and receive my endowments. When you hear a Mormon refer to receiving, or taking out their endowments, it means that they have gone to the temple and they have made ordinances and covenants with the Lord. If you have any questions about what happens in the temple, take a look at this article.

There are currently (as of December 2013) 141 temples in operation around the world, and 17 in Utah, I chose to go to the Mount Timpanogos Temple, mostly because it is closest to me. It is a beautiful building.

I was kind of nervous the night before. It was a good nervous, I was nervous because I knew that I was taking a big step in my life. A step that I had been working for, for a long time.

I invited my closest friends and family who have also received their endowments, since to go through the ceremony you have to have received your endowments.

My mom and I had to be there at 5:30 so that I could meet with the Temple Matron (the wife of the Temple President), and have a short meeting with her. During the endowment session I felt the spirit stronger than I ever have before in my life. During sacrament meeting, or other times when I feel the spirit I feel warm in my chest, near my heart, but while I was in the temple, I felt warmth everywhere, emanating from the very depths of my... the only word I can think of, is the depths of my soul. I know that sounds a little weird, but that's what it felt like.

After the endowment session, we went into the Celestial Room, where we could stay as long as we wanted. As I came around the corner, I saw my parents, and I just gave them the biggest hugs. It was so good seeing them there. As we sat in the Celestial Room, I remembered that I was sealed to my parents for all eternity, and that I would be able to see my friends in the eternity, and I felt so loved. I knew that this was all a reminder of how much my Heavenly Father loves me, I was reminded that he knows me by name and that he wants me to be happy.

I hope you know how much your Heavenly Father loves you. He knows you by name, he knows what you will do in any given circumstance. He loves you more than you can comprehend. This is something that I know without a doubt.

Mom, Dad, and I infront of the temple (:

Tanner (:

So, this post isn't mission related,  but I was thinking about this last night and for some reason I really feel like I need to post this on here.

Tanner was at my senior prom! What a fun night!

For those of you who don't know me in real life, or those of you who I will meet on my mission this is my brother, Tanner. 

I try really hard to live my life without regrets. I've learned from the mistakes that I've made and most of the things that I've learned from those mistakes are the most important. But there is one big regret that I have in my life.

From the time I was about ten, until I was 15 or 16, Tanner and I didn't get along. I remember wishing he would just go away, I kind of wanted my parents to decide he'd be better off at boarding school or something. 

We fought a lot, and push come to shove, most of the fights were my fault. I was very easily annoyed, and being a 7-13 year old boy, and a bit of a tease, he played off of it. The typical fight went like this, he'd be tapping his foot, or making a weird noise, or something equally stupid, I'd get annoyed (pretty quickly) and ask him (actually demand that he) to stop. He'd continue and I'd tell him to stop again, he wouldn't, then I'd yell at him and probably call him a name, he'd get mad, then we'd be screaming at each other. We weren't fighting all of the time, I have some really good memories of hanging out with each other at  that age, but we did fight a lot.

Things got a little bit better when I was 14, that year was my first youth conference (a 3-4 day summer activity for youth ages 14-18, usually overnight), and that year we were going on Trek. 

Trek is a youth conference activity, not all stakes do it, but if they do they usually do it every four years. For trek the youth, and youth leaders re-enact a small portion of the Martin and Willie Handcart companies journey, we were lucky enough to go to a place in Wyoming called Martin's Cove. This was one the toughest parts of their journey, they were in this portion of Wyoming in October and many of the saints died of exposure or starvation. 

I was really excited about trek, I knew it was going to be a lot of fun, I was very interested in the pioneers, 
and I knew I would learn a lot, I just didn't know how much it was going to change me.

On the second day we went up to Rock Creek Hollow. This was a possibly the toughest part of the saints' journey in 1856, they had to climb Rocky Ridge, but they were extremely low on resources, the temperatures were very low, their shoes were either falling apart or they didn't have them anymore, many were very sick and a lot of the men had already died, leaving the women and children to pull the handcarts. The saints' knew this portion was going to be difficult, many of them didn't reach the campsite until well after midnight, it took the whole company 27 hours to travel the fifteen miles from their previous campsite to the hollow, many of the saints simply didn't make it.

We were so happy to be in the hollow when we reached it, it had been tough for us, and we were well fed and not freezing to death. It was July, so it was very hot, and, to be honest, most of us weren't used to that hard work, the hand carts were kind of heavy. I can't imagine what it must have been like for the saints. Ours were well built and well maintained, no broken wheels or axles, plus ours were pretty much empty, we had our water bottles, a few small snacks and a 5 gallon water jug, they had all their possessions. It was such a relief to reach our destination, it was shady and cool, and there were plenty of places to sit and relax.

While we were there, the leaders told us stories about different saints, and their night on the Rocky Ridge, one story in particular still stands out to me.

James Kirkwood was an 11 year old boy from Glasgow, Scotland, he was making the journey to Utah with his mother, and three brothers, one of which was crippled and had to be pulled in the handcart. James' primary job on their trek was to watch out for his 4 year old brother, Joseph, while his mother and older brother pulled the handcart. The day the saints tackled Rocky Ridge was snowy and cold. James and Joseph fell behind, geting separated from their family. The brothers walked side by side until little Joseph got to tired and weak to walk. James realized that Joseph wouldn't be able to make it if he was walking. James picked up his little brother and carried him the rest of the way. It was very cold and James was hungry, but he didn't put his brother down. The boys' mother kept the small fire going as she waited for her two youngest sons. When they arrived, well after midnight, After James found his mother, and ensured that his brother was safe, he laid down, and died from exhaustion and exposure. James willingly sacrificed his life for his brother. It was one of the most incredible acts of love I had ever heard of in my life.

 At first the story caught my attention because James was the same age that Tanner was at the time, then as the story unfolded, I started to wonder, would Tanner do this for me? Would I do this for him? The answer, to both of these questions, was a strong, instant, undoubting yes. I realized that I did love my brother, and not just because he was my brother and I was supposed to love him. It's sad to me that I didn't always know this, and that I had to hear such a tragic story, and imagine such heartbreaking circumstances to realize this.

I tell this story a lot, maybe more than I should, I really tell it pretty much anytime the topic of Trek gets brought up. But I think part of the reason I tell it so often is so that I don't forget what I learned. It has been such an important lesson for me, my mom has said that she really did notice a difference in how I treated my brother before I had this experience, and how I treated him after.

Now, don't think that everything changed overnight, we still fought, we still didn't get along all of the time, I still allowed him annoy me, instead of just ignoring the silly things he did, and it would be a while before I would tell people that he was my friend, as well as my brother. I still had a lot of maturing to do. But I did let it show that I cared about him more frequently, and I actually tried to let things go.

*insert the maniacal laughter of a 2 year old here*

Tanner loves to make people laugh, and he is good at it. Sometimes, late at night, he'll take out his guitar and just make up songs, it's always hilarious and usually ends up being about Pippin (our dog) and cheese, we're not really sure why cheese is brought into the mix.

Tanner loves music, he always has, he plays guitar, synth and he has just started playing the bass guitar. He is pretty much always listening to music, and doesn't see the point of being in the car if there is no music playing.

Were we cute or what?

Tanner also loves cars. He is currently planning on going into the automotive industry to be a mechanic. We should have guessed that he would end up doing something with cars though, he loved Hot Wheels when he was little and was regularly seen with one in each hand. He's learned a lot about cars and mechanics in the past two years and I've been amazed at how quickly and easily he gained this knowledge. It seems as though it is second nature to him. He uses this knowledge to help friends with car problems and teach others how to maintain their cars, and how to take care of simple problems themselves.

Our 'selfie' at my graduation.

Tanner knows what it means to be a friend, he is loyal and dependable and you can always count on him to drop everything and be there when you need him. This is one of the many reasons I'm grateful to have him in my family.

After I graduated high school I went to Snow College, it was only about 2 ½ hours from home so I came home on the weekends pretty regularly. Whenever I came home Tanner would ask me if I wanted to go on a drive, sometimes I'd go reluctantly, but I'd go. I'm glad I did, just a weekend at home isn't very long and there were some weekends that going on a drive was the only time we got to spend alone with one another. I always had fun. We would listen to music and talk. When he started upgrading his car The Neon he would tell me what he was doing or what he was planning on doing. I'd try to understand and sound interested, but it just went over my head most of the time.

Playing 'pooh sticks' at Yellowstone

It took me 14 years to realize how awesome Tanner is, and another 2 years to let it change me and our relationship. Even though it took a while, I'm just glad that it did happen. Tanner is one of my best friends. It think it's good to be friends with the members of your family! You are going to be with these people for time and all eternity! Why not spend that time with friends!

Family can be tough, especially siblings, sometimes it feels like you're fighting for your parents attention, and you just can't win. But I know that if you try to let the little things go, and focus on the good, you'll realize that your sibling isn't a trial, they're a blessing. They've seen you at your best, and at your worst, they've probably been the receiving end of your worst. But they still care about you, and root for you. Heavenly Father knows you better than anyone else, he knows them too, he knows exactly what each of you need, and that's why he put you together. Siblings are our first friends and playmates, together we learn and grow and try to figure out this big scary world.

He gave me a Harry Potter snuggie for Christmas!

He still knows just the right way to push my buttons, and sometimes he takes advantage of that, but that doesn't change that fact that I'm grateful for Tanner. He's one of the best people I know. Through his example I've become a better person, I'm less judgmental, a little more patient (although, I'm still working on that one). I've learned what a good friend looks like, and he showed me that if you're happy, what other people think about you shouldn't matter. He knows me in a way that only a brother could. He's seen all the different versions of me that I've tried on over the years. We've been through some of the same trials. He's there when I'm at my happiest, he's been there when my heart has been broken. We played together, got into mischief, and then got into trouble together. Some of my favorite childhood memories are of playing Spy Kids with him, he  makes me laugh harder than anyone else I know, and our drives together are memories that I will always cherish. Tanner is truly one of my best friends and I am so blessed to be able to call him my brother.

THE CALL!!!

IT CAME!!

So, last Friday I texted my bishop and asked him what status my call was in, and he said the assignment had been made! So even though I knew it wouldn't come until Wednesday I was waiting the whole time!!
I woke up this morning and got ready, then Mom, Josh and I went out from 11:30 until about 2:30, and when we got home, IT WAS THERE!! But, I had to wait until Dad got home at 6. Mom and I watched movies to keep me distracted. Dad finally got home and we called Grandma and Emily and it said... well, I'll let you see for yourself.

 TULSA, OKLAHOMA!! Cool, huh? I am so excited to go and share the gospel with the people there! I know there are some truly amazing people there waiting to hear the gospel and I am thrilled to know that I get to teach them! Here are the boundaries for the Tulsa, Oklahoma mission!

Mom, Tanner and I went to Temple Square to show my call to Sister Snow, we finally found her. I was so excited to see her and even more excited for her to see my call.

I am so excited to be serving the people of Oklahoma! I know they are beloved Sons and Daughters of our Heavenly Father.

I'll see you all later!

Love,

Lizzie

First Post

So I've decided to serve mission! I decided this about three months ago, I got started on my papers soon after and I got them submitted on Wednesday (Sept. 25) and got my wisdom teeth out the next day. Basically I've done everything I have to do and now I'm just waiting for my call. I'll post here when I get it. Anyway, I know this was a pretty short post but I don't have much else to say. See you soon!