See my brother's mission blog here!

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Busy week!

Hi family!

I am out of time to email, so I will just tell you about one miracle
that happened this week. On Monday night, we were looking for new
Spanish speaking investigators. We ended up finding a couple from
Brazil! They both speak Portuguese and a bit of Spanish and almost no
English. But they ar super interest in the gospel! They have such
strong faith and they are prepared to hear the gospel! They invited us
right in and we taught them about the Restoration. I told them that
Daniel and Dad had served their missions in Brazil! They were so
excited about that. Then we went back on Friday and they had made us
Pao de Queso and Doce de leche!!!!!!! It was SO good! They accepted a
baptismal challenge and we get to see them again tonight! Can't wait!
Also, for thanksgiving we will be have dinner with a family in the ward!
I love you all! Hope you have a good week!

Love,
Sister McGuire

This is a river in Salisbury!

These are flamingos from the Salisbury Zoo!!

Last week's Pictures!!!

Missionary Correlation breakfast with Brother Swanson!!

Meeting Rebecca Jean!!

Goodbye to the Smith Family!!

My new comps!!

Monday, November 17, 2014

Flying South for the Winter!

Dear Family,

Okay, I know you are all DYING to know where I am! I was transferred
to..... (Drum roll please)....... Salisbury, Maryland!!!!!!!! If any
of you are like me, you are wondering, where on earth is that?
Hahahaha! My area covers almost the entire Delmarva Penninsula! Yep,
from the Chesapeake bay on the west to the Atlantic Ocean on the East,
and lower Deleware on the North to the Virginia state line on the
South, we've got it covered! Yes, I am on the coast and my area even
includes Ocean City with all the famous boardwalks and everything! My
apartment building is about 30 feet above sea level and it is twice as
humid here as my last area! I am 45 minutes outside of Washington D.C.
and, I am south of the Mason Dixon line, so this is a whole new
culture shock from Whitehall. But, I already love it!
Here was my week! First off, I got a package on Monday night from
Laurie Arensmeyer!!!! It was so great! Everything was all wrapped up
and each present had a letter on it that spelled Philadelphia! It was
so great! So, Sister Kinghorn and I unwrapped each one together! It
was like Christmas! It totally made my day! Thanks Laurie! You're the
best!!!!!!!
Then Tuesday, I packed up and said a tearful goodbye to Whitehall and
Sister Kinghorn. We drove two hours south to mission office for
transfers. We all gathered in the gym to hear where we were going! I
found out that I was going to Salisbury and I would be in a trio! But
Guess what!?!?!?!? My companions weren't even there! The Assistants
had forgotten to tell them to come! So, I didn't even have companions!
Hahaha! Luckily, I hitched a ride with other Sisters for the three
hour ride down to their area in Dover and my companions were able to
pick me up there and we drove the last hour back to our area together.
My companions are Sister Oveson from Nephi, Utah and Sister Sturgess
from Nevada. They're great and I love them both! And, Sister Sturgess
is the missionary I replaced in Whitehall! So, she served there first
and then I did and now we're companions! And guess what!?!? Sister
Sturgess is a Spanish Speaking Sister. So, half the people we are
teaching speak only Spanish. Sister Oveson also speaks it, so I get to
learn Spanish now! My calling hasn't officially changed to speak it,
but out of necessity, I am now learning how to teach the gospel in
Spanish. It's nuts!
Oh, and I got a package and a bunch of letters when I stopped at the
mission home! So I was a happy little missionary that was grinning
like a fool! I loved it!
Well, the rest of my week has been a blur of unpacking and meeting new
people. But, I love it here and I am so excited for all of my new
adventures that I have ahead of me!
I love you all! Hope you have a fantastic week!

Love,
Sister McGuire

Farewell Whitehall!!

Dear Family,

I am sorry, but this will be short today! I only have about 10 minutes
to email right now.
As you probably guessed from the subject line, I am being transferred.
We got calls on Friday and they said for me to pack my bags and be in
Broomall first thing Tuesday morning. I was shocked! I didn't think
that I would be leaving so soon. I am so sad to leave Whitehall! This
place has become my home and this Ward has become my family! I love it
here so much! I can't even imagine mission life outside of the Lehigh
Valley anymore! Hahaha. But, like C.S. Lewis once said, "There are
far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind." I am excited
to move on to a new chapter of my journey here in the PPM. So, I am
packed and ready to go. I find out where I am going tomorrow, so I
will email you next week to let you know where I ended up! I could be
anywhere from New York to Maryland, so this is awesome, exciting, and
slightly nerve-racking, but in the best way!
Thursday we had Zone Training, and it was so good. We talked about the
covenants that we have made in our lives and the covenants that we are
helping others make. The Zone Leaders make us each a personalized
bookmark with our names and a picture of the temple that we received
our endowment in. It was such a good reminder of what it means to
truly consecrate our lives to the Lord.
This week we had the wards first game night! It went so well! We had
lots of people from the ward come along with one of the Elders
investigators! Then, on Saturday their investigator, Ed, was baptized!
It was such a nice evening, and it all went well. Ed is awesome! He
has such a strong testimony and he will be a huge boost to our Ward.
Plus, we found out yesterday that he plays the piano!!!!! Yay!!! Now
there are three pianists in the Ward! We are so excited for him.
The rest of the week has been a blur of goodbyes and farewells. I will
miss this place so much! I am sure I will return someday soon to see
everyone again. But, for now, farewell Whitehall. God be with you till
we meet again!

Love,
Sister McGuire

   

Monday, November 3, 2014

Halloween Fun and More!! Plus Pictures!!

Dear Family,

I had a great week this week! I am so glad to hear that things are well with all of you too! Dan and Amelia, you are scary skeletons!!!! I would hate to have you sneak up on me! Hahaha! Keep having fun family!
This letter is going to be a little bit out of order, but that's alright!
On Halloween, we had to be at home by 6:00, because they dont want us missionaries to be getting in to any trouble on Halloween. Luckily for us, we live with Sister Britto! So, we came home and she had made taco soup and sandwiches for us and her kids and grandkids that were all over. Then, she took  the crew Trick-or-Treating while we passed out candy at the house. After that, she made us apple-cider and we all gathered around the fire and talked and laughed and had an awesome time! It was so fun!
We had an incredible miracle this week! We recieved a media referral for a man in our area. (A media referral is when someone puts their info into Mormon.org and requests things like a Bible, Book of Mormon, or a missionary visit.) We went the next morning and met the man, John, and his young family there. John and Markeesha (the mom and dad) told us that they are on a journey to find what they believe is right. They have been studying several religions and are searching to find which one they want to raise their family in. We talked about the Restoration and the Book of Mormon and invited them to church. John actually made kind of a deal with us that if we would go to the Islamic Mosque with his wife on Friday, then he would come to church with us on Sunday. So, on Friday, Sister Kinghorn and I went to the mosque with Markeesha! It was so cool! We had to wear scarves on our head to cover our hair and everything. And... it was so wrth it because yesterday, John came to church!!! And he said that he has been reading the Book of Mormon! We are so excited to start teaching them this week. I really feel like they are the honest seekers of truth and that they will be very receptive to the gospel!!
Another amazing miracle this week, is that Meet The Mormons is coming to the Roxy Theater in Northampton, which is in our area! We are so excited for this great blessing! Our ward and stake is thrilled to have it so close! We know that many people will be touched by this film! And, most of our investigators are going to go see it! How great is that!
Things are truly going so well here! I'm starting to feel like Whitehall is my home! I hardly have to use the GPS anymore to get around, because I know this place so well. I love it! Transfer calls come this Friday though.... But, I really think that I will stay... But, We'll see!
Anyway, I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!!! Hope you have a fabulous week!

Love,
Sister McGuire

Pictures of the leaves!

Brother Stofko holding his King Horn standing next to Sister Kinghorn! Hahaha!

The Ward Trunk-or-Treat!

The ward Trunk-or-Treat again! This is Sister Brittos! (With Sister Nielson photo-bombing!)