Chelsea - May 16, 2016

This is nanay lolita!  Her work is collecting cardboard and plastic bottles so she can get money to eat.  We collect water bottles at our house for her :)

We’re teaching the little guy in the green!  His name is grandiuer.  After we taught him we asked him if he had any questions and he was like “mag-ingat po kayo sister! (Take care sisters) hahaha he’s the cutest kid ever.

Piquelle doing laundry!

Hi Everyone!  

This week has been kinda a rough week but we survived!! Basically, Sister Elix and I set a goal this week to find some investigators with potential. It was definitely a matter of faith and prayer and constant finding but we were able to find some that have potential! One is the Ubando family. It’s a tatay and nanay and they are so great. They keep telling us to come back and so we hope they will accept the gospel! As we have found all these investigators, I feel like the Lord tells us ok, here is someone who is ready for your message, now it’s up to you to help them accept it. So Sister Elix and I have definitely felt a lot of accountability this week. God has prepared and helped us find these people, and it’s up to us to teach as clear as possible and help them to realize that they need the gospel. But we are super excited to continue working with these new investigators! Josie and Roseann are doing great! They both passed their baptismal interviews on Saturday and are looking forward to their baptism this Saturday! Ahhhh I never thought this day would come! 

So the tough parts about this week were definitely the physical conditions. Basically, because it’s so hot here I’ve had sun rashes on my arms, chest, and neck. And it’s not just a normal sun rash. It itches like heck!! Hahaha probably the worst pain in my life. And if you itched it, it would just get worse and more red and more itchy. Definitely a lot of tears shed this week. We were in a lesson, and right before we taught, my lips were totally numb (sunburn/allergy) and my skin was driving me crazy and I just wanted to say to Sister Elix, I’m dying, lets go home. But then a thought came into my head, "Why are you here? Who are you here for?” At that moment I realized that I’m here for this family who we have to teach right now and so I was able to forget about my pains and with the help of the Lord we were able to discern their needs and help them out spiritually in their lives. This week I’ve definitely learned just to forget about myself and go to work, and as I’ve done that, my problems seem smaller and smaller the more I focus on the people here. 

So tranfers are this week and we’ve gained a new house mate! Sister Teabwabwa!! Haha she was in my same zone in Santiago! So that has been so fun this week! And now I’m not the only foreigner in the house! 

So I had to share this totally blonde moment I had this week. So we were teaching tatay marcelino and he was saying that he sells cow meat for a living. And I was like cow?? They actually kill cows and eat them? (keep in mind that I haven’t eaten cow since America) and he was like uhh ya the meat is delicious! And I was like really? And then a day later I was like wait, cow is hamburger hahahah. Basically I thought cow was like a foreign animal that you shouldn’t eat. That’s what happens when you’re in the Philippines for too long! hahahaha. Anyways, that was my week! I love you all and thanks so much for your support and prayers and letters! 

Love, 

Sister Dunn

Elder Bice and Elder Lagrimas getting soaked in Capo after interviewing Josie and Roseann haha

Siomai! Literally my favorite food in the Philippines. Its the best with chili and soy sauce. Ang sarap...

This pic was sent to me by Chelsea's companion Sister Elix.  She said, "Our proselyting time is 90% work, and 10% animal time. Here's Sister Dunn and her casual encounter with her (yep, she claims them) animals."

May 16, 2016

Hello Everyone!


So we had a pretty bomb week. Some pretty cool miracles happened!

We had a lesson with Matthew who has been kind of a struggle. He was
raised born again Christian and as we've taught him he's been pretty
cynical about everything. But he continued to claim he wanted to know
more about what we believe so lessons have been interesting! We
watched the Restoration video in a member's home with Matthew and the
Spirit was so strong! We got to talk about it afterwards and Matthew
asked some really good, honest questions. Brother Guarino was the
member with us and he did an amazing job explaining certain concepts
etc. We had to drop Matthew during this lesson though because he
doesn't express much interest in coming to church or getting baptized
so that was really sad - but we hope one day he will be led to the
true church as he continues to read and pray about the Book of Mormon.

Haha, we met this awesome guy named Claude at the bus stop. He was
pretty hilarious. I started talking to him while Sister Colson talked
to another guy. Claude is a talker! And kind of the rough part is he
is also a spitter so that was fun. But he informed us of all the
religious groups who serve free lunch and invited us to contact one of
his favorite pastors who unfortunately lives outside of our area.
Claude told us he was Jewish but he kind of bounces from church to
church. We offered him a picture of Jesus pass along card but he
refused so we don't really know if he believes in Christ but we hope
one day he will!

The Elders gave us this amazing referral for a gal named Marianna.
Mariana's oldest daughter Jenn was baptized into the singles ward
about 6 months ago and her younger daughter Angie is going to be
baptized the end of this months so we are really excited for that!
Mariana is the bomb.com. She is totally prepared! She is trying to
find a permanent place to live here in Glendale so pray for Mariana!
We are trying to help her look for a place but yeah she's amazing.

One day we met this guy named Sammi on the bus. He is super cool! He
actually worked in Provo for 6 years but we think he lives local.
Anyways, he has definitely heard about Mormons and been to church a
few times so we gave him our card just in case. He would probably want
to go to the Spanish Ward but it was a really cool experience to talk
with him. We didn't have much time but he is a really cool guy.

We got to do service for about three hours one day down at Salvation
Army and it was so cool! All of these mail carriers came in with tons
of food and we got to sort it out so their shelves will be stocked.
Man it was awesome to do that! We got to meet a few people from
different churches and there were like 5 or 6 teenage girls there
doing it for a church service project and they were awesome! It's
amazing how much you learn to love others as you serve alongside them.

We had an awesome lesson with April and her family. They are seriously
the sweetest family ever! We taught them the gospel of Jesus Christ
and I got to use Lindsay's head shoulders knees and toes method of
repentance. Thanks Linds! The primary president (who we brought with
us) said she would have to use that! Then after the lesson they
offered to feed us dinner. April's date should be set for early June
so we are pumped for that!

I think That's about all from here in Glendale! Hope you guys have a
wonderful week! I love you all!

Love, Sister Dunn

Lindsay - May 16, 2016

Half Mission Conferences!!  Sister Adams is now an hermana!  She was switched from English to Spanish speaking!

Ok everyone....... The moment of truth, I will be transferring to New

Mexico in to Silver City! I will be in a new state!! Yes!!! I have
heard that it is colder in New Mexico, and that it is really green!!
So I am really excited. I think the Lord decided that he would bless
me with a cooler summer this year:) hehe!

This week was a really good week! On Tuesday we did a lot of
contacting. We didn't have any set appointments, so we just dropped by
to see people! That whole day we received a lot of rejection, but it's
ok! I was discouraged around dinner time, and the family that we had
dinner with gave us some council. Brother Stewart said, sometimes they
aren't looking through the window yet. They aren't searching for the
truth at that time. That advice really helped me to realize that most
people aren't ready to receive the gospel yet, but there are select
few who are ready to receive it. We just have to find them!

On Wednesday, we went to Floyd's funeral. A lot of his family showed
up which was really good. I know that Floyd is learning on the other
side, and that he is happy. We also taught Tiandra. She has been
struggling recently, and the elders gave her a blessing, but when we
saw her a couple days later, she had lost hope. It was really sad. She was
on her phone pretty much the whole time, so we knew she wasn't
listening. We just hope and pray that she finds the light of Christ
and holds on to the iron rod! We also visited the Gilbert's because
they were going to leave town to go to California. I had a hunch that
I would be leaving, so we saw them before I left. He is very sensitive
when missionaries come and go, so we are hoping that he likes the new
sister!

On Sunday, we went to the Hargis's for dinner. I am going to miss
their family so much!!! We took some pictures with their family, and
it was so great to be with them! I have been so blessed to serve in
Safford, Arizona!! I know that this church is true, and I am proud to
be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! I love
you all! Have a good week!

Sincerely,
Sister Lindsay Dunn

Taylor - May 16, 2017

Hey Everyone!

So this week went pretty good! Marie and her family are doing good but they didn't come to church this past Sunday.  There really wasn’t much of an excuse for this one, so we are really going to have to re-set expectations with them and make sure they know why coming to church is important, especially because they really want their son to be on the right path. I think they really want to learn, especially Marie, but sometimes they are just simply distracted by the world! They were doing some little garage sale thing that day even though they promised to be there, so that was slightly disappointing. We are teaching them the plan of salvation tonight though and we’re excited for it! 

We had a little bit of a rough week finding though, so we want to focus on doing more chapel tours so we can get our new friends excited about coming to church! We did get a new ward mission leader and he is super awesome! Brother Browne our last ward mission leader was super cool but he's a little distracted because his wife isn't doing super well with the pregnancy and they have like 4 other kids that he's taking care of because she's sick plus with work it was just crazy. So we have some new life here in the missionary department! He's been serving in young mens callings for the past 16 years so he's pretty excited and trying to get to know everything about the missionary work! We know the members super well and continue to push them to reach out to their friends and neighbors. Don't worry we're pushing with love! As well we have a newly called assistant to the wml and he's pretty chill also!  Unfortunately I was talking to the bishop and we are most likely going to be passing most of the spanish speakers to the bahia elders simply because it's so hard to integrate them into the ward. I mean honestly they can’t really be given a calling.  We just need more latins in the ward is all :) Oh ya so regarding transfers, I’m staying so I’ll be dying here in Bonita so that’s cool and my new comp will be Elder Wride. I have no clue what he is like so I’ll guess I’ll find out tomorrow! Elder Craig is going to Wellington which is in the stuart zone. His comp will be elder sorenson who I think might be dying with me, I’m not sure. So again we're just trading companions because his comp was elder wride. Elder Craig has improved tons though and i've loved serving with him, I pray that he continues to serve with all his heart, might, mind and strength! He still has hard times and he will in the future. If he forgets himself and goes to work though, he will be satisfied at the end of his mission. 

Interesting convos, dejame ver.... well the first time we met Marie and Enrique they wanted to have another child and so we prayed for that and she told us in a lesson that she found out she is pregnant but I think she found out earlier than usual or something which surprised her (in a good way) and so she loved that miracle and was thanking us for it. (totally the Lord's hand in her life) I guess that wasn’t really a convo but cool miracle! 

We had an interesting conversation with Olympia, the girl that came to sacrament last week. Unfortunately we had to drop her, mainly because she just couldn't grasp the idea of the restoration. She’s kind of stuck in the mindset of all churches are good and it’s the one you feel comfortable at. We actually gave her more of a desire to go to her own church but with us she wasn’t super committed to act unfortunately, which was sad. 

This other conversation was from a couple weeks ago. I don't think I told you but we talked to this guy and he was accusing all mormons of being republicans and how we are trying to control the government and we are trying to convince everyone else to be republican.. it was just hilarious! Oh and then we were teaching this guy name Rich yesterday and he seemed cool but a little odd. He works at publix and he’s living with his mom. But anyways we were almost at the end of the restoration lesson and then his mom tried to open the door and he held it closed and had a super freaked out look on his face and she was like "ow my toe" and he was like "sorry I have to go" and we handed him the pamphlet and he like ran inside. Elder Craig and I were just standing there in confusion but then we just busted up laughing about it. 

Anyways congrats for spencer in his tennis season. I love you guys. You’re the best! Stay safe and have an awesome week!

-Elder Dunn

Lindsay - May 9, 2016

Mission Conference with Elder Holland! Click on this pic to see a better view.  I am right in the middle on the row and just to the right above Elder Holland!  Such a great conference!

Hi Everyone!

Happy Mother's Day to all those amazing mothers out there! We love
you, and we are grateful to you for your support!

This week was a good week! A lot has happened, and Sister Steele and I
are taking it day by day! On Tuesday we had a lesson with Roxy again!
We had her come to Sister Norton's house, and it was so amazing to
have a lesson in a member’s home!

On Wednesday we had a great zone meeting! We talked about the importance of members and the power they bring to our investigator's lives. We also talked about extending commitments, and how that helps the individuals we are teaching to act
in faith. Right after zone meeting we had a lesson with our investigator, Sharon. Her friend Sister Reid joined us. We had the lesson in Denny's Restaurant. It was so hard to feel the spirit! And then of course all of my favorite songs have to come on while we are
trying to talk about the gospel. It was so hard!!! But I gained a new perspective on teaching in an environment where the spirit is present.

Later that day, we were driving to an appointment when we got a call
from someone in our Ward. Floyd, who we have been teaching for a while
now, passed away. It was such a shock to both of us. Two less actives
pass away in 2 weeks?? The Lord has truly helped us to move forward.
Despite all of the challenges that we have faced in this area, God has
blessed us with the strength and the peace to endure.

On Thursday, we had another lesson with Sharon. We had the lesson at a
member's home, so that environment was so much better than Denny's! We
talked about the law of tithing, and she was so receptive to it! At
the end Sister Steele asked Sharon if she would live the law of
tithing. Sharon said no. Sister Steele looked so shocked and said,
"Why?" Then Sharon broke her serious look, and laughed and said, "Just
kidding!" It was so hilarious! Sister Steele looked like she was about
to faint! Hahaha! Funniest moment ever!!!

Later that day we had a lesson with Heather and Dallin. Dallin is 11, and his mom Heather is less active.... At least we think so, haha! Dallin is so sweet, and he
has been through some hard challenges, but he is so resilient! He
asked us this question during the lesson, "If we are all God's
children, and we are brothers and sisters, then if I get married, will
I be married to my sister?" Haha! We actually were kind of stumped on
that question! And I can't remember what we said, but hopefully we
answered his question.

On Saturday we met with a less active named Chelsea. She is so awesome! She is the nerdiest person ever, but she embraces it! She is obsessed with Harry Potter, and she has a time turner necklace, a bunch of Harry Potter T-shirts, Harry Potter
Monopoly, and she plays an online Harry Potter game where you can take
classes, and get house points. Haha! She is dedicated. We didn't know
much about her besides the obsession with Harry Potter, but when we
started to talk about the gospel, she really opened up to us. The
first question I asked her was, "What is your relationship like
with God?" That question made a difference in the lesson. Even though
she is less active, she still has a strong testimony and has a strong
relationship with God. She told us that she wants her relationship
with Him to be better. We are always so happy when people tell us
that!!! It was an amazing lesson.

On Sunday we had a wonderful Mother's Day! We went to 3 wards, and 9th Ward gave out King size candy bars for the mothers, 7th ward passed out carnations, and 8th
Ward passed out small loaves of wheat bread. And all of the wards gave
us those things! We aren't even mothers, but they still gave us those
gifts! What sweet members we have here in Safford!! I am so grateful
for my mom, and the inspiration she is to me! I wouldn't be here
without your guidance and counsel Mother! I love you! And I love all
of you in Eagle 2nd Ward who have been my church leaders and teachers.
You have loved and cared for me, and I am so grateful to you. I hope
you all have a wonderful week!

Sincerely,
Sister Lindsay Dunn

Holli - May 9, 2016

Hello Everyone!

It was so good to see/talk to you all! Happy Mother’s Day Mom!

So this week was actually pretty awesome! We were pretty busy every
day talking with people and meeting with lots of our less actives.
Sister Colson and I made a plan to help us be better at bus contacting
- she would sit in the front and I would sit in the back because she
knows when we have to get off so all I had to do was talk to someone
until she got off and I would follow her. So one day I went all the
way to the back and there were two ladies there and they were
hilarious - totally made my day. They weren't super churchy and kind
of made some pretty funny excuses about why, but one of the girls had a
friend who was LDS - she said they never really talked about religion
much. So we got to talk a bit before I had to leave and at the end of
the visit the other lady pulled out two bananas from her bag and
insisted I take them. Haha it was great :)

We got to go into a convalescent home one day and play some hymns for
the residents there. There were at least thirty people in the room and
this one lady, that sat by the piano as I played, requested we play
How Great Thou Art. The problem was that How Great Thou Art isn't
loaded onto our LDS music app so I couldn't play it, but she ended up
singing it acapella and that was such a sweet experience. She had a
pretty good voice!

We tried to contact this one Armenian guy at a bus stop the other day.
The only problem was that he had had a stroke and for some reason his
vocal chords weren't working. Problematic. So we honestly had a mini
game of charades. Pretty funny. Then this car pulls up and two
Armenian girls get out and ask if we need help translating and we're
like "Well . . . Kind of?" So the guy eventually just waved goodbye
and went to his house and one of the girls stayed to talk with us. Her
name is Star and she is super bomb. She was raised Christian in
Armenia but is kind of atheist now - doesn't really know what she
believes. She's taking a religion class and is confused by all the
differences between them. She didn't seem super interested in meeting
with us but said she would love to hang out when we're not being
missionaries haha. Struggle is real.

We were walking down this street one night and we ran into Jerard. We
started talking and he is pretty cool. He knows the bible really well
and has a strong belief in Christ and how we need to be followers not
only in word but in deed. He has researched a lot of different
churches and said he has yet to find the right one. We actually had a
church tour with him Saturday but come to find out he has met with
missionaries before and gone to church once. But we asked him during
the tour what his motivation was in meeting with the missionaries and
his main reason was just to find a job. So the missionaries had
directed him to employment services and he said that employment
services had given him a job that he didn't want to take (at a 7/11)
so he kind of blew up a little and said that if we were true followers
of Christ we would help people more. Luckily we had the RS president
with us and she did a great job explaining what RS does but it didn't
really phase him. The irony of it was we found him outside a 7/11 and
he is still looking for work so we hope poor Jerard is able to find it
one day.

We had a referral for this guy named Eli, and his nephew Andy is always
home and Eli hardly ever is so we end up talking to Andy a lot. He's a
pretty interesting guy and has also researched a lot of different
religions and delved into all of this theology. So he's curious but he
said he just doesn't have time to investigate - super sad. But we gave
him a BofM and a Restoration DVD (which he said he'd give to Eli) so
hopefully they do something with those gifts!

That is about it for this week!! And Dad, way to pass the test! Power of
heaven is so real! Most everything in missionary work (and probably life)
is divine intervention. Thank goodness! Love you all so much! Hope you
have a wonderful week!

Love, Sister Dunn

Taylor - May 9, 2016

Hey Familia,

Well you guys basically know what happened for the week haha. Congrats on Dad's test though, that's awesome!! Soo ya great week. We might have to pass our investigator Olympia to the YSA missionaries but that’s cool. I’m just glad she has the desire to come to church and learn and see for herself! We have a lesson with Marie and Enrique today so that will be awesome, and we’re bringing brother feliciano with us.  Then we have to establish expectations again with Jessica to make sure she has a vision of baptism and knows the reason why we stop by! Besides that nothing too gigantic going on. I do have District Training tomorrow so that’s fun! Can you believe I’ve been DL for 7 transfers? Ah man the Lord must just know that I'm absolutely the worst at giving trainings so he's giving me PLENTY of chances to improve! Anyways I love you guys. You are the best! Have an awesome week! Stay safe and keep smiling!! 

Elder Dunn

Chelsea - May 9, 2016

Caribou keeping cool

Nanay pabiona doing physical therapy on Sister Elix’s foot. 

Charmaine's Baptism

Hello!

This letter is gonna be kind of short because I skyped earlier and I feel like I will just be repeating myself!

Saturday was Charmaine's Baptism! Sister Elix and I did a musical number! I played the piano, she played the guitar and we both sang Come Thou Fount. It actually didn't sound that bad! Her baptism went great and she bore such a strong testimony after. We love her! 

Tatay Fernando is doing great! His daughter in law and his granddaughter both have baptismal dates for May 21. So their interview will be this Saturday! Fernando is doing really well and progressing in the gospel! We were teaching Josie about tithing and tatay fernando was sitting in the lesson. He then asked us where the tithing envelopes were because last sunday he was looking everywhere for them. Keep in mind that he does  not have a lot of money! So I guess I was just so surprised that he said that and it just shows he has so much faith and a strong testimony of this church. 

Weird food I ate this week: pig feet. It was actually not that bad. Sister Majerano bought pig face and its just like tough fat and it’s so gross. Funny experience, we were walking along the highway and this guy reaches out his hand to shake my hand, and so of course I shake his hand, and then he wouldn't let go forever and I was trying to get my hand out of his and finally I got it out and we booked it! hahaha he's such a weirdo! 

Anyway, Sister Elix is done with her training and I am not being transferred and so we have another cycle together here in hot hot Alinguigan! This week we are really working on finding some investigators with potential! Love you all and hope you’re are all doing great! 

Sister Dunn

Chelsea - May 2, 2016

Tatay Fernando’s baptism. Roseann is Tatay Fernando’s 

granddaughter and her baptism is on May 21st.

This is my favorite filipino dish in the whole world:mongol beans.  And I learned how to make it this week!

Well no more rats but we have an infestation of cockroaches and crickets in our house.  So gross!

Hello po!!!

This week was kinda a tough week but we are doing great :) It is so funny right now because it’s close to elections and so here in the philippines they have jeepneys and buses always passing by with huge speakers blaring out music of each candidate. And oh my gosh it was like 6 in the morning and two vans right next to each other with different music came down our neighborhood and it was so loud and I was like are you serious?? The same thing happened to president rahlf at four am and he was like I am not voting for you! hahaha. 

Anyways, the first of the week was super hot. And then I got sick on Wednesday and mixed with the heat... oh boy that was a challenge! And then I thought I was super lucky because it rained on Wednesday night and I was like yesss it will finally be cold. Well I was soo wrong. The next day we got up and literally it was sooo humid, just in our apartment. Then we went out from 8 am-4 and Sister Elix and I both literally died. It wasn’t even that hot but the humidity was a killer hahaha oh man I have never experienced humidity like that. We were both having a hard time breathing! But it’s fine, we love the challenge! 

Funny moment this week. We were teaching a new investigator that we just found and her name was Baby. And it was so funny because we asked her to say the closing prayer and so she started kind of saying it but her eyes were still opened and she was looking at us and I didn’t know if she was practicing or saying it and it was so awkward because we were trying not to laugh! So ya that was a funny moment this week. We were like, next time we will teach you how to pray! haha

So we had a super interesting yet sad experience this week. So I don’t know if you remember me telling you about Florenda. She was the woman whose husband was in an accident and became paralyzed and she was starting to go crazy but we visited her a couple times and she seemed to be dealing with her trial with strength. Well, we were in San Andres and we were walking past our investigator’s house and she told us that florenda's husband had just died yesterday. We were so shocked.... Sister Elix was like Sister Dunn let’s visit her another day but I was like let’s drop by now. We did not know what to expect and we were both freaking out and figuring out what to say. When we got there I went up right to the doorway. In the doorway was Florenda sitting there looking super depressed, and her mom right  next to her and then her dead husband on the bed right next to them. I then looked behind me and Sister Elix was kinda far and I was like sister elix come here! And she was shaking her head and I was like come on! I  need a translator if I don’t understand something! And she was like noo sister dunn! Earlier she told me she had a fear of dead people and then a dog was in her way too and she is super scared of dogs so I was like greatttt I have to handle this by myself. So I started to talk to Florenda and asked what happened and she just started opening up to me and then started crying and it was the saddest thing because I was crying too…. but after she was like thank you so much sister, this means so much to me. And so we told her we would come back this week to see how she is doing. Sister Elix then managed to put her hand in the doorway to shake Florenda's hand while managing not to look at her dead husband! Haha at least she kinda overcame her fear! So ya that was a tough experience this week.

So on Saturday we were able to see Tatay Fernando get baptized! This guy is a stud!!! Not gonna lie, I almost cried seeing him in his baptismal suit! It was kinda emotional for me. I guess I just couldn’t believe how far he has come. When we first met him, he was sitting in the waiting shed with a cigarette in his mouth but he told us to come to his house and teach. Every lesson he has been so receptive and I have seen the gospel change him. His baptism was great and he was early for church too! It’s amazing! We also had Charmaine’s interview this week and she passed! She is so ready to get baptized and so her baptism is this saturday at 5 pm. Oh man we are so excited for her! So that’s the news from here. 

Love you all!

Sister Dunn

Taylor - May 2, 2016

Hey! Sounds like a fun week, especially the mashed potato bar, genius! And congrats to Dan and Emily on their awards! So this week was a great week! The district really improved and I saw a lot of progression! We were having a hard time getting people to sacrament meeting and especially giving them the vision of baptism! So I focused on that during the District Training! It was super hilarious though! I did the training on Fear vs. Faith and at the start as a demonstration I blindfolded elder gomez our ZL and stood him up on a chair (by the way he had no idea of what was going on). Then I said, "ok elder gomez this is a trust fall, so I want you to fall backwards when I say so okay" and so I moved back super far and I yelled "ok elder gomez on the count of 3 I want you to fall. Don't worry, trust me man." Anyways I had elder heath standing directly behind him the whole time ready to catch him, but of course he didn’t know that. It took a little coaxing but he finally fell back. He was freaking out though! After he did it he said "little did you know, my worst fear is falling." Haha I felt soo bad and the whole district was busting up laughing but he took it well and he's an awesome ZL!

Anyways for us this week, ya elder craig kinda went back to just being exhausted and depressed and at the end of the week we talked. He is just struggling with some stuff, but really the only thing we can do is just push forward and stick it out. You asked what he is like. He is decently athletic and he used to do a little bit of competitive weight lifting before the mish so he's into that and has a work out plan for himself. Sports wise he likes to play most things so that's cool! He's a big movie and netflix guy, and loves italian food but he won't eat anything with pig so sometimes that's a problem at meal appointments!

We had an awesome miracle this week! We were praying for a family of 3 and we found them! Jessica and her two daughters Janelle (9) and Isabella (3)! They are super cool! She grew up in the catholic church and didn't like it, so she's really into the christian church thing but she hasn't gone because of a recent divorce that she has had. So we showed up at her door and she loved the restoration and totally agrees with it! Though she is a little stubborn and doesn't want to commit to a date until she's come to church and she got called into work this last Sunday so she didn't make it, but she will come this coming weekend! Now we just have to help her understand that the spirit is a quiet and gentle feeling and not super loud and energetic like their christian churches haha!

For the two best conversations of the week, one was with like a primitive baptist or something like that apparently one of the original baptists and he was a super nice guy but he was literally telling us that God doesn't love all his children and that he has chosen who he has chosen. Even if you do works, if you are chosen by God you are good, because "according to the bible" God always had his chosen people. And apparently God can also control our agency which truly ruins the whole plan of salvation! And he was using certain bible verses to prove it and so were we. Honestly it just boggles my mind how confused people can be! The other conversation was with a woman who I believe was a non denominational christian or something who refused to share a prayer because we weren't giving God the glory He deserves. She said she watched a you tube video of a returned missionary that was a mormon who got out of the church because he realized apparently the we cannot earn our way to heaven and that's what we are trying to do through our works in the mormon church. We helped her understand that that was not at all the case and that we are saved by grace and faith but our works are also important. She kinda had a change of heart and said that she would look more into it. Now those two conversations sound like bashing and I promise I don't encourage it and try not to do that. Sometimes I guess I just want to defend our beliefs. But I do not like contention! Anyways those were probably the most interesting conversations!

As for facetime on Mother’s Day, it will be around 6pm our time so probably around 4pm your time, hopefully that's good for you guys! Love you guys a bunch. Thanks for the support every week. It's the best! Stay safe! See you soon!

-Elder Dunn

Holli - May 2, 2016

This is def the church we should go to:)

Puppy Love!

Hello Everyone!!!

We had a pretty great week this week! We had tons of service
opportunities so that was fun!

We stopped by these three referral's (they were caretakers at a rest
home) and they were super sweet! There was this big Gladys Knight
event that happened in Arcadia and was supposed to generate lots of
referrals and that's where these three came from. It turns out that
they were actually the Filipino elder's investigators! But we had a
great visit and gave them their "gift bags" which included a sampler
Gladys Knight CD, a BofM, and the Restoration video. The Elders told
us later that week that they had stopped by and everyone in the rest home
was glued to the Restoration video. Pretty great, right?

And a little update on Navart (Armenian lady who we helped sweep her
yard) - so the Armenian elders managed to stop by and they said they
had an awesome lesson and Navart and her husband wanted their whole
family to come to church and everything so that was super cool to
hear! The coffee might be a little hard for them to give up but the elders said
everything is going great so that was cool :)

We had a lesson with Matthew who has a really hard time wanting to
read the BofM and coming to church etc but he wants to learn more
about what we believe. We had a member come with us to a lesson and at
the end we tried to commit Matthew to reading the BofM and he tried to
commit us to reading this website from his church and their take on
our religion. Sister Crane ended up looking it up for us and she said
it sure was interesting - but a lot of it wasn't true. She ended up
bearing her testimony in sacrament meeting and talked about the
experience and then expressed her gratitude in being given scriptures
and knowing to go directly to the source for answers. It was really
cool to hear that! Love the BofM!!

We got to take part in a community service project - we cleaned around
this cemetery in Glendale and it was tons of fun! It was a Stake Event
and apparently last year they wore the Mormon Helping Hands shirts but
they wouldn't let us wear them this year because it's supposed to be a
"community" service project. However no one showed up from the community
but the Mormons haha :) Kind of funny. But that was like the best day
ever - Sister Colson and I had the best time!

We were debating to go to this less active the other night because it
was super late and his daughter who isn't a member had three kids so
we walked to his house, stared at it for a moment, and then just
started walking back home but this gal across the street came up to us
and started talking with us and she urged us to go back and she was
super cool! Like we sincerely hope she investigates the church one day
because she is really cool! So we had a great lesson with Juan (Less Active)
and Stephanie (Non-Member). We had been teaching Stephanie for a while but
she got super busy so it's been pretty rough lately.

We were studying at the park one day and this Armenian guy starts
talking to Sister Colson and she did such a great job
contacting/teaching him! His name is Sam and he told us that he wasn't
really religious, but then he talked about his church and that he
believes in Jesus Christ and stuff - so that was interesting. But we
gave him an Armenian pass along card and he asked about the BofM on
the back and we told him we could get him one so we are meeting with
him and the Armenian elders next week. Should be pretty awesome!

So I guess that was pretty much our week :) Thank you so much for all
of the emails and your love and support! Super appreciated!

Love, Sister Dunn

Lindsay - May 2, 2016

Hi Everyone!

This week was really good! By the end of the week, Sister Steele and I were spiritually exhausted! haha! On Tuesday we met with Roxy. She is still waiting for her birth certificate so she can get everything else to get married! Challenges keep coming her way, and she knows that it is Satan trying to keep her from being baptized. We think it is starting to effect her because we can tell her hope is diminishing. But in that lesson we talked about faith. We read some scriptures in Alma 32, and by the end of the lesson, Roxy was uplifted and encouraged. And she came to church on Sunday with her son, so she is truly enduring to the end!

Towards the late part of the afternoon we went home, and the New Mexico sisters picked us up so we could go to Tucson. We had a full mission conference the next day, and an apostle of the Lord was coming to speak to us! Guess who it was??? You won't believe it............. Jeffrey R. Holland!!! Sister Steele and I almost passed out when President Passey told us that! When we went to the conference, I got to see everyone from the mission!! It
was such a sweet moment to unite with my MTC sisters!! Also I saw Hermana Kerr which was awesome! It is so nice to have someone from your ward serving with you!! :) We set up for a picture, and there were elders standing on the stage, elders sitting at the edge of the stage, sisters standing on the gym floor, and then a row of chairs for Elder Holland, Elder Lynn G. Robbins, and Elder and Sister Heyman (I hope I spelled that right). Then there were elders that would sit on the gym floor. When Elder Holland came in we were speechless! Then we took a few pictures and started to head for the chapel. As we entered the chapel, we told Elder Holland our names and where we were from. I was speechless when I shook his hand! I almost couldn't tell him my name! haha! But there was such a strong and powerful spirit in that meeting. Some of the things that Elder Holland spoke about really struck me: He said, "I don't have the right to transgress! I lost my free agency when I became an Apostle of the Lord!" He also said, "My future is in your hands". He also said that when we return home we shouldn't tell jokes or tell stories about pranking our companions. He told us to testify of the truthfulness of the gospel, and to teach and testify of Jesus Christ. He told us to be an example to the youth that are preparing to go on missions. He pounded the pulpit a few times, and said that he might spit on the front row, (which by the way... I was in the front row:) He gave a beautiful sermon about the Atonement, and we went really deep into it! One of the things that he said was, "The reason the Atonement has power is because we can receive the Holy Ghost." We talked about the Holy Ghost and the Priesthood, and how those two things differentiate us from any other church. One of the most profound things he said that I really took to heart was, "Love your mission, and love it forever." I know that Elder Jeffrey R. Holland is called of God to help us and encourage us, and pressure us a little bit:), to become the missionaries that God wants us to be. That mission conference was truly amazing.

On Thursday we taught Sharon again. Since we had met on Tuesday, she hadn’t smoked one cigarette, or had one cup of coffee. She is so committed to living the commandments of God! Later that day we had a lesson with Tucker, and his family. We talked about faith. We talked about Alma 32, and we drew a picture on the ipad of a seed. I drew the drawing this time.... and to be honest, it looked horrible. But its ok! haha:) It was such a great lesson though! We asked a lot of inspired questions that helped them think. We asked Tucker and his sister Emily what they had faith in. Tucker said Jesus Christ, and Emily said family. They are such sweet kids, and I know that they have testimonies of this gospel. On Friday we did a lot of weekly planning. Then we met with Jade and Gavin Marble before their baptism! They are so sweet! It has been so rewarding to see them grow in the gospel. Jade always offers to say the prayer in lessons, and Gavin at first wasn't open to praying. But since we have taught him, he has prayed more often. Their baptism was so special. It has been the first baptism that I have had in this area, and it has been almost 4 1/2 months! So it has been a struggle, but it was worth it in the end! I love this area, I love the people, and I love being a missionary. This gospel is true, and God is real! I love you all! I hope you have a great week!

Sincerely,
Sister Lindsay Dunn

Taylor - April 25, 2016

Hey Family!

So the week was good! First of all Elder Craig did a 360 since last week! He improved so much! He grew a ton in his patience and love towards others, he was constantly more energized and positive when knocking, I know he felt the guidance of the spirit in certain lessons we had this week and he said the things the people needed to hear. So ya that's super exciting and I'm super proud of him!

So we are starting up a bible study class this week to see how it goes and see if we can help members invite their friends and less actives to come as well! I read a quote today from President's email about judging others and it said "Be slow to judge. You don't know what storm I asked him/her to go through." It's definitely true, everyone has their own struggles and challenges and really we just need to ignore those and be willing to help in anyway possible. As preach my gospel states, no matter what situation the investigator is in or what problem or situations they are going through, the gospel can help them. So our responsibility is just simply to open our mouth, and keep trying. As we do that, we will find happiness in the work of the Lord!

We've started working a bit down in bonita springs so there's more spanish down there so that's cool, but still I try to avoid it mainly because I feel bad I'm the only one doing the talking and teaching because elder craig is only english. Anyways we are just pushing forward and being as diligent and faithful as possible!

As for two most interesting conversations of the week, I would have to say one was with a born again christian and right when he walked out the door he was basically bashing on the mormon religion and said we believed in some weird stuff like becoming gods and creating planets and how satan is Jesus's brother and stuff like that. And then he asked us if we actually read the bible, the king james bible and we said yes and then we somehow got onto the topic of how he believes Jesus is also our father and how they are the same person. We both quoted references in the king james bible where it clearly states the difference and I honestly think the scripture was fulfilled of how we will not be confounded before men. We asked if he had ever read the book of mormon and he said he had heard enough from preachers and other people. Anyways it was actually a pretty short little exchange but his heart was so closed. We absolutely cannot force our message into the hearts of the people. It just doesn't work. We didn't try to, we just testified of what we knew. So that was interesting.

The other conversation was with inez and her family who are from the republica dominicana but speak really good english. They believe in God, and her son is like the leader of a little congregation of 12 or so people. They were really kind and gave us something to eat and everything. The hard thing was to help them realize that there is only one way. They had the attitude that if you believe in God you're good, but that's just simply not how it is. There are so many more blessings they can receive! We do have a return appointment with them because they had interest and want to come to church so that's cool!

I know where we will be doing face time on Mother's Day. It will be at the rodriguez's house but I still need to talk to them about what time. I'll let you know! Anyways I love you family! I also love the mission. It's the best thing ever. I've fallen in love with serving the Lord and his children! My testimony has grown so much!! I know God loves us, he wants us to be happy, He sent His son Jesus Christ to be an example and atone for our sins so that we can be with Him again! We literally have a way back. Aren't we so privileged?! I love my Heavenly Father and my Savior Jesus Christ! I'm grateful for the guidance of the Holy Ghost each and every day!

Have a great week, stay safe, smile a lot! :)
-Elder Dunn

Chelsea - April 25, 2016

Josie and Family

Charmaine!

Kumusta kayong lahat?? sobrang mubuti ako dito pero grabiiiiii ang init!! pinapawisan kami dito every second!!! Umulan ng isang bese pero nasa lesson pa kami sa loob ng bahay, hahaha medyo galit ako noong pero masaya pa rin! Sulong pa! Translation...I'm good here but it's been sooo hot. We are sweating every second. It rained one time for like 30 minutes but we were in a lesson inside a house so I was pretty mad haha but happy still, keep on going.

So we had a great p day on Monday. Sister Elix and I were in Cauayan for something, so we spent the rest of the day at SM MALL! Oh my goodness it was like America... I was crying at like every store we passed haha so pathetic! I also got to see my brother in the mission there! Elder Tietra! So great..

On Tuesday we had a zone conference in Ilagan!! Super fun! It was all about the book of mormon since we just finished the book of mormon power read as a mission. I learned so many things and received a ton of revelation as to how I can become a better missionary when it comes to teaching about the Book of Mormon. I also got to see Sister Kibaimoa there so that was just the best!

So on Saturday Tatay Fernando had his baptismal interview and he passed!! He's getting baptized this Saturday!! We had a miracle on Sunday this week! Our eternal investigator, Josie, came for her first time! She was super late because she lives far away and she has to walk like half of it and she has three little kids but she came and we were so happy!! Basically in our lessons we've been just telling her and telling her that she needs to come to church in order to know that our message is true, but her husband hasn't let her come. But she's been praying and praying and he actually told her to go to church yesterday and she came and she was so great!!! We are planning on setting a baptismal date for her this week. Charmaine is doing so good as usual! It's been so amazing to watch the changes in her and tatay fernando. Even like their countenances have changed and it's amazing how much the gospel changes us into the people that God want us to become.

Love you all!

Sister Dunn

P-day hike

I love this little guy.  His name is Doggie.  He is always chained to the house like that :(

Lindsay - April 25, 2016

I love my Zone!!!!

Hello Everyone!!!


I hope you all had a great week! The Lord truly tested our patience this week! We visited a lot of people which was really good, but one of our baptisms got postponed. But it is ok! The Lord's plan is so much better than what we want! On Tuesday we saw our investigator Sharon. She technically isn't in our area, but she preferred that we teach her instead of elders. She is the sweetest lady ever! When she learns something new, she literally gets so excited and happy! She truly knows that this gospel is true! We are so happy for her, and it took 5 years until she finally was ready to take the missionary lessons and make the commitment to be baptized!


On Wednesday, we met with Kris! She moved out of her house into a cute little trailer home that is bright blue. It is such a humble home. She let us have the tour of the house, and inside, there is a wallpaper in the kitchen that has bright blue flowers all over it. Her house is blue inside and out! She is so glad to be moved into her new home. And so many people from the ward helped her move! 9th Ward is amazing! We are working with her to be able to go to the temple. She told us that she is going to stop smoking cold turkey. We pray that she will be able to overcome that addiction. We also saw Floyd. Oh Floyd..... haha! We are still reading the Book of Mormon with him, and slowly but surely, he is beginning to understand it. Later, we had dinner with the Stewarts, and their boys names are the most interesting names I have ever heard in my life. The oldest boy is named VoyTech, the second oldest is Rushton, and the baby of the family is named Thadius. Wow!! :)


On Thursday we had a great lesson with Roxy! I have learned so much about asking inspired questions during lessons. Whenever I think about what to say, and ask a question, I know that the Spirit guides me through that lesson. When we ask questions, we are trying to understand their needs, and when we understand their needs, the spirit can guide the words that we say. We also went to the temple that day! It was a much needed experience. In my prayer before the session, I asked to have peace. The Lord truly answered my prayer. I was so grateful for the joy that I felt while in the temple. The celestial room was beautiful, and quiet, and I did not want to leave! When I get back from my mission, hopefully I can request to work in the celestial room:)


On Friday we did a lot of weekly planning. Then we had dinner with the Nunley's. Their tradition as a family at the dinner table is to talk about a sweet thing that happened that day, and then a sour. Their family is so cute! They have so many animals, and they just got a baby horse named Sky. She is white with brown spots, and is the cutest thing! We then visited the Crum's who are a less active family. Their kids, Serenity and Owen are so cute! We talked to Sister Crum about the Book of Mormon, and she told us that she had never read it, but that when she was 15 she got baptized!!! hmmmmm...... so that was interesting to learn. So we began to talk to her about why she likes the church, and the things that she knows to be true. She told us that she liked how the church is so focused on families and she likes the values and moral standards that are set. So we are building her testimony off of that! She is really a sweet person, and we know that she wants what's best for her children.


On Saturday we had a lesson with Tiandra, our new investigator. She has been struggling with the Word of Wisdom lately, but she has a daughter that she truly wants to help. Her daughter will talk to her about going to a church, and so Tiandra is striving to find a good church to go to. Her roommate, is Rachel who goes to the YSA ward!! So we are so excited that she gets to participate in the lessons. After we had a lesson with Tiandra, we went to see John. Earlier that day we called the caretaker Renee, and when she answered we asked how she was doing. She told us that she wasn't doing good. We asked why, and she said, "John.... is dying." We were so shocked, that we didn't say anything for a moment. Then we decided to come and see him, even though Renee said that he would be unresponsive. We stopped by to see him, and the hospice nurse who attends 7th ward told us that he would pass away in a couple of days. We walked into his room, and he was sleeping. We decided to say a prayer together with him in the room. Sister Steele and I started to cry as we looked at John's frail body. Sister Steele gave the most beautiful prayer, and the spirit was so strong in the room. It was really hard to say goodbye to John, but we know that he will be a strong missionary on the other side of the veil. I have been truly blessed to know such wonderful people here in Safford, Arizona. I have faced so many challenges in this area, but the Lord has given me so much strength. I know that God is real. I know that He has a plan for all of us. And I know that as we strive to be faithful, and accept God's love for us, we will see who we can become.


I love all of you! I hope you have a wonderful week!



Sincerely,


Sister Lindsay Dunn

Holli - April 25, 2016

Hey Everyone!

Sounds like you all are doing great :) We had a pretty great week this week!
Nothing super crazy happened but we are working hard trying to find
people to teach!

A lot of people here are Armenian so we were walking down the street
one day and we see this little old Armenian lady using only the bottom
of a broom to sweep out her driveway because this huge tree kept
dropping leaves all over the place. We asked if we could help and had
to use body language to communicate because she spoke zip English. So
probably pretty hilarious to all of the drivers as two sister
missionaries start miming sweeping motions. But she let us do a little
bit and then asked if we were Jehovah Witnesses but we clarified and
then she just kept nodding and saying Jesus Christ and smiling. Then
her husband came out and stared at us smiling for a little (he didn't
speak any English either) and then he pulled out his wallet and showed
us pictures of their grandchildren so it was pretty neat! We pulled
out a piece of paper and the lady (Navart) took it and wrote her name,
her husband's name and their phone number so that was pretty sweet . .
And then she wrote all of it again in Armenian haha. They then
invited us in for coffee haha - but they also told us to come back so
we are sending the Armenian elders and hopefully they can teach them
more!

We had interviews with President this week. That was pretty cool. They
were about ten minutes long, so short, sweet, and to the point. So it
was fun!

We were walking down the road the other day and there was a man
sitting on the porch so I urged Sister Colson to contact him and it
went great! His wife and kids go to church but he says he has to worry
about paying the bills so he doesn't have time for that. Super sad.
His son came in halfway through the conversation and said, good luck
trying to get him to go to church. I've tried and now I've just given
up. They then referred us to their neighbor who actually turns out to
be a Jehovah Witness so that was a fun conversation! She was actually
super nice and gave us water and she asked us when we were going to
come back but we didn't think that would be super productive. She kind
of threw a lot of different bibles/pamphlets in our face so that was
fun.

We had some pretty cool tracting experiences the other day. We met
Miles who is this super nice Christian guy and accepted a copy of the
BofM. He told us he had friends who are LDS but they never really ever
talked about their religion - so we got to give him a brief rundown!
Super cool. He told us he wasn't interested in being baptized but he
was super cool.

We also met Samantha and Ryan who are like the sweetest couple ever.
Haha, Samantha answered the door and said a Jehovah Witness had
actually come by earlier that day so they got double duty! But we
briefly talked about the Restoration and we could see the Spirit
working in both of them. It was awesome! Ryan even talked about how he
can feel when something is true or not. But they didn't want to learn
more so it was kind of sad - but we hope one day Heavenly Father will
lead them to the right path!

We have this awesome investigator named Kevin we are working with.
Kind of makes all of the struggles/hardships of mission life worth it.
His stepson Sam actually moved to Logan and came into contact with the
church there and Kevin was so inspired with the change in Sam that he
accepted Sam's invitation to learn about the church from the
missionaries - however he told the missionaries right up front he
wouldn't get baptized. Haha, funny right? ;) But he is the coolest guy
ever and has this great desire to know that Jesus Christ is the Son of
God and have more direction to his life. He came to church yesterday
and the YM took over the program and did such a great job - said a lot
of things Kevin needed to hear.

That's about it for the week! Haha, we were in McDonalds one day
(don't worry, I got a salad . . . And a Mcflurry ) and this lady
comes up to us (Anna) and she sees our tags and then says, "Let me
give you my name and number so in case you need anything, you call me.
I'm a Roman Catholic by faith but I have a few friends who have their
kids out on missions so I know about you guys."

We were so touched by her act of kindness - definitely a great example
of Christ!

I love you all so much and hope you have a wonderful week!

Love, Sister Dunn