HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY WONDERFUL MOTHER!! You're the best, Mom, hope you have an excellent day. Spoil her, everyone. She deserves it ^^

This week was super great. It's been really busy. Yesterday was transfer calls. Elder Taan (one of the Zone leaders) is finishing his mission, and Elder Meza (our district leader) got sent to Guam. So we are getting two new missionaries! Elder Ili, who came out on his mission the transfer after me, will be a new Zone Leader, and Elder Peles, who is a super awesome Pohnpeian missionary who knows a ton of languages. They'll be a good companionship. Elder Jensen is the new District Leader (he's the one singing the song in the video.) Really excited for this zone. Saipan is on fire and well on its way to amazing things!!

We went to the Mermaid last week. It's this old wooden/stone statue by a cave that leaks methane gas, so we couldn't stay long. 

Yesterday we taught this new girl, Shella. She's soooo cool and very prepared. We asked her about God and why she believes in Him. She said it's because he heals us. The whole lesson was super spiritual, and she is really excited to prepare to be baptized. She's pretty busy with soccer and stuff, but we'll try to see her as much as possible. 

I just love all the people I have met on my mission. It's going to be one of the hardest things I've ever done to say goodbye. But not thinking about that yet. Or trying not to. 

Short one this week cuz gotta go get some more stuff done/finishing emailing everyone. Love you all!! Have an excellent week. Keep reading your Book of Mormon EVERY DAY!!!!! It'll help you come closer to Jesus Christ. And pray. We need these things if we want help being guarded from temptation and just all around Heaven's help in our lives. 

Love you all!! Keep your spirits high! Life is so good, as good as you make it =)

Sister Springer

Email #2 Peace in Christ

Hey all. 

Sorry. I realized my last email maybe sounded a little depressing, based on the responses I got. 

This week was rough, not going to lie. But it's not in the calm sea that the disciples saw Christ walking on the water. It was in the storm, with the waves tossing and turning, that Peter showed the faith to leap out of the boat and walk towards Christ. And when he feared, and found himself slipping under the waves, he cried out for help and the Savior was right there to pull him back up. That's how I have felt on my mission, especially this past week. Sometimes in the storms of life, you feel like you are drowning, and you fear you cannot make it. But the Savior is always right there, to bear you up, to save you. All you have to do is call out to him. Saipan's theme song is "Peace in Christ". "When there's no peace on earth, there is peace in Christ. He gives us hope when hope is gone, He gives us strength when we can't go on. He gives us shelter in the storms of life." 

Love you all so much. Stay close to the Savior, because He is the only way you can truly find peace.

Sister Springer

New Friends and Funerals

Hey all!! 

This week has been a little rough, but, thanks to Jesus Christ, I'm still doing pretty great =) 

Started out with exchanges. Sister Kaleopa is so awesome. I helped her a bunch with applying to college. She's going to BYU-Hawai'i. We also got together with the Zone leaders to plan for Zone Conference for this past Saturday. We finished planning our training, but President's flight from Chuuk got delayed so we had to postpone it. Oh well. Maybe it'll happen this week. I know everything happens for a reason, too. For some reason we needed to be out proselyting at that time maybe, or he needed to stay on Chuuk longer. 

This week we found some more people to teach. We realized our teaching pool is pretty big, but because we've been doing so much finding, we haven't gone back to contact a bunch of them. So we'll focus on that this week. Friday we went to an investigators father's funeral... that was pretty sad. It was held in the Mount Caramel Catholic Cathedral. Very different from what I am used to, for sure. Then Saturday a member had a viewing for his wife before he takes her back to the Philippines to bury her. She got hit by a car a while back walking to the store =( He was so devastated. Just looking at him reminded me of that song from Les Mis, "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" "There's a grief that can't be spoken. There's a pain, goes on and on." So sad. 

Church was a little rough. In summary, Emma decided to go to the Korean Church where they speak Chinese so she can understand, because it's just to hard. She knows this Church is the true church, but she cannot understand so it's very difficult to learn more about the Gospel. She still wants to one day be baptized, and she wants to continue to take lessons. One day when her English is better she'll come back here too. Or maybe someday we can have a Chinese branch, so all the Chinese can understand. That'd be super cool!

Well, that's about it for this week. I hope you all have a great week! Don't forget to read the Book of Mormon! Love you all!

Sister Springer

Hike with the youth, sick week, and ski pants

Ni hao men!!!

This week was a super awesome week. I got a lot of extra study time in cuz Sister Jenkins was sick (less awesome) but I was able to finish the Book of Mormon!!! Didn't finish it by the end of the year, but almost. That Book is so true, I love it so much. Now I've started on the Pearl of Great Price and trying to finish Jesus the Christ by the end of my mission. Also started the Book of Mormon again. I'm reading it a little different this time: going through topics in the index and marking the verses I read. We'll see if every scripture is listed in the index. It'll be interesting for sure.

Went on some quick exchanges this week to visit a couple people while Sister Jenkins was resting. I love the people I have been blessed to meet here, so much. It seems like there's been a lot of deaths in this new year, all over the place. If you've had a lost loved one recently, I invite you all to read Alma 40:11-12. (see what I mean about the Book of Mormon being so awesome?)

Emma is still preparing for baptism. Hopefully it'll be in the next week or two. But whenever she is ready and prepared. She is sooooo awesome I love her so much!!! She is pregnant and finds out the gender of the baby soon ^^ Only sad thing is she's due right after I'm supposed to come home =( Maybe the baby will be born on Kalli's birthday though. That'd be cute =)

Went on a hike this morning with the youth. It was so fun!! We hiked from Paupau beach up to suicide cliff and back. Long hike, but soooo fun! And very beautiful! Ya'll would love the scenery here. Just saying.

Funny story: We went to go see Walter and XingJing and Jojo again this week (I love that family, they are so cute!!) and Walter introduced us to his work partner, Matthew. Matthew told us he met a Mormon once. But "maybe it was the wrong timing." He was in Washington in a thrift store looking for ski pants. He saw a man who looked like a worker, so he asked him where the ski pants that were his size were. The man said, "My friend, there is more to your life than ski pants." Then he went into a 15 minute long discussion on the Plan of Salvation. After, Matthew was like, "so.... do you know where the ski pants are or not?" The missionary replied, "After all this time all you want are ski pants?" Hahahahhaha that is soooo funny!!! Missionary approach at it's finest ;) Haha just kidding. 

Well, gotta go. I love you all and I miss you. Keep reading your Book of Mormon!! Don't stop!! Make it a daily must!

Have an excellent week!

Sister Springer

Pictures from Saipan

Quick email!

Hey all! I got like 2 minutes so here goes. 

I was on Guam when I heard about President Monson. I was with Sister Kaleopa and Sister Pokipala. When we heard, we all just went quiet for about 5 minutes. I can only imagine the reunion he had on the other side.... His wife, all those widows he took care of, and of course Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. 

Chuuk had a Chinese Baptism!!!! Elder Anderson was telling me about it (one of the Zone Leaders who has been teaching a couple chinese workers over there) To make it short, as I was talking to him I felt the Spirit so strong. I love Chinese people. The door is now open for her family to get baptized, even in China. (see MormonsandChina.org)

Saturday we had a zone service. I got to light a fire and take care of it! It was like I was camping all over again. Super fun. Thanks for teaching me how to make a fire, Dad! Came in handy. 

That's all I have time for. Sorry. I guess you'll just have to wait for more stories when I get home =p 

Love you all!!!

Sister Springer

More great pictures from Saipan

Happy New Year!!!! XIN NIAN KUAILE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! XIN NIAN KUAILE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just a heads up for all you on the other side of the world... This year is going to be a great one. Started off great =) Just wait til you see the sunrise!! Also, it's a thing on the islands to horn a ton on New Years Day. Listening to people drive by right now, honking their horns like crazy. Better than last year, with the oil drum banging all night haha. "Buttercup Mwau!" (Sorry, my spelling in Pohnpeian is shot now....)

So last night I got 15 minutes of sleep. Whoops. All for good reason!! Stayed up trying to finish the Book of Mormon... Yesterday I started the day in 3 Nephi 5. Made it to Ether! Didn't quite finish. That's ok though. I think I'll back up to Mormon and slow down. Finish by the end of the week though, hopefully. MLC might make it hard, but I'll try. 

At Midnight there was the most beautiful firework show I've ever seen. Sooooo many fireworks!! It was so cool!!! Then we stayed up and cooked breakfast. I slept for 15 minutes, then we packed up at 5ish and drove up to Mount Tapachau (Top-A-chow), where we did a rededication for the island as the sun rose for the first time this year. It was a super powerful spiritual experience. I am so excited! This year is going to be an excellent year! Heavenly Father is truly preparing the hearts of the people. 

There is sooo much that happened this week, I don't really know where to start or stop. Maybe I'll tell you about one powerful lesson we had, and sum up the rest. 

Sister Jenkins and I went to teach AJ. For once, there was only a couple kids running around. So we sat down on the grass and started the lesson. AJ started saying stuff like, "Has anyone in your family ever commited suicide?" Then he ran off cuz he heard something in the jungle. When he came back he told us he wanted to follow Satan and wanted us to tell him about Satan. So we did. We told him about the war in Heaven and how Satan wanted to take away our agency and then we fought against him and he was cast out. We told AJ that he fought alongside Jesus Christ. Everyone on the earth did. By the end he was really excited and wanted to follow Jesus Christ and fight against Satan. He said he wants to stop chewing betelnut so Satan can't control him so much. He asked us if he was actually older than us. We said maybe. He asked if he knew us. I felt prompted to say yes, and we came down to earth before him but before we left, he told us we had to come find him and help him to know the Gospel. It was such a powerful lesson. I love that kid so much, that whole family! 

CW-1 is the license people get to work here. Because of that there are so many people separated from their families. It's so sad. But I was talking to the 2nd counselor, Brother Fred, whose family is in the Philipines and his son is on a mission. He showed me pictures of skyping with his son, and pictures at the temple when they got sealed earlier this year. It's so cool, the knowledge that we have that families can be together forever. It helps when you are separted from family and loved ones for so long. 

The Benson's son and his family came this week! We are so excited because the son, Tyler, served his mission in Taiwan. Translation for church!! Help with the language!! Member Present for life!! Haha Just kidding. Kind of. We're really excited ^^

Quote from Sunday: "You don't come to church to see the short comings of others.... This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ." This new year, think of what you desire most in life. Focus on what's most important. Focus on Jesus Christ. I promise as you do, you will find happiness, both in this life and in the world to come. 

I love you all so much! Happy New Year!! If you're like me and don't believe in New Years Resolutions,

Sister Springer

Pics: Don't have time to explain all of them, but that bowl of white icy stuff is a Philipino dessert called Halo-halo.