Transfered to JOHNS CREEK, GA & Now the Sister Training Leader

Hi Family! This week has been a bit crazy so lets start with Monday... Monday morning study was great stress level was normal but ill say it was at about a 2 because excitement for transfer calls... then i found out that president wanted me to be a sister training leader in roswell with sister hamilton as my comp... stress level is now at a 5...  we spent the rest of the day emailing cleaning and i packed... yay! Tuesday was bitter sweet.. today i said my good byes to the people whom i have grown to love. But i was able to bare testimony to each of them of Christ and so the spirit was with us all day long... i was able to commit one of our less active members who absolutely refuses to step foot into a church building to come for my farewell fireside in February... long way out i know, but she said she would come and see me off then... thus stepping foot inside a church building.... plus i KNOW that she won't be able to leave that building without feeling the spirit. so that will be great for her! I was able to get a priesthood blessing from the bishop which helped to calm my nerves and give me some comfort and counsel from my Heavenly Father! I needed that! i love that heavenly father allows worthy men to hold and use this power.. it truly is a blessing in my life! i know my Heavenly Father loves me because he allows for his priesthood to be here on the earth today! by now my Stress Level is a 3! Wednesday... TRANSFER DAY... dun dun dun... i was surprisingly calm, sister hamilton showed up at the church building at about 8:30 we said good bye to our comps and headed out for johns creek. the apartment is super cute and the nicest apartment ive lived in so far... the ward sounds amazing and so missionary minded! we taught met a less active man, he was the first person i met here in johns creek... and he is great, he is retired, but his wife works so he is at home all day by himself and he gets lonely so we talked with him. he is an old rancher and LOVES to deer hunt! he told us all kinds of stories! He is very familiar with Idaho cuz that is where he likes to hunt! I liked having someone to talk to about home! He invited us back on Saturday to help him paint his house! then we went and taught some of "our"now progressing investigators and i found out just how amazing sister hamilton is and figured out what all i lack!  Then the rest of the week has defiantly been humbling. i've felt like ive taken a step back about 7 months and im back to that scared little missionary that struggled through her days. My companion is amazing she is such a great teacher and even though i am technically the "senior" companion i still feel far far inferior to her... it's been a struggle. I ve found myself wondering if ive even learned anything from the past 10 months... my faith is defiantly being tried and Satan is there at every turn to capitalize on my insecurities. Ive defiantly spent a few nights crying myself to sleep. but finally i told heavenly father that i refused to go back to the place that i was in, in the first three months of my mission. I am not going to go back there. i can't go back there. if i do, what i've learned would all be for nothing! So i have taken the things i have learned from that struggle and i have tried earnestly to apply them to this situation... i find myself doing a lot of positive self talk and also just praying silently to my Father to get me through this struggle. ive had to really be patient with myself, this is certainly hard to do, but if ive learned anything, i've learned that it is not impossible. Ive learned that faith is Christ will get us through anything! ive spent the last 10 months telling and testifying of this to people in suwanee and lilburn and now i am again having to put it to the test her in Johns Creek! My stress level from Wednesday to now has been far above a 10... and we haven't even started our duties as STLs... if i don't die because of this it will be a miracle! ha ha!  Oh and we also found out that not only are we over the Roswell zone, but we also take in the lilburn zone too... that is 16 sisters we take care of, teach and train... oh boy... im pretty sure the Lord has called me here to be the one to get trained, because i hardly feel like i can help these sisters... they are already so amazing.. they will probably train me! in fact, i know they will train me! i really am the lucky one... i get to learn form all these great sisters!

Well family, how is the reading going? i know it's alot of Isaiah chapters and they are hard to make any sense of... well at least they are for me... yall my not have problems with them... but what i like to do is pick out little bits and pieces that stick out to me... like this morning for instance... in 2 nephi 13 i only highlighted a few verses :10 "Say unto the righteous that it will be well with them; for they will eat the fruit of their doing" The reward for the righteous will be sweet , but the reward for the wicked will be bitter... i don't know about yall, but if i have to eat the fruit of my works... i want it to taste good....

:13 and 14 This is what i got out of it. this is just my opinion...  i loved it because it talks of how christ will judge us... but first he pleads for us and then he joins with the prophets and apostles, bishops and stake presidents etc. all the judges in israel to judge us... we will have panel of judges so to speak to help plead our cause, not people who don't know us, but people we have worked with and who love us... we have such a loving Heavenly Father who wants to give us all the possible chances for success that he can... ive learned a bit about the way heavenly father loves us as i have pondered and thought about the kind of STL i want to be... Heavenly Father loves us perfectly and he never does anything to benefit himself... everything he does is for the benefit of his children... and that is what i want to emulate as i interact with these sisters... i want to help them love their missions as much as i love mine, i want to help them strengthen their testimonies in their savior i want to help them experience the powers of the atonement for themselves... i want to love them like i know that my Father in Heaven loves me... i really am excited for this opportunity to serve these sisters... but that only makes me stress out more... because i want to be the best STL that Heavenly Father wants to make me!     

Keep reading the book of mormon... i know it will help to strengthen you as you struggle with things in your life. the scriptures hold the answers to our prayers and will help us strengthen our faith Jacob 4:6. If you want to speak with your heavenly father... pray... if you want heavenly father to speak to you... read your scriptures... i know this is true... God does speak to his children through his holy scriptures.. i have found this to be true here on my mission. am i the best at applying it...no, but i know it's true and i know that through the atonement of my savior Jesus Christ, i can be cleansed and perfected... i love this Gospel and i love my savior. well family, wish me luck this week. i love you all

love
Sister Dannika Nielsen

there is no comfort inside a growth zone, but there is no growth inside a comfort zone.

Oh boy, where do i start...

First off how is your reading going! i hope you are enjoying it as much as i am! i love telling people about this challenge! it makes me feel so good to know that my family and friends are reading along with me! The bom is the greatest book i've ever read... and ive learned so much from this book. it truly is the word and works of God!
Monday was pretty fun! we went to stone mountain... we couldn't hike all the way to the top because of sister cefalo's toe... but we just walked around the park and looked at all the different things there... it is a REALLY neat park and we didn't even scratch the surface of all there is to do there... because there is so much... and because as missionaries we can't really afford it... ha ha. but we did get to watch a glass blowing demonstration... that was pretty neat!

Tuesday we had a loaves and fishes experience ha ha... we planned a picnic that was supposed to be between our district (the four of us) but because we ate outside on the picnic tables at the church the whole zone saw us an came and joined... there were like 18-20 missionaries that we didn't plan for... but between the four of us there was 2 loaves of bread and our elders brought lots of different kinds of lunch meat... a member sent us home with 2 cases of soda one night so we brought that and we had cookies that we brought and chips... and miraculously there was enough for our whole zone to join us... ha ha it was kinda fun! it did make our cupboards bare for the week, so we have been living off of ramen noodles.. ha ha ! 

Later that evening i found out that i am gonna be a "grandma" sister cefalo is training! She is super excited about that!

Wednesday was pretty busy we were dong service pretty much all day long for different members in the ward and then before we went to the ward mingle we saw a potential investigator that we met through an interesting way. we were tracting one day and we saw this family in their yard doing yard work so we asked if we could help and they said yes not really expecting us (in our skirts) to jump in and help, but when we did they were very surprised! we were helping then pick up leaves and we got to talk to them a little bit and they were just so suprised that we would just offer to help when we didn't even know them... we told them we would come back the next week and help them with other things if the wanted us to... and again they were more and more suprised and asked who we were... so we told them and left them with our card and an invite to church!

anyway, we went back to see them and only the wife Tina was home.. she opened the door and was so excited to see us she let us right in and told us that she had been thinking about us. She wanted to come to church but didn't make it because of some health reasons... but she said that we could come back and share the lessons with her family! We prayed with her and got her phone number to set up a time to meet with her! She is super sweet, i have a feeling she might take some time though... she is a preachers daughter! But the lord softens people's hearts and he performs miracles so who am i to judge! 

Thursday we went to the New Trainer meeting for sister cefalo, and i met with the assistants in another meeting! what a great meeting that was! The spirit was so strong and i left felling energized and ready to work! I love feeling the spirit!

We spent the day doing more service and then we went visiting teaching with some ladies in the ward who have less active sisters they teach... the first sister we met was really great and im so glad that we got to meet her! she works a a nurse so her hours are CRAZY and they keep her from church unfortunately... but she is great. she had a guinea pig named percy and she let me hold him.. he is a funny little thing... and she absolutely LOVES him... she found out that i worked in a vet clinic so she asked if i knew anything about guinea pigs... so i employed my limited knowledge that i have about guinea pigs and was able to put her mind at ease about a few things like bathing her pig... she asked if we would come over and help her bathe percy on monday because she was afraid that he would drown... i told her that guinea pigs are actually excellent swimmers... and i agreed to come help her bathe percy... you know me.. i can't pass up an opportunity to be around the critters.. ha ha!

the second sister we met with is really great too... gosh i just meet so many great people!

ha ha bu she also works as a nurse and her hours keep her from church...but that was her own doing.. she became offended and picked up hours on sunday... but she knows that she needs to come back... we sat and visited with her and then i asked her if we could come back and go through the missionary lessons with her... she was so excited... and she told us that we were more than welcome to come back and teach! woohoo exciting stuff happening... so if i do leave Lilburn on wednesday, then sister cefalo can use that to help train her greenie! 

Friday was pretty uneventful just weekly planning and tracting and dropped appointments... ehh it happens!

Saturday was very much the same

Sunday was great, i always learn so much from the lessons and love the spirit that is there, it helps me to really recharge and get ready for another week! We ate with the bishop that night and had a pretty powerful lesson with them as we explained the month of consecration... it was great...

i have a feeling that i may be leaving lilburn, but i don't want to get to set on that because last time i thought i was leaving and i ended up staying...

Well here we are...its monday and we transfer calls today... and this morning during personal study i got a personal call from President Wolfert... telling me that he had a special assignment for me... uh oh!

He told me that the Lord has chosen me to be a Sister Training Leader over one of the zones here in the mission.... *gulp* i cried a little when he extended the call, because there is so much that the STL's are responsible for... not only training and exchanging with all the sisters in their zones, but also giving trainings at leadership and zone conferences... oh boy... they are to keep a radiant proselyting area and be the example to other missionaries... yikes... im not so sure that the lord wants someone like me to be an example for his missionaries.... im not by any stretch of the imagination good at this missionary thing... i do alright, but there are so many more sisters that are more qualified for this calling than i am. of course i can only see my limitations, but even my abilities i don't think are that great! But with all of this, ive learned a thing or two about trusting in the Lord and i can't turn my back now... i know what happens when i place my trust in Him and move forward in faith... he magnifies my abilities and makes me equal to my calling... i know he will do the same with this calling. i trust him completely, that is why i accepted the call, but i am still scared and satan isn't making it any easier on me. As i have read the bom this time through i have really come to admire Nephi... his faith... his courage and his trust in the Lord... so i will go and do like Nephi and i KNOW my faith will be strengthened. This is hard, but i can do hard things and this will put me one step further outside my comfort zone, but i've learned here on my mission that there is no comfort inside a growth zone, but there is no growth inside a comfort zone. and it is when i have been outside my comfort zone completely, that i have learned some of life's most valuable lessons and i wouldn't change it for the world! I thank my heavenly father for giving me hard things to do... and i am grateful that he has helped me do them. I can't even begin to tell you what my mission means to me... am so glad i decided to serve.

Family, have a great week i love you all so much and keep up the good work, reading the Book of Mormon!

your loving and favorite sister missionary 
Sister Dannika Nielsen

I witnessed again the Lord use me as an instrument to comfort one of his most precious, but struggling daughters

Hey y'all...

Well you should have hit some of the first Isaiah chapters in the Book of Mormon this past week... cuz I did... and honestly, I still struggle to understand it all and I struggle to pay attention...oops  Look at what we have accomplished... we are almost done with 1 Nephi!!! Family, I am so happy that yall have taken on my challenge, I literally feel connected to yall as I read my chapter each morning because I know that somewhere in your day yall will read the same chapter.

This morning as I struggled to read chapter 21 I came across :16 Behold I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. I love this verse because Christ will never forget us... it makes me think of the verses in the 11th chapter of 3nephi where Christ invites people to feel the prints of the nails in his hands and feet.... none of us were there or got to feel the prints, but we are still invited to come and feel... every time we open the scriptures, or we pray, or go to church and take the sacrament... we can feel the prints of the nails in his hands... as we experience the spirit bare witness to us that he is the Christ and that he really did atone for us! I have truly come to love the book of Mormon... it truly is another testament of Jesus Christ!    

Well this week was kind of uneventful... nothing to exciting sorry.

Monday night we ate dinner at the stake president's home (president and sister frost. you actually should have gotten a pic from sister frost). They are such a great family! I love they so much! I want to be just like Sister Frost when I grow up! (we all know I have a lot of that left to do) She is such a great woman! I really do look up to her!

Tuesday we had meetings and sister Cefalo had a Dr. appointment for her toe... she was told that she no longer needed the crutches and that she could walk on it! wow! what a miracle! we did some tracting that evening and met a lady who strongly encouraged us to read the bible, because it says that no other words should be added to it... and she told us that salvation only comes through the savior... as if we didn't already know... Duh! she wasn't a very nice lady... we met a man who said he thought it was great what we were doing, but then he said "but do it somewhere else"... huh... not so many nice people it was a bit discouraging... we tracted for a while and got nothing... I hate when that happens.

Wednesday was not that great either... all of our appointments fell through and so we did a lot of tracting that day too... no one wanted to listen :( we did meet a old southern Baptist lady and she straight up told us... you cant change me now, and then she continued to talk to us.... she just wanted someone to chat with... ehhh this finding the elect is hard work! We had a ward hotdog bbq and it poured rain (and I mean poured!!) the entire time so we all sat under the pavilion and visited with one another no one was brave enough to venture out into the rain... the thunder and lightening was very close and very loud... I of course LOVED it but my comp wasn't sharing my same feelings! we went out on a team up with a sister who had served her mission in Norway! and she said that just being with us visiting less active after less active and not getting anywhere reminded her of her mission and she wants to come with us again and do some tracting!

Thursday...we met up with one of our ward missionaries who is... less active due to health and we talked with her and she said that she wants to teach us how to crochet... she even let us pick out an afgan pattern... :) im super duper excited!

we met with a former investigator and tried hard to explain the book of Mormon to him, but he still only thinks it is a good book that only re teaches what the bible does ... and yes it is all of those things, but he doesn't understand the importance to the book and it's being true... if it is true then so is the Mormon religion... etc. we tried to explain it, but we really didn't get anywhere... we gave him a chapter to read and we will see him again this week!

Friday was eaten up by weekly planning... and it again poured rain... worse than Wednesday... there was a small lake forming on the main road outside our apartment complex... you could seriously take a canoe and row through this thing... it was super awesome!

Saturday we met with Sunshine and Tracy (sunshine's mom) we discussed the book of Mormon, and faith and Christ. Sister Mason has such great faith and she is such a wonderful woman! she thanked us for teaching Sunny and then she said "I had asked God to get sunny, but he also got me in the process." She has been less active for years, but with sunny wanting to get baptized it helped her realize that she needed to be back in church and she is making an effort to come back... she has been there the past two weeks! yay! I love seeing less active members come back to church... She thanked us, but I told her that it was us that needed to thank her... I always feel so much better when I am helping others.... it's funny how that happens! My testimony has defiantly grown while teaching sunny and I was so glad her mom allowed it to happen! we hare hoping to meet brother mason soon and see if Destiny (the son) wants to take the lessons as well... I can just see this family going to the temple and being sealed as an eternal family. Baptism really isn't the end goal for us missionaries... sure it is A goal, but only a step toward the real goal that we have for people... which is the temple and a life of activity in the gospel! I pray that the lord will soften destiny's heart like he has his mothers and we can begin teaching him!

Sunday was fun! I was asked to say the opening prayer in sacrament! and one of the young men in the ward gave his farewell talk! it is so fun to see people get ready to leave for their missions... we have two more young men getting ready to leave here soon as well... one of them is the Stake President's son! its so exciting for them!! after church we met with a sister that we are working with... she wanted to meet right after church in the relief society room... this was unexpected so we didn't have anything planned.. we hadn't even studied for the day yet since church was at 8:30... but we just sat with her and listened to the things that were going on in her life... she has been struggling with some issues with her non member husband and so she loves having lessons from us because she says she always feels the spirit and she feels better... I know how she feels... I hate days when it's hard for whatever reason to feel the spirit.. but anyway we just listened to her and she talked about how she would read scripture with her boys at night to put them to bed... and how her boys were remembering the stories... and while she was telling us this a scripture came to my mind ... I didn't know the exact reference but I knew that I wanted to tell her about the stripling warriors and how their mothers taught them the gospel so I looked up stripling warriors in the index and found it ! gotta love the index!... I sat and pondered this scripture for a bit to see what it was that I needed to say and if it was indeed the scripture I needed to share... and everything she continued to tell us just made it more clear to me that... yes it was the scripture that the lord wanted her to hear... I still had no idea what I was going to say but when I opened my mouth... the words came and comforted her perfectly... I witnessed again the Lord use me as an instrument to comfort one of his most precious, but struggling daughters... how blessed am I! I Love this work! l love the miracles that I get to witness every day... sometimes I really have to search for them on days that aren't that great, but they are always there! I am so glad that I decided to stay and serve my Father. I would have missed out on so much learning and growth... I wouldn't trade the last 10 months of my life for anything! This really is a great and marvelous work... and not just for the people we are sharing the gospel with... but this work strengthens and edifies even the laborer... God really is great!

We are going to stone mountain today... but we can't hike to the top because of sister cefalo's toe... she can walk on it, but I don't think a hike up a granite mountain would be the best for it... so we are just gonna hike around the mountain on some of the trails.. it should be fun... and hopefully when we come back out here as a family we can hike to the top!!

Well family I love you and hope that you are having a good week ill talk to you soon!
Sister Dannika Nielsen

conversion is not a one time event... it is a life long quest to become like the savior.

Some things learned from the Book of Mormon Challenge  Hmmm... well laman and lemuel... when their father told them of the things he saw in the vision they didn't understand, because they took no thought to ask... but nephi on the other hand went to the lord and asked to be shown the things his father saw and to know the meaning... I wish I could have the faith of nephi... Nephi is one of my favorite Book of Mormon heroes! he has such great faith, but im certain it wasn't always like that, he had to work at it... and that is the key... WORK... we can't just give up every time we don't understand something, we have to believe and trust that the lord will answer in his own time. That is hard for me sometimes to understand especially when I want something now... but growing our faith is a process that takes a lifetime and im sure on through the eternities. I went on an exchange with some sisters before they left to the Atlanta mission... and in their apartment was a saying that I absolutely love " conversion is not a one time event... it is a life long quest to become like the savior." this is so true! on my mission I have discovered a lot, but I have defiantly come to know that a testimony and our faith can be amazingly strong, but they can also be weakened to the point of nothing if we don't constantly "yield to the enticing's of the holy spirit" I have met people with incredible testimonies and then learned all that they have gone through to make their testimonies what they are.. and it isn't just a onetime thing for them, but a life time of constant repentance and exercising of faith. I have also met people who used to have great testimonies... but due to events in their lives they turn away and become bitter and hateful toward the church... these are the kind of people I do not want to become! I loved the talk that Jeffery R Holland gave in this last april conference! he invites us to act on the faith that we do have, however little it may be... even if we don't know things for sure, but we believe they are true, a belief is enough. act on that belief and our Father will help grow that belief into faith and that faith into knowledge...

I wish we could only just believe!

         

we love your daughter!

Dear Nielsen Family,

 I need to tell you how much we love your daughter! She has been in our home several times.

She always is happy and brings the light of Christ with her. She is wonderful and our family wants to thank you for preparing and supporting such a great  young woman to serve a mission. We are blessed that The Lord sent her here.

 Sincerely,

Brother and Sister Frost

I got this email today in my email at work....What a wonderful beginning to the morning. I am so touched when people take the time to contact us and tell us that dannika is doing well...It makes the time go by a little quicker.

I love the Lord!

Hey Family!

Glad to hear that you are all still reading the book of Mormon I am noticing so many more things this time through as well! that is great that you are going to give a BOM to your friend! and as for Kristi, you are absolutely right... all you can do is invite her and then let her use god given right of agency to chose what she wants... testify to her and then let her choose... in Preach my gospel is says that you can know that you are a successful missionary when you feel the spirit bare testimony through you...  

Well I guess your ward could be meeting at 8:30 like our ward here in Lilburn meets... It could be worse... It could ALWAYS be worse.

 I am glad to hear all that you are learning from reading the book of mormon. Please keep sending things that you are learning... I need some inspiration.... this past week was a struggle... I told you about sister cefalo's  toe... well turns out that the rest of our p day on Monday was spent in the ER... the mission doc ordered her to the ER to have it looked at and turns out... it's broken! yep... so they put her on pain killers and antibiotics... and they made her violently ill and so the rest of the week we didn't leave the apartment much at all... talk about cabin fever... then we spent 4th of july evening in the ER again because the antibiotic she was on gave her and infection...(we did get to see some fireworks on the drive home from the ER... silver lining) so needless to say, not a whole lot got done this week and boy did Satan have a hay day with that... I felt miserable all week because we couldn't get out and work, and Satan really made me feel awful about it!

Saturday was better though... sister cefalo was feeling a tiny bit better so I kind of took advantage of it... I didn't push her more than she was willing to push herself though. we went to visit a sister in an assisted living facility. as we made our way to her place I felt sort of uneasy about visiting her... I felt that our time could be used better elsewhere... so I told sister cefalo about what I was thinking and then we decided to go to the park that was near this sisters place and we met a really great couple and we were able to visit with them, and they asked us what the difference was between our church and theirs... so we explained the authority and prophets, but the real miracle happened when I pulled out the extra copy of the book of Mormon I had grabbed from the car before we set out. I told them that the book of Mormon was something else that set us apart from other Christian faiths... then out of nowhere... well not nowhere it was defiantly by the spirit I told them that the book of Mormon could help answer the three questions that all humans ask themselves... where did I come from, why am I here and where am I going? when I said this, the girl asked us... well do you believe in heaven and hell? the spirit took over as I opened my mouth and told her just a bit about the plan of salvation... the spirit accompanied my words and I knew that she felt something! she said she would read the book of Mormon and pray about it! it felt so good to have the spirit bare testimony through me, because I hadn't had the opportunity to feel that very often this week! this is one of my favorite feelings in the world... I knew that what the spirit put into my mind, was what this daughter of god needed to hear! unfortunately they were from south Carolina... but I know that she not only heard some truth but she felt it too... hopefully she will act on those feelings!

Sunday we went over to a sisters home in the ward... she is struggling with some custody issues with her daughter so we went over there to visit with her and I honestly had no idea what we would share with her, but as I just listened to her, the words a scripture kept coming to my mind so I shared it... I had no idea what I was going to say about this scripture, but I just opened my mouth and the spirit was there to back me up and the spirit was so strong as I told her that the savior was with her every step of the way and that he knew how she felt. and then the sister that came with us also bore testimony and it was so perfect! I hope it helped her to feel some comfort. it was a great experience though. it helped me to strengthen my faith in the promise that the spirit will fill our mouths if we follow it's promptings... this is so amazing, I love the experiences I get to have out here. I am realizing what it really means to have the gift of the holy ghost as a constant companion... I am able to realize when I feel the spirit and the situations in which I don't... my entire mood changes... I am a bit on the grumpy/depressed side when I don't have the spirit with me... and I am getting better at being able to consciously realize what the problem is and ask my heavenly father for help and work to change it... like Tuesday for instance... we had district meeting and I wasn't feeling the spirit I was a bit depressed and I let it get the better of me for a while, but then I finally realized what was happening so I said a quick prayer and I asked heavenly father to help me to change my attitude, and give me an opportunity to bare testimony and feel the spirit... almost immediately my district leader called on me to comment on some things and I felt the spirit while I testified of things and then I felt the spirit as another missionary bore their testimony! it was great! I love the Lord!

Well family I hope you are having a great week and I hope that you had an awesome 4th! I love and miss yall

LOVE     

Lord has promised blessings for reading and studying His words

Well family, it's been a week since i invited y'all to read with me in the book of mormon! How is it going... we should all be in the 7th chapter of 1Nephi! I really hope y'all are able to do this! The Lord has promised blessings for reading and studying His words, not the least of which is a greater relationship with Him and His Son! I know this is true I've experienced it and seen it in the lives of others! Please share with me what you are learning! I am recognizing more things this time through that i didn't before! I love that the same words can being different insight and inspiration each time i read it! 

Last Monday after i emailed y'all we had lesson that night with Sunshine, we taught her the 10 commandments and it was a wonderful lesson. Sister Cefalo and i taught in perfect harmony and the spirit was really strong. While sister Cefalo would teach i would pray silently that she would be given the words that the Lord wanted sunshine to hear. every time i would do this, she would always say something that the spirit would confirm was for sunshine and the spirit would fill the room, and i felt so much love for sister cefalo and i was proud of her! then i would begin teaching and we were able to go back and forth flawlessly! it was a great lesson, one in which the spirit was very much a part... we have struggled in the past to teach in better unity, but we have gotten better as the weeks went on. but this day we were able, with the help of the spirit, to teach beautifully! it was a really neat experience! 

Tuesday we participated in a mission fast! We are doing a month of consecration for all of July... where we push ourselves to be more diligent and obey with exactness and really consecrate our whole selves to the work. so in preparation for this we fasted. (we started today and can i just say, i can already feel the adversary working... my whole mission ive never had a hard time getting out of bed at 6:30 every morning. but this morning i had a really hard time... i was still out of bed, but when the alarm went off i was really tempted to hit snooze and fall back to sleep. dang satan... i hate that guy!)

Anyway so we fasted all day on Tuesday and i was fine, the lord really did sustain us... but the again Satan tempted us... we had two out of the blue phone calls from restaurants with the wrong number telling us that they had our orders ready for delivery... of course this would happen today while we were fasting... ha ha! but how weird is that!?

Wednesday we taught the restoration to a family from Guatemala and we had to have someone come along to translate it into Spanish... that was interesting... the reason we had to do thins was because the Spanish branch that meets ion our building doesn't have a set of missionaries... so their branch president asked if we could come teach them... we are seeing them again tomorrow... it is an interesting experience for sure.

Thursday we had lunch with (opera lady), we call her Ro! she is from New York and has a sweet accent! ha ha it is so fun to listen to her talk. we went to the park here in lilburn and had a little bbq with her and some friends she invited. they are really great people! we were able to tell them about what we do as missionaries and answered some questions. we are hoping to be able to set something up with them again and maybe see if they would be interested in learning more! But Ro is an incredible woman, she has fostered 55 children over the years.. she has so much love to give. I really hope to be able to teach her too! 

Friday was.... interesting! we spent much of the day planning as we usually do, we went visiting teaching with some sisters in our ward then took a late lunch. during our lunch we decided to move the couch that is in one of the bedrooms out into the living room... we discovered that it was a hide-a-bed ... when we tipped up to fit it through the door, the bed fell out and landed on sister cefalo's toe! it split her toenail open and it started to bleed like mad! she screamed and hurried to the bathroom where it bled all over the floor! she sat and sobbed, and gagged went into shock...and i hurried and got a cool wet towel to put on her forehead so she wouldn't pass out ...then i cleaned up the blood... she would hardly let me touch it to clean it so i gave her some pain reliever all the while she is wailing in pain! finally the bleeding started to slow so i helped her to her bed and we propped it up to slow the bleeding some more. i couldn't really do more to help... so i just had to let her settle down and she finally did as her toe stopped throbbing... but then i had to bandage it because we had to go to the church for Sunshine's baptismal interview... i tried toe bandage it as gently as i could, but just the thought of me being anywhere near her toe sent her into another fit of hysterics... i felt so bad... but it had to be done... i got it bandaged let her set for a bit before we left... she calmed down... but then i had to change the bandage before we left because it had bled through... and that sent her into another fit... but i finally got it changed and we went to the church for the interview... 

while we waited for the interview to get done, there was a crazy awesome wind and thunderstorm that blew through! it was incredible! 

Sunshine did great in her interview as we knew she would! now she is ready for baptism! YAY!                   

Saturday i went to centerville, the next area over for an exchange and on of the centerville sisters came to lilburn with sister cafalo...

we did service all day long in centerville... it was great! we helped a couple move and then we went and cleaned up debris that was left after the storm yesterday! it was fun! we worked together with the centerville elders and had it done in no time. i got a blister from raking so much stuff out of people's yards... i think ill live though . I found a tiny toad but it wouldn't hold still long enough for me to kiss it! . No one would hold it not even the elders... they were all freaked out by it ha ha elders are wussies!! ha ha jk 

Sunday we had a BAPTISM!!! We were so blessed to have a baptism! We had to scramble a bit when the person who was supposed to be performing the baptism had an emergency at home so he had to leave last minute, and we had to quickly find someone who could go home and get their white clothes and do the baptism.... we had one of the priests do it... he did such an awesome job. I never think to ask priest to baptize people... i forget that they can do that... but some of the best baptisms ive been to have been when an aaronic priesthood holder perform the ordinance! there is just something about it that i just love. 

Well family! i hope that you all have a good week! I love you so much!

LOVE 

Sister Dannika Nielsen