Week 78 - Final Mission Blog

Dear Family and Friends,

This past week as truly been AMAZING!

Our three beautiful investigators were all baptized and confirmed. What joy I felt as I saw them enter into a covenant with God. As they all bore testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel and of this gospel my heart was so touched by the Spirit. This is a new journey for them and they are ready to follow in Christ's footsteps.

As I reflect on these last 18 months of this INCREDIBLE journey, my heart is just so full. Full of love and gratitude. This is as been an amazing journey, I will never forget the experiences I've had and felt, the people I've met and the lives I've helped change.

This is Christ's church and I am so happy to be a part of it! The Gospel brings me so much joy and happiness and that's what Heavenly Father wants for His children. He has given us His son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. He lives. He atoned for our pains, sickness, shortcomings and sins. He knows how to heal and comfort us. His priesthood has been restored to the earth. Joseph Smith really did see God the Father and His son, Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ and is the word of God. It has changed my life and I know it changes others.

As I close this chapter, I can honestly say my mission has enhanced my life. My gospel knowledge has deepened and my testimony has grown. My mission is just a springboard for what lies ahead.

I love you all! I can't wait to see you!

Love,

Sister Olszowka

Week 77

Hey! Hi family!

All is well with me and Sister Dean! This week has passed so quickly! We've been super busy! But that's what missionary work is about, working hard and bringing soul to Christ!

Monday - We went to South Jordan to visit some FABULOUS members that I love dearly, Sister Swain ended up coming too. Then as a District we went to the Aquarium, the Elders hadn't gone so we went and it was SOOO MUCH FUN! We saw lots of fish and just had a good time together.

Tuesday - A busy day with lots of teaching appointments.

Wednesday - I went to my LAST Missionary Leadership Council (MLC) meeting, it was bittersweet. I've been serving as a Sister Training Leader since last March and I will miss the direct counsel and guidance from President Chambers. It's been a wonderful experience to serve as a leader and train others.

Thursday - I had my LAST zone Conference. The doctrine discuss was AMAZING! We talked about the law of the fast and fast offerings. Also all departing missionaries bear their testimony at the close of the meeting and guess who was first?! yes! ME! It was brief since we had 12 others sharing their testimony as well. I said something like this...."as a Kindergarten teacher, one of my greatest joys is seeing my students, learn and grow, as a missionary I've experienced a greater joy as I see investigators learn, grow and progress in the gospel, and I think Heavenly Father feels the same way when He sees His children, learn, grow and progress....my mission experience has enhance my life, I'm so grateful for the opportunity I've had to serve and be a part of the BEST mission and serve under the leadership of the BEST Mission President...I am grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ, I know His Atonement is real. The Priesthood is real and has been restored to the earth today....I have a strong testimony of the Book of Mormon, it is the word of God and it's for us to learn, to grow and to progress...."

Friday - I went on my LAST exchange with the Sisters, I was with Sister Burrows, she's from England and I helped work her area. 

Saturday - We went to Temple Square with our investigator, Annie who will be baptized this coming Saturday. She's so amazing and wonderful. She really had a good experience on the Square especially at the Christus statue. 

Sunday - All our investigators made it to church! YES! Sunday is my favorite day because we get to be in church practically ALL day! I love learning more and just feeling the Spirit.

So yes, there's my week in a nutshell. 

This is my LAST full week as a missionary and it's so hard to believe that 18 months has come and gone. I'm just so excited to see our investigators be baptized this weekend, it will truly be a wonderful experience to see them enter into a covenant with our Heavenly Father and follow the example of our Savior Jesus Christ.

I love you all! Have a blessed week!

Keep smiling!

Sister Olszowka

Week 76

Hello!!! Gosh! So much has happened this week!

I have really no time today to write a length email, we're headed to South Jordan in just a few minutes to see some of my favorite people before I leave.

But hmmm...here's a recap in a nutshell.

Last Monday we took a set of Sisters to Scheels, it's like Cabelas. There's a Ferris wheel that we took a ride on and a whole bunch of animals to take pictures with, it was WAY FUN! These Sisters don't have a car and are the only Sisters in their zone so we got permission to hang out with them on P-day.

Wednesday, we took our investigator, Bailey to Temple Square on Wednesday! It was AMAZING! I love it there. She's LOVED it as well! She's so excited to be baptized! There's a picture of us, her and Lexi a sister from the ward.

Thursday, we had a Sisters Training Meeting with all of the Sisters in the mission. It was great to see everyone. I trained the Sisters about having a positive mindset and attitude. Sometimes discouragement can get to us, but we need to remember why we're here serving missions; we're here to SERVE the Lord and help His children receive salvation and eternal life! It's not about us, it's helping others! We all got roses and cookies after, it was nice.

Friday, we took our recent convert to the Draper Temple to do baptisms for the dead. It was so amazing to be there and be with her. I love the temple! She's doing great and even received a calling!

Sunday is always my favorite day! We went to church and all our investigators came as well! We had lots of lessons to wrap up the night.

So! It was a great week! I'm SPRINTING to end of my mission. Blessings are being poured out left and right! Again, I'm so happy to be here and serve. I'm grateful for the gospel and the happiness, peace and direction I feel.

I love you ALL!! I see you all in 16 days!!! CRAZY!!!

Sister Olszowka

Week 75

Hello! Hello! :)

My heart is just so full of gratitude. So full I tell you. I am so thankful for the opportunity to serve my Heavenly Father. I am so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love the Savior. I have truly felt the prompting of the Spirit. I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to see people change. Gosh, I am just so happy!

This week as been such a busy week! Seriously, I don't think I've ever worked so hard, but I've LOVED it! I think I mentioned to someone the other day, I miss school and the pressure of getting things done. Haha! Anyways! But yes! We’ve been busy! We have three investigators progressing toward baptismal dates. One for Feb. 6th and two on Feb. 7th. They are doing GREAT! We’re taking them to Temple Square in the coming weeks. They all came to church and really enjoyed it. We're just so happy and excited for them.

Lately in my emails I've talked a lot about baptism. In in Bible, in the book of John, we read, "Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." (John 3:5) We need to be baptized and we need to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost sanctifies us, purifies us. Baptism by immersion in water by one having authority is the first saving ordinance of the gospel and is necessary for an individual to receive eternal salvation. All who seek eternal life must follow the example of the Savior by being baptized and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. Baptism is a rebirth. When we're baptized we're making covenants (a sacred agreement between God and us) to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ, always remember Him, and keep His commandments. We're promised His Spirit. The investigators we're working with have a strong desire to do what the Lord has commanded. They're ready to make changes in their lives. It’s so wonderful to see and help them change by teaching them restored truths, the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Here's a wonderful read, "The Covenant of Baptism: To be in the Kingdom and of the Kingdom"  by Elder Hales.

I have a strong testimony of this gospel. It's true. If you're curious, pick up a copy of Book of Mormon, say a prayer and start reading! Then pray and ask God if the book is true, He'll ask you through the Spirit. I can promise you that.

I love you all!

Sister Olszowka

P.S. Pictures from last Monday. A member drove us up to Snowbird, the ski resort, it's nearby our place! It was really snowy and we saw 7 cars stuck in the ditch on the way down from the canyon, yikes! Good thing we weren't driving! Hehe!

Week 74

Hello All!

It's been a CRAZY week! So many miracles happening! We've started teaching four new investigators! All have accepted a baptismal date, now we're helping them progress and be solid followers of Christ. Remember the one that came up to us in church last week? She's GREAT! We've met with her a few times and she has committed to be baptized February 7th! She loves church and always has questions and wants to understand more. We met with another woman last night and she's been going to church on her own, she's from Texas and wants to learn more so we have a return appointment this week. Family, I can't tell you have grateful I am to our Heavenly Father. He has definitely blessed Sister Dean and I with so many of His children to teach. The Gospel brings happiness and I so excited to share this happiness with others.

We tried a new finding technique this past week. We triple worked an area. A set of Sisters are having a hard time finding people to teaching in their area so with permission from the Mission President we went into their area along with the District leader and his companion. So Sister Dean and I split up, I went with one Sister and she went with the other. On Saturday evening the last hour the night we went to the apartments, and apartments are golden because there's so much turn over. We prayed that we could find someone to teach, we started knocking on doors. Did I mention that's one of my favorite things to do? It totally is! Sometimes not always the most effective way to find people to teach, but we're showing our faith in the Lord to help us find someone. We talked with a few people and invited them to church, gave away a few copies of the Book of Mormon, and then BOOM! Second to the last door of the night a woman answered. She just moved in with her family from Illinois and is interested in learning about the restored gospel. Miracle! We set up an appointment for this week and gave her a copy of the Book of Mormon. We'll see what happens, but it was so great to help the Sisters find someone to teach. I find great joy in serving others.

The weather has been really icky! The inversion is in full force. There hasn't been any snow or windy this past week so the air looks really bad, we can't see the mountains at all! See the photo below.

In closing, here's an inspirational thought of the week from President Thomas S. Monson,

"So much in life depends on our attitude. The way we choose to see things and respond to others makes all the difference. To do the best we can and then to choose to be happy about our circumstances, whatever they may be, can bring peace and contentment."

Let's all choose to have positive attitudes and mindsets! :)

Love,
Sister Olszowka

Week 73

Happy NEW YEAR! WOOT WOOT! 2015!

2014 had many highs and a few lows but I'm so excited for this year!

Can you believe it?! This year is going to be full of AMAZING things! Miracles happening left and right! Missionary work is in full force! This is Christ's Church and this Gospel is TRUE. We had a MISSION fast, YES all 230 missionaries fasting and praying this past Sunday. Sister Dean and I truly saw the hand of the Lord throughout the day. The fast has a twofold purpose 1) we'd know our purpose here in the Salt Lake City South Mission and 2) Every companionship will baptize this transfer. This past week we picked up two new investigators. They have accepted baptismal dates and we're helping them progress. Then a sister approached us at church and said she's been coming to church for more than a month and has been reading the Book of Mormon and would like to take the missionary lessons. MIRACLES! We have an appointment set up for Thursday. Heavenly Father is preparing His children to receive the Gospel. It's so true! I'm so grateful to be serving my brothers and sisters.

New Year's Eve was pretty quiet, we had a meeting with the zone. We made it fun with our hats and noise makers. Haha! We also had a meeting with the leadership council on Tuesday, good things were discussed. It's hard to believe that I have just a few more short weeks. I will definitely miss the interactions with President and Sister Chambers and the other leadership. The things I've learned on my mission will forever stay with me.

One of the Sisters had an appointment in downtown Salt Lake this past week and I was asked to accompany her. We took Trax into the city and we started to talk to this woman who was visiting from Australia. She wasn't a member but she was headed to Temple Square. We actually got off at the same stop and were able to lead and direct her to the Temple Square Sisters. It was awesome missionary opportunity! The SPIRIT is so strong on Temple Square, I love it!

In my studies, President Chambers gave the mission leadership council a booklet entitled "The Pattern of Leadership" which encompasses talks from the Apostles and Prophets and scriptures. I've been studying from this the last few days as well as reading from the Book of Mormon. It's so wonderful to have chosen servants of God lead us and guide us.

Here's a quote that I enjoyed! 

        "The gospel teaches us to be happy, to have faith rather than fear, to find hope and overcome despair, to leave darkness and turn toward the light of the everlasting gospel."

    —Boyd K. Packer

I love you all! Have a blessed week!

Sister Olszowka

Week 72

MERRY late CHRISTMAS and HAPPY early NEW YEAR!!

Okay, I seriously don't have any time to write to y'all today, just I sent the last 15 minutes sending pictures. I hope you enjoy all of them!

Christmas was truly the BEST Christmas EVER!!!! So many wonderful things happen that day. Woke up to lots of SNOW! Yes I took a broom to the car to get all the snow off. Haha! We open a few gifts. Lots of gift cards, but most of all there was a toy airplane with a note that said, "one free ticket to anywhere in the U.S" I'm so excited! Now where to go?! After our studies, the Elders called us and asked if we wanted to go Christmas caroling with them at one of the Care Homes and it was a sweet experience. We called home; it was good to hear from the family. I'm excited to see everyone is six weeks! Eek! And the best surprise, Grandma Olszowka is coming home to Hawai'i! I'm so grateful that her health is well and that she's coming home to the islands. We had a tasty Ham for dinner and then our investigator was baptized that night. It was a perfect day!

Friday night we were able to go to Temple Square with our recent convert and she LOVED it! She was soaking everything in. I love being on the Square. The Spirit is SO STRONG! She could have stayed for hours but we needed to get home. She's doing great and is looking forward to this new journey and step in life.

We had our Christmas devotional at the mission office this past week too. It was so nice to listen to the beautiful musical numbers and receive guidance and instruction from President Chambers.

Anyways, I really need to get off now. I love you all!

Have a safe new year! I seriously am on cloud 9! I love serving my Heavenly Father. I'm so grateful for the gospel. Grateful for my WONDERFUL, AMAZING, LOVING family! Gosh! I love life.

See you in 2015!

Sister Olszowka