Changes Are Happening In Danville Illinois

Sister Henrie

 

Miss Henrie and Miss Dahlberg sitting next to each other at EFY years ago.

Danville District October 2015

Sister Dahlberg and Sister Erickson 

October 26, 2015

Hi sweet people.

I bet some of you are dying to know what happened and I am dying to tell you. So here we go.

I find out I am training again.......................................... and I am like what?? Then all of a sudden I realize that the girl I had been helping by emailing her through my mom was coming out her in October. 

I get to transfer meeting.................... I have no idea what her name is......... 

President Morgan talks to me.......... tells me why he is having me stay and train and again and with a smile on his face asks me if I know who I will be training.  I told him I needed some time to ponder it............ I got sister Erickson right........so I wanted to get this one right too........... Then I began to tell him the story of how I had emailed a girl whose mom emailed my mom asking for some advice about going to St. Louis on her mission.  He looks super surprised and says. OH, REALLY. Do you know where she is from? (Of course he already knows whom I will be training)  I say I think she is from Utah......... he looks even more surprised and he says............ where in UTAH? I told him, I did not know.

We get into transfer meeting and I am sitting almost directly in front of President.  The first sister stands up to announce where she is going and says DANNNNN..... then stops.  She tells who she is and where she is from.  I am looking at President Morgan and he just smiles.

She said, “I AM SISTER HENRIE FROM LAYTON, UTAH. AND I AM GOING TO DANVILLE. MY TRAINER WILL BE SISTER DAHLBERG.”

I stand up, give her a big hug and then sit down..... then she looks at me and says, “You are the one that emailed my mom”......................................... I about died. 

I look at president................ he makes eye contact with me............. and he was trying to figure out what I was trying to say to him from across the seats.  “This is her” .............. I was shocked. 

We were dying, sitting there, just laughing….oh my. ….oh my…. how does this happen?  God is real.

WAIT IT GETS BETTER.

The next morning, I am studying and sister Henrie walks into the room eating her breakfast and she is looking at my picture wall.  She sees a familiar picture and asks. “WHERE DID YOU GET THAT PICTURE OF JESUS KISSING THE LITTLE GIRLS FOREHEAD???”

I giggle and explain “Oh years ago, I went to EFY in Ogden and someone drew it.  

Sister Henrie starts to think about it and figures out that we were at the same EFY camp 5 years ago.  She emails her mom asking her to look on her computer for pictures from EFY camp in 2010.  She finds two pictures of us together in a group.  In one of the pictures, Sister Henrie and I are sitting right next to each other!!!!!  Yes, right next to each other!!! 

WE ARE STILL DYING ABOUT THAT. President response to our text telling him our story.............. Meant to be!

Sister Henrie is super adorable.  She is on fire here.  She has so many good ideas and she is already such a strong missionary.  We laugh a lot and it so great.  She is in her Utah bubble still and it makes me laugh, she always says........... Why would people want to live here? I am fine with living in Utah for the rest of my life. haha I love her. I love her attitude about missionary work.  It is so refreshing.  She wants to be here and she is ready to get things done as we are in the service of god. 

Things are going well here in Danville.  It definitely is starting to get cold. Bring on the warm tights................. I made it through one winter and I can do it again. Right? Humidity and I are not friends. 

The work is going well. I am happy. I love the lord.

This morning I read about the anti-Nephi-Lehites, I love them so much. I just hope to be as converted as they are and to never go back to who I used to be. I will do anything for the Lord and he is my strength and I love him. 

Sincerely,

Sister Dahlberg

xoxo

October 19^th, 2015

transfers. transfers. transfers.

You will never believe it. 

Drum roll please..............................................

Sister Erickson is headed to MEXICO!!!...............(Missouri) and I am staying in Danville and TRAINING AGAIN. lol 

I don't think I know of any missionaries who have trained in the same area in a row. This is for sure a curve ball. 

About a week ago, I started feeling that I would be staying here when president and the AP's called last week, but I wasn't sure.  I think the Lord was preparing me. I think that this was the most nervous I have been for transfer calls......  sister Erickson was not happy to be leaving.  

President's email to me this week was really sweet and he explained why what is happening is happening and why he is having me stay here. So…. 7 I/2 MONTHS IN DANVILLE. lol good thing, I love this place.

I will be picking up another sweet new sister missionary. It will be a long road trip on Wednesday.  I am just so grateful that the lord knows what is best. I trust him fully. 

We had a lesson Friday night with a lady named "Te-te" (well that is what we call her) and her kids (te-te is Christy’s sister who lives in Danville) and we had a really amazing lesson with them.  The spirit was very strong. During our lesson a lady named Taunya walked in and there is no second thought that god sent her straight to us.  I told her how I felt and what the spirit was telling me to say to her.  We got ready to leave and we told them about transfers.............and here is what Te-te said to me. “You can't leave. God would not put you in our lives and then take you away like that. You are not leaving. You cannot leave.”

Another small reminder to me that God is watching out for us all and he inspires President Morgan to know what to do with us as missionaries.

The Sullivan family/cousins we are teaching are still doing well.  We have a lesson with them every Monday and Thursday.  We are going to talk to them about moving their baptism back just a few weeks because we are in one lesson teaching 5 investigators and 2-3 less active members.  That is such a blessing, just want them to be fully prepared to make that promise with god, but they are so adorable and sweet and I just love them all. 

Lessons went really well this week.  We made a plan of salvation board game again.  We played it with 2 families that we are teaching and it went so well.  Megan is still doing so well and will be baptized the first of November.  We watched the Restoration DVD with a less active memeber and also again last night with our investigator Chiquita, I can quote almost every line of it now. lol  (that movies softens hearts.....it has been amazing to see that over the past year)

CHRISTY GOT HER TEMPLE RECOMMEND TO DO BAPTISMS FOR THE DEAD AFTER CHURCH YESTERDAY AND SHE IS GOING TO THE NEW TEMPLE IN INDIANAPOLIS ON SATURDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy things are going on.  Change is good. I will do whatever the Lord asks of me. Another transfer, here we go. 

Love you all. Oh yeah..............check out the new glasses........................guess who ate carrots for breakfast this morning. HAHA mom, I can see more clearly!

  

October 12, 2015

hi.

so if you laugh....... you can't be my friend.  But guess who gets to start wearing glasses?  Me. The eye doctor told me to wear them for the next 2 weeks all the time and then to wear them after that driving etc. lol lol lol sister Erickson about died laughing. 

This week was unexpected.  We have been working with Amy and guess what, after this week we have 5 new baptism dates.  It is seriously a miracle how it all happened.  Let me just say, this is God's work, not mine.  Wow! It was so awesome to see that because of that promise, yesterday, we had 4 less actives members walk in to the chapel and our 5 new investigators with a baptism dates walk in the chapel for church.  They all want to be baptized before Thanksgiving.  We are teaching them twice a week, all 5 of them at the same time, so it is great!  Christy came to church and she is just so awesome, I love sitting by her at church and hearing all of her comments, she just makes me giggle.  She is one of my favorites here in Danville.  If I leave the area, I do NOT want to say goodbye to her. 

We sent President Morgan a text about the promise that we saw fulfilled. "If you want to baptize more, reactivate more." President Morgan called us Saturday afternoon and he was dying to here all about what happened.  Seriously, he is just the coolest.  It was like a breath of fresh air to talk to him. I tried to get him to tell me what would be happening for our upcoming transfers and he said..........

"If I told ya, I would have to kill ya." LOL  I LOVE THAT MAN. I LAUGHED.

Transfer calls will be this Saturday and I am ready for a change but I will do all that the lord asks of me. I will summit my will to his will. 

SISTER MONTGOMERY CAME BACK WITH HER PARENTS AND SURPRISED ME AND TOOK US OUT TO LUNCH WE GIGGLED AND GIGGLED AND GIGGLED AND TOLD STORIES AFTER STORIES. OH WHAT A HAPPY DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

I love you all. I love this work. I love god. I love you all. 

xoxo sister dahlberg 

October 5^th, 2015

Here I am. Another week here we go.

I was just informed that the White family is not moving from Marceline anymore.  And so my dreams of taking you back to see them in Marceline one day just may come true. 

I think I am a pro at this whole cough, runny nose thing.  We went to see a man in our ward that is less active last night and he told me I sounded terrible. Thanks bro Guerrero. 

Remember our super cool bubble night, “Meet the Mormons” movie night?  Well Amy brought her niece Becka, she is a teenager who wants to be BAPTIZED.  We had a lesson with Amy, her sister Anna, and Becka.  We sat there for a good time trying our best to answer ALL HER QUESTIONS. She just really wants the gospel in her life and it is remarkable. We got in the car and I thought to myself... heavenly father why are you so good to us? You have helped and carried me my whole mission and you never leave me, even at times when I don't think things are going well, you always provide a way because it is your work. I thought about the words again and again, I stand all amazed. 

We went to a little town called Hoopeston this week and visited some members that are less active.  We met a lady who is leaning more towards being a Wiccan and it was a flash back to Marceline.  Oh my, was I really there a year ago?

Megan is still plugging along and is so excited to be baptized in November.  There is a member here, sister Hubbard who likes us to come over and read, “Preach My Gospel” with her.  It is really neat. 

We met some awesome potential investigators in Covington and I am so excited to see what will come about with them.  I really see some great potential in these people. Last week, we went to an apple festival in Covington so that we could hand out Mormon.org cards.  We stopped at the county market to get a drink, and the lady ringing us out, was super nice. I felt like we needed to talk to her, so we told her who we were and what we were doing, and she was superrrrrrrr friendly.  We gave her a card with our number on it and went on our way.... well this week we went to visit a girl named Kayla, who is a potential investigator.  She lived in a duplex but we were not sure what side Kayla lived in.  So we just knocked on one door and guess who answered the door? THE LADY FROM COUNTY MARKET!!!!  We were all so surprised.  I was thinking in my head............. you are not Kayla, but I know you. hahahahaha  We got talking and she told us that it was no coincidence that we ran into her again.  She accepted or invitation to learn more about what we believe. We also found Kayla at the other door; she lived on the other side of the duplex.   We will be going to Covington to teach them tomorrow.  Seriously, nothing but MIRACLES as we do the Lord’s work. 

General conference. wow. wow. wow. I seriously love it and am trying to cherish all of these things because reality hit me that next time I am watching conference........ will be my very last day as a full time missionary.  Thank goodness I still have 6 months, so much more learning to do.

Here are a few of my thoughts.

The savior is my friend and I feel like I am really coming to know my friend. 

The love I have for President Thomas S. Monson is overwhelming.  I love that man. When he gave his talk he was struggling, yet he gave all of his energy and breath to testify of the reality of this work and of our friend, Jesus Christ. 

Bishop Stevenson, (now Elder Stevenson, one of the new apostles) came to our mission and I absolutely love and adore the person he is. 

I miss Elder Perry, Elder Packer, and Elder Scott deeply, but I know that the new apostles are called from God himself. 

Honestly, I cherished all the talks. I wish I could pick a favorite but seriously they were all so goooooood and I could go on rambling about all that I learned, but there is not time for that, I have it in my heart and I really hope to apply it to my missionary work. 

Each day the Lord is taking me as I am and shaping and forming me into the person he knows I can be.  The shaping and molding is not always easy, but it is worth it and I am a living witness of it and the reality of the atonement of Jesus Christ.  You don't have to be perfect, you don't have to know everything, because we have our friend walking beside us, picking us up when we fall and helping us become who we need to become. 

 I love my friend and I am so grateful to have heard his words and his voice through his chosen servants this weekend. 

Much love, sister Dahlberg

September 28^th, 2015

Hello,

We really have been trying to take to heart all of Elder C. Scott Grow’s advice and apply it. There is always room for change and therefore, we have been really trying to help recent converts and less active members and help them. 

Sister Kofford came on exchanges here with me and it was really good for me.

We had a zone leader training that was not on the calendar.  President and Sister Morgan felt very strongly they needed to meet with every zone, so we did.  It was really good.  We learned a lot and received a lot of good advice.

President and Sister Morgan told me about when they saw Lulu at stake conference.  I was just smiling from ear to ear. PRESIDENT MORGAN- "SHE LOOKED LIKED A MILLION BUCKS." the gospel of Jesus Christ changes people.  Simple, but so powerful.  I strive each day to have some of HIS continence in me. 

I hit my one-year mark on THURSDAY!!  Sister Erickson wrote several sweet notes and posted them around the house.  She wrote reasons she loved me, it was really good to know that she does care and love me.  Even though she doesn't like to say it or show it a lot. She is coming along, adjusting to missionary life is hard, I just want her to love her mission and know why she is here... but that will take time.  I have been studying about hope, faith, and agency and boy, oh boy, I am learning so much. 

I am reading the Book of Mormon and I have decided that I am obsessed with it. It is amazing how heavenly father is so patient with me and teaches me so much every day. 

Things I learned this week.

1. Study time is precious

2. My love and appreciation for Joseph Smith is so great.

3. My mission has actually taught me to like learning. I AM LEARNING SO MUCH.

4.  I can successfully make Parmesan chicken

Did I ever tell you about Megan?  She is the girl we are teaching.  She came with us to church and said she wanted to join.   Well, we teach her once a week and she would like to get baptized on her birthday, November 11th! 

We had a really good lesson with an investigator named Ladona this week.  When we taught her the restoration she felt the spirit, you could tell.  She has been telling the elders and us she would come to church...........but has not made it yet............... but on Friday she promised us that she would come.  Well come Sunday morning we go to knock on her door to wake her and her family up. (I rang the doorbell like 10 times and no answer) getting in the car feeling a little discouraged.............

We go to church and I am standing by the doors and this man walks in.............. I shake his hand and ask him is name............... and guess what he says?

...............PRESIDENT BEDNAR.................................

Yes, Elder Bednar's SON is in our stake and he came to Danville.  All 4 of us missionaries were dying.  He looks just like his father, Elder Bednar.  I started to giggle and tell him how embarrassed I am that I did not say hello, or even smile at his dad in the temple. He just laughed.  He spoke in sacrament and spoke about how he went to visit his mission after 18 years and told us of his experience going back to Bolivia.  He said, "Something you will do as a nineteen year old missionary will make a difference.” Just one person can bring many souls into the gospel.  It reminds me of the story of Abinidi and Alma as they shows us the effect the gospel has on people is life changing. 

Well back to Ladona.............anyhow she ended up walking to church with her three kids and fiancé and STAYED ALL THREE HOURS. I turned and looked at her during relief society and she had tears in her eyes. THE GOSPEL CHANGES LIVES.

My mission theme, I have decided is...................... I STAND ALL AMAZED. 

The Fulton family here in Danville is going to try and help Christy go to the temple to do baptisms this week or next. Will you please keep her in your prayers?  I talked to her on the phone last night and she is struggling a little and I asked her who was going to win this battle .................. Satan or her?  She said, 

" I ALWAYS WIN." 

She is right.  We will always win when we have the Savior on our side.

I would invite all of you to watch conference this weekend and remember how important it will be that we will most likely sustaining 3 new apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

"WE LISTEN TO A PROPHET'S VOICE AND HEAR THE SAVIOR TOO."

I love you all.

Congrats Katelyn on the engagement!!!

Have a happy week.

XOXO

sister dahlberg