September 23, 2013 E-mail!!!

Hey there one and all!!!

Here is the latest e-mail, received today!!!  

Love you all!!!

Happy Reading!!!



Hello Everyone!!!

Life is great out here in Moscow, Idaho! It's starting to get a bit colder, so all of the super cute clothes are coming out! The winters have always been a struggle for me, but I know that this winter is going to be an epic one! I was able to experience being a "true missionary" this week where we were able to ride our bikes in the rain! My companions and I were singing as we rode and it made it 10 times better! Yesterday we were able to experience the same thing...except this time it was about 40 degrees outside and raining.... needless to say i need to invest in some gloves while biking during the winter or else I won't have fingers when I come back! 

I've also been able to experience what a migraine feels like for most of the week! I know my mom gets them, but I guess that was the Lords way of making me gain more respect for my mother in that way! :) Throughout this week I've learned that Satan will do ANYTHING in his power to stop the progression of the work of the Lord. God's work will never stop. His work will progress now and throughout eternity. "This is my work and my glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" Moses 1:39. God wants us to live with him again and He will do all in his power to help his children see how much he loves them. That doesn't mean life is going to be easy. "...if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good. The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?" D&C 122:7-8

I know that we are given trials for our own benefit! I know God loves us and helps us whenever we ask for help, but we have to be willing to try.

I have come to understand the Atonement of Jesus Christ so much better than I ever have in my life before and it is amazing!

I love the Lord. He loves me. He loves you. Keep praying. Keep asking for help. He always has His hand extended to help you in any way He can. Read the Book of Mormon. It will help. 

I love you all and I think of home often, but I know what I'm doing out here is what the Lord needs me to be doing right now. 

Keep the faith and stay strong.

Love,

Sister Richardson

September 16, 2013 E-mail!!!

Hey there everyone!!!  

Here is this weeks e-mail!!!!

Love those funny stories!!!  

Happy Reading!!!  

All our love!!!

Hello EVERYONE!!!!

Funny story of the week. This actually happened last night:

As we were riding home from an amazing day out on the mission I was with my two companions (S. Workman and S. Hardy) and they were singing disney songs. I thought to myself....this would make a great video....so skillfully as I pulled my camera out of my bag, took it out of its case, I started recording these two lovely women that I have come to know and love so much. When they realized I was recording this didn't deter them at all they kept singing to their hearts content. For about 5 min as we were biking we were about to come to a corner. Realizing that my camera was in my right hand (my braking hand) I began switching the camera to my left hand. Just as I did so my bike hit a bump I didn't see (it was kind of dark). This bump knocked my camera out of my hands. In this moment there was a string of words going through my head that I'm sure wouldn't have made Christ very happy.... but I also knew my parents wouldn't be very happy when they found out that my camera was broken either (I still have yet to hear from them on that). Me being myself however decided that I would fix it after we planned for the next days activities. As I pulled the camera apart to see if anything was loose....everything looked ok... As i tried to turn it on nothing was working. I decided that since it was getting late I would try and fix the inner workings the next day, but could fix the cosmetic injuries that had occurred that night. I bent things back to their rightful place and started reassembling my cute little camera. I started with the faceplate and worked my way backwards. As I began putting the middle piece back on my finger slipped onto a metal plate and the next thing I knew I felt the painful energy course through me! I'D BEEN SHOCKED! I mumbled to myself and laughed a little as my companions stood there with puzzled looks on their faces. Sister Workman finally spoke saying, "Did you just shock yourself?" Laughing I responded in the affirmative! I could hardly believe it myself, but indeed I had been shocked. I didn't know how or what had shocked me....but I knew it hurt and I didn't want it to happen again. As I continued reassembling, my thumb on my right hand touched the same plate that my previous finger had... this shock lasted a little longer.... dropping the camera I responded with hysterical laughter, saying "FREAK THAT HURTS!".... Long story short...my companions think im crazy... I think i still have a little bit of electricity left inside my body, and never try to fix a broken camera when you're extremely tired when you have NO idea what you're doing! :) 

Like everything however, this can be related to the gospel. A lot of times we are enjoying our time with our friends and family and we see an obstacle coming up fast. When we realized we aren't prepared for these things, we try and fix things at the last second. What we don't realize is that there was something in the path that we didn't see, a bump in the road that wasn't expected. These unexpected bumps can produce accidents that have dire consequences. When we pick the problem apart to find the injury beneath, our uneducated eyes don't know where to look, yet we persist and try to make it look good on the outside. It might look ok on the outside, but if what is going on inside doesn't work there is no point trying to use it. When we try and fix these problems by ourselves without the help of an expert we get shocked, both emotionally and spiritually. It hurts A LOT when it happens, but we know that as we seek counsel from those who know what they're doing, who have experienced it before, our insides will be repaired to the point where they can look like new, but operate perfectly as well. 

Life isn't easy to deal with sometimes. We will get shocked. We will think we can do it on our own, but we know that if we want to be able to look like new and function properly there is one person that has always been where we've been. And he will never leave us alone as long as we ask for His help and guidance. People might think we're crazy, and we will still learn from our mistakes, but don't try and fix it without the help of The One who knows. 

I know Jesus Christ is my Redeemer and that He has been through everything for me. All I have to do is ask for His help and He will be there. 

I love this gospel!

Love,

Sister Kayla Richardson 

September 9, 2013

Hey Everyone!!!

Here is this weeks letter from our missionary!!!  Fun pictures too!!!  Just love those!!!

Happy Reading!

Have a wonderful rest of the week!!!



Hello Everyone!!!

This last week was a tad CRAZY! We went on exchanges again and I went to Pullman with Sister Stevens!! She's so much fun! She's from Cali and I'm from Vegas and we both just clicked...especially since we both share a love of the beach! We were constantly reminiscing about being at the beach and in swim suits and such...*sigh* Anyways... Back to real life. 

I went to the store the other day and saw a weird looking thing on a shelf. I asked Sister Lin (she's from Taiwan) if she knew what it was. She said that it was a dragon fruit. I decided that I wanted to try it.... I won't go into details, but it was a tad strange. haha it has the same consistency as Kiwi....but without the taste...really any taste haha but attatched are pictures we decided the other half might have taste if we froze it... we have yet to try that yet.... At least it looks cool! :) 

We had transfer calls this week!!!!! Sister Hardy and I were waiting by the phone last night for seriously 30 minutes!! ..way to be prompt Elders...then when they finally did end up calling we both reached for the phone bonking our heads while doing so and squealing like pigs because we were so excited to see what our next 6 weeks were going to be like! We found out that we both are staying our companionship and are staying here in Moscow...what we didn't even imagine was that we were getting a third companion!!! WHAT!?! I KNOW RIGHT!?! Sister Workman, another sister here in Moscow, is being added to our companionship to make our awesomeness a trio!!! We were all SO excited! Sister Workman and I get along VERY well! You could say we are kind of like the same person, just in two separate bodies...haha...but really. I am sooooo excited for this companionship to take off....it's going to be so dynamite! We are all so stoked!

Work-wise things have sadly been declining... :/ Three of our investigators that we thought were going really well, told us they didn't want to meet anymore...or just stopped answering our texts and phone calls. It's sad to see people have the experiences they do, then not want to learn anymore about such amazing truths that will literally save their souls! I'm not going to lie, sometimes it's disheartening; however, I am always called back to a blessing my dad gave me before I left on my mission. In it he told me that I would be planting a lot of seeds in the hearts of the people that I came in contact with. As I see this part of this blessing being unfolded in front of me I can't help but feel grateful for being a member of this church and to know that my father in heaven knows me well enough to bring that promise in particular back to my memory whenever I get discouraged. I know that whether people are being baptized or not, I am still bringing the gospel to everyone I come in contact with!! There is a quote that I came into contact with this week that explains what I mean perfectly. 

It says,

"Your life is carefully watched over, as was mine. The Lord knows both what He will need you to do and what you will need to know. He is kind and He is all-knowing. So you can with confidence expect that He has prepared opportunities for you to learn in preparation for the service you will give. you will not recognize those opportunities perfectly, as I did not. But when you put the spiritual things first in your life, you will be blessed to feel directed toward certain learning, and you will be motivated to work harder. You will recognize later that your power to serve was increased, and you will be grateful." -Henry B. Eyring 

I can testify that what President Eyring said is 100% true. I'm not on my mission for myself. I might be effected by what I learn on my mission but it is not FOR me. It is for those I teach, those I talk to, those who I love back home, those who I have yet to bring into this world, for that person I will spend eternity with. This mission is for the people in my future and I am constantly being guided to things that the Lord wants me to know for the rest of my life so I can help those around me. I love what I've learned so far, and I can't wait to keep learning for the rest of my life what my Heavenly Father has in store for me. 

Oh ya! And remember to smile, you're all prettier that way anyways! ;D

Love, 

Sister Kayla Richardson 

Kayla with Sis. Hardy, her Companion!!

With Sisters Lin and Workman!!

Loving Comp's!!!

Crazy Dragon Fruit!

September 3, 2013 E-mail!!!

Here is Kayla's e-mail from this week!!  

Happy Reading!!!

She sent some cute pictures!!   It's sooo good to see how happy she is!!!  


Hello Everyone!!!

This week has been so crazy!!! We had two transfers and have seen so many miracles working in the area!! We now have 7 investigators!!! Yay!!! I love teaching the gospel, and I love it when members refer you too them! If a member is present at the lesson, they are so much more likely to keep wanting to know more about the church! Members are sooooo important!!! I can't stress that enough!! 

On one of the exchanges another sister from my district, Sister Workman, came into my area and we had so much success that day!! Things started to fall into place! She during companionship study she also gave me a quote that I thought I'd share with everyone:

"I am called of God. My authority is above that of the kings of the earth. By revelation I have been selected as a personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is my Master, and He has chosen me to represent Him; to stand in His place. To say and do what He Himself would say and do if He personally were ministering to the very people to whom He has sent me. My voice is His voice, and my acts are His acts. My words are His words, and my doctrine is His doctrine. My commission is to do what He wants done, to say what He wants said, to be a living modern witness in word and in deed of the divinity of His great and marvelous latter-day work. How great is my calling?"

 Now all of the punctuation might not be right, but man! *Sigh* I LOVE THIS!!!! THIS IS SO TRUE! But not only is it about full time set apart missionaries. Everyone who has been baptized and has taken the name of Jesus Christ upon them is a missionary of the Lord. We are ALL HIS MISSIONARIES!! We are all called; we are all chosen. Gospel literally means "good news" so why not spread it!?!  I LOVE THIS WORK! Christ walks with us! I love you all! Keep the faith!

Love, 

Sister Kayla Richardson