Well, What a great week it's been. On Tuesday, I actually got to go to leadership training in the mission.. for District, Zone and Sister Trainers.. pretty cool. I felt really inadequate, but i guess we all do. It was a great experience to be with the Elders and just a couple of us sisters whom I love dearly. Man.. I pray that we all go home and continue to be who we have become, because these people I know right now are INCREDIBLE and the Lord needs incredible people to get the word out!! 

   3 Nephi 18:32 stood out to me today in study. Sometimes you talk with people who know the second hand version of the story of a less active or former investigator and judge the rest of their motives off of that. They loose faith in that person ever having a chance in the church again... I am here to tell you forget about doubt, don't label people for what you have heard, or what they have told you.. the greatest lesson I am learning right now on this mission is that people are ever changing. One day they are mad the next they are happy. One day they are anti-church, the next they have a broken heart and contrite spirit. How can we help though? HAVE FAITH. Don't shoot hateful, mean, unforgiving darts at them that pierce their already open wounds, but send darts of love, acceptance, forgiveness, healing and comfort. We all feel what is sent our way. We are the 'means of bringing salvation unto them.' Jesus Christ has paid for them and counsels us to 'not cast him out of your synagogues, or your places of worship, for unto such shall ye continue to minister; for ye know not but what they will return and repent and come unto me with full purpose of heart and I shall heal them;' I am grateful our Saviour and Redeemer has and will heal us and those around us. We are ever changing and it is one of the greatest miracles of all that we can change. We don't have to sit in remorse all our lives over the many mistakes which we have made today.. because tomorrow is new and Christ beckons. Come what may.

   I am grateful for all of this. I know that God lives. I know the scriptures are true and that Joseph SMITH WAS THE PROPHET THAT WAS CALLED TO LEAD THE RESTORATION OF THE CHURCH..woops caps sorry. Last night, we had some time with Debbie and Kevin who I think are gonna get married while I am still in this area which also means she'll be getting baptized while I am here too!! oh ya.... let it be!!! But it hasn't happened yet... but talk about change... that was not the story 4-5 days a ago!! I love it. Well, we watched the Restoration DVD with them last night and Debbie's son Paul who is 30+ something was in the room watching it with us.. He was captivated the entire time. He'd never heard about any of this, since he just got there for holiday (but he might be here a while becuse apparently he does that) ANYWAYS, after we were talking to Debbie about the film. she then looked over at Paul and asked him a question about it.. he responded well, but it got his mind thinking even more. We talked about feeling the Spirit which leads us to what happened a little later with him. As he left the room, Sister Lauritzen asked if he would like a copy of the Book of Mormon and he said yes. When she went to go give it to him he said thank you so much for bringing that DVD over. Apparently he has been having a terrible tooth ache and the pain was getting worse, but during the movie all the pain subsided until right after it. He said I know I felt the Spirit because I feel so much more love inside than I have in a long time. He was beaming. People: this Gospel is true!! it brings the LIGHT out in our eyes!!! It is pretty remarkable how things are going with this family. Little by little they are all changing and becoming better. I don't know who will end up joining the church besides Debbie, but I pray that Paul will.. that he will take the witness given to him and drive it home!! Man, I love it.

   Oh by the way, we have a dvd player... so if you have an Extra Testaments.. always useful for missionary work, or if the family wants to make a video for me... it's allowed. Just sayin'..... haha I love it.

   Chris and Irene Monson sent me a birthday card and it made my day!!! Holy cow, what kind people they are for remembering. Post (mail) really is my soul's sincere desire. :) 

   Mum, I got your letter and the pictures!! I loved it. Thank you. So good to hear Matt is just a baller when it comes to scripture study in the morning. You will make a fine missionary with skills like that!! I can tell you are becoming who you need to be!!  Dad, you are brilliant for having Heather help you with costuming or shopping for stuff, I mean if you want deals might as well take the queen with you... I bet that was fun!! I am glad to hear all is well. I think of you often. Thank you Grandma Connie for money always.. your letters are so uplifting and raise my spirits constantly. I will try to always reply. 

   Dad- idea for devo's and helping these kids share the Gospel as members of Light but more so as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints... PREACH MY GOSPEL. Study it yourself and share what you learn with them, encourage them to study it and have devo's come from it. It truly is inspired not only for missionaries but for members of this church. Every member a missionary and if that is what this group is about.. let's get them to it!! Maybe it could help bring some more spirit in and weed the drama out!! Who knows, trust God and follow Him. Use the resources given and miracles will happen!! I see them everyday, in the small and simple things. I love you all and anything I miss will be in a letter soon to go home.. oh mum birthday stuff go ahead and send it here if you want, but packages should go to the mission home so no matter where I am i'll get it.. but if it comes before oct. 25 ish, I will be in Wales still :D  So does that answer your question? Hope so!! Welp, I love you all. The Plan of Salvation is the greatest miracle of all to our family. Tim is on my mind and in my heart. I pray that this week you will prepare to listen to the words of the Lord through His prophets seers and revelators. Do anything you can to have the Spirit with you long before it even happens so you will gain the answers you need to know when you are questioned. God knows all and He is excited to speak to each of us individually this next weekend. I am stoked!!! it's gonna be the bomb.com!!!

    oh, so Wayne Williamson who is a recent convert, less active who we work with a lot texted us last night and said he was watching something with Katy Perry and that I look like her... his words not mine... I kind of wanted to call him psycho but we can't text back and it was too late to call and... well that's just silly. But what do you think? I don't even know if I could tell you who she is if I saw a poster of her... so I don't really know what she looks like, just that boys like her.. alot.... which also makes me wonder if he's just a psycho.. anyways leave you to it to figure it out for me!! I love you super mucho!! have the best week ever!!!! for real.

Tada butt!!! Nosta!!

Rwyn dy garu di!! <3

Sista Fili

  Well it hasn't been too long since I last wrote you, but I am still soooooo exhausted and ready for this P-day once again. Man, my energy is running out... actually it's not. I am working hard though and I love the fact that I am absolutely exhausted. It is a great feeling!!

    Well this last part of the week was great. We spoke with Sharon and Josh and they are not off board, but they know it's something they need in life and someday will take the step. For now, they just need to learn more so they can understand better and gain more faith to take the steps necessary to go from the dark pathway to the light. The gospel is not always easy to live, but it is worth it. I know it is worth it. I think all the time of the dumb things I have done that have taken me away even a little from God and those times were the hardest in my life. I couldn't hardly cope with myself. I didn't like myself. But through trials that I have faced, I learned if I went to God and putting it all on Him, He has blesses me with confidence to get through the trial.. hmmm wonder why. What was missing before? The Divine Being who took upon Him all that I was gonig through so he could know how to succor me at that time.. I was not using this resource to my benefit.. silly Sister Filichia!! Man, oh how I want these people we teach to understand what I now know through experience, but because of God's love they will have the opportunity to have the experience as well, on their own time with plenty of chances given to them along the way... let's all just make a pack that we will take the first chance given to us and learn so that all the other times can be super easy in comparison!!

   Debbie is doing well. The girl knows baptism is where it is at and that she needs it and God wants it for her.. in fact that God is requiring it from her, but she is doing the right thing to become worthy... just taking her time to get there... but I love this work so much family.. I can't even stand it. Seeing someone grow and finding those who don't know and making them aware brings greater joy to me than anything I have ever experienced.

   This morning, I was reading in Matt 6:28-34... I do believe. He says to consider the lilies of the field they toil not nor do they spin. In Laman's terms they don't freak out and go for a quick pleasure, but they are believing and still. Waiting for the promptings given from God to do His will. God always provides for us and gives us what we need. If we trust in God and not in man's flesh we will be provided for. He knows what we need and has made a plan to give it to us when the time is right. Mum and Dad, you are wonderful examples of this and I love to read it and recognize that plan A and B are made and don't always work out but because God knows and loves us & He has made a plan C that is where we need to be.. litsen for it and He will give it to you!! 

   Love you family talk to you soon!! Till next week :D

Love you soooooo much!

 Sister Filichia

Alright family...
   LIZ THANK YOU!! I CAN'T WAIT TO READ ABOUT YOUR LIFE LATELY AND THE PICTURES ARE INCREDIBLE.. I GOT A FEW PRINTED OUT BECAUSE I HAD TO. LOVE IT. alright enough with the caps..
   this week was amazing. First off ELDER BEDNAR is the man. He is absolutely incredible.. I was the first one to shake his hand in the mission.. not that that is that great but it was cool for me because I didn't know we were going yet and he walked up to me to shake my hand... so it was that cool.. and I finally learned how to wave my arm properly in front of people during a song and lead for as chorister for the meeting.. did a fine job, they were easy... but still ... ha. Mum, my dress I wore for the farewell came in handy on this day- I wore it and it was great!! Perfect for the occassion. :) Anyways those the unimportant details you probably would like to know if I was home because our family is psycho like that.. and I love it.

   He talked to us a lot about the difference between being an object and being an agent. He said now I know a lot of you go into teaching appointments and have been told to ask questions, please ask questions that see where they're at, not what they don't or do know.. people put on the spot are merely objects, but people who are given the ability to act for themselves are being agents. Every time he asked a a question he asked if it was alright to ask one.. he taught us that when we do missionary work or anything that if we do things merely out of duty, we are being an object, when we do things because of the desires of our heart we are acting as agents unto ourselves. I thought it was interesting all the things he brought out... maybe I will make a copy of my notes and send them home.. there is so much to tell, and not enough open doors in my brain for the stuff to come through in so little time.    The thing that touched we sisters was at the end: Someone had asked a question about the priesthood and it was so interesting to listen and hear about the many responsibilities and privileges these men have but the same thought went through all the sisters minds and came out of Sister Clark's mouth ..'what about all this applies to us women?' His answer was brilliant... he talked to us about our divine natures. That from the our premortal existence gender has always been involved. Gender like it says in the proclamation is divinely given and specific for each of us and our purposes here on earth and in the life to come. He talked about how woman naturally have an outward looking perspective and are nurturing and protective.. he said a woman would instinctively give all her clothing and food to her child or someone else's because that would keep them alive, that is the nature God gave woman. Woman don't need the priesthood to enter the temple, or to gain exaltation. Womanhood is an extreme privilege to have. He said everything a woman has naturally a man needs the priesthood to obtain. Men and woman have different roles, the priesthood helps man fulfill his role and a woman needs a man to fulfill her role as someone given the gift of procreation.. that is a unified power, but ya know having babies is kinda a woman's power... ha ha but we were taken back by this. It was incredible to hear an Apostle of the Lord speak truth to us about things that each of us needed to hear. We are blessed to have these men lead our church as guided by our Saviour Jesus Christ himself.

After this we just decided we were off.. we will be agents unto ourselves and will act in faith.. because it is an action word. God gave us agency to do good things and anything not good binds us to the devil and we will remain captive until we use our agency to come closer to God who frees us from the captivity which the devil hath bound us by since the fall of Adam. I was so touched by it that I could even see a different side of myself after this meeting. Well afterward, I thought I was leaving New Castle Emlyn and moving onto something new.. but then stuff happened this weekend with people that we teach that made me feel uneasy about it, but we applied what Elder Bednar said and stopped talking at people and started asking questions of the soul that allowed the spirit to act on us and words came out of our mouths that only the angels knew were coming.. because I sure didn't. It was amazing the success we had.. I pray it continues.
   Well, Monday night came and in fact I am not transferred, I am staying. Sister Lauritzen and I are stoked.. We know amazing things are going to happen this next transfer. We can feel it. Yesterday was the most amazing day with finding people and I am going to walk in faith that all of them will be baptized one day. It is not about numbers but about bringing people to God and that is why I yearn for all to be baptized because that is the gateway to heaven. it really is. We should all yearn for all that we see. Life is a mission... we are in a lifetime missionfield... lots of work to do people!! Let's get on it!! Nothing can make you more happy!! haha  Anyways, time is up and I still have so much to tell... guess someday it will all happen... I love you family!! you are the best in the entire world!!

Sista Fili <3 (meaning a heart)

Borradah (I may have spelt it wrong) means Goodmorning in Welsh.. very cool. Nosta means good night.. so if I were writing this at night that would be applicable, but it's not so.. I'm over it ;)

  Well family I haven't read everything that Mum and Dad sent but I am pretty excited about what I am hearing about.. Nick is the bomb.com. Took my breath away hearing that he is gonig to Tim's mission. Man, he will have lot's of strength to bear him up, always does, but I am sure the spirit of Timmy resides there in some parts. Man, that's neat. 

   Well this week, we had a splendid one. The two things that have changed since I last emailed though are that Debbie is.. backing off a bit.. but keep the faith, God works miracles and she is one. I know it. #2 Wayne Williamson is a less active recent convert who is like a roller coaster theme park, not just one roller coaster, no he's much more talented than that emotionally... but we talked with him one day and challenged him to go to church with a question. Also it was Fast Sunday so let's try that law out again.. so he did... it was answered. At church he actually participated, which is huge. This kid has aggraphobia... fear of large groups of people... that is church... but he did great. He was happy and I sat with him right at the front and he sat there like a sponge (Mum's phrase) just soaking it all in.. I thought he might leak water, but nah he's cool, retention skills were heroic yesterday. Anyways, miracles are happening and we are stoked to see them!! Wish we were teaching more but there we are.. that's the work, and the people we do have, I am eternally grateful for.

   This last Thursday the interview's happened and it was great! President Ogden is an inspired man. I walked in and he straightway asked and answered the question (without me hinting a word) that Sister Lauritzen and I were festering over the day before about someone we should be teaching but are not because of lack of contact availability. Ya that was incredible.. then we talked about my stay here in Wales.. pretty sure it's almost over. I would love to stay, but I know and he knows I need to grow more and it's time for a change. I do love it here, and a part of me never wants to leave these people I love and another part of me is ready to go discover others who are seeking the truth in another part of this country. All I know is that as I have prayed this last week to know if it is right, I have felt very strongly that it is and that I am in fact ready. I love this work, I love these people and no matter where I go.. it will be my mouth and feet, hands and example that the Lord works through to bring souls unto Him.

   I am grateful for inspired leaders.. I am also graterful I get to see and meet Elder Bednar in 4 days... ya he's gonna be a Prophet someday, even Pres. Ogden thinks so... but who knows, God does.. we'll leave it to Him. I am stoked though. I can't wait to read your letters and write back about how good everything is. So next week when I write it will be Thursday.. yes transfer's already.. crazy I am floored.. this has gone sooooooo fast. not even joking. and it's only gonna get faster. holy tullido!!

   I love the New Testament.. Matthew 5... yes I am still there just plugging along and studying it out...it is the bomb. com I love it more everyday... the Book of Mormon though is my favorite in all the world.. I am starting up in Alma and what incredible leaders they had to help us see that to stop contention is as simple as being the example of what you want done to you. If someone speaks out against you, just turn the other cheek and make it a happy response. Never speak out against other religious sects if you don't want others to speak out against yours.. and most importantly.. contention is of the devil. It only drives the Spirit away. Where God is there can be no contention. I have found as I serve that if you are talking about good things and it turns contentious, it doesn't matter what you say to back yourself up, the only thing that helps is inviting God into it and then leaving. We forget that it's bad when we can't understand why our side isn't being seen or heard, but in the end justice will have it's go.. might as well work to be on the good side of the justice party and don't argue just agree to disagree and have a mercy swim party!! I am psycho... but serious. Philippians 1:27... speaks truth, and it is something I have been working on for some time, and ya I don't know if I will ever master it, but I know I can someday if I do all things in the Lord, I will be strengthened- that's where we find the strength to carry on is by donig His will and believing Him, not just believing in Him but trust what he says and believe Him - just do it. I love you family so much and I am so glad that I have time set asaide each week to share my thoughts and feelings with you. It truly is a blessing.

Dad can I get Jeanette's address and email address por favor ? Gracias.

Rwyn dy garu di!!

Sista Fili