God Bless America:)

July 5, 2016

Hey family! Crazy stuff- so we're in a trio for 2 weeks with Sister Noa. Sister Noa was originally supposed to be Sister Olsen's companion in Cumberland. Missionary life's the best!:) Haha. I've never been in a trio before but I am so grateful that I am the designated driver because car sickness is a real thing hahaha. We traveled to Harpers Ferry, WV to pick her up today:)

We had an awesome 4th of July:) The ward had a pancake breakfast & then we had a zone bbq. I love Columbia 2nd ward so much. There are such great people here:) Then Sister Olsen & I watched the Restoration. I'm so grateful for this country & for the preparation that went into the Restoration of the Gospel. It is an amazing thing. 

This week our investigator Shakerra gave us cornrows! Haha. I'll attach a picture next week since I forgot my camera. She is doing awesome!! 

We went on exchanges with the Odenton sisters (who are no longer in our mission). It was fun being with Sister Nakata again! She was my companion 9 months ago in Frederick:) 

We taught a lesson to a guy named Xavien we met on the street. It was really interesting. He kept trying to bible bash & he wouldn't let us answer his questions. What was sad was the fact that his wife was interested. People really have to have an open mind & an open heart. It doesn't matter if they decide to act on what we teach them- if they don't have an open heart about it they won't receive that confirmation from the Holy Ghost. 

We taught a girl Asia who is 19 & has a 1 year old baby boy. She was so open to learning more & wants to be baptized!:) We are excited to meet with her again this week. She really wants the peace that comes from Jesus Christ. She has a ton of faith. 

Saturday we had a stake-wide service project cutting down trees & cleaning up yards from the Tornado. 

I love you guys so much. Xo, Sister Stolworthy

Ps. this song has been on my mind awhile now. 

Jesus, Savior, pilot me

Over life's tempestuous sea;

Unknown waves before me roll,

Hiding rock and treach'rous shoal.

Chart and compass came from thee;

Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

As a mother stills her child,

Thou canst hush the ocean wild;

Boist'rous waves obey thy will

When thou say'st to them, "Be still!"

Wondrous Sov'reign of the sea,

Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

When at last I near the shore,

And the fearful breakers roar

'Twixt me and the peaceful rest,

Then, while leaning on thy breast,

May I hear thee say to me,

"Fear not; I will pilot thee."

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hastening

June 27, 2016

Hey family:) This has been a great & crazy week!:) 

First off.... we got a text from President Thursday. A really long text talking about how the area 70 & the quorum of the 12 have been thinking for about a year now- and have finally decided to realign the mission boundaries of the Pittsburgh mission, the Maryland Baltimore mission, & the DC north mission. The reason is because of the growth of the church out here in the east with all of the branches, wards, & stakes!! It is so exciting:) So now the Annapolis stake isn't part of our mission:( but the Lancaster & Chambersburg stakes of Pennsylvania are now in our mission. The craziest part is that the quorum of the 12 went through all of the missionaries serving in those areas. We are losing a lot of great missionaries- but it is exciting because the work is hastening!!:) All I know about Lancaster & Chambersburg is that there are a lot of amish & country land haha. 

Fun news: Sister Olsen is staying for the rest of the transfer! She is my favorite & it has been so fun:) 

We picked up a new investigator this week! She is a member referral...hallelujah! Haha. She is liberian & has a cute baby girl. She let us right on in & we taught her about the Book of Mormon! 

Also a tornado hit Maryland on Tuesday. We were in the library & they told us to stay away from the windows & in the center of the lib. Thankfully no damaged happened- but it made me think of dads days growing up in Kansas. 

Ahhhhh the coolest miracle happened on our bus!! Wednesday evening we were riding the bus back to our apartment complex. The bus driver started to talk to us about what we were doing. He is from Trinidad. He said, "You are always so happy & smiley! Nothing gets you down!" hahah so we explained about how we are missionaries! He said his brother was a member of our church & he totally is! He's on our ward directory but the missionaries have never been able to contact him. So we gave our bus driver a Book of Mormon with Sister Olsen's testimony in it & hopefully we will start teaching him:) 

We did a lot of moving this week which was fun because it is always great when people take you up on service. We helped a new family move in, a family in the ward move to another home in the area, & then a non-member family move out. 

If you remember Sister Boshart- she's the one we took self defense from- we were able to finally give her a church tour Friday:) It was so powerful & the spirit was so strong. 

Saturday, cute Meghan Morrell, the 8 year-old we were teaching, was baptized. I about cried as I watched her dad baptize her. She has so much faith in the Lord. I admire that pure & humble faith. I'm so grateful to be a missionary & to see the power of the Lord every day. I know if we look for His hand we will see it. Our faith must always be in Heavenly Father & Jesus Christ. Love you all. Xo Sister Stolworthy

summertime happiness

June 20, 2016

Sister Olsen & I got called & she will at least be staying here until Thursday when we figure it all out! Haha so that has been fun:) 

Our bus really let us down this week! Hahaha it was late so many times which was hard- but we got to meet some cool people. Wednesday we had "Sisters Specialized Training"​ which is the correct way of saying sisters conference:) Sister Emery who went home in December came & spoke to us & it was a lot of fun. Sister Olsen & I got to sing together at the end so that was a tender blessing that we are together. Then one of the Sisters in the Shenandoah Valley ward had a doctors appt down here so we had 4 sisters in our apartment Wednesday night! It was a blast:) We continued to take care of Bailey, the bird. We have met a lot of cool people this week. I'm grateful for the tender mercies of the Lord. I know that when we look for His hand- we will always see it. 

I want to give dad a shout-out for Father's Day. I have always been so grateful for dad. He has taught me so much about patience, hard-work & love. I remember staying up late to do my homework while dad would be studying his scriptures. I'm grateful for all of the late-night life & gospel conversations we had. He has a testimony as solid as a rock & he is the perfect example of Christ-like love & diligence in the gospel. His heart is filled with love for everyone & it shows. Thank you for everything dad. I hope to be half the person you are someday. 

Love you guys so much. Thank you for all of the love & support. Xo Sister Stolworthy 

PS - 1) A cool bridge we found from 1933 & fishing on our preparation day

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humi-die-ty

June 13, 2016

I'm glad you had a great birthday dad:) & Happy Father's Day. So lucky to have you!

These have been some funny past few days! So I said bye to Sister Jensen. Sister Johnston is supposed to my companion right now, but Sister Olsen had a Dr. Appointment in DC & Sister Johnston's companion had an appointment in Front Royal, so Sister Olsen has been my companion for a week! Hahaha. It has been a throwback to Woodstock. We have been having a lot of fun:)

We taught Mrs. Carter this week with Sister Sheely. Sister Sheely has been a member 10 years and a has a really amazing conversion story. We were also able to meet with a lady named Surya who we helped move in a few weeks ago. We had a really sweet miracle with the Wight family!! They came to stake conference!! It was so awesome!! April isn't a member & we were able to meet with them this week & teach them more about the Book of Mormon. It was so cool!:) We also met this super cool guy named Duane while we were walking. He said he could feel the spirit emulating from us. We gave him a Book of Mormon & he was so open to learning more! Ahh so awesome:) 

We were street contacting & saw an art festival going on so we walked around. They were doing caricatures & one of the guys totally knew who we were hahaha. So he drew us one for free. He even got the hand wave spot on haha! Oh man. I love being a missionary- I am so grateful for the knowledge I have of the Atonement. It is a special thing being able to love people & serve them with all you have. I love my mission. It's crazy to think that I am one of the oldies in my district & zone. I am so grateful for every moment that I have to share Christ's love with all of God's children. I love you all so very much. Xo. 

PS - While at Stake Conference I met a lady who went to law school with dad! Her maiden name is Goodman. We got a picture together. She was so sweet:)

​Shalom Ya'll

Only grace

June 6, 2016

Hey guys!:) This week is transfers. Sister Jensen is leaving to Frederick & Sister Johnston is coming here! I have no idea who she is, but I know we will have a great transfer:) Time keeps flying by. 

We had a funny week...we ran into Bronson Kaufusi? I think that's his name.....he's from BYU & just got drafted by the Ravens. He & his wife were super cool:) He is gigantic! Haha.

We finished our self defense course! We had a super cool lesson with a less-active & his non-member wife! We taught about the Book of Mormon & had a cool conversation with them about faith in Alma 32. He hasn't been to church in over 40 years but he said his conscience is always telling him to come. 

We had a super creep experience this week. Some guy came on the bus & sat down right beside me. He kept trying to grab our arms & he was rubbing them & tried to rub our legs & it was uncomfortable to the max. We kept telling him no but he didn't speak any english. Then when we got to the bus stop our first bus was late so we missed the second bus...so he kept following us around at the bus stop. But thankfully a homie from Liberia got our back & told him to back off so he did. He kept speaking espanol & then passed out on the bench. So grateful we know our self defense!

We have a lesson with our investigator Mrs. Carter tonight. She called us the other night asking us how we can be saved. I am so grateful for the simplicity of the gospel. There was a recent convert here who stopped coming to church because it confused him. No no no, we never want that to be the case. The gospel is simple & the Atonement is at the center. It's our job to make sure that everyone knows that:) I have been reading "Believing Christ" by Stephen Robinson. That book has changed my life. I am so grateful for grace. & for the knowledge that with Christ I am whole. Love you guys so much. Xo. 

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bal-tee-more

May 31, 2016

Hi family... this week was great:) & Happy Memorial Day as well.

Yesterday the Rosson family took us down to Inner Harbor in Baltimore to the aquarium. It was so kind of them.

I can't believe this transfer is almost coming to a close. It is crazy to think that all of the Elders I graduated with who left right after high school are starting to go home now! Time really does fly, but I am so grateful to be out here. I can't imagine doing anything else right now.

Last Monday we had a miracle! Our dinner appointment canceled last minute so we decided to go try a potential from the area book. Her name was Shakira. We went over & she said "I was literally telling my husband today about how I hadn't seen you guys this year. Look at that." & so we were able to teach her more about our message. It was really neat:)

We had zone conference last week which was really good:) President & Sister Christiansen focused on spiritual planning & helping our investigators progress. I learned a lot & we are excited as a zone to implement the things we learned this upcoming transfer:)

We had the c0o0o0o0oliest miracle this week! Haha:) As a mission we shrunk, so we lost a lot of miles which just means more walking:) We decided to take the bus home Thursday night since we didn't have the miles to go all the way back home. At the bus stop we met this kid Chris. He's from South Korea & he was adopted as a kid. He was with his skateboard, waiting for the bus to take him to meet his friend. He told us he normally doesn't ride the bus. We started talking to him & taught him the restoration & plan of salvation. He thought it was so cool that we met because we both weren't planning on taking the bus that night. He's 21 & has a lot of questions but believes in God. We gave him a Book of Mormon & referred him to the YSA elders. It was so cool!!:)

Sunday we taught a lady named Mrs. Carter that the elders had picked up as an investigator a couple weeks before. We read the Book of Mormon with her & she thought it was so cool that we have the knowledge that Christ appeared in the America's and taught after His resurrection. It was just another testament to me that this is the true gospel of Jesus Christ & that the Book of Mormon can transform our lives. I love you guys so much. I love my Savior. He is the way- the only way. Love you. Xo Sister Stolworthy


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a day without Jesus is like 21 days with no sun

May 23, 2016

Out of the past 23 days....we have only had 2 days of sunshine. It has rained the other 21 hahah. Oh man, I reaaaallly appreciate the sunshine! :) 

We handed our only investigator Mary to the hermanas... even though she was raised in the U.S. her Puerto Rican roots were calling her to the Spanish Branch- which we totally understand:) Ahh so please pray for us as we continue to go out & find those who are prepared for this amazing gospel:) 

We were able to keep doing self-defense with Sister Boshart! It's been so fun getting to be in her home... she is a special lady & I'm grateful we were able to make this connection with her. We also are still teaching Megan- who is 8 all of the lessons since her dad asked us too. She is so sweet. 

We met a cool guy this week named Dot, at the bus stop. He grew up in Bal'more & made his way to Columbia to provide for his 2 kids. It was really neat talking to him. We talked about the Book of Mormon & gave him one. Then we referred him to the ward over. It was really cool :) 

Sunday we went over to a former investigators house... Carrol. She is 73 years old. First thing she asked us to do was to rub her "back cream" on her back. Then she showed us her AA pamphlets & all of her lipliner. Then at the end of it we said a prayer with her. She said it. My favorite line was "Dear Heavenly Father... thank you for all this beautiful beautiful weather & rain... but could you please have the friggin sun come out. Thank you, see you later." Hahahaha. Old people are the best. 

Well I love you guys so. I'm grateful for a gospel of hope & faith. I know that with it we can accomplish anything. That's something I've been thinking about lately. Just the faith to keep going. It's so easy to let things get to us, but seeing the bigger picture is so important. Love you. Xo, Sister Stolworthy 

PS cute little Adam Mitchell's baptism

"Rollin' with the Homies"

May 16, 2016

Hello family!! Congrats to Haylee on getting engaged! So happy! :) 

Monday-Tuesday my planner was lost at the park so the elders had to go find it... hahaha. But I got it back Wednesday just in time for exchanges. I went to the Savage Mill ward with Sister Orr. We taught their investigator Bree who's boyfriend is a returning less-active. It was such a cool lesson. The spirit was so strong. The member with us said, "The Book of Mormon's changed my life." & Bree said, "It's changing mine." It was so neat! :) 

We were able to see the Shermans who are recent converts from Liberia. They finally have their own place & they were so happy. They didn't have any furniture but they were finally just so grateful that people from the church could come visit them. They are an amazing couple. All 5 of their kids are still in Liberia while they work up money to pay for them to come over here. They are special people. Please pray for them. 

We were also able to take a self-defense course with a less-active. It's called RAD: "Rape Aggression Defense." We learned so much & it was a neat experience getting to spend time with her. Then Thursday we helped a family move out of the ward. This ward is very transient- about 1/3 of the ward moves out every summer & you get new move-ins throughout the year. That's just what happens when people have government jobs :) 

We definitely talked to some awesome people on the bus this week! :) There is also a spanish lady on the bus that we see all the time- her name is Veronita. She hardly speaks English but we attempted to talk to her about being missionaries. She is a hard-core Pentecostal but hopefully in time she will be accepting to having the spanish sisters over! 

It's fun getting the bus drivers to talk. Runiqua & Nikki were a couple of them that we were able to talk to about being missionaries. They asked us to pray for them & their families :) Runiqua was hilarious... she kept telling us about all the unsafe places of Columbia. Well that night prior we had witnessed a drug deal... & then someone tried to buy off of us... what?! hahaha. We have Jesus names tags...being a missionary is a one-of-a-kind experience:)

Sunday we had bible study with Kate & Matt & Sister Jackson. Kate & Matt aren't members but we read the Bible and Book of Mormon with them each week. We've been trying really hard to find investigators. We had a miracle in Elkridge!! We went over to contact a referral from the Elders. Her name is Mary! She is from New York but her roots are in Puerto Rico! She said she used to take the lessons a long time ago & she dated a mormon guy. She has been feeling very lonely & depressed lately. She feels like she calls on God a lot but He doesn't answer. We were able to testify to her that He does! :) She said she was having a hard time yesterday & then we stopped by. She said, "the mormons always find me!" haha. She said she's looking for a church where she can learn, teach, participate, & make friends. What better church than the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! :) We are excited to give her a church tour this Wednesday. 

Sunday evening we ate with April Wight, her mom from China, and Brother Wight- her less-active husband. Brother Wight is a character hahahah. They are total opposites. He is super funny & sarcastic. He thanked us for checking on April while he was out of town for so long. He always calls himself a "jack mormon" because he feels like the things that he's done don't ever qualify him to come back to church. We were able to talk about the atonement. It was a miracle!! :)

I love this work & I love my Savior. I am grateful every single day for the opportunity to dedicate this time to Him. I know with my whole heart that He lives & that He loves us. Just like Nephi, I do not know the meaning of all things, but I know He loveth His children. Love you all:) Xo Sister Stolworthy 

bootz& catz & catz & bootz

May 9, 2016

It was so great to see your beautiful faces! Also Ally, you looked beautiful at Prom!! Holy cow, my sisters are gorgeous:)

This week we got lost on the bus again with our Haitian bus driver, Franz! Haha. We also were able to decorate a ton of doors for single sisters for Mother's Day :) Sister Jensen & I sang in Relief Society for the sisters. The weather this week has been crazy. Cloudy skies the whole week...it was rough. There was sunshine on Mother's Day, but it is going to be rainy the rest of the week. I really do appreciate the sunshine :) 

Tuesday we had zone training... I made my 3rd cousin, Elder Stolworthy, finally take a picture with me haha. My funny story of this week... well we street contacted a teenage boy who invited us back to teach his family. When we showed up his grandma goes, "Well I am his Grandmother. & I am a Jehovah's Witness. & Tony knows where to go to get acquainted with Jesus." She shut the door. I started to chuckle a little bit later because we totally gave Tony a Book of Mormon!! :) Haha. There are Jehovah's Witnesses errrrrrywhere! But....if you get a Book of Mormon in their home... bonus! Haha. So hopefully he still reads it :) 

We had dinner with a recent convert. Her nephew committed suicide a few weeks ago & she was still having a hard time with it. We talked more about the Atonement & I brought her the talk "Like a Broken Vessel" by Jeffrey R. Holland. Her sister isn't a member, but she was able to share the talk with her & they were able to talk about it. Her sister lives up in Rochester. I am so grateful for my mission. I have met many people with different struggles. & even though the struggles I have faced aren't necessarily the exact same as the people I meet- I am grateful for the sorrows I have endured that allow me to relate with people to some degree. Because the Savior can relate on every level possible. Something that has carried me through my mission is this: "The greater the sorrow, the greater the understanding. That is why He understands perfectly." 

Love, 

Sister Stolworthy 

Elder Stolworthy....my 3rd cousin. Hahaha