Family and Friends,

Dear Family and Friends,

I hope you all had a good Christmas. Things here were crazy! We did lots of service week which was awesome because it helped us keep a Christ centered holiday season. This week I was reading in John and I was reading the story of Lazarus and I have heard this story many many times but this week in particular some of the verses stood out to me. and it was in John 11:32-35

"32 then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.

33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled,

34 And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see.

35 Jesus wept."

I really liked these verses because I was thinking about this story and Jesus knew what He came to do. He knew that he was going to raise Lazarus from the dead. So, when I read it and it talked about Jesus being troubled when He saw Mary and her pain and her distress over her brothers death, and then even more than that He cried with her. I just thought about how that example alone shows how the Atonement works. Christ knows that the trials and the things that we face are for our good. He knows what is going to happen and that in the end we will be even more happy than when we started. However, even though He knows that, and he knows that everything is going to be alright, our pain troubles him and not only that he cries with us. Every step we take He takes with us because only He can truly know what we feel and only He can perfectly comfort us in our grief and pain. I really liked that. Being on a mission has been so hard, I have come across so many people that I didn't know how to help. But, the Savior knows how to help them so all I have to do is rely on Him and His power and I am able to 'comfort those that stand in need of comfort.' That is such a blessing. To know that the message I share will bring immeasurable amounts of comfort to all those I teach and come in contact with. The Savior is the perfect example and the perfect comforter. If we rely on him all of our troubles will become lighter. I hope you all have a good week! I love you bunches!

Love,

Sister Bice

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day!!‏

Dear Family and Friends!!!

Merry Christmas!!!! Its So crazy! I can't believe that Christmas is already here! This week has been so good!! On Tuesday we had a Christmas Conference where we talked about the real meaning of Christmas and how much the world would change if we changed the question from "What will I get for Christmas?" to "What will I GIVE for Christmas?" That has been something that I have been thinking about a lot! Because with my being away from family and serving I am able to see so many people who just need help and then I am able to think about what it is that I can give them this season. But, then of course there is the obvious answer is the best thing that I can give anyone is the knowledge of the gospel. What a beautiful thing it is that we all have the opportunity to do. Last p-day I heard something that I really liked and it went like this. 

J- Jesus First

O- Others Second

Y- Yourself Last

So, The Joy that we find in the Christmas season come first from remembering our Savior and his birth and sacrifice. Secondly, it comes from giving to others, from being Christs hands and serving him. and finally, from receiving the blessings of being in the service of our God. If we are always remembering to serve him and follow his example then we are always able to feel that Joy. In Mosiah 2:41 and I know I've shared this one before but I love it!

"And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it." I love to think of the Joy and happiness that this gospel promises us! But as it says in Luke 22:32 it says "But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." So, essentially, when we receive this joy and this happiness we are asked to share it with others. Its not even as hard as it may seem! When we share that testimony its more often than not what we do and how we live what we know that gets our message across. But then, we need to open that channel of communication and show to others that we are willing to share the reason why we are so happy. We can share the gospel with everyone, anywhere and anytime just by being members of the church. I love you all!!! Have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Love,

Sister Bice

This week has been good:)

Dear Family and Friends,

This week has been good:) Sister Soliven and I are wrapping up her training and getting ready for transfers on the 1st of January. Its crazy to think that these two transfers went by so fast!!! We only have a week and a half after this week! But, it has been a fun two transfers:) So last week, Sister Soliven and I tracted into a gentleman and since it was only us two we couldn't go into his house. So, we taught him on his door step and gave him a Book of Mormon and a Plan of Salvation pamphlet and told him we would come by sometime next week with someone with us so we could go in and teach him. Well, we were driving around doing our normal stop-by's when we got a call. Well, much to our surprise it was this same gentleman, he asked if we could find someone so we could come by and that he was interested in hearing more of our message. We were so excited! We are going to see him on Thursday so pray for us!! But, other than that this week has been great! A member let us use an extra Christmas tree she has so we have it all set up in our apartment:) So, in light of the Christmas season I thought I would share a Christmas thought. It is found in 1 Nephi 11:18-23 and it is Nephi when he is seeing the vision of the tree of life having requested of God not only to see the vision but to know the interpretation of it as well. At this point Nephi see's the virgin Mary and it says: "17 And he said unto me: Behold the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh. 19 And it came to pass that I beheld that she was carried away in the Spirit; and after she had been carried away in the Spirit for the space of a time the angel spake unto me, saying: Look! 20 And I looked and beheld the virgin again, bearing a child in her arms. 21 And the angel said unto me:Behold the Lamb of God, yea, even the Son of the Eternal Father! Knowest thou the meaning of the tree which thy father saw? 22 And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things. 23 And he spake unto me saying: Yea, and the most joyous to the soul." 

     I really like this because it just goes to show how significant the birth of our Savior is and was. In showing Nephi the interpretation of the vision the angel showed him other visions and allowed him to see the birth of Christ and from that Nephi was able to understand God's love "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever beliveth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." In this season so much of our focus is on giving and receiving. But, one thing that we often forget is that great gift that God gave us! He GAVE us his Son so that everyone could make it home. And through that gift we can fully enjoy the blessings of the gospel and of our Heavenly Fathers love. Its so amazing to know that we have a Father that loves us so much.:) So, keep that in mind this Christmas season. That the greatest gift we have been given is the reason for the season. It is our Savior Jesus Christ and the opportunity we all have to go home to Father one day. I love you all!! Have a wonderful week!!

Love,

Sister Bice

Cold Front in Colorado!!‏

Dear family and friends,

This week has been freezing!!!.... And I mean that, we had two days were the weather didn't get above the single digits!! In fact one morning Sister Soliven and I got up and got to the car to go exercise and we looked at the temperature and it was only 1 degree outside!! Brrr!!! Then to top it all off my Temple Jubilee almost got canceled because the roads were so bad. Luckily they got cleared up and I was able to go! But, other than being freezing cold and unable to feel my fingers most of the week it has been a great week! Thursday I got to go up to Denver and go to the temple for my Jubilee or my halfway point. It was so wonderful! It has been forever since I have had a chance to go to the temple!! It was such a good experience to be there and to feel the peace that comes from being inside the temple walls. Or even just from being on the grounds! I was so happy to be there. Then the rest of the week was missionary work like usual... Which is always the best! Even in this cold we were loving the opportunity to go out and work! But, I came across a scripture I that really stood out to me this week. It is in Mormon 9:31 and it is Moroni speaking "31 Condemn me not because of mine imperfection, neither my father, because of his imperfection, neither them who have written before him; but rather give thanks unto God that he hath made manifest unto you our imperfections, that ye may learn to be more wise than we have been." I really like this because it doesn't only apply to the writers of the Book of Mormon. So very many times on my mission I have come across people who are not attending church because they have been offended by the people there. Or they don't like Mormons because they are 'hypocrites'. But, like in Elder Uchdorfs most recent talk in conference he pointed out that if we define hypocrite as someone who doesn't live up exactly perfectly to all of their beliefs then we are all hypocrites. No one is or can be perfect in this life. That is why I really liked that scripture. Here we have a prophet of the Lord asking us to no condemn the word of God because of his imperfections, but rather to look at doctrine. Everyone of us makes mistakes and if we only look at the mistakes then there will be volumes and volumes of things that we can nit-pick at. But! Something that stood out to me in church yesterday was that the lady who was speaking in sacrament had a journal that she kept of all the nice things her children did for her or others. She pointed out that if she had written all the nasty rotten things her kids had done over the years she could fill volumes but that she had made a decision to focus on the good things that they had done rather than the bad. I really liked that. Sometimes I find that I tend to see the small things that irk me and just get on my nerves. But, when I pay attention to the things that are good and take my focus of all the things that can bug me, then I am so so so much more happy! On that note I will let you all go!

I love you, stay safe and stay warm!!

Love,

Sister Bice

Dear Family and Friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful thanksgiving! We lots and lots of pie! But luckily on the actual day we only had one thanksgiving dinner instead of 3 like I sometimes hear about! Other than that our week has been crazy! but by far the most crazy was Friday night as Sister Soliven are sitting in our nice warm apartment. Just finishing up some of the training stuffs we had gotten behind on. Well, as we are sitting there we hear some commotion outside and the walkway outside the apartment is shaking because someone is walking something heavy down it and we assume it is our neighbors. Well about 2 minutes later there is a knock on our door. So really confused at this point I stand up and look out the peep hole and see  what looks to be Sisters standing outside so I open the door and to my surprise it is our Sister Training Leaders. So the first think I could think of to say I a very confused sounding 'Surprise?" and the look at me and just start busting up!! Apparently they had texted us to let us know they were coming only we never got the text! So we did some surprise exchanges and hurried up and planned for us to both be in the area. It was so random but so funny! We had a hard time not laughing about it all night! But, all's well that ends well and everything turned out for the best! It was also lots of fun! This week I was reading in 4th Nephi about how the people lived in peace for 200 years after the death of Jesus Christ and so many people today are looking for world peace, but these people had it. In chapter 1:15-16 it says "And it came to pass that there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people. 16and there were no envying's, nor strifes, nor tumults, nor whoredoms, nor lyings, nor murders, nor any manner of lasciviousness; and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God." I find it interesting that the people in the world right now are searching for the answer to how we can have world peace and here in these scriptures it explains it. Its not like it was anything new. In order to achieve that goal or in order to have it, we need to follow the commandments. Which is something God has told us to do since the beginning! And I love that the Love of God is the first one it mentions. When we have that charity towards our fellowmen and when we Love God and see all those around us as his precious children then we have peace. Maybe not the whole world as this case was in the Americas but in and of ourselves we will feel that longed for peace. As children of a loving Heavenly Father that is the thing he longs so give us. So, that was a random tangent but I think with the holiday season coming up we need to remember now the real meaning of Christmas and keep that love of God and of all men always with us. "What is it that brings such love into our hearts, such joy into our lives? It is, of course, the spirit of Christmas. To understand the real meaning of the spirit of Christmas, we need only drop the last syllable, and it becomes the Spirit of Christ, who is the Savior and Redeemer of the world." (http://www.lds.org/liahona/2000/12/the-spirit-of-christmas?lang=eng&query=spirit+of+christmas) Just remember even as this season is just starting to keep that Spirit of Christ with you. Remember him in all that you do! I love you all and hope you have a great week!

Love,

Sister Bice

9 Months a Missionary!‏

Dear Family and Friends!

This week I hit my 9 month mark!! That is so crazy to me! I can hardly believe that I have been out for half of my mission already! This week has been good but there has been LOTS of snow and Sister Soliven and I did LOTS of tracting! Its was a lot of fun though:) Also, Wednesday started the long line of thanksgiving dinners that we have been having... I think we have had turkey almost every day this week!! And also lots and lots of pie! We were also blessed to see a lot of the less active members we visit come to a sort of break through and ask us to help them come back to church. That was really nice to see, and to know of their desire to re-gain the testimony the undoubtedly once had. This morning I was reading in Luke and I came across a scripture that stood out to me. It said in Luke 12:31-32 "But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. 32 Fear not little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Well, as I was sitting there reading that it reminded me of the scripture in Moses 1:39 "For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." So often as we go about talking to people they make this idea of heaven so difficult! But right here the scriptures are telling us that God WANTS us to make it home! Not only does he want us to make it home but our making it home and our progression is His work and His glory!  I really like that, one of my favorite things to teach people (and I may or may not have mentioned this before) is that God IS our loving Heavenly Father, and because He loves us He has a plan. Because He loves us He sent His only Begotten Son in the flesh. Because He loves us He created and entire world for us to dwell on and to be our learning ground. and finally because He loves us He will provide a way back home. And once we know who we are and whose we are it is a lot easier to set our sights on home. To turn our eyes to that kingdom which He has prepared for us. This is something that I pray I can give everyone I talk to a little bit better of an understanding on. If I can do that then the rest comes so much easier. One last scripture and then I will let ya'll go and be done with my little rant;) in 1Nephi 21:15-16 it says (and this is Christ speaking): "For can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee, O house of Israel. 16 Behold, I have Graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me." I share this because Christ and God the Father are so very aware of us. I like to think when he says 'thy walls are continually before me." That he is talking about our trials. He has paid for our sins, he has suffered for our sorrow so that when we come up against a wall and we don't know what to do He can be there with us and He can lead us by the hand and help us to make it back home. But first we have to grab on to the lifesaver that Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ have thrown to us. We have to hold on and then press forward.  I love you all! Stay safe!

Love,

Sister Bice

My new haircut . . .

Everyday their tumbling...‏

Family and Friends!

So... Weird title for my email this week but it does come with a story! So I don't know if you know this but Pueblo Colorado is SUPER windy.... Not only is is super windy but it is also super dead. Well, this week was a particularly windy week... Which usually isn't a problem. Only this time it was so windy that it made Pueblo Colorado seem like some film titled 'attack of the tumble weeds!' There were so many tumble weeds blowing around... I still cant figure out where they all came from! In fact in some areas, particularly in the direction where the wind was blowing there was so many that people couldn't get out of their houses because there were tumble weeds stacked as high as their entire house! I wish I had gotten pictures but it was crazy! Anyways... This week was good. A bit rough because everyone stood us up or canceled their appointment with us. But on Thursday we had our mission tour. That is we had a member of the seventy Elder Bowen come down and talk with all the missionaries in the area... Not only that but I had to lead the music for it! So we had this mission tour and Elder Bowen was talking to us about pre-set limitations. So to get his point across he told us about how if you put fleas in a jar they will just jump on out. However, if you put a lid on for a while they will hit the lid but then they will adapt and jump just high enough not to hit the lid of the jar. Well, the next part is if you take the lid off of that jar the fleas will not jump out. They will jump just below the lid like it they did when the lid was still on the jar. He took this and related it to us and how sometimes we jump or rise just below our full potential and never quite reach it because we have this mindset that we can't. There is a quote I really like, I heard it in an Elder Uchdorf talk though I don't know if the quote is his but it simply states: "We will be able to do all things through Christ who strengthens us." I love that because as I was listening to Elder Bowen talk I thought of all the limitations I had put on myself. All the things that I could do that I wasn't, both before my mission and during, and I realized that I had been cheating myself of reaching my full potential. My companion always jokes around that she is a 'princess' because she is a daughter of a heavenly king. How true is that for all of us! We are all of divine nature and potential. We do not have to pay head to what the world tells us we can and cannot do. What we need to listen to is the still small voice that tells us who we are and who we can become. If we listen to that voice then we will become something far beyond our own expectations. We will find that the things we accomplish are so much greater than what we though possible. That is the beauty of it all and of the gospel is knowing that we, if we follow God, can become someone greater than we ever imagined we could become. So, I would just encourage you all to think about what limitations you have put on yourself and then go out and break them down because you will surprise yourself by what you can accomplish.

Love,

Sister Bice

This week was good. It went by WAY too fast though....

Dear Family and Friends! 

This week was good. It went by WAY too fast though.... I'm sitting here trying to remember all of what happened. We ended up doing A LOT of service this week which was fantastic! I love service it is so great! In fact sometimes when we have weeks where we do lots of service I tend to worry that maybe we wont be able to meet the goals the mission has set forth for us because we are not teaching that much. However, I then am proven wrong as the Lord provides a way for us to serve AND get all the things done that we need too. Its amazing to see. We also had a really good experience this week. We went to visit a Less-active member that we have been teachings a missionaries for a while. So we went and we had a good visit and then she starts talking about how she hasn't been to church in a while and she doesn't know why. Then she turned to Sister Soliven and myself and asked simply "can you help me?" Of course we answered with a definitive yes and that we loved and where there for her. It was one of those moments were you can see how the Lord has been working on someone and how you get to be there when they ask for that help or they decide to make that change in their life. This morning in my personal studies I read the classic well known type scripture of 'Ask, and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.' and I was thinking about that because really what are the three things we are asked to do when we come up against something maybe we are unsure about?

1. Ask- turn to God and ask for his help

2. Seek- After praying we are to study to ponder to continue to pray and to earnestly and honestly try to find the answer to our question. As well as listen and accept whatever answer that we are given. 

3. Knock- When we find that answer we are then asked to act upon it. Personally I think that the part of knock and it shall be opened unto you goes with seeking but it also goes with the part of following through. If we get off our knees and ACT upon the answer we have gotten then we will discover like Nephi did in 1 Nephi 3:7 "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall PREPARE a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." As we knock and act upon the things and answers that we have received then the way to accomplish the things the Lord has asked us to accomplish will be 'opened unto us.'

I love how the gospel works and how it teaches that if we do those three things. If we are always asking, seeking, and knocking then we are going to receive and answer to the prayers that we say. And it is that simple. Its not this big complicated process that we are prone to think it is. It is just remembering to turn to the Lord in all of our doings. I love you all and I am praying for you! Stay safe and have a fantastic week!

Love,

Sister Bice

another week in Pueblo!‏

Dear Family and Friends,

First off, I forgot my planner today so I don't remember a whole lot of the week without it. But I will try my best:) Its amazing on a mission to see how the Lord places us where we need to be. Tuesday night we taught the born again christian couple that Sister Kipp and myself had been teaching for a while and were considering dropping. But, it was SUCH a good lesson! I think that was the case because this couple needed Sister Soliven at this time. She went to a small private christian school and understands a lot more of their beliefs than either Sister Kipp or myself did. It was such a great experience to know that the reason I am here with Sister Soliven is because there are lives that we can touch by our combined testimony that other missionaries wouldn't be able to do. In fact, it is a lot like the story of Ammon in the Book of Mormon. So many missionaries had tried to convert the Laminites and had tried to tell them of the gospel only to be persecuted and thrown out. But the Lord knew that the people needed Ammons specific testimony. So he sent him where he needed to be at the time he needed to be there and because of that he was able to convert thousands of people all of whom stayed faithful all the days of their lives. In the talk 'Waiting on the Road to Damascus' Elder Uchtdorf states "Sometimes a single phrase of testimony can set events in motion that affect someone’s life for eternity."  Before my mission that phrase was a little hard to swallow  That a single line of my testimony could change the course of someones life. But since being out I have seen how single bits of someones testimony HAS changed the course of peoples lives. They become someone they never dreamed of because there was a friend in their life that loved them enough to share their testimony  I know that is true because I have seen it in my own life. With each of my companions there was a part of their testimony that stood out to me and inspired me to be better. It is amazing to be able to spend all my time looking at how the Lord is working and refining others as well as being able to look at how the Lord is working with and refining me. This gospel that we have in our lives is something that can change and enrich our own life as well as the lives of everyone that we come in contact with. And since being on my mission I have gained the firm testimony that everyone in our life is there for a reason, we shouldn't refrain from bearing our testimonies to them and that could be in word or example. But, the message we have to share is so important to the lives of those we come in contact with. I have such a strong testimony of the gospel. I know that this church is true. With all my heart I know that. I just want all of you to know that I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that by the power of God he translated the Book of Mormon which was written for our day. I know that God is a loving God and that he still speaks to His children and that his earnest desire is for all of us to return to His presence one day. I love you all and pray for you every night! Stay safe and have a good week!

Love,

Sister Bice

 The one with the peace signs is my Asian tourist photo.

 This is bishops castle... Who said that Colorado couldn't have castles too!

Onward, ever onward!!‏

Dear family and friends! I hope your week was good!! Ours was, though I think the members of the ward have decided we need some fattening up because everyone keeps dropping off sweets for us... Most of them are ending up at the elders home because we cant eat them!! But yeah... I don't even know what to say about this week! It was a normal week of missionary work which means it was FANTASTIC! But nothing too exciting stands out besides the fact that a less active member and myself ganged up on Sister Soliven to get her to touch a snake since they don't have those in Hawaii. But, I feel like I am learning and growing so much. There is a lady in our ward that we had the opportunity to do service for this week. She is a survivor of throat cancer and many other hard trials to endure. As we were over there we got to talk with her and hear her testimony. The poor lady is on oxygen she cant talk very well and she can no longer eat aside from a feeding tube. She is raising two children in their teens and she is in and out of hospitals constantly. But she has a testimony that can move mountains. She knows that even though all of this has happened to her that she has a loving Heavenly Father and that he has a specific and beautiful plan for her and her life and especially for her family. It was such an amazing opportunity to talk with her and to just even get to know her a bit better than we have. The other day Sister Soliven and I were at a less active members home and we were talking about the many scary things that are happening in the world today and how much those younger than us are going to have to face. Well, it just so happens that I was on the chapters in Alma where it talks about Moroni raising the standard of truth. So we were talking about how more now than ever and more in the future than now. We, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are going to be asked to stand up and stand out. Not because its easy but because we know who we are and we know what is right. We will need to stand or our religion and our God to let people know not only who we are but whose we are, as well as teach them who and whose they are as well. As we go onward lifting our standard of truth through our example others will question what it is that allows us to with the ever increasingly tough battle against the world and its vices. But just like Moroni's armies we go forth with the power of God on our side when we fight for the truth:) I love you all!! Stand up and stand out your are children of a Heavenly King!

Love,

Sister Bice

The Field is White!!‏

Dear Family and Friends!

This has been such a good week! I know it is only been probably 4 days or something since you last heard from me but still!!! Mostly because on Saturday Sister Soliven and myself had the opportunity to watch Flor Vasquez enter into the waters of baptism! It was such a special experience!! I love baptisms because they are a moment or an hour of time that show the changes that people have made in their lives and the faith that they have gained. Flor is amazing! She has such great faith and love for the savior and I am so very privileged to have been able to be a step in her pathway back to our Heavenly Father. But even more so the members who have helped and guided and supported her through making this step they are so privileged to have her in their ward and in their lives. I'm so excited to be here in the Pueblo West Second ward for a few more months because I will get to see even a little bit more of her process! One thing that I have heard a lot on my mission is that the Lord is hastening his work and the longer I am out the more I am able to see how true that statement is. Before my final decision to serve a full time mission I was always all 'I can do missionary work without being a full time missionary.' You know making up excuses because I was kind of scared to come on a mission. I felt inadequate and many other things. But! Sister Soliven shared with me this week a scripture that really helped her out because she was in my same situation. Its in D&C 4:3 "Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work." We are all called to the work. If we have a desire to serve then we need to get out and do it! God will qualify us and make us equal to the task he has set before us. This week Sister Soliven and I have been listening to a talk titled 'the missionary next door' and it is about a lady whose family was super missionary oriented. They had a non-member at church every Sunday for years! But one thing she talks about is the 2 types of conversion necessary for enduring conversion and lasting membership in the church and the two things are 1. Spiritual Conversion and 2. Social Conversion. Then she pointed out how the members have a huge job of providing that Social Conversion. I think one of the things that I was worried about when doing 'missionary work' was having to teach the lessons. But really, we can make the missionaries do that and just back up their teachings by our example and our friendship. Its so important for us as members to reach out to all those who are coming into the church because its a scary thing to do! We are asking them to make a pretty big lifestyle change and if we ask them to do it alone their success will be slower and they will have a harder time remaining and doing the things they are supposed to do. As you may have noticed I really like Jeffery R. Holland and one of his talks he states "'Asking every member to be a missionary is not nearly as crucial as asking every member to be a member!" It is so important for us to just be who we are and to be an example of the belivers. As we do that and we answer honestly questions we are asked and invite our friends to activities then we can so many doors open before us! I love you all! Have a wonderful week!

Love,

Sister Bice

Heres some pictures of me and sister kipp at our local weed pharmacy.

our couch after we cleaned out all of the elders stuff

Sister Soliven and Me

and then Sister Soliven with some cotton candy... She was really excited about that...

Aloha, from Colorado!!!‏

Family and Friends,

How has your week been? I hope it has been going well, things are progressing rapidly in pueblo west! We have a baptism this Saturday!! My little trainee has had to invite someone to be baptized and prepare a baptism all in the same week! But that's alright... That she can take. Its the weather here in Colorado that is bugging her:) She is from Hawaii and her name is Sister Soliven and the poor girl has had terrible allergies!! She didn't know she had allergies until she came to somewhere a weed ridden as Pueblo West Colorado. But she is being a champ about it all! We are getting along well though and she has promised/threatened to feed me spam and make me like it.. We will have to see how that goes. :/ Yesterday we had interviews with the mission president and while he was doing interviews we had the opportunity to do some extra personal study which was great! I love to study and read the scriptures! So, I was reading about Ammon which is a great missionary to read about. And Ammon he is praising and rejoicing in the success they have seen and his brother Aaron rebukes him and tells him that he is getting carried away to boasting and Ammon responds that no one can boast too much in the Lord and in Alma 26:16-21 he says:

"Therefore, let us glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part of which I feel.

17 Who could have supposed that our God would have snatched us from our awful, sinful and polluted state?

18 Behold, we went forth even in wrath, with mighty threatenings to destroy his church.

19 Oh then, why did he not consign us to an awful destruction, yea, why did he not let the sword of his justice fall upon us, and doom us to eternal despair?

20 Oh, my soul, almost as it where, fleeth at the thought. Behold, he did not exercise his justice upon us, but in his great mercy hath brought us over that everlasting gulf of death and misery, even to the salvation of our souls.

21 And now behold, my bretheren, what natural man is there that knoweth these things? I say unto you there is none that knoweth these things, save it be the penitent." 

I really like those scriptures because he is talking about the reason why he can praise God with full purpose of heart. And that reason is that he has been on the other side. He has seen the influence and power of Satan. There are scriptures that talk about how even after his conversion and as he was going about preaching the gospel there 'hearts were depressed' and they were about to go back. But the reason for the fullness of his joy is that he HAS made mistakes and because he has made mistakes and experienced depression and sorrow he is that much more able to feel the joy that comes from following Gods commandments and specifically in this example sharing the gospel that he has come to love so much with all of those he comes in contact with. Its great to know that even though things are rough right now and may continue to be for a while that we can 'experience joy even in times of trial, you can face life's challenges with a spirit of peace' (plan of salvation pamphlet.) I know it is a reiterated phrase but God never ever promised this life would be easy but he promised that it would be ever so infinity worth if even during our trials. Everything happens for a reason. I love you all and hope you have a good rest of the week! 

Love,

Sister Bice

                           Me and Sister Ikahihifo who is a sister from one of my previous areas:)

We Thank Thee Oh God for a Prophet‏

Family and Friends!

This weekend was a great weekend! I love conference:) No matter what I am going through there is always a talk or something that I need to hear at that time. I hope you all got a chance to listen to even a little bit of it because it was an amazing conference! Not only that I got to be blessed with seeing Harriet this week! She came down for some air force training and came specifically to Pueblo to be able to have lunch with Sister Horrocks and I. It was great:) hmm... What else can I tell you about this week. Its been kind of a weird week in the sense that lots of weird things have happened and I don't even know how to tell ya'll about them! But I would just like to talk about how blessed we are to have a living prophet to guide us on the earth today. I often talk point out to my investigators that yes the prophet does teach things that to many seem new but they are old concepts and commandments its just that the prophet interprets how we should follow them based on our current circumstances. I think my favorite talk was Elder Hollands talk ... Which isn't a big surprise because his talks most often rank among my favorites. But, this time instead relating the topic of depression back to my own past experiences I was able to see as I was promised when I got set apart, why my brush with depression had to happen. There are so many people here that I am able to talk with and teach that maybe I wouldn't have gotten through with unless I had gone through the things that I have. Currently we have an investigator fighting this very battle for one of the reasons mentioned in the talk. He has found himself in a situation where he wont be able to support his family and it is slowly eating away as him. I am so glad for prophets, seers and revalators who can talk specifically to him and all the many others that are having a hard time right now. I also really liked the talk by Dallin H. Oaks that talked about how even though laws of man may change it will NEVER change the doctrines of God. They are the same, yesterday, today and forever. In that we can find peace because we know who we are and what we are supposed to be doing in order to gain and inherit eternal life. As long as we are working and striving to do our best then we are following the Lords will. In fact one thing that gets talked about a lot here on the mission is EXACT obedience. This is something that really confused me because people kept saying it is possible to be exactly obedient and then they would turn around and point out how we are all human and we make mistakes. Finally though, I got an explanation on how exact obedience is possible and that is that we can be exactly obedient in our desires to do our best and follow Gods will. Yes, we will mess up and make mistakes but as long as we are going forward with a steadfastness in Christ and enduring(enjoying) to the end then we are doing what God desires of us to do. This was a really scatter brained letter, so I'm sorry but as I said it has been a REALLY weird week and I find that I'm having a hard time thinking super straight! But I love you all and pray for you!

Love,

Sister Bice

Put you Shoulder to the Wheel!!‏

Family and Friends!

This week felt like two separate weeks! Mostly because on Wednesday I had to make pretty much a full day expedition to the train the trainers meeting! We left at 8 o'clock and didn't get back until 5 or later... It was a long day and a long meeting but I loved it! My little trainee entered the MTC on Wednesday and will be here on the 9th:) I'm excited to get to train, I feel much more prepared since I got to go to the training meeting than I did when I first was given a visa waiter to help train.... Hmmm.... I'm trying to remember my week, it was crazy that is for sure! We went to the relief society broadcast on Saturday and we had two investigators come! It was good and as we sat there I was able to point out parts of each talk that could help each of our investigators. I love conference and I am so excited for this weekend!! There is a really kind of odd scripture I like to share with people around conference time it is in 2 Nephi 25:9 and it says:

"And as one generation hath been destroyed among the Jews because of iniquity, even so have they been destroyed from generation to generation according to their iniquities; and never hath any of them been destroyed save it were foretold them by the prophets of the Lord."

As I said an odd verse to read... In fact I worry that people are thinking that I am telling them they are going to be destroyed as I read it... That or I am telling them they are wicked. But I really like this verse because it says 'never hath any of them been destroyed save it were foretold them by the prophets of the Lord'. One thing I have noticed about conference is that everyone picks out their own 'themes' or the things that stood out to them most. Well, what is conference? It is a place where we go to hear 'prophets of the Lord' speak. So I share this scripture not because I'm telling anyone they will be destroyed but so I can tell them to pay attention to the things that stand out personally to them because they are the warnings God is giving them. Not in a sense of your being wicked and you must repent (though maybe that is the case for some) But, I like to think of it in a sense of these are the things you should study and focus on developing over the next six months because  the trials you are going to face in that time frame can be withstood and overcome and handled by these principles. I consider it a warning of what is to come so that I will not fall prey to Satan and his designs. Cool right? I think so anyways, and as I applied that in my life after last conference I found that when trials came to me I could handle them because I had been warned and was able to prepare accordingly. So... I didn't really write a whole lot about my week or the people I am teaching but I would really challenge all of you to find your 'themes' in conference and then study them! If you do then you WILL  be able to weather the storms that will come your way over the next six months! I love you all! Be safe:)

Love,

Sister Bice

.. The wise man built his house upon a rock:)‏

Family and Friends!!!

This week has been crazy! I never know where the weeks go until they are already gone.. In fact on Friday I will hit my mission birthday! It has been 7 months already! I can hardly believe it! In fact training calls came out today and I have been chosen as a trainer and I was thinking about the time line of it all and realized I will be exactly as old as my trainer was!! That is not even possible!! I remember looking at my trainer when I first came out and thinking she was so wise and old in the mission I most defiantly don't feel that way!! Phew! It is going to be a crazy couple of weeks preparing for transfers. Anyways, as I said this week has been crazy. We meet with an investigator couple- Max & Katie- and it was funny because this is the first time that we didn't answer any of her questions. For everything she asked we told her to read the Book of Mormon and pray about whether or not Joseph Smith was a prophet. Well, at the end of the lesson we asked if she had any more questions(she always has another question) and she surprisingly enough said no that she felt like she had gotten her answer. Its amazing to see how the Lord works with small and simple things to give answers to those who are seeking. Then on Tuesday we had another investigator appointment with a really sweet girl and we finished and were talking with her and then caught a ride home with someone heading back from mutual. Well we get home and Sister Kipp turns to me and asks if I have the phone. Well, I didn't so in a panic we call (from our neighbors phone) the members who gave us a ride to see if our phone is in the car.. Of course it wasn't so after much panicking and another trip to the church we found our phone sitting in the grass where we had been talking to Alex (our investigator). We were super grateful that we had found it and that it hadn't been run over (a lot of people just run over that particular spot on the grass). Other than that we did a lot of biking and contacting this week which was made nicer by the fact that the weather here is finally cooling down!! But, this week I was reading the Luke 6 47-49 Which is the whole wise man-foolish man story. But, I really really liked the wording it has here in Luke it says:

"47 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:

48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. 

49 But he that heareth, and doeth no, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell' and the ruin of that house was great."

I have heard this story so many times, in fact I sang the song just the other day. But I really like the perspective that Luke puts on it. It is not that the foolish man did build his house above where rock could probably be found. Its that the wise man dug down deep and found the rock upon which he could build his house. I think this applies to the gospel. There are many people who are searching for truth and they find bits and pieces.. Maybe, traces that there is rock underneath all of the sand and dirt. Well, when they find these you have two types of people. Those who are content to just built their faith on the earth without exploring to see if there  is more rock deeper down; and you have those who search and dig and uncover the many truths until they find that rock upon which they can built a strong and unshakable foundation. You also have those who don't really know any better, they don't know that there is rock further down for those who are willing to find it. They just assume that the earth upon which they build their house is the deepest and surest that they are going to find, they don't know that the floods and tempest that are going to come will have the power to knock them down and wash away all that they have worked to build. As a missionary, and I think even before a mission I have seen that so much in the people we come across. I also think that even though I have dug and found a foundation to built my house or faith upon I am still working on the construction. I have learned so much about the gospel since coming on a mission and I know that I will continue to learn more. Its crazy to think that I will continue to do so probably forever. I know that this gospel is true but there is defiantly more bricks for me to lay and more I can do to built my stronghold of faith! I love you all and hope that you continue to build you faith and grow stronger!! 

Love,

Sister Bice

Rain, rain and more rain!!!‏

Dear Family and Friends,

This week has been wet! Which I'm sure you have heard by now... Luckily, Pueblo is on flat ground and I'm no where near Pueblo lake... The biggest danger I am facing here is getting wet as cars drive through the plentiful now full of water pot-hole in the road. But, I do know that there has been some other problems around the burn scars from the fires over the last two years so just keep those in those areas in your prayers.  As for this week I got to celebrate Yom Kippur with an investigator! It was a lot of fun and I didn't understand a word of what was said in the services... Of course that may be because it was all in Hebrew... But, it was fun to listen to the language that they spoke in the scriptures. Plus, the investigator that took us kept bragging about how it was our first time fasting for 24 hours and that we were doing it, then we would have to gently remind him that we do 24 hour fasts every month. I don't think he really understands yet but we will keep trying. 

     This week we were also blessed to witness a really spiritual and sweet moment with an investigator family. We had contacted them a few weeks ago from a referral we had gotten and then we lost contact. They wouldn't answer our calls and were not home when we dropped by. And then all of a sudden Flor (one of the investigators called us) she told us that her husband had been in the hospital and that she had been stressed out and didn't know what to do but that we could come over today. Quickly, we explained what a blessing was and asked if her and her husband would like one. She agreed and we went by that night with a couple of members of the ward to perform the blessing. It was a super spiritual moment and it was made even better because it was one of the Recent converts first time performing a blessing and he was super nervous but he did wonderful. You could see that the family was touched by the spirit and the words that were said in the blessings. I just love moments like those! Its just great to be a missionary!! This week I was reading in Alma 5 which is a great chapter because it has a lot of questions for us to think about. But I really like in verses 45 &46 where it says:

"and this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety?

46 Behold, I say unto you that they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. and now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me." I really like this passage because this is Alma the younger speaking. He was going around destroying the church and an angel appeared unto him and told him to stop. I have met a lot of people who think that it was the angel who converted Alma. But here in this passage he testifies that that was not the case. Yes, the vision he had made him change his ways. But even after all of that he had to fast and pray to receive a witness and to grow his testimony. We are not like Alma most of us probably haven't had a vision of angels or anything of that sort. But, right here Alma is telling us that in retrospect that doesn't matter. We can still gain the testimony he had even if we don't have the vision. Because, even after the divine manifestation he did what we are all asked to do he fasted and prayed continuously i'm sure to know that it is true. So I would just challenge you all to pray about it this week, even if you already know. Just pray to have it reaffirmed or even manifested unto you for the first time. Pray and listen for the answer because I know by experience that for those who honestly seek the answer is always there. I love you all!! Stay safe and stay dry!

Love,

Sister Bice

This week was a good week:)

Dear Family and Friends!!

This week was a good week:) It is funny because sometimes I feel like everyone has canceled and that we didn't get to do much teaching, but then, I look at the lessons we have taught or the people that we have reached out to and I realize that we have done a lot! Satan just tries to get us down as missionaries to make us less effective. Sister Horrocks always told me that the hardest times you face on your mission always precede the greatest miracles. I have come to know that that is true. Every time I get discouraged or I think that I am not doing a good job, I am blessed to see a miracle within the week. So we keep chugging along doing the work and knowing that God is blessing us:) That is what is so great about this life!! I read a talk a couple of days ago that was talking about blessings v.s burdens and it said:"There will always be more blessings than burdens--even if some days it doesn't seem so. Jesus said "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." Enjoy those blessings right now. they are yours and always will be." end quote.  I like that because it is an eternal principle and one I wish I could help those I teach understand more fully. Last night we were talking with a friend of an investigator who is about 13 or 14 and she was talking about how this friend has been coming to church since she was in fifth grade and how her parents wont let her get baptized until she is 18. This is really hard on Athena (the investigator) because she really wants to be a member of the church but she is being held up by the fact that her parents don't approve. So, her friend, Jessica was talking with us about how Athena is struggling with the fact that she wants to be married in the temple but the fact that her parents are so closed off about the religion and becoming a Mormon will probably be a solo act on her part is really difficult for her. So we talked about how if she chose not to be baptized even though she knows it is true then she would show her family that she loves them in this life. But, being baptized and married in the temple no matter how hard of a choice it would be would show her family that she loved them for eternity. Its hard to see the blessings of the challenges we face when we are in the thick of it. But this same talk says: "But the tests of life are tailored for our own best interests, and all will face the burdens best suited to their own mortal experience. In the end we will realize that God is merciful as well as just and that all the rules are fair. We can be reassured that our challenges will be the ones we needed, and conquering them will bring blessings we could have received in no other way.

If we constantly focus only on the stones in our mortal path, we will almost surely miss the beautiful flower or cool stream provided by the loving Father who outlined our journey. Each day can bring more joy than sorrow when our mortal and spiritual eyes are open to God’s goodness. Joy in the gospel is not something that begins only in the next life. It is our privilege now, this very day. We must never allow our burdens to obscure our blessings. " 

      This is a principle that I have seen over and over in my life. Satan, he doesn't want us to see the things we are being blessed with. He wants our minds to be clouded with doubts and with complaints against the roughness of the way. But, as we look beyond the rocky path and we take off the blinders that doubt and despair create, then we can see the beauty of the scenery around us. One thing I have noticed about hikes and paths in life is that they are hard but we do them because of the view we get to see as we tread along. We are so blessed in this life to have a loving Heavenly Father who wants us to have nothing but the best he can offer!! Always remember that when times get tough just look around the the things around you that are blessing your life not the rocks that are littering the pathway back. I love you all and I am so grateful to you for your testimonies and your prayers!

Love,

Sister Bice

Grace and Works.. and Missionary Stuff:)‏

Dear Family and Friends!

Can I just take a moment to tell you how much I love being a missionary? I remember in my first area we had brought a young women who was thinking about going on a mission with us tracting. Well, we had a miracle where the person accepted an baptismal date on the doorstep but then they stood us up and we could never get a hold of them again. Well, we were sitting next to Valarie(the girl we took out with us) at a new convert fireside and she turned to us and asked "Is it worth it? Even though you have experiences like that?" Our response was a definite "YES!" and then we went on to talk with her about how when things like what happened with that couple are devastating and hard, there are those moments when you are on a mission and you have a good lesson or a recent convert bears a strong testimony that everything that was hard or difficult or made you cry just doesn't matter anymore. Sister Kipp and I had one of those moments yesterday:) We went back to teach Max and Katie (the born again christian couple we tracted into that invited us back after rejecting us) yesterday. It was amazing. They told us they don't feel like they have gotten an answer yet but I could tell by the change in them that they were already receiving answers they just hadn't realized it yet. So we sat with them and answered a few of their questions and then we taught them the Restoration. It was a good lesson! After Sister Kipp finished reciting the first vision the spirit just flooded the room and I know that they felt it!! I don't know if they will get baptized or what will happen down the road with them. But, I do know that I have accomplished my job in bringing the spirit to their home to testify of the truth:) But one thing I have been studying this morning was the concept of grace and works because that is a BIG concern for Katie. So, I was reading a talk by Brad Wilcox called 'His Grace is Sufficient' and I really liked this talk because it was something I hadn't really thought about before. He talks a lot about how the reason why we are commanded and asked to follow God and Christ isn't because his grace isn't sufficient to save us but because in that last day if we are not prepared and the best us that we can be then we will not feel comfortable in the Lords presence. Just a quick quote from it he is talking about his friends of other churches saying that we are earning our way to heaven and that grace isn't what is saving us and he says: "'have you been changed by grace?' they(those friends of his from other religions) are so excited about being saved that maybe they are not thinking enough about what comes next. They are so happy that the debt is paid that they may not have considered why the debt existed in the first place. Latter-day Saints know not only what Jesus has saved us from but also what he has saved us for." I love this thought and this whole talk. In fact, I believe it was published in the most recent copy of the ensign! I would encourage you all to look it up and read it. It offers a lot of understanding:) Sorry this email is a bit scatter-brained!! Just know that I love you all and that I have a testimony of this gospel. It has changed my life and made me into a person that I couldn't have even imagined I could become. I know it is true with all  of my heart! Thank you all for your birthday wishes and cards!!

Love,

Sister Bice