ONE MORE MONTH! (news from Plano, Texas)

Sister Acton is my new companion!

Wow! I can't believe it. In exactly a month I'll be with my family again!!

This week I've had such mixed emotions about it though. This was probably the hardest week of my mission. Let me tell you!!

Sister Greenall got transferred to Dallas 6th ward. Sister Acton is my new companion! I love her already. We are working hard and really enjoying it. I am so thankful for companions because we suffer together. 

This week was the coldest week everrrr! It snowed last night and has been freezing in the 20s and 30s all week. I've  never had to ride a bike in the cold like this (except in college). It is the hardest thing ever! We put on a ton of layers, it is pretty funny. 3 tights/leggings, 3 shirts, a coat, gloves, a hat. I'm hoping to buy more boots today! I wear my one pair every day. 

Last night while tracting we both just looked at each other, laughed, and said we were crazy for Jesus Christ. Which is so true!! 

LaRon's baptism was so amazing!! His mom couldn't come.. but at a lesson afterwards he said when he came home his mom said he was literally glowing with the Spirit. He said his baptism made him feel so humble. I don't think I've met a more humble person! He is so happy and so accepting of what life throws at him. He is truly my Brother Brown! 

I got to sing at church again and I also sang at a mini music devotional at a members home. They invited their neighbors and it was awesome. My companion was really nervous to sing but it went well :)

I'm so happy I get to be with her and help her. She said she feels so good to be working hard and being obedient. She thanked me for helping her feel accomplished. I love my mission! 

Keep us in your prayers! Stay warm and loved!

Love,

Sister Dalling

Nov. 10, 2014

Hey Everyone!!

Wow, I can't believe I made it to my last transfer. And we still don't know if either one of us is getting transferred. President Taylor is changing things around and so we don't find out someone is leaving until Monday night, leave Tuesday morning, and at the meeting there you find out where you're going. Crazy, right?? They do it this way in other missions I've heard, but I'm so grateful this is my last transfer change. It stresses me out! I want Sister Greenall to stay to bad. I just love her. I've really enjoyed all my companions. I've learned so much from them and we've all become best friends.

We are having LaRon's baptism this Tuesday! We are so excited. He is so awesome. He reads the Book of Mormon every day and his prayers are just incredible. I've always wanted to have a baptism through tracting but I was never confident it would happen! 

Brother Restrepo is also doing very well. Wow I love their family. We had some amazing lessons with him this week. We taught the Plan of Salvation one night and invited President Hall from the Stake Presidency. Br Restrepo just loves him. When President Hall was bishop, he baptized Andrea when she turned 8. So ever since Sergio has always had a connection with him. He knows he'll be baptized eventually, so we are really focusing on getting him 'active' now so when he does decide to be baptized he'll already be living the lifestyle. It is incredible to see the change in their family as he's starting to really listen and open his heart to what we teach. 

We also had Sisters Conference this week. Super great! It was all about not beating ourselves up and loving ourselves more. They also talked a lot about seeing ourselves as God sees us, viewing our true beauty and potential. We as girls are so mean to ourselves! It makes me so sad. I was super touched by something they did as well. On a white board, we wrote down a trial or hardship that each sister or someone they knew was going through. Then one of the sisters was asked to say a prayer for every specific trial. We were all in tears of course. It really hit me when I thought of how awful all of the trials were and how hard it was for the one sister to pray for each one. It made me realize a little bit more of the reality and power of the Atonement. I love my Savior! 

We had a lot of fun on Saturday! We made a ton of cupcakes and pumpkin bread with the Edwards Family. They have 6 kids so it felt just like home. We put all the goodies in cute packages with Book of Mormons and passed them out to all their neighbors. It was so much better than tracting! People just took the Book of Mormon and didn't glare at us or slam the door or anything! It was like magic and the kids really enjoyed it too. 

On Sunday, I sang "I love Jesus Christ" (click here for youtube video) again with an elder in Plano 3rd ward. It was great! Joakim and Christelle actually came and gave us a ride. It was so much fun spending time with them. And we stayed and listened to the Chinese branch for a bit. The spirit was so strong there. 

Those are about it for the highlights! The weather wasn't too bad last week but it's supposed to get super cold this week. We'll get members to let you know if there's a transfer change! But I hope there isn't. I'll probably send a ton of pics in a bit. 

Love y'all!! 

Sissy Dalling

Week 57/58 Best Week Yet!

My sweet companion did this for me for my 13 month mark! She's the best.

This was when we went to the temple with Joakim. I love that place. Gonna miss him!

My district right before transfers. Sister Rust and Ricks, us, Elders Stein and Sasser. Love them!

Sissy R and I :) I love her!! 

Week 58:

Hey Y'all :)

Seriously this was an amazing week. There were multiple miracles every single day. The biggest one- we reached 7 lessons with members present!!! I looked through all the progress records in the area book and within the past 4 years, the highest LTMP week was 5 (we have reached that as well a couple of times). This has never been done here, we could not believe it! Before Elder Munday switched zones, he promised us we would hit 7 LTMP's before I left. Of course, I didn't believe him. Reaching 4 was something of a miracle in itself. But we worked so hard and felt strongly about making 7 our goal. We not only hit that goal but we also had 3 people at church, set 3 baptismal dates, had 4 other lessons, 5 new investigators, talked to 156 people, and  had 2 lessons with less actives. Unbelievable! I still can't believe we did it, and for our reward we watched 17 Miracles last night after planning. Love that movie!

YES, we have baptismal dates!!! Esmirna, and soon we'll count her whole family when we meet with all of them again. Her date is August 23rd, please pray for her because she's still a little unsure. We are taking their family to tour the temple grounds this week. Alisha has a date for August 30th. She is so incredible, love her! And a new investigator, Tristina for August 30th. She's 20 and has a baby. She needs the gospel and she said she had been praying for people like us and we came right away. All of these were complete miracles- all credit to God.

On exchanges with Sister Kerr, we saw a dead dog in the street and watched as it was taken away by animal control. :( That was a bit of a damper. 

We also ran out of money for the month, and I ran out of bug spray..awful I know. I go through a whole can in 2 weeks. So I was getting bit like crazy and I finally said a desperate prayer to God asking for bug spray. The next house we knocked on offered me a HUGE bottle of bug spray randomly. Miracle!! 

We also went to the temple at like 6am, but it was so worth it! I love the temple. Can't wait to go every single week at home.

This week felt so good and it's looking like another great week ahead! I love everyone here so much. I realize my time is soon ending here, but I am loving every second. I've never been more tired in my life but as quoted from 17 Miracles, "It will all be worth it".

Thanks for all your prayers, letters, and support! Sorry I haven't written to individuals in a while, I'll try better this week. ;)

Love you SO much,

Sister Dalling 

ps applying to school sucks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Week 57: 

You know you've been somewhere too long when you can't 'contact' anyone at the store because you've already talked to them a million times.

Sachse feels like home, especially this past week. It was beautiful weather! Huge tender mercy from God. Felt like I was right back in Oregon. I had to wear a coat tracting one of the days because it was like 70-80 degrees all day, just amazing!! It was truly a great week. I'll start with the bad parts first and then end with the miracles-

I GOT STUNG BY A WASP. TWICE. I was so mad at that wasp. We were out tracting and we were teaching a lesson on someone's porch and it just attacked me out of nowhere and it stung our potential investigator right after me! So you can imagine that lesson didn't last very long. I just keep getting hurt, I don't know what it is! But no worries, I survived.

Also, Joakim left for Norway on Saturday. He won't be back until after I'm gone. It was really sad saying goodbye but we'll stay in contact. He's like a brother to me! He has a lot of work to do up in Norway- the members there would love to hear his conversion story and I pray one day his family up there will accept Christ.

And our phone broke. But the Lord provides! We only had to go for a few hours without a phone. Members let us borrow their phones. One member even gave us their 'go' phone for a few days. The miracle was that the mission office said our phone wouldn't be delivered for another week but 2 days later we got our phone in the mail! The office couldn't believe it. Life without a phone is stressful! But God spoils me :)

Miracles!! So many. Every day!:)

On Tuesday we had Abby come out with us all day. It was so fun having her with us! She is going to be an incredible missionary someday- she was fearless! We went chalking- drew the plan of salvation- and talked to a lady at the park about it. We went to go teach Mary, but she was sick. Her great grandson Jordon was there though and so I asked if he'd be interested. He said yes! Backround- He's amazing! And he sees how much he needs the gospel. It just worked out perfectly that we had Abby with us- they are both 14. He told us he always hears God is real but has never known for himself. We taught him the restoration but ended up focusing mostly on Christ and the Atonement. The spirit was so strong, we all ended up having tears in our eyes. I felt such a strong urgency for him. Like he needs the gospel now, it can change his life forever. He was going down a wrong, dangerous path, but he honestly wants to change. It was such a beautiful lesson. We met with him again that week with Br.Condiff and he accepted the baptismal invitation! His mom and Mary were shocked about everything. He wants to come to church and mutual, it's unbelievable. I love the gospel! I love what I do! The Atonement changed my life, it's so exciting seeing it change another life. The least I can do to show my gratitude to my Savior is to keep working, even after a couple wasp stings. It's all so worth it.

Have I told y'all about Denise? I don't remember if I did. But she is a miracle. We have taught her twice now. We knocked on her door and she invited us right in. She told us E.Merrill knocked on her door a year ago and left a Book of Mormon. Thank you for following the spirit elders!! She still had the book with his name in it. They didn't even teach her anything but felt prompted to leave it with her. She is super active in a Methodist church, but she is so amazing. While teaching her she said "wow, maybe there is a need for a prophet". It will be an incredible journey if she converts, but it is definitely possible.

Jacob's wife finally got back from Jordan this week! We'll meet her later this week. Please pray she will be supportive. Jacob is SO close.

You'll never guess who we taught last night. The Guntas family! If you don't remember, Sis Stephenson and I taught them a while ago. Blake was great friends with the Bishop's sons and investigated the church for a while. We found out it's spelled Giunta..but it was awesome! I felt prompted to stop by their house and they said they had just been talking about us the other day. That had been really busy with a wrestling tournament for a long time but wanted to continue learning. So we taught Blake the restoration again. It was an incredible lesson.

Also we ended up talking to some famous minister for almost an hour! He leads a ministry that travels around the country helping religious leaders 'see the truth' and the wrong in what their teaching. So you can imagine how nervous we were. He only really wanted me to answer because I was 'senior'. Can't tell you how grateful I am for the spirit and for everything I've learned here in Texas! He loved what I had so say and mostly ended up helping us know how to correct false doctrine we run into each day talking with all the faiths we do. He said it was refreshing to see young girls like us who know so much and dedicate so much of ourselves for our beliefs. Nicest minister I've ever talked to! He owns For His Glory if  you're curious.

We had interviews this week with our zone. President and Sister Taylor are so amazing! They talked a lot about foreordination. They were meant to be here with us and we were called to be here in the pre existence. That is an undeniable truth! I have had so many confirmations that I was meant to be here at this exact time to meet specific people. Also I loved how they defined success and how to achieve it. Success comes after all we can do and then is something we choose for ourselves. Being successful means you feel the spirit constantly guide you and are happy! I love it! So grateful for all the success I've had.

There's a lot of excitement about missionary work in our ward. We have some amazing investigators. The Lord is with Sister Reboquio each day. I'm doing everything I can to make my Father proud. I will give til I have nothing, work until he stops me, go until I drop. Please keep us in your prayers. We know we can baptize in August, but it's going to take a lot of faith.  We watched "Legacy" this week and it was just the motivation I needed. My ancestors worked so hard for Zion. Some even died for it. They left a huge legacy of faith. I'm so grateful to feel just a glimpse of hardship for the cause of my Savior. I echo the original apostles of Christ- who in their hour of persecution went "rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ." Acts 5:41-42

Four more weeks of this transfer! One day at a time. I love my companion! Don't know what I'd do without her.

Thanks for all the support! I love all y'all and each y'all!

Love,

Sister Dalling

36 Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.

37 Behold the wounds which pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet; be faithful, keep my commandments, and ye shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. Amen.

Week 49 "My life is like my shoes - to be worn out in service" (Sachse, Texas)

“My life is like my shoes—to be worn out in service.” — Spencer W. Kimball 

Hey everyone!

Sorry I didn't have a ton of time last week, or this week.

I'm doing well. Judy passed away last week. Super sad but it was the best thing for her because she was suffering every moment of life.

Esmirna and her family are doing really well! 

Jacob is also doing well. He is incredible to teach. He knows SO much but says I understand more than he does which blows my mind. But the gospel really does make everything so clear and simple. I feel so honored to have met him, what an amazing person with so much knowledge. His knowledge with faith in the gospel....wow. He will do amazing things.

We've been working so hard every day! We tract a ton, but it's been alright. It's starting to get hot though- 95 to 100 every day all day! Let me tell you- when you're fasting that is not very much fun. But it's incredible to feel God's strength in every breath because we have to rely on Him to provide that. Sister Reboquio is still the best- I love her! Made me tear up the other day just thinking about how lucky I am to have her.

I've been studying the enabling power of the Atonement a lot. I love this quote from E. Holland: "I am convinced that none of us can appreciate how deeply it wounds the loving heart of the Savior of the world when He finds that His people do not feel confident in His care or secure in His hands." I loved it because it's so true! We all need to trust our Savior more. To rely on Him each moment. He can help us through anything.

Also: "My life is like a pair of shoes- to be worn out in the service of God." Pres. Spencer W. Kimball

Well I love y'all! Still loving every moment of my mission. It's going by way too fast.

Love,

Sister Dalling

It's My Birthday!!!! 20 years old.....wow. (Week 44:update from Sachse, Texas)

 Part of my birthday present was this incredible sign. My favorite quote- "In God's plan there are no endings, Only everlasting beginnings." 20 years ago my eternal life with the best parents began.. I'm so lucky! 

All my chocolate... well there's more..but this is what I felt like taking a picture of. And yes that is a Jesus chocolate. And yes, that is organic healthy chocolate in that bag! I found the answer to my addiction! This is even healthy! It has no sugar. Just dark chocolate and honey. My goodness I love it.

4-28-2014

First of all.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA LEATHAM! I love you so much! I've loved you since the day I was born, and for eternity before then as well. I feel so blessed to share a birthday with such an incredible woman. I look up to you so much! You are the most amazing blessing to our family. I hope your birthday is so wonderful. I'm sending you hugs and kisses!!

and Yes it's my birthday too! It's been a great one so far. I really do have the best family. All I wanted was a letter from each of them and they definitely exceeded that expectation! And thank everyone for all the birthday email! I feel so loved! Out of all the presents I've been given, probably 90% of it was chocolate. People know me too well. God, love, and chocolate. Those are my basic needs and wants. I love my family and friends! I really have been so blessed to be surrounded by the most incredible people. Wow. Also for my birthday I FINISHED THE BOOK OF MORMON. Wooh! Perfect timing. Wow, I love that book!

I can't believe I am 20 years old. I seriously feel so old today. I am no longer a teenager! I don't even know how to be 20! But I'll take it one day at a time. And now I want to take a moment and admire God's hand in my life. We had interviews this week and Sister Durrant spoke about what a huge blessing the 'age change' was for so many. I thought about it. It changed my life. Completely turned it around. I couldn't help but cry because God literally loves me so much, He lowered the age at the exact moment I needed it. He once again saved my life. My mission is and forever will be the best choice I ever made. I heard a story from someone in our ward. His brother taught the deacons a long time ago and told them if they went on missions he would pay them $500. All but one went, and he said it was worth every cent! It is most definitely. The same man taught a group of primary girls. He gave them each a dollar and said they could spend that dollar or they could save it and if they got married in the temple, he would pay them each $100 if they brought back that $1. What an amazing man! And I love the emphasis on missions. My future marriage would not be the same if I didn't serve a mission, I know that for a fact!

So we had such an amazing week!

We found 5 new investigators. It was such a huge miracle. Two of them are super solid, too. One lady and her family were a referral from the Evans. Her husbands family all joined the church within the past 10 years. Her whole side of the family is Catholic, so they get pressure from both sides. She wants to investigate and see which one fits her family the best. What an amazing mother! Then we are teaching another lady who was a referral from the Bishop. Her story is incredible. So she is 45 and is fighting colon cancer. She goes through intense chemo treatment and it's really affecting her and her family's life. Her biological father died when she was very young. She never knew his side of the family, but 5 years ago she was doing family history work on her father and his side of the family (who are all members) found her! They told her she should get a blessing, so they contacted our bishop. He then asked her the willing and brief invitation and BAM we are teaching her! She is such a strong woman. She really has lived a difficult life. The gospel will help her so much. It's so amazing to be able to know and love her.

Robert hasn't been to church in 3 weeks...pray for him and Judy.. :(

John Cook is pretty sick.. I need prayers.

The Riegals are going to church and the father is taking the lessons! Prayers answered!

Byron ran into anti material...prayers. 

We had a ward talent show on Saturday and Sister Reboquio and I wrote more words to the Cup song/Called to Serve. It was really good, everyone loved it! We also spoke on Sunday. Everyone said they loved that as well! Interviews were great. Those were the last interviews the Durrants will give before they leave! Crazy. They asked me to sing at that meeting as well. I've been able to sing practically every week! I love it! I heard David Archuleta is home.. crazy!

My companion is incredible. She's doing so good! Her life is such an example. Her foster parents are the mission president and his wife of a mission in the Philippines. Her family is in too much poverty to take care of all the kids, that's why she is fostered. She converted to the gospel at age 10 and a lot of her family is less active now. Seriously she is so strong, I love her! She is such a blessing to me. I thank God every day.

Ether 12:27 is my scripture of the week!

"Pure Christ like love flowing from true righteousness can change the world." Elder Holland

I love y'all so much! All y'all and each y'all. Thank you so much for such a wonderful birthday.

Sister Kristina Dalling

 P.S.

Sorry everyone but I had to get evidence of this!

This is my gigantic spider bite. Yep, it's 2 weeks old and still nasty. You should have seen it last week. This seriously looks like it's healed a ton. The story: We were just outside and my arm started itching, I scratched it barely and my skin started peeling. Then I had a huge bump and it was red and my skin was raw. It was disgusting. We tracted into a nurse last week and she said it was a spider bite and that I was super lucky and I should have seen a doctor. Apparently spiders here in Texas can be very dangerous. And this was a huge spider. Those are the bite marks, pretty gross right? Good thing I didn't die! Just kidding ;) It's fine, just kind of horrible looking.

p.p.s. Also! This is completely unrelated but when the group of missionaries that Sister Reboquio entered with came into the mission, one of the new sisters came up to me. She said 'don't think this is creepy or anything but I know all about you! I stalked your blog ever since I decided to serve a mission.' Made my day! Seriously-haha. This is such a small world. Thought y'all would enjoy that! 

Week 42 Update From The Sachse, Texas: "Because of Him"

Click here to watch "Because of Him" video

This is in honor of Frozen. We've heard so much about this movie and the soundtrack is the best thing ever! So we built a snowman at Bahama Bucks ;)

While we were tracting, we knocked on a house with a pet pig! Only in Texas..

Joakim's baptism! Look at all these sister missionaries.. I would call this a sister success ;)

Remember this picture posed way back while we were teaching him? Yep, we created it again on his baptism day! I love these people so much. 

Sunsets here in Texas after a thunderstorm are just breathtaking. I love Texas!

Bluebonnets! True, wild, Texan beauty

Transfer 3 in Sachse here we come! Sister Stephenson is being transferred, and she's really sad about it, but I know she'll enjoy discovering a new area. So I'm going to be training this transfer! I'm going to be a mom (aka the title missionaries give the sisters that train a grennie sister missionary)! I'm super nervous about it. I feel like God is trusting me too much. It'll be a good experience and I know I'll grow a lot from it. I  hope I can be a good trainer! I really can feel her parents' prayers asking God for a good first companion for their daughter. So no pressure!

We had such a good week last week! Joakim's baptism was one of the best experiences on my mission! I've learned so much from him, it was incredible to see him make these changes and show his faith in Christ. He was confirmed Sunday and received the priesthood all in the same day! Couldn't have been a better weekend! For celebration we went to a Japanese sushi restaurant which was unbelievably good! I didn't even know I liked sushi that much. Amazing stuff!

It's been really hard finding new investigators who really have a desire, so I'm hoping the new 'greenie faith' coming in will help with that. I'm so ready to find more success in Sachse! I'm also super excited for Easter! It's such an incredible holiday! The fact that Christ lives changes everything. It's impacted my life in ways I can't describe. Because of Him I am here today. Because of Him I have hope. Because of Him I WILL live again..with the people that matter to me most- my family. I love Easter! And I love Jesus Christ! Also there's a super good Mormon message called Because of Him. Y'all need to watch it. <Click here> And share it with everyone!

So Texas really showed her beauty this week. The bluebonnets are blooming everywhere! They are insanely beautiful. We've been getting a lot of thunderstorms too. And heat lightening! I absolutely love it. God's creations are so incredible.

One of my favorite members from The Colony sent me a letter and included some quotes that I just have to share! I loved it. Thank you Sister Dali!

"Nobody else could do what you can do right now, right here." Sis Dali

"I've learned a few things about this path we're all traveling. We are exactly where we need to be. And crawling is fine."

Much Love,

Sister Dalling

Week 41 From The Sachse

Hey y'all! 

This week we really weren't able to get a lot done with conference, but it was still a great week! I went to the allergy doctor this morning so hopefully that will all be figured out! It hasn't been that bad recently because of all the rain..because of the storms..because of the tornado. Yep, there was a tornado close to Sherman, TX which is like an hour away, but it caused a few days of thunderstorms that were pretty crazy. Tornado season is going to be fun! 

Joakim's baptism is this Saturday!!!!!!! I am so excited! He has become one of my very best friends. I'm so happy God has led him to where he is today. He's such a great example to me of faith and trusting in God. This week is going to be a great one! 

We are teaching this one elderly lady that we found from tracting. She's pretty funny! She's sweet as heck. She loves to talk, and we found out she used to have a best friend who was Mormon. Not sure how interested she is in joining yet, but she is an amazing woman! 

General Conference was so good! I think my top favorite talks were Sister Reeves', Elder Richard G Scott's, President Uchtdorf's, and President Monson's. Overall it was just an incredible conference. One of my favorite quotes is "In [God's] plan, there are no endings, only everlasting beginnings."President Uchtdorf. Amen to that! I feel so grateful to know so much about God and His plan for all of us. 

Also, I'm so grateful God has allowed me to bear my testimony through music a lot lately. We had the song Elder Evans and President Durrant wrote filmed and recorded on Saturday. That was a really fun project! Hopefully I'll have the video soon! Speaking of President Durrant, he was just called as the second counselor in the Sunday School General Presidency! I can't believe it! I have the best mission president in the whole world. He is so amazing. He is such a good example to all of us. Also the Spanish elders had a baptism yesterday they asked me to sing at. It was really special and I was so grateful to serve with my talents. 

Well that's all for now, folks! Hope this week is filled with joy and blessings for all of you! 

Love,

Sis Dalling

p.s. Here are some pics of Jeremy's baptism! 

Week 40 from Sachse, Texas!

Women's General Conference was AMAZING! 

It was such an amazing way to end a week of complete miracles. It was so incredible to think about how my mom and sisters were watching it along with me. I felt so close to so many amazing women who have influenced my life in so many ways. I absolutely loved how much they talked about standing as a witness of God at all times, in all things, and in all places. I hope I can always do that throughout my life. I'm called to represent Jesus Christ full time right now, but I hope I can always stand for Him. The errand of angels is truly given to women. And I loved how they invited us not only to love more, but to love better. That was SO powerful. It was also an answer to my prayers when they talked about our true identity and our true nature. I've heard so often about our fallen nature and the natural man is an enemy to God. Thinking about all the times I've fallen short and witnessing so many who have also fallen short and don't even know it- it's taken a toll on me. But when they talked about how our true identity and nature is a disciple of Jesus Christ, a daughter of God it meant so much to me. I also loved how Elder Eyring talked about how we need to see people as children of God, in the way God sees them. He opened up my eyes to just how much potential God sees in me. He said he sees more potential than even what my earthly mom sees in me. And she's one of my biggest fans along with my dad.

So now that y'all know how much I loved the Women's Conference, I'll tell you a little about my amazing week. We found 7 new investigators and received the best news EVER. JOAKIM IS GETTING BAPTIZED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He's been taught for like 8 months and has finally received the answer to be baptized. We had an amazing lesson on temples and family history. Man, I love the temple! And after we asked him to pray to know if he should be baptized. The next day he called us and asked if we could meet. We were so nervous, I thought he was dropping us or something. My heart was about to break when he said "sisters, I need to tell you something.." then he said "I want to be baptized and become a member of your church." AHHHHHHHHH. Could not believe it. So he's going to take this next step on April 12! We and all the other sisters who have taught him couldn't be happier. I'd like to say I had something to do with it, but it was all God, Christ, and the Holy Ghost.

It was just such a good week. And you wouldn't believe the theme of our new investigators. For some reason God led us to 4 teen moms to teach. Two pairs and two completely different houses but we happened to find them all and all of them were receptive. So weird! One is pregnant still and one got married the day before she gave birth. It was really an incredible thing to feel God's love for them as we taught them about The Restoration and about our Savior's love for them. God is so great! He is an awesome God.

Oh and I got to have a surprise call to my parents! President Durrant let me call them while I was practicing the song we are working on. What a tender mercy! And then the Evans- who are awesome- took a video of us and sent it to them. I hope my family knows how much I love them! And darling Emily, I wish I could've talked to you but I will soon.. in May! By the way, I'm only quitting chocolate for 21 days.. so no worries about my easter package! Pack it with chocolate! I am addicted, and so I thought it would be a healthy choice to build some resistance to it. ;)

Well I love y'all! I'm loving my mission! Can't believe this transfer is almost over!

Until next week,

Sis Dalling

I love y'all Week 38 from Sachse, Texas

Hello friends and family!!!

First of all:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SISTER SARA! I love you from the depths of my heart! Your letters mean so much to me, you have no idea. I can't believe how old you are getting, holy moly! It seems like it was just yesterday you were in diapers, sitting on my head, and pulling on my hair. You are growing up to be such an amazing young woman! So beautiful inside and out! I think about you all the time. I hope you have an incredible birthday and know I'll be there in spirit.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BROTHER JACOB! Oh Gub. You are the only boy who has had my heart since the day you were born! I can not believe you are turning 13. You're a teenager. OH my gosh. I love you so much! Your letters mean the world to me. Thank you for everything you do. You are so sweet, kind and talented.

Expect a package very soon!

And Happy St,Patrick's Day! We are ending our preparation day early this week because we want to work super hard, so sorry I don't have much time!

This past week has been a great one. Always filled with miracles! God is a God of miracles, that's for sure.

We went to the temple Wednesday which is always an amazing experience. I feel like my time to go to the temple always comes at the exact moment I need it most. I love it so much! I feel so close to my Heavenly Father in the temple. I absolutely love all other faiths, any kind of faith is beautiful to me. But temples is what sets this faith apart, I feel. And the beauty that the temple brings into my faith is unmatched.

We had a lesson with Richard.. kind of a sad one. We found out about the missing plane and a senior in highschool 15 minutes from where we live was murdered. So the world is crazy. 

Shelly and her baptism are still looking really promising!

Speaking of baptisms, Jeremy was baptized Saturday in The Colony! Love the Davis'!

I sang the song "I Will" (Hilary Weeks) at Stake Conference. Elder Jones, of the first quorum of the Seventy came and spoke. It was a great conference. The Spirit was very strong, so many inspired speakers. Joakim and Felipe went skiing in Colorado for the weekend because of spring break, so they weren't able to go. But Laszlo, who also lives in Joakim's house, came! He's from Hungary and he is awesome! His family is still in Hungary and are apparently meeting with sister missionaries there as well! He is such an incredible person.

Well, my 9 month mark came and went. Hard to believe! We also had a zone meeting this morning and we all bore our testimonies, it was amazing. This week we have Specialized Training and lots of fun things coming up! Be prepared to hear about many miracles next week!

I have the best family in the world. I don't know what I'd do without them. Or my mission! I'm so grateful that my family is going to be together forever.

Love,

Sister Kristina Dalling

Write me!

6360 Murphy Rd.
#123
Sachse, TX 75048

Lyrics to I Will:

I made my choice 
You can mark this day 
The day I pledge 
To take His name 

I will be strong 
I will be brave 
Standing for Him 
As I take my place 

I have felt the spirit burn truth in my heart 
It's in my heart 
I will stand 
I will not fall 
In a world that's weak 
I will be strong 

I'll be true 
I will choose His way 
Yeah, I know what's right 
And I will not change 
In a world where so many will not 
I will 

I may be one 
But one becomes two 
When you stand with me 
And I stand with you 
As we unite 
Our cause is great 
We're not just the candle 
We are the flame 

I will take the light He gives me 
And I'll hold it up high 
I'll hold it up high 

And I will stand 
I will not fall 
In a world that's weak 
I will be strong 

I'll be true 
I will choose his way 
Yeah, I know what's right 
And I will not change 

In a world where so many will not 
I will 

I will stand 
I will not fall 
In a world that's weak 
I will be strong 
I'll be true 
I will choose His way 
Yeah, I know what's right 
And I will not change 

In a world where so many will not... 
I will 

HALFway done?!?!? Week 37 from Sachse, Texas

1. This is when we went to Top Golf. It was so much fun! I really hope I can find a Top Golf again someday. I miss those missionaries! 

2.Sister Erickson and I in a gated community we just happened to slip into! Luckily the security person was helping someone with a problem, so he just let us on through. 

3.The temple with my favorite district! Sister Stephenson and I are hopefully going to the temple this week! I LOVE THE TEMPLE. 

Pei and her family! Oh my goodness I miss them! This is the Chinese family I was able to teach for a while. Loved their food!

The only bright side to transfers is being able to see old mission friends. Elder Walters- awesome friend! 

HALFway done?!?!?

Oh my goodness, it hasn't even hit me. I have no concept of time whatsoever since my mission. The past nine months seem to have went by like a blink of an eye, but yet it also feels as if my life didn't even exist before my mission. Weirdest feeling ever! But I'm lovin' it!

By the way, I love my family! Congratulations Katie for your performance in Guys & Dolls. I'm so sad I couldn't be there to see it, but I'm sure it was incredible. Annnnnd it's almost my Jacob and Sara's birthday! Wow, I have a great family.  

This past week was a little slower because of the ice day. By the way today is bright and shiny again.. Texas is crazy! Jeremy is getting baptized this week and I am SO happy. I'm so sad I won't be able to go.. It is far away and the timing doesn't work out with Stake Conference. I'll make sure to get pictures of it though from Sister Erickson! The Davis family makes me so happy! Jeremy sent me a note this past week, telling me about the news and that he's sad I won't be able to go but knows I'll be there in spirit. I definitely will be! And hopefully I'll be at their temple sealing in a year.

We had a huge miracle this past week! A member in Wylie 2 ward asked a friend at the gym the 'willing and brief' invitation. At first she politely declined, but then a couple of weeks later she told this member to give us her contact info and that she'd love to meet! Apparently she hasn't been able to find a church that fits her family. Her husband isn't really interested yet, but she has 2 boys, ages 3 and 5. She hasn't been real active in a church since childhood, but she's felt the impression that she needs to make God more a part of her life. She's been attending a Baptist church, and had a really spiritual experience as the pastor was talking about the Creation and God's plan for us. Because of that experience she wanted to meet with us! She is awesome! Sister Barch, the member, came with us to the first lesson. The lesson went incredibly! She was really curious and trying to understand. She seems to love the idea of the Restored Gospel on the Earth. When we invited her to be baptized, she said, "Of course!". So Sachse might have it's first baptism very soon! She most definitely has high potential. Too often, when we find people like this, Satan gets in there right quick and ruins everything, so we are going to be praying hard the whole way.

Also we had another animal companion! Sunday night was absolutely freezing cold. It was raining, we didn't have umbrellas at the time, we were tracting, and life just honestly seemed temporarily miserable.. So I said a prayer. There's a super great Mormon message titled 'Hope you know we had  a hard time'. So that was my inspiration for that prayer. I told God 'hope you know I'm having a rough night, please help me out'. Then he sent us a cat! Almost immediately, in fact, the sweetest cat came up to us and wouldn't leave our side the rest of the night. She was the cutest thing, entertaining us by constantly trying to trip us. And just like the dog, people are a lot more receptive with an animal. God knows me pretty well, and it's so comforting that He cares about the smallest things in my life, too.

I'm loving my mission! Even the cold, rainy parts! Even the 'stuck inside all day because of the ice' parts! It's the best. God's hand is in my life every single moment, and I couldn't be happier. I'm so looking forward to the next 9 months. It's just me, The Lord, and Texas, and it couldn't be any better.

I love y'all!

Sister Kristina Dalling

"It takes everyone to git her done."

The Work

Write me!

6360 Murphy Rd.
#123
Sachse, TX 75048

Week 35 from Sachse, Texas: "Declutter Day!"

Declutter Day!

Family and Friends,

We had an insane week!! I don't even know where to begin.

The beginning of the week was really slow because Sister Stephenson and I were both sick.. It must have been a stomach bug. At our lesson with Joakim later in the week I threw up and almost fainted when we were leaving.. BUT luckily we brought a member from the YSA ward who is now Joakim's good friend, Felipe, and he gave me a blessing and I'm all good now! Felipe is from Brazil but he actually served in this same mission, Spanish speaking a couple years ago! Small world. But I'm feeling fine now!!

Wednesday was the craziest day. We got a call from the assistants and found out we were getting another sister added to our companionship that night because a sister's area had to close suddenly. That's all the information we were given. We didn't know who, when, or why. So Sister Walton has joined us here in Sachse! It was all very last minute but we are adaptable. We don't know how long this will last, but most likely until transfers next week. It's very different being in a trio. It definitely comes with its challenges.  Living with one person who has differences is one thing, but throw in another, it's a whole other story. Pray for us this week! It definitely has it's advantages too, but trios are hard stuff. Nevertheless we are seeing miracles every day! Sister Walton is an INCREDIBLE missionary. I know there's a reason she's here, and I have most definitely learned a lot from her. She goes home next transfer and she was Sister Training Leader for months.

Joakim is doing awesome, reading the Book of Mormon, coming to church.  Felipe is awesome for him. On Sunday, it was the funniest thing. We had the most international bench in the church. We had Felipe from Brazil, Joakim from Norway, us, Ally and her sister from Asia, and a friend we brought for them. I love it! We are having way more luck with the YSA ward which is sad because that's not even our ward! But of course it's all for the Lord.

We found some pretty awesome investigators this week! My testimony of tracting and asking everyone for referrals has strengthened so much! We knocked on a house and a high schooler opened the door. His family wasn't really interested but he told us to stop by a few of his friends on that street when we asked who else did he know who would be interested. His friend Jessie is awesome. We taught her the first lesson and she is just so great. She and her family have a very strong Christian faith. She's reading the Bible in 90 days (13 chapters a day) and working on a devotional. She's a freshman in high school. Yeah. She seemed really sincere and genuine. She just said she might not have much time to read The Book of Mormon because of her intense Bible study and homework. That's pretty understandable though. Luckily she only has like a month left. She was definitely inspiring.

We also met a girl named Hope who was just walking her dog. She really touched my heart! We saw her once and told her a little about our faith, but she continued on. We saw her a little later and she came up to us and asked us a few questions about what sets us apart from other Christians. We told her, and she bore her testimony in telling us how she wanted us to really look into it and pray about it. Sadly she thought we were mislead but she was very young, and said she was nervous about 'witnessing' to us because she had never done it before but that we were so nice she wanted us to have the full truth. I loved her courage and conviction, it was very inspiring.

Elder Ellis' visit was so wonderful! It was a lot about enjoying your mission, but doing your very best at the same time. He added even more to my faith, love, obedience saying. He said Faith is the power, Obedience is the price, Love is the motive, the Spirit is the key, Christ is the reason, and Joy is the reward. His wife said "Sacrifice isn't loss- it's merely preparation for something better". I really needed to hear that. They also talked about different levels of faith and how important and powerful faith can be.

Just yesterday we had a huge miracle. We found a family of 5 through tracting that we are now teaching! The son knows the bishops sons who are returned missionaries, and has looked into the church before. So now we are teaching the family! They are awesome. Super strong faith though and LOTs of questions, so we are definitely having to research and study a lot. I'll have to tell you more about them next week. I can't tell you how much I've learned from all the people I've met on my mission. I love it!

So transfer calls are this week.. I know I'm staying though because President Durrant told my Stake President to ask me to sing at Stake Conference, and he did so I at least have another transfer here! Who know who will be my companion though?? Crazy. Transfer 7 here we come... my halfway point! Ah.

So today was declutter day for the mission. Our apartment has had missionaries for 10 years... Everyone and their mom left stuff everywhere so this is a picture of all the stuff we threw out today! Thanks a lot RM's!;) At least it feels a lot cleaner now.

I love y'all soooo much!! Thank you for all the letters and emails. 

Love,

Sister Kristina Dalling
6360 Murphy Rd.
#123
Sachse, TX 75048

Happy Valentine's Day!!! (week 33 from Sachse, Texas)

Happy Valentine's Day!!! What a great holiday! God has definitely shown His love for me this week.

In church yesterday, someone shared what their mission president always told them and I absolutely LOVED it. 

Love is the motive.

Faith is the power.

Obedience is the price.

So true! I absolutely love my God! No matter how hard missions can get, serving God in this way is the greatest way I can honor Him. I reached this epiphany while reading President Monson's talk titled "The Lord Needs Missionaries". 

I reach my 8 month mark on Wednesday! Can't believe it!! 

So my week was pretty good. Mondays we play basketball with our Zone and it is so much fun! That unathletic Sister Dalling you used to know is dwindling! I've gotten so much better at volleyball and basketball- you wouldn't believe. I even made 3 shots and that was playing against elders too! Granted, they might've gone a little easier on the sisters, it was still an accomplishment. That's what I get for having a NBA player for a mission president! 

We visited Richard's car shop this week. That was really cool! His mechanics showed us different cars and what was under the car as well as under the hood. This week I was truly convinced I was sent here to learn  from others more than they are to learn from me. It's been like that with Richard and all of the other appointments we had. I am just so fascinated at everyone's' life and experiences- they're all so different. Every experience shapes who we are even if we don't realize. 

We met with a new family- the Sanchezs'. They are so awesome! They have a great faith and family. They are a joy to teach and to be around. Sister Sanchez is full Navajo Indian, her grandma still lives on a reservation. She has some crazy stories about traditions and pow-wows. Brother Sanchez is a professional hunter. He travels the world, hunting animals and shooting footage of it. His videos are under Blind Goat media- look em up on youtube!! There's a super cute  one about his daughter coming on a trip with him. Their house is so cool. On the outside, it's just a small, normal house, but the inside looks like a cabin in the woods. They have animal heads everywhere and all the walls are covered in wood too, it's very rustic! They have a family ranch with horses down the road that we are going to start serving at! Bring on the horse poop! 

So it has been so cold!  We even had snow and freezing rain! I can't wait til I don't have to wear dresses in this kind of weather, builds character though! 

Even though Richard didn't come to church this week (he was sick), we had 2 investigators at church! That was a HUGE miracle. Huge. John came, and he's a friend of a youth in our ward who we are going to start teaching. Also we took Joakim to the YSA ward! It was so fun going to that ward. We are going to share him with those elders, too. His lessons are the most interesting experiences! He is quite a character! 

Anyways, hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's filled with lots of love. Know that I LOVE YOU! 

Love,

Sister Kristina Dalling

6360 Murphy Rd.

#123

Sachse, TX 75048