Week 7 in Liverpool,Highlights about Transfers

So big highlight about transfers is one i get my MTC companion again (sister hess) and 2 i am the driver and i get my Tiwi!!!!! (that is the little card that allows me to drive a mission car!!! So that is awesome because i love driving!!!!

The work is picking up and i am so happy!! we have a new investigator and she is awesome she is about 65 years old and is raising her grandchildren. She really has a lot going on and she is already seeing how the gospel can bless her and her husbands life and help her grandchildren. It was awesome!!!!

This week has been interesting because I really didn't see the week at all. (like usual) We celebrated Elder Bakers birthday and that was fun i make him Banana bread and a chocolate raspberry cupcake. Then sister Hale and i attacked the elders apartment door with all this fun birthday stuff so he could have a good birthday way from home. He loved it!!!!! I am so grateful i was able to do that form him, he explained how he never had anyone make that much of a big deal out of him Birthday until now and he really appreciated everything. (he comes from a big family)

I really love the scriptures! It may be hard for me to read but I have come to love them all so much! I recently found a scripture that has brought a lot of comfort to me its; Mosiah 7:33 " But if ye will turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and put your trust in him, and serve him with all diligence of mind, if ye do this , he will, according to his own will and pleasure, deliver you out of boundage." This has helped me so much these last few days, as a missionary you always get mixed feeling about transfers and you never know how you should feel about them. Well this transfer has been rough and i don't feel i am the best missionary but as this scripture states if we go to our savior he will help us. I challenge you all to put it all in the Lords hand and see what miracles will happen. I know he will help you because i have seen him help me so much when i have been on a mission and i know he will help you as well because he loves all of us so very much.

(AT WOMAN'S CONFERENCE)

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Love the Lord with all your Heart <3

-Sister Maraiha Loveland (Potato-Head)

Hey yall from upstate New York

Well things are going good! I decided I have short term memory lost because once again, Sister Loveland cant remember her week lol. we were feed alot!!!!!!! like we had lunch and dinner appt almost everyday this week!!!! so in other terms ( we have lots of left overs) but it has been a good week.

Transfers are coming up just around the corner, we get transfer calls Saturday the 26th and the 30th is transfer day. So that should be lots of fun!!! I am just praying for the best to happen for our area.

 Sister Hale and I taught a awesome lesson with some less actives this week and surprisingly enough it was about the Atonement as well. We were reading out of 3 Nephi 11 and while we were reading i fell in love with verses 11-17 it reads, "And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.And it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words the whole multitude fell to the earth; for they remembered that it had been prophesied among them that Christ should show himself unto them after his ascension into heaven.And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto them saying:Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel, and the God of the whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world.And it came to pass that the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did do, going forth one by one until they had all gone forth, and did see with their eyes and did feel with their hands, and did know of a surety and did bear record, that it was he, of whom it was written by the prophets, that should come.And when they had all gone forth and had witnessed for themselves, they did cry out with one accord, saying:Hosanna! Blessed be the name of the Most High God! And they did fall down at the feet of Jesus, and did worship him." It got me thinking how would we feel if we were there and were able to feel of Christ wound? Now its your turn to think and reflect upon that moment in 3 Nephi 11? How would you feel if you were able to be apart of the multitude? 

We also were able to meet with alot of potential investigators and we feel soon will pick one of them up as a investigator soon. Frank and Fransica have so much potential and really are in need of the Gospel. We see them again Wednesday this week. I am so excited!!!!

I talked in church this week, I was a emergency back up because the youth speaker wasn't able to make it. I learned truly learned how powerful pray is, i was praying to know what to talk about because it was my choice sense it was such short notice. I really wanted to speak on what the lord wanted me to and not what i wanted to. so Saturday night i knelt in prayer right before i prepared my talk and I felt i needed to talk about sacrament and the atonement. So I was relying on the spirit to help me prepare. It is amazing how much the spirit can help us day to day. Everything came perfectly and i was able to have a talk that help so many people in the ward remember what the sacrament and why we have the atonement.

It is kinda funny because earlier this week I taught my companion Sister Hale about how important the atonement is and why we have been asked to repent continuously. I really just love sharing with people the importance of the atonement and we we have it in our lives. It has changed my life so much and with out it i would be on a mission today. I know the atonement is really and it is here to bless our lives. Christ love us all so much we was willing to die for us. Shouldn't we use the gift that he gave us? Because it truly is a gift to know that we can be forgiven for everything, and that we can find peace and comfort when we are in need of it. He wants us to use the atonement he really does .... you can never ask to much for our savior.

by the way this was my district this transfer. starting form the top left going down is Sister Searle, Sister Holden, Sister Hale, then me. Bottom starting form the left Elder Connole, Elder Smith, Elder Marvis, then Elder Baker. They are all wonderful people!!!!

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Love the Lord with all your Heart <3

-Sister Maraiha Loveland (Potato-Head)

Pretty Falls In Upstate NY

Well nothing much to say, this week has been a blur. in the mission alot of people say once you hit the 10th every day is a blur and you cant tell the days apart well that was me all week. 

Today we had District Activity and we went hiking near some pretty water falls, I got to get the know the distinct more and here peoples life stories. It was lots of fun!!! Before that we played basketball with basically the whole zone and got the Elders to dress up in skirts. ( there was a bunch of old lady clothes on the stage) that was pretty funny as well. But other  that is has been a normal Pday.

This last District meeting though was amazing it was about being a full purpose missionary, it helped me so much. I really needed that at that time. It helped me see things in a different view and how i can become a better servant of the Lord. One of the many things that was share was the story about the tree of life. We as missionaries are the still small voice encouraging everyone to grab hold to the iron rod and the and we help them grab hold as the ward continues to encourage them to keep hold of the rod. Then the tree of life is that ultimate goal of eternal life were we are able to have that pure happiness always. It is pretty amazing to think of the tree of life in that way. Please read and 1 Nephi 8. Then think to yourself as you ponder those scriptures are you holding tightly to the Iron rod? We are all promised eternal life and the only way we can receive this promised blessing is by being obedient to all the Lords commandments and holding tightly to the iron rod.

Thank you all for all your prays, I so truly appreciate them!

Week 3 in Liverpool

Well not alot has happened.... It has been a pretty slow week, I wish it went by faster!!!! like no joke it felt like this week was going the past of a turtle. haha anyways the big highlight of the week is we have a potential investigator the hopefully soon with be a investigator. His name is Josh he is a super sweet kid he is only 14 and just needs to be loved. He was a Head Quarter referral he wanted to meet with the missionaries and receive a Book of Mormon. I was awesome because when we came and met with him he already knew so much because he was telling us how he just sat on the computer one day and read a bunch of articles from LDS.ORG and that is awesome he basically taught us the restoration. He wanted to read the Book of Mormon first and then he will call us when he is done and he really wants to learn more. That was such a tender mercy from the Lord because we have been struggling hard core to find new people to teach. 

Other then that not much has happened, there is a family that is right now a focus family that i have come to love! They are amazing the fed us 3 times this week and Sister Biancos calls us everyday to make ensure we have a dinner appointment and if not she says well we will see you at 6:30. It is great!! I love them her little girl Alinna is so sweet she is 2 and always takes me name tag off of me when i am eating dinner haha it is funny!!! She walks around the house with my name tag and my bag , wearing my shoes acting like me it is the best!!! I love it!!!! We watched Johnny Lingo and Joseph Smith Prophet of the Restoration. It was awesome!!!! The Biancos are the best the also gave us someone to teach even though we cant teach them till the end of September and that Sister Biancos oldest son his is move form California to New York and wants to learn the Gospel. So yeah pretty awesome stuff!!!!

I am so grateful for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ there really is nothing better, it truly does bring pure happiness to our lives. I know that Jesus Christ is our savior and redeemer and he live today and is always here by our sides helping us. I know that Joseph Smith is the prophet of the restoration and he did in fact see our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ as he knelt in pray in the sacred grove. I know that the Book of Mormon is true and it is another testament of our Savior Jesus Christ and it is the key stone to our religion. I know that the priesthood is real and it is the authority of god to work in his name. I am so grateful to be a missionary today and being able to help others come unto Christ. Thank you all for your love and support! 

Love the Lord with all your Heart <3

-Sister Maraiha Loveland (Potato-Head)

New York State Fair and a Baptism

So not much to say this week it is all kinda a blur, its been a fun week for the most part. I still love my new companion  and we are still having lots of fun everyday! 

Today we went to the New York State Fair which was lots of fun!!! We met lots of people and I made ensure i fulfilled my purpose and talked to at least 5 people about the church. They thought i was crazy but oh well I basically am so i didn't really care. 

We also found a new investigator finally his name is Frank we have only seen him once so i don't know much about him yet other then he is taking care of his grandchildren and wants to find a new church because he doesn't like how his church right now wants him to pay to have his grandchildren baptized. He is very interested and i am so grateful that the Lord has blessed us with someone to teach finally! We also had a baptism on Saturday for a young boy we have been teaching. It wasnt a convert baptism but it was still a wonderful baptism. We are reactivating his family. It was wonderful, he was so happy after words, I could only remember the day i was baptized and how i felt that wonderful day wearing my pretty white baptism dress and having my daddy look at me after i was baptized. It was the best feeling in the world and i am so happy that Dominick was able to feel the feeling. 

Also Sister Hale and I are doing something we are calling a Re-Motivation were we are treating each other like greenys so then we will regain that desire to do the work. It is really hard right now to do the work because our investigator pool for the longest time was a big giant goose egg "0". But sense we have started to do this are investigator pool has went from 0 to 4 so that is a plus. Its amazing what you can do when you rely on the Lord like a brand new missionary does. Our testimonies of relying on the Lord completely has grown so much, I don't want to ever rely on myself ever again it is just so peaceful when you rely on the Lord completely because you know he will take care of everything. 

so yesterday in church we were talking a lot about charity and how it is so important to develop charity in our life. I never really have thought about charity as much as i did yesterday its kinda funny, I know that i have been blessed to be able to have charity but it hit me hard that you cant have something if you don't work for it. I just always expected that i would always naturally have the pure love of Christ for everyone but I learned that you always have to work for the things which that Heavenly Father has in store. It all comes back to the saying i shared a while ago "Faith with out works is dead" we got to act to become like our  savior Jesus Christ so then one day we can dwell in his presence again.

Love you all so much and i am so grateful for all your thoughts and prayers in my behalf. Remember that the Lord should always be your light and he will always be watching over you day in and day out. (sorry if this email sounds like i am rambling its always hard to get all my thoughts together.) 

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Love the Lord with all your Heart <3

-Sister Maraiha Loveland (Potato-Head)

My New Area!!!!! Liverpool Ward

My New companion is awesome!!!! Sister Hale has  been out for almost a Year and has been in the Liverpool area for 4 transfers. she has trained 2 temple square sisters while they were on the out bound part of there mission, and had one other sister besides me in this area.

Liverpool is pretty cool it way different from Fonda because the people are normal and a lot of them are really rich. The Liverpool ward is pretty cool so far i haven't gotten to know the members much quite yet but i am excited!!! We have dinners almost every night!!!! So that means, I am going to be a happy fat kid eating a lot of Chocolate cake!!!!! The work though in Liverpool i pretty slow, not a lot going on we don't have any investigators and only 2 Less actives want to meet with us. But that isn't stopping us from doing the Lords work, we just knock on a lot of doors!!! and i mean a lot like over 500 in the last 2 days!!! But it is still fun give us plenty of time to get to know each other. We share the area with Elders and they are pretty cool. We are all like total Nerds and that's what makes it lots of fun. The District is pretty cool too, i can honestly say i am having more fun then what i did in Fonda. I am not sure about the Zone yet we haven't had any meetings. But i met most of the Zone when we played Basketball this morning. (we play basketball every monday morning) So that was fun. 

So recently with this transfer I was asking Heavenly Father what he desired me to learn form this area, and surprisingly it was something i thought i already had learned with my trainer. That is Humility and Faith. Sense the work is very Slow we have a lot of time to think as we go tracting. And that can be dangerous for me, but as we thinking about all the different attributes Christ had and what i can do to develop them. And it him me, Christ was so freaking Humble and had so much Faith. It got me thinking how you cant have Humility if you don't have faith. and how all the attributes Christ and how you cant have one without the other. I invite you all to pray to know what attribute of Christ you can work on and then study it and pray to know how you can develop it. I promise that as you do this you will be able to feel closer to Christ and be able to become one with him as you become like him. I know that we are loved so much by our Heavenly Father and as we strive to become like his son we will also become like him become our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ are one in Purpose (D&C 31:21)

I love you all and I am so grateful for this blessed opportunity to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you so much for all your thoughts and prayers!!! :)

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Love the Lord with all your Heart <3

-Sister Maraiha Loveland (Potato-Head)

Transfers I am going to Liverpool NY !!!!!

So we got transfer calls this weekend, I was all excited thinking i was going to stay in Fonda and I was going to take over the area. But nope, the Lord needs Elders back in Fonda so i am off to Liverpool New York. Haha so to be completely honest when I was told I was going to Liverpool my first thought was Gross i am going to a Nasty sounding soup!!! HAHA my new comps name is Sister Hale. Everyone in my district here in Fonda tell me i will love her because we basically are the same human haha! I am scared but excited at the same time.

So the sad part is 2 of our investigators are getting baptized right after i leave so sadly i will not be there to see their baptism, but they both are going to mail me pictures. It is amazing to see how much people grow over such a short amount of time.

I want you all to know that Keeping all the Lords commandments is so important! We must strive to always be Obedient at all times. There is something I have heard multiple times as i have been on a  mission and that is "Obedience brings Blessings" That is so true we will be blessed so much as we strive to be as completely obedient as possible. I promise you all as a representative of our savior Jesus Christ that as you strive to be obedient and turn to him in pray and ask him for help, i promise he will bless you and help make all your burdens light.

Also another thing is to always remember the sacrifice our savior has made for us. He paid the price for us all not just a few cents but he paid everything for us, imperfect people to be able to be forgiven and to return to our Heavenly Father and so our burdens can become light as we take upon his Yoke. I invite you all to always remember our Savior as it is one of the many promises we made as we entered the waters of Baptism.

Sorry my thoughts are all jummbled up right now but i hope this all makes sense haha

Thank you all for all your love and support :) you are all amazing!!!! I know god loves you all so much!!!!! God be with you till we meet again!