This Is His Work!

Hello Everyone!!! Greetings from Colorado!!!!!  Where I see signs for drive through liquor stores, and smoke friendly gas stations! haha.  Sorry, maybe a little inappropriate, but I still find ironic things funny. All joking aside, I love it here!!! And I love the people more and more! It's so great!

 

I have had an awesome week!!!! On Saturday Diana got baptized!!! She is so converted and just ON FIRE about the Gospel.  She was so excited! She was baptized young, but didn't understand and had her name removed from the church.  So we taught her again, and she is so amazing.  She is in a wheel chair, and has leg problems, and actually 4 days before her baptism she had to go to the hospital! We were so worried about her, because she just didn't want to die before getting rebaptized.  We couldn't get a hold of her, so we called random hospitals in the phone book.  It was great. haha.  But all was well and the doc said she was still ok for baptism.  She was SO EXCITED! and Sister Burnett and I sang at the baptism cuz she asked us to, so it was really neat.  When she took the Sacrament yesterday, it was a sweet sweet experience.  I hope that I can always be that grateful for the Sacrament, and treat it so reverently. 

 

Crazy Story. It's called: EW.EW.EW.MOTHS.

So there is a church building down in commerce city, not being used because a lot of the priesthood leadership moved or went in active so its empty and sad.  But we go there to study sometimes on our commerce city days.  well we went there and as we are unlocking the door a single moth flies and hits the window. I look and tell sis Burnett, "Ew. I really hate moths!!!"  So I hit the window to intimidate the moth and then FWOOOM 20 more fly and hit the glass. (this is the part where the scary movie music shrill violin sound comes) I know I can't go in there.  We opened the door and HUNDREDS of moths flew out at us swarming us like kamikazees.  we are running and shrieking.  ew.  we repeated the process 3 times, until the stream had thinned out.  So we ran in screaming!!!  It was terrible.  They were swarming every window in the building! And they were dead all over the floor too. It was like Ether looking at the jaredites or something. "carnage covered the land".... So I got a vaccuum out and was sucking them up straight out of the air like a true ghost buster.  it was so gross.  but i'll never forget it.  today sister burnett and I saw a moth and we just looked at each other with wide eyes.

 

Also, my mission is in like a trial mode of the JustServe program. We do 10 hours of community service wearing our badge, but we don't talk to people a lot about the Gospel, we just show them the Gospel by how we serve.  It's been awesome !!!  There's a pic from serving at a nearby lake staining the docks and such.  (ps, I forgot to take my allergy pill and was dying, but laughing thinking about how many days my siblings had to stay outside and work but I got to be inside cuz my allergies. Sometimes it pays to be a drama queen. hahahaha. cade. hahahaa.  i stayed outside and worked at the lake) (and about the picture, I realize I make that face ... a lot... it's my go to, and now it's quite embarrassing.)

 

Everyone, I LOVE THE BOOK OF MORMON! I just get so excited studying it every day.! 2 of our investigators have native american heritage so it is SO COOL telling them about the book of Mormon because it is written for them !!! (for all of us, but the prophets especially were thinking of them!!!)  It just got so excited as I was sharing verses with them!!!!  We were at an appointment with a guy named marco who LOVES the bible. Like if sister burnett and I hadn't kept calm it could've turned into a full on bible bash.  He said "just keep Jesus the center. no joseph smith. no prophets. just the bible. get rid of that other mormon book, and just keep Jesus".  I felt really sad for him, but I just felt a fire burning within in me. I thought in that moment I WILL NEVER GIVE UP THE BOOK OF MORMON! I would take a beating or a bullet before I denied it. I know it is true with all my heart.  And I know that kinda sounds weird, or like dramatic, but I was on FIRE! I love that Book! Because it isn't just a book.

 

So last night was a world wide broadcast about member missionary work. It was SOOOO AMAZING!!! What a glorious time to be a missionary, and to be MEMBER of the church! I just cried happy tears and I felt I was going to explode I was so happy.!  This work is the work of Salvation!  I love that in the Book of Mormon in Lehi's tree of Life vision, after he tastes the joy of the sweet fruit, the first thing he does is want to share it with his family.  (His immediate family, but we ALL are a part of God's family.)  In the broadcast it was said that "This is His work, and if we do our best, He will NOT LET US FAIL!" That is powerful. I know it is scary.  But, He won't let us fail if we try our very best.  They said last night that when you are motivated by pure love and a desire for them to be happy, it won't come off as offensive.  If they aren't ready to receive the Gospel yet, I'm sure that they will feel your love and know you share because you care.  (unintentional rhyme.)   Seriously everyone, What a blessed time we live in! Missionary work shouldn't be something we do in our "spare time".... Because every second we are alive the Lord has given us.  It is really "His time", and how we live our lives and serve others and try in small and simple ways to share the Gospel WILL make a difference.  My family, and a lot of families always talk about the blessings that come to them because they have a son or daughter or sibling serving a mission.  Well I can promise you that those missionary blessings are there for EVERYONE who will be a part of this great work!  I know that because this is the Lord's work, if you pray for missionary opportunities, they will come. He wants you to join the ranks. :)   (sidenote, if you go to LDS.org there is a Work of Salvation tab you should check out!)

 

I love you all SOOOO MUCH! I'm seriously so blessed.  Thank you for the emails and letters of support.  I put my hand on the plough and I don't want to look back. (that doesn't mean I don't think of and pray for you all, but I am not sad.  My love for all of you motivates me to use every minute while I'm away for you to the absolute fullest, so when I come home I'll know I really did give it my all. 

 

I love our Savior, Jesus Christ.  I know He lives, and I know that the Atonement is real, it works, and it transforms us if we let it.!!!!  Again, I love the Book of Mormon!  I'm grateful to know that the true church is restored, and that we are a part of it.  The Gospel makes me so happy.  I know that God still gives us miracles!! I see them every day, and I'm really thankful for them.

 

I love you all!!!!!!!!!!!!  ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS!

From me to you, Kinzie Lou 

BAGPIPES

Me pretending to play.    One of the more ridiculous pictures of my face I have.     ENJOY.

AMAZING GRACE

Hey Everyone!!!!! 

This week has been spectacular, and weird, and hard, and great! all in one!  I am just meeting some really awesome people! One of our new investigators is Karen and she was in a bunch of bands, and so her music shrine room was so fun to see.  We talked music for a bit so that was fun. 

We are teaching Elaine, who is seriously the Golden investigator! She is so amazing, and so sweet! She is from the south, and seriously Southern Hospitality is alive and well in miss Elaine.  I just love her! She is like a mom to me out here.

One new investigator is Steve and he plays the bag pipes! He is so awesome!!!  At first, we went over to meet his wife Mary, and he wasn't interested, but his wife wasn't home one day so we just sat on the porch and talked and built a lot of trust with him.  He is a really awesome guy! In our first lesson with him, his wife's friend came over really really drunk and kept interrupting saying weird things to us, and wanted to pray with us in a circle holding hands and she kept saying weird words we didn't know, but it was fine.  It was an unexpected turn in the road, but bless her. I hope next time we talk with her she is a little more sober.. what an awesome lady.. haha.  Because of the craziness happening with that lady we didn't leave their house til late and we got home past curfew that night. We felt terrible cuz we have been trying hard to be obedient.  It was scary riding our bikes home after curfew because we didn't have the blessing of safety because of obedience so we felt like we were definitely in the danger zone. our bad.  But it was an opportunity to really repent and to search our souls for things that the Lord really wanted us to improve so that we can have His Spirit with us more.  I was reading in D&C 25. It was written to Emma, but I likened it unto me.  I want nothing more than the Lord to consider me an "elect lady" and so I really need to use the Atonement more to become the woman He wants me to be.    

So Steve loves us and played amazing grace on the bag pipes for us and told us the story of how it came about.  A guy worked on a slave ship as a free man, but was captured and made a slave himself.  He worked for years and finally bought his way to freedom, and the day that happened he wrote Amazing Grace.  that man knew that Jesus Christ helped him through those hard times and had set him free - spiritually and physically.  It's amazing that he still does that today.  That's the source of my Spiritual thought today.  Just what an AMAZING gift the Savior's Grace is.  He gives us hope and peace in this crazy world because we know that because of Him we can live forever with our families.  We can be forgiven of ALL of our sins, and be strengthened through ALL of our trials.  I know that when each of us goes through our own personal Gethsemane, what better Friend to have with us than our Savior Jesus Christ, who has experienced it all.  He has done so much for us, and all He asks is that we follow Him. (And when we follow Him it is the naturally safer and happier way, and THEN the Lord turns around and blesses us even more.)  It really AMAZES me how much the Lord loves us, and how good He is to us.  I love Him so much, and it is an honor to wear His  name on my chest, next to my name.  It is AMAZING to see how His grace changes me, and the people I meet for the better! We all are saved by Grace, but are we changed by it?  I hope each of us will turn to the Savior and have Him help us with one way to be better. One step at a time, one day at a time.   I love you all SOOOOOO MUCH! I miss you, and think about you all, and laugh to myself.  (my companion is now starting to realize just how crazy I am.)  I love you!

Onward Christian Soldiers!

From me to you, Kinzie Lou

MIRACLE MONDAY

Hello everyone!!! So it's Tuesday,,, I know. weird. But I'm emailing today because I got to go to the temple today, so today is my p day instead of yesterday.  Some missionaries do both (p day, and temple day) but me and my companion know that blessings come from obedience, but MIRACLES come from EXACT OBEDIENCE! we believe that totally.  So yesterday we worked, and rode bikes in the 90 degree humid weather and it was hard. way hard. especially when we knew that everyone else in the mission was emailing their loved ones. But we kept working. And we saw many miracles yesterday!!!!  People we called from our area book actually answered and we set up some appointments that sound really promising! A girl we taught last week who we haven't been able to get a hold of was home, so we taught her again and had an AMAZING experience. We had another investigator commit to baptism next month, and for dinner a member made us cafe rio sweet pork taco salads. mmmmm my favorite. I thought of mama sheri and had to just look up and say thanks. The Lord has been so good to me.  I know that He has comforted me through this hard time, and helped me bear powerful testimony of this Gospel that I love so much. Without the Lord, I know I'm really nothing special when I'm talking to these people. But I know the Lord is so involved in this work, it really is hastening and we are finding so many people who are just PREPARED for the Gospel. It is amazing!!!! 

So, funny story. We are on bikes (have I mentioned that enough? hahaha) and we were in an unknown neighborhood just cruisin mindin our biz when all of a sudden, this beast of a dog starts barking at us and starts CLIMBING the 6 foot wood fence! It's front legs are over the fence and I swear it was foaming at the mouth! It was seriously like the beast on the sandlot. And I squeal/screamed for 20 straight seconds as I hauled cheeks out of there. And then we laughed for a few minutes straight over how our life is a movie sometimes.  People love seeing us sister missionaries riding bikes in skirts. Like we look crazy. But since being on bikes, people have been really humbled by the fact that we must REALLY love what we are sharing to be biking in skirts around just to tell people about it.  (And I have to say, they probably are LOVING the helmet hair too. I know I am.) haha.

I can't believe it's almost been a month since I've been gone. Wow!!!!!  It's hard being away from everyone that I love, but thinking of you all and my family really pumps me up and makes me want to be the best missionary I can be.

So a really sad/ tragic thing that happened.  So in a trailer park on Sunday night we were out trying to get a hold of an investigator and we met some people.  We asked the guy what Jesus Christ meant to him and he told us " a waste of time I don't have right now." ouch. that really made me so sad for him.  We left and were kinda down.  The next day we were in that trailer park teaching a lesson, when we left we found out a little boy had drowned in the park pool. It was so sad. so so sad. as we were leaving that "waste of time" guy saw us and called us over. He told us more about what had happened  and asked if we could get our congregation to pray for the mom or something. I asked if all of us could pray right then and there. So I said a prayer, and they changed completely. His girlfriend was bawling cuz she had tried giving the little boy CPR.  She was really upset but we were able to just sit with her and comfort her.  After she calmed down all of us starting talking about God and sis Burnett and I were able to talk a little bit about the plan of salvation, and just try to comfort them.  After that conversation they agreed to talk more with us and so we have 3 new potential investigators from that experience.  I still am way sad abut that little boy, and that poor mom. Seriously, my heart was just broken.  But the Lord gives us opportunities to try to get to know Him better, and find comfort from Him in hard times like that.  I won't say it was a miracle that that little boy died, because that is SO sad. But it was a miracle that in that sad moment, those people were able to find a little peace.

Jesus Christ knows every pain we feel.  He has felt it Himself. He faced it alone, but we have the blessing of not EVER having to be alone during those times.  He is waiting there for us with his arms outstretched to us.  He wants to take that pain from us because "His yoke is easy... His burden is light"  because He lifts so much of it.  He can lift all of it.  I love my Savior, Jesus Christ.  There is no way I could be doing this without Him.

I love you all so much, and think about you often (and dream weird vivid dreams about missionary work that involve a lot of you. It's weird.)
Onward Christian Soldiers!
From me to you, Kinzie Lou

MTC

Hello all!!!!!  I only have about 15 minutes so i will see how fast I can type this out!

I have been LOVING the MTC!!!!  It is so great! I have learned so much, and my testimony has been strengthened greatly. I'm so pumped to fly into Denver next monday and just spread the gospel!!!!!  WEEEE!!!! 

I had a funny experience. So on dearelder.com if you have messages from more than one person they just print it out on the same page. so i got a great letter from mama sheri, and on the back was a little note. It said a little message about how great the MTC was for them, but one thing they learned too late was to REALLY listen.... That was exactly what I needed to hear at that time, but for the life of me I couldn't find who had written it. So i was just thinking, how nice that the Spirit has caught on board with the whole technology thing, and is sending me messages on dearelder.com.... hahaha. kidding I saw it was from someone anonymous from logan... so I'm still way confused to who it was, but whoever... thank you! you answered a prayer from this girl. Thanks!

Seriously thank you for those who are thinking of me and praying for me. I know the best people in the world. cream of the crop.

My thought of the week comes from  a really hard experience I have been having the past few days.  while, yes, I am LOVING the MTC, this still is so hard.  God is trying to turn me into who He wants and needs me to be for Him and for the people of Denver, but that is not always a comfortable experience.  So here, we have been learning the importance of following the Spirit as we study, and plan lessons, and teach.  Because just me, Makinzie Hunter, I'm just a 20 year old from utah. But with the Lord, I can be someone who says exactly what someone needs to hear.  So yeah, the Spirit is so essential.  and as I have been studying for one of my progressing investigators (a teacher playing the part of someone she converted on her mish) I feel like I have been hitting a brick wall.  It comes time to study, and....... yeah. I don't know where to turn. I have been feeling so frustrated with myself.  But negative thoughts don't come from the Lord so I need to stop being so hard on myself.  but seriously I have been praying harder than I have in quite some time.  I know that God is listening and that He cares, but I think he is letting me struggle and REALLY want the Spirit so that I can become the missionary He wants me to be.  It's hard!!!  I think that I'm learning again that there is no growth in the comfort zone, and it's definitely not comfortable in the growth zone. But God knows the man/woman that we can become.  I know we don't realize our potential.  So if we sincerely turn our hearts over to God, and relying on the Savior's Atonement to TRANSFORM us, we Can become that person.  but at first... it might not be comfortable!!!!  

wow. I have to get off! I love you all and I will be talking to you soon!

Onward Christian soldiers!!!! 

Me and Sister Burnett

1st week in Denver

Hello everyone!!!!

Can I just say, it is so good to be talking at you! haha. P Day Yay Day! I love the mission, but I love seeing pictures and reading emails from my awesome friends and family! It helps me remember me.

I have had a really crazy week.  Good and emotional. Surprise Surprise I've cried a lot. (in drill team I always was winning awards for my awesome and over-productive tear ducts! ahaha)

I have never felt home sickness before even after 2 years up at Utah State, because mama Sheri was always just a funny txt message away.  But being out here I just missed her SO BAD! I was just fighting back tears all day for most of the week. I was so blessed to have my awesome trainer, Sister Burnett helping me out.  She understood what I was going through and so we laughed and talked and cried a lot together this past week.  She is awesome, and will be a lifelong friend, I just know it.  The Lord was really kind, and didn't put me with someone I had to learn to love, cuz I love her already!!!

It was really really hard missing home and family SO MUCH, but in a way, it's kind of a blessing to realized just HOW MUCH I love them.  I know that I am separated from my family for a time, so I can help God be reunited with His family forever.  I just want people to be able to experience the joy that comes when they know how to be able to come to God and Jesus Christ, and how to be with their own families forever!  (When I was tracting, I felt a prompting to ask a man how he would feel if he knew he could be with his loved ones forever?.. Turns out his wife had passed away... but sadly he said he wasn't interested in hearing and turned us away. I'm sure his wife on the other side was like "come on man!" but hopefully he will soften his heart and come around eventually)

I had my first Sunday out here in Thornton and it was awesome and crazy! I bore my testimony to introduce myself to the ward and after the meeting some people came right up to me! One was Brother Sean Rasmussen's brother!!!! WHAAAAA? I told him I loved having Brother Ras as my seminary teacher, and that his son Josh is one of my best friends!!! So it was so crazy how small of a world it can be.  Also another guy came up and he was a Scottorn from Fillmore and knew Daddy Hunter from school so that was fun too!

Yesterday was just a miraculous day.  We invited Dede and Ray to come to church with us. they live a kind of rough life, but they are humble and awesome people! They came, with 3 CRAZY kids. like seriously wild. At one point the little boy Jack, 2 yrs, was running around naked in the bathroom haha, I thought of all the times I have chased and caught little baby pigs on the loose and had to smile. I don't think she would've appreciated that. haha. We taught them later that night, and seriously EVERYTHING they told us let us know that the Gospel is what they and their family needs! We have been praying to find a whole family to teach and bring to the Gospel, and I think this might be the family! They are so sweet and humble and offered to feed us at our next lesson, and they are going to come again to church with us hopefully. It was seriously a miracle!!!

Also, we have an investigator - Milan - who is from the Czech republic.  there is a little bit of a language barrier, but for the most part he speaks great English. He is just a really nice man.  There is a guy in our stake that served in the Czech republic, so he is coming with us to lessons and it's amazing to hear them speak Czech back and forth. I don't know exactly what they are saying, but I felt the Spirit, and I knew what Bro Oliver was teaching was true. Man, the GOSPEL IS SO GOOD!

So I borrowed a bike from an awesome member, and so yes, I will be riding a bike some days when it's not our turn to have the car (I can't remember if I told you we are sharing with another pair of sisters) and so it is going to be an adventure. Hopefully I come back from my mission lookin better than ever. Not that it matters at all, but I'm just trying to think of every positive thing about the bike situation! I really am stoked, and I think me and sis Burnett are going to have a blast! But I know it will be tough too.!

So the members feed us every night for dinner, and last night we ate at a member's house was a bass player in a band! I told him I played bass and guitar and that I missed playing guitar so much! My callouses are peeling off. gross. i know. But he got out his acoustic guitar and I played come thou fount! It was so nice to play again! I felt like me again after a wild week. I just remember the things I love and the people I love and I just continue to be me, the best me that the Lord wants me to be for these people!

I just want to tell everyone that is reading this that I love you! I miss you all, but I am excited to work so hard these next 18 months so that when I get back, I won't have wasted a single day. If you want to email me do it at makinzie.hunter@myldsmail.net, or you can write! I loved hearing from those who have sent word (haha) and it meant a lot. Getting mail is like, YESSSS!!!!!! (happy dance, neighbors watching.. oooo awkward. turns around, walks away, not ashamed. haha)

Enjoy the simple things! Listen to your favorite song for me, alright? I miss my music, but it's fine! I'm loving the "nearer" album. check it out. "How Great Thou Art" by Chris Moffitt is phenomenal and makes me way happy!!!!

My spiritual thought comes from a Jeffrey R. Holland talk. I'm really paraphrasing here, but he talks about how we already know who is going to win. Jesus Christ is going to win. This church IS the true church.  But sometimes it's hard for us humans to figure out what jersey we want to wear. Well, I'm here wearing His jersey - my nametag. I'm grateful to be able to be playing on His team, and I know He will be with me. He already has been with me. I just hope that every day each and every one of us will wake up and choose to put on His jersey, and try our best to do what He would have us do. He is the perfect Coach, He is our Elder Brother. He is our Shepherd. He is our Savior. He will be with us.

Onward Christian Soldiers!