No I am NOT and Jehovah's Witness!!! (1/27/14)

Last Pday we got to go to Bridal Veil Falls! It was SO FUN! It was "closed for the season" but we went anyways because we drove all the way out there. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gorgeous view of Bridal Veil Falls! IT was HUGE!

 

Anyways, this week was crazy. I went on Exchanges in Abbotsford on Wednesday with Sister Facer.
That was fun! We met this German guy that could say my name all cool with a German accent.

 

Then we had some crazy lessons on Thursday night. This one guy wanted to Bible bash with us, so we told him we wouldn't come back until he read the Book of Mormon. We'll see where it goes, hahaha!

Then,we went tracting a lot and had a some lessons fall through on Friday and Saturday. People kept thinking we were Jehovah's Witnesses, and I was so tired of it. One lady closed the door and said "it's the JW's" and I yelled, "NO WE ARE MORMON ACTUALLY" hahahaha. It was pretty funny.

Then on Sunday, we had a dinner appointment! They made all this Australian food. I tried lamb. It was weird, but kinda good. And then we were able to talk with Summer (the non member that was there at the dinner appointment with us) and she became a new investigator! It was so exciting!

Transfers are next Pday so wish me luck!

Love,

Sister Struempler

 

 

Jane GOT Baptized :) (1/20/14)

Oh, what a glorious week it has been. Actually...it kinda sucked. From previous experience, baptism weeks are the WORST and the BEST. Satan is working SO hard on us because he knows what we are doing is right. Thank goodness we know who always wins. I'm glad that I'm on the Lord's side :)

On Monday, we went over to a less active's house, and she wants her 8 year old twins to be baptized. They set a date for themselves on February 8th, which is super cool because when we first got there they didn't want to be baptized. They don't count as converts because they are 8, but I'm so glad that I get to help teach them and prepare them for baptism!

Then we had district meeting on Wednesday in Abbotsford because the Abbotsford sister's car got keyed and it was getting fixed. They had to walk EVERYWHERE this week. They must have been exhausted. It was really good! We talked about the purpose of hastening the work and how we want to be a part of it and not just watch the hastening happen.

Thursday night, we went over to Jane's house and filled out her baptismal record and made sure that everything was good to go! I was SO EXCITED for her :) She was just beaming with happiness, and I just KNEW that she was ready to be baptized.

Then on Friday we had her BAPTISM! It was SO spiritual. President and Sister Tilleman were there and it was SO WONDERFUL! Elder Neese baptized her and President Tilleman confirmed her and gave her the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

Here are some pictures:

 

 

To the left of Jane is her son Zheng, who got baptized a year and a half ago. He is now finally able to come to church because he got a new job and doesn't have to work on Sundays!

 

She just looks so happy! I love it!

 

Then on Saturday, poor sister Dockstader had a migraine. On Sunday, we both gave talks in Sacrament meeting and that was really good. Sister Dockstader talked about why the youth should start considering going on a mission now and preparing for it. I talked about the doctrine of Christ :)

Then after church we went to go visit the SWEETEST less active lady EVER. She always gives us stuff when we go over there. She wants to come back to church so badly, but her medication for her psychosis problems stopped working. She can't get new medication yet because she has to get surgery on her teeth. EVERYONE PLEASE PRAY FOR HER :) Her name is Cathi :) 

Then on Sunday night we realized that we hadn't hit the standards of excellence (7 new investigators and 5 member present lessons). So, we went tracting for 4 hours straight and found 5 new investigators! AHHH!! We were so close. I was dead by the end of last night. So TIRED!! People slamming doors on your face gets old really fast . . . hahaha. I don't even get offended anymore, I just move onto the next house to find someone who is ready to hear the gospel

That was our week. It was pretty awesome. Here are some funny pictures:

 

 



ANDDDDD...My companion is a grandma. She loves cats and knits during lunch and dinner....she better get married fast after her mission or she's DOOMED!  HAHAHA!!!!!! I love her so much. 

KEEP WRITING ME LETTERS! Send letters to the mission office because transfers are coming up:

Sister Gabrielle Struempler

8440 Williams Road

Richmond, B.C. 

V7A - 1G6

LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!!

Sister Struempler

 

President Tilleman to the Rescue! (1/13/14)

This week was unusually insane. Actually, all my weeks are insane . . . but in different ways. This week I got a migraine because I was so worried about Jane. But, President Tilleman came to save the day!

It started off with PDAY on Monday. We went to Boston Pizza to enjoy a well deserved, amazing meal. Sister Dockstader got hot wings. I got a burger with bacon on top, wrapped in pepperoni pizza. It was marvelous!

 

 

Anyways...on to more important stuff. So, on Tuesday one of the Sister Training Leaders came to be with us for the day. Sister Training Leaders are like a mix between a zone leader and an assistant to the President (but for Sister Missionaries obviously). It was fun! We found 4 new investigators on Tuesday with her help, and she was an awesome example of talking to EVERYONE. She would even run across the street to hand someone a mormon.org card. We now do this as well :)

She had to leave Tuesday night, because a sister missionary fainted and she had to go help with her companion. Please pray for her!

Then we had an awesome zone meeting on Wednesday. It was 2.5 hours LONG! But, it was amazing and helped rejuvenate my spirit and get me pumped for missionary work. We kept getting texts and calls though from everyone because we didn't know if Jane was getting baptized this week. Then we heard from the Senior couple in our ward that PRESIDENT TILLEMAN would be coming to our lesson on Thursday! That was a relief. We were both so exhausted by the end of Wednesday.

On Thursday, we did weekly planning. I was actually excited to do it for once. Super weird. Then we went tracting and then went to our lesson with Jane, the senior couple, us, and President Tilleman. IT WAS THE GREATEST THING EVERRRRR!! She was so worried about tithing and President Tilleman just preached the gospel so wonderfully. I even wanted to pay tithing and I don't even make any money! She wanted to be baptized last week, but President Tilleman decided that he wanted to come. So, she is going to be baptized on Jan 17th! We are SO EXCITED FOR HER!

When meeting with president Tilleman, he told us that 4 General Authorities are coming to our mission in March and one of them is going to be an APOSTLE! WE ARE SO EXCITED!!!!!!! He said that we could personally grab Jane by the hand and walk her up to meet the Apostle. She was so excited! I could see the tears welling up in her eyes. :)

Then on Friday, we went and visited a less active lady and did lots of tracting. We also visited another less active couple on saturday and did lots of tracting. Its been raining 24/7! I look like a wet dog every night, it's frustrating . . . but that's life!

Then on Sunday, we went to church and during gospel principles Jane's son was asked to read a part from the manual. He said, "But I suck at reading!" It was hilarious. He's so funny.

Then we went tracting in the rain...even more...visited a couple members...and that was our week! Pretty exciting! 

I love you all so much and I appreciate all your letters! Please write me more! They help me so much!!!

Love,

Sister Struempler

2014!!! (1/6/14)

This is what MONDAY was like for Sister Dockstader:

 

"Well...funny/gross/embarrassing story time!!! So, this past week we had a lesson with an investigator who is getting baptized this week, we were sitting in this lesson and I smell something a little off. I couldn't pin-point where it was coming from and it wasn't THAT bad, so I just forgot about it. Well, a few minutes pass and our investigator gets up to grab her Bible and my bag was in the way, so I pick it up and move it next to me on the couch. I feel something wet on my arm and think "Oh, no! My water bottle leaked in my bag!" So I look down to assess the damage and luckily my water bottle didn't leak :).....unfortunately the moisture I felt was in fact slimey, chunky, pastey DOG DIARRHEA!!!! AND IT IS SMEARED DOWN MY ARM, ON MY SWEATER AND ALL OVER MY BAG!!!!!!! I still have NO idea how it got on my bag, but we didn't want this lady to feel bad, so we didn't say anything. So I wait out the last TWENTY MINUTES of this lesson trying not to vomit! We then rush home and I took a VERY long shower and washed my bag and sweater and now I'm scarred for life! So ya..........the end"   :)

 

HAHAHAHA! I couldn't stop laughing the ENTIRE TIME! I felt so bad for her that I made her bed and gave her fruit snacks, because I just couldn't stop laughing. Oh the joys of missionary work and the funny stories that I will now have to tell about myself...and my companions hehe!!

 

Tuesday we had to come in at 6pm and do weekly planning. Weekly planning will be the death of me. I hate it. BUT the Senior Couple bought us popcorn and a bottle of martilelli's to celebrate. It was fun. We went to bed at 10:30 per usual and set an alarm for 11:59. Woke up, said "happy new year" and then passed out again. It was quite the celebration.

 

Wednesday we had district meeting and that was fun. We talked about the goals that we want to have for the upcoming year. Goals are SO IMPORTANT! I didn't realize this until my mission. It's something that I will remember for the rest of my life.

 

Thursday we did more weekly planning because we didn't finish it on Tuesday. And then we did the normal missionary stuff. We had a lesson fall though, as normal. It's so sad when people make return appointments and then aren't there. PLEASE STOP WASTING OUR TIME! Thank you very much.

 

Friday, I was In ABBOTSFORD because we went on exchanges. It was pretty fun. We taught this man that so desperately wants to have faith, but distrusts God so much. It's sad. But he's willing to read and pray and learn, so he WILL get the faith he so desires.

 

Then Saturday I was back in Chilliwack. Poor Sister Dockstader has been sick this entire past week. But she is feeling better now!

 

We had 2 investigators show up at church! Such a miracle and Jane was one of them. She is preparing to be baptized this Saturday so everyone PLEASE pray for her to be able to!!! We need your prayers for her! Thank you!!

 

So that sums up my week. Here are some crazy pictures. Don't judge. We get bored. :D

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sincerely,

Sister Struempler

CHRISTMAS and ... it's almost 2014!?! Waaaa??? (12/30/13)

This week was crazy!!! Per usual

 

On Pday, I gave Sister Dockstader her Christmas present...I dyed her hair GINGER! woot woot!

 

 

 

She looks AMAZING!

We also read the Christmas in America story in the Book of Mormon with our most progressing investigator, Jane. She is still planning on being baptized, so everyone please pray for her! We also stopped by another investigator named Terry. It's so sad because her landlord is kicking her and her roommate out of their house, and she doesn't have enough money to afford another place right now. So, I'm pretty sure she is homeless :( We haven't been able to get ahold of her.

 

On Tuesday, we stopped by to see some people in the morning but nobody was home. Then, we drove to RICHMOND! YAYYY!! It wasn't even too bad of traffic. We stopped by the mission office and gave all of the mission office missionaries Christmas cards. Then we went to the mission home! It was 4:45pm when we got there, so we even got to knock some doors around the mission home until 5pm. One guy named Tom was super nice and said that if we were ever in Richmond again, we could stop by again. Hopefully we will get too see him again!

 

Then, we had dinner and a devotional with President Tilleman, Sister Tilleman, Karl Tilleman, Danny Tilleman, Sarah Olsen, Sarah Tilleman, Sister Dockstader and I. It was definetly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The spirit was SO strong as we all bore our testimony of the savior on Christmas eve.

 

 

 

Then we stayed the night with the Surry Sisters: Sister Smith and Sister Fonnespeck. Sister Fonnespeck was up in Prince George so I already knew her; Sister Dockstader Trained Sister Smith. It was so fun! We woke up and then GOT TO MAKE OUR PHONE CALLS :) I loved talking to my family . . . I MISS YOU SO MUCH!!

 

 

 

We drove back on Christmas day to Chilliwack. We knocked on some doors and found a new investigator on Christmas!!! We knocked on a door of a less active lady and she was so nice! She let us in, we met her husband and kids; she wasn't even on our ward directory! It was such a Christmas miracle! Then we went to Dinner with one member family, and then another member family, and then stopped by a part member family and it was so nice. It was a Christmas that I'll never forget!!

 

Then we did weekly planning...blech. I hate doing it, but it is the best thing ever because then we always know what we need to do. We found 4 new investigators that day!!! We knocked on this lady's door and she was like "sure come back" and sister Dockstader...being the cat lover she is...saw her cat and wanted to pet it. She let us in, we met her parents, taught the whole first discussion, and they can't wait for us to come back! It was so awesome. I can't wait to teach them again tomorrow.

 

We also taught this Protestant man and his wife. It was hard because he's like "only God can withstand the wrath of God" and we are like..."Jesus is the son of God...so he could withstand the wrath of God". He also believes in the Trinity. We will try teaching him one more time...but I don't know how truth-seeking he is.

 

Then on Saturday, we stopped by some more people and set up some appointments. We stopped by this less active lady's house but she wasn't home. Her non-member husband and their daughter and kids were home though. The less active lady came to church on Sunday and brought her non-member grandaughter! It was AWESOME! Then we stopped by to teach an investigator after church on Sunday, but we found out that he was 15...so we can't teach him unless we get his parents permission. That was awkward. And that pretty much sums up the week!

 

I hope y'all had a wonderful christmas and I miss you all so much. I can't believe that it's almost 2014 and I'll be a missionary for the WHOLE YEAR of 2014....weird.

 

Oh and when Sister Dockstader called her family, her little sister played the song "what does the fox say?" on the phone for us. It was SUCH A GOOD SONG! hahahaha. I wish I could listen to it again. In 13 months I'll be able to.

 

Tootles,

Sister Struempler