we had the wonderful opportunity to be missionaries

This week, let's see....

Well we had the wonderful opportunity to be missionaries.
That sentence is really cool.

We met with the girl this week who works a jewelry store that a member
in our Ward loves, she told us about it so we went in and we met this
girl who knows her, we invited her to come to church and learn more
and there ya go! We got an appointment! It was really good. What I
absolutely love, is when we are teaching somebody and they begin to
tell us their journey or how they want to have have been searching for
truth. It's a testimony to me that everyone in this world is looking,
in someway. And God sends his spirit to comfort, teach and lead them
to find answers to their questions.
The painful part is seeing if they will accept what God has lead them
to or not.
This girl is really sweet though, and as we were teaching the
restoration the spirit was strong and her desire to understand was as
week. I know the Lord works with our desires to help us become and
meet them.

What I also loved about this was the member who came, is so sweet, and
loves the gospel so much. She practically taught the whole lesson!!!
Haha when we asked her to come she was way excited and said, "yay!! I
get to invite her to church!"
I really believe that missionary work, is what brings us the fullness
of joy, and happiness we can't imagine until we experience sharing the
gift given to us.

On Wednesday we had an teaching appointment with some members. I love
the saints in Chicago 1st they are special. After that appointment we
headed to another appointment for an investigator, well we checked the
phone and the just weren't up for it... So it got cancelled and they
dropped us. But Hey!!! Life goes on, there's people out there, and The
Lord knows it, so he reminds us.
We headed to a former investigator to see if she was home, she wasn't.
As we were waiting to cross the street I turned around and I saw two
people walking up the street. I turned to my companions and said,
"let's go talk to them!" As we did... It was obvious that they didn't
speak very good english. We invited them to our english teaching class,
continued to tell them what we do and then they invited us into their
house. They were two guys one from Palestine and the other from Egypt
and they are both Muslim. It was kinda funny at first when we sat
down, because well... We don't know how to speak Arabic!
But we asked for their phone and I was able to pull up the Book of
Mormon in Arabic and have them read the introduction page. One said
"no, he already know this kind of stuff" and the other said, "do you
have a copy of this?" And you will NEVER believe it.
But we did.
Remember that one person we were teaching that spoke Arabic? And then
they gave the Book of Mormon back to us and said "they didn't want it,
they had enough bibles" well that was still in the car and we gave it to
him right there! In a matter of 3 days he already has read through half of
it, and is in love with the Book of Mormon... The only problem, he is
Muslim and moving back to palatine next month :(
But the power of the Book of Mormon is real, because it the word of
God. I know that those who are searching for truth and reading with an
open heart and are blessed.

This week has been great, full of blessings.
I love this work and I love the Lord and his mercy.
I hope your week is a great one.
Keep on keeping in!

Love, sister. Tincher

"As we emulate His perfect example, our hands can become His hands; our eyes, His eyes; our heart, His heart."  Pres. Uchdorft

Great week for teaching

This week was a nice one.
We started off by have a family home evening with Nathan and his mom,
who is a less active. Nathan is working on being baptized, and so it
was so good. The member, Sis. Focosi invited them over, and then we
had a good lesson with them all. Nathan was on date for January 24
but he hasn't been coming to church enough to make it, and his mom has
only been once this whole year. So we are still working with them,
slowly but surely, we just are working on getting the ward more
involved in their situation and I know it will just be a matter time
before they will feel loved and welcomed, and then it will carry over
to the growth of their relationship with God.

We also had the opportunity to show Sis. Williams' around. She is the
new senior sister in the ward.  Her companion will be coming next
month, so she is here a little early. But we took her to some members
in the ward to meet, who are great fellow shippers for people and know
a lot of the sisters in the ward. She is a sweetheart, and I know
that the ward is going to fall in love with her, and the work she will
do will be one of a kind! It is great to see her come in.

We had another family home evening as well with the Fabis's and a part
member family. It was so perfect, we originally were going to have
Christine Sullivan come but she wasn't able to, so we had the
impression to ask the Chhorms. Pheap is the husband, he is the member
and his wife isn't, she grew up Buddhist and is not interested
whatsoever in the church. We teach her English though, and it has brought
many opportunities to get her in contact with the church. So anyways
Pheap said that Sotheun doesn't really want to go, but maybe she would
if their was food, so since they were making dinner for us we made
sure to let her know, and guess what... She came!!!
It was so great, she was fellowshipped and loved, the Fabis's are
awesome. So after dinner we did plan to share a message, just a very
simple one about families. We didn't want to get too deep or anything
we explained this to the Fabis's, plus her husband has to translate.
But Bro. Fabis, bless his heart... He loves the gospel and will
sometimes go too far. So he almost went all out and taught the whole
plan of salvation!!! Me and my companions were freaking out a little
afterwards. But it ended well, nothing bad happened so that was good.

Then later a member invited us over for her husband's birthday party. We
didn't know there was going to be a lot of people there, but a lot of
her family was! And these were all people she talked to us about and
how she wants them to come to church in prior visits. So we stayed a
little bit and talked to them. Then curfew came and we left. Well Sis.
Wallace came up to us after church and was so excited she was like, 
"After you guys left they all were talking about you, and that lead us
to figure out that my aunt's son was baptized in the church, and then I
was talking to them all about the church and I PASSED OUT A BOOK OF
MORMON!!" Haha I loved it! She was so pumped that she got to FINALLY
have the missionary opportunity that she really had been praying for,
for a long time with these family members. Haha my heart was full, the
Lord really does hear the prayers of the sincere missionary
opportunity seekers.

Also after church we turned around to see who was there and who we
need to talk to, and you will NEVER guess who was there!!! Sotheun!! I
almost fainted! It was so awesome. We went up to her, and she said,
"Surprise!" Haha Pheap was really happy too. So who knows... Obviously
she felt the spirit when Bro. Fabis was talking.

We had a baptism, this week too, this amazing lady who I mentioned
earlier. Christine Sullivan. She was really just great, so humble and
strong and inspiring. But she was investigating the church for 10
months, everyone thought she was a member the way she carried herself
and came to every Sunday and any meeting and everything else. The
elders were teaching her in the ward, but we got to help as well. It
was really a sweet moment though, the spirit was strong, her desire
for a new start and to find truth was pure and it really was so great.
:) I love her.

So this week was really awesome, full of testifying, inviting,
committing and loving. I am so grateful for the Lord and his mercy,
and my savior for the sacrifice he made to make it possible to be
better than I was yesterday. What a blessing.
I love you all so so much. Good luck this week!!!! Go, fight, win!!

Love, sister. Tincher

This week

Hello!!

This week was so good. We had our zone training meeting and we
learned a lot of great things... Since our mission is old and lot of
missionaries are getting ready to go home, BUT still staying focused.
So the theme was Ending with a BANG! and it was really good.

I think sometimes we don't understand that where we are in this world,
where we end up living and the people we are by are here for a reason.
God uses people to do his work, as well as Angels. And you and I have
a capability to be directed in our paths every stage of our lives to
help others feel God's love, enough for them to want to make a change to
search him out.
At the end of the meeting, the missionaries who will be leaving at the
end of the transfers give their "departing testimony".  The worst thing
was my sweet Sis. B gave hers!! Ah! I was just thinking, " Ah! No this
can not be it, this can not be happening!" It's weird to see things
change like this, but I like what Pres. Uchdorft said, "Endings here
in mortality are not endings at all. They are merely
interruptions--temporary pauses that one day will seem small compared
to the eternal joy awaiting the faithful."
It's true.

After we waited for interviews with president, I was learning to play
the piano!! Just sayin... I am the next pianist in the ward ;) some
day in the future.

This week we had some really good experiences. It the kind where the
spirit testifies to you for the truthfulness of the gospel, the plan
of salvation or of happiness that is available. Oh my GOODNESS!!!!
This just doesn't get any better, everyday it gets more true, it gets
more brighter, it actually does get more better. And wowowowowowwww
the restoration of Christ church is something I wish everyone could
experience.

So we got this call last week from a family. They are in and out of
church, they kind of struggle, but they asked us if we could take
pictures for them of their family. So excited about this one, finally!
Something I could do? Usually the service we do involves musical
instruments, and since that ain't what I am about I merely pretend and
look professional or talk about missionary work and maybe how it
relates to strumming a string! Haha just kidding. Anyways. As we got
there they looked so good in their outfits for their Christmas
portrait and we were taking pictures, posing, adjusting, sit up,
sitting down, squat, hug and then the mom she was like "wait!"
She went and got a picture, and it was of her son. She started to tear
up, and then they were flowing she paused, and said, " I am sorry I
don't mean to do this, my son passed about last year. He was 26.
When we were done taking pictures we asked if we could share a
message, and they were like, "yes that is what we were hoping!"
What I loved about his, is they were struggling especially with the
holidays and their son not around, it was hard. But they wanted the
spirit in their home, and the Lord brought it with the message!
It really hit me though about the power of being sealed as a family
for time and all eternity. It's a real seal. Just because their son
isn't there physically, that unit, the family was sealed together. As
a promise to never be separated. He was there and his love as well.
The gospel is true, and to families truly can be together forever.
How cool?

You know what else is cool? My coat, it looks like a sleeping bag, how
cool it is that I get to walk around in a sleeping bag all day? How
comfortable is that!?

Well I hope your week is full of great things, make it happen! Shoot
for the stars! I love you.
Love, sister Tincher!

A letter and some Christmas pictures

So! his week lets see..... 

Well it's  been a really good week, we have had the pleasure of seeing some great people. 

On Tuesday night we walked to a less actives house, well... It was a little cold and I ended up catching a cold, so I was sick most of this week trying to get out of it. But my amazing comps stayed on their game and got some great work taken care of while they had to sit in the apartment... 

This week we got to meet with a sister who is in the single adults branch, she called us saying her branch president wanted them all to have the missionaries over to teach them the restoration, so she called us and invited us over. It was a really great lesson! The spirit was so strong, no matter how many times I have taught the restoration, I always feel the spirit. The Book of Mormon is truly the word of God, I know that will all my heart. It speaks truth, it leads people to do good, to be inspires to uplift and motivate. It teaches up to avoid temptation, and the natural man. This is it! This is truly. With out a doubt something given to man that is evidence to us, that God is here he does listen to us and always will bring the true to those who truly seek it. 

The gospel is true! 

Love, Sister Tincher  :)