"Am I staying or am I going"

Sister Grant and I out tracting

Date:  February 24, 2014
Area:  Gurnee
Companion:  Sister Grant

Hey Family and Friends!!!  Greetings from the Land of Chicago!  and YES it is the Windy City!!!

So I have a little thought for you this week which comes from our ward mission leaders talk yesterday.

Missionary Work IS Friendship!!!!!

Enjoying a warmer day tacting

So what does this mean to you?   You can be a missionary, because you can be a FRIEND!  So how are you going to be a missionary this week?  I would really LOVE to hear how you are being a missionary!  You can tell me a few different ways, you can write me a letter, OR you can go write it on my Facebook wall.  Keep in mind what you put on Facebook needs to be related to missionary work or I will take it down.

FOR Example:

The Book of Mormon is True!!!  I know it and love it!

I am a Missionary By......
"I am a missionary by talking to my neighbors and inviting them over for dinner when the missionaries are over."
"I am being a missionary by being nice to the kids in my class at school."
"I am being a missioanry by shoveling my neighbors sidewalks." 
You can also say I am becoming more like Christ by helping my neighbors.  Being a missionary is really doing your very best to be like Christ would want you to be!  I love you all, and I know that you can have some really cool missionary experiences in your life IF you want them!  I would be thrilled to hear them!  Let me know!

How missionaries celebrate Valentine's Day

By heart attacking someones door!

I hope all is going well with you!  This week we worked with a lot of less actives!  One of them came to church on Sunday!  C**** and her family did as well!!!  C****she has been going through a lot lately and this past month we took ourselves out of the situation and let the ward take over with everything because we couldn't do anything to help.  Well we heart attacked her door for Valentine's Day and she called us telling us Thank You and that it made her day.  It was so good to hear her voice again and even better is she sounded really good and happy.  She told us that she was coming to church but sadly didn't.  :(  but then Yesterday the best ting ever!  It was after the sacrament was over and she came in!  I just had tears fill my eyes!  She missed taking the sacrament and so she asked the Bishop if she could still take it.  It was fun to watch her take charge and really want it.  It is hard to I guess "drop" her, not meeting with her but it has been really good and she told us that she should be here form now on.  Sometimes we all need to have time to ourselves and to decide what really matters.

Suppose to be a Ninja Turtle

Turtle - We had rain the last couple of days

This should be a good reminder because we have decided that we need to drop one of our investigators, M*** this week.  It is going to be hard but we hope that she will come to us really having a desire to know more and that she will notice a difference of us not always being there.  I have Faith that this is the choice that needs to happen even though I don't wan to do it and will miss her.  We need to spend our time with others...even if it is knocking on doors finding them.  I am praying for the best and that she'll have a change of heart, and have a desire to act on what she has learned and felt.

Too funny not to share.  Not sure why I look mad.

Trying to convert Siri

Something that is really cool is I got to teach someone I know on Facebook!  It was really great and I could tell that the spirit was there.  I had been feeling prompted to talk to this person and I am glad I acted on it.  Teaching on Facebook can be a good tool to get people started when they don't feel quite comfortable yet with having the missionaries actually come over.

We had a great lesson with J*** this week!  We planned to teach him the apostasy and I was like June, we have this awesome object lesson to teach you today.  He was like aren't we going to watch that video.  Sister Grant and I had totally forgotten that we were going to watch the restoration DVD with him.  So that is what we ended up doing.  He didn't read which was sad but you can see that things are starting to click.  He told us he does like reading the Book of Mormon which is huge because he always tells us he Hates reading!  He told us how he doesn't want to read just a few verses.  If he starts reading he needs to finish all of it and he doesn't have time.  We promised him if he reads he will have more energy and not be as tired.  He said the most amazing closing prayer.  Him praying really told us that he is coming closer to Christ.  It was so ah just wonderful!  I love hearing investigators pray, and hearing what is in their heart!  :)

Oh yeah!  We had an awesome lesson with R**** this week, just her!  It was nice to just teach her and no one else.  Guess what?!?  She is going to take us to her neighbors and meet them so that we can teach them.  She is being a better missionary then most of the members!  She doesn't even know if it is true, yet.  She feels that it is good though.  She said that since her and J**** have been meeting

Our new friend C**** and us at lunch at Backers Square

with us that things have just been better in her life.  I almost invited her to be baptized but then it just wasn't right for some reason and I didn't.  I really feel like she will though when the time is right.  She is so great!  This week we are having our District help her with some remodeling on her house.  We are excited for her to see other missionaries have the same spirit about them, which could be good if one of us leaves.  She was also going to come to church but wasn't feeling good.  She told us she would come next week.  YAY!!  So excited for her!  :D

Just a few randomness from this week!
~ MAN Chicago sure can be windy!!  This week I had fun watching the stop signs dance to me!  It was pretyt lovely!!  :)  hahh!  I thought about going and dancing with him but I didn't feel the need to.
~The power went out yesterday, the church was a little dark, but it came on before we had church so that was good!
~ I have been on my mission for seven months!!  SAY WHAT???
~This week is transferes?  DIdn't we just have them?  Hmmm.  Wonder what will happen NO CLUE!!! so "am I staying or am I going" ha!  The Lord knows and I'll do whatever he wants me to do!  :D  He knos better than us!

Transfer calls come on Saturday night but transfers don't actually happen until next week.  So on Monday she will tell us if she is leaving or staying.

Letters this week from my two number one fans!
- My momma!  Happy late Birthday!  :D
- My Grandma Mary!  Your card made both my comp. and I laugh!!  :D 

I LOVE PICTURES

P-day fun at the church

More P-day fun

I lov eyou all so much!!  Thank you for all the prayers!!  I know they help!!  Don't be afraid to follow the spririt!

Love,
Sister North





WRITE ME, I love to hear from everyone!!!
Sister Amber North
Illinois Chicago Mission
800 Waukegan Rd #203
Glenview, Illinois 60025 

Check out my blog at sisterambernorth.blogspot.com

 We had a couple of days in the 40's and it rained and cut down the piles of snow a bit.  We have had 70 inches of snow since the start of the year.  The warmer weather was great but now it is back to the 20's and below and feels even colder!  O well