Update from Azle, TX!

Hello Everyone!

This week was full of ups and downs. I mean they all are but this week
was a little strange.

Let's start with with the bad just to get it out of the way.
Unfortunately, Cutter dropped us. (Meaning: He doesn't want to see
 the missionaries anymore.) We were kind of expecting it. He
kept missing appointments the past couple weeks. He said he wants to
build a better relationship with his dad and we understand that. We
actually think it'll be good for him. We know he'll be baptized within
the next year.

On a brighter note CHRIS WAS BAPTIZED!!!! WOOHOO! It went really well
and we were so happy for him. When he bore his testimony he sounded
like he'd been a member of the church for years. The spirit was so
strong! And when he received the gift of the Holy Ghost yesterday I
was balling like a baby. I'm really glad that baptism happened because
this week was really hard for me mentally and spiritually. Honestly,
everything isn't as happy as I make it sound in my emails. There have
been some days where I want to call my mission president and say, "I'm
packing up my bags and going home!" That week before the baptism I was
having a really hard time. I wasn't sure why I'm here. Appointments
kept falling through, we knock on doors and people don't want to
listen to us, people are mean wherever we go, so there have been some
nights where I fall on my knees asking Heavenly Father, "Why on earth
did you send me here? I don't feel like I'm making a difference." Then
things like this happen, and I'm reminded that it's not all bad our
here. I am making a difference. Chris is being baptized and I helped
him. I'm so happy he's taking this step in his life and following
Jesus Christ.

I hope y'all have a great week! You're all in my prayers!

1 Nephi 3:7 "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I
will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know
that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he
shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which
he commandeth them."

Love,
Sister Poulton
Texas Fort Worth Mission
Weatherford Zone
Azle Area

1. Chris's baptism. His best friend Conrad baptized him. How awesome is that?!
2. Zone glow-in-the-dark scatter ball

Update from the Lone-Star State!

Totally didn't mean to rhyme when I put that in the subject line.

Anyway, Hey everyone!

This week was a lot better than last week. I finally found my teaching
style. I think it will help me become a better missionary and
influence the people we're teaching.
We set a baptism date with Cutter! We're super excited for him! He'll
be baptized on October 22nd! He's doing a lot better. He had a rough
couple weeks but now he's doing a lot better.
Chris is still doing really well. We only met with him once this week
because he was really sick, but we hope he'll feel better soon. We
know when someone is preparing for baptism the adversary does
everything he can to make sure that person doesn't get baptized. We
will help Chris and Cutter be more confident in themselves and
reassure them that they're making the right choice.
I'm now feeling more comfortable as a missionary. I love this area and
the people in it. I'm not saying I'm perfect. There's no way. There's
still so many things I'm trying to improve, but I'm becoming more
adjusted to the missionary lifestyle.
Transfers are this week but neither me or Sister Nye are going to leaving! Yay!
That's how this week has gone! I can truly see the Lord's hand in
these people's lives, and in my life. I love being a missionary and I
wish sisters could serve for two years! (Haha you think I'm joking but
I'm not.)
Hope y'all have a great week!
Romans 8:39 "Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be
able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord."
Sincerely,
Sister Poulton

1. Awesome drawing in someone's scriptures!
2. Last district picture before transfers
3. Selfie!

Why Y'all is where it's at.

Hey Everyone!

Hope y'all are doing well! Hey I discovered that y'all is actually a
really convenient phrase! Why take the time to say "All of you" or
"All you guys" or something when you can just say y'all?!
Anyway, exciting news.....WE SET A BAPTISM DATE WITH CHRIS!!!
AAAHH!!!!! His baptism is September 24th and we're so excited for him!
We went to the Dallas Temple on Thursday! They have certain rules
about which missionaries can go and how often, but we went this week
and I loved it! That temple is really small and it was kind of weird.
But it's super pretty and I loved it. It was good to have that spirit
to help calm us down after being pretty stressed.
Other than that, unfortunately, there isn't anything super exciting.
This week was weird. We had a lot of meetings that threw off our
schedule and we kept having to reschedule appointments. Cutter has
been struggling with some things and we're kind of sad about it. We
went from, "Yeah he's ready to be baptized really soon!" to "Oh maybe
he should wait a few months." It's really sad and we're not quite sure
what exactly he needs.
Oh the Hunts randomly decided they're moving to El Paso in a couple
weeks. They weren't even the ones who told us it was someone in the
ward. So we're going through the lessons with them so they can have a
basic understanding before we sent their information to the
missionaries over there. They still haven't told us WHY they're
moving, but there's only so much we can do. I just hope the
missionaries in El Paso will be able to help them.
A few other things have been happening that we've been kind of
frustrated about, but I don't just want an email to be a list of
complaints so don't worry I'm not going to do that. It's just weird
how one week will be super awesome and everything's great, then the
next week is pretty rough. Missionary life. What can you do? Haha!
Well, that's how this week has gone! Hope y'all have a great day!
Love,
Sister Poulton

1. Me, Sister Nye, and Sister Yanda (the awesome Ward member who came
with us) outside the temple.
2. On our way to a fireside! (Mormon meaning of Fireside: an evening gathering, usually with a guest speaker that has an uplifting message to share. They used to hold them around campfires, hence the name Fireside.)

Week 6's Update

(Sorry this is a week late.)

Another Week in Texas!

Man I love this place! It's so different than Utah! I love it so much here!
Quick tip: if you're ever going to visit Texas, BUG SPRAY! BUG SPRAY!
BUG SPRAY! We had a lesson outside and we forgot to put it on and we
were eaten alive by Texas black ants. (At least we think that's what
it was. There's a lot of weird bugs here.) So that wasn't a highlight
from this week.

Anyway, Cutter's doing really well! He told us he hasn't decided a
baptism date yet because he doesn't want to feel rushed which we
understand. We're just hoping neither of us are transferred before he
gets baptized.

I never mentioned Chris before. He was taking the lessons before I got
here and was going to be baptized, then randomly his mom got mad at
him and they got into this argument about how she doesn't want him to
join the church. So they agreed to make a deal, either he waits six
weeks without seeing the missionaries or going to church to see if
he's sure about this, or he can get baptized now and he's disowned
from the family. He took the first option. But now we can teach him
again and he still has a really strong testimony! I've been really
excited for this! Everyone talks about Chris all the time and I've
just been wanting to meet him! We're teaching him a couple more
lessons to refresh his memory. We're shooting for the 24th as his
baptismal date.

Another crazy thing happened this week! Brother Adney, the less-active
member who passed away, lived with his sister and her family. Whenever
we came over her husband James was like, "I don't want to hear
anything you have to say." And would leave the room. On Wednesday we
were doing service for them and James told us he wants to take the
lessons!!!! AAAHH!!!! After we left we were like "What just
happened?!" We're so excited for them!

This week was really busy and we hope this next week will be even
better! Y'all stay safe and remember, you're all children of God.

Love,
Sister Poulton

1 & 2: Sisters at zone conference
3: me and Sister DeMille on our exchange (forgot to send it last week)