Lobsters, Nuns. and Transfers

Transfer time has come waay to fast. I was pretty calm about transfers since i had just gotten to Cole Harbour and my companion was going home i knew i was going to stay here and i was already 90% sure who my companion was going to be. All was well. Then we get to the church with the Elders.... and my NAME IS NOT UNDER COLE HARBOUR. So i am getting transferred. I am going to be serving in the Halifax YSA ward as an STLT... Sister Training Leader Trainer....I don't even know all that this entails but from what i understand It is nothing too crazy. It just means that instead of being over the regular sisters we are over the STLs and go on exchanges and do trainings with them. I am excited! It will be so much fun :) although i am very sad i had such a short time here in Cole Harbour. i really loved it here. Maybe i will come back! 

My new companion is Sister Howell! She served with Sister Pizzey and she is an awesome missionary! i am really excited to serve with her, im going to learn a lot from her in this time. She is going home in a transfer so i will have to learn as much as i can in this next 6 weeks! 

So last monday we went it Pier 21, it is a museum. Pier 21 is where all the immigrants came into Canada back when the east coast was a bumpin' place. It was cool from a family history perspective but also pretty boring from a 19 year old girl with a short attention span perspective. I got some pretty sweet pictures though. 

I went on exchanges in New Glasgow this week which was fun. I was with Sister Taylor again. this time we didn't run out of gas which was a nice improvement from last time... We went to a Lobster Carnival (only in the east coast) and we later knocked on a house that had a bunch of Catholic Nuns living in it... they thought it was great that we were Sisters to, and how we started so young... we corrected them a bit and talked for a while. They ended up taking a Book Of Mormon which is pretty cool.... 

I big personal barrier was broken this week. I sang a duet with sister Shannon in sacrament meeting this sunday. i was beyond terrified but it actually went really well. It started as a way to get a less-active to church. He played the guitar to Nearer My God To Thee and we sang, the second verse Sister Shannon played the flute. It turned out really nice. 

I continue to feel so blessed for the many opportunities i have been given on my mission. I was reflecting on this in my personal study and came across Mosiah 2:22 -24

  And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you.

23 And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him.

24 And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?

and then again in 41:And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness. O remember, remember that these things are true; for the Lord God hath spoken it.

THAT IS WHY. I always knew of this promise of course. But i had such a confirming moment that i was doing the will of the Lord, i was following his commandments. And it is because of this i feel happier than i have ever felt. i get to teach people about something that can bring happiness into every situation. I get to help the sisters in this mission progress and feel confident about there abilities as well as learn from each of them. And i have friends and family from home giving me constant encouragement and love. 

 Alma 26:12

12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

I hope everyone can have an opportunity to reflect on the blessings they have received. And if you feel that you are in need of more blessings, reflect on the things that you feel may not be aligned with Gods will and change it. Because this promise of obedience leading to happiness is for everyone! 

Love you all, i will get off the soap box for the time being. 

Love, 

Sister Lambert :)

June 15th...Real Success

Well hello everyone, it is great to read all your emails and see what great things are happening in everyone's lives!

First off, a big happy birthday to my beautiful mother!!!! Wish i could be there but at the same time i don't, because i like it here.... 

So i am loving it here in "Cool" Harbour (as Paige would say) the members are great and there is so much potential here! this place is going to be exploding with missionary work in no time!! 

We had our Zone Conference this week. It is the last one we will have with the Leavitts which is sad but we are getting more and more excited for the new President that will be coming at the end of the month! 

They always have everyone prepare 5 minute talks and then at the conference ask 2 people to give there talk on the subject given, and then after everyone shares what they liked and what that person can work on.... of course.... thanks to my awesome luck.... i was asked to give my talk. I was asked to talk on using time wisely. I talked on the importance of prioritizing our efforts and used the example of Alma in chapter 32, and how he taught the prepared. It was a great reminder to me that we truly are here to find those who are prepared to hear the word of God. 

There is a Board Walk here that is so beautiful! It is in Eastern Passage which is a area near Cole Harbour. There are small beaches, fun shops, restaurants and great walking paths. I am so lucky to be serving in such a great place! We saw a family from our ward there and they took us out for dinner, it was great. I will send a picture!

So yes yes.. it is true. I have now been out for 9 months.... and yes... that does mean that i am now half way done my mission.... which is sooo crazy. I can not believe how fast my mission is going by.... but lets just not think about it. moving on... 

We went to a members home this week and her husband is an amazing musician! He plays the guitar and he showed us a few songs! I introduced him to the song `Nearer My God to Thee`and he LOVED it. So he played it on the guitar and me and Sister Shannon sang. It was so fun! It was a great way to bring the spirit into the life of someone who isn`t yet willing to invite it in himself. 

I have had some really great personal studies this week! One that i would like to share with you is when i pondered a quote i have that says:
 ``There is nothing more vital to our success and our happiness here than learning to hear the voice of the spirit. It is the spirit who reveals to us our identity, which isn`t just who we are but who we have always been. And when we know that, our lives take on a sense of purpose so compelling that we can never be the same again``

I find that there are a lot of people who are scared of change. They are scared of the truth, of feeling the spirit, because if they allow it in, it will give them a reason to change, a reason to make sacrifices in there life. People have a false sense of joy that they cling to, not realizing that they are allowing themselves to be content with mediocrity. They are allowing there views of themselves and others be shaped by man rather than by God. The Spirit allows us to become `who we have always been`. Our true selves, not a manipulated version of ourselves that has been pushed around and changed by the worlds ever changing idea of ``success``. I chose a quote that will be a theme for this transfer. It is `Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value`. I know that Heavenly Fathers idea of ``Success`` is a lot different than what we imagine it to be. I want to be of value to my family, my friends, my mission President, and my Heavenly Father. I know this will be through helping bring the spirit into the lives of others so that the spirit can in turn teach them the truths of our message.

June 8th.... New adventures

Hello everyone :) i must say, transfer time sure is an adventure!! It has been weird going from an area where i knew everything about everyone and i knew my way around to an area where i don't know a soul, and i feel like a lost puppy just following around Sister Shannon! But i will get more comfortable as time goes on. This is Sister Shannon's last transfer so I will most likely be here for a little while longer :)

So we had Sister Drew stay with us for a few days before transfers because her companion went home early for health reasons. We had a blast for those couple days! It was a good end to my time in Fredericton, visiting with members and making sure all was organized for Sister Pitcher and her new companion. We drove to Moncton to pick up there new companions (hit a bird on the way... woops) and then me and the other missionaries getting transferred to Nova Scotia took the transfer van right to the temple :) OH MY how much i missed the temple!! What a relief it was to be in the house of the Lord. The peace that is in the temple was really what i needed to calm my nerves and remind me of my purpose here on my mission and ultimately in life. 

After I met my new companion Sister Shannon and we went right to work! I am really excited about this area! I was amazed at the size of the ward on Sunday! And it was even a low attendance that day! i am so excited to be in an area with so many strong members who all live in town! (unlike Fredericton where 80% of ward council lives 45 min out of town) And it throws me off to be walking into the church building and seeing President and Sister Leavitt..... that's never happened before..... 

Being an STL is not nearly as scary as i thought (so far) but God has been really answering my prayers by giving me the confidence i need to fulfill this calling. Its funny though to realize how much really does go on in a mission. I used to think that because im doing good that im sure EVERYONE is doing good as well! Who knew that missionaries actually had problems... and need help and encouragement... 

Today i am emailing a bit late because we went to Martinque beach with the Pitts (a senior couple that lives next door to us. They work in the temple and are from Montana) It was a beautiful beach and after they took us out for local fish and chips! So good! I am going to love serving around a senior couple.... Brother Pitt has the same cheesy humor as Dad so i always get a kick out of that haha

I don't have much of a spiritual thought this week, but i would like to say how much i appreciate the spirit in my life. It is an amazing blessing to have that comforting presence in a time where most people would feel pure panic. Going to a new area, living with someone you don't know, in a place where you have no family or really even friends and still being confident that you are where God needs you to be and knowing that you have a whole community of people who love you without even knowing you. What a blessing! It is a reminder to me that I am being carried by the Holy Ghost and guided by a Heavenly Father who loves me dearly.

I hope everyone is safe and happy, i thank all of you for the words of encouragement! 

Love, 

Sister Lambert :) 

June 1st.... transfer to Cole Harbour, NS

So transfers letters have come... and they are pretty crazy... but i think that maybe i'll just tell you about it another time... 

JUST KIDDING (don't kill me mom) They are finally sick of me here in Fredericton and kicking me out.... I am going to be serving in Cole Habour Nova Scotia as a Sister Training Leader.... you may ask "Sister Lambert, does President really think that you can be an STL?" and my answer would be "i guess so..." you may follow up with a "But why?" and my answer would be "I DON'T KNOW" but... i know that the Lord knows i can do it, which must mean that i can do it. And so i am very excited to be serving these sisters! I also get to live right beside the temple which is SO exciting!! And i will be serving by the mission home for President and Sister Leavitt's last month in the mission and get to be here for the new mission president coming in! So that will be fun :) 

My new companion with be Sister Shannon and i know nothing about her except i'm pretty sure she is from Ontario.... but that's all my knowledge. 

I am very very sad to be leaving Fredericton... i have grown great freindship's with a lot of members and i will miss the people that we are working with. I am so lucky to have gotten to know the people here and i am so grateful for social media so that i can stay in touch with many of my now close friends! After i gave my leaving testimony in the ward one girl did the hunger games whistle and held up the 3 fingers (for anyone who has seen the hunger games movie) it was SUPER inappropriate but pretty funny...  

I am sad to leave the young women here. We had a really awesome lesson with one of them about modesty the other day. My and this girls mind work the exact same and so i relate to her perfectly. It was a great spirit filled lesson that really reminded me of why I am here and that we as missionaries are sent to specific places for a reason. I know that i needed to be here in Fredericotn for this time but now the Lord has work for me to do in Cole Harbour. 

Our last Pday was a pretty fun way to end my time here, we went to a waterfall with the Elders and a older member of the ward. He loves taking pictures so got a ton of pictures of us. He even made us pose in a few of them so some of the pictures looks like cheesy 60's family portraits. It's awesome. 

I don't know if any of you saw it on the news, but Fredericton had a pretty crazy flash flood this week. Nothing bad, no serious damage but the power was out for a while and the weather was pretty insane. But do you know what sucks? I MISSED IT. We were on exchanges so i was in St.John and missed all the cool craziness.... but oh well.... 

To end off, i had an amazing experience with family history this week! I would like to tell you all a small tale of my ancestor Gudmund Gudmonson. He and his wife and 10 kids were baptized into The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints in Iceland in the late 1800's and moved to Utah after being rejected from family and neighbors for there beliefs. It is a great story and there is lots to tell but for the sake of time and length of the email i want to share one part of the story

 "He was a very religious man and had many faith promoting experiences. He was a great believer and had great faith in prayer. At one time when some of the Saints treated the family so badly father doubted if the Church was right so he prayed to the Lord to guide him and to show him the way. This he soon found and spent his entire life working in the church, paying his honest tithes and offerings."

I know to many this does not seem like that big of a deal. But if Gudmund had chosen at this brief trial of his faith to become offended, resulting in inactivity, who knows if i would be here serving a mission right now. Who knows if his family would have stayed active, then resulting in his grandchildren and great grandchildren not being raised with a knowledge of the gospel. I know this may seem a bit extreme but i have worked with soo many less actives who have chosen to be offended, and because of it, their kids aren't baptized, or they have taken on the attitude of there parents, creating a hate for the church, then losing the joy they could have found in the gospel, simply because they had parent who chose to be offended. It is so important to remember that our decisions do not effect just us. I'm sure Gudmund didn't think in 1866 "oh i better stay active in the church so my great-great-great-great granddaughter can serve a mission" but it does not mean his choice didn't effect me. It changed my life as much as it did his.

I pray for those who have made the mistake to take offence, and i pray that i will never make that same mistake. 

I don't know what my new address is going to be, so stay tuned, i will have to let you know next week! I am excited for the adventure that lies ahead of me. I know this will be a time of great growth and i am very excited! I love you all, and thank you for the love and support you all give me! Miss you lots, sorry if the last part seems a bit intense but it is something that i am very passionate about! I know this gospel is true and i hate to see people miss out on the joy that comes from this truth due to the decisions of others. 

Love ya'll

Sister Lambert :)

May 18..... Interesting people in Fredricton

Hello everyone? Think you could forget about me? I don't think so... 

So first i would like to say. I am living in the best part of Canada. I've decided. Not in a "wow im going to move back here right after my mission" but in a "man, i love it here" kind of way. Does that make sense? 

So to start off. I have found such a great love for family history! We are now required by our mission president to do an hour of family history every week and i am seriously loving it! What a fun and exciting way to spend out time! Becoming connected with those who have passed on really brings a special spirit into your life and helps you recognize the true eternal perspective behind missionary work! 

So one of the reasons i started by talking about how great it is here is because we get the opportunity to go on the "walking bridge" fairly often and it is a bridge that tons of people go on and it has a great view of the city and the river. I will send some pictures! 

Another fun thing about the walking bridge is the interesting people we run into..... Just the other day we were talking to this guy who is hard core Pentecostal (the ones who speak in tongues and stuff) as well as a Druid. What is a druid you may ask? He is a guy who claims to have the power to heal through prayer as well as spells. He told us some pretty crazy stories, gave us some warnings about the blood moon that is coming (stay inside folks) and he claims to receive all this power from God but it is a bit questionable who the power is really coming from... anyways, long story short, he was actually pretty nice, committed to read the Book Of Mormon and when we left he gave Sister Pitcher a normal hand shake but then when i shook his hand he held on to my hand for a good 5 seconds while staring VERY deeply into my eyes, I KID YOU NOT when i say i seriously think he was attempting to cast an evil spirit into me or something. I was not feeling a very good vibe from him... But one of my favorite parts of serving a mission is the many interesting people we meet!! 

I wanted to share with you one of my favorite scriptures 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 

9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

I love this scripture for many reasons. 1. We need to constantly remind ourselves of the grace of God. 2. To remember that any challenge given to us is a blessing in disguise. It gives us an opportunity to become more dependent on our Heavenly Father, and find the trust that he will lift us up in times of need. 

3."for when i am weak, then i am strong" - it is only when we show unto God our weakness, showing our humility and readiness to learn and to serve, then we are made strong. It is the same as gaining physical strength, it takes, effort, discomfort, time, and a whole lot of motivation. But with these thing we can also expect results. If we do all that our Heavenly Father asks of us, we can expect blessings! 

How great it is to be lead by such a reliable guide. To follow our Father who loves us dearly and who will never disappoint us. 

I love you all, hope all is going well. I hope everyone is reading there Book Of Mormon and praying daily, doing the small things that bring big blessings! 

Love, 

Sister Lambert :) 

May 11.... not what we have done but what we have become!

Well yesterday was so much fun!!! It was so great to see my amazing family :) It is so crazy to see how everyone is still the same yet so different! It has officially been 8 months and the kids have all grown so much! It was so cool to see! Being able to see and talk with my family really helped remind me the joy that comes from a gospel centered home and reminded me of why I am here on a mission. What a small sacrifice it is to be away from my family for 18 months to help other families come together for time and eternity! 

So Fredericton is the best place to serve...ever. Now that the snow is gone we have found out that Fredericton has a million fun bike and walking trails. There is a trail right beside the church and after 5 minutes of walking down the trail you feel like you are in the middle of a forest. It reminded me of hikes iv'e done in the past and it was a peaceful feeling to at least feel like i was outside of a city, even if it was just for a moment! 

I got to spend the day in St.John this Saturday for exchanges with my STL (sister training leader) and that was a fun time! I really love it in St.John, lots of interesting people! We taught a pagan girl and it is always fun to see the similarities between different religions and build on the truths that people have, helping them gain more and more truth. This girl was pretty funny, we talked to her about prayer and she said that she meditates so we then talked about how prayer can be a form of meditation. She said she would pray with us if we would meditate with her, i was super excited to try it out but sadly my STL was not as fond of the idea so it didnt happen.... next time.... 

       We also taught this lady from China and she was hilarious. She wouldnt even pay attention to what we were teaching, she just kept saying "woow, you two sooo pretty, so so pretty" "wow, you two work so great together, so pretty" "can i take picture?" and when she prayed at the end she said "thank-you for letting these two beautiful beautiful girls come teach me" she was so funny, and so cute. Me and Sister Christiansen laughed about it for a good while after. 

So we have a study guide that we follow for personal study, each day we take at least 15 minutes to study the assigned lesson in Preach My Gospel. This week we are studying Life On Earth and The Atonement. It is truly amazing how it really is only through the atonement that all things are made possible. There is a quote i read in a talk this morning that said "The final judgement is not just an evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts - what we have done. It is an acknowledgement of the final effect of our acts and thoughts - what we have become. The atonement is what helps us to become. To change and become who our Heavenly Father wants us to be. I hope everyone can have an opportunity to think about the commandments of the gospel and our actions accordingly, and if those actions are helping change us to become who He want to become. 

It was so great seeing everyone :) i hope you all have a great week :) Love you!

Sister Lambert 

April 27.....Light is worth the fight!

Yes, i know that my emails have been super lame lately, for that i am sorry! i just haven't had any crazy "email worthy" stories lately. Not that my life is boring, things here are going amazing!! But typing out stories just does not do that story justice!

So this week it has been raining.... non stop. Sooo fun. But every once in a while it stops raining for an hour or two and when that happens me and Sister Pitcher run outside and do some street contacting so that we don't get stuck inside all the time. And i don't know what i am doing differently this week but for some reason, almost every one i have talked to is SO CRAZY. There was one guy who walked up to me and was like "you watch movies?" "uh... no, we are missionaries and..." "well crap. Well here. take this movie anyways." and he hands me a Planet Of the Apes movie. Its the legit movie, bought from a store. And he walked away after... so now i have a planet of the apes movie in our apartement... i don't know if thats apostate or not but i love the movie so im thinking of just keeping it in my suit case for when i go home...

We are teaching this girl who is a student at UNB and SO ELECT. She is loving the lessons and said to us this week "I can honestly say that since I have met with you guys, my life has been so much better. I have never been so happy in my entire life and i know that is not a coincidence" WOOHOO. But here is the porblem... she is moving to Ontario... next week. And hasn't been to church enough times to get baptized. So now we are prepping her to get baptized in Ontario!!!

I feel so blessed to have the key that brings happiness into the lives of so many people. And to have the technology to stay in contact with these people to continue to help them grow and become better.

I was studying this morning about our pre-earth life. As we come to know more about our existence and experiences before this life, the more we understand our purpose here.

I was reading in Section 93 of the Docterine and Covenants and its says:

24 And truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come;

So we learned about Gods plan before we came to the earth, and we continue to learn as we grow and gain experience on the earth. We continue to gain truth.

27 And no man receiveth a fulness unless he keepeth his commandments.

As we are obedient we can gain more and more truth, and it talks in this section about how truth = light.

Now keeping this in mind, i thought of a less-active we visited this week. She has not been active since she was a teenager (she is in her late 40's now) but she stayed very spiritual still. The rest of her family is active and so she has always had contact with the church. As we got to know her in our meeting she expressed to us her testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel. She told us of some concerns that were small and can easily be resolved and a concern that she has forgotten a lot about the teachings and has lost a lot of knowledge over the years. We asked if she would be willing to take the missionary lessons. She thought about it for a minute and then declined. Confused, i asked her why and she said "Because i know that what you will teach me will bring me closer to God, which is great. But i also know that I am doing some things in my life that God does not want me to do. I know that as i come closer to God those things will become more apparent. And i like my life right now. I just dont want to change."

John 3:19

19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

We have the truth of the gospel. We have that light. But what i learned this week is that many times people do not have a problem with what we teach. They have just grown too familiar with darkness that they are not willing to make the changes necessary to find that light. They are scared to become accountable, to take ownership of there sins and mistakes; not realizing how much this is hindering their progression.

The story told this last Conference by Elder Clayton talks of a little girl trying to find her way to the light and he said "She saw a light in the distance and fought her way to it" Sometimes obtaining light is a struggle, it takes effort. But we do not want to become like this less active, content sitting in darkness. We know better. Light is worth the fight!

What a blessing it is to share this light with others, to constantly be searching for those who are willing to make the changes needed to obtain that light, that glory, and that joy that our Heavenly Father offers us.

I hope everyone has had a wonderful week! Mothers day is coming up and i am excited to see my family! I love you all, i hope all is well, thank you for your love and support :)