Week 7: Smashing Fingers with Cans

I had the worst nightmare this past week! I dreamed I was back at school after a vacation and forgot where all my classes were and had terrible grades because of my absence. When I awoke, I realized everything was alright because I am a missionary and get to leave all of the stress of school behind! I then thought at least five times, "I'm so glad to be a missionary!" It really is amazing that I have this opportunity to leave behind all worldly things and focus completely on Christ.

Last Monday, we taught the first lesson to Brady, the boyfriend of a member named Rachel, who is actually going to be attending BYU-I in the Fall! It was great because we had so many members there at the lesson, fellowshipping him. We will get to teach him again tomorrow. He is very open to learning (even though he has lots of questions) and has been attending church since the first Sunday I arrived here!

Then on Tuesday, we were hit by the tropical storm, Cindy. It rained literally ALL day, as well as off and on again all week! It was so crazy. I have no idea where all the water went, because I'm pretty sure there was at least over fifty inches of rain. But somehow our dirt driveway isn't flooded!

This week for Relief Society, a less active finished teaching us how to paint, and I took home my painting. It is far from perfect, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out!

Our goal each week is to have at least ten hours of service, and Sister Wall and I have been going with the relief society president twice a week to tutor refugee children at a community center. It is such a great opportunity.

On Saturday, we were also able to help a lady in our ward set up for a Daddy-Daughter Luau primary event. We stayed for almost five hours and taught lessons on how we can choose the right through the scriptures. This involved a fun object lesson where I got to smash my companion's finger with a can! We took lots of goofy pictures and had a blast! Saturday evening, we were able to teach a new investigator, Chris, the Restoration. He is super interested in our church and says that the LDS Church has been the only church where he has felt comfortable and welcomed. We set up a return appointment for next week and then realized that he is not even in our area! So we will have to give his information over to the elders...

I am grateful for the time I have to study the scriptures and doctrines of the gospel of Christ. My testimony continues to grow every day, and I am able to see so many miracles as I focus my time and attention on the Lord!

Funny moment of the week: We were filling up gas at the station and this couple was about to get in their car and drive away. Sister Wall yelled over to me from the gas pump to hurry and talk to them before they drove away. I thought she might have been inspired, so I speed-walked up to the open driver-side door and said, "I'd like to share this message of Christ with you." I handed them a pass-along card and sped-walked away. It was pretty awkward and I might have scared them by my intrusion...

Funny Southern Sayings:

-A ten-year-old said, "I'm as healthy as an ox; well, as healthy as I've ever been!"

-Same clever ten-year-old mentioned above, named Hannah, said, "You can't spell my name backwards because every time you try, you just spell it forwards!"

-An old man in ward council said, "My wife's coming back a week early, so my vacation ends today." He says the most hilarious things...

Lovin' life in the South!

Sister Emily Burnham

P.S. I got to sign with an old man and give him a pass-along card for our church. I don't know much, but it was a cool experience! I also got to meet a man who believes in the Norse gods. That was an interesting conversation!

The Luau!

My still-life painting of flowers

Week 6: PSI and Birthin' Prophets

One thing I love about being a missionary: you put on one of these missionary name badges, and suddenly people think you are a certified therapist and start spilling their entire life story and problems to you. The fun part is then following the Spirit to know which scriptures to "treat" them with.

The highlights of my week:

Monday: We got together with the others in our district and played a lot of fun games at the church. I won at a game of half-court speed! Who knew I was good at making baskets from the half court line? It was the most exhausting game of my life. We also played chair-soccer and signs!

Wednesday: We found a new investigator named Denise. We were able to teach her the Restoration very simply, and the Spirit was very strong. At the end, I asked if she would read the Book of Mormon, and she replied very firmly that she would. That night, we went to a relief society event, where we were taught by a less-active how to paint a picture of a vase with flowers. Mine is still in progress, but so far the blue flowers look like blueberries, and the purple flowers look like grapes! But she promised by the time we were all done with them, they would look professional... so I'm still waiting for a miracle to happen!

Thursday: Sister Wall and I volunteered at the Ronald McDonald House for six hours with the other missionaries in our district! It was a lot of fun, and we made about 1,700 meals for people. The best part was that so many people asked us questions about what church we were from simply because of our example. Service is missionary work!

Saturday: The day started off terribly. We had three set appointments and had a youth named Robyn come out with us. All three lessons fell through! That meant we had to tract around in the rain, and since Semmes, Alabama gets the most rain per inch in the U.S., that meant leaping over rivers of mud that used to be roads and driveways. Even through all of this, the Lord blessed us with miracles. Robyn was able to give out a Book of Mormon, and then her mother bought us all lunch. We went over to their house to eat, and her dad, Brother McCullough, is hilarious! He said his feet always hurt, but it was just another case of PSI--Pounds per Square Inch. He also took pictures of Sister Wall and I on his professional camera. They are super cute (even though my outfit totally wasn't matching) and he will hopefully send them soon so y'all can see them. Later that afternoon, we tried to find a referral, and ran into a religious lady who was excited to receive a Book of Mormon. She leaned over and whispered to us, "I don't tell very many people this, but I birthed a prophet!" She looked so serious, and Sister Wall and I had a hard time keeping straight faces. She was so sweet and invited us back anytime. We then went Gator hunting in the swamps next to her apartment. Five other men and boys went with us and threw bread in the water to attract them... but no such luck. When we go back, we will just have to try again!

Sunday: We biked to church, but then got a ride home from some awesome members because it started pouring. Brother Shoemaker, who owns the farm we live on, gave a talk during sacrament meeting. He said, "Lehi must have been a great father because he had two idiots of a son." He also told a story about the only time he was every so scared, his frame shook like Laman and Lemuel: He said, "My frame shook when I was knocked out of the crib by my pa for wasting corn!"

The members here are so funny and great! As I lose myself in the work and focus on my purpose as a missionary, I see so many miracles. During the hardest days, the Lord blesses us with the biggest miracles. I am so grateful for my companion and for the amazing memories I am making! I know that as a missionary, I get to have the closest life-style to Jesus as possible. It is the greatest to be fully focused on His work and His children. 

Much love,

Sister Burnham

Random stop in middle of road to take pics

Making home-made blueberry jam with Sister Beck!

Me with Kennedie and two of her siblings

Our muddy drive-way! Good thing our truck has 4 wheel drive!

Gator Hunting

Week 5 - A Ward Sent From Heaven

Hey Y'all!

I'm finally starting to pick up a slight southern accent! But don't try to tell any of the people here that they have an accent... This week was amazing! I have definitely felt all of your prayers for me, and the Lord has blessed me with so many miracles this week. One of these miracles is the Semmes Ward! I truly have a ward sent from heaven. They are the sweetest people, so willing to accommodate for my food allergies and always looking out for me. There is one elderly brother who has his hand out for a fist-bump or high-five literally every time we pass him. It is so adorable. He is a convert to the church and wrote the cutest poem about his conversion story.

On Monday, one of the young women in the ward, Rachel, went out tracting with us, and brought her non-member boyfriend along. It was hilarious to watch because he was fearless in going around and knocking doors, saying "I'm with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and we want to share a message about Christ." And he wasn't even a member! But he is very prepared and we will get to start teaching him the discussions this week. While we were out tracting, Rachel said, "This is like gospel trick-or-treating!" I replied, "Yes, but we're the ones giving out the treat!"

On Tuesday, the sweetest elderly couple took us up to Lucedale, Mississippi to visit some referrals we recieved. The couple would stop at places to buy us drinks and food, and whenever there was a beautiful sight, Brother Johnson would pull over, position his car, and roll down the window for us to get the perfect shot. We had quite the adventure, and the funny part was that they stayed in the car taking pictures of us "in action" (as they called it), knocking doors and having our heels nipped at by ferocious dogs.

Friday was amazing! We had the opportunity to hear from a member of the seventy, Elder Uceda at a half-mission conference. He was so powerful and loving as he totally called our mission to repentance. Elder Uceda spent a lot of time talking about how prayer is a gift from God, and that whenever he prays and realizes it is not sincere or that it seems like he is just talking to himself, he stops right away and tries again. I've started taking a moment before I pray to recognize what a gift it is and to feel the Spirit before I start. It makes prayer so much more powerful.

After the conference, my companion and I went on exchanges in Fairhope, Alabama. I spent the next day with Sister Jamison, and we had so many miracles that day. It all started with an awkward moment:

Someone named Bryce had requested to meet with the missionaries. We showed up at the front door, and his mom was outside. We found out that Bryce was only 13, and his mom didn't like the church and was not very happy to know he had requested to meet with us. She said, "I'll have to have a 'little' talk with him about this. Now I don't want to talk with y'all, so y'all need to start walking away. Go on." Then she literally shooed us away like flies. We decided to tract around the neighborhood, and a train of referrals happened! One man took a Book of Mormon, then referred his neighbor to us without us even asking for any. We were able to teach the restoration to his neighbor, who then gave us four more referrals. We found two new investigators and three more potentials, who all took Books of Mormon! I really felt the hand of the Lord in all of this, and even though this didn't happen in my area, I know it will as I continue to work hard and be obedient.

I was also able to receive a priesthood blessing this week from Brother Johnson, and it was so powerful. I felt overwhelming love from my Heavenly Father and was told that every negative feeling I had last week was the adversary trying so hard to attack me and keep me from this wonderful work. Thank you all for the support and love! Missions can be hard, but already I am seeing how rewarding they are! I know the gospel is true--I wouldn't be out here in Alabama with all the bugs and humidity, putting my education on hold otherwise. I am so grateful for the restoration of the gospel, something that I've taken for granted my whole life. How blessed I am to be born into an amazing family with the gospel! I am excited to continue to bring this joy and blessing into the lives of others!

Funny Moments:

A clever 10 year old informed me that we won't have belly buttons in heaven because a belly button is a scar.

A church sign on the side of the road that proclaimed: "Just because sin is legal doesn't mean it is right!"

Much love!

Sister Burnham

Courtesy of Brother Johnson, a photo of us "in action".

The back scratcher in Lucedale Mississippi! I actually tried to use it to see if it would work... then realized there was a restaurant full of people right in front of me, staring out the window at me. Awkward! 

Me with my mission president, President Smith, and companion, Sister Wall

A beautiful park and lake in Fairhope, where we taught one of Sis Jamison's investigators.

Week 4 - It's fine, I live on a farm!

Hey family and friends!

I arrived safely in Tallahassee, Florida and met my mission president and his wife. They are very kind and funny. I was so exhausted from having to get up at 2:30am, but they let us go to a hotel at 5pm to sleep. The next morning I met my trainer, Sister Wall! She has been out here for a year and is hilarious and humble.  My first area is Semmes, Alabama--six hours away from the mission home! So my first full day as a missionary was mostly spent driving! I live in a trailer on a huge farm, which is a new and fun experience! One day during our studies, we decided to take a breake and went outside to pet horses and goats. I was even brave enough to pet the bull, Enos (and that's how you know our landlords are Mormon; they name their bull after a Book of Mormon prophet)! The work has been a bit slow this week because Sister Wall's old companion when home sick, so she left the area for a few weeks to be in a trio with other sisters. Now that we are back in the area, it feels like we are starting from scratch! It also rains so much here! When I first stepped out of the plane, I didn't notice the humidity that much. But I did notice how the sky likes to pour down rain for 5 to 20 minutes, just to soak us, before stopping. I've also gotten used to the constant light drizzle or rain throughout the day. I've heard our area is the second most rainy town in the country! We also have a white truck with 4 wheel drive to ride around the area since it is so bumpy and muddy. Sister Wall keeps things fun with her funny sayings, such as "It's all in the adventure," or "It's okay because we live on a farm!" She has a bright attitude and is very patient with me!

I haven't felt super productive this week because of all the driving and exhaustion (due to time differences), but this upcoming week is looking up. We will be traveling up to Lucedale, Mississippi to deliver some Bibles (and hopefully some copies of the Book of Mormon), which means I will have been in five states this past week! Utah, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi. We have some new potential investigators, so I'm excited because I will be able to finally start teaching! It's so different how many churches they have here. The saying is that you can't throw a Bible without it hitting some sort of church or another. They all have motivational sayings to promote their churches outside, and the funniest one Sister Wall has seen during the middle of summer was, "And you think it's hot here?"

We have also been doing a lot of service, and I'm already developing tan lines! It was great to go to church yesterday and meet all of the ward members. Sister Wall and I covered last minute for teaching the Gospel Doctrine class! Thus is missionary life--teaching the gospel whether or not you've had time to prepare! I am just now starting to realize how blessed I have been growing up. Some people have to drive over 45 minutes to get to church, which is actually why so many members in the ward are less active or only part-member. It's such a huge area, yet the branch is pretty small. We have a lot of work ahead, but I love working with the active members. Their southern accents aren't too strong, but some of the old people have strong attitudes and funny sayings. I'll have to start keeping track of them so I can share them with y'all. And yes, I said y'all. It's super common down here, just like the rain! I love being a missionary and know the Lord is blessing and sustaining me. I know the church is true and the same all around the world, which has been very comforting.

Love,

Sister Burnham

First area: A farm in Semmes, Alabama

Our trailer

Our truck

A miniature pony nibbling on me

Petting a goat

My trainer: Sister Wall!