Week 4

Hello friends/family!

I can't believe that another week has come and gone. Time flies when you are serving the Lord/having fun while doing it:) haha anyways we had a super fun and busy last week! So they have this thing here called a mini mission (I've never heard of it before but apparently it's not a new thing). but basically it's just for young men/women who are 16-18 who are trying to decide of they want to serve a mission. They get to go out with the missionaries for the week and see what it's like. it's really a cool thing actually! So on Sunday night we got a call saying that we would be getting a mini missionary to stay with us for the week. Sister Reed has been wanting one her whole mission so she was really excited!! So on Tuesday we drove to O'Fallon Illinois to pick up our little mini missionary. Her name is Sarah Pridmore and she is 17 and considering a mission. She is super funny, so we had a great week with her! She said after the first couple of days she decided she would never go on a mission but then as the week went on and she got to teach/meet more people she said she liked it more and can see why people want to serve. so it was super awesome and we miss her already! 

So our investigator Ron, the one I talked about in my last email who's a "free spirit", well he's pretty much our favorite person to teach! We taught the plan of salvation to him this last week and he was loving it! He told us that he feels like he knows us from another life and we were like YES!! we were all in god's presence before we came to earth! so it was pretty cool. haha also he said the prayer when we were leaving and he said "thank you god for sending these girls to me and thank you for their families for allowing them to come, they must be the best people in the whole world." so thanks to Ron for shouting out our families, because I do have the BEST family in the whole world!! It was really sweet though. so we are hoping to get him to church here soon if he can get work off.

Also our other investigator Dustin has a baptismal date coming up here soon.. july 18th! We had a lesson with him about why we should get baptized and asked him why he wants to and he said "well if jesus did and he's perfect, then i should too." it was so great to see him finally get it! he's the funniest kid though. He's 18 years old and works at wal-mart and taco bell. He gave sister Reed a pocket knife the other day and said that he wants to give me one too but he hasn't found one to match my personality yet. haha he's a hoot! 

Okay last cool thing that happened this week, WE HAD A BAPTISM!! YAYAYYA! our investigator Allen got baptized on Saturday and confirmed on Sunday. woot woot!! we are so proud of him. he has come such a long way! He's had a really rough past and was working hard on quiting smoking this past week and we told him that when we has the urge to smoke to read the scripture or pray and it will help. well on friday we went over to his place and the district leader was going to give him his baptismal interview and we asked him how no smoking went and he said I almost smoked this morning but then I remembered what you guys said and so I said a prayer and read my scriptures and it actually helped. and we were like YESSSS!!! hahah it's so awesome when the people we teach actually do what we tell them to! His baptism went well though. Sister Reed and I had to learn how to clean and fill the baptismal font so that was an adventure for us! The Elders were there to help us thank goodness. Who knew how difficult it would be? 

I wish I had time to tell you all of the funny things that happen during the week, but there are way too many to even try! But I hope I don't bore you all with my long emails. I try to keep them brief, it's super hard! Anyways I always love hearing from friends and family so email me whenever you have time or send me a letter. i would love it!! Thanks for all the love and support, you are all in my prayers.

XOXO 

Sister Turpin

Sister Turpin, Sister Reed, and Allen at his baptism.

Love this sign ha ha

Breanne see turtles everywhere!

Week 3

Hello Friends/Family,

I have finally made it to the land of Missouri! it's super pretty and green here, but also really flat. I miss the mountains!! It's super humid too. The first three days I was here it pretty much rained the whole time. but we have had the sun the past two days so it's been great! 

When we landed in St. Louis, President Morgan and his wife picked us up at the airport with a few other Elders. They were so nice and welcoming, it was great! They took us to the mission office and then to the St. Louis temple where we got a group picture. I love temples, they are all so pretty! but sadly we only get to attend twice on our mission. but that's better than nothing! after that we headed to the mission home. IT'S BEAUTIFUL! i wish that I could live at the mission home my whole mission! haha but we got fed dinner and just hung out and got to know all the new missionaries so it was fun. 

The next morning we had transfer meeting! WOO. this is where you find out who your new companion/the area you will be serving in. I was pretty nervous the whole time. they had 13 new missionaries and 13 trainers, and just stuck us all in a room and talked to us for a while but no one knows who your companion is gonna be. it's the worst!! then we go into the chapel, have a quick meeting, and the new missionaries go up to the microphone and read their area and their new companion. it was pretty fun!

The area that I am serving in is Potosi (puh-toe-see) it's still pretty hard for me to pronounce. but ti consists of 4 pretty small towns, potosi, desloge (duh-lowdge), leadwood, and bonne terre. so we do quite a bit of traveling. but we have a car so we are grateful for that! my companion/trainer is Sister Reed. she is the best!! Heavenly Father has blessed me with great companions so far so I am very lucky. She actually knows my cousin Lindsay, they had a class together at BYU-I, small world huh? anyways she's from Colorado Springs, and just a year older than me. we both have birthdays in august so we are pretty excited about that and can't wait to party! 

Here's a few highlights from the week:

We are teaching a man named Ron. we just picked him up as a new investigator this week. WOOOHOOO! he is the coolest. He calls himself a "free spirit" hahaha but he is so open to learning to things and asks so many good questions. we kind of had a rough day of dropped appointments, but then we taught Ron so it was a great pick-me-up spiritual boost. I'll keep you all updated on him these next few weeks.

Also we have an investigator named Allen who is planning on getting baptized this Saturday which is super exciting! He's had a really rough life and has come a long way, so it's way cool to see the change in his life. He's recently quite smoking and it's been hard on him so hopefully he can continue to stay strong!!

Sunday was the best day! All the return missionaries I've ever talked to have always told me that Sunday is the hardest day of the mission. but yesterday we had a great day so I don't know what they were all talking about! Church was awesome, we have a small branch probably 50-60 people come, mostly older people. NO BABIES. it's so different because we have so many babies in the ward back home! but the branch is awesome and the people are great. I just wish I knew everybody already! but we were able to meet with and teach alot of people after church which was awesome. We met a couple who are super interested in family history and of course neither of us had our pedigree charts with us. but we left a card with them and are hoping to teach them this next week!

okay here's a fun story from Sunday. me and sister reed went to try a potential investigator and when we knocked on the door a man came out from around back with no shirt out and the biggest beer belly! we talked with him for a little bit and he let us know that he knew all about the latter day saint church but he drinks beer now (he had a beer in his hand the whole time) when we realized he was a little bit tipsy we said we could come back another time and he said "you girls are welcome here anytime, I just love you so much, come here and give me a hug!" haha i was so surprised and shocked I didn't know what to do, i about went in to hug him just to be polite but then Sister Reed quickly said "we aren't allowed to give hugs!" haha thank goodness for her!! We left Richard's house and laughed about the whole experience the rest of the car ride. He was definitely an interesting guy. but  maybe we can go teach him when he's sober! 

I wish I could tell you all everything that happens here in Potosi, but I just don't have enough time. Just know that I am loving it! Missionary work is awesome, and I'm grateful to be apart of it. You are all in my prayers. thank you so much for all of your love and support!! make sure to write me letters:)

XOXO

Sister Turpin 

Sister Breanne Turpin

102 John Ct. #104

Bonne Terre, Missouri 63628

 PS hahhaha okay also i totally forgot about this!

but after transfer meeting we rode to our area with a recent convert audrey, she is awesome! she's like 18 and planning to serve a mission hopefully this next year! but anyways she was driving and rear ended a car. she said her breaks went out for a second. it was super scary! but we were way lucky because there was no damage to either car. talk about tender mercy from heavenly father!!!

Breanne at the Missouri Temple with all the new missionaries and President and Sister Morgan.

Breanne in front of the mission home with her companion Sister Bishop and Sister Williams from the MTC. 

They flew to Missouri together.

Sister Turpin with her new companion Sister Reed.

Week 2

Hello everyone! I hope you all have had a great week! I can't believe how fast time flies. Today is my last official day here at the MTC. We leave tomorrow morning at 3:30 AM to go to the airport.. SO EARLY! But it's okay because I am so excited to finally go and serve the people in Missouri!

Okay so one funny thing this week. Us 4 sisters in the district all share a room together and one day after lunch we came back to the room and Sister Lott started complaining about how she was sick of her clothes and wanted to go shopping so we all decided that we would just switch clothes right then and it would pretty much be the same thing as shopping right? we thought it was the funniest thing ever, the sisters could not stop laughing! and then when we went back to class we didn't say anything because we wanted to see how long it took the Elders to notice it. Well they finally noticed and asked us about it and we kept denying it. Later in class we took a break, when the Elders came back they had all switched ties trying to be funny like us sisters. It only took us a minute to realize it but it added some humor to our day! We like to have fun here in the MTC too:) Also, Sister Bishop and I tend to laugh too much around here. Mom and Dad, you know how once I start laughing I usually can't stop? Well Sister Bishop is the exact same way and sometimes we have these laughing fits where we literally can't stop for like 5 minutes!! I always think of when that would happen at family prayer and Dad would not be happy with me and brandie and brielle! hahah I'm glad that we get along and can have fun and laugh about things tho! 

Another fun thing was we threw a little birthday party for our district leader Elder Kindmark. We went to dinner like 10 minutes early and decorated a chair with sticky notes that said happy birthday. We filled a tray with a bunch of a little gifts that we got him as a district, just candy and pens and mints and stuff. He loved it!! haha it was so awesome he told us that was the first time he's ever been surprised in his life. So it was super fun for us all to do that together as a district. 

It's crazy how many familiar faces I have seen this week! I see a lot of people that I know from BYU or from high school. I saw two of my cheer friends, Maddi (Sister Bishoff) and Anna (Sister Liljenquist), I also saw Mason Spillett! It's fun to get to see people from back home or from school and also comforting at the same time because it helps the transition in the MTC. 

So two of the Elders in our district actually left this morning so we had a little going away party where the Elders said their "last words" to all of us since we will not be in the same mission. It was really sad to say goodbye! We really do have the best Elders ever though, they are so sweet and tender and in tune with the spirit. One of our zone leaders, Elder Marchand, gave us sisters the best compliment last night. He said that all of the Elders make sure to do their best so that they can keep up with us Sisters. He also told us that we all reminded him of the mothers of the stripling warriors. That's probably the best compliment I could ever get!! I hope that I can live as faithfully as those mothers. 

It's been a little crazy this week getting 47 new missionaries into our zone, but it's still been great! There are 17 new sister missionaries. Actually one of the sisters, Sister Ockerland, went through the temple the same day I did in Logan! Do you remember her mom? Anyways she is so cute so it was fun to get to see her again! But we've gotten to know these new sisters, and I love them all so much! It will be sad to leave them all but I know they will be great missionaries. 

Alright I'll end with a couple of cool spiritual experiences..

Every tuesday night they have a devotional here at the MTC. This week we got to hear from the Relief Society General President Sister Burton. It was awesome!! She talked about what it means to be a disciple of Christ and how it's not just a one time thing, but a continual process. Even though we are missionaries we can continually be coming unto Christ just like we want the people we teach to come unto Christ too.

It kind of gets hard to focus in class sometimes because we are in there for 6 hours each day, every day. I started to notice that I wasn't paying attention as much as I needed to and so I prayed to Heavenly Father that I would be able to focus and pay attention in class. The next day in class one of our teachers shared with us that saying a prayer helps her to refocus. It was really cool because she didn't even know that that was something that I had prayed for, yet she gave me an answer to my prayer. HEAVENLY FATHER ANSWERS PRAYERS! Even though it was something so little, it honestly helped strengthen my testimony that God cares about things that are important to us. I began to start praying in my mind when I could tell I was getting tired or not paying attention as well as I should have been during class and I could immediately refocus. 

Breanne studying hard!

While at the MTC Jim wrote Breanne everyday on Dear Elder. com, over the weekend, she got 7 letters on Monday. All the Elders wanted to know how many boyfriends she had back home, she told them none, they were all from her Dad.

Sister Turpin and Sister Bishop enjoying the temple grounds

Well, next time I email it will be from Missouri!! Thank you all for you love and support. Don't forget to read your scriptures and say your prayers. Your Heavenly Father loves you and so do I!

XOXO

Sister Turpin

Sister Turpin with Elder Spillett at the MTC.

Week 1

Hey y'all! I can't believe I've been here at the MTC for six days now. Some days it feels like I've been here for months, but it's really flown by! They keep us SO BUSY here. Literally every second of our day is planned out. But it's nice because it helps me to stay focused on the work and not miss home too much. Don't worry I still miss most of you;)

So when I got here, I was put into a district with 9 other missionaries. Our district is AMAZING!! I never thought I'd be able to love complete strangers so quickly, but we have grown so close to each other and I truly have a deep love for each of them. We have 6 elders, 2 going to Jackson Mississippi and 4 going to Carlsbad California, and then there are 4 sisters and we are all going to St. Louis Missouri. Our district has so many different personalities. There are two elders that just graduate high school like 2 weeks ago, so crazy! One of the Elders has only been a member for about a year, but he honestly has one of the strongest testimonies I've ever heard. It's amazing how strong converts testimonies can become, I love it! I could talk about my district for days but I won't bore you guys. My companion's name is Sister Bishop, she is 20 and from Lehi. She is so cute and we get along well! The Lord knew that I needed her to be my companion. We have learned so much from each other already I am so sad when we will be leaving next week. Anyways me and Sister Bishop have been called as sister training leaders. I am so excited for this opportunity! The zone we are in right now has 18 elders and sisters, 8 will be leaving tomorrow. Our zone will be getting 47 new missionaries this Wednesday! WHAT!! that is so many! our branch presidency keeps telling us what a hard job it will be to keep them all in line and take care of them and make them feel loved. I'm a little nervous, but I know that me and Sister Bishop can handle it with the help of our zone leaders. 

We have amazing teachers here at the MTC. our two main ones are Sister Smith, and Brother Sorenson. Sister Smith served in Louisiana like you dad!! Brother Sorenson is so tiny, like a couple inches taller than me! They are both awesome though. We have learned alot about teaching people, not lessons. I have come to realize that we need to see others as God sees them. When we do this we will be able to understand and recognize their specific needs, we will want them to come unto Christ. We have been talking alot about our purpose as missionaries, "To invite others to come unto Christ..." I challenge you all to think if you are helping those around you to come unto Christ. We watched a talk given by Elder Bednar here at the MTC called "The Character of Christ." It helped me to realize that I need to be constantly looking outwards to help others instead of looking inwards and focusing on my own needs. 

We were able to attend a broadcast of Elder L. Tom Perry's funeral on Friday. It was a special thing to see all the missionaries gathered together and how much love and admiration all the apostles had for Elder Perry. I am grateful for the knowledge of life after death and that I can be with my family FOREVER!! 

I've loved my time here at the MTC, but i'm not gonna lie, it's been hard at times. I've learned to turn to the Lord and pray to him with my whole heart. I have come so close to Christ and deepened my conversion to the gospel. I love each and every one of you and pray for all of you back home! I want to help everyone realize how much their Father in Heaven loves them. The gospel truly blesses lives. 

XOXO, 

Sister Turpin

p.s. We haven't figured out how to send pictures yet but hopefully I will later in the day.

All the missionaries in Breanne's zone while at the MTC.

Temple day with the sisters.