"I'm passing my testimony out like candy!"

Hola!

Monday night a miracle happened! We were teaching this family and they told us that they wanted to get baptized. Awesome right? So we asked them why the want to be baptized. They gave amazing answers. One wants to be cleansed and get a fresh start. And the other wants to be sealed to his family for eternity in the temple. I almost cried I was so happy for them. 

Wednesday was new missionary training all day. It was really awesome. We learned a lot about how to be better missionaries and companions. President Cannon always plays this awesome talk by Elder Holland where he says "Feed my sheep!" Elder Holland's word always hit me. If we love Christ, we will do all we can to serve him and put him first. I think we're all working on that. One funny thing an Elder said was that 3 weeks ago he was struggling to share his testimony and now he's "passing it out like candy!" haha

Wednesday night we went to young women's with one of our investigators. She loved it and she made a really cute apron! The girls there were so nice and welcoming to her and the leaders invited her to girl's camp. 

So funny story: we came home for dinner on Thursday and found our apartment door open. We were chickens so we had our neighbor check it out for us. He came out and said that there was no one in there but it was really weird because the deadbolt and the regular lock were locked. Hermana Turner tried to close the door with the deadbolt open! haha. We thought it was inspired though that we came home when we did because if our appointment didn't cancel we wouldn't have been home until 9. 

This past weekend was stake conference. One sister gave an amazing talk about family history work and how it is the same thing as missionary work. Our ancestors need us and they want to help us. The conference on Sunday was actually a broadcast to the whole valley I think. Elder Hales spoke to us about strengthening our families through family home evening, scriptures study, and prayer. The simple things really do make the difference. Sometimes I think we get too distracted by things that don't matter so much. 

Sunday night we went to a families house for our investigator, Diane's, "birthday." She is a refugee from Rwanda and a lot of refugees don't know when their birthday is. So this family that has befriended her decided to throw her a birthday party because she's never had one! So sweet! They got decorations, dinner, cake, and presents! It was really fun. So Diane's birthday is now officially April 21st. :) 

We taught our family from the Congo as well. The oldest son who is 17 is really getting into the Book of Mormon and he's really smart. He came to church all by himself on Sunday because his dad was working. He made us a promise last week and he for sure kept it. We gave him 4 chapters to read this week because 1 was just too easy for him ;)

Everything is well here! I turn 22 tomorrow! ahh!! 

Have a great week everyone!!

Love, 

Sister Bishaw

Shout Outs: 

-Congrats to Dan and Danielle on their baby on the way!! Nephew #6?? ;) 

-HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BROTHER DYLAN!! 

-HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO AUNTIE PAM AND STEPHANIE ALGER! Birthday twins!

Happy Birthday Diane!

awuh

Cake time!

Blow out the candles!

Amazing family. So cute. 

Present time! 

"Scary Larry's Ice Cream"

Hello!

This week was great but really busy. We made an appointment with one of our investigators and the second we got there they were running out of the house to go to the hospital because his pregnant wife got 2 bee s

This week our left taillight went out! We should of just got them both fixed last time. But we just did planning while we waited almost 2 hours for the dealer to fix it. Good times. 

We did this cool object lesson with a family where one person has to do push-ups to pay for each person's doughnut. It was supposed to symbolize how Christ has already paid the price. So even if someone didn't eat their doughnut, he still had to do the push-ups. It didn't work too well because we didn't have enough people. The mom was taking her sweet time picking out her doughnut while her son was still doing push-ups. It was hilarious. But it's true. Christ has already paid the price whether we accept his gift or not. 

On Sunday we taught the family from the Congo. They ALMOST came to church but ended up not coming at the last minute. We taught them that night about the Sacrament and why we go to church. I felt genuine love for them as I testified boldly that going to church will help them to know if this church really is Christ's church. 

Thanks for all your support! I love my mission. 

Love you all!

Sister Bishaw

PS. We actually saw an ice cream truck that said "Scary Larry's Ice Cream" on it. bahaha

We found Boise's Admiral

I'm tatting a bracelet! It's coming out cool :)

hahaha

"Satan is no match for the SAVIOR." -Elder Scott

Dearest Family and Friends, 

This week was full of awesome things! 

1) Monday was April Fool's Day and no one we saw even talked about it let alone pranked us.

2) We went tried to contact someone of Monday and they weren't home so we knocked on their neighbor's door and it ended up being an LDS lady who hasn't been to church in a while!

3) An investigator family of ours invited us to a future BBQ. 

4) Robert let us ride his super cool motorized bike! (See pictures). Also, even better, Robert and Elizabeth came to church on Sunday!! We sadly were not at their ward that day but they took pictures in front of the church for us! haha

5) On Thursday we met the Grandma of 2 youth that we are teaching and she came to the lesson and it went so well! We said a prayer at the end where we each said part of it. And we did some object lessons that made it fun. 

6) On Friday we went tracting and found a former investigator and made an appointment with her!

7) Saturday and Sunday we got to watch General Conference! I loved it! We were taught so many simple truths. Like how the Atonement of Christ can help us and if we trust in God everything will be okay. Also, how missionary work can be fun, and not something we just feel like we should do but we're scared to do. God has revealed truths that can bless a lot of people. 

8) The weekend was awesome because we had so many experiences where the Lord was letting us know that people appreciate us and that what we're doing matters. We saw a lady named Lisa and she told us how much our visits have really helped her to come back to church and just brighten her day. And on Sunday we saw this lady we hadn't seen in a really long time because she's been away and she can relate to Sister Turner's life really well and was really able to give her advice on what she can do. Then this lady said a prayer just telling God how much she loves us and appreciates us coming. Those moments make it all worth it and really remind us of why we're here. 

9) Members talked to 2 women who were in the church parking lot and invited them to visit with us! They are both from Africa and they are super sweet. We taught the first lesson and it went well. We also taught our family from the Congo. We taught the plan of salvation and the kids really opened up and asked a lot of questions. I think about 3 languages were spoken during the lesson and it was kind of Chaotic, but at the end Deo, the father, said "God sees you." And he said that we are doing a really good thing. 

Well, I love you all! Write or email if you can please!! :) 

Sister Bishaw 

Me on Robert's awesome bike!!

haha

Hermana Turner!

Robert on his awesome bike!!

Easter Eggs after Easter!

The finished product

Nice

The sun was a little bright...

"Oh, you want some Doritos? NO, THE ORANGE CHIPS!"

Hola Amigos!

The Spanish actually makes sense this week because I'm training Hermana Turner from Oakdale, California (near Modesto) and she's a Spanish sister! So I get to practice my Spanish. It's super fun. (We only have one Spanish sisters area so Hermana Turner is being trained in English first. We're not teaching any Spanish people.) Hermana Turner is a convert too, she was baptized when she was 13. Elders knocked on her door and her older sister let them in! Only her, her twin, and her older sister joined the church. And before she left her grandma asked her if she could get baptized while she was gone and Hermana T said of course! We also have so much in common. Like right down to we both don't like raw tomatoes or avocados. haha. And her last name is Turner just like my sister Alena and she has the same major as Alena (Therapeutic Recreation) . Crazy! But yeah we're having so much fun. She was really prepared so she's doing great!

So the beginning of the week was full of meetings and a little chaos until I finally got Hermana Turner as my companion on Wednesday. On Tuesday we took the new missionaries out knocking doors near BSU and a few of us got kicked out of this apartment complex. We had no idea we couldn't track there. But we met some cool people before that happened. One was from China and I was like "Where is Sister Lee??" She's in Nampa now of course. haha. But we had fun. We even tracted into an LDS person. 

Here are a couple funny quotes from this week:

We were at dinner and one of the little boys said "I want some more orange chips." And I said "Oh, you want some Doritos." And he said "NO, THE ORANGE CHIPS!" haha Which were Doritos of course. 

Another time we were listening to a lady we visit talk to her 10-year-old grandaughter who just got a cell phone. She said "My phone is so tiny, but my mom's is the size of a flat-screen TV." bahaha

We also went over to our neighbors to meet them offically. They're LDS. She's from the Dominican Republic and he's from America but served his mission there. So we got to practice Spanish! And it's perfect because she's learning English. I was brave and asked if I could say I prayer before we left in Spanish. They said I said everything right so that's good! haha. They're super nice. They're going to let us use their washing machine and dryer because ours is broken. 

We also met this man that the Elders met first at Walmart or something. He's struggling right now because his fiance just has a baby and they were going to give it up for adoption but when they met the baby they couldn't. So now they're struggling financially and have to move in with her mom. But he told us that every time things go wrong in his life, the missionaries show up. Weird! haha. The Lord is definitely looking our for him. He joined the LDS church when he was in the Marines. 

We also met a lady while she was walking her dogs and she said "Oh, my sister is LDS. Well, I guess I'm LDS too." She lives right across the street from the church. She hasn't been in a while but we invited her to come back and she said she will if she's not working Sundays. Really sweet lady!

The family from the Congo is doing okay. We had like 25 people at the lesson last night. They have 2 member friends that help them with English and they brought their whole families. And there are already 9 of them and 2 missionaries, and one translator. Yeah it got pretty hot int heir living room. But it was cool that so many people care about them. The dad is still really interested and can't deny that he knows the Book of Mormon is true. But his family has already started going to the Methodist church and they're not so sure about our church. So we just invited them to find out for themselves and we'll keep teaching them and loving them and praying for them. 

Happy Belated Easter! We ate at a Filipino lady's house. We had ham and potatoes and ribs and empanadas and brownies! I ate WAY too much! And I've had way too much chocolate this week! Hermana Turner got a giant box of snacks in the mail. We need to buy some real food today. haha

Have a great week everyone! General Conference is on Saturday and Sunday! I'm excited to hear what the Lord wants me to know from our church leaders. Check out LDS.org to watch it! Everyone is welcome to! 

Love you all!! Email me please!

Love, Sister Bishaw 

The 7 trainers!

The 28 new missionaries!

Hermana Turner!

Our awesome Easter related skill check! 

Elder Saalman's Egg. He loves soccer and his homeland, Germany. 

Our favorite German Elder with his Easter egg. 

"All White People Look the Same"

Miracle story of the week: We got a referral for a refugee family from the Congo and finally got to meet them last Friday. The dad, Deo, only speaks French and his tribal language and he's been learning English for 5 months. So we brought a translator and it was awesome! We were planning on just establishing his beliefs but we sat down and he said "I want to know about Joseph Smith" (in French haha). So we taught lesson 1 and he asked awesome questions like "how does baptism work" and "do I need to be baptized again" and he agreed to be baptized in April! He wants to learn the Joseph Smith story so he can go back to the Congo and tell everyone about him! He's been prepared by the Lord for this I know it. His story will probably be a Mormon Message some day. :) We showed him pictures of the latter-day prophets and he asked if they were all the same person! bahaha We were like yeah all white people look the same. lol. 

Also, we got transfer calls and today is transfer day. Sister Lee went to Nampa with my last companion Sister Houtz! I guess I just send all my companions to Nampa! haha. I will be training a new missionary in Boise. We have 7 sisters coming tomorrow so we're so excited! 

Have an awesome week guys! Please email me!! :)     

Love you all!!

Sister B

We got a flat while I was on exchanges! haha!

"If an 8-year-old can do it, so can I!"

Hello!! 

This week went really well. We focused on getting to know members that we don't know. It's hard to get to know people well because we cover so many wards. But it's important to know people so we can find friends for those we teach! We found perfect people to come with us to our lessons this week. We learned that a little planning and hard work goes a long way! We found someone to come with us to our appointment on Friday that related to the person we were teaching so well! She had been in a similar situation that our investigator is in so she gave her some tips like listening to scriptures on her phone to save time! On Saturday morning we still hadn't found anyone to come with us to our appointment that afternoon so we prayed that we would find someone and then called everyone we could think of but no one answered. But a little later someone called back and she said she could come with us! God answers prayers. We do what we can and then the Lord does the rest. 

On Friday we got to go to the Temple. We were a little late so we didn't end up going with our district but another group of Elders happened to be there! Then that night we went to a baptism in Middleton. A man named Vance that I taught during the 6 weeks I was there got baptized! His wife is LDS. When the Elders came in I guess he thought they came on too strong so he stopped meeting with them. Then he saw an 8 year old get baptized and he said "if an 8 year old can do it, so can I." So he got it together and he was baptized on Friday. Over 100 people came to his baptism! It was a big deal because now he can be sealed to his family. Miracles happen every day. 

We spoke in one of our wards on Sunday and it was so inspired. We spoke with the high councilman over missionary work. Sister Lee and I both ended up talking about the Savior and His Atonement. Then our high councilman did too. He told us after that he changed his talk while we were talking! After the meeting a man came up to us and said his brother came to church and wants to meet with us to learn more! We'll start teaching him this week! 

Thanks for all the prayers! Have a fantastic week! Email me if you can!! Transfers are next week so we'll see what happens!! We have  new sisters coming in!

Love you all!!

Sister Bishaw 

Vance got baptized!! :)

The Hubbard Family :) Cutest kids ever. 

Fanci Fries

Hello! Happy Monday everyone! 

On Tuesday we went on exchanges. So I went to Nampa with Sister Huffman and Sister Hamilton came to Boise with Sister Lee. Upon arriving to Nampa, Sister Hamilton called us and asked us where the car fixing place was. I asked why and she said there was a screw in our tire! Apparently I drove all the way to Meridian with a screw in my tire. The Lord truly does protect his missionaries. Thanks for all the prayers guys! They work. But Nampa was fun. I got to do some of my family history. I have So much more information than I thought. So  many names, it's awesome. I also met a girl who is coming back to church after not coming for 15 years. Her boyfriend died last summer and she was really mad at God about it. But then she decided to move to Boise and she started studying the Book of Mormon again and coming to church. Going back to church is really the best thing you can do when difficult things happen in your life. Walking away from God is the worst thing you could do. 

We found some new people to teach this week. One is man who has been clean of drugs for 5 years. He grew up LDS and now he wants to come back and have us teach his children. He said he knows that it's only because of God that he was able to quit. The power of God is great. We also went knocking doors and found a man who stopped coming to church a few months ago after he got divorced. He's only in his 30's so it's hard for him to go to the family wards alone. We invited him to come back. He didn't come...yet. But he lives across the street from the ward mission leader though. We also knocked on a door and then the girl who lived there walked up behind us. So we started talking to her and she said that she doesn't go to any church but she has an LDS friend and would be interested in learning more. We gave her a Book of Mormon and got her number. 

Saturday was a pretty busy day. First we washed someone's dog. Then we had a lesson. Then we ran to Fanci Freeze to get some food because someone gave us a gift card. Sister Lee called is Fanci Fries once. haha. That's a good name too. Then we taught another lesson. Then we went to meet our ride to Horseshoe Bend. Sister Lee had a baptism in her old area. These members were kind enough to take us even though it's an hour away. They ended up knowing some of the people at the baptism! 

So it was a good week. We also got permission to email friends. So if you email me I'll email you back! 

Have an awesome week! Thanks for all the support! I can feel the prayers! Love you all! 

Sister Bishaw 

The first thing I even made with tatting!