~August 23, 2012~

Hello Everyone!

I hope that this week has treated you well! This has been another great week on Temple Square! I love being a missionary! Especially in the best mission in the world! Where our biggest problem is that there are so many people to teach that sometimes we don't even have time to eat! What greater blessing can you ask for?! Well, last Friday we were covering one of the desks here and we prayed that we would be able to find someone who had sincere questions and really wanted to learn. Well, low and behold in the mist of all the craziness this great man named Gary came up and just told us that he has never been to Utah before and that he is really wanting to know about what we believe. He particularly said that he is not sure why many claim that we are not a Christian church since he sees Christ everywhere in the visitor center. So, Sister Lee and I got to teach him all about the Book of Mormon and why it is so important. We committed him to go to mormon.org and research some more and then request for his own copy of the Book of Mormon and he said that he would and that he is so excited to share this with his wife! How great is that?! 

On Saturday we were able to attend the baptism of a lady who we took on a tour here on Temple Square. The first miracle is that we invited her to meet with missionaries she said no and then we saw her again a few weeks later and she was getting ready for her baptism!!! The second miracle is that she is from Mainland China where missionaries do not exist. The third miracle is that my old room, roommate Katelyn Ray or Sister Ray is now serving in the Chinese ward in SLC even though she wasn't called Chinese speaking and I got to see her because she was at the baptism. How amazing is that to be able to be missionaries with the roommate that you were preparing for  a mission with?! To be able to teach the same lady and see her enter the waters of baptism together! I absolutely love this gospel and see God's hand and love in all of our lives everyday!

Those were just a few of our miracles that I wanted to share! I love you all and hope that you are doing well and keeping a smile on your face! 

Have a great week!

Love Always,

Sister Armstrong

~August 16, 2012~

Hello Everyone! 

How are you all doing this week? I hope this has been a good week for you! I know that sometimes things can be hard but all in all if we keep holding on we will get through it. An Apostle once said "Things as they are now are not they always will be." Good advice, don't you think?!

Well, it has been another great week here on Temple Square! We have seen so many miracles and have taught so many people! I feel so blessed that our problem on Temple Square is that there are not enough Chinese sisters to teach all the Chinese people that are coming, even though it is calming down a little bit. So, this week we had zone conference and so they need help at the Beehive House (the home of Brigham Young, second prophet of the church) where we served last transfer. I told the zone leaders once we get there all the Chinese are going to come. Well, low and behold as we were walking up the hill to the Beehive House we see Chinese people walking in. We get there and realize that it is not just a few but 60! That is right 60 CHINESE PEOPLE! ALL AT ONCE! And of course they didn't have much time so we took them all through the house at once which I think is a new record for how many people have been taken through the house at once, ever before! 

Last night we took an emergency bus tour of Chinese people and at the end I felt really prompted to share my testimony with them about God and Jesus Christ and it just as though many of these people felt the Spirit for the first time. I feel so blessed to be able to teach them that there is something more in life. There is something more then what we can see right here. Something more that is watching over us and keeping us safe! I love that God trusts my companion and I enough to teach these wonderful people together. Well I love you all and hope you doing well. Keep going! God won't give up on you so don't give up on Him!

Have a great week!

Love Always,

Sister Armstrong

~Ottis from Africa's Baptism~

This is a picture of Ottis! Our investigator who got baptized in May! He finally sent us a picture of him on his baptism day! He is the one in the middle and he lives in Liberia, Africa!!! 

The second one is of him and all the others that he got baptized with that day! There are so many people that want to be baptized that they have to have baptism classes to be able to teach everyone! 

Love, Sister Armstrong

~August 9, 2012~

Hello Everyone!!

I hope that you have all had a great week! This week has been another busy one on Temple Square! But Sister Lee and I are still trucking along, doing our best to save China! I have so many miracles that I want to share with you! I think that three stand out the most.

First, I don't know if I have talked about our investigator Austin before but he is someone that we have been teaching every once in a while. So, we teach him and it is the best lesson ever and then we call him for a while and then he stops answering the phone so then we keep texting and eventually he says we can call again. This is the cycle that we have been in with him for a while. Well, this is because he will tell his other church friends about us and what we are teaching and they tell him that it is a cult and that he should not be talking to us. So, he gets confused and frustrated. I just love him and his little family so much!

Well, we got a hold of him the other day and you won't believe it they are actually moving to Texas today!!!!!! Why is this a good thing you ask? Well, this is the perfect time for them to meet with missionaries and read the Book of Mormon without the influence of their friends. He promised me that he would meet with missionaries once they move to Texas! I am so excited and know that as we continually make an effort to never give up on anyone that God will provide a way!

Okay miracle #2: We took around 8 Chinese that were just studying in Seattle and were on vacation! Totally meant to be! At the end they all took a Book of Mormon and I was able to bear my testimony and invite them to read and pray. They accepted and we taught them how to pray right on the spot! They made sure they knew the steps of prayer and thanked us for everything. The Spirit was so strong and I knew that God was preparing them. I know with all my heart that this gospel of Jesus Christ is true and I would give anything for all of China to know it and to know God and Jesus Christ.

Miracle #3: Since there are no missionaries in China we cannot call them and teach them over the phone. But, just yesterday we met a Chinese woman that was studying in America and wants to learn more. At first she wasn't sure about meeting with missionaries and so we talked a little more and she told me she grew up in the States and that she was Catholic and I told her that I was too! She instantly let her wall down and she agreed to let us teach her more over the phone! I know that I was meant to meet her! She said she wants and needs to get back in touch with God. She was so sweet and we are so excited to start teaching her!

Brother and Sisters I promise you that no matter what you are going through in your life at this time that God is aware of you. He knows exactly what is going on and Christ knows exactly how you feel. How great is it to know that the two greatest beings know you and care about you. Have faith and trust that everything will work out! Love you all! Keep smiling!

Love Always,

Sister Armstrong- Currently from China! :)

~August 2, 2012~

Hello Everyone!

How are you all doing? Well, I am happy to report that China has not killed me yet! We have only taken Chinese lessons this week! Maybe two English. But I love all the Chinese so much! They are such precious people and they really are just hungering and thirsting for God and Jesus Christ. The sad thing is there are no missionaries in China and so we must do all we can to teach them when they are here.

I had an experience with a group of about 40 or so and I was sharing with them my testimony of God and Jesus Christ and my companion was translating for me. There was a man who could just not wait for us to go and get the Book of Mormon. Well, my companion told me after the tour that after sharing my testimony that he said that he believes me. Here is a man who has been told his whole life that God is not real who felt that what I just said was the truth! The great thing was that the Holy Spirit is the one who told him that I was just merely and instrument in the Lord's hands. Also, we had a group of 15 and as we took them around I just had an overwhelming love for them and again shared my testimony. At the end 7 of them requested to learn more and 8 of them took the Book of Mormon. One lady came up to me and said "it was an honor to hear your speech (testimony) I promise you that I will read this book and find out if it is true." I was in shock!

I love this work so much and there is not other place in the world that I could teach those in China when China is not even open for missionaries. Keep up the great work and never forget that in order for things to happen we must get to work! Have a great week!

Love Always,

Sister Armstrong

Sister Armstrong also wrote: "Say hi to everyone for me! I love you all! I will have to send pictures of the parade next week because we ran out of time today! We have to run to the post office before Walmart because we are sending a Book of Mormon in Amharic (native language of Ethiopia for an investigator in WA!!). Have a great day!"