"Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

Well, this is the last email you will all receive from Sister Heywood.

I love my mission.

I am so grateful for the opportunity I have been given to serve my Father for 1 1/2 years.

I have loved being about my Father's business and I will be for the rest of my life.

These last 18 months haven't made me Sister Heywood.

God has shaped and molded me into the Emma that I need to be.

I have been blessed to help others come unto Christ.

Everyone I've met has also done the same for me.

I know my Savior now.

I know my Heavenly Father.

I'm sad to leave and I dread the moment I have to take off my name tag, but I need to go on with life.

God has a great plan for me.

I know it :)

This week was good.

I was sick, so that was a bummer, but despite that, we still got to work.

We got to meet Ida (that's not her name, but that's what I'll call her).

She is so sweet!
She was a member referral.

The members didn't think she would be interested, but they said we could try her.

She let us in.

We taught about the Restoration and she is going to read the pamphlet.

We will be going back at the first of the year :)

It was a great miracle.

It wasn't in our plans, but it was in the Lord's.

I love my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I know that He is the Redeemer of the World.

I know He lived, died and lives again.

I know that we can go to Him and He will help us.

He died for us

  "He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation."

                      -2 Nephi 26:24

Through Him, we can be cleansed from sin.

We can be made perfect.

  "Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God."

                     -Moroni 10:32

All we need to do is turn to Him.

    

 "Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not."
                    -Doctrine & Covenants 6:36

There is no need to fear, because you have the Godhead on your side.

   

  "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

                  -2 Timothy 1:7

I love you all!
See you Wednesday :)

Love,

Sister Heywood

The Final Countdown

So, this week we had a zone conference that got me so pumped!
I'm going to make this last week the best week of my mission :)

Sister Riggs was sick this week so we spent a lot of time in for her to rest.

She was kind of POed, but she needed the rest.

It's ok, because when we went out, we worked our hardest!
We have 5 progressing investigators now and they all are VERY promising.

I'm really excited :)

We've got a less active family that we are going to help to get to the temple. :)
It's so exciting.

I don't really know what else to tell you.

I got a free Batman mask!

Have a great week!
Love,

Sister Heywood

He Is the Gift

I hope you all have checked out He Is the Gift.

Here is the link again.

http://www.mormon.org/Christmas

It is such a beautiful video!
Please share it so we can spread the true spirit of Christmas :)

This week was good.

Thanksgiving was wonderful.

We had an interesting moment this week.

Every Friday, we have a weekly planning session.

It takes a few hours, and it's very crucial for a successful week.

At the end of each planning session we have what's called companionship inventory.

Missionaries don't understand what this is for.

They think it's the only time they have to tell their companion what they don't like about them.

It's a time for criticism and correction for most missionaries.

How awful.

Most people don't like doing it.

I'm sure you can tell why.

It ends up in angry tears and fights sometimes.

I'm proud to say, that I've never had a companionship inventory like that.

I've tried to follow what Preach My Gospel says:
"At the end of your weekly planning session, share with your companion appropriate goals, and ask for his or her help to accomplish them. Discuss the strength of your relationship with your companion. Discuss any challenges that may be keeping your companionship from working in unity or from being obedient. Resolve conflicts. Share with your companion what you think his or her strengths are. Ask for suggestions on how you can improve. If needed, set goals that will improve your relationship."

Companionship inventory is a time to build each other up and help people through problems.

Certainly, disobedience and things like that need to be brought up, but we shouldn't wait until Friday to bring them up.

Why am I telling you about companionship inventory?
Because this week, it was very humbling.

My companion was struggling with some personal things.

I was guided by the Spirit to help her.

I had the feeling to chastise her for some pride.

That's not how I do things, but the Spirit directed me and I did.

It was a chastisement for me too.

I learned about how when we compare ourselves to others and covet others gifts, we are saying we aren't good enough.

We are also saying that God is not good enough, because He didn't make us good enough.

How sad.

Be grateful for the gifts you have.

Thank God every day for them.

AND pray for guidance and development of other gifts.

Also, ask God if the gift you desire is for you.

It may not be, and that's ok.

God has more in store for you than you could ever imagine.

I love you all!

See you soon!
But until then, I will serve diligently until the end!

Love you!

Love,
Sister Heywood

I've Decided To Go Bald

Just kidding!
But I do have dark brown hair now :)

Bye, bye blondie!

So how was your week?

Mine was good.

I don't know why, but I don't have much to say.

We had specialized training which is also good :)
They taught us about something cool the Church is doing for Christmas.

If you'll remember, at Easter they made this video.

http://easter.mormon.org/

Well for Christmas they made one.

http://www.mormon.org/christmas#d

On November 28th they want us to flood the world with this message.

There will be pictures too.

Share either the video or pictures with #SharetheGift and spread the love of Christ this Christmas.

But before, we must appreciate Thanksgiving :)
http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages/topics/gratitude?v=911161818001

BUT let's also remember that Thanksgiving should be a daily thing.

http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=910930407001

I think of Lehi who left Jerusalem.

He traveled for many days.

He had to leave everything behind except his family and necessary items that he needed to survive in the wilderness.

He had 2 children who complained through the whole journey (parents, I'm sure you understand what that's like).

Then, when he finally got the opportunity "he built an altar of stones, and made an offering unto the Lord, and gave thanks unto the Lord our God" (1 Nephi 2:7).

He's tired and he builds and altar to thank the Lord.

I'm sure he also made a sacrifice, which means he either had to hunt something down, or give up something from his limited supplies.

Let's strive to be like Lehi and give thanks every day for the Lord's blessings.

I love you all!
Have a great week :)

Love,

Sister Heywood

Prepare Yourself For A Waterfall of Tears!

So lots of miracles.

Lots of wonderful people.

Lots of smiles.

Lots of tears.

Lots of prayers.

That was this week.

Prepare yourselves for a great email. :)

1: Bill

A fisher at the pier.

He takes care of his sick wife and loves her so much that he won't put her in a home.

He helps and loves EVERYONE.

He didn't used to be this good he says, but he changed and now he's everyone's friend :)

2: David

He can't read because he's an older gentleman and he's losing his sight.

He said he would love for us to come and read the Book of Mormon because he loves reading about is beloved Savior Jesus Christ.

3: James

I've seen James sitting on the curb almost every time we go to Chris's.

The Spirit has said several times to pull over and talk to him.

I've been too afraid to because it's always dark and I don't want to scare him and I want to be safe too.

This time as we were driving out of the complex, I saw him.

Now, I should also tell you, we didn't go to see Chris.

We went to see a less active who lives in the same place, and she wasn't there.
We went right after dinner and I kind of didn't want to go out because I knew the less active wouldn't be there.

We went anyway and I'm so glad we did.

I almost passed James for the 100th time, but I didn't.

I made a U-turn.

Parked the car and told Sister Riggs to pray for safety.

She did and got out.

We talked to James.

He wants to get baptized.

Before he does though, he wants to quit smoking.

We told him, we could help him with both of those things.

We taught a quick, spirit led lesson.

Sister Riggs prayed at the end.
She had faith that we would be safe after she asked for safety in the car.

I on the other hand did not.

I kept my eyes open during the prayer just to be "safe".

I regretted that.

Why?
Because the Spirit came in so strong and when James looked up at the end of the prayer, he had tears streaming down his face.

I never want to forget such a beautiful sight.

We all started crying.

We left our card and walked away and sobbed for the next hour and a half.

We later pulled over and thanked God for such a miracle, then headed to our next appointment.

4. Lamar

We were trying to find a member in the ward, but didn't have the apartment number.
So what did we do?
We knocked on every door. :)
No one answered until the last door.

We almost didn't knock the other side with that last door, but the Spirit said to.

We didn't find the family, we found Lamar.

He remembers seeing the Elders on their bikes and chasing them on his bike when he was a kid in Detroit.

He was so excited to hear that we are from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

We're going back to teach him this week :)

5. Bro. Rennie

The Rennie family is less active, but Brother Rennie came to church all by himself this week :)

6. Jordan

This is Sarah's boyfriend and we invited him to church and he came!

7. Haili

She's taking a religion class and wants to meet with us to learn more.

I think she'll come to know that the Church is true, even though that isn't her purpose in meeting with us.

So many miracles.

I'm grateful for each one of them.

I love you all!
Have a great week!

2 Nephi 25:26

"And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins."

Love,

Sister Heywood

Funky and Adorable

So, one of our less actives said I'm funky and adorable.

Haha she cracks me up :)

This week was good and cold.

It should start snowing soon.

I know it has in other parts of Michigan.

Sad.

I hate snow.

I've decided I like snow when I'm sitting in shorts and a t-shirt, in sunny California and watching it on the television.

That's when I like snow :)

Anyway, so we got 8 member referrals this week.

That was a miracle!
And one seems really promising!
He lived in Salt Lake for a while, so of course he knows all about Mormons.

I hope you can sense the sarcasm that was radiating from me as I typed that last sentence.

He's a cool guy.

We'll see where this goes!
God is a god of miracles, so anything is possible. :)

My new companion is Sister Riggs.

Boy is she great!
She is on fire!
This is exactly what I need for my last transfer :)

And yes, we set up or Christmas tree :)

I love you all so much!
I hope you have a great week!
Remember that God loves you :)

Love,
Sister Heywood

I'm Dying in Riverview

In missionary life we call entering the mission field being born.

When we go home, we die.

Our first area is our birthplace and our trainer is our mom or dad.

Our last area is our death place and our last companion kills us :)

So, my birthplace is Ann Arbor, and my mom is Sister Sherrow.

I will die here in Riverview, and who will kill me?

I don't know.

I'll tell you next week :)

Yes, Sister Gervacio is leaving.

She is the only one in the district leaving, as a matter of fact.

Here are some of the boss pictures we took yesterday.

Aren't those just wonderful :)

 

Anyway, so this week was good.

We did a lot of knocking.

Like a lot.

I have a bump on my knuckle that is turning into a callous.

 

We didn't find anyone knocking.

But guess what?!
The Lord blessed us for our efforts and He gave us 3 new investigators.

All of them are family members of our recent converts.

This all happened in 1 night, like in a matter of  2 1/2 hours.

How awesome is that?!
I know that God is good and that He is aware of us.

 

At Chris's his son and his son's girlfriend sat in.

They became new investigators.

Chris was so excited.

He was on FIRE!
He taught the whole Restoration and Plan of Salvation, basically on his own.

All we did was testify of what he taught.

It was great :)

 

Then we saw Sarah and committed her dad to start reading the Book of Mormon.

I asked him a while ago if he wanted to read it and he wasn't ready.

Well, he usually sits in on the lessons.

2 lessons ago, I felt impressed to share how I decided to come on a mission.

I shared my testimony of how I know the Church is true.

I could tell that it softened his heart.

He even took his hat off for the prayer and stopped playing on his phone, which never happens.

This last lesson we had with them he did the same thing as we prayed.

Well, I call him Dad.

So, at the end of the lesson I sad, "hey Dad! Will you read the Book of Mormon"?
He downloaded the gospel library app and said that he would read. :)
YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so excited.

He is really skeptical about a lot of things, but the Book of Mormon answers the questions of the soul, so that will all be cleared up in no time.

 

Another miracle:
CHRIS GOT THE PRIESTHOOD :)

He is so awesome.

 

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's the best thing ever!

I love you all and hope you have a blessed week.

 Love,

Sister Heywood

 

D&C 6:36

God Wants Us to Make Covenants

Chris got baptized!
He's the one standing next to me.

He is so happy to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I'm so proud of him for making covenants with the Lord, that God wants all of us to make with Him.

This week started out a little rough.

I won't go into details because they don't need to be shared.

What is important is that we were able to kick our butts into gear, work through problems and work hard.

We have to do a lot of finding.

A lot!

I got really mad at some rude people.

One lady talked to us through her door.

She didn't even open it.

This happens a lot and it ticks me off!
Oh man, I was furious.

Another lady was really nasty to my companion.

Don't be rude to people.

Please.

There is nothing to gain from being mean.

Please also be nice to the missionaries.

They just want to help you to draw closer to your loving Heavenly Father.

Just let them in and see what the message they share can do for you.

It most certainly will not hurt you.

It will only enrich your life.

I love you all!
Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Heywood

D&C 6:36
​

Cold

So the weather here is rather crisp.

But fall is beautiful! :)

I would send you a picture, but I forgot my camera.

So yeah this week was good.

I have to be honest.

This week I had a day where I woke up and I was totally unmotivated.

I was so mad.

It's so annoying to feel that way.

I only have a few weeks left and I have a lot of work to do.

I can't afford to feel that way.

Seriously, I woke up and just didn't want to be a missionary.

All I wanted to do was sleep.

That's it.

Just sleep, and eat ice cream.

It was tough.

I knew I needed to just go out and work hard.

That day, we didn't plan in a lot of finding, but we ended up doing a ton of it because everything else fell through.

Yay.

Grand Blanc was a hoppin' place and we didn't have time for finding.

I've gotten a bit rusty.

One door in particular was awful.

The lady answered the door and was super sweet.

Once we stated why we there her whole demeanor changed.

She did the "shake your head and back up slowly, while looking like a deer in the headlights, as you slowly shut the door" move.

I hate that move.

For some reason I was really heart broken.

I just wanted to cry.

I haven't felt that way in a long time.

It was so sad.

But, I got my mojo back.

We kept working hard.

I knew that would be the fixer for my unmotivation :)

I don't think that's even a word.

Oh well.

Chris gets baptized this week and he is so excited :)
SO AM I :)

I love you all!
Have a great week!

D&C 6:36

Love,

Sister Heywood

I'm Hungry

So, I can't really remember what happened this week.
I remember it was a good week.

We found a new investigator.

We got to teach Chris, who is still doing awesome!
Man, he is just totally embracing the gospel.

It is awesome!

We also got in touch with a less active that we've tried to see like every day for 3 weeks.

We helped a family move their food storage.

Not an easy task.

They have enough food storage to feed all the missionaries serving in the Mission.

I'm really sore.

I got to give a talk yesterday and that was fun.

We got a new ward mission leader.

I don't know what else to say haha.

Here are some things I'm thankful for :)

-I'm grateful to have a real dresser instead of the plastic drawers I had in Grand Blanc.

-Someone gave us chocolate muffins.

-I discovered that it's really yummy to dip tortilla chips in salsa and cottage cheese.

-I have ice cream in the freezer.

-I have an avocado.

I think I'm hungry :)

Anyway, I love you all :)
Have a great week and don't forget how much God loves you :)

http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=3701964025001

Love,

Sister Heywood

General Conference

General Conference was so dang good!
Man!
I am so grateful for our leaders.

I know that they are all called of God.

The Spirit has witnessed that to me.

"Spiritual Questions Deserve Spiritual Answers from God."

​I love the quote above.

SO GOOD!!!!!!
Go to God for your questions.

He will answer.

I know it.

SO this week was good.

Sister Gervacio and I were both sick, but we worked as hard as we could.

We had to get our car jumped twice and a new battery.

Sister Gervacio's glasses broke, while we waited for roadside assistance, the first time our car didn't start.

We laughed for like a week straight because funny things like that kept happening.

We made ourselves feel better with pie and ice cream :)

Oh my gosh you guys.

Chris is awesome!
He is reading and praying and searching the scriptures for his answers.

He has been so prepared by the Lord and I keep wondering if this is real life.

I don't know what I did to make me worthy to be the one that God chose as His tool to help Christ, but I am so honored and humbled by this opportunity.

Chris went to every session of conference and loved it.

Right now he's just a dry Mormon, but don't worry, he's getting wet October 25 :)

I love you all and I hope you all have a great week.

Don't forget how much God loves you.

Thank Him every day for the blessings He gives you :)

Love,

Sister Heywood

Riverview

So, my new area is Riverview and my new companion is Sister Gervacio!

I LOVE IT HERE!

One of Sister Gervacio's cousins was one of my FHE brothers at BYU-I.

What a small world.

Sister Gervacio and I work really well together.

We've been able to help each other work through some things and it's been really good for our companionship.

The first few nights together we would just talk and help each other.

It was really therapeutic.

We both really need each other this transfer.

Oh boy was this week good.

I got an awesome new area and companion.

We got to meet Elder Cardon of the Seventy.

There was an I'm a Mormon Devotional.

AND we met CHRIS!!!

Chris is amazing.

He referred himself to the missionaries online.

Normally, media referrals are totally bogus and don't work out (at least that's been my experience).

BUT Chris has been prepared.

He investigated in his teens, but his dad was a die hard Catholic who would have never let him get baptized.

Chris has an uncle who is deceased, but was a member of the church.

Chris has felt lost, like something is missing.

He asked God for help and direction.

God sent him several dreams of his uncle and then led him to Mormon.org.

We've taught Chris 2 times now.

He came to church and is preparing for baptism on October 25.

God sent us a miracle.

I cannot thank Him enough.

I'm so proud of my brother Chris who is taking the right steps to receive exaltation.

I love you all so much!
Have a blessed week!

Don't forget
D&C 6:36

Love,

Sister Heywood
​

I'm Staying in Grand Blanc?!

Just kidding, I'm not staying in Grand Blanc.

I've been here for 6 months and now it's my time to go.

Tomorrow I will be headed to what will probably be my last area.

Of course I'm sad, but I'm ready for new adventures.

I will go where ever the Lord needs me, when He needs me to, without a fight.
I know that God has a plan for everything.

He is so aware of everyone and their needs.

While here in Grand Blanc I have learned a lot.
I have learned how to be me and that's something that I lost for a little while.

For a long time out here in Grand Blanc, I felt depressed and lost.

It was strange, but I overcame it with the help of the Lord and for that I am eternally grateful.
I have been able to truly see the Atonement work in my life and the lives of others.
It has been truly amazing.

I've worked with people who have addictions they never thought they would overcome.

I've worked with people who thought there was no hope, but soon found it through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This church is true and I know that by seeing it change people's lives for the better.

Here's a cool miracle.

We had another busy week and didn't have much time for finding.

Our district leader asked us last night how many hours of finding we did this week.

I said, 5 minutes.

It's true!

We only did 5 minutes.
It sounds pitiful, but in that 5 minutes, God blessed us with a new investigator who has been amazingly prepared to hear the gospel.

It's one of our neighbors.

The funny thing is that the night before we found him, we were talking to the zone leaders.

they had found 2 sweet investigators.

Our conversation went like this:

Me: Man, we haven't found any.

ZL: Well, have you gone tracting?

Me:......no....

ZL: *laughing* Well you have to go tracting to find new investigators!

OBVIOUSLY, I know that, and when we went finding, we found someone who is ready.

I hope you all have a great week!

I LOVE YOU ALL!

Love,
Sister Heywood