I'm so blessed!!

Family and Friends, 

Wow, I'm seriously so blessed. I can't even tell you. I'm so blessed to have such amazing friends and family back home. I'm so blessed to have the opportunity to be here on a mission. I'm so blessed to have met the people I've met so far and to learn the things that I've learned. I'm so blessed to have had 4 investigators get baptized already. I'm so blessed to be in Taylor. I'm so blessed to have the companion I have. I'm so blessed to have the gospel in my life. Most importantly, I'm so blessed to have Jesus Christ as my Savior and Redeemer.

That list could go on and on. My heart is so full right now of so many blessings in my life. The miracles I've seen this week have astonished me. There have been so many that I honestly can't even remember them all. Remember, it is in your hardest times that the Lord most richly blesses you. I have been reminded this week of the poem, "Footprints in the Sand." The Lord is always walking with us, but in our darkest moments, we don't realize it. Afterwards, we come to realize that it is in those moments that our Lord and Savior is carrying us. Always remember that. Don't lose sight of the grace and mercy and love of our Lord, Savior, and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Ervin got baptized on Tuesday!! Man, what an experience. After his baptism, he told me and Sister Thompson that he didn't know that a person could feel so good. He didn't know that it was physically possible for a person to feel so much abounding joy and happiness. He is truly amazing, and I've been blessed to know him and help him come closer to Christ.

Also, this week we taught a less active man named Randy. Randy is a big guy, and is a little bit intimidating. We hadn't really ever met with him, and he hasn't been to church in a long time. We walked into his apartment, and just started talking to him about Christ. We were talking about the atonement, and he just broke down and started crying. He just didn't start thanking us for bringing the spirit into his home. He said that he hasn't felt it in a really long time, and that he was so grateful to be able to feel the spirit again. It was a miracle :)

Anyways, its been a week of being humbled, and learning to recognize all of my many blessing!! I love you also so much!!

Love,

Sister Robbins

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Hey Family!!

So, lots of cool things happened this week!! First off, I went rollerblading... in a members house... yep, that was super fun!! We were over there for FHE because she is less active, and her 8 year old son told me to put on his roller blades and he pulled me around the house... it was pretty much legit.. also, in the same house, i shot a blow dart gun.. .oh the adventures that are had in Taylor!! :) 

Also, we had Stake Conference this week, and the Taylor stake covers 3 towns, so the conference was broadcast to Taylor from Heber. The broadcast wasn't working very well at the beginning, and so we were all just singing without the music from the broadcast because it was frozen. When it unfroze, it was in the middle of the opening prayer.. so there we are in a stake center FULL of people, singing acapella though the opening prayer.. it was pretty comical! I don't think that sister Thompson and I stopped laughing for quite some time! 

This Saturday was so amazing!! We ended up with only 3 baptisms instead of 4, but the one guy, Ervin, who didn't get baptized on Saturday is getting baptized tomorrow night, so that's super good!! It was really cool to see the family of three get baptized!! You could just see on their faces how happy they were, and how much they felt the spirit. It was a really cool experience. Pictures should hopefully be coming soon! :) 

Another family that we are working with is Joel, Suzane, and Welcome. Joel is less active, Suzane is an Investigator, and Welcome (Joel's 12 year old son) is a Recent Convert! They are such an amazing family. Suzane is getting baptized in April sometime (hopefully), right after her and Joel get married! I love them so much!! They are just the nicest people in the whole world!! We are working with Joel, trying to help him get back to church, and he is making SLOW, but steady progress. Welcome is a great example to them, he is seriously so strong in the gospel, he really is super neat! They are just a really neat family! 

There is another  family that just moved into the ward that just got baptized in January!! They are really cool! The mom is really neat! We have talked with her a lot this past week. Basically, both her and her husband used to make, sell, and use Meth. A lot. They also used LOTS of other drugs, and were basically drug dealers. They both have spent a lot of time in jail, but they found the gospel and now they are both great members!! They are so amazing!! They have two kids, a boy who is 7, and a girl who is 2!! They are such a neat family, and I'm so excited to keep working with them as they keep doing baptisms at the temple and prepare to get sealed in a year! Their cat just had kittens this week, and they were pretty much the cutest little kittens I've ever seen, I loved them and just wanted to take one home with us!! 

Yesterday for dinner we had Corn beef and Cabbage because its St. Patrick's Day.. it was nasty.. not my favorite thing in the world... but I am learning to like vegetables much more because that all we buy on Mondays, and members always feed us vegetables! Anyway, I think that this is all I have for this week! I love you all so much!! 

Love, 

Sister Robbins

MTC Pictures and more

At the MTC map

The District at the Map

First Day at the MTC

The District

The District

The District

The District

The Sisters of the district

Sisters Izert, Lords, Krutsch and Robbins

Sister Robbins and Krutsch

Sister Robbins at the Provo Temple

Sisters at the Provo Temple

Elder Anderson (West Indies Mission) and Sister Robbins

The organ the Sisters in Taylor brought for Sister Robbins

Sister Thompson wearing the Real Salt Lake Hoodie

Baptisms This Week!

Mi Familia,

 

Yes, I'm starting to speak some form of Spanish since Sister Thompson speaks it ALL the time, haha! :) 

We did see some really cool miracles at the end of the week!! We've been working with a woman who is less active named Kristyn McNeil. She is really cool. She is starting to go back to church with her parents! She is engaged to this man named John. John is a great guy, and super fun. He is not a member, nor has he ever accepted a Book of Mormon or been interested. A few days ago we got a text from Kristyn saying that John is interested in reading the Book of Mormon, and has been reading one left for him!! It was probably the best text I've ever received!! It was such a miracle!! Also, on Saturday we have FOUR baptisms!!! I'm SO excited, I can hardly wait!!! It is going to be the best day ever, it really is! I can assure you that your prayers have been heard and answered. Our Investigators are thriving!!

I did get the package, and I loved it so much!! Thank you so much for all you sent, you know me so well!! So, to answer some of your questions... Yes, we got to do a session at the Provo Temple and I've since done one in the Snowflake Temple!! I love the Snowflake Temple, I'm going to get married there, haha! :) 

Our Laundry is at home, and let me tell you, it is SUCH a blessing!! 

As for driving, Sister Thompson drove at first but now I'm the driver :) We have a REALLY nice car. It is a 2014, and its super nice. 

As for my hair, I'm sure going to try to grow it out for 18 months, though I'm not sure that I will last!! We will have to last together! :) 

And don't worry about Journal stuff, I write in it almost daily!! :) We shop at a dollar store in Taylor, as well as at a store called Bashes. Its not as big as Wal-Mart, but it suffices :) There is a Wal-Mart about 30 minutes away in Show Low, but we need a member to drive us there and we haven't needed to go yet! And pictures, I'm sending about 16 home this week, so hopefully you will be getting those within a few days :) 

The only thing we've really cooked is Artichokes (Sister Thompson LOVES them...), and Tacos, we get fed A LOT! I love the tablet you sent, and the yellow paper, it makes me happy!! :) Also, the Phoenix Temple dedication is going to be in October so hopefully I will be able to get to that as well!!

Anyway, hopefully this week will be more normal, and more exciting things will happen!! I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for this amazing area, and these amazing people of
Taylor!! Sorry its so short this week!! I love you all!!

Love,

 

Sister Robbins

Here is an excerpt from a message from Sister Thompson, Kathryn's companion:

Sister Robbins and I had a CRAZY day today! I'm sure she will tell you all about it next p day! She is such an awesome companion! She makes me laugh and she is a quick learner! Sometimes a little sassy, but so am I she might have learned that from me! 

She is just wonderful and I feel so lucky that I get to train her! We have a lot of fun together and are waiting to have a "normal" week because things just keep getting weirder! I learn SO much from her every time we do companionship study she is just wonderful! I'm so glad that she decided to come on a mission! 

We have 4 baptisms coming up this weekend and I love watching her excitement as she shares her testimony with all of our investigators. In the mission when we are trainers we are also called their "moms" I could never compare to the real thing but I'm so proud of the consecrated missionary she is becoming. She loves the gospel and she loves this work. I am truly so blessed to be serving with your daughter!

Love you guys keep supporting her!

Pictures from the MTC!

Love this missionary!

Sister Robbins, Sister Krutsch and one of their teachers Brother Norris

MTC zone at the Provo Temple

How Time Flies!!

Hey Family!

So, Wednesday will be my one month mark!! Holy Cow!! I can't believe that time has gone by SO fast... I feel like I entered the MTC just yesterday! Its crazy!

So, this week has been really cool!! We have had so many amazing miracles in our area!! To start off, we have 4 (possibly 5) baptisms this month!! WHAT?? I'm really excited!! First, we have Ervin. He is so cool! He has been prepared by the Lord. He is Native American, so when the missionaries first met him, he didn't even know who Jesus Christ was. All he knew was his culture and native ways. Now, he is so strong in the gospel. He is amazing. He is getting baptized on March 15!! He reads the Book of Mormon all the time, and is taking the commandments to heart. He fasted the day after we taught him without even being asked or prompted. He is just so ready for this. He was in the Navy for 8 years, and is pretty much a genius.

Also getting baptized on March 15 is the Gallien family. They are really cool! They have 4 kids, 3 of them are 2 and under.... so, its always a mad house over there. Their youngest child is a month old, and he is adorable. The oldest is 10 years old, so he will also be getting baptized along with his parents. They are ready for baptism. They have been coming to church weekly for about 6 months now, and they know the gospel. We are pretty much just their to check of the boxes.. :) 

Also in March, we are hoping that Gilbert will be baptized. He is Ervins dad. He will hopefully be baptized at the end of March. He was a little bit slower to give up his native religion, but he feels the spirit so strongly. 

Yesterday was the Gilbert Temple Dedication!! It was super cool!! I loved it so much. We got special handkerchiefs that had been embroidered with the Gilbert temple, and also "Arizona Scottsdale Mission". They are really neat! Tomorrow we are going to the Snowflake Temple!! I'm SO excited!! I can't wait! 

The Laurels sent me a really cute package with a pillowcase with a bunch of inspiring quotes and scriptures! It was really cute, I LOVED it!!! It also had some really cute cards in there so I could send some letters that were not on notebook paper... haha! It was really sweet, and exactly what I needed, so tell them thanks for me :) I haven't gotten the package from home yet, but the mail hasn't come yet, so I will hopefully get it today or tomorrow :) So, here is a little more information about good ole' Taylor, Arizona: 

1. SUPER small!!

2. Everyone has a dog

3. There are rabbits EVERYWHERE!! They just run across the street all of the time. 

4. There are lots of cows and horses, in fact, we have a cow in our backyard.. his name is Harry Plopper.. Not sure why, but that is what the missionaries here have named him :)

5. When I say small.. I mean small. There are about 2,500 people that live here. And we don't have addresses. Everyone has to go to the post office to get mail. 

6. Okay, so we kind of have addresses, but nobody really uses them. We just say things like, "they live by the school" or, "they live across the street from this family." Yep, its awesome! 

7. Its is AWESOME!! 

Yep, I love it here, its really fun! And I have the best companion/fellow sisters! Sister Thompson and 2 other sisters stole an electric keyboard from a church library corner for me while i was on splits with another companionship.. yep, I love them! :) 

Here are a couple quotes from the sisters in my area, "Never give up what you want most for what you want at the moment." And this one is from Sister Thompson when I was struggling, "Satan only has as much power as we give him. STOP letting him win! You can do this. You are a daughter of God who has been ENDOWED with power." Yep, she's the coolest. Anyways, its been a GREAT week!! I love this gospel, and the missionary work here is going crazy. And its all thanks to the amazing members!! Member Missionaries are SO important!! I love you all so much!!!

Love, 

Sister Robbins 

Miracles are real!

Hey Family!!

Wow, what a crazy past few days its been! Its been cool to finally get into the work! I have met so many cool people, and I love it here in Taylor. I am not sure exactly where to start. I forgot my journal with everything in it... oops...

Anyway, I met almost all of our investigators, we have 10 that are progressing. That, in itself, is such a miracle! We also have 4 baptisms set up in March!! I can't believe it! These people are truly prepared to hear the gospel and accept His word. The people of Taylor are very humble. It is not a rich area at all, most of our investigators live in trailer parks and such, but they are so amazing! They are some of the most amazing people I've ever met. A lot of people up here in the SMALL town of Taylor are actually already LDS, but we do a lot of activation work, it is fun, and so exciting! Last night, we went to visit one the former investigators in the area named Patricia. When we got to her trailer, she was sitting outside on her porch. Her health isn't too great, and so as we talked to her Sis. Thompson felt inspired to ask her if she wanted a blessing. She said yes, and that Wednesday would work really well for her. As we were walking back to our car, we saw 2 men from one of our wards who just happened to be in the area right then. We asked them if they were willing to come and give her a blessing right then, and they said that they could. We didn't think that she would say yes... we thought that she would want to wait until Wednesday, but she said yes too!! After the blessing, you could tell that she felt the spirit so strongly, and was so grateful for these worthy priesthood holders, and the blessing they gave her from her Father in Heaven. It was really neat.

Also, last night we were going to one of our appointments with a new investigator. When we got to her house, she wasn't home, but we saw another investigator right when we were about to leave. He hasn't been progressing very much, but he wanted to set up an appointment for that night in like 20 minutes. So, we went back to our car, planned a bit, then we went back to his house. We taught him the restoration, and a lot about the Atonement. He wife suddenly died about 3 months ago, so the Atonement is exactly what he needs in his life right now. We challenged him to read the Book of Mormon and pray about it, and he said that he would. Then, I gave my first baptismal invitation ever, and asked him to be baptized when he found out the truth for himself, and he said that he would when he got his answer! It was so amazing! We weren't even supposed to meet with him that night, and then he said yes to baptism. It was so amazing, and such a miracle! 

I wish that I could have you meet everyone that I've met, they are all so amazing! The other day we were at a Less Active members house, and right before we left, the mom asked us if we wanted to see her "baby". So we did, and it was an original 1917 player piano! It was super neat. I got the chance to play it... like with the pedals. It was so cool, but so much harder than I'd imagined! It was awesome! 

Anyways, its been a great week and I love it here. That doesn't mean that I still don't struggle, because I do, but that okay, because the Lord carries me through it. He will carry us all through everything. His love is so real, so accessible, and so important. I love this gospel so much!! Its amazing, and being here is amazing! Just meeting these people and seeing these miracles have made it so worth it, and I know that as I continue for the next 18ish months, I'm going to keep seeing that, and helping people find the love that I've found!! And I'm so excited about it! Anyways, I love you all!! Thanks for you support and love, it is felt. I love you!

Love, 

Sister Robbins 

Pictures! February 17-18 Scottsdale; training with the mission president

Sister Robbins

Sister Krutsch - MTC Companion

17 new missionaries!

New arrivals - Sister Robbins and friends

At the Mesa Temple Visitors Center

Mesa Temple Visitors Center

Scottsdale Mission - New missionary training

Scottsdale Mission - Training

First Area - Taylor, Arizona

Wednesday, February 18, 2014

Hey Family!!

So, I know you weren't planning on hearing from me today, but the P-days here are a little weird. So, my p-day will normally be on Mondays, but on transfer weeks, p-days are Wednesday for everybody. So, I will be emailing today, and Monday. 

Anyway, it was great to talk to you on Monday, I was glad to hear that everyone is doing well! As for me, I'm doing pretty well! My companion/trainer is great! Her name is Sister Thompson and she has been out for 9 months. She is a Visa Waiter, so she is just waiting for her visa so she can go to Brazil, where she was called. After being here for 9 months though, she is not exactly sure she wants to go, but she is so willing to do whatever the Lord asks of her. She was actually here when the mission opened up, she beat the President down here by a week! ha! My first area is Taylor, which is a small town right next to Snowflake! I'm actually in Snowflake right now at the Family History Center here. It is fun to be up in the mountains. We are about 3 and a half hours away from the mission home, so we had a fun drive yesterday! And we can listen to things other than Mo Tab, as long as they are uplifting and the spirit can be present. So, we listened to music for most of the way up, and just talked. We live in a trailer/house thing, next to another companionship. So, its actually just us in our house. I haven't met any of the investigators yet, but we have an investigator who has a baptismal date set for 3 weeks from now!! I'm so excited, and I hope that he continues to feel the spirit and grow closer to Christ. From what I've heard, he has a testimony of the church and of the Book of Mormon, but he doesn't know all about the gospel yet, so we will be teaching him for the next few weeks in preparation for his baptism. Sis. Thompson and I cover 3 wards here in Taylor, and we are in a car area. Most people in Taylor are LDS, but there are a lot of people who are less active, so we do a lot of activation work. I've heard that most of the members here are amazing, so I can't wait to meet them! We might be going golfing with an investigator this afternoon, but we haven't heard from him yet, so I will have to let you know on Monday if that actually happens :) I didn't see Sister Pew yesterday, but I did see Elder Pilkington, which was fun! :) 

The first day we went out street contacting in downtown Scottsdale. It was cool to just jump right into the work, but it was also really hard because that part of Scottsdale is like the party place, so most people weren't receptive at all. Most people would either just hurry their pace, or pretend to be talking on their phone as we went past... but we happened to run into this older man that was reading the Book of Mormon given him from missionaries. We answered his questions as best we could, and then gave him the number to the mission home so that he could call if he had any questions or wanted to learn more! :) It was neat! 

Anyways, I don't have much more to tell you since I talked to you on Monday, but I'm sure that on Monday I will have many more stories to tell!! 

I love you all SO much, and I hope that all continues to go well! :)

Love, 

Sister Robbins

First Email!

Hey Family!!

It was SO wonderful to hear from everybody!! I can't even begin to express the joy I felt as I logged on to my email the first time and saw that I had 14 emails from friends and family!! Thank you all so much for you love and support, it means the world to me! So, this week has been a whirlwind. I love it so much here at the MTC, I really do. That is not to say that I haven't had any hard moments, or moments of trial, but with the Lord, all is possible :) The second night I was here, I thought to  myself, "What in the heck did I get myself into, this is not what I signed up for..." But as I turned to the Lord, and prayed to him with all my heart, I felt this overwhelming sense of love and comfort from my Father in Heaven, and my Savior, Jesus Christ. I have grown so much closer to my Savior. I have truly started to become converted unto Him. On Sunday, I watched a talk entitled, "Character of Christ" by Elder Bednar. This is a talk he gave to missionaries at the MTC on Christmas one year. It was probably the most powerful talk I have ever heard. He spoke about turning outwards, instead of turning inwards. He related turning inwards (the natural man) to the cookie monster. We all must forsake the natural man, and no matter how much we are hurting, or how hard we feel our lot in life it, we must turn outwards, and give service to ALL of God's children. Elder Bednar's Cookie Monster impression is quite accurate, and absolutely hilarious, by the way :)

Another thing I have learned this week is the joy of teaching. I LOVE teaching so much, and I love my investigators. They are amazing children of God, and they just want to be loved. My first lesson with a real investigator was Monday, and it didn't go super well, but that is okay, because I love her so much. Also, me and my companion, Sis. Krutsch, did our best, and that is all the Lord asks of us. Our investigators name is Lawanna, and she is from Arkansas. She moved to Utah for treatment at the Huntsman Cancer Center. She is amazing, and so fun. Guess what? We are teaching her through SKYPE!! Crazy, right!? I feel like it provides more of a challenge, because it isn't very personal, but it is good practice for this technology world that missionaries are moving into! I really do love teaching! And preparing lessons is the best, because you just get to focus on your investigator, and love them, and receive personal revelation to help them in their lives. I just want to give them the same joy and love that I feel from Heavenly Father, and Jesus Christ! 

Another lesson from this week is the power of the Priesthood! What a blessing the Priesthood is to us in our everyday lives. My district consists of eight people: Me, Sis. Krutsch (my companion), Sis. Isert, Sis. Lords, Elder Oldham, Elder Blankenship, Elder Walters, and Elder Williams. It is such a blessing to have 4 worthy Elders in our district, who respect and honor their priesthood. In the past week, I have received 2 priesthood blessings from these Elders, and they are amazing. I felt like my Heavenly Father was speaking directly to me in these blessings, because he was! 

I have seen several people while here at the MTC! I have seen Sis. Rohbock, Sis. Bradford, Elder Bangerter, and Elder Shumway! All of those missionaries graduated with me, so it was really exciting to see them! I also saw Shaunna Thompson, and that was SO cool! Another missionary I saw was Sis. Squires from "Savior of the World" She is here with her husband, they entered the MTC on Monday, and leave to Ghana or Uruguay (or somewhere like that) on Friday!

I can't imagine being in and out so quickly. I am excited to get into the field on Monday, but at the same time, I still feel like I have so much to learn here, and I can't get enough of it! This week has gone by incredibly fast, and I just want to keep learning and growing, and helping the investigators that I've grown to know and love here! But I know that I am needed in Arizona, and I already love the people there so much! I feel so blessed to be here and have this opportunity. Early this week, I got thinking, and I realized, that if the Savior could do all He did for me, and give me ALL that I have, who am I to not give him 18 months of my TIME! I have realized that TIME is all we really have to give Him. Everything else we have is already His, and TIME is the only thing that is actually ours to give Him, so lets give it to Him :) I have found a love and joy of the scriptures greater than I ever imagined possible, and also of prayer. I would challenge you all to truly devote time to STUDYING the scriptures and truly praying to Him everyday. One thing that I learned from one of my teachers is that there are 3 steps to studying the scriptures. 

1. Ask

2. Seek

3. Knock

In order to truly receive revelation, we must do all of these three steps. Ask God a question before you start reading, and then seek for the answer, and not just read, but truly study what you are reading, and then act and decide what you are going to do, and then you will be able to receive personal revelation for yourself and on how to best serve and help others! 

Anyways,  there is so much more I could tell you, but TIME moves incredibly quickly at the MTC, and I have a few more emails to send out!! I love you all so much, and I am so grateful for all of you! Thanks for your love and support, I have never felt a greater abundance of it than at this time! I love you family!! Keep being strong! :)

Love, 

Sister Robbins :)

Scottsdale - Here she comes!

Welcome to Sister Kathryn Robbins' blog of her 18 month mission to Scottsdale Arizona.  Kathryn received her mission call on Wednesday, October 2, 2013 and entered the MTC in Provo Utah on Wednesday, February 5, 2014.

Kathryn will fly to Arizona on Monday, February 17, 2014.