"Ciao" Sister Di Liberto!

Family,

It was another great week in California! We were so lucky to get to go to the temple this week! A member in our ward drove us to the Los Angeles temple and did an endowment session with us. It was absolutely amazing. Let me just tell you I have fallen in love with that temple. It is so beautiful and the spirit is so strong. I loved it!

Me and my sisters at the LA temple!

The beautiful LA Temple

 
We meet each week with a little family for a Family Home Evening. This week we didn't know what to teach them. They are both doing really great and progressing towards baptism, but they have had the hardest time quitting smoking. It seems as if they have tried everything to stop. We didn't really know what to do to help them because it seems like that is the only thing holding them back from getting baptized. Luckily, someone in our ward mentioned that there is a addiction recovery program by LDS Family Services. We were able to get a couple copies of the handbook and a CD that goes along with it. This week in Family Home Evening, we decided to introduce that program. We also showed them a picture of a temple baptismal font and had them visualize themselves there and what they needed to do to get there. I think that helped and they were really excited to go through the twelve steps in the addiction recovery program.

This week we had a little miracle on Saturday. We called one of our investigators to remind her about church on Sunday and she told us that she was really upset from reading The Book of Mormon and didn't know if she wanted to continue meeting with us. We decided to go over to her house and meet with her right away to address her concerns. She said she was reading a part in The Book of Mormon and she didn't like how it talked about how the wicked would burn in hell. We were able to talk to her again how we believe in different degrees of glory and not simply a heaven and hell like most religions do. We also taught that along with the doctrine of Christ lesson and she felt much better. It was great because we were able to teach her more and resolve her concerns.

I found a flower as big as my head in a member's tree

This week felt like kind of an odd week. We ended up not having as many lessons with investigators and a lot of lessons with less-active members. I felt like the lessons with less-active members this week were very important though.

Our district! (Sister Randall, Sister Di Liberto, me, Elder Atkin, Elder Watts, Elder Wilson, and Elder Eastman)

I absolutely learned so much at our Zone Conference we had this week. It was just one big spiritual fest. Honestly, we had about 8 hours of talks and lessons and it was incredible. It definitely taught me many ways I could do better and be more effective as a missionary. I learned about how happiness and fun is only a temporary thing and that giving yourself in service is one of the only ways you can achieve pure joy. I also learned how important it is to know our purpose as a missionary because then everything else falls into place. Every mundane things falls out of our life when we focus on our purpose and even companion relationships are better when both companions (or in our case all 3) are focused on their purpose.

All the sisters in the Newbury Park Zone and Camarillo Zone (at zone conference)

Our Newbury Park Zone shirts

Overall it was a great week! I still feel blessed to have two great companions and I am sad that Sister Di Liberto is going back to Temple Square today. They both have taught me so much already and I am thankful for their examples to me. It is going to be weird for it just to be me and Sister Randall until transfers until next Tuesday.

The Mahterians took us to this super tasty Italian restaurant for a
combined birthday party and going away party for Sister Di Liberto!

Can you believe it? I have almost made it though a whole transfer in California! Time flies out here!

Much Love,
Sister Mason