Sister Burton Takes on Anaheim!: Week 77: "It's beginning to look a lot like..."

Has it truly already been a week?! And WOW what a week it has been(in a good way of course...)
Here are some of the highlights...

KELLY: We finally got to have a lesson with our dear, Black Sabbath loving friend, Kelly! One of my favorite members, Sister Folger(also an RM) came along with us and she KILLED it! Honestly, I look up to her so much because I want to be an awesome RM who still loves being involved in the work, just like her! Kelly's "gal" Sherry, (whom Kelly told us was NOT gonna be interested) ended up sitting in on the whole lesson! We got to teach most of the Restoration, although Kelly still has some qualms and concerns about some doctrine of our church. But he accepted the invitation to read from the Book of Mormon and pray about it, so that's good! He said our congregation is the nicest, warmest congregation he's attended in California! He is interested in the "men's group" and still is curious about many things! Wahoo for Kelly! Hopefully he'll let that desire stir within him!

THANKSGIVING: Thanksgiving was a great day! We went about doing good, walking the streets, chalking, etc. We even got to participate at the service at the Honda Center, just like last year! We helped clean up after the free public turkey dinner! It was such a blast to help!
We then had dinner with the Roberts, a new couple in the ward. They also invited a lot of friends from their previous Mid-Singles ward so it was quite the party! Bro. Roberts went to 2 culinary schools....so you could say the food was to die for!

DAWNICE: I think I failed to mention that a member brought a friend to church last week, Dawnice. She is super nice and LOVED the services. Meghan, the member, and Dawnice came to dinner at the Roberts. Well, while talking with Dawnice, we came to find out...she's a member!! Our bishop found her records and everything. She was baptized a LONG time ago but had an absolutely traumatizing experience that she stopped attending. She doesn't remember diddly squat about the church, so it's basically like she's a non-member. Dawnice has a lot of issues going on in her life, but she commented how much she loves this congregation and the peace she feels. We're gonna continue to try and work with her and help her overcome those issues in her life.

EXCHANGES: I got to go on exchanges this past week with Sister Sorensen! We had such a blast finding for most of the day! Nothing much to add, except she's awesome and I love her loads!

8-9 PM MIRACLE: So last night, it was getting to be "late" and there comes a point when not many people will open their doors to us. We decided to try and see Roberto, someone we met on the streets our first week in the area. We've been having the hardest time getting hold of him. We were thinking that if we didn't catch him last night, we'd probably have to move our energy elsewhere. Well, we popped in and he immediately said, "Yeah, let's go to the complex clubhouse where we can talk more." We sat down next to the pool and taught him the Restoration. The Spirit was so very strong! He mentioned how he's not the best at committing to things, but we told him we would start small. He has a lot of questions about religions, since he hasn't really been involved in any! We were so grateful to have finally been able to contact him and to teach him on the spot! I love those moments!

I attended my last Zone Conference this week. It was so bittersweet. (Sister Nichols and I actually had a good cry and hug afterwards...) But I got to be in a musical number and bear my testimony so nothing like going out with a bang, right? I got emotional as I talked about a few things I've learned on my mission...a few of MANY things...and my heart was so full of all the amazing lessons I've learned and am continuing to learn. This really is jump starting me for the rest of my life!

Along with that, we kicked off LIGHT THE WORLD! Gah, I can just feel the Christmas spirit in the air! We've been going around trying to share the video with people that we meet and we've been able to share it several times so far! I just love getting to be a missionary, especially at this time of year! I can feel the unity between ALL of us, God's children, no matter what we believe. I love getting to share the message of Jesus Christ!

All my love,

Sister Burton
2500 N. Bristol St.
Santa Ana, CA 92706