The elders went out and came back soaking wet!  It wasn't raining when we went to get subway and on the way back...pouring rain!  All I wanted was a sandwich!

Dear Mama,

First let me tell you about goals. Each week we set up weekly goals for the following week. I was trying to teach Sister Johnson how to set weekly goals. Her vision of setting goals is getting bigger numbers than the week before. She keeps setting high numbers but I am trying to teach her to be realistic as well. She wanted to have 18 lessons. I was taken aback because the mission has an average of 15 lessons per week per companionship. We never went beyond 15 yet. We also have four English classes per week to teach plus meetings, plus having a Halloween party on Saturday afternoon and have to be in at 6pm on Halloween. We were discussing the goals. Sister Johnson and I knelt in prayer and asked if this is what our Heavenly Father wants? The answer was yes. This week went by and we did accomplish our goals. Well we went beyond our goals and taught 19 lessons.

On Tuesday Sister Johnson and I were trying to figure out how we could help one of our investigators, Felicia. We came up with a few member's names to call to help us. We felt inspired to call Linda Li.  I remember President Reynolds in my last interview telling me that I need to use my common sense more. Whatever Heavenly Father tells me to do, I must do it. Linda didn't answer the phone. One hour later, I got this strong impression that we needed to call Linda again. She picked up the phone. Again I got another impression that Linda shouldn't be a member present for Felicia, I felt that she was needed for a different lesson with an investigator, Li Ming. Linda said she would be happy to help us out. She showed up and we FaceTimed Li Ming. I cannot tell you how powerful the lesson went. It was incredible! Li Ming was an amazing investigator but was not recognizing God's love for her. She was not recognizing God's answer. She felt a lot of stress about baptism and she doesn't know why she needs to get baptized. She never asked us questions. This time was different. Linda asked inspired questions, shared her experience and shared her testimony. For the first time, Li Ming asked a question, "Why do I need to get baptized?" Linda explained and shared her testimony. We could tell that Li Ming was feeling something. Linda said, "We want to invite you to kneel in prayer and ask God if you should get baptized." Li Ming asked why we kneel. Linda once again explained. We testified often and then we asked if we could say the closing prayer. Li Ming automatically wanted to say it and said it for the first time in front of us. We know Li Ming felt something in the lesson. We could tell that she is recognizing something so powerful that she had never recognized before. Members change everything! I am grateful Heavenly Father helped me recognize that spiritual prompting. We texted Li Ming yesterday and she was so excited to talk to us. We are meeting with her tomorrow. 

We haven't met with Lucy this week because she just recently delivered her baby. We texted her over the phone that we prayed for her and we congratulated her as well. Lucy loves talking with us and the texts are getting longer and longer and she expressed her love and gratitude for us. To Sister Johnson and me, that never happened. Remember the first time we met with Lucy and she hated us. Now she loves us and wants us to go to her house and visit her to teach her about the gospel. We are so excited! 

We have another new investigator, Heidi Huang. She had the elders' number and gave the elders a call saying she wants to learn more about the Bible. So the elders gave her number to us, we called her yesterday and asked if we could meet with her before church. She said yes. We waited for her at the church and she never showed up. But then in the middle of sacrament we saw a lady come in who was sitting by herself. We went over and sat by her. We came to find out that it was Heidi. She asked us a few questions and we felt prompted to go into a quieter room. We talked with her and she talked about trying to find the right church to go to.  The lesson got led to the Restoration. She asked a question and I responded in Chinese and she was so surprised that I could speak Chinese. We taught her how to pray and invited her to pray and she said the prayer out loud.  She cried. She said it felt good to speak her burdens out. She opened up so much to us. She is a very intelligent woman. She is a professor for traveling at the college. She has great potential and I am excited to see where this path will take her.

Ann Pan is super amazing. One struggle is that she works in PA and she comes to NY every three weeks. She only speaks Chinese and we FaceTime with her during the week. She knows the gospel is true and she wants to get baptized but the church situation is a bit difficult. We are going to work on finding a Chinese branch she can go to in PA. She is so pure in heart.

Lily is a bit of a struggle. She loves hearing our message of the gospel but won't keep any of the commitments. We decided to invite a member to the lesson and this member kept looking at us and talk and talk and talk and talk. She literally talked for 15 minutes straight and we cut in and then she interrupted and talked for another 15 minutes. Lily wasn't feeling comfortable that as soon as we finished the closing prayer she got up and left immediately. She didn't come to church yesterday which was sad. We couldn't get a hold of her and finally yesterday she said she can meet with us and we have a lesson with her on Wednesday. We are excited!

We met with a strong member, Cammy Dai on Saturday. When we met with her for the first time, she was struggling big time and we told her of how the atonement can help her and we told her to rely on the Savior's strength. We had a Halloween party on Saturday and she was there and pulled us aside and talked with us and she told us how much she has changed since the last time week we met. She said she relies on the Savior so much. She said that she had never told anyone of her struggles and that the Lord had prepared her for us so we can help her. Yesterday she shared her testimony in church of how we helped her so much. She is such a sweet person. I am grateful we have helped her progress. In the lesson with her,  she said, "I want you to know that you are making a difference here." That just hit me. I am grateful to be here at this time.

We have two people going to the temple tomorrow. Because of the mission rules changing only one set of a missionary companionship from branch/ward can go to the temple. So we are letting the elders go instead of us because they deserved it and we felt right that they should go. Wendy Lian is doing baptisms for the dead for the first time and Chen JM is getting her endowment too. We are so excited for them. They are really sad that we couldn't attend with them but we will be there in spirit!! This a great opportunity for them! We will be working with one family and another person to prepare them for the temple in the near future. It's a miracle that many of the members are attending the temple tomorrow. Many of the husbands weren't at church yesterday because they were working so they could get tomorrow off to go to the temple. We are so excited for this amazing miracle. The temple is such a powerful blessing.

So on Tuesday we had our President Interview. Mine was pretty quick because I have my departing interview in 8 weeks but the longer I think about the interview the more I started to see what president had meant. He listed a lot of inspirations for me to do. Mainly he wanted me to master on goal setting because it will affect my future. He also told me to learn how to have short powerful lessons and I have been keeping myself accountable for that and the lessons have been powerful and amazing. President also wants me to learn how to find more people to teach the gospel to by using my iPad or the pamphlet. I'm doing better at talking to strangers on the street now. I feel comfortable telling them about the gospel. We have talked to many people but found one investigator, Jenny except she lives in Manhattan so we will have to contact the NYNY North mission to contact her. It will be good for her. President Reynolds is such an amazing man! I love serving with him. I love his sweet wife too. I talked with her for an hour and she is so incredible!! 

Can you send me the lyrics to Homeward Bound?  It was Sister Larsen's favorite song. We listened to it all the time. It became my favorite song too. It became our companionship song but I never knew the words. Sister Larsen said, " Sister Moore when you hear this song, you will think of our companionship." Haha

Hey!!!! Happy Belated Halloween!!! The pictures looks fantastic! Where did you get the heads! That's creepy!!! I just freaking love you!  We had 2 lessons and then a Halloween party with the branch. We went home at 6 and just cleaned our house and wrote in our journals. Thanks for the package! We just loved it!!

     For Halloween we switched each other's clothes and tag. I was Sister Johnson and she was Sister Moore.  

            We had the Elder's dress up with things from the care package you sent me.

Even with the time change we still have to work from 12-9 everyday. President Reynolds has advised me to use my common sense and protect my companion when working. So we do have to work during the night.

That's exciting for Nathan to leave for his mission. It's a start of a life changing experience for him. He will be such an incredible person!!

Thank you for your strong testimony! I love you mom! I am so proud of you! You are such a light and example in my life.  

I honestly love training but it's hard. I want to be diligenct and work hard and know I did enough. It's hard to feel satisfied when I know I could be working harder. I also have to learn patience and take a step back and let Sister Johnson learn and grow. That makes it hard not to be diligent but that is okay. Helping her progress will be an amazing thing for me. She is actually progressing a lot! I'm so proud of her!

This letter is getting too long. I am going to be bold here. This week I have noticed  how many less actives we have been working with. We noticed how many of them don't have friends in the branch or no support from the branch. We talked with members on helping but they are so busy with work, school, family, and etc. they are so caught up in their problems too. I just want to open their eyes and see that church is FAMILY. It should be a place of comfort, or love, of peace. It's a place of imperfect people. I noticed when we serve others, we are serving God. God knows what we are going through but if we truly forget ourselves and serve the Lord, then the Lord will help us and bless us even more! Our busyness in life will calm down, our problem will go away, and the Lord will take care of us with family and school and work. This lifetime is about hastening the work of the Lord. The time is now! Reach out your hand and help others! Do simple things by sitting someone who is by herself/himself in church. Or bring food to a family who is struggling, just love them and smile at them. What we do here on earth affects our eternity! I promise all of you and me that if we continue to serve others, we will receive the fullness of joy and peace.

I love you mom!

I am grateful to be here!

Sister Moore