The {story} of a run to Temple Square

Good Day {Friends}

I hope everyone is having a great day :) 

We have had a pretty great day! It's hot, but what else is new? Give it a month and I will be saying how cold it is! brr.. 

Well, It is coming to an end of a wonderful week! We have had just a {splendid} week! So, last {Saturday} we went to Temple Square, to watch the Joseph Smith Movie with our investigator. (ps: if you haven't seen the movie...WATCH IT!!) So, our investigator was suppose to meet us there, we pulled up to temple square 5 minuets before the movie started, and we told our investigator to meet us at the North Visitor Center.

Well, we had to park the car way out in bonnie ville! So, Sister Barnhurst (who drove us) pulled us right up to the temple to let Trudy (the investigators Grandma) out so she wouldn't have to walk a long ways. My companion jump out of the car to help Trudy and to help her get a wheel chair. 

I stayed in the car, and Sister Barnhurst took off to find a parking spot. We find one not too far away, just up a {huge} ole' mountain (slight exaggeration) We parallel park, and take off running down this mountain! We have to wait for the cross walk light to give us the right away, and we sprint across! We sprint to the Joseph Smith memorial building to meet up with my companion and Trudy... Sadly to find out our investigator was not with them. They said they didn't see him in the Visitor Center... Awesome, right? The movie was ready to start. So, again, Sister Barnhurst and I take off running up a few flight of stairs to the theater to see if we can save seats. And, of course we can! There was plenty of room in the theater! 

We run back down the stairs to the outside of building in hopes of seeing our investigator. My companion called him.. no answer. Okay, So, we take off running again! Off to the North Visitor Center! As we dodge all the millions of brides and their bouquet of flowers!

We run up to the Christas, around the land of Jerusalem, through the amazing paintings, down the stairs, up stairs, outside, than inside again... and he is no where to be found. 

We were just about to give up and go to plan B, when we see him standing at the front door of the Visitor Center. 

We grab him and... run... some more! 

Finally! We make it to the theater and to our seats. 

And, at the end of the Movie the spirit was so {strong}! Just for me it {strengthened} my testimony of The Book of Mormon. Words can't express my love for Joseph Smith and the {wonderful} man he was! He sacrificed everything he had, to do The Lord's will. Talk about real dedication. It was a great note to start a lesson, we all bore our testimony of Joseph Smith and truthfulness of The Book of Mormon, and it was {amazing} to see the emotions of our investigator change. To see in his eyes the power of the spirit testify to him. 

And, of course I had to talk about one of my {favorites,} Jefferey R. Holland. His talk "Safety for the Soul" 

(Which is my favorite talk of all time!!!)

Elder Holland quotes a powerful statement from his great-grandfather-

"No wicked man could write such a book as this; and no good man would write it, unless it were true and he were commanded of God to do so." 

Either it's true or it's not true. It's as simple as that. Joseph Smiths' life was put on the line for this book. It is the keystone to what I believe, it is the convincing evidence that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the only true church on the earth today! It bears testimony the Jesus is the Christ, the book is completely centered on Him and His teachings. It's another testament of Christ. 

If you haven't read The Book of Mormon before, start reading it now! Find out if it is true! God will give you an answer. It is just so simple.

Thanks, for reading today's post! It's a {blessing} to be apart of this wonderful work, and to get to share the many miracles! Follow up next week for whatever {blessings} The Lord has in store!

Love You All

-Sister Ashcroft :) 

The {story} of a wrong turn...

Howdy-Do-Da Friends! 

I hope everyone is having a great day! The Good Ole' Valley is {blazing} HOT! today. Thank goodness for those slight breezes we can get on our bikes. 

Well, as I have mentioned before I just want to share miracle after miracle, but I just can't! There is just not enough time in the day, I see blessings happen every day! 

So, {story} time!!

So, when I first got into my new area, I became a trainer and, also we white washed the area! For those who may not know what "white washing" is, it basically means putting new missionaries in the area to build it up again. So, they took the Elders out of this area and put Sisters in. 

And, I was still a new missionary! I had only been out for 3 months! I didn't know how to train, let alone know how to white wash!?! So, my {sweet} new companion who was just {fresh} out of the MTC was just on fire and ready to teach! She kept turning to me say "where are we going?", "who are we teaching?" , "what lesson to teach first?" etc. 

Hahah... Me: "Uhhh... I don't know?" Man, I am a doing great as a trainer or what?!...(fail)

 I had never even been in the area before, so of course I had no idea where to go? So, we literally we're dropped off at our house with a "good luck". Didn't know what wards we covered, or anything! 

But we eventually found out who the High Council Man over the missionaries were, so we started at his house and slowly progressed from there! 

So, we got the address of who our bishops and ward mission leaders were, but they did not have a map for us yet, so we got pointed in the "general" direction of our area... {WONDERFUL!}

Side note- I don't know how many of you have been to Utah, but the gird system in Neighborhoods are so confusing!!!!

Anyways, it's time for us to head home... and we are lost! I have no idea where we are at! And, again my companion... "Sister Where are we? Is time to be home? How do we get home from here?" 

Me... "Uhhh... I don't know?" (the struggle was real) 

So, you know, by now the only thing you can do is relay on the spirit! And we surely did! We both just had a silent pray to ourselves. We continue to keep walking and made a wrong turn... again. But this time, it wasn't a wrong turn. As we walked down the street we saw this sweet lady getting her mail and pulling her weeds.

We stopped to ask her for directions, which she was able to help us with. Then we proceeded to talk to her a little longer. As the conversation went on we learned that she was an inactive member, and that she has been thinking about going back to church for awhile, and that she was even praying to Heavenly Father for the strength to find her way back to church. She told us she just didn't know how to get there! So, we told her we could help her! "We know how to get to church! It's easy! You just get in your car and drive down the rode! Church starts at 9am!"

We ended up having one of the most spiritual lessons that I have ever had on my mission. We invited her to come to church and she was there that next Sunday! She looked {beautiful}! and she had just a {special} glow about her. We could see how happy she was to be there, and to partake of the sacrament.

Since then she has been actively coming back to church, she has been reading her scriptures and praying to her Heavenly Father every night. Every time we see her she is just full of the Spirit and tells time and time again how happy she is that she came back to church!

I learned so much that night! You always stop and talk to people, they are all God's Children! And you may just be answer to their prayers! I know for a fact, that we were guided there! It wasn't a coincidence, even though we thought we were lost at the time. We discovered where we needed to be :)

That night could have not ended more perfectly. The Lord will always direct where you need to go, even if you have to take a few wrong turns to get there!

I am so grateful for that {wonderful} Sister! She is amazing in every way! And she has made my testimony so much stronger!

Thanks bunches for reading my {BLOG} I love sharing the gospel! Check back again for another {blessing} from our loving Heavenly Father!

The Church is TRUE!

Love You All

-Sister Ashcroft

The {Story} of a Prophesy Fulfilled.

It's a bright shining, beautiful day in grand ole' West Valley! 

I am so excited about today's {blog} that I am just going to jump right into business!!!

Who watched the World Wide Missionary Broadcast, "The Work of Salvation" on June 23, 2013?!?

 (If you haven't watched it yet, check it out on LDS.org) 

It was a great fireside, right? They announced some pretty {amazing} things! For example better ways the ward members can work with {missionary's} to hasten the work. They also announced how {missionary} work can be done over the Internet via Skype, Facebook, Mormon.org Chats, etc.

Is it crazy to think {missionaries} have access to the Internet? 

Nope! 

Because that is just an amazing resource we can use to share the Gospel even further than our assigned Mission.

And, I have been apart of a very special mission. I've had the opportunity to work with Facebook and Mormon.org Chats, and I can't even begin to {express} how wonderful it has been!!! I've had the chance to talk to people all around the world, that I would have never been able to talk to. 

When my companion and I sit down at the computer to talk with people who have questions about the gospel, we get the same spiritual experiences that we get as if we street contacting. 

Some ways that I have seen the Internet as a useful tool in The Lord's work are....

1) The Internet gives us the chance to teach more lessons in a day, while staying in the same spot, it really has saved us the travel time! 

2) We have been able to meet with people in our area from the Internet if they have been sick, or couldn't make an appointment for whatever reason but still wanted the lessons.

3) And we get to teach people ALL AROUND THE WORLD!!!

And, there is so much more! It's amazing how the power of the Holy Ghost can testify the truth through a simple message. 

So, you all are probably wondering what Prophesy was fulfilled, right? I'm just sitting here rambling on and on about the Internet. 

Well, in Alma 37:4 it says...

"Behold, it has been prophesied by our fathers, that they should be kept and handed down from one generation to another, and be kept and preserved by the hand of the Lord until they should go forth unto everything nation, kindred, tongue, and people, that they shall know the mysteries contained thereon."

We have been told time and time again that missionary work would be spread out through the entire world, well the Internet makes that possible!!! Missionary work is available through out the world!

(mind blown)

People from all around the World can hear the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints! We now have the access to share the Gospel to all of God's children, it's such a {blessing} to be apart of The Lord's marvelous work!

Don't just let the {missionaries} share the GOSPEL! Get on, and share it with all your friends and family! 

"Every Member is a MISSIONARY!"

D&C 18:10 "Remember the Worth of Souls is great in the sight of God."

Thanks! For checking out my {BLOG}. I am so blessed that I can share my missionary experiences, again, it's just a tool God put in my hands to share the gospel! Use the Internet to share the gospel to all of God's children! Read D&C 18:15-16! It tells us right there why it's so important we hasten the work :)

The Church is True!

Love You All

-Sister Ashcroft

The {Story} of our Greats...(why Family History is so COOL!)

Good Afternoon!!!

Hopefully everyone is having a great day! 

Well, this is kind of an "older" story, but it's one of my {favorites} 

This happened on my mission, just over a month ago, and it has been one of many {miracles} that I have seen on my mission. But this story, is so special not only to me, but to my companion. It brought our companionship closer, and made and even {stronger} bond between us. This is just a gist of the {story} and most importantly it this{experience} help me develop a super strong testimony of Family History Work! It made me realize why we find out where we came from! Our Heritage is so, so, so, {IMPORTANT}

On a beautiful morning of July 19th , Sister Christensen and I were beginning our {companionship} study. We did our norm; pray, sing, read from the white hand book, recite our purpose and then dived right into discussing what each us learned in personal study. 

Sister Christensen was telling me about what she had read and learned from her personal study, while she was talking to me I picked up the book Our Heritage, a book from the Missionary Library.

Well, I just {fanned} through the pages and the "fan" stopped on a {random} page, and my eyes went straight to a brief history about the {story} of "The Battle of the Big Blue" I then skimmed the story and instantly felt the power of the {spirit} 

I then looked at Sister Christensen and said I need to read something aloud to you...

Battle of the Big Blue

"The mob came again on 23 July, and Church leaders offered themselves as ransom if they would not harm the people. But the mob threatened injury to the whole Church and forced the brethren to agree that all Latter-day Saints would leave the county. As the actions of the mob were illegal, running counter to the constitutions of the United States and the state of Missouri, Church leaders sought the aid of the governor of the state, Daniel Dunklin. He advised them of their civil rights and directed the Saints to get legal counsel. Alexander W. Doniphan and others were hired to represent Church members, an action that further infuriated the mob.

At first the Latter-day Saints attempted to avoid direct conflict; however, the beatings of members and the destruction of property eventually led to a battle near the Big Blue River. Two members of the mob were killed, and the Saints lost Andrew Barber. Philo Dibble was shot three times in the stomach. Newel Knight was called to administer to him, with miraculous results. Brother Dibble related:

“Brother Newel Knight came to see me, and sat down on the side of my bed. … I felt the Spirit resting upon me at the crown of my head before his hand touched me, and I knew immediately that I was going to be healed. … I immediately arose and discharged three quarts of blood or more, with some pieces of clothes that had been driven into my body by the bullets. I then dressed myself and went out doors. … From that time not a drop of blood came from me and I never afterwards felt the slightest pain or inconvenience from my wounds, except that I was somewhat weak from the loss of blood.”

 

(Same story can be found on page 45 of Our Heritage)

Sister Christensen looked at me with a smile and said "Yeah, I grew up hearing that story!" 

Sister Christensen is a descendant of Philo Dibble (the third-great Grandaughter), which I knew, but she didn't quit understand the importance of the {story} just yet. As, my emotions overtook me , I couldn't help, but yell "I'm the fourth-great Grandaughter of Newel Knight!!"

Her face dropped, and I could see the power of the Holy Ghost Testify to her exactly what it was testifying to me.

We both we're thrilled for many reasons

1. We are both descendents of Philo Dibble and Newel Knight

2. We were companions 180 years later, and discovered it together.

3. It showed that their posterity has been faithful for this long.

4. The Priesthood Power is {REAL}

5. It has taught us what true {friendship} is.

And, just so much more! This miracle has made a huge impact on my life. I now have an even stronger testimony of the Priesthood Power and Family History. 

I am beyond blessed to be a descendent from such a faithful man, I have learned more and more about Newel Knight and he has become an example to me. 

As I reflect on this experience time and time again, I see more and more how The Lord truly does know what he is doing. His hand is in every aspect of my life, and that Sister Christensen and I weren't just randomly put together as companions. I didn't randomly flip to page 45 of Our Heritage. I didn't randomly feel impressed to read that brief history. No, none of that happened by a "coincidence". 

It was just simply The Lord.

Thanks! So MUCH!! For following my Blog, this {story} is a special one to my heart. I have a Temple Square Date today with a Part Member Family and can't wait to go and see what {blessing} is just waiting to happen! So, Check back on Tuesday to see what {wonderful} things The Lord has done :)

Love You All

-Sister Ashcroft

The {Story} of a Clogged Drain

Hello Friends! Happy Friday! 

Well, it's been a great day in West Valley, the weather is not my {favorite.} Very Windy, with a slight amount of rain drops here and there, with the {beautiful} overcast clouds. Okay, really, I just very much dislike wind. (grr...)

But that doesn't slow The Lord's work down! 

So, serving a {mission} has been just the best blessing ever! It really is so much. Yes, it does have it's challenges. Honestly, I have never felt so much stress and disappointment in my entire {life} But I have also never been so happy in my life, I have never {witnessed} so many miracles, and I have never felt the {love} of my Savior stronger! And, happiness always trumps disappointment :)

There really is just so much I want to share with the world, but it can only be one story at a time...

So, this past week my good ole' {companion} and I has had several chances to do some service! As {missionaries} we love service! 

And when your "in the service of your fellow man, you are only in the service of your God"... how true is that to be? There is not greater feeling than doing service for people. It's {awesome} to see their faces light up, and it makes you feel even better as well. 

A fun experience we had this week was unclogging a sink drain, yes we can unclog a sink drain! We should be considered pros! And that got around the block! So, now we have more and more people requesting us to help them unclog their drains for them! (we tend to surprise people, with our talents) 

A member even took the liberty of making {fun} flyers to hand out, to "advertise" our services! We thought it was quit witty. But in all seriousness service really is a great way to build bonds with people! It {truly} does make me feel good about helping someone in need. 

And, it's a great {chance} to share the gospel! Which can bring even more happiness to someones {soul}. 

Thanks! Dropping in! I hope you all have a great day {AND} find some service to do for a friend, neighbor, or stranger! We promise, it's a {blessing} to help!

Love You All

-Sister Ashcroft

(sorry, it's a poor picture and i can't get it to flip. But this is the flyer that a member made, it gave us a good laugh!!!)

The Story of a Lunch Bunch...

Well, Howdy-do-da {Friends} 

It's another blazing  {HOT} day in the beautiful land of West Valley City!!! Even my companion, who is a(n) "Arizonian" is complaining about the {heat}, but that doesn't slow us down! We just zig-zag across the road to find those good shade trees. :)

Well, since this blog is so {new} I'm at lost of what to share? Because I already have so many great stories I can't wait to share. It's truly a {blessing} to serve a mission, It's amazing to look back at my life before my mission and see the many {blessings} I have received. 

Well, before I flood this blog with the stories of a sister {missionary} I want to take a moment and brag about my {AWESOME} companion!

So, today we were invited to the "lunch bunch", and oh my! It was so much fun :) Okay, so, a brief description of the "lunch bunch" --- The Relief Society has organized a little outing with all the women in the neighborhood, active, less-active, non-members, friends, family... you name it and they are there! They go once a month and just gather together to enjoy each others company with a bite to eat. Well, the {spoiled} missionaries we are, we were invited to {tag along}. And it was just so much fun, we met a lot of women from the neighborhood and got the chance to start to building some beautiful {friendships.} It was a great place for us to share a little bit about what missionaries do! Perfect opportunity, right?

Oops... Rewind, let's just back it up real fast and start from the very beginning again, we invited another set of {sisters} to come along and join in on the fun! And, all these wonderful sister {missionaries} went out of their way to talk to women that they had no idea who they were! But did it, just to make friends, and because they care. As I sat back and watched 3 beautiful girls go and mingle around, I got to see the faces of these women light up and glow. Their eyes were beaming and a smile from ear to ear. I got lost in the moment and thought about all these great women, with a different life story to tell. Each and every one was a daughter of God, and He has created each of us differently. We all have different talents and gifts to offer the world. 

I see more and more on my mission that God, really does have His hand in everything. We are just {tools} in His work! And I couldn't be more {LUCKY} :) 

Okay, okay, Now I can {brag} about my companion. So, before we left the Cracker Barrel we stopped to look around in the store they have, and as I was so {easily} distracted I started to walk off to get my bag so we could leave, but I soon realized I did not have a {companion}. And, well, some of you may know how scary that is when your "alone". I stopped right in my track and quickly turned around to see that she was talking with one of the workers. So, I scurried back to where they were standing to find out what the hold up was? As I stopped I started to listen to the conversation and the {sweet} girl had questions about what {missionaries} do? As, I watched and listened to my companion so calmly bear her testimony of the purpose for missionary work, the girl become more interested. For a moment that {sweet} girl forgot about the things around her and really tuned into the {spirit}. 

Sadly, she had to go back to work and we had to jet out of there, but I was able to pull out a Book of Mormon, and Sister Christensen left a note attached to it, and we left it at her stand for when she {returned}

We may never know what ever happens to her after that, but most {importantly} she was one of God's children who got to hear the gospel, and because of that she is one step closer to her {loving} Heavenly Father.

Thanks so much for stopping by :) Keep in-tuned for Friday's update, who knows what it will be, but I'm sure the spirit will give {great} inspiration.

Love You All :)

-Sister Ashcroft

(Sister Judd, Sister Comer, Sister Christensen,& Sister Ashcroft)

Intro: The {Story} of how I came to be Sister Ashcroft

Hello Friends! 
Welcome to my Blog! This Blog is the {STORY} of my adventures serving as a Sister {Missionary} for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. And what a {blessing} it is!

It all started a mere 8 months ago... I never really considered serving a mission, even though I might have thought about it once or twice. It was never something I wanted to do. Well, as I saw all my friends leave on missions, and friends return home from missions (Including the return of my older brother) I saw a change in these young men. (Especially my older brother :p). As my brother and people from my stake tried to encourage me to go, I was quick to answer "NO!"

I was just graduated over a year. I had hopes, dreams, and desires of competing in {hurdles} at college. But, at the time I was working full-time and going to school full-time. I wasn't really living the "American Dream".

Well, one day I was driving home from work, I felt like I had the worse day of my life. Nothing went right, and I couldn't figure out what direction my life was headed. So, I zipped on towards the church. My dad was recently put in as bishop, and I knew he would be there. I had a question for him. 

Me: "Dad should I go on a mission?"

Dad: (about to fall out of his chair) "Well, I don't know is this something you have prayed about?"

(secretly I had been praying about a mission for quit sometime.)

Me: "YES! I don't ever get an answer one way or the other!"

Dad: "Well, Kourt! This is a great time for you to learn a very important lesson... The Lord my not always give you an answer. Sometimes it is all up to you."

Really, Dad?! That is the best you could give me? Well, going home still frustrated and confused. I pulled out my patriarchal blessing to read it, and still a bit confused... I just decided to turn in my papers. 

I started my papers that night, scheduled all my doctor appointments that week and my papers were in within the next week. WHAT!?! Did I get myself into I thought? It happened all so fast! Before I knew it I had a call waiting in my mail box. Although, I was very excited to see where I got called too! I had guesses all around the world.  From Nauvoo, Illinois to Ireland.

 "Dear Sister Ashcroft... You have been called to serve in the Utah, Salt Lake City West Mission!!" 

 Oh, well that was the last place I would ever guess! But I am here, I've been here for almost 5 months! And it is the greatest blessing ever! I am so blessed that I was called to serve in this mission.

And, that my dear friends is the Story {in a nutshell} of how the busy College Girl, Pharmacy Tech, Life Guard, Lover of Running and a Dreamer came to be Sister Ashcroft.

Follow my blog to hear the crazy, fun, and spiritual adventures of a Sister {Missionary}

Love You All

-Sister A