Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Travel Day

Tuesday, January  26 was Naomi’s travel day to Baltimore. No problems with her travel, despite the massive snow storm that dumped 2 and 3 feet of snow on the East Coast just days earlier. They did have to leave the MTC at 4:30 a.m., so it was a long day!

Naomi's district at the SLC airport.

Naomi wasn’t able to check or send email last week because she traveled on her P-day. :( 

But as delightful luck would have it, a kind person snapped a photo of Naomi’s district at the airport. The photo was posted to a Facebook page just for missionary mommas so I was able to see her. :)

[Lesson learned: Take photos of random missionaries and send them to their parents!]



Naomi’s mission president and wife are Randy and MaryAnn Christiansen from Provo, Utah.
President and Sis Christiansen 

This is what she has to say about them: “He and his wife are awesome, by the way! I love them.” 


About leaving the MTC she says, “MTC super good, sad to say goodbye.”




Mission Home address: 4785 Dorsey Hall Dr, Ste 105, Ellicott City, MD 21042-7862

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Salutations From the MTC!!

Greetings, mea family and friends!
  
So much to say, so little time to type! The Missionary Training Center (MTC) is a fabulous place, and it has been super great being here! I love the people surrounding me, and I love the spirit of peace and learning that dwells about the whole place.

My companion is named Sister Noa! I love her, she's so cool. She's from Colorado and has a mixed Tongan and Samoan heritage. Claire, she whups my tush at volleyball. You would be super impressed with her overhand serve! Sister Noa is very strong in spirit. It's a pleasure to teach with her and study with her.
My roomies: Sisters Guthrie, Sobieralski, me, and Noa
We share a room with the other two Sisters in our district, and we thoroughly enjoy one another's company! It helps that everyone goes to bed at the same time.

My district consists of the following missionaries (L to R in the pic):
Me!
Sister Noa
Sister Guthrie
Sister Sobieralski
Elder Jenson
Elder Davis
Elder Eaton
Elder Fellows 
Elder Giacoletto



Our teachers are Brother Gordon and Sister Harris.

Our district is the coolest. 32C, what what! We have had some incredible Book of Mormon reads as a district. I've learned so much from all of them. It has been a privilege to associate with all of them every day. It is no coincidence that we're all together in this district, I see the Lord's hand in it. I have so much to learn from all of them.

So, we had cool devotional speakers on Sunday: Janice Kapp Perry and her husband! We sang with her! Her husband was hilarious!!
Janice Kapp and Douglas Perry
She told the story of how they met. The first words that he said to her were, "Those lips were made for something better than playing the clarinet." When she got to that part of the story, he got up from his seat, pushed the microphone aside, and kissed her full on in front of all of the missionaries!! It was totally unexpected and seriously adorable, he got a rousing cheer from all of the missionaries. We had a really good laugh about the irony of it!

This week has opened my eyes to the love of my Savior. If you ever feel unsure of whether the Lord loves you, pray and read the Book of Mormon. I testify of His love for you, as I feel it more strongly each day in preparing to serve the children of God, my brothers and sisters. Heavenly Father knows you by name. He will not leave you comfortless. John 14:16-18

I love you all so very much. Remember to smile, and keep us all in your prayers. The challenge is real, but so are the blessings which come through service and prayer. Through the grace of God we are more than enough. Through the grace of God, we are all becoming more than what we were before. God be thanked for the matchless gift of His Divine Son.
  
Sending sunshine and love,

Sister Naomi Rapier