London Calling

Monday, April 2, 2012

One Year, Six Months

What do I say? I can't really describe how I am feeling right now. I can't put into words the things my mission has done for me. It means everything to me. I finally understand why I need the gospel in my life and how it can change lives. I have never felt the Savior and his infinite grace to be more real than I do now. I've never wanted to help those around me more than I do now. I am so grateful for my mission. I really can't even begin to explain how I feel about the last year and a half. I can't imagine where I would be with out it. It was amazing! I love my mission so much. I wish I could stay.

I love you! I hope you are having a great week. Thank you for everything you have done for me while I've been on my mission! I couldn't have done it without all the help I got from family and friends:) Thank you!

I love you from London to Salt Lake!

See you way too soon.

Love, Sister Gregson

PS In case you forgot what I look like: my last conference, a U b-baller, and Bodiam Castle...

Monday, March 26, 2012

Ahoy!

This week was a week full of adventure, as always! We didn't have any exchanges or conferences this week which means this was our first full week in our area since my first week in Hastings. waa?? crazy right? It was a fun week too! We went finding in an area called Rye. It was such a cute english town, cobblestone roads and a castle included! I loved it! Rumor has it Jonny Depp has a house there but we couldn't find it. What else did we do? I don't even remember. We ate tuna fish pancakes-that was gross..

S got the preisthood this weekend! yay! He is so excited :) love that kid so much

I don't even know what to say in my emails anymore! Things are going really great. I love it out here so much I wish I could just stay. This last transfer is really hard but I am just trying to give it my all.

I love you guys and I will see you way too soon. Have a great week! see you in two :)

love, gregs

ps. the pics are rye

12 Hours Later... (3-19-12)

hey family!

ok so I just talked to you so this email will be brief cause I don't have much to tell you about.

I told you about S's baptism. It was so amazing!!!!! I wish you could have been there. It was the best baptism I've been to on my mission. Sister Allred and i talked to him last night and he was just so overwhelmed and excited about having the Holy Ghost. When he bore his testimony at the baptism he was talking about how he is excited to go home to Bangladesh so that he can build the church there. I'm scared for his safety but i think Heavenly Father will protect him because he is definitely a kingdom builder. He won't be able to go to his home town when he goes to Bangledesh because he is not safe there. It's sad but he is so happy! I've never seen anyone so happy.

I honestly have nothing else to tell you about because I JUST talked to you! If you're sad, get over it, I'll see you in a couple weeks..

Love you so much!!! Have a great week!

Love, sister gregson

Baptism!! (3-12-12)

hello!! This will probably be the shortest email ever so I am apologizing beforehand :) First off. Sister Corner is in the vc now. We were sad to see her leave but we're excited to get back to work! I miss her a lot though, We had so much fun with her.

We've had the BIGGEST miracle ever this week! So remember S? The boy from Bengladesh who used to be muslim and can't get baptized because he would be killed? Well Sister Allred also served in Bracknell and so she knows him as well. She is actually the missionary who found him. That was a year ago that he started meeting with the sisters! Well for the last year every missionary that has served in Bracknell has bugged president about getting shipon baptized. President sent his case to the first presidency but never really heard anything after that. This last week he was in Germany for a mission presidents training and he called the Bracknell sisters and said that he was going to take shipons case to the area presidency while he was there. We got a call from him yesterday and we asked him about it and he said S CAN GET BAPTIZED!!!!!!!!! aaaahhhhh!!!!!!! President talked to Elder christopherson about it and received permission! Later that day we got a call from the Bracknell sisters and they were with S and he told us what had happened and he said that He is getting baptized on Saturday. All of us were just crying and crying. It is such a miracle! This is all he's wanted for the last year and he can finally have it! :) The BEST part is that this week Sister Allred and I had planned on doing a workover with Bracknell so we get to go to his baptism!! I can't even tell you how excited we are. I am just so happy for shipon. He is the most amazing kid ever and This will be such a blessing for him and he can actually hold the priesthood as well and go to the temple. This is so amazing. I can't wait!! Miracle!!! He is putting his life in so much danger by being baptized but he has said he would die for the church whether he is a member or not. He is amazing!

That's pretty much all I have to say about the week. Our area is struggling a bit since we are gone so much and then being stuck in the flat but we are still seeing amazing things happening every day.

We did an exchange with the sisters in East Grinstead this week. I worked with Sister Jones. She is so amazing, such a good missionary! Every time I do another exchange I can't help but wonder why I am the trainer when these girls teach me more than I teach them! I am having so much fun with them. The downside to these exchanges is it makes time pass by even faster. Not cool.

Speaking of which ...Tell Bishop I will NOT be giving a homecoming talk since I am NOT coming home. Sorry! :)

I will be calling on Sunday. Probably around 7 am your time. I'll most likely call you the night before just to confirm but I'm not really sure yet.

As far as registering for school. . . aaahhh!!! I don't really know.. what should I do? I don't even know what classes to tell you to sign me up for..

Anyway...Thanks for everything. I love you! Have a great week!

Love, sister gregson

Monday, March 5, 2012

Not Again!

You'll never guess what happened this week.... So while Sister Allred and I were doing all of our exchanges, Sister Corner (the girl we've been training) was staying in Eastbourne with the sisters there. While they were in the flat one day she fell down a flight of stairs and hurt herself really bad. The doctors said she may have broken her coccyx but we don't know if it is broken or not because they didn't do a scan for her. My companion broke her butt! And guess what?! We've been stuck in the flat since... AAAHHH!!!! She came back to Hastings on Wednesday night and she's been a right mess since then so we can't go out because she is in so much pain. We have been going to appointments when we can but she is really struggling. I'm going crazy. I only have 5 weeks left and I'm sorry but I can't spend the last 5 weeks of my mission in my flat! I called President Shamo about it and he said he would move her as soon as he can and the assistants called this morning and said they are working out details but she will probably be going to the VC. She is really sad to be leaving. She wants to stay in Hastings with us and we wish she could stay. We have been having so much fun with her but it just isn't working. All the hard work sister allred and I put into the last transfer is falling apart really quickly now. She will probably be moved sometime this week. Sister Allred had a companion who was really sick for a while so her mom had sent her phase 10 and other card games so that keeps us entertained for a bit. I can only stand card games for so long though... I've gotten some really good studying in. I had a really cool study last night and had this sweet reminder that I am doing the same work as my dad and it just amazed me. It made me even more sad to go home though because I will never have this time again. I love it here so much and am so sad to be finishing my mission.

I don't have much to fill you in on.... I've been in a flat. That's about it. haha It's been good though. I'm a bit frustrated with it cause I'm so short on time but hopefully it will get taken care of soon. I always seem to have sick companions. At least it's not me this time haha

Anyway, I hope you have a great week! Thanks for everything! Let me know how the dinner went with sister Mills family. I wish I could be there. We will have to do it again when I get home!

I love you so much!

Love, chels

PS I forwarded the letter you sent me from dad to President Shamo. He loved it so much and he called me this morning and asked if he could use it in the weekly email to all of the missionaries. He put it in the email. I thought you might like to know that :) I'm sure dad is so excited about that! And I know that that email will touch a lot of the missionaries hearts as they read it. President says he cries everytime he reads it :) so thank you for sending it!

love you!

This is the letter mentioned above:

I have been cleaning out the storage room the last couple of weeks, going through all the pictures and everyone's stuff. I came across a letter that Dad wrote to Mike when he was on his mission, and so I thought it would mean a lot to you to hear the words of your dad to his missionary daughter. Mike had just been called to be a zone leader, and since you have been called to be a senior sister trainer I thought this would definately relate to you, so here you go:..... "Congratulations on your new calling as a Zone Leader. It is a great responsibility, but more importantly it's a great opportunity to serve the missionaries in your zone. Some of them don't have the spirit and commitment that you have and they need to feel and see it from you. You can be a great instrument in the hands of the Lord in your example as a missionary. One of the lessons that I learned from my trainer, Elder Warby, is that you can ENJOY THE DIFFICULT. By that I mean that you can enjoy the everyday life of a missionary: like getting up early, reading and studying the scriptures, knocking on doors, whether they are slammed, opened or answered; talking and testifying; whether they hear and understand you or not. Walking; in a suit on a hot and humid day, or when the hairs in your nose freeze with every breath you take and being ridiculed for it. There is joy in knowing that you had the courage to testify to someone who completely disagrees and in some way despises you, and you can feel true joy when your testimony is heard and felt and even accepted. Some of my most difficult days ended with my best prayers. Some of my most difficult investigators ended with my most satisfying baptisms, some of my hardest companions became my most cherished friends, some of my most difficult area's are my most fondly remembered and some of my most trying times became my moments of pure understanding. Being away from family and friends for two years seems like a long, long time, but being near to Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost for those two years, will later, not seem nearly long enough. You have caught the vision of what a missionary is and can be to the children of our Heavenly Father, and of the saving grace offered by our Savior Jesus Christ, you have felt the Comforter as he has comforted, taught, and testified to you. Some of the Elders and Sisters in your Zone haven't, and they don't understand what you know and understand. Think how powerful your Zone could be if all the missionaries in your Zone could be converted and committed to the work with all their hearts, might, mind and strength. This is a great responsibility and will be difficult, but you have accepted the challenge of the calling, and have learned to enjoy the difficult. My counsel to you on how to go about fulfilling your calling would include the following: by happy; always have a smile on your face, be prayerful; the Lord knows the missionaries better than anybody, be the example; follow the rules with exactness, be loving; love them in their strengths and in their weaknesses, love them for who they really are, children of God, be a finisher; don't give up on them or on what you feel is right, and finally, be Christlike; none of this seems easy to do, but give it your best effort and the Lord will make up the difference. I want you to know that I am proud of you and how hard you are working. I wish only one thing, that I could spend a couple of days with you as your companion so that we could testify together to the people of (England). The Lord is truly blessing your family because of your hard work, and we thank you and Him for these many blessings. Keep up the good work. Remember, pray hard, study hard and work hard and all things will work for your good because you are doing the Lord's work. Have a great week, Love, Dad." Just thought that might mean a lot to you Chels! :)