It’s Raining, It’s Pouring—email from 02-27-12

posted for Christine by Jana

Dear Home,

Today it is rainy and cold. And we had plans to go to the zoo until about ten minutes ago. But with the cold and rain we are cancelling that plan and going to the mall instead. Sister Surtees needs new tennis shoes badly. So if I don't get a chance to write any of y'all this week I promise I love you and I'm sorry I couldn't write. But we are having fun. :)

This week was really fast and really miraculous. We found 6 new people to teach. So things are starting to pick up to a pace that I don't know if I can keep up with. But I am so happy with that!!! We also finally got our bike rack after much drama. So we will probably be getting our bikes this week and starting that up! I'm really excited for that. We are doing it to save on miles on our car since our budget gets mostly used up in driving to trade offs.

I had an interesting experience with a pastor this week. We were contacting in an apartment complex and he came out of nowhere and asked to see my Book of Mormon. He then proceeded to tell me everything that was false about it and our church. He just kept going and going for about a half hour telling us different things that were false or how I was uneducated in the word of God and so forth. I was talking to the other sisters about it later and made a profound realization. In all of that, he told me everything that was wrong or false (in his eyes), but he never taught me truth. And I realized how different of an experience it was being on the receiving end of that. It is not good to merely attack someone's beliefs and tell them how they are wrong. We need to instead share what truth we know and share the knowledge we have and let them decide for themselves. That is Heavenly Father's plan. It always has been. Present us with simple truths and then let us decide for ourselves whether we will believe and follow the necessary course of action. I love that about Him! And it made me so happy that as a missionary I instead just present people with information and then leave it up to them to act and decide. It is such a better way for the person sharing and the person receiving.

Sunday we had a baptism!!!!! :D He is 9 years old and his mom and older brother are converts for a few years. She just started coming back to church in January and the 9 year old wanted to be taught and baptized!!! He is such a smart, funny, and spiritual kid. It was so fun teaching him for the past month. He has made it the most hilarious experience. One of the lessons that really cracked me up is when we taught him about tithing. His brother asked us. "Well if you're poor and homeless and you find a penny, then what?" And his nonmember dad incredulously replied "How do you tithe on a penny?!" I was so glad that dad took that question. We were laughing so hard we couldn't answer...

This coming Sunday we have another baptism! This one is a miracle found by Elder and Sister Barrus. They serve military families and there was a less active member that was deploying last spring. They promised they would take care of his wife and kids while he was gone. Well, their love and service reactivated him, and made her curious about the church. So she began learning with the missionaries last fall and is getting baptized this Sunday!!! I am so excited for her. She is so amazing. I love her.

So ummm....can I tell you I almost screamed and cried all at once when I read that Gerry went to the temple last week?!!?!?! I am soooooo sad I couldn't be there. But I am even happier for him!!!! Oh my goodness! My heart is full! I love him so much! And I am so happy that he was able to do that! What a miracle! I bet he is just on cloud nine. And to have so many friends there supporting him! That had to be just so amazing! Was Ruth able to make it? I hope so!

Wow...this letter is getting really really long. I better start wrapping this up here.

The pictures are from the baptism yesterday. 

On the left is Grandma and us. Then the baptism boy. Then Mom and Dad and all the brothers. 4 boys...their house is always crazy when we go over!

The second is Sister Surtees and I with the lucky baptism boy! YAY!

Remember...be the change!

love y'all!

Sister McCracken

Happy Presidents Day- email from 2-20-12

posted for Christine by Jana

BRRRR!!!! It was in the 80s yesterday and windy like you wouldn't believe. But now today it's below 50 and I'm freezing! Florida is turning me into a sissy.

This week was another light speed week. We spent two days in Savannah again and then another Sister Leader came to our area to trade off with me and see how I was doing. So Sister Surtees and I are really only companions about 50% of the time. It's weird.

We have had so many miracles this week though. Even though we were out of our area a lot of this week we found a lot of new people to teach and still were able to work with our usual people. We had a super miracle yesterday. This woman came to church yesterday that I didn't recognize, so Sister Surtees went and introduced herself as the new sister (it's our trick just in case I have met the person before and don't remember :D ) And it turns out this woman has been inactive for the last 10 years and decided yesterday morning that she was going to try it again. After church both the Bishop and the Relief Society president talked to us and told us to go visit her as soon as possible. The problem was that our entire day was scheduled out with appointments. But quickly every one of them called and cancelled. So now our evening was completely open. We decided to go see this sister. It turns out her husband isn't a member and they are both going through a lot of hard times. We visited for a while and talked it was amazing. The Spirit was so strong. We set up a return appointment for tonight. And as we were leaving she said she had been hoping we'd come over after church. It's amazing how Heavenly Father works. He is very open and says maybe this is the peace he is looking for. When we left Sister Surtees and I talked about how we both felt we already knew them and that was the most comfortable lesson we had ever had. I know that Heavenly Father planned all of us meeting specifically when He did for a purpose. I'm so excited to see them again tonight.

We've got two more exchanges this week. One of them will be other Sisters coming to us and the other will be us going just a little west in the stake to the other sisters in our zone. That one is going to be a little more exciting. The sister I'm going to be with is from South America and still struggling with her English. I'm going to have to remember to not talk fast and not use too many of my nerdy vocab words.

Sorry I'm remiss on voice recordings this week. The federal holiday threw me off a little. And then this morning we got a surprise visit from some people from Sister Surtees home ward that took us to breakfast. So I'm all sorts of jumbled up today.

But I have some funny pictures for you. Friday I was cooking lunch and Sister Surtees was making phone calls. At one point I turned around and looked at our patio door and see a squirrel spread eagle on our door!!! I'm staring in shock.

Sister Surtees was on the couch and saw my face, so she turned around to see what it was...And screamed like a little girl and ran back into the bedroom...while she was still on the phone. It was hilarious!!! Well we left and came back a few hours later and he was still there.

But when we got home that night he was gone. So that was a little disappointing. I named him Fred though for whenever he comes back.

So I'm loving hearing the stories of how y'all are making changes and trying to BE THE CHANGE!!! Keep it up! Let's keep this movement going!

all my love from Florida,
Sister McCracken

The Saints Went Up to Georgia- email from 02-13-12

posted for Christine by Jana

hehe...my wit is back! So as an explanation of my subject line. Sister
Surtees and I went on an exchange with the sisters in the Savannah,
Georgia area on Friday and Saturday. Sister Surtees is a Sister
Leader. So she has certain sisters that are under her stewardship and
that she goes and works with and trains them in areas they feel they
are lacking in. And I get to tag along and be the other missionary's
companion for those twenty four hours. So after we finally got back
Saturday night I was sitting there thinking and I asked Sister Surtees
"Isn't the name of that one song called The Devil Went Down to
Georgia?" She smiled, said "Yes. The SAINTS went UP to Georgia!!!!"
haha. For the first time in my life I went UP to Georgia. That's a
weird thought! It was great working up there and I got to teach so
many wonderful people. And we're going back again this week so she can
work with the other missionary. So I'm hoping I can see some of the
same people again and see how they are progressing!
Otherwise the week was pretty crazy! We basically only got to work as
a companionship in our area for 2 days this last week because of the
trade off and then Sister Surtees was at leadership training for two
days. But we had some amazing miracles in the couple days we did get
to work together. And she got some amazing training on how to better
work with members in getting them involved in missionary work so we
are really excited to get this going and see how this changes things!
It's been freezing cold the last few days!!! And by that I mean in the
50s...Florida is quickly turning me into a wussy. I'm a little nervous
about that!
Oh and tell Brother Gambrel I'm still not a Zone Leader... they said
something about priesthood authority or something...don't ask me! ;D
PICTURES!!!

That is the back of our car loaded up with all the stuff we needed to
sleep over in Georgia! They have bed in a bag kits with blankets and
air mattresses for us. Thank Heaven!

That's a giant bridge we went over! Like GIANT!!!! Ships fit under it
kind of giant...if you get my drift.

Is it just me or was that exit sign a little over-kill for how little
is on it? Or is that the exit to the middle of nowhere? hehe
Sorry the gps one is blurry, having my flash on made it glare and I
couldn't get a clear shot. But there's the proof it tried to get us to
board a ferry!
And proof that we almost boarded a ferry. Crazy!

I love y'all and I'm just gonna simply say in some good Southern terms
"I'm fixin' to be the change." How about you?

love ya!
Sister McCracken

Sunshine and Sparkles- email from 02-06-12

posted for Christine by Jana

No, I don't know what that subject means either. My creativity is starting to wane...shoooot....

Well, transfers went well! It was my first official transfer meeting since I came into the mission. And I loved it! One of the Elders going home was my zone leader in my first area. He was a tough cookie that I almost thought felt no emotions sometimes. But then he cried and cried at transfer. And I saw how much his mission really had touched him. At the beginning of every day and every meeting we recite a few things. Our Vision is "I am a diligent, obedient, worthy, powerful and holy disciple of Jesus Christ, now and forever." When this Elder bore his testimony he said "I finally understand for the first time what it means to be a disciple forever." That really touched me. This work never ends for us. In a little over a year when I come home I will be a returned missionary, but I won't be a retired missionary. What a thought.

My new companion is Sister Surtees! (See pictures below) and I love her!!! Ever since I got to the mission I have prayed that I would get to work with her. And I got that answer this transfer! (Look I rhymed!) So, I feel very blessed. She is a powerhouse missionary that is a spiritual kick in the face when she starts teaching/bearing testimony. I have so much to learn and so little time!

This week has been a slower week as far as teaching goes. Agency has been our bane this week. We had lots of scheduled lessons and appointments, but because of lots of different crazy circumstances most of them fell through. BUUUUT we found so many new people! And so many of them have so much potential! I have realized in this work that sometimes one aspect of the work has to fall apart a little so you take time to reallly focus on another. And our new focus was finding new people to teach! And I think we have been really seeing some good come from that.

pictures!

I found a place that had sushi a couple weeks ago!!! Mmmm....sushi straight out of the ocean!

Sister Surtees and I. We went to Whataburger (it's a southern thing) to celebrate our companionship! Mmmm delicious!

And some random pirate stuff I found at a souvenir shop. The pirate theme is big here...I wonder why...Is it possibly having the ocean nearby?!

So as I reflect on my week and how things have changed a lot. I've seen that sometimes you have to let things fall apart a little and take a new path...And be the change that is needed.

I love y'all!!!!

love,

Sister McCracken

It’s a lovely day in the neighborhood- email from 01-30-12

posted for Christine by Jana

Hello Hello Hello!

It's been another whirlwind week here in Florida! We got the news Saturday that Sister Mathis is transferring. So for once it's not me who has to pack up! I don't know who my new companion is yet. I will find out Wednesday afternoon. President Barry promised me a good one! But I'm sure he tells everyone that. :) haha

It's good to hear that Diane is doing so well! And I love her new hair! I think she should keep it this length for a while! Maybe just a little longer. Kinda like Jana's/Emma Watson. I'm so happy that she is recovering well.

YAY for Megan!!!! I'm so excited for her! I can't wait to see pictures of the little beauty! And the big question will be is she going to get Mommy's light hair or Daddy's dark hair? Guess we will see!

The weather has been a little better this week. We didn't get rained on this time around! The rain has been sticking to the night, or the morning while we are studying. Which I am grateful for.

We got to do some shopping last P-Day and I got myself some gator paraphernalia! Yay me! So now I'm an official gator fan. People will probably just stare in confusion when I come back to Idaho with that stuff. But that's okay with me!

As far as the missionary stuff goes we had a pretty good week. We taught a LOT. A lot of the lessons were at homes of part-member families or less-active people. But that's good too! So we kept pretty busy. Which is the way I prefer it. We had one little meeting that was interesting for me. I learned that you don't realize how much you believe in something until someone tells you that you don't believe. We knocked a door and the first thing the man said was "I'm an evangelical Christian and I've already been saved." I politely responded and said "Oh, don't worry, we're not here to perform doorstep salvation." After talking for a while he told us that we didn't believe in Jesus Christ. And suddenly I was soooo vehement in my belief of Jesus Christ. I have never so strongly wanted to tell someone YES I DO!!!! So we explained to him that he is the center of our beliefs and that we do everything we can to come to know him. It was amazing. I have never realized how much I believed in Him until someone challenged that. I am so grateful for the opportunity to share my beliefs and explain that to people every day. I'm sure you all have had similar experiences on different topics as well.

I hope that you all are doing well! I pray for you every day.

On to the photo. I saw this flower at a members house and was in love! We can't grow anything like that in Idaho! He thought I was a nut for taking the picture.

Remember that being the change starts with simply being yourself. :)

I love y'all!

love,

Sister McCracken

Winter in Florida- email from 01-23-12

posted for Christine by Jana

Well, it sounds like you are finally getting some snow there. That's
exciting! We are getting a little rain here and there. People are
telling me Florida is in a drought this year. :( But that we are also
having an unusually warm winter. Which I am totally fine with!!! I'm
already turning into a wimp on the really cold days. (Down in the 30s
and 40s) But I'm going to blame it on the fact that I've never
intentionally chosen to go outside in light knee-length skirts and
bare legs in winter before! haha

The first picture is my war-wounds. We went to a less-active member's
home Saturday night for a lesson. He had us set up outside with
tiki-torches. It was really fun because the stars were out and the
smell of citronella made me think of camping. We had a great lesson
and he gave us 5 referrals! WOW! But, there was also a painful
side-effect to our visit...That morning I had ran out of my scentless
lotion so I decided to use some of the yummy smelling stuff I got for
Christmas...well...that was the wrong choice apparently. Throughout
the whole visit I could feel them biting me. I got 13 bites all over
my ankles and legs at that visit... That's my new record! I've gotten
lots of bites so far, but that is my record for one sitting! haha

We also had a small miracle this week. We had a less-active member the
relief society asked us to make some visits to, so one afternoon we
decided we would drop in and see how she was doing. Well, when we
pulled up she was raking leaves. So I jumped out of the car and said
let us help! She thought I was crazy since I was in proselyting
clothes, but I told her no fears! After we had been raking for about
20 minutes her non-member husband came home from work early! WOW! At
first you could tell he was trying to dodge us and went inside. But a
few minutes later he came back out with a plum for each of us! I got
him to stay out that time and talk for a while. We even got to have a
lesson with him in the end! And as we were leaving he said they would
have to have us back for dinner some time. It was amazing! That little
visit was definitely inspired. His heart is definitely being softened.:)

My studies this week have been really great! I started an in depth
study of the Apostasy this morning. Oh my stars! I was really
surprised by that. We had someone asking a lot of questions yesterday
and I felt like I was really bad at answering. So I starting reading
out of M Russell Ballard's book Our Search For Happiness. And wow! He
totally reminds me of Mr Haroldsen's history class! He gives an
amazing historical account of the Great Apostasy and explains it from
a historical standpoint. I started having flashbacks to World History
in high school as I read it. I wish I had my notes with me! That's
what I get for brain-dumping most of what I learned in high school...

So for my pictures...
The first is my war wounds on one of my legs. I woke up last night and
realized I was scratching them like mad...Good thing I have itch
cream...

And the next ones prove I wasn't a boy scout. We went to knock a
neighborhood and it was misty when I got out of the car, but I wasn't
too worried. Well, of course when we got farthest from the car was
when the downpour started, and I had left my umbrella behind. So I was
a drowned rat by the time I got back to the car. It was pretty
hilarious!

So, something I've learned this week is that as we can Be The Change
we can change stigmas people may have. When people have incorrect
ideas about others, whether they be missionaries, old white men, young
teens, mormons, the working class, the unemployed; we can help them
see what that truly means to be one of those people when we be
ourselves!

love,
Sister McCracken

I love this place! email from 01-16-12

posted for Christine by Jana

Wooh!!! Another federal holiday and no public library! So I'm once again doing it from the iPad. Yay me!
It has been a fabulous week. We had zone conference which meant that the three JAX zones came together and we got trained by President and Sister Barry and the Assistants. It was amazing! I have pages and pages of notes from the day. Sadly it's only a once a quarter thing...I would love to have that training once a month! I learned so much! And we are having a Book of Mormon challenge as well! W will be reading it by June as well! But focusing the reading and the studying on thes doctrine of Christ and the Atonement. So I'm really excited! I'm only a few chapters in and already loving it! So we'll be reading together!

Last Monday we went and found a souvenir shop. Oh my, I had way too much fun in that shop! We found some of the weirdest things there. We're thinking of taking the senior missionaries with us soon so that they can have some fun too.

Haha I have Somme crazy pictures. Hopefully they come through! If anyone wants their own gator head to sit on the shelf...I can get you one...talk about weird...we also found a frozen yogurt bar like kiwi loco in IF. That made my day! It was definitely a good preparation day last week. We're thinking about going back to that part of town again today. We'll see.

So funny thing happened last week. We went to see a member that hasn't been to church in a while and see what's been stopping him. We were having a great visit and we could tell he had a pretty strong testimony. So my companion asked "why are you LDS?" and he fired back immediately "Because God is LDS! Just read the scriptures!" Oh my stars...I about fell out of my chair laughing. He did the teaching for us. It turns out he got a job that makes him work Sundays. So he still has a good testimony of the gospel. He just has some interference right now. That comment made my day though.

Most of the pictures are self explanatory but the one of the road and palm trees is where Atlantic Boulevard ends and the ocean begins!!! I love it! We walked to the end of the pavement, soaked it up, and then went to the souvenir shop. :)

There's Sister Mathis and I! 

The sign cracked me up...Is it just me or are they making fun of the "keep calm and carry on" mania?

And that is a nasty gator foot back scratcher...ewww...

The bag at the end is my new love and joy!!! Last night we went to a member's home to and I fell in love!!! She has everything antique and old school you can think of. Really, their house is indescribable. After the lesson and as we were leaving she ran up to me with the bag and said "something told me to give this to you. you made me feel really good tonight." I just about cried. She made the bag herself. And it's beautiful! :D I love her!

So yeah, hopefully all the attachments fit! I kinda overloaded ya, sorry!

By now you should expect what I'm about to tell you...Be the change!!! St Francis of Assisi said (roughly) "In all things preach the gospel, and if necessary, use words." (thanks Jana for the quote) So BE the change you want to see in people instead of forcing them.

LOVE YOU ALL SOOOOOO MUCH!!!!

love,

Sister McCracken