Nauvoo Week 12

Hello my fantastic family and friends!!! What a week!!

Pageant has just started last week, and I shared a little about what I do in my last email. Pageant will continue until the beginning of August so I get to be involved for about a month! I've had to keep practicing my ASL, I'm pretty slow at it, but I'm trying to get better!

We talk to so many people, hundreds of people every night! Its so fun to meet so many people! With Pageant brings the crowds in the homes and shops of Nauvoo, and Sister Miskin and I have had lots of success this past week.

Last Saturday we were working at the Land and Records. There were 3 people that came in at one point, they were just wanting to see if they had any relatives here. I started talking about family search and they said they didn't have an account because they weren't members. Sooooo I helped them set one up and started teaching them about family history work. They were so amazed by it, they had no idea you could connect with your ancestors that way. Once we kind of developed a relationship at that point, they must've felt comfortable with me because one of them asked if I was a Mormon. I said I was, and then he asked if I could help him with some questions he had. He asked if my church even believed in Jesus Christ and then asked if we believed in the Bible or only our book we made. Boy could I ever answer those!!! I was so excited, yet the Holy Ghost made me keep calm so I wouldn't scare them away haha! I told him that Jesus Christ is the center of our church, its our main focus in what we believe in. I also told him about how we love the Bible and believe in the Bible. We also have another book of scripture brought to us by the power of God called The Book of Mormon. I talked to this family for a good 30 minutes, they were so curious and wanted to know more and more. I got to testify about so many things, wow it felt so good!! I asked if I could get their emails in case they had more questions or needed help with family search. They said they'd love it if I'd help them. They were really eager to get my email. They're on a little vacation so I won't hear from them for a few days, but I can only hope and pray they'll want to email me back!

Yesterday I had the opportunity to work at the Visitors Center. That place was so busy all day long, I was nonstop walking around and helping people. Over 2000 people came in! So many families asked if I could help them plan their trip here in Nauvoo, so hey if you're planning on coming here don't hesitate to ask I know how to help haha! At one point a man came in all by himself and wanted to watch one of the plays. I was talking to him for a bit, trying to get to know him. He said he's happily a member of another church and has read the Bible 40 times, The Book of Mormon twice and is currently reading Doctrine and Covenants. I was amazed! I asked him why he wanted to read those books, he said he loves learning more about Jesus Christ. After he watched the show, Sister Miskin and I got to talk to him again and asked what he thought about it. I had this powerful prompting that this man was not satisfied, he was wanting more but didn't know where to find it. We asked if he wanted to watch Pageant with us, we would save him a really good seat. He said he really wanted to come and watch it with us with his wife next week. He got our phone number and we got his. He wanted to leave so we said we'd see him later. Then he kept wandering around and was talking to the YPM's. After a while, we heard a YPM talking to him about what happens after we die! He asked us to come and help him talk to this man again. He was so willing to listen and wanted to learn. Wow, another missionary miracle!!!

Later that day, another man came in all by himself. It was just a few minutes before we closed at 7, and he asked if we would answer some of his questions about Joseph Smith. We ended up teaching him about not only Joseph Smith, but The Book of Mormon and the temple. We told him that in the temple we can do baptisms for people who have died. He was a little confused, so we showed him that it talks about it in the Bible. He was just blown away, he had no idea that it talked about the temple in the Bible and he had read it a lot! We gave him a copy of The Book of Mormon and he said he wanted to read it! He stayed and kept asking us questions for about 45 minutes. Sister Miskin and I got to teach 5 nonmembers this week, what a blessing!!!! Once we went home that night, we just fell on our knees and thanked God for letting us have the opportunity to teach two people today. We were so humbled and overcome with gratitude. God is so good!!!! If I haven't made any difference for the 3 1/2 months I've been on a mission, then I've been preparing this whole time to teach these people. God sent me to Nauvoo to talk to them. He's been preparing their hearts to listen for a long time, and I got to help with teaching them. What an experience! I love being a missionary!!!! Sharing what I know to be true gives me more joy than I can say. I just can't describe how happy it makes me!

I talk to lots of people every day and I have experience in being a missionary. Yet sometimes people like to try and remind me that I'm "still a greenie". I sat down for a minute just to give my feet a break because I had been standing in the Visitors Center all day, and a man was just kind of looking at me annoyed. I asked him how he was and he said he was fine. He asked how long I'd been out and when I told him I'd been out 3 1/2 months he said, "Oh yeah I can tell you're still a greenie. A good missionary would know how to talk to people." I was really taken aback, what was he trying to say to me? So I went and sat by him and said, "Well then I'll come and talk to you!" I may have not been out very long, but that does NOT mean I don't know how to be a missionary! People will sometimes hurt you, even if they don't realize it. Its so important that we don't give people that power to hurt us though! They can say whatever they want, but who cares? God knows you and He loves you so much! Don't let what other people say about you bring you down, you are so much better than that.

I get to testify about Joseph Smith and The Book of Mormon a lot, so I thought I'd share one my absolute favorite conference talks. I bet a lot of you have heard it, but listen again! Its by Elder Jefferey R. Holland called "Safety for the Soul", here's the link for it to make your lives easier!

https://www.lds.org/languages/eng/content/general-conference/2009/10/safety-for-the-soul 

I know Joseph Smith is a prophet, THE prophet of the last dispensation. He was called of God to do His work. I know without a doubt he translated The Book of Mormon by the power of God. Joseph Smith is vital, absolutely vital to the Restoration. If you do not have a testimony of Joseph Smith, please find out. Find out from the right sources. The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, lds.org, Gospel Library, even me! 

I love Jesus Christ. I love His goodness and mercy. I love to teach people about Him, He makes me so happy.

I love all of you too!!! Thank you for all you do for me, it means more than you know!

-Sister Taylor

Sister Miskin and I made muffins yum!

 Pageant pics

 Sister Miskin's mom sent us Ding dongs!

 Sister Balzotti! A friend from Lehi!

Nauvoo Week 11

Hello friends and family!!!

This week was so amazing, I know I say that every week but its true! 

Sister Miskin and I finished up working at the Land and Records building last Saturday, wow I helped so many people find their relatives who lived here in Nauvoo! It was such a delight to work there and to see the light that just grew in these people's eyes when they got excited about the people they were finding.

I had time to find my own relatives. After searching through my entire family tree, I found that I have 40 relatives who lived here, and even more who have some sort of connection to Nauvoo or church history!! That's a ton! Most people can maybe find around 10, if they look long enough. Yet I have 40! I'm mind blown! Sister Miskin was joking that she thinks all my relatives up in heaven decided that when they came down to earth they'd all get married and have connections to each other so that they could have a missionary (me) who would come back to their city and their homes and tell their stories. I love it!

We get to work at 4 different places this week: Riser Boot Shop, Cultural Hall, Seventies Hall and Land and Records. Sister Miskin does a monologue scene for the Riser Boot Shop, so we were there the most this week. This week is so amazing and has been anticipated for a while, its Pageant Week!!! So many people have come here the past few days, its been so crazy!! Yesterday Sister Miskin and I were in Riser Boot, and we gave 29 tours which was 196 people! We didn't even have a break to eat our lunches! We stood for hours all day and took a sip of water when we could, it was just crazy! Yet all those tours were so worth it, we both bore powerful testimony of Jesus Christ. Its incredible how if I'm listening to the promptings of the Spirit, I can share something new every time I give a tour. None of the tours Sister Miskin and I give are exactly the same. One tour we gave was for a few families who squished together in the little building of that shop. At the end, this older man came up to me and was just crying and crying. He said, "Do you know how bright the light is that shines from your eyes? Its so beautiful!" That just melted my heart he was so sweet. I love how much the Holy Ghost touches so many people, and I get to see it!

We got to work at the Cultural Hall on Monday, which is where the young performing missionaries do the show "Just Plain Anna Amanda". Its a cute little 30 minute show about a pioneer girl who wants to be somebody important. She learns by the end that if she is just herself, then that's pretty important because nobody else is like her! So many little kids come to that so after the play was done, Sister Miskin and I got to go and talk to a bunch of them. One little girl was really shy, she was about 4 years old. She didn't want to talk to me, but then I got to play with her a little on the steps to the building. She finally warmed up to me and then wouldn't stop talking! She was so cute, she was telling me all about her trip and about the hotel she was staying at and her favorite things about Nauvoo. Wow she was adorable, I couldn't get enough! Well later that day when all the performances were done, Sister Miskin and I continued to give tours. We happened to bring our instruments that day because we thought it would be fun to practice some songs if we had a break. She plays the flute and I play the violin. Well the YPM's asked if we would play a duet for them, so we played Gethsemane. 

It wasn't a glorious performance or anything, just pretty and simple, but I loved it. About an hour before we had to close, a family came in and they said they had already gotten a tour, but they came back because their daughter wanted to dance on the third floor. In the Cultural Hall, the original third floor is still there. The same floor the people of Nauvoo would dance on! We asked if she wanted us to play for her, and she was so excited. I played a little Irish Jig song and the whole family was just dancing together. Then Sister Miskin played "Under the Sea" and this girl was just ecstatic! Oh she loved it!! That was such a fun day!

Tuesday was the day Pageant officially opened! We don't get to sing in the "Sunset by the Mississippi" show for a few weeks, but instead get to work at the Country Fair near the Pageant. The Sister Missionaries walk around and have stations or areas where we stay at. We go and talk to people and hand out the official Nauvoo newspaper. Its a little odd, a huge group of protesters are here. They got hired by someone to come and yell all around the Pageant grounds and hand out anti papers. Our job is to try and beat them to the crowds and hand out our paper instead. We have to race them onto the tour buses, its a little intimidating. Well last night as Sister Miskin and I were doing our job, some antis came and walked around the Pageant grounds and were secretly filming us! I hope they don't try and use it against the church in some way, we didn't do anything wrong. Pageant is so great altogether though.  Hundreds come here from all over the world to see the two shows. The Nauvoo Pageant is about the story of Nauvoo and some stories of the people who lived here. The British Pageant is about the missionary work over in the British Isles. There is so much color, music, dancing, singing and testimonies throughout both shows. I especially love the bagpipes, it is so much fun to listen to them play. They are just incredible! I was just crying my eyes out when I watched the British Pageant, the Spirit was so powerful. The missionaries get to go up at the end of that show and sing "Called to Serve", "Then Say What is Truth" and "Redeemer of Israel". This power just flows from me when I'm up there singing, wow I love it!!! On Tuesday was the Nauvoo Pageant, and a deaf couple came to see the show. So I had to do my very first interpretation that night. I was given advanced notice a few days before that I needed to be ready, so I was practicing as much as I could and praying with my whole heart. I was so nervous, I was just waiting in my chair being an anxious mess. Well when I walked over to start signing, I was completely calm. I messed up a lot and I got behind basically the whole section I had to sign, but I was totally calm! I was laughing at some points because I was having so much fun. I asked the deaf couple after the show if I made any sense and they said they understood everything I signed. I was amazed! The gift of tongues is so real! The Holy Ghost definitely helped them understand what I was trying to sign. I did my very best, which may not have been enough and for sure wasn't perfect, but Heavenly Father made up for it! It was just an amazing experience. 

These next few weeks until the beginning of August will just keep getting even busier. I'm excited and I know without a doubt I won't be able to do it without the help of God. This mission is exhausting, I don't get home now until around 10:45 because of Pageant, so I don't get to fall asleep until about 11:30. Then standing and talking all day just wears me out! Yet I wouldn't trade this for anything. Missions are life changing, I can't believe how much I've changed and grown in the 3 months I've been out. I am constantly having to ask Heavenly Father for help and relying on the Holy Ghost to help me know what to say. I have never felt so close to Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost. I also have never felt so close to the pioneers, they are just incredible and inspiring people! I feel like I know them so well now, they're my friends! 

I love that I get this opportunity to write home every week! It is such a joy to share my experiences and my testimony with all of you, I just love it!!! I can't thank you all enough for all your support and love, you mean the world to me!

Epistle by Sis. Miskin 7/5/2018

I, Sister Miskin, having consecrated my time and efforts to the Lord for the space of eighteen months, give an account of this week's proceedings, and the interpretation thereof shall be given hereafter.

And now behold, it came to pass in the latter end of the third month of the mission of Sister Miskin in the land of Nauvoo, there was a great  season of joy. For behold, the Lord did visit His servants Sister Miskin and Sister Taylor in all their doings, yea, He did enlighten their minds and their hearts in the service of their brethren.  Yea, they did cry out to the Lord, that a portion of His spirit might dwell with them, that they might be instruments in His hands in bringing about this great work. And the Lord did hear their prayers, and comforted them, and they were filled with His spirit.
And it came to pass that in the first day of the first week of the seventh month in the two thousandth and eighteenth year since the coming of Christ, there was much fasting and prayer in the land, yea, and much bearing of testimony, which did strengthen the church.
And the women of the church gathered together, yea, and sent the question out among them, saying: Behold, the time is not far distant before our work is accomplished and we must return to the lands of our inheritance, yea, to our families and to our children. What shall we do to that we might continue in this great cause, which is the cause of Christ, until we shall again meet Him in that day of judgement?
And it came to pass that the women of the church did call upon each other to stand fast in the truth, to be firm in their faith of Christ who shall come, and to inspire the hearts of their families to also look forward to the coming of their Savior and Redeemer. And now behold, I say unto you, that the Spirit of the Lord did rest upon them, and did testify to them many great and marvelous things, for so great was their faith.
And it came to pass that Sister Taylor and Sister Miskin did go forth to serve, yea, and taught in the homes of Heber C. Kimball and Sarah Granger Kimball, much to their joy. For behold, they did delight in testifying and proving the reality of Christ to those who hearkened unto their words.
And in the morning of the third day of the first week of the seventh month in the two thousandth and eighteenth year, those called of God to preach His word gathered together to hear the words which President Lusvardi should speak unto them. And behold, he had but few things to speak unto them, and he spoke with power and authority from God, calling this people to remembrance of the words of President Nelson. For, the Prophet of the Lord did visit us, and did teach us, unto the stirring of our souls unto believing in Christ, who shall come. And thus spake President Lusvardi, saying: Shall we soon forget the blessings of God? I say unto you, nay. For behold, we must retain in remembrance these things, that we may have power and authority from God to teach this people unto the convincing of them that Jesus is the Christ.
And in the morning of the fourth day of the first week of the seventh month in the two thousandth and eighteenth year since the coming of Christ, the people gathered to raise their voices to God in gratitude for His great blessings, yea, for their deliverance from their brethren, the Britains, and for the covenants He made with his people. And thus was the cause of exceedingly great joy among the people, insomuch that they lifted up a banner of freedom and praised His name all the day long.
And it came to pass that in the early morning of the fifth day that Sister Miskin and Sister Taylor did commence their journey to the land of Cantril to visit the people of Amish, for behold, they had many goods and foodstuffs to barter and sell, which would help preserve their lives. And behold, they came away exceedlingly glad, for they did receive much blessing from God there, in preserving their lives for another season. And all the journey long did they sing praises to the Lord their God, for the blessing of their calling which they had. For they looked forward to the coming of Christ, who shall come, and did rejoice in proclaiming His gospel to every nation, kindred, tongue and people.
And in all their journeyings, Sister Taylor and Sister Miskin did pray oft concerning the welfare of the people, and also their families, which were in distant lands, and the Lord did hear their cries and did comfort them. And they received strength according to the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. And thus we see that the Lord will always succor His people, yea, He will console them and give them strength, according to their needs.
And now I, Sister Miskin, make an end of my account. For behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, and have been called of Him to declare His word among this people, that they might have everlasting life and joy in the redeeming power of Christ's Atonement. For, for this cause was I brought to this land, that all may have the opportunity to sing the song of redeeming love. And I would that ye harden not your hearts any longer, but turn to Him with all meekness of heart and repent, for behold, now is the time to prepare to meet God. And when ye shall do these things, behold, He shall pour out His spirit upon you, and ye shall experience this change of heart which Alma did speak of. And if ye do these things, ye shall have treasures in heaven, which are laid up for you in the kingdom of the Father. My brethren, I bid you adieu.

Nauvoo Week 9

 Hello hello hello!!
So my pday has moved to Thursdays now, yay!! Also, I am now allowed to use Facebook as a missionary, so you might see some posts from me. Don't worry, I'm not being naughty! I can only use it to teach people and share uplifting thoughts. I can't communicate with any of you through Facebook so if you talk to me through that, I won't be able to respond for another year or so... so just stick to email!
This week I've been able to work at some fantastic places! The first of this week was at the Sarah Granger Kimball home. Wow I just love that place more than I can say! I get a bit of sitting time at that home because its further away from the rest of Nauvoo and people don't think to come see it. That just means I get to study my scriptures for a long time! Hours even! Sister Miskin gets to study a lot too. That means we get to prepare with the Spirit for a long time for the few people who may come to that home. Wow, every tour we give is so powerful! The Spirit is always obviously present. I got to talk to a young woman for a while about her preparations for going on her mission. Her grandparents were wandering the house and talking to Sister Miskin. We talked for a good half hour about missionary work and what to maybe expect and what to learn and prepare for. I told her that missionary work is such a joy and a blessing, the greatest cause on earth. She left really excited to go and serve. I love the youth!
Yesterday and the rest of this week Sister Miskin and I get to work at the Land and Records. This is an extraordinary place, if you come to Nauvoo you cannot leave without coming here!!!! Any information that researchers have found about the people of Nauvoo are here at this site. You cannot find it anywhere else in the world! I have found pages upon pages of my ancestors who lived in Nauvoo and I had no idea until I came here! So many amazing stories! I got to find my family members whenever I had a break, but that site is so busy. We were helping people from the moment we opened to the moment we closed! I helped tons of people find their relatives and save the information so that they could keep those documents forever and put them on family search. You should have seen the light in their eyes and the excitement that filled these people when they found a relative they had no idea existed! Wow it is so fun and exhilarating to work there I love it!! I hope I get to work there a lot more! There was a couple of young men that came in with a group. They didn't look very excited to be there and probably didn't expect to find anything. Well I helped them print out their family pedigree chart and start finding people. They both found multiple relatives in the 15 minutes they were there. They got so excited and would call me over to tell me a cool story about the person they found. It was amazing to see how they changed so fast. I have always had a slight, well actually major, obsession with family history, so this place is totally where I belong. I know without a doubt that Nauvoo is my mission!
So I mentioned last week that pageant is starting up soon, and that will bring lots of people. Pageant is two shows/ performances here in Nauvoo. They tell about the experiences of the people of Nauvoo and about the experiences of missionaries who went to Great Britain to serve. I am so so excited for it to start! I have been practicing my ASL a lot lately, trying to get it down so I can be an interpreter. Its so hard! I'm really nervous that I'll mess up and the people who need the interpretation won't know what's going on... I hope they get the main idea! Even though Pageant brings lots of great people, it also brings lots of protesters. These people come by the bus load and are paid to stand around Nauvoo and tell people about "how bad this church is." They yell and hand out flyers and try to get in arguments. Its pretty scary, but my job is to ignore them and help people avoid them if at all possible. It makes me really sad that people think they need to say so many bad things about this church, they have no idea how great it is!

Yesterday was the 4th of July! How was everyone's celebrations?? We got to have a big missionary dinner, we had a flag raising ceremony with music and a speaker. There were a few fireworks from the people who live here in Nauvoo and Keokuk, but they didn't last long. A huge rain storm hit and was going off all night long. Lots of lightning and thunder so it still sounded like fireworks haha!
A great quote I wanted to share with you is something that has really helped me this week. Its from President Dallin H. Oaks, he said,"Trust in the opportunities of the future rather than the disappointments of the past." I learn new things about repentance all the time. This week I learned that I may be repenting for myself and allowing myself to be free of that guilt, but am I letting others do the same? God has promised us that when we repent, He remembers our sins no more. If God is willing to look past our faults and forgive us of our sins when we ask, then can we look past the faults of others and forgive them when they may wrong us? Do we hold grudges? Do we not give second chances? Do we still hold onto the one bad thing someone did like 5 years ago? We all make mistakes, and it is so important to remember that. Everyone will do something that is wrong. We need to learn to grow with these people, allow them to change. Don't hold them back when they are trying to become better! Remember, our inability to love someone is not their fault.
I was able to finish up reading The Book of Mormon this week, so I got to start it over again! I wanted to leave you with a scripture that just gives me so much happiness and hope. Its Moroni 10:32, it says,"Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God." I love The Book of Mormon! I promise, if you read this book, it will protect you from the temptations of Satan. It will give you power.
I love you all!!!! Keep up the great work!!
-Sister Taylor