February 2, 2015

We don't have a car this week so it is a little harder to do some things! As for Sister Badger-- I love her and we get along great! She is super nice and she has helped me a lot! This week sounds like y'all had a lot of fun! I just really miss all of you so much and can't wait to talk to you either!  Well-- where to even begin.... so Sister Badger is from Provo. This week we had lots of meetings so the first one we had was a Zone Conference and Sister Bauer and I had to teach so that was a little hard because we are separated.  So that is a little harder than usual, but we made it and it was funny because that was my last zone conference-- so yes, it was pretty sad! I cried a bit and now it starts with all the lasts!! So then Friday we had CMLC,  which is our leadership meeting and Sister Badger had to go back with her companion that she fought with for the day which was an experience.  At that meeting,  President talked to me about what he is planning on doing for the rest of my mission. He told me that I will finish here in Zebulon with Sister Badger so that should be great!! She might hate being a missionary but she is honestly one of the hardest workers I know! She is really organized so I am learning a lot!! I have even been keeping my clothes hung up for part of the week!! Dad you should be proud!! hahahaha!  Some things will never change!!  As for the teaching part of the week--well this has been one of the hardest parts of my mission  I think especially this week!  So on Tuesday I got a really bad cold and we went over to see George.  Well lets just say my heart has never hurt so much.  The worst part about it is, he still wants to meet and learn about the Book of Mormon so I still have to see him all the time! Pretty much long story short,  it was the hardest lesson I have ever had.  He asked us if we would read the first 12 chapters of John with him.  So we started and pretty much he just, under the table,  bible bashed us the whole time. I honestly don’t know what happened but I think that he gets confused and now he is just lost. We still meet with him and I love him so much still but it is hard and he is much farther than I thought. Like for example,  he knows all of this deep doctrine but he believes in the Trinity.  He told us in the first lesson that he didn't but I guess he changed his mind.  I guess this is where your heart gets torn as a missionary because you want all these blessings for the people that you love but they are just so blinded by the world and by the things around them that they forget to go to the source of truth. I have learned so much about a broken heart and a contrite spirit and what it truly means between testimony and conversion. I know that this is the Lord's work though and that it all happens for a reason. George just has to go through some things before he is ready for he fullness of the Gospel! So other than that,  Sister Badger and I have been working our tails off!  We are just finding “do not contacts” and less actives and people to teach! Honestly, Sister Badger is one of the smartest people I know and I am lucky to learn from her each day!  Today Sister Miller is taking us to Raleigh so my letter and things might be a little late if I get them off but I want you all to know that I love you and that I know this is the true church. I can’t even explain to you how much I love this gospel! I know it is true and I know that I have a Savior who loves me and who knows me! I know that Joseph Smith was a true Prophet and I am grateful for all that he went through for me! I know that I can be with each of you forever and I am so grateful for the blessings of the Temple! I know that the Book of Mormon is true and I know that it gives me the strength I need each day! I am grateful for each of you! 

Love always Cass

January 12, 2015

Mom & family,

I miss and love you so much!   As for this week, wow!! Sounds like y'all are busy dawwwggss! I am so excited to see all of you and your tricks and watch you cheer and dance and all that good stuff! I might be a little embarrassed because I was the worst compared to y'all but no worries I always have a strength when it comes to shimming and ain’t nobody takin my throne on that one!! hahaha just kidding!  As for our here in Zion, lets see so we didn’t have the car so we have been with a lot of our members this week! We have transfers tomorrow and Sister Bauer and I are together for another 6 weeks! Everyone is making bets on what will happen after that!! I want to go back to Pembroke for the last bit but I don’t know if that would fly with President! Hmmm-- what else?  Oh so George... he is the best and I know that he knows the gospel is true! He keeps telling me that I need to become a lawyer but I would never! I really don’t know how to explain him to y'all he told me this week that he was praying and he received an answer that I will always be in his life even after my mission. It was a little funny because everyone just knows that somehow I knew him before this.  This week we had one of the best lessons though because we were talking about the Book of Mormon and he said that he would read it multiple times after this and I couldn’t help but cry as he spoke I felt from my heart that it is true. I know that I will always believe it to be true and it will always be the liahona for my own life! We both just started crying and I know that with all my heart the Lord is working on him and he knows that it is true. He just also knows that so much lies on the table for him when he makes the choice that this is the path he needs to take. He expresses that to us and I realized yes, he does have a lot-- like his wife and his family and all his friends and his job.  But what so many of us fail to see is what we receive from this choice as well. I think that being a missionary really is just for me because I came to the conclusion that yes there is a lot that goes into the gospel put there is so much more that comes out of it! If y'all will all pray for George I know that he will feel the strength coming from y'all! Other than that we have just been really working with a lot of part member families. It has been great! I truly love this ward more than anything and I wouldn’t mind staying here till I die! (mission wise that is) Well I just want you all to know how much I love you and miss you! I think about you everyday and talk about you to everyone! 

Love Cass

January 5, 2015

Mom & family,

As for this week--it was a lot better.   I have been praying a lot about certain things that have just weighed on me my whole mission and I fasted about a lot of it yesterday.   As I prayed last night I really just felt that Heavenly Father was so aware of me.  As  for things around here, yes Zebulon is the best! I love it! I don’t think that I am being transferred which will be great!!  I love it here--and all the members as well! My comp is older than me... pretty much everyone out here is.  I think I am still one of the youngest in our mission other than the elders but I don’t mind!  I can’t believe that dad cut his head!! I hope he is all right! Seriously snowboarding is not our sport!! haha As for this week... oh my goodness have I told you that I love George?? Well I love George!!! hahaha ok I know I say that every week but seriously he is the best!!!  This week we had a great lesson.  We have been asking him lots of questions because he always answers himself when we ask. It is kinda funny because the gospel is true and it just makes sense so when you ask questions people always just out of common sense,  answer themselves with the doctrine that we believe. It is just the art of asking the right question. So he has been having a hard time with baptisms for the dead and we asked him what would you do for those people who weren’t baptized if baptism is the only way to Heaven?  He sat there and realized that it is the only way! It is also funny because all his friends ask him to ask us questions that are anti-mormon questions that their preachers tell them but they are too afraid to ask so then he asks us and when we answer he always gives us verses in the Bible to Bible bash with. (He literally has the whole thing memorized!)  Then later,  we had another lesson and we asked him what he had thought about baptism as he prayed and he said that he had a dream of a field that was ready to be harvested and there were workers who were going out to harvest.  I about died! We whipped out D&C  4 and he just laughed and said there goes the Mormons always having an answer to everything! hahaha I just love him! But other than that,  we have been really working with a lot of less actives this week! They are all so crazy but good! It is just funny that they always have problems with Joseph Smith and then when we ask them if they have been reading the Book of Mormon while they question everything-- their answer is always the same, No.  I just want to tell them to go and read and pray and come to church and then ask me the same question over again. I can promise they will see it in a different light! I just love the gospel so much! It is so true and it is what brings the greatest happiness! I hope that you all have the best week and know how much I love you! 

Love Cass

December 29, 2014

Sorry it took me so long to email today, we went with Sister Smith to Ulta in Raleigh and then to lunch for Sister Bauer’s b-day. It is today!! It took a little longer than we expected so now we are rushing everywhere to get everything else done! I thought Mondays would be the least  stressful day of the week but in reality they are always the craziest! haha Anyways I loved seeing y'all on Christmas! It really makes everything better! I just really don’t feel like it will be that much longer till I am right there with you!  We had a wonderful week! We went out with a Sister named Sister Workman and she just made us laugh the whole time! She is this little old lady that is so feisty! Christmas Eve was great! We went to a members house where a lot of people from the ward were all doing a white elephant exchange and having sweets and stuff so that was super fun!!  What made the night different from any on my mission-- was that they had a testimony meeting at the end of it. It was one of the most spiritual experiences that I have ever had and I was able to truly feel the true meaning of Christmas. It is funny because this whole Christmas season I had been praying to feel the spirit of Christmas and to remember Christ through it all and that night I just felt such overwhelming joy.  I just have gained such a strong testimony of my Savior and I now know exactly what He has done for me personally. I know that the only way that  I can do anything that I do in my life is through Christ. I know that the only way that I can find true and lasting happiness is through Christ and I know that there is a perfect plan just for me that is only possible through Christ. I guess over all I know that I wouldn't have made it against all the tricks of the adversary without my mission because it has taught me how to recognize that the only possible way to ever be happy is by living the gospel. In Church this week someone said the gospel isn't hard-- life is.  It is so true. The gospel is only there to bless our lives but when we want things of the world or we are to impatient to wait for all the blessings that the Lord has for us-- that is when we truly become so unhappy!  Our struggles that we endure make us  stronger.  They have helped me to rely on Christ more than ever before and I am the person that I am today because of those struggles. I would never ask for anymore but I am grateful for the ones that I have had! I love you all so much and hope that you know that! I am so grateful for your love and support and I miss you all! I hope that you have the best week! 

Love always Cass

December 21, 2014

Hey mom! Thanks for everything!   I found out this week that I am a little bit like you-- where I want everything to be perfect but often for me it just doesn’t work out like it does for you!!  As for everything around here! Well since I will talk to y'all in about 3 days this might be shorter but let’s see-- where to begin... So last Monday, Sister Miller came and took us out to lunch which was great! I just love her! She is so sweet.  Then after that Tuesday... oh it poured all day and we felt bad because the Elders had the car the whole week before when it was raining so hard-- so we gave it to them and we rode our bikes and tracted in the rain pretty much all day! It wasn’t too bad, we talked to this really nice man who was a carpenter and he was really interested in the Book of Mormon so that was great! Then after that we had our Christmas Zone Conference all day on Wednesday and it was pretty amazing! We had to drive all the way to Chapel Hill and I got to see a lot of my friends that are out there! It was a musical conference so it was a really great spiritual experience! Afterwards we had to go to our Mission Presidents house for one of the sisters that we are over so we spent pretty much the rest of the night there.  It was a little stressful but it is all over now! Then Thursday and Friday were filled with back-to-back appointments all day long! aka... the best days to be a missionary! Busy days are the best! We really saw all of my favorite people! We had a lesson with George at Brother Boyd’s, our ward mission leaders house,  and it was great! It is kinda weird because everyone that meets him and every time we are with him-- everyone always reminds me that I had to meet him. There is just something so special about George and for some reason I feel like I have known him for my entire life! Oh and yes he is the one in that picture! He is just the best! I can’t wait to tell you about him! After that Darlene Boyd made us Chitlins.... THE GROSSEST THING I HAVE EVER EATEN MY ENTIRE LIFE!!! They are pig intestines! Then after she told us that, she said  when she was cleaning them she found one that was all brown and really nasty smelling so she threw that one away but I just about died!!! Sooo gross! Hmmm what else has happened... oh I sang in church!   Well the Elders and us all sang.  It was kinda funny but it didn’t sound too bad.   The Elders are both over 6 ft and so is my comp so there were plenty of jokes afterwards about a little red riding hood in the big trees! I just love this ward so much! They are really the best and I hope that I spend the rest of my time here! I just love being a missionary! It really does make me so happy! I don’t know how to explain it but I just want you all to know that I know that Christ lives! He is the only way that I could make it out here everyday! He truly makes each weakness  a strength and He knows us so personally! I love this time of the year because I am reminded of the Atonement and what it has done for me in my life! I know that the Gospel is my life and I will always live it! I love you all so much and I am so grateful for each of you! I can’t wait to talk to you on Thursday! I am sending some letters your way so be looking for them! 
Love Cass