The Small and Simple Things, and Halloween Day

Happy Halloween from London everyone!! :) 

This year Halloween was a bit different from last. Instead of being in the English countryside, I got to be in the hustle and bustle, and crazy costumes of London. People sure do like to party here! It was funny to see all the different costumes on the tube. My companion and I even dressed up as well! I dressed up as Sister Zeng from China, and she dressed up as Sister Croft from Kaysville, Utah. haha. The Mullens (senior couple at the VC) even had us over for pumpkin carving & burgers this morning. I'll send some pictures! 

Something that's been on my mind quite a lot lately is a story from the Old Testament. It was shared at least 4 times within the last week, and so I thought I would share it with you all as well. It's the story of Naaman in 2 Kings 5. To start out Naaman's story, you should know he was the captain of the Syrian army. This was perhaps the most powerful army in the entire world at the time. Naaman however, had a disease called leprosy. Hearing tales of a prophet in the land, Naaman went and sought out Elisha. But when Naaman stood at the house of Elisha with his horses and chariot, Elisha sent a messenger out to meet him instead. The messenger said this "Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean." Now to be honest, I feel for Naaman at this point in the story. The river Jordan wasn't really the cleanest river, and why 7 times? This captain turned away in a rage. Luckily enough Naaman had a friend who persuaded him to have faith. He said "If the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? How much rather then, when he saith to thee, wash, and be clean?" Well, Naaman did go, and did wash 7 times. Not 5, not 8, but 7. And he was made clean! I've thought a lot about this story this week, and I've learned a ton from it. For example, we need to have faith in the living prophets and apostles of God, and we need to have faith enough to know the Lord will heal us. The biggest thing I've taken away however, is that sometimes the council of God isn't to do the grand and mighty, but to work on the small and simple. Prayer, scripture study, service, and going to church may seem tedious and repetitive sometimes, but they can produce incredible miracles. I'm a witness to that! :)  

Honestly, there are no words to describe how much I love the Saviour! :) He is my rock, and my redeemer. 

VC exchanges. I love this girl! Sister Kerr from Arizona.

Beautiful London sunset from the roof of the Hyde Park Chapel. 

They have an ice skating rink at the Natural History Museum! I want to go so bad!!!

ELM= England London Mission

At a munch and mingle after church on Sunday. M---, our investigator, is in the middle, and then some of the ward members. They are great!

Much love family and friends! I hope that your Halloween is spooktacular, and that you don't eat too much candy. ;) 

Love, Sister Rebekah Croft

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday everyone! :) How are you all?

Sister Zeng and I witnessed so many amazing miracles these last 4 days. And when I say miracles I really do mean them. God is a God of miracles after all. Speaking of Sister Zeng, she is incredible! We were talking the other day, and technically I've been a missionary long enough that I could have taught her, she could have been baptized and then she could have come out on her mission a year later... Crazy, crazy. She's absolutely adorable though, and hilarious as well! I love her!! 

The biggest miracle we've seen together so far is M---. M--- walked into the visitors centre on Wednesday evening and was given a tour by some of the other sisters first, and then handed over to us because he was in our area. Well, oh my goodness he is one of the Lords elect! We talked to him for a good 2 hours that night, and at the very end of our conversation he accepted the invitation to be baptised! Apparently, earlier that day he'd had the feeling he needed to come into the VC but he was rushing somewhere. On the way home later that day he told us he couldn't even stop himself from coming in. It was like an invisible force was walking him right through the doors!  We've taught him two times since then and I continue to be amazed at how prepared he is to hear the gospel. He asks questions like "Oh, so you mean Joseph Smith restored the gospel back to the earth?" without us even mentioning the word restoration. Or "Right, so faith is like believing something true without seeing it." My personal favorite was this though, "Everyone says that eternal life is just living forever, but really it is living the way God lives, that's what He would want for us!" He is incredible! I'll keep you all updated. 

Another tender mercy happened last Tuesday. We were sightseeing on our P-Day and on the way to Buckingham Palace we met Elder Cook in the underground. Yes, Elder Cook of the 12 apostles!! He looked just as surprised to see 6 missionaries as we did seeing an apostle of the Lord riding the tube. He's such a humble man, but he also carries a mantle of an apostle! :) It's apparent every time you shake his hand.

Friends and family, I know this email is shortish... but hopefully the pictures make up for it. I just want you all to know that I know this gospel is real. It changes lives, and it's changing mine every single day! The Saviour lives, God loves us, and we have the words of Christ to read from and learn from through scriptures like the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I love this church, and I love the teachings of Christ. I also love you all! 

Sister Teng and I in front of Buckingham Palace! :)

The District at changing of the guards. 

And St. Pauls Cathedral. "Feed the Birds, tpence a bag..." (How in the world do you spell tpence?)

The Queens horses followed our bus to the chapel Saturday morning! If you look closely you can also see a "I love Mormon" bus in the back ground.

Sister Dombrowska's birthday.

On the roof of the chapel with Sister Zeng and Sister Fuhriman. 

Healthy eating!! 

Have an amazing week all! :) 

Much Love, 

Sister Croft

Surprise Visits from a Member of the 12, Interviews and Transfer Calls

Good morning everyone! Or, afternoon or evening depending on when you read this. :) 

I hope that you all had a wonderful week! Sister Teng and I sure did in London. I don't actually have much time to email today with it being transfers week and all, but I'll share a few thoughts, and experiences from this week. 

On Tuesday we had interviews with President and Sister Stevens. Wow, they are just incredible! I continue to be amazed at how Christlike they both are. The training was all about Elder Uchdorfs talk from the General Women's Conference "Fourth floor, Last door." We discussed a lot about what faith can and can't do. If any of you still haven't read this talk yet... stop reading and go read it now. I'm serious! It's such an eye opener to what faith really is. I love it! 

Sister Furhiman (Wisconsin), Sister Teng (Malaysia), Sister Zeng (China), Me (Utah),

Elder Menezes (Brazil), Elder Tragante (Brazil)

On Saturday evening we were told that Elder Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles would be speaking at the Britannia ward the next day. Umm, what? :) A surprise visit from an apostle? "Just another day at the Hyde Park Chapel Visitors Centre" as Elder Hulet would say. Sister Teng and I were talking with some visitors at the close of our church meetings when Elder Cook just strolled through the doors. He immediately shook all of the missionaries' hands, and then went to take his place on the stand before his sacrament meeting started. I've said this before, but there really isn't anything like shaking the hand of an apostle. It really is something special! We were able to listen to his talk and although it had to be short because of time it was extremely powerful! As he closed with his testimony of Christ he said this "I know the Saviour's voice, and I know His face." That statement struck my heart with additional power, and I was overwhelmed with how true this church is. Honestly, it really is led by the Lord today through His chosen servants. It truly is!!

Last night we got transfer calls... I've given up guessing before hand, because I'm always wrong. The news is that Sister Teng will be staying in Hyde Park 1st ward, and Sister Dombrowska from Poland will be coming. I'll be heading back to Hyde Park 2nd ward to follow up train Sister Zeng from China. So that means Sister Zeng will be my fourth companion in a row that is fluent in Mandarin!! Fourth times the charm I suppose? I'll be fluent in no time. ;) Although I think I've said that the last 4 transfers... Chinese is hard! Anyways, more on Sister Zeng next week. I'm sad to be leaving HP1 again, but I've served there for a good 7 transfers and I feel I've done what the Lord wanted me to do here. Back to Hyde Park 2 for my last adventures, and miracles here in London!

 Random pictures of the beautiful architecture here.

Sunday Dinner with the D----- family from Salt Lake City. They are the sweetest! :) Low quality picture, but a high quality time. 

A member gave us these treats.... hmmm... they are BBQ flavored larvets, sour cream and onion crickets, and chocolate coloured bugs... Yes, they are real. Nasty!

Well family & friends I love you all so, so much! I hope that your week is swell. Never forget what is most important, and even more Who is most important. 

Much love,

Sister Croft

--------------------------

Sister D----- from SLC also texted me a few more pictures of Rebekah's and Sister Teng's visit to their house this past week.

And I also got a surprise text from some friends from our neighborhood here who moved quite a few years ago, but are in London on a vacation and sought out Rebekah at the Hyde Park Chapel Visitor's Centre to say hello and give her a big hug. 

I get texts and emails somewhat frequently with updates and pictures of Rebekah. Sometimes they come from neighbors and friends from home who are traveling in London. Sometimes they come from senior missionary couples that are serving with Rebekah, or from members who invite her to their homes for dinner. Most of the time they come from complete strangers that happen to stop by the VC, meet my sweet little missionary girl and kindly ask for her mother's phone number or email so they can send me a picture and a little message. I always respond to thank them but these people will never know how much these little messages mean to me!

Knowing the Saviour and Boye miracles

Heeeello everyone! :) What a crazy fast week. 

Sister Teng and I saw tons of miracles these last 7 days. We were able to extend baptism dates to a couple of our friends, and find some super prepared people on the streets. All in all, it was very obvious how involved the Lord was in our work, and in our lives. Wish I could give you a play by play of every day, but time doesn't agree with that idea... I'll share a few things though.

The last 7 days I've been thinking a lot about the Saviour. The question from conference "Do we only know about the Saviour, or are we increasingly coming to know him?" given by Elder Bednar has especially been on my mind. It's such a soul seeking question, that really causes some deep reflection. As I was studying one morning I found this story, and I just wanted to share it with you all:

A man died and was resurrected and waiting in a room to be interviewed. Another man was ahead of him. The door opened, the man entered, and the door closed. The man on the outside could hear the conversation on the other side of the door. The interviewer began: “I want you to tell me what you know about Jesus Christ.”

“Well, He was born of Mary in Bethlehem; He lived thirty-three years, spending the last three organizing his church, choosing his Apostles, and giving the gospel to direct our lives.”

The interviewer stopped him and said: “Yes, yes, that’s all true, but I want you to tell me what you know about Jesus Christ.”

“Well, He suffered and died so that we could have eternal life. Three days later He was resurrected so that we might return to Heavenly Father.”

“Yes, yes, that is true, but I want you to tell me what you know about Jesus Christ.” The man, a little perplexed, again began: “Well, He restored the gospel in its fullness to the earth through Joseph Smith, reorganized his church, gave us temples so we could do work to save our dead. He gave us personal ordinances for our salvation and exaltation.”

The interviewer again stopped him and said, “All of what you have said to me is true.” The man was then invited to leave the room. After he left the door opened and the second man entered. As he approached the interviewer he fell upon his knees and cried, “My Lord, my God.”

I love my Saviour, I love learning about Him, but I also love continuing to come to know Him every single day. It's not always easy, and I would suggest that knowing about him, rather than coming to know him is the much easier road, but also the less fulfilling one. So believe Christ. He's always standing with his hands outstretched, waiting for us to come to Him. :) And also, he already know us. Perfectly!

On Sunday we had a special devotional with Alex Boye here at the chapel. There are a few amazing things about this. First, he was actually baptized in the Hyde Park Chapel, and attended church here! Second, he actually came back to London to baptize his Mom who has been being taught for the last few months by two of the sisters in our mission! Talk about an incredible experience for both Alex, and for everyone who got to hear him speak/sing. He has such a powerful testimony of this restored gospel, and such an enthusiasm for music! Also, he's just such a down to earth man. What a cool experience! Actually, in a few minutes some of the sisters in our district are going to teach a lesson with him to a man who has been investigating the church for years.. I taught him when I was in that area too. Hopefully it will go well! Alex is pretty bold after all. ;) 

"This is a church for sinners that turns everyone into winners." -Alex Boye

Loved ones, you are amazing! I hope your week is incredible, and full of the gospel, hot chocolate, and Alex Boye music. But if nothing else, then just the gospel. ;)

Love, Sister Rebekah Croft

General Conference and 5 Course Meal

Well, General Conference was amazing wasn't it? :) I'm always blown away at how inspired and personal those talks can be. That's how I know those men and women are called of God to be his servants. There is no other way that millions of people all around the world could receive personal counsel, and answers from a loving Father in Heaven from the exact same words.

"Whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." D&C 1:38

Awe, I love the gospel, and the restored church of Christ! It's humbling to be a part of something so special. Although there were quotes, and thoughts from most of the talks that stood out to me, I'll just share a few of my favourites.

I loved W. Mark Basset's talk about the mysteries of God, and where we need to go to receive wisdom and answers from the all knowing teacher. The words "Be ambitious for Christ" from Kazuhito Yamashita, and "Joy is a gift for the faithful" from Russell M. Nelson also stood out to me! I loved the short but powerful talk Thomas S. Monson gave about the perfect plan of happiness, and the two brilliant talks about member missionary work by Neil A. Anderson and Dallin H. Oaks. All the missionaries were silently happy dancing in their seats at those points of the conference. ;) One of the biggest things that I took away from the conference however was about faith, love and agency. I felt like it was a big emphasis throughout the whole conference! How much Heavenly Father loves His children, how important it is to have faith in His son, and how God will never force His children to do what is right. How true these things are.

On Tuesday we were able to teach the two Filipino sisters I told you all about a few weeks ago. They've been super busy with work, but found a morning for us to come over for brunch and a lesson. Holy moly, they are fantastic cooks!! They cooked us a whole 5 course meal, and dessert. It was absolutely delicious, and we got to share the message of the restoration with them afterwards! :) We will be seeing them again soon.

Every Saturday we sing on the steps of the Hyde Park Chapel and invite people to come in. We also give balloons to the children as they pass. Can I just say how much I love the primary songs? Those simple songs are laced with powerful lessons!

Sitting waiting for our tube at Gloucester Rd. Station .

Lunch, and goodbye to the Neeleys (senior couple at VC) last P-Day at the Peter-Pan statue in Hyde Park. I'm going to miss them tons! I've served with them nearly my entire mission so far, and so they have a special place in my heart. Also, can I just say how beautiful Hyde Park is?

Loved ones, I hope you have a wonderful week! Have an ambition for Christ, live the doctrine of Christ, and get to know Him personally instead of just learning about him. You are the best!

Much Love,

Sister Croft