A Christmas Post Card

Hello one and all! 

Hope everyone has had a wonderful first week of December wherever you may be. :) Now that it's "officially" the Christmas season Canterbury has turned into a winter wonderland (without the whole snow part..) The city center is filled with twinkling lights, a Christmas market with traditional English/European christmas gifts, troubadours on the streets singing all the classic holiday songs, and delicious hot cocoa and roasted nuts. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming, because this place is honestly taken out of a Christmas post card! And I love it here!

My week has been crazy, just to put it in one word. It was pretty different from usual because Sister Mussman was sick, and I wasn't feeling 100% either. We ended up taking it pretty easy, staying in for a couple days, and then going to see a doctor to make sure Sister Mussman didn't have anything serious. The good news is she's fully recovered! Yay! 

Just to mention a few cool things that did happen this week though..

*On Friday we got to attend and help serve food at the wedding of Megan & Gerry (two of the YSA's in the ward) at the chapel. Let me just say.. it was so BEAUTIFUL! Both Sister Mussman and I haven't attended a wedding before so it was especially exciting! We spent the day serving various courses to the guests, washing a bajilion and a half dishes, throwing flower petals at the newlyweds, and having a lot of fun with everyone there.    

*On Saturday we had Zone Meeting! This Zone Meeting was really focused on the new Christmas video that came out 7 days ago- "A Savior is Born". If anyone hasn't seen it yet, go right now and watch it! It's such an amazing video that helps us refocus and remember what Christmas is really about. It's been so much fun to stop people in the streets and show them the video, and then to see the smiles on their faces when they feel the sweet spirit that comes with watching it. :) A lot of people out there don't know that a little over 2000 years ago a Savior was born for them! But I know that for a fact, and it's such an incredible feeling to let others know.   

*Yesterday we had Stake Conference. This was my first Stake Conference as a missionary so I was really excited. :) Also, our investigator S was able to come as well, even though it was about a 40 minute drive away. Something special about this particular meeting is that there was a short lesson before the main conference started for all the recent converts,and investigators. President & Sister Stevens and President Hunt (stake president) taught it so it was super spiritual! They each bore testimony of the Book of Mormon, and just how real and inspired it is, which is exactly what S needed to hear. :) Another highlight of the conference was the closing song. We sang "I Know That My Redeemer Lives", and for some weird reason it was the first time that I really payed attention to the lyrics. As 400 or more of us stood and sang these words the spirit hit me like a brick wall, and I realized once again that Jesus really is our Savior & Redeemer! And most of all He does live today! 

I hope everyone has a fantastic week full of holiday adventures! Sorry if this email was really boring... but if you read the whole thing, I'm impressed. haha. Love you all!

Love, Sister Rebekah Croft 

At Megan and Gerry's wedding.

The library we email at. It's pretty amazing!

Our zone meeting consisting of lots of Americans, New Zealanders and Australians. They're great! :)

A very English Thanksgiving and Sister Mussman

Hey family and loved ones,

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving full of turkeys, pumpkin pie, gratitude, and a much needed nap. :) I just wanted to tell all of you how thankful I am for all your prayers, love and emails. I love you all, and am SO blessed to have each of you in my life! My Thanksgiving was pretty fantastic as well. It wasn't quite as traditional (seeing as England doesn't celebrate the holiday, and I'm in an all British ward), but 3/4 of our small district are American so we thought it was only right to treat ourselves to delicious food for the night. We ended up going to the Carvery, and oh my goodness that food was AMAZING!! It was probably the most traditional British Thanksgiving you could ever have, but it was definitely worth it! :) haha I'll send a picture. Lots of Yorkshire puddings, stuffing, and chicken.

In other exciting news of this last week... I have a new companion! :) And not only that, but my first American companion in the mission field. Sister Mussman is fantastic and I love her! She's actually served in Canterbury before so with our combined efforts we've had a really amazing week. She knows the area like the back of her hand (good news, because I would have gotten lost a ton), and I know the recent events and goings on in the area, so it's a good mix. :) I have a feeling that this transfer will be one of the best transfers yet. We're both ready to work hard, but also enjoy the work, and the beautiful place that we're living in. It should be good!

Wednesday was when transfer day was. Sister Kinnard and I woke up super early and headed to St. Pancreas station to swap companions. She's actually in Thetford now, which is where Sister Mussman came from. We had to wait a good 4 hours, because the other sisters were stuck in traffic, but that gave us the chance to pop over to Platform 9 3/4 and see a little bit a magic! Also, I've been assigned to the house of Gryffindor. :) SO COOL!! The rest of the day was a flurry of travel, unpacking, and recovery time for Sister Mussman because she's been ill.

Friday we had a lot of appointments with investigators and less active members, but just a little thought of the day: We taught about Thomas S. Monson twice that day, and each time we showed his testimony for part of the lesson. Can I just say how much I love that man! The spirit that comes with his testimony is undeniable, and these two investigators felt it. Going along with the thankful trend of this email- I'm sooo grateful for a living prophet on the earth today to give us Heavenly Fathers words, and to lead and guide us through this crazy world that we are living in today.

Skipping another day, Sunday was truly fantastic as well! We got to teach sharing time in Primary which was fun. Once again I just want to say just how darn cute these little kids are. I absolutely love all of them! One of our investigators, J also came to church which was a miracle. She has been being taught for 3 years, but hasn't been baptized because of lack of commitment to the word of wisdom.. but we're working with her, and she's gained a newfound desire to try again! I adore that women, but she causes me so much stress as well. Another miracle of Sunday is when we went OYMing in city central, and we stopped a young man. We asked him if he'd ever seen the Book of Mormon, and he just grinned from ear to ear telling us how he'd had a bad day, but that now he'd met the Mormon missionaries and he had so many questions. His name is S, and he's a big fan of the Mormon musical. haha... He's great though! Hopefully we can help answer his questions and find the truth. :)

Well everyone, have a wonderful week! Now that Thanksgiving is over, I bet it's "Beginning to look a lot like Christmas" LOVE you all!!

Love, Sister Rebekah Croft

The comforter and the blue book

Good morning everyone! 

This week was transfers, and the news is in. I will be staying in the historical city of Canterbury, and the incredible and crazy Canterbury ward for Christmas, and I couldn't be more thrilled! :) The sad news is that Sister Kinnard is being transferred to Thetford.. :( I'm going to miss my British twin sister, but I know that she's needed somewhere else now. My new companion is Sister Mussman from California (more on her next week).

Besides transfers, this week has been really great! Although, the Winter is coming in fast now! There were rumors of snow this week, but no snow flakes were seen... The temperature could have fooled everyone of that though. It was FREEZING!! It's a different cold then Utah though. Much wetter, and a fiercely cold wind.  

Recently, I've realized just how amazing the Book of Mormon is. We're reading the whole book together as a mission before Christmas, and I've come to absolutely LOVE that little blue book. There are so many things we can learn from the experiences of those people. Enos, Moroni, Ammon, Alma, they are all real people, I've come to know that. And the fact that we actually have another book that testifies of Christ alongside with the Bible is astounding! I love telling people what the Book of Mormon is about and then watching the light turn on. I'm never going to get tired of that. :)  I also had to give a talk on Sunday on Omni 1:26 (15 minutes on one verse of scripture is not easy, let me tell ya. ;) Anyways, just that one verse is so jam packed with inspiration, and advice it's ridiculous!

A couple of tender mercies this week include on Sunday when B was confirmed a member of the church and received the Holy Ghost. She had the biggest smile on her face the whole time, and later she told us that she never wanted the blessing to end because she felt like she was being hugged by Heavenly Father. :) Also, on Friday when we were teaching S with a member and her little brother J. We were talking about the Holy Ghost and baptism, when J (9 years old) piped up and asked if he could tell an experience when he first received the Holy Ghost after being baptized. I listened to this young boy bear testimony and the sweetest spirit came into the room. :) S committed to pray about the Book of Mormon and about baptism that very night. It just goes to show that this gospel is real and simple. 

Well, I hope everyone has a fantastic Thanksgiving!! Everyone eat a pumpkin pie, and turkey for me alright? I think we'll be going out to eat... at a *carvery? I'm not sure, but we're planning on making it memorable, even if England doesn't celebrate it. Love and miss you all! 

Quote of the week: (yes I'm going to start being that cheesy and send a quote every week. Sorry!)

 "Sometimes a single phrase of testimony can set events in motion that affect someone's life for eternity." -Dieter F. Uchdorf

Love, Sister Rebekah Croft

------------------------------------------
* I had to look up what a carvery was after reading the email. Just for reference sake: "A carvery is a restaurant where cooked meat is freshly sliced to order for customers, sometimes offering unlimited servings for a fixed price. The term is most commonly used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia, but it is also found in the United States."

Baptism!

Hello one and all! How is everyone doing after this crazy week? Life here in Canterbury has been pretty incredible to say the least. :) It's gotten a whole lot colder recently so we've broken out the hot cocoa, and hats and gloves, although I haven't seen a trace of snow yet... we'll see what happens. I'm crossing my fingers that we'll see a little bit at least. This last week has also been busy preparing for the B's baptism. Wait, what now? Yes! B was baptized this Sunday and it was AMAZING!! She even wore high heels with her white dress, which I loved.  

I'm not going to lie. The beginning of the baptismal service was a bit hectic due to the baptismal font turning off after only half way full, and the food having to be moved because of the piles of donations for the refugee camps in the cultural hall.. but when the service started the spirit was there and everything fell into place. :) There were so many wonderful moments of the baptisms, but just a few tender mercies of the baptism were: B invited her whole family to the baptism, and as we sang Families Can Be Together Forever the Spirit was SO strong! Also after B was baptized and we were hugging her she just turned to us and started to cry. With emotion in her voice she told us how she had felt the Lord's arms embracing her as she went down into the water, and as she came up. Isn't it incredible just how personally Christ and Heavenly Father know us. :) 

Another eventful day this week was Wednesday. We had Zone Conference, so that meant making the trip to none other than the Hyde Park Chapel in London. It was so great to see everyone, but also a little weird being there, and not serving there.. I got to see all of the other VC sisters though, and my old zone which was fun! Zone Conference was fantastic though! Wow. It's so cool how every zone conference fits perfectly to our needs. Inspiration is real! Something exciting is that we got to watch the church's video for Christmas time "A Savior is Born" I'm excited to show it to people and testify of the reality of a savior!

Well have a great week everyone! Sorry this email is so shrimpy and pathetic. I always have so much to say until I sit down at the computer and then everything disappears. 

LOVE you all!! xoxo

Love, Sister Rebekah Croft

So fun to see Sister Apiyo again!

The need for a Savior and British traditions

Good afternoon all! :) I hope everyone is healthy, and well. 

This week in Canterbury has been a blaze of miracles, crazy holidays, amazing people, and physical exhaustion.. It's always a good thing when you hit the end of the week and you're tired though, because it means you worked extra hard. Just to touch on a few cool British traditions that happened this week: On Thursday was Bonfire Night! I described it as the English version of the 4th of July, but Sister Kinnard wasn't very happy about that.. ;) (British heritage and all). Apparently, there was once a man named Guy Fawkes who tried to blow up the house's of parliament, but the guards found him before he accomplished it. To celebrate everyone gathers around bonfires, drinks hot cocoa, and watches fireworks. Also, Sunday was Remembrance Sunday for everyone who fought in WWI. Everyone wears red poppies all week long and then on Sunday there is a solid 2 minutes of silence throughout the whole country to remember those that died. It was really beautiful actually! And I've loved wearing my poppy throughout the week.

A big highlight of the week was going to zone conference on Wednesday. It was nice to finally meet everyone, and set some goals for this next month! :) One of the trainings was literally an answer sent from heaven for Sister Kinnard and I. One of our investigators has been struggling to understand the need for a savior in God's plan for us, but this training was exactly what we needed to help him. It also made me realize just how essential Christ's role was in Heavenly Fathers plan for us. Only because of him are we able to have second chances, be forgiven of our mistakes, and ultimately make it back to our father in heaven. I'm honestly so thankful for my Savior! He is so loving, and so understanding, and so willing to pick us back up again when we fall!

Another amazing thing that happened this week is that on Sunday two people who left the church and came back were able to be re-baptized, and officially welcomed back into the Canterbury ward again. :) It was really emotional for everyone. Even I got teary-eyed! When he got up to bear his testimony, something he said really stuck out to me. He explained that throughout all the craziness, and even when they were confused and lost, the one truth they clung on to was the realness of Christ, and his atonement! He expressed how they had always believed, but that for a time they had got caught up in the things of the world and lost much of their testimonies. It was such a cool experience to see this family come back and see the light in their faces after being re-baptized! :)

Overall, this week has been a rollercoaster. Full of talking to people on the buses and streets, knocking doors, teaching lessons, having awkward moments with Sister Kinnard, laughing, eating British food, and sharing the gospel 24/7. (Seriously though, I was told the other day that I sometimes teach while I'm sleep talking).. How embarrassing is that?

Well, I wish everyone an incredible week! :) Love you all.

Love, Sister Rebekah Croft 

All Hallows Eve & prepared people on the bus

Well first of all, Happy belated Halloween everyone! Another week has gone by in the blink of an eye and many more amazing experiences along with it. I'm really enjoying my time in Canterbury & the people here are really fantastic!

Eventful moments of the week:

On Wednesday Sister Kinnard and I were sitting at the bus stop and a girl came and sat beside us. We were busy figuring out maps, and where we were heading so we weren't necessarily paying good attention to our surroundings. After a few minutes she turned to us and flat out asked us if we were the sister missionaries. Apparently she'd been taught before last year, but lost contact with the missionaries when she went on holiday. She told us she'd love to meet with us to learn more! :) Wow. Later in the week on Thursday when I was on exchange with Sister Epicoco (from Italy), we sat next to a man and started up a conversation with him about the Book of Mormon. He told us that his sister was actually a member in Nigeria, and that he had a Book of Mormon but had never opened it. At the end of the conversation he told us that we'd given him a new found determination to read it and know for himself if it was God's word. How cool! :) Both these experiences witnessed to me just how aware Heavenly Father is of each and every one of his children. Either we'll be lead to his prepared sons and daughters, or they'll be lead to us. 

Just yesterday we had a lesson with R. Because of his background he's been really caught up with the nature of God, and had some pretty deep doctrine questions.. he was going on and on trying to figure out why God would send us to earth and I just turned to him and just said " R, we don't know everything about God, not even close, but from my experiences I know without a doubt that he is loving, and ultimately that's all we need to know." I couldn't even believe what had come out of my mouth, but the spirit was there. He just looked at me in silence for a few seconds and said "thank you". 

On Halloween Sister Kinnard and I went tracting... ;) Just kidding, although we were tempted to go trick or treating and give out Book of Mormons instead of taking candy. We actually had to stay in for the night, but we watched a documentary about Gordon B. Hinckley with the district and ate lots and lots of M&M's. It was a different sort of Halloween, but I loved it! 

Well I hope you all have a wonderful week full of happy miracles from a Heavenly Father who loves us. 

With love,

Sister Croft

_________________

As far as Halloween in England goes, Rebekah said this in my personal email today:

"Apparently, England isn't as in to trick or treating as America is because from

what I saw there wasn't many kids on the street at all. One unique

tradition that Canterbury does have is a trick or treat thing in the

city center. All of the shops open up and you can go shop to shop

trick or treating for sweets! We didn't end up going because of

mission rules.. but a lot of the members went and they said it was

pretty cool!

Our Halloween consisted of heading inside early and having a pretty

chill night. In a lot of Canterbury, Halloween consists of going to the

pub, gang initiations, and some trick or treating... But President

asked us to be home early so we went to the Jones' house (senior couple

in our area) and watched a movie about Gordon B. Hinckley while eating

M&M's and soup. I know, I know, try not to be jealous. ;) But earlier

in the week we went to a Halloween party at the chapel for the little

kids, so that was pretty fun! We also went to a members house on

Wednesday and decorated Halloween sugar cookies and played

Halloweenish games! It was a different Halloween for sure, but it was

really fun surprisingly. :) One regret that I do have is that I didn't

carve a jack-o-lantern! I wanted to so badly, but we never had time to

buy a pumpkin.. I though about carving a grapefruit, but it just

wouldn't be the same. Needless to say, I'll be carving 2 pumpkins

next year."

And here are some pictures from Rebekah's visit to the Canterbury Cathedral last week. Canterbury Cathedral is one of the most famous cathedrals in Europe seeing as the place has become a pilgrimage site after the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Beckett, was murdered there in 1170. (Geoffrey Chaucer's famous "The Canterbury Tales" apparently tells the story of pilgrims traveling from London to Canterbury to visit the shrine.) As a missionary, Rebekah was apparently able to get in free using her ministerial card. :)

Week two in Canterbury

Well, I officially survived the first 5 months as a missionary! :) Woohoo And I've graduated from greenie status to a toddler in the mission field. At least that's what they call it.  

This week has been amazing though! One thing about being out of the visitors center is that we have SO much time! We have the entire day to be out visiting people, and proselyting, compared to the 5-6 hours I had while at the VC. It's physically draining, but mentally it's so much less stressful. I only have one area to focus 100% on, rather than 3... I feel like I can finally give everything I've got, and I don't need to constantly divide my time, thoughts, etc Not saying that I don't miss it, because I definitely do, but the change has been nice! 

This week we got to teach R! He's the man that we stopped right next to the beach last week. He really is so genuinely interested about learning. We were able to teach him all about the restoration of the gospel and the Book of Mormon as well. :) He had so many good questions, and seriously golden answers to the questions we asked him. 

On Saturday we were OYMing (open your mouth) to appointments, and we stopped a ysa student to ask him if he'd ever heard about the Book of Mormon. He told us that he'd actually been stopped by Elders before, and given a book, but that he'd never read it. We bore testimony that the Book of Mormon was a book that could change his life in ways that he could never imagine and invited him to church not completely expecting he would come. The next day he came to church for all 3 hours and by the end he was willing to meet with us again! He told us that he had an open mind, and that he had felt something that he'd never felt while at church. The Lord definitely places prepared people in our path. I'm a witness of that!

Also, B is doing great! She's still working towards the 15th of November for her baptism.  

Random odds and ends:

*H*** and D*** aren't swear words here so people say them all the time, even at church! haha It always takes me off guard, but then I recover... Even Sister Kinnard says them sometimes, so that's been an adventure!

*This Sunday the primary had their program! It was the absolute cutest thing I think I've ever witnessed! Imagine about 30 British little children singing the primary songs, and stumbling over words like restoration and saying "restarteration" instead! :) It was great. 

*We watched Meet the Mormons this week as a ward. And I bawled like a baby when it talked about the missionary mom. Sheesh, that's just cruel! I love my Mom!

On a different note, this week I've really realized how important prayer is. I think that sometimes we get so caught up with life, or too tired at night, or too much in a rush that we forget the significance of prayer. At least I have in the past. How incredible is it that we can have a one on one conversation with our Creator. That He listens to every single word, and not only that, but that He loves us infinitely! And that He will always answer back, even if it's not in the way we originally anticipated. I love my Father in Heaven. I love my Savior. And I love this gospel! 

I hope everyone's week will be amazing! :) Love and pray for you all.

Love, Sister Croft

Ole English Town

Hello one and all from the lovely city of Canterbury. That's right..

not London anymore. And before anyone else asks here's my address:

30 London Road

Canterbury, Kent

CT2 8LN

England

My new area is fantastic though! Canterbury is a very historical city

that has the remains of a Roman wall surrounding the city, cute little

brick houses, the University of Kent, a cathedral that was built in

the 1100s, and even a river with gondola looking boats. :) It's also

really close to the beach and the white cliffs of Dover, and about 45

miles from France. Basically the countryside is just beyond beautiful!

Along with the new area I also have a new companion. Her name is

Sister Kinnard and she's actually from the midlands in England! We've

only been together for 5 days now, but we already get along really

well. She's great and such an amazing missionary! :) I know I'm going

to learn a lot from her.

Something different about serving in Canterbury rather than London is

that most everyone is English. In London it was a big mix of every

different cultures and nationalities. Here I actually get to

experience more of the typical English culture. Also fun fact...

apparently if you're from Utah you're a Utahrian. At least that's what

the ward has told me. haha. My new ward is fantastic though, and also

seriously hilarious! Everyone is so comical, and I get their British

humor most of the time.. ;)

Going through the whole week day by day would take forever but a few

of the highlights are:

On Friday I got to meet our investigator B. She's just about the

sweetest middle aged woman I've ever met. And SO golden! I love her.

She'll be getting baptized on the 15th of next month. Anyway, before

we started the lesson we were following up with how she was doing and

how she felt like she was preparing for the 15th. Confidently she told

us "there isn't anything that will keep me from joining this church, I

know it's true!" The spirit was so strong and it was such an amazing

moment. There is no way that the Lord didn't have a hand in that. She

was definitely prepared. :)

On Sunday as we were walking by the beach I saw a man a little ahead

of us. I had the thought to yell and stop him, but he was pretty far

ahead so I let the thought pass and kept walking. A few minutes later

the same thought came again and I noticed that he had stopped and was

looking at the ocean. We stopped him and asked what he'd heard of the

Book of Mormon and instantly a huge smile came on him face. He told us

that he'd actually been wanting to learn more about Christianity, but

every time he went into churches no one would answer his questions. We

taught him a whole lesson then and there, answering many of his

questions. We'll also be seeing him this next week again to give him

the Book of Mormon and to teach him again. It's honestly so amazing

how the Lord directs this work through the spirit. The key is acting

upon the promptings when I get them though. I'm definitely still learning, but

I've seen so many miraculous experiences when I listen and act upon

the promptings of the Holy Ghost. :)

Overall, I absolutely love it here! It's a completely different

experience then serving in London in the visitors center, but one

thing is exactly the same and that's the gospel! This gospel is true

everyone. I know this and I'm not ashamed to say it. :) I'll even yell

it from the tops of the White cliffs of Dover. Love you all! Hope you

are all having a grand time wherever you may be, have a wonderful

week!

Love, Sister Croft

 The white cliffs of Dover and my sweet new British companion.

 The beach in our area--Hern Bay. :)

Oops, I found the American food aisle in the grocery store...

Transferred where now?

This was the last week of the transfer, and what a week it was. The last week of the transfer is always that hardest... you're just pushing to the very end, and it's SO tiring! Like running a marathon in high heels... except worse, and while teaching people (that's the good part about it.) :) In all honesty though, I feel like this transfer has flown by quicker than usual. It seems like just yesterday that I got to London and was assigned to be in Hyde Park 1st ward with Sister Hug as my trainer. A lot has happened since then, but at the same time it seems like I've only been here for a 24 hours total.. time is weird. The end!

A lot of incredible things have happened this week but some of the highlights are:

On Tuesday we had a lesson with M. He wasn't able to come to general conference last week, so we watched President Monson's talk with him (in Finnish). As we were discussing it afterwards the Spirit led the conversation to the topic of baptism. M has been given so many baptism dates, and then not made them because of word of wisdom problems.. but he hasn't been drinking for 3 whole weeks now. Having just now made his last date we didn't want to pressure him, but when the conversation led there we simply asked him when HE wanted to be baptized. We even pulled out a calendar and everything. And guess what? He picked the 30th of October! :) Woohoo! He's sooo ready now, and I'm really excited for him.

Another small little tender mercy that happened was on Friday night. Sister Apiyo and I went to the S family house for dinner- for their famous Italian Pizza. While we were there they taught us how to introduce ourselves as missionaries in Italian. And although I was really bad at it, and they laughed lots and lots when I tried to pronounce the various words, I felt pretty accomplished by the end of the night. The very next day as we were headed to an appointment we stopped someone on the street and guess what, he was Italian and only spoke a little bit of English! Instantly Italian words started to come out of my mouth "Sona Sorrella Croft, Missionaria..." it was the most bizarre and amazing experience! I feel like I got just a taste of what missionaries go through as they are learning another language. Anyways, we will be meeting with him soon to give him a Book of Mormon in Italian with Brother S. :) SO cool!

On Saturday while at the Visitors Center Sister Apiyo and I got to give a really great tour to a young boy and his father. As they came in the 11 year old boy told us that his Mum was a Muslim, and his father was Protestant so he was learning about all the different religions and going to decide for himself what he wanted. Talk about modern day Joseph Smith! Well... kind of. We got to teach him and his dad about the Restoration and then there was a baptism going on right then and there, so they got to watch. Afterwards the little boy turned to me and told me he felt something, and that we was really happy for the two people getting baptized. :) The Lord works in marvelous ways.

Last but definitely not least... transfer calls... dun dun dun

I honestly had no idea where I was going. I thought it was possible that I would stay in Hyde Park 1, but probably move to a different ward within the visitors center. But towards the middle of the week I started to have different thoughts.. So when President called on Monday morning I wasn't too surprised. I'll be shipped off to CANTERBURY tomorrow morning for transfer #4!! :) Canterbury is about 1.5 hours away from South Kensington, and closer to the ocean. It's a college city so I'll be working with lots of YSA, and it's close to the White Cliffs of Dover. Also it's supposed to be very beautiful and more classic England. I'm super excited, and it definitely feels right, but it's bitter sweet because I'll be out of the visitors center for a while. Also I'm going to miss Hyde Park 1, and Sister Apiyo a TON! Well, if it's where the Lord wants me then I know it's right. Hopefully I'll be able to do some real good there. :)

Have a wonderful week everyone!! Again, sorry for the long email... Love you!

Love, Sister Croft

Last shift together...

Conference weekend :)

"As we make Christ the center of our lives, our fears will be replaced by the courage of our convictions." -Thomas S. Monson

Yep, it was general conference weekend! :) Oh my goodness and what a conference it was. Three new apostles, amazing talks, and my first general conference out of Utah. Now that was different. I've come to really LOVE general conference. I used to enjoy it. Listening to the words of the apostles and prophet, eating yummy food, staying in my pajamas all day was a plus as well. But now I really really love it! It was hard to multi-task because for two sessions I was on shift at the visitors center and had to be ready at any moment to give a tour, but I heard most of it. In all honesty though, conference as a missionary is completely different than conference at home. It was amazing how strong the spirit was, and how it felt like each and every talk was written just for me, or for one of our investigators. :) It was a really special feeling! 

Just some highlights of conference

*First, I absolutely adored Russell M. Nelson's talk about the importance of women and how we need to be courageous and faithful.

*Larry R. Lawrence's talk about the direction of the spirit was spot on and incredible! I loved the theme about "what lack I yet?" and how the Holy Ghost can give us individual counsel.

*The 3 new apostles! Oh my goodness there was a special spirit in the room as the three of them took their places in the seats with the rest of the 12 apostles. They really are called of God. :)

*Devin G. Durrant's talk about "ponderizing" scriptures and having them always be written on our hearts and minds.

*The prophet. How I love that man! His talks are always so great! 

*And Jeffrey R. Holland's talk about mothers. Wow, his talks are always a favorite of mine, and so powerful as well. It was just very fitting that he talked about the importance of mothers all around the world. 

Although general conference was definitely the highlight of the week, the whole week was great!

I don't have much time to tell everything that happened but the really short version is: We have a new investigator named G from Prauge, he's very intelligent and has many questions. We were really bold with M about baptism and he tells us that he'll tell us his new baptismal date next time we see him. I think he knows that he needs to get baptised but he's scared to make that leap of faith. A girl came into the VC and we took her to the chapel, the spirit was suddenly so strong and I got the immediate impression that she needed to know that God loved her. As I told her my feelings and thoughts, she started to cry and asked us many questions. It's incredible being the mouthpiece for God's messages. I, the sweet 17 year old girl brought her Mom to the Visitors Center to meet us, she's doing great and the missionaries in her area will be visiting her soon. We invited people like crazy to general conference while we were traveling. It was amazing to tell people about a living, modern day prophet and then invite them to come and listen to him speak. Our investigators online from all around the world are progressing and meeting with missionaries. :) London's still rainy, double decker buses are still red, Hyde Park 1st ward is still amazing, Filipino food is still delicious, and London is still crazy busy and very loud. 

I'm super sorry if this email is scattered and makes no sense.. but I really love you all, and appreciate all the love, prayers and letters. Have a fantastic week filled with God's little miracles everyone. :) Adios

Love, Sister Croft