Sister Abby Fillmore - Oregon, Salem Mission: April 2020

Week 31- The one with the same view...our window

Dear Friends!!

What a week, glad it's over ;)

We have had some good member lessons and are slowly getting referrals so if anything that is whats keeping me going.

Days and weeks are tough as a missionary. One thing that I have learned is..."so what are you going to do about it?" We as missionaries right now are so fortunate to have weekly missionary devotional from general authorities. This past week Elder and Sister Gong spoke and it was just what I needed to hear to carry me through the week.

They talked alot about using the time you have been given and become someone in the place you are put in....bloom where you are planted.

Sister Gong shared a wonderful quote by a WW2 Vet. It reads "When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves. Everything can be taken from a man but one thing, the last of human freedoms. To choose ones attitude in any given circumstance." -Victor Franco

Something that I have been trying to do every day is to recommit my self and move forward.

That's honestly all can do. We can wake up each morning saying I am going to show up today and work. We aren't perfect and sometimes we will stumble more than we thought we would have hoped. Christ's grace makes it so we can get up, learn and move forward learning from those experiences. I am very grateful for Him each day I am here trying to learn and "become".

J and E are doing great! We will be having scripture study with J during the day to help her understand it better. We are excited and happy that she is so willing to learn even with the crazy thats happening in the world and in her life.

Baptism is more of a possiblity since we can do baptisms now and not have to wait until this virus is gone.....so that's exciting!

I am excited for what God has in store for me and His children who are being prepared to hear the message.

Friends and family if you have anyone you think could benefit from a message of hope and peace send them our way! We have gotten permission to video call people from home who aren't of our faith or less active and need a message. Please think and pray to know who you could reach out too!

I love the Book of Mormon, it's been a source of comfort during this time. As well as my patriarchal blessing! They are love letters from our Heavenly parents and the love has given me strength! I have a firm testimony of the Book of Mormon and I know it can change lives and make life easier to endure because it helps us know what we need to do to get back to our Heavenly home...doesn't that sound nice? Yes it does, so please read both daily!

I love you all so so much!

Have a wonderful week, love you!

Love,

Sister Fillmore

We didn't mean to match!

Enjoying some time outside for lunch and fresh air!

We love to cook - this week we made breakfast burritos!

Ahhhh... the sun - and fresh air!

I love to look for Rainbows whenever there is rain...

Week 30-The one with the raw egg!

Friends!!

I hope you all have had a wonderful week and are trying to get used to this new normal.

Missionary work continues to conquer the world and I LOVE IT! Definitely a virtual learning curve but I am grateful for it. We continue to make music, hold virtual member lessons, look up the people in our area book and call everyone!

Going back to music...my companion is SO talented and it has been amazing to see and hear her compose incredible lyrics and melody. We have made an original song this week and it has touched my heart in so many ways. Soooooo...tune in next week to hear that one!

Those we are teaching are doing good. Our most progressive people are doing great so we continue to help them. We are also virtually talking to members a lot which is good because I am new to Bend and I'm anxious to get to know them!

Bend continues to amaze me, the people are amazing and its beautiful everywhere we go!

CHICK-FIL-A has a drive through so life is GOOD!

Ok about the title.....so to keep our sanity we make funny random videos and send it into a zone group chat. We have made some quality videos, my friends! One of the companions in the zone did the cinnamon challenge (crazy Elders - don't do it) and so I decided to step up and I might have drank a raw egg. :)

We have gotten really creative as missionaries and have made short videos for the first couple lessons. (Plan of Salvation, The Restoration etc.) It's been super fun!

God loves us so much and He wants us to feel His love and He also wants us to progress so sometimes it's not as fun. It's amazing how loving God is to let us fall and find our way:)

God is a successful parent and needs us to learn some things but it makes us the divine being He wants us to become.

I love my Heavenly Father and my Savior!

I love you all so so much

Have a wonderful week! You're the best!

Sister Fillmore

Life is Good!

Making our Plan of Salvation lesson videos.

Gorgeous views everywhere we go!

Ever tried hiking in a mask?

I feel like I'm camping!

Tomula Falls

Week 29- The one where we write scripture tunes

Dear Friends,

It's been a hot minute but I'm back! Nothing much has changed besides getting to know Bend a little bit more. I am loving this place more and more each day! It's amazing because it feels like Utah. We are surrounded by pine trees and it looks like spring - its gorgeous!

We have had a lot of member lessons which has been nice. These people are so sweet and my heart grows bigger and bigger for them every day!!

We had a couple lessons with our friends that we are teaching.

We taught E and J Saturday. Though it was a good lesson it was rough. E is one tough cookie! J has the biggest heart and is trying to so hard to get her self back on track. I have never seen someone so in tune with the spirit while trying to come back to living and believing the gospel like J. If you could, please pray for them! Pray that E's heart will be soften.

J is someone else are teaching and is the sweetest lady. We have been able to help her feel calm and try to keep commitments a little better.

I have learned to slow my pace down a lot more with those we are teaching. It's all in Gods timing and I need to be patient and go at His speed.

We have been creative in what we do since we are quarantined. Sister Carlson and I are writing scripture songs and it's been so fun! We wrote a song to her favorite scripture and asked the other sisters in our zone to send us their favorite scripture to make into songs. I will be posting a few on my Facebook Stories so look out for those! If YOU have a favorite scripture you'd like put to music please email me!

Easter was wonderful! We had the Sacrament brought to us which was more special then usual. Sister Carlson hasn't had it for a month so the spirit was so strong for the both of us because she felt so much relief and love from taking the Sacrament. It helped me to appreciate it more then I already do. During this time of quarantine (which has been a whole month from yesterday by the way) I have learned to never take sacrament for granted. It's a special experience that we as missionaries don't get very consistently now with this pandemic.

I finished the amazing book, "Changed Through His Grace" by Brad Wilcox. It's a life changer and has helped me see Christ's love for me in a different light. At the end of the book he talks about grace for grace and what that really means especially when we renew our covenants by partaking the sacrament. We receive grace from our Savior all the time so we need to give it to others. Like the parable "Forgive 77 times 7" we need to give to others what has been given to us. I am going to share what he says from the book because it's perfect...its a little long

"I love Spanish. There are words in that language that mean more and are more beautiful to me than any equivalents in English[...]one of the words I say during those personal moments is gracias. To me it communicates more than thanks. It speaks also of grace. Each Sunday I think if my Savior and my covenant relationship with Him. I promise to remember Him and offer grace to others as He offers it to me. I reflect in my life and ask that I can continue to be changed through His grace. With great gratitude I close my eyes and pray, 'Much thanks for Thy much grace-muchas gracias por to mucha gracia'"

That has been my new phrase, I wrote it on a sticky note and I see it every day when I do my studies. I am so grateful for Christ's matchless love. He loves me eternally which is hard to understand sometimes but it gives me a reason to live and to endure through this life. He helps me in the weakest areas and helps me improve even more in my stronger areas. He gives me second chances to take the action to change and mentors me to know what I can do to be better. He has made it so that all of the things I learn I can take to the next life. He rose so we could. He suffered so we wouldn't have too. He made it so we can progress to not become angels with harps but heavenly begins like our Father!

Truly a beautiful holiday to celebrate every year!

I am especially grateful for my Heavenly Father who sacrificed his only begotten son. Its totally important to focus on Christ during this past week and especially yesterday. We also need to recognize that our Heavenly Father sent his son. What a beautiful thing and something I am grateful for that he did for me as his child. So let's also remember the matchless love and sacrifice that God gave to us so long ago!

I love you all! Keep trusting, keep believe and keep persevering because we have Christ and our Heavenly Father on our side...we can make it!

I love you guys!

Send me all the emails! I would love to hear what's going on back at home:) abigail.fillmore@missionary.org

Love,

Sister Fillmore

Sing...write...sing!

Teaching Sister Carlson how to cook.

Guitar Selfies

7 am Sunrise - Beautiful day!

Happy Easter from Bend, Oregon

I LOVE this picture.

Week 28 - The one where I am in Utah, oops I mean Bend

Friends!!

I hope you have had a wonderful week, especially since it was conference weekend!

I LOVED Conference but what a crazy week this has been for me!

We got transfer calls this past Tuesday at 11pm....let's just say Sister Hair and I didn't remember much besides when they said she was staying and I was leaving to be a follow up trainer to a Sister in BEND!

Leading up to transfers on Friday was a lot of "see you later" calls and trying to not cry thinking I would have to leave Forest Grove, my home! Sister Hair and I (mostly Sister Hair ;)) cracked on Thursday....we have been inside for basically a month and we are kind of going crazy!

Friday morning was hard! Saying goodbye to Sister Hair was super hard. This women has been a rock for me these past 3 months. I am so grateful for the time I have been able to laugh, cry laugh, doing FB live, learn and grow with her! My new companion Sister Carlson is so GREAT! I love her so much! Bend is beautiful but I legitimately feel like I am living back home in Utah - my skin feels it too! We even woke up to snow Sunday morning! Its been an adjustment after being in the same place for 6 months so to help me through this transition I have definitely been holding onto every word in the scripture Ether 12:27 this weekend. God is strengthening my weaknesses every day, even though being outside of my comfort zone isn't my favorite, it's how I grow and how we as Gods children progress!

(And all your prayers would be great;))

Institute has been so wonderful! So grateful that President was inspired to let us do this. It's a way to reboot and strengthen my knowledge from other missionaries.

We have been able to have some lessons here in Bend and Saturday was fantastic! A couple we are teaching is stellar! They have been members before but had their record removed. Sister Carlson told me a bit about them before we spoke. Eugene is pretty sarcastic and believes he is going to hell. His wife Jill is praying about a baptismal date. We got on the call and he like me more then Sister Carlson (as a joke) because I am from Lehi, not Provo. They are really funny and at the very beginning Eugene said that he talked to God and said he will soften his heart to hear what the missionaries have to tell him. Well that was awesome for us to hear! Then he turned to his wife half way through the lesson and said "why don't we get re-baptized together?" He said in a year but I'm sure that will change, ;) What a good first lesson in Bend! Sister Carlson was beyond excited and happy, which made me even more happy because she knew them before this whole change in Eugene's heart. We also talked to this lady named Valerie and she is the sweetest old lady! Her husband just died a month ago and is having a really hard time. She is more open to hearing the message so that's great! The members are so kind, can't wait to get to know them more!

Weird/funny moment:

As missionaries we have to wear masks when we are in public now, sooo going to Walmart was very interesting. Shout out to Sister Russell for making these cute masks! Masks are in folks, they are in ;)

Going off of the scriptures Ether 12:27, Elder Uchtdorf talked a lot about using the weak for God's work! God loves all of us, our part in this journey is to learn of Christ's words. Love and serve God and his children. We might not be perfect but God didn't call perfect people for his twelve apostles and he doesn't call perfect missionaries for his work. It goes along with what President Nelson said, "The Lord loves effort, effort brings reward." When we do our best as Gods children and show him that we are willing to progress and are teachable then he will reward us and teach us more. I am grateful for this knowledge. It's still hard don't get me wrong, but with Gods grace I am able to be much more then I would be without him.

I love you guys!

Have a wonderful week, can't wait to see what God has in store for us as we put our faith into action!

Love,

Sister Fillmore