Ava's Mission

Here's a quick miracle for you! We had a cool Hour of Power miracle this week. I've been struggling to find the balance between agency and Gods will where I often want the spirit to tell me exactly what to do but I know I need to act and make my own decisions and in this hour I just decided to act on literally every thought I had and follow it fearlessly. We didnt know where to go so we said a prayer and then during the prayer we heard the national anthem being sung at the baseball game across the street. Do we decided to hear over there. For the whole hour we talked to so many people and nobody was interested. I talked to this couple with a dog (i start so many conversations and contact attempte with "oh my goodness I love you dog can I pet her? Or what kind of dog is she?" Hahaha it works so good.) And then sister ashby felt prompted to go in this random parking lot, and then I wanted to go around the block, and I felt like we were going in circles but in the last...

Ok ya'll you better prep yourself for this email because this week was GOOD. Its started on Monday night after last pday and we were out on our bikes and came across these 3 boys playing basketball on the street. As we pass them I ask who is winning and sister ashby says "sister Hardy over here plays basketball and she could probably school you all." So I start trash talking these boys and THEY CHALLENGE US TO A BIKE RACE. They get on their bikes and we line up along this speed bump. These boys are like 13 or 14 years old. Before we race, naturally we decide to set some terms. We tell them that if we win, they have to listen to our message about Jesus Christ! And if they won, they told us we each had to do 20 push ups. We shook hands to make it fair and square and this race was ON! ready set GO! You guys I dont even make it 5 seconds in this race. I was so determined to win that I was pedaling standing up, leaning forward trying to get all the momentum I could (because ...

Hello all!! This week has been the most email worthy week of my mission, but I have very little time so here the best parts! On Tuesday I was on exchanges with Sister Parke the STL and so I was in charge of the area, and we came to this house that long story short we were POSITIVE that the spirit lead us there and that whoever opened the door would just be dying to hear the message of the gospel. So we knocked once... no answer. We knocked again, still no answer. We rang the doorbell. Nothing. So we banged on the door really loud because with everything that had happened were SURE that this was the miracle door of the week! Then out of nowhere it starts pouring rain like a blanket of rain coming from the sky. So we decide to stand on the porch and wait it out under the shelter of the roof of this house. While we are standing there a lady cop comes around the corner and asks what we are doing. I dont know why I did this but my first resort was to put my hands up in the air. I told her...

Hello family and friends! It's been a really good week here in the Arizona Valley. I got a bike of my own this week and her name is Evelyn. She was the most beautiful bike in the shop and was just calling my name. Sadly the day after I got here (and since everything that grows here is trying to kill you literally) she popped and when straight flat. I was on exchanges and we were an hour away from home so it was real fun to walk back in the heat. Sister moulin (the sister I was with) was asking everyone we saw if they had a bike pump, and then I would ask them if they wanted to hear a message about Jesus Christ. I got a lil crispy burnt and it was an adventure. Other email worthy things that happened this week: - Met a guy while doing service who eats his weeds. He showed us all these weeds that were edible and how he eats them and I'm pretty sure none of them were edible and I dont know how he's alive but he is and he thriving off of his weeds. - somebody cooked us whole g...

Hello everyone!!!! I don't even know where to start. This email might turn into a novel but theres so much that has happened. The work is GREAT down here in AZ! My first area is Peoria and it's small but we are teaching so many people! Also we are on bikes, ALL DAY EVERY DAY! Its us and our skirts and our bikes and it is always always an adventure. President and Sister Collins are the best people I've ever met and I love them so much. They were so welcoming and I felt instantly at home here. We spent the first night at the mission home. My first morning here President took us on a "hike" up what was called happy valley to assign us to our areas. When we got to the top of the mountain (which was actually a hill*) it overlooked all of the Arizona valley. He showed us the areas told us a little about each one. We then got our assignments and I'm the only new missionary assigned to this area. I then met my companion Sister Ashby! I love her. This is her last tra...

Ok there have been so many miracles here in the Peoria area of Arizona! The first one started with sister Ashby as my companion. She is such a consecrated hard working , obedient missionary, and apparently her whole mission has just been full of hard companionships. Ans so president promised her that he would give her the strongest, hardest working missionary for her last transfer. Apparently when we got to the mission office he went up to her and said "I've got your new companion chosen already she just got here have you seen her yet? You'll know." At this point I had only said two words to him and those were "hi president." Haha but he did tell me later in our meeting that me that the second he saw me he knew exactly what to do with me. Our area is the only bike area in the whole mission and literally we bike all day long every day. My legs are constantly Jello but it's so fun and I wouldn't have it any other way. It is a struggle to ride in a dre...