"A candle under a bushel does no good"... or something like that. -Brother Tolbert

Hey, Yall!

I almost wasn't able to write, but I stumbled on some extra time so I'll share a little bit about what's going on here in Oak Grove :)

Russell is great! We saw him three times this week :) He is preparing himself for the covenant of baptism and we are (of course) thrilled to be helping him there! He didn't make it to church yesterday because he was locked in his trailer.... hahahaha, I don't want to talk about it.

Sister Kelly and I went on two exchanges! We are halfway through our tour (We call it a tour to make it sound more exciting). I got to work with Sister Garner and Sister Stephens, two wonderful Sisters that I now love.

There were some meetings, I interviewed with President, saw some Christmas lights (still no snow), Star Wars came out (how do I know? people skipped Church for it..) and we went to Golden Corral with Brother Graves and Sister Curry (two people we know individually but had no idea knew each other. Turns out they're the most unlikely best friends. I'll attach a picture of this, the most awkward dinner appointment of my mission).

We had the chance to share Christmas messages with anyone who would listen. I love Christmas. I especially love this year because as a missionary, I don't get all caught up in Santa Claus and shopping. I love all of that stuff, but it has been nice to be able to focus on our Saviour and to be a reminder of Jesus Christ in others' lives. President Uchtdorf in the Christmas Devotional said
"I invite each one of us to find, during this Christmas season, a  moment in the quiet of our souls to acknowledge and offer heartfelt  gratitude to “the Generous One.” Let us consider the  compassionate, beloved, and boundless mercy of our Father in  Heaven."
As we shop for gifts—as we give and receive them may we also take time to quietly contemplate the bountiful gifts God has showered upon us, His children."

Take his invitation! It has been very rewarding for me and I know it will be for you :) Have a blessed Christmas, everyone! I love you ALL!!

Sister Bartsch

A very awkward dinner appointment - and an unlikely friendship!

Sister Kelly and Sister Bartsch

With the Sister Training Leaders from the Coast!

"Not Lucky.... Blessed" Someone's Front Porch

Hey Yall!

Is there snow where you are? If so, please appreciate it and maybe mail me some. 

So I have been in Mississippi for a week now. This area is very different from Bossier. There's the University of Southern Mississippi (where I am right now) that brings in a LOT more young people. During my time in Bossier, I could count on one hand the number of people I met that were my age. Also, this place is very, very wealthy. Lots of large houses and nice cars. Last night Sister Kelly took me on a tour of Cambrake- a huge community of mansions. It blew my mind. I have seen very few mobile home communities and small homes, which is where I have gotten very comfortable! So this is an adjustment. People in huge houses don't answer their doors to us very often. I guess I can understand, do they even hear my weak knocking?? Door-to-door isn't the most efficient way to share the Gospel in this area, but we do it anyway! Obedience brings blessings, right? 

This last week we spent most of our time helping out at the Stake Center! We had a two-night activity with over 200 nativities, videos, Old Bethlehem for the kids, and pretty musical performances. Coolest part: there was a combined LDS/local Methodist Church Choir led by the music director at USM. It was beautiful. Not as many people came as last year, but I certainly had fun! All the missionaries got to help out and it was a fun way for me to get to know the members here. 

I love Christmas. And the Thomleys in our ward have a CHRISTMAS TREE FARM. They donated a whole bunch of trees to the stake activity AND on Saturday they let Sister Kelly and I share Christmas pass along card with people buying trees. Of course we took lots of pictures. It was the coolest place! 

Despite all the adjusting to the area, responsibility, and companion, I have seen some serious miracles. Russell. Russell is our age and is living with his uncle's family who are members. Their grandfather had just passed away and the family had been struggling with the loss. He had come to church once before I got here and had asked for missionaries to come teach him! I got to be here for his first lesson :) Of course, all his cousins wanted to be a part of this, so the lesson was kind of crazy. They live in a trailer right now while they build a home, and there were brand new kittens and puppies all over the place! Even though it was pretty distracting, the Spirit was really strong. But Russell was really quiet. He listened carefully, though, and accepted a baptism date on January 9th! We left the lesson a little concerned about how noisy it got and how silent he was, but then he came to church! He stayed pretty quiet, but you could tell he was listening. Last night we got to teach him again. This time it was us, a Sister from the ward, Russell, and his uncle. He totally opened up, asked questions, and shared that right before his grandfather passed away, he told Russell that all of the problems we face in life can be solved by the teachings of the Book or Mormon. He told him to learn about it and read it. WOW. We got to teach him about the Atonement of our Saviour and all that it includes for us. 

Teaching about the Atonement is my absolute favourite. I love helping people feel Christ's love for them individually. I love hearing them share the times that they have felt His love and support in their lives. And I am always so grateful to be able to share my personal testimony of Him. The best thing you could ever do is build a relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. They are there EVERYday, not just on a really bad or a really good day. They love you always. If you allow them to be a part of you every day life, you will be able to feel their presence and influence easier when times are hard and especially when they are good! Learn to recognize them always, that's what I have been working on, and I am seeing miraculous changes in myself. 

I love the South, I love my companion, and I love being a missionary! Thanks for all your support!

Have a blessed week

Sister Bartsch

"Man's way leads to a hopeless end -- Christ's way leads to an endless hope" -Random President Olsen quote

Christmas.mormon.org

H-burg

MIRACLE: Mary Osburn got baptized last night! She was being taught by Elders in the ward and had been contemplating joining the Church for a while now She received an answer to her prayers! She rushed her baptism so Elder Hendrickson and I could be there, and though it was rushed, everything came together beautifully. She is such a wonderful woman and I was so glad to be a part of her special night!

I got to accept my first transfer, yall!! Bossier has been my home for almost six months now. I absolutely loved it. The most wonderful people live there and they will hold a very special place in my heart. This morning, I got up at 4:30 so I could go say goodbye to sweet Sunny. Talk about a special place in my heart <3 Please keep her in your prayers as she continues to grow and amaze me with her testimony! I also really, really loved my time with Sister Maughan. We experienced the good and the hard of missionary work, that's for sure!! That includes Thanksgiving.

But NOW, I am in Hattiesburg, Mississippi! I will be serving in the Oak Grove area with my very experienced companion Sister Kelly! (Sorry, no pictures yet, we got wet in the rain) I am a Sister Training Leader in the Hattiesburg zone and I'm excited to have some fun with this position. Pretty much I just help out the Sisters in the area in any way I can and I get to trade companions for a day with all of them. These Sisters are wonderful to me already and I can't wait to get to serve them and get to know them better. My area is fairly wealthy, and that can sometimes make finding people to teach difficult. But not always! They have seen some good success here and I am excited to join in the work.

My new address is:
18 Dawn Drive
Hattiesburg, MS 39402

And I wish I had more time to write, but I haven't eaten all day long and we have tons of work to do. I am so grateful for the time I spent in Bossier. I learned volumes about humility and hard work. I discovered what humidity really was and was taught how to make pecan pies. The people there have such open and loving hearts and I truly felt so blessed. I hope to see great things here in H-Burg, too! I love you all. Have a blessed week!

Sister Bartsch

Charles:""...and the Holy Ghost fell on them..." Did it crush 'em?" Me:"I don't think it hurt."

This week Sister Maughan and I did A WEEK OF PICTURES!!! 

Monday: November 16th Chick-Fil-A started selling their Peppermint Chocolate Chip shakes. My personal FAVOURITE. I'm currently on a no-sugar-challenge with two Elders in my district, but I got special permission to get one-a-dees :) 

Tuesday: We were on a TORNADO WATCH!! First one ever of my life. The rain was so heavy it was coming down in sheets and it looked like snow. At first, we went out in it, got soaked, called our leaders, and they said President had just let them know we all need to be inside. So we stayed in and painted and laughed for 6ish hours :) 

Wednesday: I was sick, I guess. My chiropractor friend was giving us adjustments and said I was super hot. Turns out I had a fever and had to go in for the rest of the day :(

​Thursday: We got the Southern Experience. Sister Merril had us over for crawfish casserole and pecan pie. It was heavenly and she sent us home with leftovers. Bless her.

Friday: Sister Maughan's FIRST TIME BIKING IN A SKIRT! I'm a bad trainer and I put off giving her this experience. She now understands why, and never wants to bike again. It's a hassle, folks. Carrying the things down 2 flights of stairs, negotiating silly bike racks, and of course the skirt issue. But it made for cute pictures and fun times! 

​Saturday: We continued the prank war with our Zone Leaders (shh), but we are a little nicer than them. They put stinky old mattresses they find on the road at our door, (jokes on them, they have to carry it up the stairs and then we pretend we can't carry it so they come bring it back down) and we just made a spider web. Also, we finally took selfies with the Bossier sign. Both of these things were on our Area Bucket List. Check and check. 

  
Sunday: Sister Oakey took our Thanksgiving pictures! I am thankful for good examples, so I thank all'yall for the wonderful influences you have been in my life. I wouldn't be here without them!
​
I know what you're thinking, and yes. We also did missionary work this week. I never thought it could be possible, but my love has gro​wn for this place and these people. The opportunity to be here, working alongside great people, teaching God's beautiful children has been such a privilege. I am so blessed. Last night, in a pathetic attempt to get our tracting done in the cold, we found three beautiful families who are excited about the message we shared. The Lord always provides when we are diligent, obedient, and happy. That is what I learned this week. Galatians 6:9-10 has taught me volumes. AND I love my companion to bits. Sister Maughan is an angel and I could easily serve the rest of my mission with her. These last three months have been supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

Next week, though, is transfers! I will most likely be moving somewhere further South. I'm excited!! 

I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!! Please keep Sunny in your prayers this week. And please have a happy Thanksgiving. Sister Maughan and I will be enjoying 5-6 thanksgiving dinners. This ward is wonderful, but pray for us.

Have a blessed week! 
Love, 
Sister Dakota Bartsch 

"If you want to see a pie REEEEEALLY messed up, turn me loose on it!" -Cathy

Hey, friends!

Sorry there wasn't a letter last week. I'll do better. 



Over the last couple weeks I have gotten to know some crazy-wonderful people. FIRST: Antwan and Watima (I know, those names rock). I wrote about Antwan last time, and since have been able to meet with him and his wife Watima! Watima is a very spiritual person, doesn't necessarily care about religion but will pray and discuss "the word" with anyone who wants to. And we always want to :) The first time we met her, she kind of prophesied to us! Pretty much, she thinks that Sister Maughan will teach large groups of women in conferences (future Relief Society Pres!) and she says I will be teaching children in Africa how to dance. She gave us lots of motivation, too. Direct Quote: "The things that you see as flaws, those are what will make the difference. God says: Be encouraged" So that was kind of cool! We've been over to see them twice now, I wish it could have been more, but there was a huge house fire two doors down from them. Which leads me to my next story!

So there's this area we have been focusing on that has had like four houses burn down in the last year. There's just abandoned foundations every six houses or so. Kinda terrifying. They're all abandoned except one, behind it there is a garage with a couple old cars and a tent. We asked a gentleman for a referral one time and he pointed to this shack.. Turns out a nice man named Joe lives in it! He has a tent with a recliner and TV inside his barn-like garage. Despite his situation, he knows God has blessed him tremendously with his health, daughter, and happiness. We talked for a while and I was so impressed by his level of humility. It's incredible to me how quickly and simply people like that make an impression on me and motivate me to better myself. I hope to make positive impressions on others every day, and I think we all can!

MIRACLE: Okay, remember Gayle? She has come up a few times now. She's the "DID YOU ASK IF I'M A MORMON?" lady who came back to church and brought her daughter. Hopefully that is enough of a refresher! Anyways, she has been telling us about her neighbor Betty who has shown a little interest in learning about the LDS Church. We've been waiting for the OK to go knock on her door and Gayle kept wanting us to wait. One evening we went to see Gayle, talked about missionary work, and left her with a little gift-bag that had a Book of Mormon, a Joseph Smith movie, our card, and a Gladys Knight CD to give to Betty. We kinda forgot about this, and on Friday afternoon BETTY CALLED US. This may not seem like a miracle to you, but no one calls us. I think in my 5 months out here I've given away our number like a thousand times and maybe one person has called and asked us to come over. But Betty did. So we came and taught the Restoration that night! She seemed very excited to read the Book of Mormon and feels comfortable asking questions and talking with us. We love her and are so excited to go back :) THANK YOU GAYLE!

Truly, the mission is far from all sunflowers and snowfalls for me. This transfer has been rough. Many of our long-time investigators are telling us they don't want us to come back. We have been trying so hard to fulfill our purpose and invite people to do things to bring themselves closer to Christ, but so many are not willing to make changes! One day after being dropped by our dear friend Joe, we called Ulysses to let him know. (They were going to be friends) And I love what Ulysses said to us : "Well, don't get down. It's too beautiful of a day for God to lose a soul. He will come back" I desperately need faith and optimism like Ulysses. And I am working on it every day. I love this place, I love these people, and I love being a missionary. Everyday people tell us the world is too scary for us young Sisters to be out sharing the Gospel, but I think that is exactly why we are needed. Matthew 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

Have a blessed week!
Sister Bartsch

I'm not sure why she send this picture.  Creative styling?  Or maybe because
we keep asking if she's seen any crocs.

Lots of Wisdom from Louisianna...

Beautiful sisters and great friends!

Sister Bartsch didn't send a newsletter this week - Sorry!  But I assume y'all miss her like I do and I would just feel bad letting y'all go a whole nother week without hearing from her!  So I think I can put together a pretty good newsletter from the bits and pieces I got today and the written letters we have received recently.   Everything following is from Sister Bartsch.  - Anika

" Well guess what. Our music rules changed and ANY gospel music you have lying around I desperately want to listen to. Can you send that, too? We can listen to reverant church music. So instrumentals, violin, piano, choirs, soloists, etc. I REALLY want a piano CD I can do ballet to.. if you want to wait until Christmas I understand :) But I am so excited. I love music. 

ALSO GUESS WHAT IS THE BEST THING EVER?! We have permission to use our resident gym. I am so excited for tomorrow morning I want to cry. 

I had a big zone meeting on Saturday :) It was pretty good. The General Authority is coming next month so this was just a mini zone development meeting. It was definitely what I needed! Got me all fired UP!

From a letter to Ian:
"Did you love conference?!  I know I'm a missionary, so I'm going to be much dorkier about it - BUT I LOVED CONFERENCE!  I got something out of every talk, but I wanted to share one of my biggest impressions with you.  It was in Elder Martino's talk.  He said something that really hit me - it was something like "don't doubt because something defies logic - that's what Laman and Lemuel did!"  I've always felt that my biggest gift and greatest flaw was my logical thinking.  I love when things add up and balance out.  I love puzzles that can be solved and hard questions that can be answered.  In math,science, business, and adult-life, that's great!  It has been such a blessing. I've tutored people that struggle with it and realized what a blessing it truly is.  When it comes to the Gospel, it's pretty good, too.  I like how simple it is, but how beautifully complex it is also.  (Jesus the Christ, dude.  Good book.  It brings some serious depth to the gospel.) I like finding connections and deeper meanings.  It's so exciting.  BUT - where my logical thinking is my downfall is in my Faith.  I struggle with faith sometimes.  I have questions that probably will never be answered in this life!  And when things don't add up perfectly, little doubts cross my mind.  I hate it, hate it, hate it.  But it happens.  Our Stake President (Pres. Platt) spoke to us about this by using Isaiah 55:8-9. 
 8 ¶For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Even when I feel so smart, he's smarter.  Even when I try to make sense of things, his sense makes more sense.  His thoughts are simply higher than mine!  And I need to trust the witnesses I've had from the past.  Dumb Laman and Lemuel kept forgetting their testimony-building experiences and their questions turned into doubts real fast. :) So, anyways, my faith has been much stronger since conference and realizing my mind's silly tendencies.  

She reminds him of his spiritual experiences he had, especially Youth Conference.  "It sounds like Y.C. was a powerful experience for you. And if you're ever struggling with your testimony you'll always have that to fall back on.  One of my favorite verses is Alma5:26 (Ponderized!) 
 26 And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?
because it reminds me to remember times when the spirit has spoken to me and that the spirit should be able to do that anytime!  The spirit was strong at Y.C, but "Can ye feel so now?"

Showing off her new haircut!

One last thing, in a letter to Rachel she recommends reading the talk titled "The Inconvenient Messiah". It was really good.  Here's a link:  https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/jeffrey-r-and-patricia-t-holland_inconvenient-messiah/

Have a blessed week, yall!
Love, Sister Bartsch

"God bless us all for green chili!" -Ulysses in Testimony Meeting

It's NOVEMBER already? Wow, yall. 

This week was super powerful lessons. Sunny is one of the boldest people I know and taking her out to teach with us is always incredible. Long story short, a sweet lady who hadn't been to church in over 6 years was back in church this week :) 

We met some really cool people, too! One morning, we were knocking doors in the rain.. rejection after rejection. And this guy across the street waved us over. We knew it was either really good or he was telling us to leave his neighborhood. But we hustled over there and introduced himself. Turns out he was really nice! And REALLY excited to see us. His name is Antwan, he had been meeting with the missionaries last year and was really liking it but lost contact with them. Since then he's gotten married and has a beautiful blended family. He feels much more ready to learn the Gospel and we have an appointment with him tomorrow! 

Charles came to church again this week :) We have found him a friend and I can feel his heart changing, it's so fun! He still won't accept baptism, but his excitement for the Gospel is growing. 

Also, our ward  had a trunk-or-treat and a few of the people we are teaching came! Someone had made green chili and the weekly quote is Ulysses bearing his testimony about how great the ward is. I wholeheartedly agree.  My district had a Halloween party on Saturday and that was fun, too. I guess the new thing is to take gross group selfies. I will forever wish that I got better pictures :) 

I'm pretty much constantly praying for our mission today and the rest of this month. Every companionship is going to help a person or family accept the Gospel and be baptized! I've got a whole lot of faith and I'm anticipating some wonderful miracles. Pray for us!

Romans 8:24-25 :)

Have a blessed week!

Sister Bartsch

PS. Brother Maxey (recent convert) was a close second place for the weekly quote. He bore his testimony and said "So many people have seen the dark in me, now they see the light, and they don't know WHAT got up on 'em!"

Sisters with a sense of humor.  Sister wives at the district Halloween party!