9 April 2013

Sister Mullen called us last night from LAX. She sounded very happy and excited to be going to Thailand! She even spoke some Thai for us - needless to say we were very impressed!

Her new address is:
Sister Rachel Mullen
Thailand Bangkok Mission
1645/6 New Phetchaburi Road
Makkasan, Ratchathewi
Bangkok, Thailand 10400

2 April 2013

 

Sisters need pockets!

We have to go TWO HOURS early to choir practice if we want to be in it!

Just waiting for choir!

Both Thai District Sister Missionaries!

With Sister Tansankul

With the lovely Sister Painter and Sahagun at the temple.

Sister Lethco and I on our way back from the temple!

um yeah. funniest picture of my life. on our way back from the temple! haha

This is our last week so it is Definitely bittersweet. Trying not to cry haha.

Ok... now so LAST week I had a fever for maybe 4 days?? Yeah I've been sick forever. And then a couple days ago it's been coughing attacks ALL the time and so bad that it making me throw up! But I think its getting better.  Yesterday was the last day that Sister Hirschi (one of our 3 amazing teachers) will be teaching us. She is THE most amazing missionary. She was our VERY first teacher, so she is SO special to all of our hearts. At the end, she shared with us a picture of Sister Nun ( the Thai investigator she was pretending to be as we taught her)  Ahh, I was a mess!!! Last she bore her testimony to us in Thai. And when she said Sister Ruu Waa (I know that)... She started to cry , We all started to cry. She was our first teacher to teach us those words. That taught us how to bear our testimony. It was so powerful. She said she loves the Thai people so much and that she knows they are going into good hands. Ahh, I'm crying right now so I'll stop.

Daddy, How did they spell Mullen in Thai? We got our Thai name tags. Woops. Should have taken a picture and sent it. But supposedly it's wrong. We had that Sister who is from Thailand come and read all our name tags and she said she couldn't read mine. All my district was laughing at the Half-Thai's name tag that was the ONLY wrong one haha

We are hopefully going to get another day to do laundry. Got our travel plans. Leave around 4:30 pm on Monday! So I can probably call when you are both still home. Today was our last day at the temple. Went through a session with the whole district.

Oh and Sister Sahagun DOES know Karissa! So funny! haha they were friends in like 3rd grade! haha

I will write more in a letter if I remember anything else.

Sister Mullen

this WHOLE MTC Experience has been SO wonderful. It's bittersweet. I Don't want to leave my district or my teachers but I am smiling ear to ear just thinking about finally getting to Thailand and teaching!!!

26 March 2013

We leave April 8th. Right after general conference! we should be getting travel plans next week I think? I actually have no idea. I try and talk like I know but I don't. So the thing about last week was pretty cool. They are going to be showing us singing that song in between conference! So watch ALL of it! haha DONT fall asleep. make sure Oliver sees too. I am trying to read the Book of Mormon all the way through so I just passed Alma 34 a few days ago! 2 more weeks, 200 pages. got it.

That's crazy hearing about Los Angeles and not being there! I LOVE the skirts! Thank you so so so much!

We are having a special sacrament meeting this week for Easter and I am SO excited!!! and then general conference the next sunday! So these last weeks are supposed to be the BEST!

Our district has already planned a Thai eating party after we are all back. They just roll their eyes when they look at me and they just say, just move to Utah.

Yeah, ok.

We taught at TRC on saturday, and it went well. was supposed to be our first 40 minutes lesson instead of 2 20 minute lessons, but we ended up only doing 1 20 minutes lesson because there wasn't enough volunteers. So feel free to come and be Thai volunteers! We taught Topher and none of the sisters wanted him. I guess he talks fast. But he was great. Later at dinner that day, Sister Painter, a Sister from the other Thai district said she taught him after us and said that he was asking about us!

Everytime I go to TRC I feel like this whole missionary thing is so selfish. I am loving and trying to help the people dont get me wrong, but this feeling... SO wonderful. I have loved all that I have learned here! We taught our new investigator this last week for the first time and invited him to be baptized in the first lesson and he said yes! and then Sister Nun who has been in a much different place in her testimony... we asked her yesterday and she said yes!!! And Josh said yes, after he said no before. So all 5 of our investigators are committed to baptism. We won't have time to see it happen before we leave, but I am so happy!

Oh my goodness, I wanted to tell you. Elder Cutler, he is half Korean half white. His dad served in Korea. Went back to teach English and met his mom.Ummm WOAH! haha

Anyways, I feel like I am asking better  questions. I am so excited for fried rice. and yes i will be calling. did you get my anniversary present to you? and yes i will be sending stuff home :) But I am pretty sure I am going to use up all of my mouthwash (HOORAY!) so I will have plenty more room i think. (dont send me more. I have another)

ok. Funny story of the week. So yesterday, there were 4 companionships that had to teach Sister Nun in an hour and 10 minutes. Elder Vandenberghe and Elder Smith went last but people went over so they ended up only having 9 minutes left. we told him and Elder Vandenberghe was like, "That's TOTALLY not enough time to tell her about seer stones!" haha ah, will miss everyone so much!  oh. Elder Hunt. He hurt himself this last week playing basketball. Is having surgery on Thursday. Not leaving for Thailand until 3 weeks after we leave :( Super sad.

woah, time is all up. I will write more.

just dont want to give any spiritual stuff away that i will be using for my homecoming talk!

haha just kidding. but seriously.

Love, Sister Mullen

20 March 2013

What a wonderful testimony!

19 March 2013

TALL is a computer program we go on most days. The tests require us to see the English word and then type in the Thai translation but our keyboards do not put in the tones so usually EVERY word is wrong! But this word has no symbols or tones so we got it right!!! GLORIOUS DAY!

 Hahahaha funniest thing. Elder Hunt walked passed a classroom that had a chair in the middle of the room where the sunlight was hitting it perfectly. Stopped dead in his tracks, that one.

 This is our phone. We leave text messages for investigators or members, usually when we want to check their availability for a day or something. One of our teachers responded to Elder Vandenberghe, then Elder V tried to have a conversation through text messaging.

Elder V: Are you available...?
Brother Shipley: Yes
Elder V: Ok... How are you?

haha so funny.

 I am in love. With this bear.

 Sister and I on a windy Sunday!!!

 said goodbye to our elders as they left for temple walk. it was SO windy on Sunday, so we've gotsta be modest, you know.

Wow 48 orders! That's amazing! One of my teachers just got back from Thailand and she is dying because the food was so good! Seriously our teachers are so good and I have loved the MTC. Love Thailand and will love my mission, but right now I am just so happy to be here and am trying to live in the moment. Because all of these people are my best friends! I really will miss everyone. I have just loved the atmosphere of us all studying and working SO hard and then learning all that we are about the gospel of jesus christ and how it applies to everyone. Ahh, this is the best place. Seriously, I could give my homecoming talk right now, that's how spiritually amazing this place is. We are singing an original song tonight in choir. Wonder who is coming! Our choir director said it's not the prophet so...

 

but seriously. I am not leaving the mtc until I see Elder Holland.

 

on sunday after the devotional we went to go watch a devotional that was taped from thanksgiving given by elder holland. he asked his granddaughter who had just received her mission call to milan italy to come up and bear her testimony in the taping. she was TOTALLY in the room that we were watching the devotional in! She came in February 6th! President Eyring's granddaughter is also here!!!!! I see her sometimes! I saw Sister Lethco on Sunday! and I've seen Sister Hogge!!!!!!!!!!!! LOVE it! I finally know someone! haha

 

Anyways, my song went well this week. Totally cried, but that's expected. I have been asked to be the music coordinator here in our last few weeks! pretty cool. Sister Sahagun and I are striving to right down tender mercies of the Lord everday in our journal. Sunday: I found a cheese bagel! seriously. all they have on sundays is cereal and I was blessed to have a cheese bagel! I've been drinking 64 oz of water everyday! Going to the bathroom like mad! But it's good! Everyone makes fun of me trying to finish the whole thing during daily planning session at the end of the day. Sometimes I don't even finish it then. I will take it back to our residence and even after lights are out, after my personal prayer, I will just be sitting up gulping the last of my water! hahahaha.  

 

Sister and I were preparing for a lesson on revelation through church attendance and I'm talking about something Idont know. And she's like smiling at me and looking at me all wierd. I'm like, "What?!" She says, "You just have like a light about you." (Ugh! I probably rolled my eyes haha. but seriously love her SO MUCH!) Love the whole district. We've got our own table we claim now pretty much. It's SO wonderful! Ok, awesome time four square. Elder Hunt totally got out my khuu! (companion)

 

So once I got in, Elder Cutler served it to me and I did the scariest but most awesome hit towards Elder Hunt. Didn't even see it coming. Ok though mommy and daddy... Elder Hossman just left yesterday. So you HAVE to find him and feed him! You have 2 years! He's just so awesome!

 

OH MY GOODNESS! Last week, Sister Madsen TOTALLY swung her LUFA at me!!!! It's so funny. she just tries to make me upset. its all good though.

 

Quote of the day: Elder Hunt- "Sometimes I like to wear my yellow shirt and my bright orange hoodie and I look like sunshine!"

 

Yesterday in class, we were going to practice teaching with our companion. We watch videos about people in the world and then pick a topic in chapter 3 and then teach it to meet their needs. Yesterday it was repentance. Sister Roper wanted us to do demonstrate teaching first, so she asked me to. Just me, teaching her and all the other missionaries and the investigator. And the person we watched the video about was the same one that we watched a few weeks ago with Brother Shipley. I don't know if I told you about it, but Sister and I taught him about the gospel of Christ and I froze up. That was my wall. And it literally was the first time in my whole MTC stay that I cried myself to sleep. So you can imagine when Sister Roper asked me to do demonstrate teaching. usually the teachers do it!

 

But I felt so calm and ready. I felt the comfort of the spirit, Seriously. There's NO way I could have done it on my own. And that's why I LOVE being a missionary. We are entitled to these blessings. We have a beautiful mantle that people can learn from. But it's all through Heavenly Father. I have been focused on and been pondering about the love God has for us. And just having faith in his timing. We as missionaries don't have to fear. We are called by revelation to the places we are going.

 

We have had so many speakers who work with the quorum of the 12 when they assign missionaries to their locations and the testify of the revelation that takes place. There was a story of an Elder who had been called to Croatia. But by the time he left the MTC he could barely say, My name is... And then after 6 or so months in the field he still could barely say his testimony. they reassigned him to the states. One day they knocked on the door of a man's house who could not speak any English. The language he was speaking was familiar to the Elder and he realized it was Croatian. Long story short, the man was baptized.

 

Missionaries are only 2nd to the prophet, in being prayed for. We are the 2nd most prayed for people in the whole church! All we need to do is exercise our faith. And ALL of this is because He LOVES us! Missionary work is the most amazing thing we can do to show our love for Heavenly Father. Being engaged in the saving of a human soul is the most important thing in the universe and God is trusting me with that work. We are destined to win. 

 

Everything God does is devoted to the saving of His children.

 

All of that love, and I can put away 18 months. 100% focus on the work. Submit our will to God's and he will mold us to be what he wants us to become.

 

Everything I am doing right now, and for the rest of my life, will be for the Son of God.

 

Love, Sister Mullen

12 March 2013

WOW!!! 42 orders?! Amazing!!! You can do it! I will pray for you hahahaha! One of the counselors in our branch presidency, he served in Australia and that is where he went back and met his wife. and their son in law is half thai! Crazy connections.

 

UGH! SHAVING MY LEGS IS GETTING OLD! but gotta do it. we as missionaries are expected to ASTONISH people. but not in a negative appalling way... gotta be presentable.

 

Anyways, I'm so so so sorry if there's repeats. you can try and delete them if you have heard them already, but I'm writing so many letters and emails, I don't know what I say to who! Tried a 6 am session today at the temple! Was hard to stay awake but so nice to have the whole day now! AHHH! 2 language mistake embarassing moments... here you go:

 

So at TRC, that is where volunteers who speak Thai come and we just share a message about the gospel. I told this guy from hawaii that my dad went to thailand on his mission. and that my mom is thai too. but... you can correct me if I'm wrong, but what I said was... now just try and understand my pasaa elder... Ma khoong sidtee pen khon thai duay.

 

So after he followed me out and said, so you're a half kid and I'm like yeah. and then he says, I'm not a thai person.

all of this is in thai. and im thinking. ok ya i never said you were.

but does duay mean like... too or also... like, the same as you? so when i said my mom is thai too, did i say my mom is thai...just like you're mom is thai? I don't know. I was just like, looking at him all weird. like. ya i never said you were thai! AHHH! whatever.

 

and then yesterday our lesson with bukkhi... ok. first of all. i keep accidentally calling sister bukkhi, sister nun! who is our other investigator!!! Ah! anyways, so yesterday I wanted to commit her to continue reading in the book of mormon. We JUST learned continue which is thobay. but i said another word that is know which is tholodbay. SO I COMMITTED HER TO READING THE BOOK OF MORMON FOREVER!!!! SOOOOO embarassing.

 

so duay and tholodbay are not my favorite words. My favorite word is about: kiawkab. AHH! love it. There is an elder hossman here who is learning laos. he is going to sacramento. if you EVER have the chance... can you somehow feed him thai food or meet him! he's so funny. and just been so great. we play four square with him. seriously, i dont know how im going to feel not seeing these people everyday. its SO wonderful!

 

Also, I am doing ok with the language. Not sure if I told you about my breakdown the other week, but yeah. Just kind of hitting a wall. Basically just thinking too much about the future. Like, I've spent my whole life already trying to know thai and now I'm supposed to know it? I felt like I had already reached my limit. But oh my goodness.

 

This is different. I'm a missionary! AH! I am ENTITLED to these blessings that are coming. I will be able to speak with Khun Yai after a while, but more importantly I can share with her my love and knowledge of the reality of Christ. Thank you for raising me in this gospel. "If the foundation of faith is not firmly planted within our hearts, the power to endure will crumble."

 

This is what God has been saving me for.

 

I can TRULY testify of the power of the Spirit. We had a practice teaching experience yesterday where we were supposed to plan on teaching the restoration but keep in mind their needs and having the faith to be flexible to change it.  and I taught Sister Sahagun and found out her concerns with prayer and taught her a semi decent lesson on the love of god among other things. Then we were asked to do it again! and I was like, already surprised by how well I thought I did the first time, we evaluated and she didnt have anything to say to me, so I went in thinking what else am I  going to give her. So we try it again but the spirit led me in ANOTHER direction. and I connected and related the prayer of joseph smith to her and it was just as good!

 

the SPIRIT touches hearts. Conversion is a change of heart. We are merely tools in the hands of the Lord.

 

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! LOVE YOU! I will send something for you in the next couple days!

Love, Sister Mullen

5 March 2013

I just got sick a couple days ago! Drinking Dayquil constantly and getting semi-embarassing coughing attacks but it's all good.

So... I am still BOSS at four square. Not really. It's just that the Elders feel they need to avenge the Sisters so they are always competitive against other Elders. The Elders that get out a Sister are called Sister Slayers. Don't know if I've said that already.

I haven't sung yet. The Phii Thais are leaving next week so we changed my number to next week because we are going to sing God Be With You Til We Meet Again in Thai! It's so wierd We have been here for a month tomorrow! HALFWAY! We are getting two more investigators this week so that will be 4 in all! Learning more and more everyday! One of our investigators is more quiet than the other. We FINALLY got her to smile and talk more this last time. But the time limits we have (15-20 minutes) makes it so hard to progress and teach anything! But it's fine. We learned the role of the Holy Ghost in conversion and we know that its not us that are teaching to the hearts, it's the spirit. So we applied it last night and it went wonderful!

I'm trying harder and harder each day to be dignified. Getting better. Obedience with exactness is MAJOR and I know that it is what makes a good missionary different from a great one.

It has been my goal to read all the Book of Mormon before I leave the MTC! I started a few weeks ago so I had read 2 Nephi 4 and loved it! Took a while through the Isaiah chapters, and now in Jacob.

*Random, but I saw Bethany Knudsen here a while ago! ...I actually just saw someone that looked like her and it reminded me of that haha. She works here!

**Also, last week... OH MY GOODNESS! So, some of the Elders from The District work here. I saw one last week and was literally starstruck. SO COOL!

ok. and about last tuesday. singing consider the lilies... M. Russell Ballard came for our devotional and I was just a hot mess!!!!!! We sing prelude before the speakers come in, so our last prelude hymn was I Know That My Redeemer Lives. I was crying by the time we ended! it was amazing. We were just starting the last chorus and He walks in and the thousands of missionaries stand and keep singing. AH!

I am so happy to be a missionary. It's wierd when you think about my personality and me WANTING to teach people I don't even know, but when you know something it's not possible to just sit back. I LOVE teaching the Gospel. I just can't stop smiling when I come out of a lesson and you KNOW the Spirit was there with you teaching also. We watched a devotional from Elder Holland on Sunday called missions are forever. It was amazing. Basically, I'm just not going to waste anytime. I am set apart as a missionary. This may be the only time that is true. I can't waste it. I am ENTITLED to the blessings that come from being an obedient and faithful missionary. And I know what those blessings are so I'm not going to waste my time or His.

Well, another preparation day done. I will let you know about the call. I think it's like 5 dollars for a calling card but I'm not sure yet we'll see.

Love, Sister Mullen