Training 4 Ukraine : bila tserkva

This week started off great. I said goodbye to all the people I love in Tairova Odessa and I travelled up to Kyiv and then about an hour south to Bila. It is a small town and I already feel lost and brand new because almost everyone hear speaks Ukranian. It is like I am back to day one when I did not understand anything. ;)

As for things that I did this week, when I arrived Sister Young and I started a 6 week English fast and it is amazing how much I have improved in Russian in just 3 days of giving up English. I am so excited to give this gift to the baby Jesus for Christmas this year. I want God to know that I am here for Him, and that I will do anything for Him and for His work.

One of my miracles of the week was that I got to meet an angel here in Bila. She is about a 70 year old invalid that we got to wash and give her a thought. She is such a faithful member and will do ANYTHING for her Savior. She asked me if I had ever washed an invalid before and I told her I had not and she told me, "Now you know." I told her that she is a beautiful daughter of God. It was just one of those moments straight from heaven and it can not fully be described. She still wears her temple garments too even though she can barely move and someone else has to put them on her. It was so touching and I already love her so much. God is good. I got to meet an angel.

As for another great thing this week! DANYA GOT BAPTIZED. Finally finally finally it all happened like it should have and my cute Danya chose to follow the example of Jesus Christ and get baptized. There were some really nice Senior missionaries who carried me all around on their ipad so I could be there. I got to say hi to my people in Tairova and it was adorable, everyone just stared at me. The only hard part was I got to see everything but the actual baptism when the internet suddenly cut out and I missed it. I started to silently cry, just because I so badly wanted to be there and could not and then so badly wanted to see it but couldn't. But then my companion did something amazing. She wrapped me in her arms and she cried with me. That to me was a beauutful witness of the baptismal covenant in action because she was mourning with me as I mourned, and I learned a sweet lesson there. Later on the internet was working and I got to see Sister Ivancovich give her first talk on the Holy Ghost for Danya and give him a blanket I got for him and sowed his name into. He then got up and bore a powerful testimony and I felt so warm and like it was so right. It was beautiful day. DANYA IS BAPTIZED!

Questions from mama:

How is your new area? Are you settled yet? How is Sister Young? How are you handling all of the new responsibilities? What a blessing to be able to lead and influence the sisters around you. How many sisters are you in charge of? How is your ward?

The branch here is really big and that is such a switch for me, but the feeling here is definitely special. I already love bila and I am grateful to be here and to work really hard! I believe that because of the faith and the strength I feel here already that there will be a temple in this city someday. they are amazing and already a part of the kyiv stake. I am getting settled, I think I just need at least a week. Sister Young is amazing and it is so fun to come back after being together i the MTC and thinking we could never speak Russian to being together and only speaking in Russian. God is going to bless us and this area and this work and it is so fun to be a part of it.

So far I really love being an STL and I really want to give myself to these girls because sometimes life gets hard, and I understand, and we can stand taller because of the trials and the lessons we learn from heaven. I have only 6 wonderful sisters and it is going to be absolutely amazing.

I love you all. The work is moving forward and this is one of the best times on my mission. I finally feel like I can just go go go forever. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY and I love you all. We are all children of God and he loves us. That is the WHY in him sending His son, to save us all.

12 more days until Christmas. What gift of sacrifice are you giving to the baby Jesus this Christmas?

I love you!

Love,

Cectpa Karren