Complete indescribable joy

Dear friends, 

HI!! How are y'all?! This week was great, especially because one day this week was my single most favorite day as a missionary. Saturday was truly the most incredible day. 

It was the day Aliza and her two children, Emma and Reid, were baptized. Words can not describe the complete joy felt in that room. I don't know how I got so lucky to witness Aliza and her family's full conversion. They have truly changed for the better and it's apparent to all who know them. They have learned what it means to truly repent and turn everything over to the Savior. One by one, Reid, Emma and Aliza entered into the font and were baptized and Sister Sant and I were able to stand in the back with them as they went into the water. When Reid came out of the water, he had tears in his eyes and said in the most innocent way, " I feel like a new person, and I can't help but cry." After all three of them were baptized, we stood in the changing room with them as they all cried and said they couldn't adequately express how they really felt right then, that they just felt completely clean. 

After the ordinance was performed, Sister Sant and I sang and I played guitar to the song, Joseph Smith's First Prayer. We made it a surprise for the family and at the moment we started to sing, Emma started bawling. I had to look away quickly or I would have completely ruined the song. The spirit was so intense. Then Aliza, Emma, and Reid were given the opportunity to bear their testimonies. I don't think I have ever felt the spirit stronger in my entire life than I did listening to their words in that moment. I couldn't stop crying because of the pure happiness I felt.

My mission is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I can not imagine a life without Aliza, Emma, and Reid. I can not imagine a life with out ALL the incredible people I have met in Florida and Alabama. My life will never be the same. Not to say the mission is a piece of cake, because it's not. It's been the hardest thing I have ever done, but also the most rewarding. I feel as though I can see just a glimpse of the love Heavenly Father has for His children. I feel so blessed to be the one to invite people to come home, to come back to their Heavenly Father. I am overjoyed. 

love, 

sister fletcher

Aliza, Emma and Reid's baptism!!!
Only the best day of my LIFE

Zone conference last week

Missionary Leadership Council

Me and my cute comp

Bye

Love Sis Corbett

LOVE THEM

Sis Housel - my bff

Exchanges with cute Sister Renfro!

The Poling family
(a cute family we started teaching
the gospel to!)

Love this woman

G-breezy

Hello!!! How are y'all?! I just love you guys so much. Hope it's been a good week! This week has been pretty dang crazy here in Gulf Breeze but super great. 

Remember Aliza?! Well, she and her two cute kids, Emma and Reid, are getting baptized on SATURDAY!! I feel so so so so blessed to know them and be teaching them and helping them come closer to Christ. Aliza is like the most golden human I have ever met. She is INCREDIBLE. This week, we taught the Word of Wisdom and she told us the next day, she looked at her coffee and wanted to throw up. WOW. She just totally understands the Word of Wisdom now. She has so much faith. She loves the ward and they love her already. Her children, Emma and Reid, love the church and are so excited for the day they can go into the temple. Sometimes when we are teaching their family, I have to remind myself that this is real, that people like Aliza and her family exist, that there are people in the world who are this prepared. This is the PERFECT time in their lives to accept the gospel and Aliza told us  she has already seen it bless her family so much. 

Anyways, we had another great lesson with them today and after, Aliza, being the talented hair dresser she is, highlighted my hair blonde and died Sister Sant's hair auburn! It was so much fun lol. 

I was on an exchange with Sister Adams in Foxrun this past week and we had the coolest experience. She and her companion, Sister Scott,  met a man,Stephen, a couple of weeks ago in front of his house. He expressed to them how he has felt a void in his life and that the gospel could really help him. He mentioned that he really didn't have any friends and had some fears about coming to church. Sister Adams and Sister Scott had been praying for the perfect member they could bring to one of their lessons. Well, when I was there, we had a member in the Foxrun ward come with us named Sister Smith. After about ten minutes into our lesson with Stephen, he looked at Sister Smith and said, "Wait a minute....I know you! We went to school together. I know you!!!" It turns out they were good friends back in college. He expressed that he always knew there was something special about Sister Smith. It made him feel way more comfortable and I think less nervous to come to church. It was such a tender mercy! It just testified to me that Heavenly Father really is all in the details. He knows exactly what He is doing and that I need to just fully trust in Him. 

THIS CHURCH IS TRUE. The Book of Mormon is the word of God and it can bless your life if you let it. I don't know where the heck I would be without this gospel but I am sure glad I am on the path I am. I have seen this gospel completely transform individuals and families. If I don't know anything else, I know that Jesus Christ lives and loves us, that Heavenly Father knows us all by name and is aware of absolutely everything we are going through. TURN TO HIM! Let Him help you, and He will, of that I can promise. 

I love you all!

xoxo, 

sister fletcher

Went to an Irish Pub in Pensacola with my two favorite
people EVER (we didn't drink I promise)

At Mcguires, you can hang money on the wall
and write your name on it so we did!

Love them

!!

Exchange with Sis Adams in Foxrun! I love her

Cute letter from my cute sister, Siena

Always in the car lol

Gnarly Hurricane Irma last week

Oh how I love Aliza!

Wait, there's a hurricane?

Hey guys!! 

This week was NUTS! We went everywhere and anywhere. We drove about 900 miles since Tuesday... Sister Sant and I went on an exchange in Tallahassee on Wednesday. We then we had MLC (mission leadership conference) in Crestview. On Thursday night we came home and the next day, drove out to Brewton, AL for another exchange. Then on Saturday we had an "emergency zone conference" combined with the Mobile zone in Daphne, AL. Our mission president cancelled ours for today because of the storm. This week has been quite the adventure and I'm EXHAUSTED!

Hurricane Irma has made things pretty crazy too. On Wednesday when we were in Tallahassee, our mission president told us to buy lots of extra water in case the hurricane kept us locked up inside. We all went to Wal-Mart and it was insane. Everyone and their dog was there. There was a huge line to get the cases of water and we had to wait for the shipment to even come in. Also that day, all the gas stations were turning their lights off and shutting down. It felt like the world was ending. 

Luckily, my area in Gulf Breeze isn't really being effected by the hurricane. We are getting some strong winds and rain but that's about it. It just breaks my heart to hear about all those who have been and still are being affected. 

At zone conference this week, our mission president asked us this question, "Why are you here?" It really caused me to think and ponder. There is a section in, "Preach My Gospel," that tells you to imagine the last day of your mission and to ask yourself this question, "What differences do you want others to notice in you once you are home?" I have been thinking about that question a lot the past few days. I want others to know that I have loved, that I have accepted people and helped them change and repent but that all comes through loving them first. I also feel as though my knowledge of the gospel has grown SO much and I am so thankful for that. I feel so so so blessed to have chosen to serve a mission and I am determined to make these last few months the greatest. 

I love you all SO much. Thank you for your prayers :))

love, 

sister fletcher

The most incredible view at dinner yesterday!
Yeah, a member in our ward lives in a hotel...nbd

!!

Members giving us canned food for daysssss

My cute friends!

Me and my comp!

Exchange with Sis Burnham!

This is where I live?!

Tallahassee, FL

Shut down gas station!

We found an acai place in Tally!!

My fav!

Miracle Week :)

Last Monday we had a lesson in a beach house on Pensacola Beach with two new investigators, Mike and Sandee. It was literally the most beautiful home I have ever seen. I felt like I was on vacation in Hawaii or Tahiti or something. I still can't get over how lucky I am to be serving in Gulf Breeze.  It is SO beautiful and there are SO many prepared people here. We taught them the plan of salvation because they had a son who recently passed away at the age of 27. It was such a spiritual lesson! I am so grateful for Heavenly Father's plan of happiness that he orchestrated for us to be able to return and live with Him and our families one day. 

Last week I mentioned Cynthia! Well, we were able to see her a couple of times this week and she came to church again yesterday!! During our gospel principles class (the second hour of church) we were discussing missionary work. Our ward mission leader mentioned that Cynthia will one day get baptized and she interrupted him in mid sentence and said, "I AM getting baptized on the 30th!!!" She also made the cutest comment, "It's like God sent me these two girls right here." AWWW. Then we went to Relief Society (the third hour of church) and during opening exercises, the Rlief Society president mentioned that some of the women need to volunteer to feed our zone of missionaries for zone conference next week. No one had raised their hand yet but after like two seconds, Cynthia's hand shot up and she said, "I can cook everything!" It was so funny. She is the cutest. She isn't even a member of the church yet and she is volunteering for all these different things! Later, a lady in the ward joked that Cynthia should be the Relief Society president! I agreed! hahaha. After church that evening, we got the funniest phone call ever. Cynthia and Jeremy, her boyfriend, are engaged but weren't planning on getting married for a while. It's been the elephant in the room that she needs to get married before she gets baptized. Sister Sant and I were going to discuss it at the next lesson along with the law of chastity but some of the women after church told her if she gets baptized, she needs to get married first and explained it all to her. One of the ladies in the church called us and told us what happened. Apparently a bunch of the women freaked out and started legit planning her wedding. They already have the Bishop on board to marry them and they said they will start looking for a dress and figure out a way to fly her parents out. It was SO funny. That's something we will be doing over the next few weeks, planning Cynthia and Jeremy's wedding! I'm super excited because we get to be bridesmaids ;)

Aliza and her family are doing so well! We had two great lessons with them all this week and then on Saturday they went down to Ocala, FL, to visit some of her family. Before we even mentioned it, she told us she will be going to the church down there. IS SHE PREPARED OR WHAT?!?! Oh my gosh, guess what! Her mother-in-law is a MORMON!! Who knew?! 

 I love lessons with Aliza. They are always so spirit-filled and emotional. It makes my heart so happy :) Aliiza, her daughter, Emma, and her son, Reid, are getting baptized on September 23rd!!! Could life get any better!??!?!

I just feel so blessed to be a missionary and to be able to learn more about Christ and His gospel through teaching others and seeing repentance in full swing. I have had a lot of reflection this week about my mission, about all the wonderful people I've met and the person I am becoming. I really needed my mission to allow me to turn more towards Jesus Christ and understand his Atonement. Before my mission, I seriously don't think I knew much of anything, or at least understood much of anything. Some people are already awesome and don't need the experience of a mission to grow their faith and turn them more towards Christ, but I did, and still do. I feel like I now know my Savior. I now understand the plan of happiness God has for us. I now can say with 100% certainty that I will be with my family forever. 

Without Jesus Christ's atonement it would be hard to get out of bed every morning. It would be impossible to know complete joy. It would be impossible to repent and become better. I feel so grateful for the knowledge I have gained and the opportunity I've been given to impart that knowledge to others. How great is my calling!! 

I love y'all,

-sister fletcher

My address:

3113 Woods Way, #2

Gulf Breeze, FL 32563

Cynthia at church!!

Zone leaders who showed up to Saturday sports night
with each companionship repping either
Alabama or FSU.  Little did we know the
real teams were actually playing each other
that night. Of course, Alabama won :)

Showing off our new FREE Luluroe leggings!
#perksofbeingamissionary