Week #2

This week has been so awesome! My feet, shins, hips, shoulders, EVERYWHERE hurts, but i LOVE IT! The members here are awesome, they would do anything for us. We set a goal one day to set 5 qualified appointments, then on our way home we had only set 4 we had about an hour to set one more, and we ended up setting 4! so a total of 8 that day, which was such a blessing. We are teaching this lady Elyza, and her two sons. They are going to be baptised on the 10th! we are so excited for them, they LOVE the bible so much, and she's come to know that the book of mormon is true also. She's so awesome and has such an amazing desire to follow Jesus Christ! Everytime sister sly and i would stop in a store, we would buy chocolate bars. Then we soon realized we need to stop eating so much candy, so now, we will only get them if we reach our weekly goals, or if we have a really bad day. haha, we were knocking doors and found this guy named wayne, probably in has late 20's and he told us that he thinks that Jesus was genetically engineered.. like how we can clone animals and stuff now, he thinks that's how Jesus was created. I was trying SO HARD to not laugh at him while he was talking! I could not keep a straight face, he was so nice though and gave us a referral! To this woman named Borka who lives down his street, so we went to Borka's house, and she has a BEAUTIFUL garden, so we just started off telling her it was so amazing and she just brought us inside and showed us the back, and then she was like 'omg sisters, this morning i burned my boob! and showed us......... Sister sly and i didnt know what to do. we had just met this woman! but we got her number and it was already in our phone as a former investigator, whiich was really interesting. So we're going to go back and visit and see what happened. It's amazing here in Dublin though, it's been a sunny week which is so awesome. one day i was even hot! i couldn't believe it! it's probably only like 65 degrees but i was dying!

Yesterday during the sacrament, i just felt the spirit in such a different way than i ever had before. I was just so grateful for Jesus Christ. I felt like i received a greater understanding and appreciation for his sacrifice and love for us. I really love being a missionary, and it honestly breaks my heart when i see those without the gospel in their lives, or when people think that some commandments dont matter. We were talking to a recent convert, urska last night, and she was talking about her and her husband going through the temple to be sealed and she was like nervous about the church's standards on modesty and i was exactly the same way as she was before, she was like i'll have to get rid of my clothes! and i just told her, honestly, as you dress more modestly, your self esteem will go up. You will feel better, you don't have to worry about things showing, or who sees you however you're dressed. It just makes me so sad when people dont realize the importance of gospel things. Going to the temple isn't just something you do, you are given power when you keep those covenants, and you are only given even MORE blessings! but you have to have the right attitude. And i hate being upset about it because i was exactl the same before, but it just like hurts my heart to hear those things. Like if these people only knew the great blessings and enlightenment they could recieve if they did everything with a willing heart. I know tat since i've been living the gospel, i feel so much better in every possible way. I feel literally like i was in darkness and now i can see and think clearly! satan only wants to drag us down to destruction and cloud our judgement of what is right and wrong. I am so graetful to have this knowledge, and to continue growing these next 18 months, and the rest of my life. 

I love you all and i hope you're doing awesome! :)

#seveninseptember

#arisefordublin

-sister Clarke

Hello from Dublin 15!

Wow this week has been crazy. I left the MTC on tuesday the 16th, traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland to the mission home, we had training kind of stuff all day, i got my new companion Sister Sly! She is so awesome, She's from park city, utah, and shes only been out 3 months! so it's still new for her too. but she is amazing, she wants to work hard and to do her best, so that's what we're doing! Then we left Edinburgh at 5am on the 17th, took a bus, a ferry, and 2 more busses to Dublin. We got home at like 7, then went straight out street contacting. The next day was a normal day, we were finding all day, we were supposed to have 2 lessons but both fell through. On the 19th, i had to get my garda card, allowing me to live in Dublin for a year, so we had to wake up at THREE am! i was so sad hahaha we were there until like 12, and then went out to work! so sleep has not been good. But i'm doing good! There are awesome members in this ward. They feed us, and will do anything for us. Last night, we were knocking doors (or chapping as we call it, i don't know why) and in 45 minutes, we set 3 appointments and placed a book of mormon. Which was awesome! that never happens. We ride busses everywhere, we dont have a car or bikes, but i don't mind it really. It's nice walking everywhere, sometimes it's SUPER rainy, but the weather changes really fast so it's no big deal! I invited 4 people in the street to be baptized, nobody actually answered the question. hahaha the first guy was like @i'm too busy right now', and it was actually really funny. but you probably had to be there. I love you all! i am doing so great, and you are all so awesome! keep me in your prayers, and i will keep you in mine :) Love sister Clarke

No Captain Crunch on Tap!

hey guys! we only have an hour so i'll get all the general stuff out in a big email! The MTC is so great! honestly, i was a little scared to be here because i was told it was like school and i was thinking dang son, i absolutely hate school! BUT it's all about the gospel, and I love the gospel with all my heart! I have learned so much already, and i'm excited to continue learning. i decided to not eat gluten anymore, and i feel great! They didn't know that when i first got here though, so i didnt eat for like 4 days really because i was nervous, and travelling, and blah blah. so i've lost 10 pounds.. but also, we just eat 3 times a day and i cant have any of the sweets because they all have gluten so i really havent been eating sugar either! haha i hope to keep that up because i feel so good. the food is good also, things i wouldnt normally eat i have been trying and they're decent! haha they make special food for me without gluten so thats awesome. i don't have to just eat salad. MY companion is cool, her name is sister ritschard (rishard), she's from colorado. she's one of the missionaries that i flew here with, so it was kind of cool that i already knew her! it's crazy, i was really never one to talk to new people, but i love talking to everyone here! except, it's full of 18 year old boys so they always make dumb comments about flirting. and i just have to say that's inappropriate. like there's 10 girls here am i just supposed to talk to them? no. But i made one good friend, elder perez, he's from spain! so his english isn't good, but he's really cool. Almost everybody here is from utah hahaha. literally. i'd say probably like 20 out of i think 96 arent! so the foreigners are like where are you from? and i say arizona, they're always like, is that in utah?! hahaha! i love my companion, we disagree on teaching things, but i let her so what she wants to do so that i'm not just taking control of everything because i cannot do that no matter how much i want to! haha but it works out good. when we got here, out president was like 'sacrements theme is the atonement, everybody write a talk and we'll let know know when it starts who's speaking' hahaha so GOOD thing theres only one more reular sunday! its crazy, time feels so slow, but also SO fast! i feel like i've been here forever, but it's only been a week! there's some elders in my district that really don't know wy they're here and they get mad at all the rules and just disregard some of them. and like.. it may seem like not a big deal but those are things we have been asked not to do. as representatives of the lord Jesus Christ, we have to live on a higher plane, and follow a higher standard, so that we may be recognized and so! and it just makes me sad, i always just tell them to pray about it but, they're 18 year old boys. I just wish everyone could gain their own strong testimony. a mission is not a trip for fun, you are going to invite others to come unto Christ and teach hem about the restored gospel, and how can you possibly do that if you haven't done that yourself? if you don't believe it? you can't. the spirit won't be there. but, everyone has to learn at some time. you know? i hope i'm not just rambling. I'm having so much fun here, it's a little bit hard, but i don't feel stressed. heavenly father prepared me to be here, and everyday i am reminded of how he knows me, individually. he knows my struggles, and things i need help with and if i ask in faith i know he will help me through it. i only cried one time, (besides in teaching lessons because of the spirit), and that was because my teacher knows sister dudley! and he asked me about her and i got so sad that i'm over in england, and so is tiffany and we are not together! haha i love her so much. one time i was sad, and she read me the book, you are special, and honestly i think that changed my life. She cared enough about m, and though that about me, but also just the message that that story brings is so true. it only matters what god sees in us, and as we care only about him and what he wants for us, rather than what everybody else thinks of us, we can find true peace and happiness. And i know that, because i truly have. I read alma 5:7, i dont have my scriptures right now, but please go read it. That scripture is exactly how i feel. i was in darkness, lost, and Christ illuminated my life. i found direction, purpose, peace and joy. I love you guys SO very much! send me letter pls. omg my district came in and they were like sister clarke you have a letter! so i was all excited and i went over to the mail box, and GUESS WHAT IT WAS. it was something telling me i needed another shot! hahaha i was so sad, because i had gotten all excited that it was from one of you guys. but i thought it was funny. i love you guys! remember heavenly father loves you!