I think I’m gonna like it here!

Posted on September 22, 2014 by sisterwaddoups

Hello!

I love Savannah!

Imagine in the background (little orphan) Annie singing “I think I’m gonna like it here!” These are pictures from my neighborhood, no big deal. There are some dangerous parts of Savannah (like there is in any big city) but the area is split in half and the elders have the down town and we get the islands. Sounds like a fair trade, right? haha

This week I attended my first ever low country boil. Pretty much a southern thing where they take freshly caught shrimp (because they can do that because we’re right on the coast) potatoes, sausage, and other such delicious things and boil them in huge pots and it is delicious. Remember how I didn’t like shrimp? Well…..I hadn’t ever had fresh low country boil shrimp. I am a fan.

All the missionaries in the zone were in a talent show. Elder G wrote a parody to “I’m Yours” where an elder gets dear-johnned and realizes his priorities were all off and he needed to focus on Christ, and guess who sang the part of the girl who dear-johns the poor elder? This sister. So that was fun and interesting. Elder P got it on camera, so I’ll steal it from him. I can’t send videos from the library computer, so we’ll watch it when I get home haha. It was really fun.

I’m running out of time, but my new address is [on Wilmington Island just south of Tybee Island and Hilton Head; I won’t post my address here but contact my mom for my local address].

Love you all!

Your Sister Waddoups

lauren.waddoups@myldsmail.net

Goodbye, Augusta!

Posted on September 15, 2014 by sisterwaddoups

Hey!

Guess what!

Shannon was baptized!

Me, Sister Hathaway, Shannon, Joey

Anna, Leah, Aaron, Nate

I love this family so much. There are no words to describe my feelings.

Shannon’s baptism was amazing- probably one of the most powerful and spiritual baptisms I have ever attended. She is amazing–this gospel has brought her so much joy and happiness. She is a different person today than she was when we first started teaching her, than she was last week. We talked to her after her baptism and she said “everyone told me I’d feel something, but I feel something. I feel amazing.” The spirit was so strong, it was undeniable. This is why I’m a missionary–to guide people towards true and lasting joy and happiness. I know that this gospel changes lives because I’ve seen it in others and I’ve seen it in myself. That is how I know this church is true.

In other news, I’m being transferred tomorrow! My time in the Stevens Creek ward has come to an end. I’ve grown so much in this area. I am a different person than when I came here. I’ve made some lifelong friends here and grown so attached to everyone. Stay tuned for next week to find out where I’m going and who I’m with!I love you all!

Sister Waddoups

lauren.waddoups@myldsmail.net

Miracles and miracles!

Posted on September 1, 2014 by sisterwaddoups

This week was a week of miracles!

We have been talking to and helping a woman whose husband has been battling throat cancer. For the past three months he’s had a stomach pump and it’s been touch and go as he undergoes radiation therapy. It has taken a huge toll on her; she has struggled under the stress and pressure of being a caretaker 24/7. We would stop by and talk with her, talk about Christ and his love and care for her and her husband. This past week when we stopped by, she had visibly changed. She saw us and just beamed. Her husband’s cancer, which was at a stage 4 at the previous test results, was now at a stage 1. The cells are still deteriorating, he is hungry and eating for the first time in months. It has been a huge miracle.

We lost contact with another woman for a few weeks; she is constantly busy and gone at work whenever we would try to visit with her. She was a very solid investigator, she had been to church multiple times and she had agreed to be baptized at one point. She is so loving and caring and watches for those around her and helps all those in need. Last night we drove past and finally caught her at home! We talked with her and her 14 year old son and she asked when she can be baptized! She set her own baptismal date of October 11th :)

There is a recent convert in our ward who has been struggling– she was raised Muslim in Iran, and when she went back for a funeral this past spring she received a lot of pressure to stop going to church and stop reading the Book of Mormon. The ward lost contact with her after she told a member about it, and the ward has been really worried about her. This week Sister Hathaway and I were finally able to make contact–she invited us in and we had a wonderful lesson with her. We asked about how she felt at the time of her conversion, and she recognized that the happiest she had been was when she was reading the Book of Mormon and was attending church and praying. She said she wanted that happiness again and realized that in order to have that happiness, she needs to continue to read and pray and attend church. It was a huge miracle that we were able to make contact with her and that she was so open to us about the things she’s been struggling with and that she was able to finally recognize why she was so happy and what she is missing and needing to bring back in order to have that happiness again :)