Jan 21

Mom,

Sister Olson and Olson St in Youngstown, OH

Well, we are still working hard and have lots of great things happening!  I don't know if I have ever told you that I am starting to really gain a strong testimony of Family History while being here, but it is happening.  A few months ago, when Elder Ballard was here, he told President Kirk that people were going to start finding themselves in the Kirtland Area (meaning Northeast Ohio), and not really know how they ended up here, despite other intentions.  He also said that we should help people focus on family history to specifically seek ancestors who were here in Kirtland with the saints.  I learned all of this as we taught with President Kirk to Jon and Julie.  It was amazing as President Kirk testified that that was why Jon and Julie had not gone to Arizona, like they had originally planned, but instead came to The Ohio.  We have been preparing them, and some other families for a class we are putting together in Youngstown on Family History.  We went over and taught a brief lesson on its importance and such, and briefly showed them how to use Family Search.  Jon then proceeded to tell us that we weren't going to be able to find any of his family.  About ten minutes later, with only a name and a death date, we had found more than 5 names for him to begin to work with!  He was literally bending the table in half as he leaned over excitedly seeing the information unfold!  What a great teaching opportunity for us!  I will let you know how the class goes.  The ultimate goal there is to help them prepare names to take for baptisms for the dead as soon as possible.

Alma St in Youngstown, OH

Sunday was also a great day.  Katie came to church, and seemed to have a good time.  The best part, however, came after church.  Here at the Alliance Ward, member baptisms happen after church generally.  So we stayed to witness Annie being baptized.  Her mother bore a powerful testimony, and told a bit of her conversion to the church.  Katie was excited to see a baptism, as she had never seen one, since she had only been to her own baptism.  After we sang I Am a Child of God, and the spirit was so strong.  These kind of moments make the freezing weather and rejection all worth it.  In that moment, we could feel the same spirit testify of the truthfulness of the gospel.  I know that our Heavenly Father loves us so much, and that we have been put into each other's lives for a reason.  We were foreordained to be where we are right now.  At some point in heaven I told Jon, Julie, and Katie that I was going to come down and find them.  We told each other we would help each other make it back one day.  That is what we did as a family.  I know that.  I am grateful for these experiences that help us remember why we are here.  I love you all. 

Love,

Sister Bakker

Dani and Sister Effe R.  

Jan 13

Dear Mom,

Just for the record, we survived the cold.  Some places were recording lows like -22, and such.  If your factor in the wind chill it was way colder!!!  So what do you do when it gets that cold, and you are quarantined into your apartment for 48 hours?  Well, let's just say there is only so much scriptures you can read during that amount of time.  We watched all of the videos in our apartment, which is basically the district, and made some pretty good food.   After that our week returned to normal, and we got back to work.  It felt so good to get outside again!  

We had a really great experience teaching a woman who I really feel a connection with named Sandy.  She is funny, smart, and has a pretty strong testimony.  She just has a hard time going to church.  This week she opened up a lot about some of her questions about the next life, and had some pretty deep questions.  It was a perfect opportunity to introduce her to the concept of patriarchal blessings and encouraged her to work towards hers so she can gain answers she has been seeking.  We actually did the same thing with Judy and Katie this week.  Everyone is getting their patriarchal blessings I guess!  

Our final really cool experience was last night with Julie.  We took her out with us to go teaching, and she did so awesome!  We taught the Plan of Salvation, and she bore her testimony on the power of prayer and how to receive answers.  It was so great to see how on fire she is about the gospel.  I have seen that whole family completely change in the last few months.  All of these little changes, and moments we have had all built up to one big miracle.  I love being here in The Ohio, and getting to see hearts change.  I know that when we have faith and work hard, Heavenly Father will take care of the rest (even when it is -22 outside).  

Luckily Ohio can't decide if it should be hot or cold, and we should be okay to work for the next while.  It is a whopping 45 degrees out there, which means it is warm enough to put the puffy coat away for a few hours.  YES!  I love you all.  Thank you for your support. 

Love,

Sister Bakker

Jan 6

Mom,

Today we have literally no time.  We are actually being quarantined to our apartments for the next couple of days.  The temperature is supposed to hit record lows these next couple of days.  Apparently a few minutes of exposure to the cold can cause serious frostbite.  Welcome to OHIO!  Ha!  It is unfortunate because we had so many great appointments set up for the next few days. 

Jon and Julie's Wedding

So this last week we received a random media referral from a lady.  We stopped by, and it turns out it is a lady who hasn't been to church in about 50 years, but is a member.  She referred herself, and told us it was time to come back to church.  How easy does it get?  She came to church and everything, and there was no need for us to resolve concerns.  Sometimes as a missionary you work your tail off all day, everyday, and see no success from the things you are doing (like going door to door).  As long as you are doing everything you can, the Lord will give you success.  Often times, that success comes in ways that you never thought it would, or expected.  It is a strange concept, but I have seen it time and time again. 

The wedding went  great.  As you know, I was the designated photographer.  Some things never change I guess, missionary or not. The ceremony was really very nice.  President Kirk married them, and Jon's parents came into town for the wedding and the baptism!  It was really nice to meet them, and they seemed to have a great time.  Jon's baptism was incredible!  So many people from the ward came out to support him, and the spirit was really strong.  Sister Olson and I gave an impromptu gospel message after the baptism.  Turns out all that experience from debate is paying off everyday! 

Jon's baptism

Sister Olson has really grown into her role as a missionary, and it showed so much on Saturday night.  I am lucky to have her as a companion.  Jon concluded the evening with a powerful testimony.  Everyone was so impressed by him, and everyone has so many questions on how he is progressing now.  I feel very blessed to be able to have been here for his conversion. 

I know that Heavenly Father loves us so much, and that he wants us to be happy.  I know that true and complete happiness comes from living the gospel.  The night of Jon's baptism, he told Sister Olson and I that he wished he had grown up in the church.  I didn't understand before what I had growing up, but I am so grateful to have been born into a family that loves the church.  I love you all!  Stay warm out in Utah. 

Love,

Sister Bakker

Dec 30

Hi Mom,

Christmas was a big hit for us.  We got to see a lot of people, but mostly it has been great to be so focused on our Savior this time of year.  To be honest, Christmas as a missionary is different but probably one of my favorite experiences so far. 

Lyssa (Dani's sister) sent mustaches for Christmas.

 

This week has been a bit chaotic trying to pull everything together for the baptism and wedding.  We have been working a lot with the ward, and in turn the ward has done so much!  You know how hard it is for me to not try and do everything myself...  Well, I guess you could say I am changing.  The ward has really gone above and beyond in helping prepare for decorations, food, and her dress.  They have done the same for the baptism.  I know that Jon's conversion and the family's return would not be nearly as strong is they didn't feel so much support from the whole ward.  Fellowship is SO important!  Everything I am sure is going to go off perfectly, or close to it.  I will be sure to inform you on all the details.
Guess who is the photographer for the day....  Some things never change.

 

On a different note, we met someone new in the ward this week.  Her name is Allison.  She joined the church about 10 years ago in Santa Rosa, CA.  She has been in Ohio for about 2 years now, and we just found her.  She is very intelligent, and fun to talk to.  She is 29, and it feels like she is my age.  That is probably because we don't get to work with people who are our peers very often.  She came to church yesterday, and had a great time!  Hopefully we will be seeing a lot more of her. 

 

We also met a man named Bob, who is 83.  He was referred to us by a man, who had no interest in the church what so ever, and randomly called us to give us Bob's information.  I felt very inspired to bring Julie along with us to teach.  He is a business man through and through, and reminds me a lot of Grandpa Bakker.  He is very smart, and seems to really like us.  He took a few minutes and was talking about some of his investments that he has been working on recently and was excited to have someone who understood about 5% of what he was talking about as far as his different projects go.  He wants us to help him with his family history.  At the end of our time, he offered Julie a job (which she has been on the hunt for).  The next day, Julie told us how she felt that she had needed to be there, not just for the job, but for Bob.  It was a really amazing experience for everyone who was there.  The Lord knows who, when, where, and why for everything.  I love being a tool for him to work through.

   

All is good in The Ohio.  The weather keeps us on our toes, and the work still continues.  I know that we are meant to be here at this time.  I love you all!

 

Love,

 

Sister Bakker

Dec 23

Hi Mom!

This week was really great!  There was a bunch that happened.  We ended up going to Kirtland with Jon, Julie and Carol.  I got to see The Johnson Farm for the first time, and that was a pretty incredible experience.  We then spent the rest of the day at the Historic Kirtland Village.  We were able to go around to all of the little homes and listen to the testimonies of the early saints.  Jon loved the history, and learning about the church that he has grown to love so much.  In the School of the Prophets, at the top of the Whitney store (also where the Word of Wisdom was reveled), Jon was able to bare his testimony on the power of the spirit and how he came to know the Book of Mormon is true.  Julie then bore her testimony on how it has given more purpose, and Carol even talked about her past experiences with the church and how she knew it was time to come back!  The spirit was so strong there!  So many exciting things are happening for their family right now!  Because of all of the changes, Carol's other daughter, Lora, decided it was time to come back to church also.  So she was there for the first time in years yesterday and brought her daughter Danielle!  That family has brought so much joy to the whole ward, and the changes that we have seen take place are tremendous.  It is just another testimony that this is our Savior's true church.  I know that he guides and directs our church. 

 

I love you all, and am grateful for your prayers and help.  I will talk to you soon! 

 

Love,

 

Sister Bakker

Dec 17

Hi Mom!

 We don't have tons of time today.  There is a lot that needs to be done this week.  We did have a week full of miracles though. 

So as you all know, Jon is progressing towards baptism.  We taught him the word of wisdom, and committed the whole family to live it.  Jon has been addicted to coffee for years and drinks about 72 oz a day.  The beauty of knowing that Joseph Smith is a prophet, is knowing that all the commandments are true.  He understood the law on both a temporal and spiritual level.  He stopped drinking coffee on 12/11/13, and has committed himself to be off of all caffeine by the new year because he doesn't want to have any addictions in his life.  So last Wednesday we went over, and were nervous if they had been living the law.  Everyone has been clean!  Neil even signed his last can of chew for us and Jon signed his last can of coffee!!!  That family is a miracle!  

I have been holding off on a lot of the details because not everything was set in stone yet due to some minor details....  So in order for Jon to be baptized, he has to be living the law of chastity.  So us, being the kind missionaries that we are, helped him and Julie set a date to get married.  They are getting married on New Years Eve!!!  President Kirk is going to be marrying them, and everyone has been running around frantically trying to pull everything together in time.  Jon is going to be baptized on the following Saturday on January 4th.  He is so excited!  Jon and Julie has asked us to speak at the wedding.  I never thought that I would be able to fall in love with a family the way I have with all of them.  They take really good care of us, and every time we go to teach a lesson, it feels a bit like home.  I love them so much! Tomorrow, we are going with the whole family to tour The Johnson Farm and Kirtland. 

The changes that they have all made in order to make and keep their covenants is a testimony to me of how important this gospel is.  I know that we are on the Lord's errand here to help people find the happiness it brings.  I love being a missionary.   

I love you all!  Talk to you soon, can't wait!

 Love, Sister Bakker

Dec 9

Hi Mom!

This week has been, in the words of Oliver Cowdry, "days never to be forgotten!"  Let me just start off by saying we made history this week!  A Christmas Mission Conference was held on Tuesday in the Kirtland Ohio Temple.  Never before has there been so many full-time missionaries in the walls of that temple.  Every missionary in the entire Ohio Cleveland Mission attended (250+), along with some of the stake presidents, as well as a member of the seventy were present for this glorious event.  Members tell us from time to time that it is hard to feel the spirit in the temple because it does not belong to the church anymore.  I can tell you that the spirit is present there, and it was in great abundance on Tuesday!  We sang The Spirit of God, Christmas songs, and concluded with our mission song.  I wish there was a way for me to describe how incredible that day was, but I can't seem to find the right words.  I didn't realize where I was coming when I received my mission call.  Like Sister Wixom asked last night in the Christmas Devotional referring the birth of our Savior, "what happened next?"  Well Christ appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith here and has declared that "Kirtland will be built up again."  Miracles. 

After the temple we toured the Historic Kirtland Village to visit the nationally acclaimed Nativity Exhibit there.  There are hundreds of nativities people have donated from around the world, and it is amazing to go and visit.  We have invited Jon and the whole family to go with us next week to take a tour.  I am excited to be going back.

We had a pretty great week with our lessons.  Jon is doing great.  This week we taught him, and the whole family the word of wisdom.  It is evident that he has a testimony because he didn't question it at all, even though he is addicted to coffee.  He drinks so much coffee every day, and has vowed to stop completely by this Wednesday.  The rest of the family has made similar commitments, and are still coming to church.  He witnessed one of the Elder's investigator, Ben Ward, receive the Holy Ghost yesterday, and was excited for the day he will be confirmed. 

The church is true.  I feel like Nephi sometimes when he tells us that he doesn't know everything, but I do know that God loves us, and that the gospel has been restored and that is enough.  Hope you are all having an amazing week!  Don't freeze back home.  I love you all!

 Love,

 Sister Bakker

transfers are next week so we should be getting on the computers on Tuesday.  just a heads up:)

also, did you know that Sister Olson is from Elder Arnold's (Andrew’s 2nd companion) home town  in Fallbrook, CA.  They know each other.  who would of thought that both rooster and I would have our second companions from the same itty bitty town...