Extended Zaporozhyean exchanges

This week was possibly the biggest adventure of my entire mission. It all started last Monday morning when we got a call from Vova, that incredible young man in Dnepr who is employed by the Church to keep all of the missionaries legal (not to mention he is also branch president and takes care of his wife and three children). He told us that Sister Burgoyne would need to be up in Zaporozhye on Wednesday in order to do some registration. For those of you who are familiar with missionary registration in Ukraine, it is something that we drop everything to do in order to follow the laws of the land so we can continue to preach in this choice nation. So we dutifully canceled all of our plans for Wednesday, and Tuesday night headed up to Zaporozhye, a city about 5 or 6 hours by train north of Simferopol. After doing our usual studies Wednesday morning at the apartment of the lovely sisters in Zaporozhye, we were informed that there was no way we would be able to do registration that day, since the necessary documents were no longer ready. That, of course, meant that we would not be able to return home by Thursday, so we canceled all of those appointments as well and planned to spend the day going on exchanges in Zaporozhye.

That Wednesday in Zaporozhye was one of the best days of my mission, and it really emphasized to me how important the missionary exchange is as a teaching and training tool. I had the time of my life as I walked around the streets of Zaporozhye, first with Sister Peterson, and then with Sister Hodgson, watching miracles occur around us. Despite the stress and confusion of registration, I felt an incredible peace, knowing that God had a hand in bringing us to Zaporozhye and that there were specific things that we needed to accomplish while we were there. There were miracles that happened that could not have occurred without the extra two sister missionaries there. 

I was able to participate in a lesson with a babushka who has a daughter and granddaughter who are members of the church. As we talked with her, I knew without a doubt that I specifically needed to be on that lesson. I had had a very powerful experience the previous morning, and I know that part of the reason I had it was to bless the life of this woman. When I woke up, I had a very burning question on my mind, and I earnestly petitioned the Lord for an answer. During my personal study a bit later that morning, I suddenly remembered the previous week as I was flipping through the Russian Liahona. I had seen the title of an article written in the index in the middle of the magazine, and I felt like I should write down the issue and page number in order to find it later. So i found in my planner where I had written it down and I searched for that issue. Luckily we had it, and the article spoke to my soul, bringing me peace and answering the question to which I so desperately needed advice. So during this lesson, when this woman brought up that exact same question I had had, my heart burned and I was able to share the knowledge and testimony that had been reaffirmed to me the day before. It was a very powerful experience for me, and a witness that God knows each of His children personally. He knows all of our needs and He knows where we will be and with whom we will be speaking. I'm grateful that He was able to use me in that way to bless the life of His daughter. 

Thursday morning dawned bright and clear and after studies, we were again informed that we would not be able to do registration that day. So we sadly canceled all of our plans for Friday and conferred with the Zaporozhyean sisters as to how we could best strengthen their area. And that day was so miraculous!! I spent part of the day finding with Sister Burgoyne and part of it with Sister Peterson. And the Lord sent so many people to us who were searching for the gospel. I was almost overwhelmed with how many people were willing to listen to us. It was especially exciting to me that we were able to find two families!! It makes me so excited when parents and children learn about the restored gospel together, and I'm grateful that we were able to play a small role in helping a couple of them come closer to Christ. Even though I'll likely never get to teach any of the people we met that day (and all the other days in Zaporozhye), I love them so much and I hope that they accept the gospel and that someday I can meet them again. We also found an inactive member of the church and a former investigator who had at one time had a baptismal date. I pray that some of the things we told those women will help them desire to again come closer to the Savior.

Friday morning we were finally able to do registration! Well, part of it. It turned out that we still needed one more person to do something in order to finish everything. They told us that we probably couldn't finish registration until at least Monday. (I'm sure anybody who has ever been on a mission can imagine the distress that filled my heart at the thought of being away from my beloved investigators and area for so long . . .) We also found out that Sister Peterson would need to be down in Simferopol to do registration on Tuesday. So we coordinated some massive exchanges and bought train tickets for me and Sister Peterson to return to Simferopol, while Sister Burgoyne and Sister Peterson would remain in Zaporozhye so that both areas could be taken care of until all of the registration was figured out. Phew. We worked the rest of that day in Zaporozhye and were again overwhelmed by miracles, a couple of them including teaching a lesson to a couple very nice women on a bench and meeting four students from the Philippines who wanted to learn more about the gospel. In those few days, I came to understand why Sister Hodgson always refers to her area as the "city of miracles." I'm incredibly grateful for those few days I had in Zaporozhye and all I learned. God is such a merciful, all-knowing God!

There are few things as beautiful as a Saturday morning train ride through the Ukrainian countryside. And one of those more beautiful things is finally coming home to Simferopol after an unexpectedly long trip. :) We had a wonderful lesson with Patricia that afternoon. That was one of the most powerful lessons of my entire mission! She shared some concerns about her upcoming baptism, and before we could say anything, her stalwart boyfriend jumped in - "I know the church is true." As he said those words, I was nearly moved to tears because the spirit was so strong. He continued to bear his profound testimony and I sat in awe. That was one of the sweetest moments of my life. I love both of those young people so much, and I am so grateful for their efforts and desires to come closer to our Savior.

Saturday and Sunday in Simferopol were filled with wonderful lessons, miracles, and blooming trees. It feels quite good to be home. :) And I'm enjoying working with Sister Peterson as we spend an undetermined length of time together. I know that this is the work of the Lord and that He is in charge of everything that goes on. Sometimes He uses registration to get us exactly where we need to be. And I'm grateful for that - I'm grateful that He will put me where He needs me, and I pray that I can be the effective, powerful missionary He called me to be. I love this work!

-Sharisa