Transfers yet again...

Ceau!

Have I ever told you that I have the most amazing family in the world? Because I do. I just love reading your emails every week and hearing about what is going on in your lives and the way you are living the gospel. You are all incredible and you will never know how much you inspire me to be better.

So, transfers are here this week and I will be staying put in Arad:) I figured that would be the case considering the new training program is a 12 week (2 transfer) program. However, I was nervous my time in Arad was up. Glad to report that it's not. Sora Ewell was right when she told me that I wasn't called to serve in Romania... I was called to serve in Arad. It's a good thing I love this city with all my heart.

Speaking of Sora Ewell, she will be training this transfer as will Sora Modzelewska. I am so proud of both of them and know that they will give those two Sisters an amazing start to their mission. I know this because they both gave me an amazing start to my mission. I love them both so dearly.

So, this being the end of the transfer, I figured I would give a recap of all the crazy things that have happened this transfer. More crazy things this transfer than any other transfer. It has been a roller coaster ride! And quite a fun one. I always tell myself to remember to write home about them but then Monday comes and I completely forget to tell you. So, I'm taking this opportunity to tell you all the funny and crazy things Sora Rivera and I have experienced. Her first transfer has definitely been an adventure!

• Getting thrown up on while on the tramvai. That was fun. Okay... I didn't get thrown up on, but the lady sitting next to me on the tramvai, (after I contacted her and got her phone number, of course) just leans over and started throwing up a whole lot of alcohol. I had no idea she was drunk. She was acting a little funny, but I guess I didn't think anything of it. I might act funny if a stranger sat down next to me and started talking to me about Jesus, too. I wasn't really sure what to do... so I just asked her if she was okay. I didn't want to be rude and just get up and move. So I just sat there as she threw up all over the place. It smelt awful!!! And I learned that day that the smell I have been smelling all over the place is alcohol! I had no idea what it smelt like and that that was what I was smelling everywhere. Now that I know what that smell is, I realize how many people smell like beer. I don't like it. Anyway, this was a bizarre experience and Sora Rivera just sat back and watched the whole thing, laughing.
• Caroling with an opera singer. While caroling, we found ourselves an opera singer who started singing with us! He asked if we knew one of the Romanian carols and if we would sing it with him. Not knowing he was an opera singer, when he started singing, I had the hardest time holding in my laugh. Not because he was a bad singer, he was fantastic, I just wasn't expecting such a loud, bellowing voice to come out! It was awesome. 
• Getting yelled at for over an hour by one of my favorite members who has literally gone crazy. (I didn't know that at the time.) She has lost her mind a little bit and she just full on yelled at me for being a few minutes late to the appointment that wasn't really a set time. I just sat and cried as she yelled. Now, we just laugh at the experience. Mostly because if I don't laugh at it, I might start crying all over again. It was a weird experience. 
• I already told you about the lady who asked us to meditate with her and raised her hand to the square and meditated with us, right? Pretty sure I did. That was among one of the weird experiences.
• Getting "kidnapped" on Christmas eve by a secret agent and going caroling all over Arad. That was exciting. I am not sure that any explanation of this story would make sense, so I'll just leave it at that. 
• Remember how last week I told you we felt an extra amount of protection from the spirit. Well, I wasn't going to tell you the story, but maybe it will be a comfort to you to know that Heavenly Father really is watching out for us. So we were taking a texi across town because we were running a little late and as we were approaching the first taxi at the taxi stop, I had the slightest thought to just go to the next taxi. The thought wasn't anything more than just "Maybe let's choose a different taxi." And unfortunately, I brushed that thought off and we got in the taxi. As I got in after Sora Rivera and closed the door, I immediately felt that something wasn't right. I told the taxi driver where to take us and he just looked at us with such a confused face. He went to go start the car, hesitated, and then pulled back and looked at us again. (This isn't normal.) Sora Rivera and I looked at each other and we both knew we needed to get out of that taxi. I felt the spirit screaming at me to get out. I turn to open the door and the it wouldn't open. I check to see if it's unlocked. Yep, unlocked but the childlock must have been on. Surprisingly, I didn't start panicking. However, I didn't like that I could feel the Spirit yelling at me to get out and I feeling like that was impossible and that I was stuck. All the while, the taxi driver is fiddling with something in the front seat while looking back at us every few seconds. I can honestly say that as he looked at us, I have never seen so much evil in someone's eyes, but at the same time, felt so protected. I looked in the front seat to see what he was playing with and noticed that his radio was off. (Not like the music radio, like the receiver for the taxi service.) Almost without thinking, I turned to the door, unrolled the window, stuck my hand outside and opened the door from the outside handle and we got out. As we got into the next taxi, I felt so much peace realizing that we were safe. I turned to Sora Rivera and expressed exactly what I felt about the experience we had just had and that I knew that that taxi driver was planning something and the spirit stopped him from doing it and that is why he hesitated and that is why he looked so confused. He didn't understand what was stopping him and she felt the exact same way and told me she knew we weren't supposed to get in that taxi. We are both very grateful the spirit protected us and we are now very aware to every thought we have and are doing our best to not ignore them. Don't freak out. Mom... dad... I mean it. I promise we are safe. This experience made me even more grateful that we have Elders in our area.
  

So, there you have it. A transfer full of fun, exciting, once in a lifetime (hopefully) experiences. I love missions! Especially in Romania! Although, I don't have much to compare it to... but I'm sure anywhere else just wouldn't be quite as exciting! :)
This week has been a wonderful week of former hunting and finding! (In other words, Area Book contacting!) We have a few new investigators datorita (thanks to) our Area Book and the wonderful record-keeping missionaries who served here in the past! One of them being Elena. She is wonderful. Very well known in her Bible and all the doctrine within it. She agrees with everything about our church except for redeeming of the dead. She says she hasn't seen that anywhere in the Bible. Of course she has, she probably just didn't understand the meaning of it. We told her we would go over that in our next lesson. We are really working with her to gain a testimony of the restoration and the Book of Mormon. If she can gain a testimony of those two things, the rest (all the "little" details) should fall into place.
Another investigator is Tina. Tina is also wonderful. We found out she is still reading the Book of Mormon and is currently on Alma 54. She loves it. Her husband is very impotriva (meaning, he's against her meeting with us) so that is our roadblock with her. We're hoping that his heart will soften and that he will at the very least allow her to keep meeting with us, if not open his heart to the gospel all together. How wonderful that would be. We are meeting with Tina tomorrow. According to her record, she has a history of cancelling the day of. I hope and pray that doesn't happen.
Although we have met with several people this week, those two seem the most promising and where we will be putting our priorities. We're excited to start teaching English this transfer so we can hopefully get a few investigators from that. Please pray that we will have a good turn out for English this transfer. It is truly our best contacting and finding tool. I am praying that people who are prepared to hear and accept the gospel will come to our English class this transfer.
This week, as I was studying in 1Nephi 16, I learned something SO NEAT. Well, it was neat for me. It was the part where Nephi's bow breaks and Laman and Lemuel, whose bows also broke, are angry at him and once again start murmuring. It got me to thinking, how many of us are dependent upon other people's "bows" for "food" once our bow has broken. Does that make sense? I mean, are our testimonies based upon someone else's actions? Is our happiness dependent upon someone else? Or do we place the responsibility of making us feel love on someone's shoulders? Maybe like Nephi's bow, it will work for a little bit and that person does such a good job at making us feel love or at giving us a testimony or making us feel accepted or happy, but just like that bow isn't perfect, neither is that person you are relying on for any or all of those things. They might do something wrong or "break", like the bow did, and then what? However, unlike that bow and unlike everyone else around you that you might rely on for happiness, love, a testimony and so forth, Christ is perfect and we can always be dependent upon him for those things. He will never leave us feeling comfortless. We can place all of our faith, hope and trust in Him and He will never break. How comforting is that? We always have someone to rely on who we can know will never let us down. So it got me to thinking and I have made it a constant effort to make sure that I am not relying upon anyone else's "bow" for "food", unless that person is my Savior.
I got to speak in church yesterday! I love speaking in church. I love the process of preparing a talk and learning and being led by the spirit to know what to speak on. It is a little exciting for me. However, the not so exciting part is giving a talk in a language that I don't speak very well! But, the Spirit helped me through it and I was able to give the talk! I decided to speak on the process of receiving revelation. I've learned a lot about this process over the last few transfers. I think I've shared this already, but I'll share it again. The process I've found and as I've studied it I've realized it's ALL OVER in the scriptures is this:

1. being humbled and recognizing we must seek outside of ourselves for answers; that we don't have all the answers ourselves (JSH 1:8 "it was impossible for a person young as I was, and so unacquainted with men and things, to come to any certain conclusion who was ^bright and who was wrong." He realized he didn't or couldn't have all the answers himself.)
2. having a desire to know the truth. (1Nephi 11:1 "For it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen" 1Nephi 2:16 "For I, Nephi...also having great desires to know of the ^amysteries of God") Our desires dictate our actions. If we want to lose weight, we exercise. If we want money, we find a job.
3. Seeking for an answer. In other words, doing something about our desire to know truth. This includes reading the scriptures, pondering, and, of course, praying. (1Nephi 11:1 "I sat ^apondering in mine heart" 1Nephi 2:16 "I did cry unto the Lord") Sometimes, this means that we have to come up with our own solutions and take them to the Lord. Just like with Ether when he asks God how to light their boats and God asks Ether what Ether would have Him do for there to be light in their boats. Sometimes (most of the time) we need to bring something to the drawing board. This is the step that we get to show our faith and hope that not only Heavenly Father is listening to us, but that He will answer our prayers.
4. This step is the only step that doesn't require action on our part and that is the actual receiving an answer and comes on God's time and will. He might respond and guide in a number of ways. It is this step that we get to figure out how Heavenly Father works in our lives.
5. Praying to know if the answer you received is correct and if there is anymore that you were supposed to receive. After Joseph Smith receive the revelation to go and pray after reading James 1:5, it says he reflected on it again and again. We should do the same with the answers we receive.
6. Expressing gratitude for our Heavenly Father's guidance and ACTING on the answer we received. This step is crucial in showing Heavenly Father that he can trust us with more revelation in the future and showing Him that we have faith in Him.
   

Anyway... this is the process I've found. Maybe what you've found is a lot more useful for you, but this really has helped me in knowing the steps I need to take in order to receive my Heavenly Father's guidance... (PS... go read Moroni 10:3-5 with this process in mind. It blew my mind!!) I love it.
Okay, this email is a novel. Apologies!!
I hope you have an amazing week and you know how loved you are. I pray for each of you and that God will bless you with exactly what you need and the strength to overcome any challenges you may face in your lives. I trust that He is blessing you in abundance and know He is watching over you.
I am safe, healthy and happy. I promise. So much gratitude for my time here; loving and soaking in every second I have to be a servant of the Lord in this way.

v-am pupat,
Sora Cook

Pictures... We went ice skating today! Sorry I don't take more pictures. I will start doing that this transfer considering it is probably my last here in Arad.

Ps... happy birthday this week Granty Goo Goo and Olivia!!!!! LA MULTI ANI! SA CRESTI MARE! MULTI INAINTE!

another ps Something that maybe I should clear up. When I talked about being out until 12:30 on New Years, we had permission from President Hill to do so. I'm sorry I lacked saying so in my email last week. I guess I just figured that you knew me well enough to know that if I was out past curfew, it was with permission to do so. But, I'm happy to clear it up, nonetheless.

Our district ice skating :)