Welcome Home Sister Winkler “Angelina”…Thank YOU…Thank YOU.

She is home!

From now on this blog will be run by Angelina Esther Ione Winkler personally.  Thank you everyone for your support during her mission.  We are ALL so appreciative and we couldn’t have done it without you…

John, Brenda, Jackeileen, Angelina and Clifton Winkler

So Much Change…I Love Being a Missionary…GENERAL CONFERENCE…God’s Grace is Sufficient for Us All…See You Soon.

I will see you in a couple of days.  It doesn’t seem real.  Makes me sick not because I don’t love you, but because it is so much change.  I am so excited to see you all! 

https://www.lds.org/liahona/2015/04/president-monson-calls-for-courage?lang=eng&media=audio#listen=audio

GENERAL CONFERENCE WAS SO AMAZING!!!!!!!!  I loved it so much.  We’ve been sharing it with everyone.  We watched it with a less-active family in their home.  B——– is being baptized on the 25th and she has promised to send me her pictures and testimony.  I am so excited for her.  She is so solid.

I love being a missionary.  I know the gospel of Jesus Christ is meant to bless my life and will help everyone.  I know God’s grace is sufficient for each of us.  I love doing His work.  Got much that needs to be done today.  Love you lots and lots.  Sister Winkler

General Conference…Excited to see you…Nervous to go Home…Sad to Leave Here.

General Conference has been great!  Loved it. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQN0gqa9Izk&index=1&list=PLClOO0BdaFaNLBDOODhdANnTRwtMv4nqd

We had a rough week, but it was for the good.  We had many tender mercies. 

I am excited to see you all soon.  Little over a week!   Nervous to go home and sad to leave here.  Love, Sister Winkler

Sweet and Cute…Is He Ready to Learn?…Forever Friends and Dear Places…Zoo Visit.

My companion,

Sister H——- is sweet and quite cute.  She sets a good example and is a hard worker.  We are doing great.  We picked Z—— H——- back up and he has got lots of questions that I cannot answer.  He called us to come back after we had done all we could at the time.  We agreed to meet and teach him again but we are not sure he is ready to learn?!?… He is a difficult one. 

We went to the Zoo here today, it was a lot of fun.  I am treasuring these last few weeks in Florida and as a missionary.  So many forever friends and dear places here.  I cannot do all the miracles justice that are happening here.  It is so good.  Crazy how fast people come home from their mission.  Eighteen months or two years, it passes so fast!  Anyways, I love you.  Sister Winkler

Thanks for the news from home…This little piggy went to…New Family History apps…Sarah Neat Passey

Thanks for all the updates from home!  This week has been great.  Exciting things have been happening here and in the mission.  We had a family history Convention and we got to help people getting started on Family History and we also got to attend some classes.  They have come out with some new apps for Family History and it is really neat to read some of those stories and see what happened in their families. 

https://familysearch.org/

I read about Sarah Neat Passey who joined the church in England and travelled to Paris, Utah to escape the persecution.  Her whole story was really interesting and funny.  Almost everyone there was not a member of the church.  In reading her story, she told her grandchildren (who sometimes attended the Presbyterian Church). ” Remember girls and boys I could have stayed in a better country than this and been a Presbyterian.”

https://familysearch.org/apps/product/6e64fe02-4549-4b1b-9d90-09b616da344b?name=PUZZILLA

I am proud of you giving your talks on minutes of notice.  That is how it feels out tracting.  hahaha  Here we are at the Ward Hawaiian Party last week.

AND mixing with the locals…”this little piggy”…so cute.  Love to all.  Sister Winkler

I Often Go Walking…Temple for the First Time…Baptism…Adopted Turtle…Tan Lines Here to Stay…Luau HUGE Success…Suggestions from the Spirit.

This is Karl before going to the temple for the first time, (along with our ward mission leader, Brother J—— on the right).   To quote our Mission President Craig, “I hope you all feel like I do in sitting in front of a spiritual fire hydrant.   What an incredible week we have had with the visiting General Authority.  Late Sunday evening before he was about to leave we asked him if there was anything he would like to offer in the way off suggestions about our mission.  He said, “When I asked the question at the first of the conference I asked, “What are one or two questions that you have?  Where your questions answered?”  Of course I told him that they were.  He said, “Then that is your answer.  It is not about what my suggestions are that matter, it is what the Spirit has suggested and taught you that matters.”

Thank you for the email and sharing those wonderful experiences shared about Calgary West Stake Conference.  It is true, “If The Book of Mormon is true, what else matters?”

You can’t tell from this sideways photo, I got so burnt in the sun!  These tan lines are here to stay!  We had Elder Kopishka come to our mission.  It was mission changing.  We talked about the faith cycle in Alma 32: 27-29. 

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/alma/32?lang=eng

We talked about the power and the action, how we have control over the action and only after we do not cast it out (ye have no witness until after the trial of your faith) do we receive the power.  Faith always goes through action first Faith= Action + Power.  Maybe I can share this in Family Home Evening for a lesson?  He also talked about our purpose two parts as missionaries.  To INVITE and to HELP.  He was a divine example to, “As many as I love I rebuke and chasten” ( Revelations 3:19).  He had Doctrine and Covenants 121:41-43 written on the fleshy tables of his heart.

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/121?lang=eng

We talked about things that we liked about the prophet Joseph Smith.  One attribute we discussed was his determination to go against the status quo.  I am not sure if he said this or if I just wrote it in my notes, but I wrote, “I am here because of a man that has these attributes.”  When I reviewed my notes this stuck out to me.  Personally, I look back on the times when we read The Book of Mormon together as a family as a strengthening time.  I am grateful for the good.

I got the care package before the 14th of March so brother probably got his too.  Thank you!  Our Ward Luau was a huge success.  We had one of our investigators sign for it and she was really good.  We also had many members bring friends, plus we had two investigators come to the baptism afterwards.  It was so great!  We have a lot of people progressing towards baptism in this area right now.  Keep praying for us! 

I am sad that I will not be released by President Stephen Miller but I know the new Stake Presidency will be great too.  Here is a photo of a turtle a family in our Ward found in their pool.  They adopted him.  He is about three weeks old.

Here is a link to The Gospel Principle Manual where I was studying this week.   It really struck me and I felt like you would like to read it as well:

https://www.lds.org/manual/gospel-principles/chapter-41-the-postmortal-spirit-world?lang=eng

These flowers remind me of you.  I know you love poinsettias!  Reminds me of the primary hymn, I often go walking…Love you, Sister Winkler

 

Thanks for being so supportive and reassuring…Elder Kopischke of The Seventy…Believe in a higher power.

We biked a whole lot this week and loved it!  We had to climb a fence to get to our destination so we threw our bikes over the fence then over we went.  We now are sporting the ripped tights look!  We met a new investigator biking down Blanding Blvd. and just waked along with her as she talked about her life as a recovering addict.  She told us that previously she had given up on the idea of God, but in recovery you have to believe in a higher power to overcome it. 

I believe that is why God has made us the way we are.  When we come to the very edge we have to reach out for some kind of help.

We had three people at church this Sunday.  We are hoping for five this coming week.  We may have to stop teaching L—M— so he can grow.  Elder Kopishcke  of the Seventy is coming on Friday.  We are having a Ward Luau this Saturday that we will hopefully have a bunch of investigators at.  The young men are doing the Haka and we will be cooking two pigs in the ground. 

Melissa has moved to Lethbridge!????!!!Nooooo, who will cut my hair when I get home?  hahaha. Okay I won’t stress.  All will work out, I’m just focusing on the work.  Thank you for being so supportive and reassuring sister.  I love you all so much.  MUAH!  Sister Winkler

“Can I get an Amen?”…Book “The Power of Everyday Missionaries”…Last Transfer.

 

We swapped churches this week.  We attended the Orange Park Baptist Church.  It was really loud.  The man who we attended with started praying for us and talking about how it is a sin to read The Book of Mormon.  The preacher was condescending to us, the people were very nice.  They had brightly colored banners hanging around the chapel bearing the names of Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father.  During the meeting, people were proclaiming aloud, “It’s true!”  “Amen.” and “Hallelujah!”  After the meeting the man who invited us was just beaming and told us that the preacher was “on fire.”  Some of the doctrine was off.  An experience.  An older man in Gospel Principles Class a few weeks ago brought up that you used to be able to tell specifically the differences in doctrine and be able to pinpoint what religion others were right away off the bat but now they are all over the place.  Many accepting the same teachings that we have always accepted and known because of a modern day prophet and The Book of Mormon.  Crazy how an extra witness can solidify the truth.  Can I get an, “Amen?” hahaha  Anyways these are my thoughts on that Sabbath experience.

Last transfer happened and I am staying here in Orange Park with Sister Hatch which is great.  Sister Jeanne L—– told me Dad wrote her on Facebook.  She loves you guys.  She needs to have her name on the prayer roll of the Calgary temple too.

We met this man yesterday after being stuck in traffic FOREVER and learning every single verse to, “Follow The Prophet” and learning how to rap better.  We got out of the car just desperate to walk and talk to people.  We met this awesome man washing his car and he was really excited about the Book of Mormon that we gave him!  He told us that he had a lot of extra time on his hands of late and was excited to read and PRAY about it.

Sister T——- W—– is such a mother to Sister Hatch and I.  She has a daughter on a mission and we are teaching her son.  She is a single mother and gives most all her time to her children.  She cares so much about them.  It is so sweet.  There is a book called, “The Power of Everyday Missionaries” by Clayton M. Christensen.  If you have got it specifically on page 67.  He goes through these different things he’s noticed and gained a testimony of by sharing the gospel.  What’s worked and is logical.  The gospel can be applied to all situations in life.  Such a good book!  Well that is all I can share with you for now.  I love you sooo much. Sister Winkler

Off Facebook for two months solid…Baptism…Crazy to hear about all the missionary homecomings there…Elder Zwick

I just posted this picture and link on my Missionary Facebook page.  We are going to be doing a Facebook reset in the mission.  So we will all be off Facebook for two months solid.  It will be a good switch up so we can get trained.  It will also be the last transfer that I am a missionary.  I will get trained up then who knows how I will be able to use that after my mission. 

http://www.mormonchannel.org/blog/post/putting-power-in-your-prayers-al-fox-caraway

We are all going to the Temple in Hawaii and Arizona when we are back.  What do you think about that plan Sister?  Looking forward to each day.  Good to hear about all the missionaries coming home.  I heard that Mikayla H—– is going on a mission.  Great!  One baptism this week.  It was a miracle to see how everything just worked out.

I took the photo sideways and (mom cannot stand them upright) decided better sideways photo than not at all.  We had Mission Conference this past week.  Elder Zwick came and so did Elder Hemmingway.

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2014-04-2080-elder-w-craig-zwick?lang=eng

This visit they spoke about being protected online.  Elder Zwick talked about our personal accountability.  He also talked about being on a positive personal trajectory for our entire lives and how that starts on our missions.  It was so nice to see Elder Zwick again.  He’s so incredibly nice and being in his presence is the best ever!  Florida is doing well.  I keep sitting down in front of this computer on Monday and can’t remember everything that I wanted to tell you, then I remember the next day!  I love you lots and lots.  Sister Winkler

Covenant making and keeping…2 Nephi 10…Success and Failure…Always have Florida in my heart.

W—– came to church!  He is growing and learning quickly.  At the end of our Saturday lesson with him we invited him to pray.  He wanted me to be the voice, it was interesting to think about how an investigator would need to pray to receive an answer.  When we organized a ride for him to get to church, another investigator that the elders were teaching brought him.  They came together!  That was a miracle!

A—- is preparing to be baptized next month!

G—– has prayed about The Book of Mormon and has started to read it!

We are using a survey about families and God.  We got to share our testimonies of The Book of Mormon with a lady this week because of it.

C——– our previous baptism date person has been missing of late.  We saw him last week and set up a ride for him, but when the person came by to pick him up at 8:30am he was not there.   We just keep loving him…

I am learning more reading through the Book of Mormon this time.  Covenant making and keeping.  I was just reading 2 Nephi 10 and all I could think about was making covenants. 

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/10?lang=eng

I love The Book of Mormon.  As missionaries we see some people try to put it to shame or throw confusion at it, it stands alone as a witness of Christ.   I will always have Florida in my heart.  Love ya’ll more each day.  Sister Winkler